章节正文
completely lost to sight. At last he returned and took the
reins from Vasili Andreevich's hand.
'We must go to the right,' he said sternly and peremptorily, as
he turned the horse.
'Well, if it's to the right, go to the right,' said Vasili
Andreevich, yielding up the reins to Nikita and thrusting his
freezing hands into his sleeves.
Nikita did not reply.
'Now then, friend, stir yourself!' he shouted to the horse, but
in spite of the shake of the reins Mukhorty moved only at a
walk.
The snow in places was up to his knees, and the sledge moved by
fits and starts with his every movement.
Nikita took the whip that hung over the front of the sledge and
struck him once. The good horse, unused to the whip, sprang
forward and moved at a trot, but immediately fell back into an
amble and then to a walk. So they went on for five minutes.
It was dark and the snow whirled from above and rose from
below, so that sometimes the shaft-bow could not be seen. At
times the sledge seemed to stand still and the field to run
backwards. Suddenly the horse stopped abruptly, evidently
aware of something close in front of him. Nikita again sprang
lightly out, throwing down the reins, and went ahead to see
what had brought him to a standstill, but hardly had he made a
step in front of the horse before his feet slipped and he went
rolling down an incline.
'Whoa, whoa, whoa!' he said to himself as he fell, and he tried
to stop his fall but could not, and only stopped when his feet
plunged into a thick layer of snow that had drifted to the
bottom of the hollow.
The fringe of a drift of snow that hung on the edge of the
hollow, disturbed by Nikita's fall, showered down on him and
got inside his collar.
'What a thing to do!' said Nikita reproachfully, addressing
the drift and the hollow and shaking the snow from under his
collar.
'Nikita! Hey, Nikita!' shouted Vasili Andreevich from above.
But Nikita did not reply. He was too occupied in shaking out
the snow and searching for the whip he had dropped when rolling
down the incline. Having found the whip he tried to climb
straight up the bank where he had rolled down, but it was
impossible to do so: he kept rolling down again, and so he had
to go along at the foot of the hollow to find a way up. About
seven yards farther on he managed with difficulty to crawl up
the incline on all fours, then he followed the edge of the
hollow back to the place where the horse should have been. He
could not see either horse or sledge, but as he walked against
the wind he heard Vasili Andreevich's shouts and Mukhorty's
neighing, calling him.
'I'm coming! I'm coming! What are you cackling for?' he
muttered.
Only when he had come up to the sledge could he make out the
horse, and Vasili Andreevich standing beside it and looking
gigantic.
'Where the devil did you vanish to? We must go back, if only
to Grishkino,' he began reproaching Nikita.
'I'd be glad to get back, Vasili Andreevich, but which way are
we to go? There is such a ravine here that if we once get in
it we shan't get out again. I got stuck so fast there myself
that I could hardly get out.'
'What shall we do, then? We can't stay here! We must go
somewhere!' said Vasili Andreevich.
Nikita said nothing. He seated himself in the sledge with his
back to the wind, took off his boots, shook out the snow that
had got into them, and taking some straw from the bottom of the
sledge, carefully plugged with it a hole in his left boot.
Vasili Andreevich remained silent, as though now leaving
everything to Nikita. Having put his boots on again, Nikita
drew his feet into the sledge, put on his mittens and took up
the reins, and directed the horse along the side of the ravine.
But they had not gone a hundred yards before the horse again
stopped short. The ravine was in front of him again.
Nikita again climbed out and again trudged about in the snow.
He did this for a considerable time and at last appeared from
the opposite side to that from which he had started.
'Vasili Andreevich, are you alive?' he called out.
'Here!' replied Vasili Andreevich. 'Well, what now?'
'I can't make anything out. It's too dark. There's nothing
but ravines. We must drive against the wind again.'
They set off once more. Again Nikita went stumbling through
the snow, again he fell in, again climbed out and trudged
about, and at last quite out of breath he sat down beside the
sledge.
'Well, how now?' asked Vasili Andreevich.
'Why, I am quite worn out and the horse won't go.'
'Then what's to be done?'
'Why, wait a minute.'
Nikita went away again but soon returned.
'Follow me!' he said, going in front of the horse.
Vasili Andreevich no longer gave orders but implicitly did what
Nikita told him.
'Here, follow me!' Nikita shouted, stepping quickly to the
right, and seizing the rein he led Mukhorty down towards a
snow-drift.
At first the horse held back, then he jerked forward, hoping to
leap the drift, but he had not the strength and sank into it up
to his collar.
