'Yes, yes,' said Kasatsky, lowering his head. 'And how is it,

Pashenka--do you take part in Church life?'
'Oh, don't speak of it. I am so bad that way, and have neglected

it so! I keep the fasts with the children and sometimes go to
church, and then again sometimes I don't go for months. I only

send the children.'
'But why don't you go yourself?'

'To tell the truth' (she blushed) 'I am ashamed, for my
daughter's sake and the children's, to go there in tattered

clothes, and I haven't anything else. Besides, I am just lazy.'
'And do you pray at home?'

'I do. But what sort of prayer is it? Only mechanical. I know
it should not be like that, but I lack real religious feeling.

The only thing is that I know how bad I am . . .'
'Yes, yes, that's right!' said Kasatsky, as if approvingly.

'I'm coming! I'm coming!' she replied to a call from her
son-in-law, and tidying her scanty plait she left the room.

But this time it was long before she returned. When she came
back, Kasatsky was sitting in the same position, his elbows

resting on his knees and his head bowed. But his wallet was
strapped on his back.

When she came in, carrying a small tin lamp without a shade, he
raised his fine weary eyes and sighed very deeply.

'I did not tell them who you are,' she began timidly. 'I only
said that you are a pilgrim, a nobleman, and that I used to know

you. Come into the dining-room for tea.'
'No . . .'

'Well then, I'll bring some to you here.'
'No, I don't want anything. God bless you, Pashenka! I am going

now. If you pity me, don't tell anyone that you have seen me.
For the love of God don't tell anyone. Thank you. I would bow to

your feet but I know it would make you feel awkward. Thank you,
and forgive me for Christ's sake!'

'Give me your blessing.'
'God bless you! Forgive me for Christ's sake!'

He rose, but she would not let him go until she had given him
bread and butter and rusks. He took it all and went away.

It was dark, and before he had passed the second house he was
lost to sight. She only knew he was there because the dog at the

priest's house was barking.
'So that is what my dream meant! Pashenka is what I ought to

have been but failed to be. I lived for men on the pretext of
living for God, while she lived for God imagining that she lives

for men. Yes, one good deed--a cup of water given without
thought of reward--is worth more than any benefit I imagined I

was bestowing on people. But after all was there not some share
of sincere desire to serve God?' he asked himself, and the answer

was: 'Yes, there was, but it was all soiled and overgrown by
desire for human praise. Yes, there is no God for the man who

lives, as I did, for human praise. I will now seek Him!'
And he walked from village to village as he had done on his way

to Pashenka, meeting and parting from other pilgrims, men and
women, and asking for bread and a night's rest in Christ's name.

Occasionally some angry housewife scolded him, or a drunken
peasant reviled him, but for the most part he was given food and

drink and even something to take with him. His noble bearing
disposed some people in his favour, while others on the contrary

seemed pleased at the sight of a gentleman who had come to
beggary.

But his gentleness prevailed with everyone.
Often, finding a copy of the Gospels in a hut he would read it

aloud, and when they heard him the people were always touched and
surprised, as at something new yet familiar.

When he succeeded in helping people, either by advice, or by his
knowledge of reading and writing, or by settling some quarrel, he

did not wait to see their gratitude but went away directly
afterwards. And little by little God began to reveal Himself

within him.
Once he was walking along with two old women and a soldier. They

were stopped by a party consisting of a lady and gentleman in a
gig and another lady and gentleman on horseback. The husband was

on horseback with his daughter, while in the gig his wife was
driving with a Frenchman, evidently a traveller.

The party stopped to let the Frenchman see the pilgrims who, in
accord with a popular Russian superstition, tramped about from

place to place instead of working.
They spoke French, thinking that the others would not understand

them.
'Demandez-leur,' said the Frenchman, 's'ils sont bien sur de ce

que leur pelerinage est agreable a Dieu.'
The question was asked, and one old woman replied:

'As God takes it. Our feet have reached the holy places, but our
hearts may not have done so.'