'Get out!' Nikita called to Vasili Andreevich who still sat in
the sledge, and taking hold of one shaft he moved the sledge
closer to the horse. 'It's hard, brother!' he said to
Mukhorty, 'but it can't be helped. Make an effort! Now, now,
just a little one!' he shouted.
The horse gave a tug, then another, but failed to clear himself
and settled down again as if considering something.
'Now, brother, this won't do!' Nikita admonished him. 'Now once
more!'
Again Nikita tugged at the shaft on his side, and Vasili
Andreevich did the same on the other.
Mukhorty lifted his head and then gave a sudden jerk.
'That's it! That's it!' cried Nikita. 'Don't be afraid--you
won't sink!'
One plunge, another, and a third, and at last Mukhorty was out
of the snow-drift, and stood still, breathing heavily and
shaking the snow off himself. Nikita wished to lead him
farther, but Vasili Andreevich, in his two fur coats, was so
out of breath that he could not walk farther and dropped into
the sledge.
'Let me get my breath!' he said, unfastening the kerchief with
which he had tied the collar of his fur coat at the village.
'It's all right here. You lie there,' said Nikita. 'I will
lead him along.' And with Vasili Andreevich in the sledge he
led the horse by the bridle about ten paces down and then up a
slight rise, and stopped.
The place where Nikita had stopped was not completely in the
hollow where the snow sweeping down from the hillocks might
have buried them altogether, but still it was partly sheltered
from the wind by the side of the ravine. There were moments
when the wind seemed to abate a little, but that did not last
long and as if to make up for that respite the storm swept down
with tenfold vigour and tore and whirled the more fiercely.
Such a gust struck them at the moment when Vasili Andreevich,
having recovered his breath, got out of the sledge and went up
to Nikita to consult him as to what they should do. They both
bent down involuntarily and waited till the violence of the
squall should have passed. Mukhorty too laid back his ears and
shook his head discontentedly. As soon as the violence of the
blast had abated a little, Nikita took off his mittens, stuck
them into his belt, breathed onto his hands, and began to undo
the straps of the shaft-bow.
'What's that you are doing there?' asked Vasili Andreevich.
'Unharnessing. What else is there to do? I have no strength
left,' said Nikita as though excusing himself.
'Can't we drive somewhere?'
'No, we can't. We shall only kill the horse. Why, the poor
beast is not himself now,' said Nikita, pointing to the horse,
which was standing submissively waiting for what might come,
with his steep wet sides heaving heavily. 'We shall have to
stay the night here,' he said, as if preparing to spend the
night at an inn, and he proceeded to unfasten the
collar-straps. The buckles came undone.
'But shan't we be frozen?' remarked Vasili Andreevich.
'Well, if we are we can't help it,' said Nikita.
VI
Although Vasili Andreevich felt quite warm in his two fur
coats, especially after struggling in the snow-drift, a cold
shiver ran down his back on realizing that he must really spend
the night where they were. To calm himself he sat down in the
sledge and got out his cigarettes and matches.
Nikita meanwhile unharnessed Mukhorty. He unstrapped the
belly-band and the back-band, took away the reins, loosened the
collar-strap, and removed the shaft-bow, talking to him all the
time to encourage him.
'Now come out! come out!' he said, leading him clear of the
shafts. 'Now we'll tie you up here and I'll put down some
straw and take off your bridle. When you've had a bite you'll
feel more cheerful.'
But Mukhorty was restless and evidently not comforted by
Nikita's remarks. He stepped now on one foot and now on
another, and pressed close against the sledge, turning his back
to the wind and rubbing his head on Nikita's sleeve. Then, as
if not to pain Nikita by refusing his offer of the straw he put
before him, he hurriedly snatched a wisp out of the sledge, but
immediately decided that it was now no time to think of straw
and threw it down, and the wind instantly scattered it, carried
it away, and covered it with snow.
'Now we will set up a signal,' said Nikita, and turning the
front of the sledge to the wind he tied the shafts together
with a strap and set them up on end in front of the sledge.
'There now, when the snow covers us up, good folk will see the
shafts and dig us out,' he said, slapping his mittens together
and putting them on. 'That's what the old folk taught us!'
Vasili Andreevich meanwhile had unfastened his coat, and
holding its skirts up for shelter, struck one sulphur match
after another on the steel box. But his hands trembled, and
one match after another either did not kindle or was blown out
by the wind just as he was lifting it to the cigarette. At
last a match did burn up, and its flame lit up for a moment the
fur of his coat, his hand with the gold ring on the bent
forefinger, and the snow-sprinkled oat-straw that stuck out
from under the drugget. The cigarette lighted, he eagerly took
a whiff or two, inhaled the smoke, let it out through his
moustache, and would have inhaled again, but the wind tore off
the burning tobacco and whirled it away as it had done the
straw.