They asked the soldier. He said that he was alone in the world
and had nowhere else to go.

They asked Kasatsky who he was.
'A servant of God.'

'Qu'est-ce qu'il dit? Il ne repond pas.'
'Il dit qu'il est un serviteur de Dieu. Cela doit etre un fils

de preetre. Il a de la race. Avez-vous de la petite monnaie?'
The Frenchman found some small change and gave twenty kopeks to

each of the pilgrims.
'Mais dites-leur que ce n'est pas pour les cierges que je leur

donne, mais pour qu'ils se regalent de the. Chay, chay pour
vous, mon vieux!' he said with a smile. And he patted Kasatsky

on the shoulder with his gloved hand.
'May Christ bless you,' replied Kasatsky without replacing his

cap and bowing his bald head.
He rejoiced particularly at this meeting, because he had

disregarded the opinion of men and had done the simplest, easiest
thing--humbly accepted twenty kopeks and given them to his

comrade, a blind beggar. The less importance he attached to the
opinion of men the more did he feel the presence of God within

him.
For eight months Kasatsky tramped on in this manner, and in the

ninth month he was arrested for not having a passport. This
happened at a night-refuge in a provincial town where he had

passed the night with some pilgrims. He was taken to the
police-station, and when asked who he was and where was his

passport, he replied that he had no passport and that he was a
servant of God. He was classed as a tramp, sentenced, and sent

to live in Siberia.
In Siberia he has settled down as the hired man of a well-to-do

peasant, in which capacity he works in the kitchen-garden,
teaches children, and attends to the sick.

End

• ashamed [ə´ʃeimd] a.惭愧；不好意思 (初中英语单词)
• mechanical [mi´kænikəl] a.机械的；力学的 (初中英语单词)
• forgive [fə´giv] vt.原谅，谅解，宽恕 (初中英语单词)
• sincere [sin´siə] a.真挚的；直率的 (初中英语单词)
• reading [´ri:diŋ] n.(阅)读；朗读；读物 (初中英语单词)
• writing [´raitiŋ] n.书写；写作；书法 (初中英语单词)
• gratitude [´grætitju:d] n.感激，感谢 (初中英语单词)
• frenchman [´frentʃmən] n.法国人 (初中英语单词)
• evidently [´evidəntli] ad.明显地 (初中英语单词)
• christ [kraist] n.基督 int.天啊! (初中英语单词)
• beggar [´begə] n.乞丐 (初中英语单词)
• passport [´pɑ:spɔ:t] n.护照；通行证；执照 (初中英语单词)
• capacity [kə´pæsiti] n.容量；智能；能力 (初中英语单词)
• scanty [´skænti] a.贫乏的；节省的 (高中英语单词)
• pilgrim [´pilgrim] n.旅行者；香客 (高中英语单词)
• awkward [´ɔ:kwəd] a.笨拙的；为难的 (高中英语单词)
• housewife [´hauswaif] n.家庭主妇 (高中英语单词)
• finding [´faindiŋ] n.发现物；判断；结果 (高中英语单词)
• horseback [´hɔ:sbæk] n.马背 (高中英语单词)
• superstition [,su:pə´stiʃən, ,sju:-] n.迷信(行为) (高中英语单词)
• nowhere [´nəuweə] n.无处；不知道 (高中英语单词)
• wallet [´wɑ:lit] n.(放钞票等的)皮夹子 (英语四级单词)
• nobleman [´nəublmən] n.贵族 (英语四级单词)
• parting [´pɑ:tiŋ] a.&n.分离(的) (英语四级单词)
• gentleness [´dʒentlnis] n.温和，温柔 (英语四级单词)
• provincial [prə´vinʃəl] a.省的 n.外省人 (英语四级单词)
• timidly [´timidli] ad.胆怯地 (英语六级单词)