But even these few puffs had cheered him.
'If we must spend the night here, we must!' he said with
decision. 'Wait a bit, I'll arrange a flag as well,' he added,
picking up the kerchief which he had thrown down in the sledge
after taking it from round his collar, and drawing off his
gloves and standing up on the front of the sledge and
stretching himself to reach the strap, he tied the handkerchief
reins from Vasili Andreevich's hand.
'We must go to the right,' he said sternly and peremptorily, as
he turned the horse.
'Well, if it's to the right, go to the right,' said Vasili
Andreevich, yielding up the reins to Nikita and thrusting his
freezing hands into his sleeves.
Nikita did not reply.
'Now then, friend, stir yourself!' he shouted to the horse, but
in spite of the shake of the reins Mukhorty moved only at a
walk.
The snow in places was up to his knees, and the sledge moved by
fits and starts with his every movement.
Nikita took the whip that hung over the front of the sledge and
struck him once. The good horse, unused to the whip, sprang
forward and moved at a trot, but immediately fell back into an
amble and then to a walk. So they went on for five minutes.
It was dark and the snow whirled from above and rose from
below, so that sometimes the shaft-bow could not be seen. At
times the sledge seemed to stand still and the field to run
backwards. Suddenly the horse stopped abruptly, evidently
aware of something close in front of him. Nikita again sprang
lightly out, throwing down the reins, and went ahead to see
what had brought him to a standstill, but hardly had he made a
step in front of the horse before his feet slipped and he went
rolling down an incline.
'Whoa, whoa, whoa!' he said to himself as he fell, and he tried
to stop his fall but could not, and only stopped when his feet
plunged into a thick layer of snow that had drifted to the
bottom of the hollow.
The fringe of a drift of snow that hung on the edge of the
hollow, disturbed by Nikita's fall, showered down on him and
got inside his collar.
'What a thing to do!' said Nikita reproachfully, addressing
the drift and the hollow and shaking the snow from under his
collar.
'Nikita! Hey, Nikita!' shouted Vasili Andreevich from above.
But Nikita did not reply. He was too occupied in shaking out
the snow and searching for the whip he had dropped when rolling
down the incline. Having found the whip he tried to climb
straight up the bank where he had rolled down, but it was
impossible to do so: he kept rolling down again, and so he had
to go along at the foot of the hollow to find a way up. About
seven yards farther on he managed with difficulty to crawl up
the incline on all fours, then he followed the edge of the
hollow back to the place where the horse should have been. He
could not see either horse or sledge, but as he walked against
the wind he heard Vasili Andreevich's shouts and Mukhorty's
neighing, calling him.
'I'm coming! I'm coming! What are you cackling for?' he
muttered.
Only when he had come up to the sledge could he make out the
horse, and Vasili Andreevich standing beside it and looking
gigantic.
'Where the devil did you vanish to? We must go back, if only
to Grishkino,' he began reproaching Nikita.
'I'd be glad to get back, Vasili Andreevich, but which way are
we to go? There is such a ravine here that if we once get in
it we shan't get out again. I got stuck so fast there myself
that I could hardly get out.'
'What shall we do, then? We can't stay here! We must go
somewhere!' said Vasili Andreevich.
Nikita said nothing. He seated himself in the sledge with his
back to the wind, took off his boots, shook out the snow that
had got into them, and taking some straw from the bottom of the
sledge, carefully plugged with it a hole in his left boot.
Vasili Andreevich remained silent, as though now leaving
everything to Nikita. Having put his boots on again, Nikita
drew his feet into the sledge, put on his mittens and took up
the reins, and directed the horse along the side of the ravine.
But they had not gone a hundred yards before the horse again
stopped short. The ravine was in front of him again.
Nikita again climbed out and again trudged about in the snow.
He did this for a considerable time and at last appeared from
the opposite side to that from which he had started.
'Vasili Andreevich, are you alive?' he called out.
'Here!' replied Vasili Andreevich. 'Well, what now?'
'I can't make anything out. It's too dark. There's nothing
but ravines. We must drive against the wind again.'
They set off once more. Again Nikita went stumbling through
the snow, again he fell in, again climbed out and trudged
about, and at last quite out of breath he sat down beside the
sledge.
'Well, how now?' asked Vasili Andreevich.
'Why, I am quite worn out and the horse won't go.'
'Then what's to be done?'
'Why, wait a minute.'
Nikita went away again but soon returned.
'Follow me!' he said, going in front of the horse.
Vasili Andreevich no longer gave orders but implicitly did what
Nikita told him.
'Here, follow me!' Nikita shouted, stepping quickly to the
right, and seizing the rein he led Mukhorty down towards a
snow-drift.
At first the horse held back, then he jerked forward, hoping to
leap the drift, but he had not the strength and sank into it up
to his collar.
'Get out!' Nikita called to Vasili Andreevich who still sat in
the sledge, and taking hold of one shaft he moved the sledge
closer to the horse. 'It's hard, brother!' he said to
Mukhorty, 'but it can't be helped. Make an effort! Now, now,
just a little one!' he shouted.
The horse gave a tug, then another, but failed to clear himself
and settled down again as if considering something.
'Now, brother, this won't do!' Nikita admonished him. 'Now once
more!'
Again Nikita tugged at the shaft on his side, and Vasili
Andreevich did the same on the other.
Mukhorty lifted his head and then gave a sudden jerk.
'That's it! That's it!' cried Nikita. 'Don't be afraid--you
won't sink!'
One plunge, another, and a third, and at last Mukhorty was out
of the snow-drift, and stood still, breathing heavily and
shaking the snow off himself. Nikita wished to lead him
farther, but Vasili Andreevich, in his two fur coats, was so
out of breath that he could not walk farther and dropped into
the sledge.
'Let me get my breath!' he said, unfastening the kerchief with
which he had tied the collar of his fur coat at the village.
'It's all right here. You lie there,' said Nikita. 'I will
lead him along.' And with Vasili Andreevich in the sledge he
led the horse by the bridle about ten paces down and then up a
slight rise, and stopped.
The place where Nikita had stopped was not completely in the
hollow where the snow sweeping down from the hillocks might
have buried them altogether, but still it was partly sheltered
from the wind by the side of the ravine. There were moments
when the wind seemed to abate a little, but that did not last
long and as if to make up for that respite the storm swept down
with tenfold vigour and tore and whirled the more fiercely.
Such a gust struck them at the moment when Vasili Andreevich,
having recovered his breath, got out of the sledge and went up
to Nikita to consult him as to what they should do. They both
bent down involuntarily and waited till the violence of the
squall should have passed. Mukhorty too laid back his ears and
shook his head discontentedly. As soon as the violence of the
blast had abated a little, Nikita took off his mittens, stuck
them into his belt, breathed onto his hands, and began to undo
the straps of the shaft-bow.
'What's that you are doing there?' asked Vasili Andreevich.
'Unharnessing. What else is there to do? I have no strength
left,' said Nikita as though excusing himself.
'Can't we drive somewhere?'
'No, we can't. We shall only kill the horse. Why, the poor
beast is not himself now,' said Nikita, pointing to the horse,
which was standing submissively waiting for what might come,
with his steep wet sides heaving heavily. 'We shall have to
stay the night here,' he said, as if preparing to spend the
night at an inn, and he proceeded to unfasten the
collar-straps. The buckles came undone.
'But shan't we be frozen?' remarked Vasili Andreevich.
'Well, if we are we can't help it,' said Nikita.
VI
Although Vasili Andreevich felt quite warm in his two fur
coats, especially after struggling in the snow-drift, a cold
shiver ran down his back on realizing that he must really spend
the night where they were. To calm himself he sat down in the
sledge and got out his cigarettes and matches.
Nikita meanwhile unharnessed Mukhorty. He unstrapped the
belly-band and the back-band, took away the reins, loosened the
collar-strap, and removed the shaft-bow, talking to him all the
time to encourage him.
'Now come out! come out!' he said, leading him clear of the
shafts. 'Now we'll tie you up here and I'll put down some
straw and take off your bridle. When you've had a bite you'll
feel more cheerful.'
But Mukhorty was restless and evidently not comforted by
Nikita's remarks. He stepped now on one foot and now on
another, and pressed close against the sledge, turning his back
to the wind and rubbing his head on Nikita's sleeve. Then, as
if not to pain Nikita by refusing his offer of the straw he put
before him, he hurriedly snatched a wisp out of the sledge, but
immediately decided that it was now no time to think of straw
and threw it down, and the wind instantly scattered it, carried
it away, and covered it with snow.
'Now we will set up a signal,' said Nikita, and turning the
front of the sledge to the wind he tied the shafts together
with a strap and set them up on end in front of the sledge.
'There now, when the snow covers us up, good folk will see the
shafts and dig us out,' he said, slapping his mittens together
and putting them on. 'That's what the old folk taught us!'
Vasili Andreevich meanwhile had unfastened his coat, and
holding its skirts up for shelter, struck one sulphur match
after another on the steel box. But his hands trembled, and
one match after another either did not kindle or was blown out
by the wind just as he was lifting it to the cigarette. At
last a match did burn up, and its flame lit up for a moment the
fur of his coat, his hand with the gold ring on the bent
forefinger, and the snow-sprinkled oat-straw that stuck out
from under the drugget. The cigarette lighted, he eagerly took
a whiff or two, inhaled the smoke, let it out through his
moustache, and would have inhaled again, but the wind tore off
the burning tobacco and whirled it away as it had done the
straw.
But even these few puffs had cheered him.
'If we must spend the night here, we must!' he said with
decision. 'Wait a bit, I'll arrange a flag as well,' he added,
picking up the kerchief which he had thrown down in the sledge
after taking it from round his collar, and drawing off his
gloves and standing up on the front of the sledge and
stretching himself to reach the strap, he tied the handkerchief
- abruptly [ə´brʌptli]
ad.突然地；粗鲁地 (初中英语单词) - incline [in´klain] v.(使)倾斜 n.斜坡 (初中英语单词)
- standing [´stændiŋ] n.持续 a.直立的 (初中英语单词)
- vanish [´væniʃ] vi.消失；消散；消灭 (初中英语单词)
- considerable [kən´sidərəbəl] a.重要的；值得重视 (初中英语单词)
- breath [breθ] n.呼吸；气息 (初中英语单词)
- plunge [plʌndʒ] v.插进 n.投入；冲击 (初中英语单词)
- collar [´kɔlə] n.衣领；(狗等的)项圈 (初中英语单词)
- altogether [,ɔ:ltə´geðə] ad.完全；总而言之 (初中英语单词)
- partly [´pɑ:tli] ad.部分地；不完全地 (初中英语单词)
- consult [kən´sʌlt] v.商量；磋商；请教 (初中英语单词)
- violence [´vaiələns] n.猛烈；暴力(行) (初中英语单词)
- waiting [´weitiŋ] n.等候；伺候 (初中英语单词)
- meanwhile [´mi:n´wail] n.&ad.其间；同时 (初中英语单词)
- encourage [in´kʌridʒ] vt.鼓励；怂勇；促进 (初中英语单词)
- restless [´restləs] a.没有休息的 (初中英语单词)
- evidently [´evidəntli] ad.明显地 (初中英语单词)
- sleeve [sli:v] n.袖子；袖套 (初中英语单词)
- instantly [´instəntli] ad.立即，立刻 (初中英语单词)
- sulphur [´sʌlfə] n.硫，硫磺 (初中英语单词)
- eagerly [´i:gəli] ad.渴望地，急切地 (初中英语单词)
- tobacco [tə´bækəu] n.烟草(叶)；卷烟 (初中英语单词)
- handkerchief [´hæŋkətʃif] n.手帕，手绢 (初中英语单词)
- sternly [´stə:nli] ad.严厉地；坚定地 (高中英语单词)
- sledge [sledʒ] n.雪橇；大锤 (高中英语单词)
- fringe [´frindʒ] n.穗；边缘；刘海 (高中英语单词)
- bridle [´braidl] n.(马)笼头；束缚 (高中英语单词)
- sweeping [´swi:piŋ] a.掠过的 n.扫除；清除 (高中英语单词)
- vigour [´vigə] (=vigor) n.活力；精力 (高中英语单词)
- decided [di´saidid] a.明显的；决定的 (高中英语单词)
- kindle [´kindl] v.点燃；(使)激动 (高中英语单词)
- ravine [rə´vi:n] n.沟壑；深谷 (英语四级单词)
- considering [kən´sidəriŋ] prep.就...而论 (英语四级单词)
- hurriedly [´hʌridli] ad.仓促地，忙乱地 (英语四级单词)
- drawing [´drɔ:iŋ] n.画图；制图；图样 (英语四级单词)
- unused [,ʌn´ju:zd] a.不用的；未消耗的 (英语六级单词)
- calling [´kɔ:liŋ] n.点名；职业；欲望 (英语六级单词)
- taking [´teikiŋ] a.迷人的 n.捕获物 (英语六级单词)
- kerchief [´kə:tʃif] n.头巾，围巾 (英语六级单词)
- respite [´respait] n.暂缓 vt.缓期执行 (英语六级单词)
- involuntarily [in´vɔləntərili] ad.不 自觉地 (英语六级单词)
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章节正文
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