tempting anything new to him, and not
liking to be noticed. Both father and mother, as the boys grew up, loved
the older lad, and spoiled him, while the younger was kept forever at
his books, was treated coldly, and got little praise for the performance
of his tasks. Had Paul possessed less real energy of character, he must
have hated his brother; as it was, he silently disliked him, but
inwardly resolved to outshine him in everything, laboring to that end
from his boyhood, and especially after his father's death, with a dogged
determination which promised success. The result was that, although Paul
never outgrew a certain ungainliness of appearance, due to his large and
bony frame, he nevertheless acquired a perfection of manner, an ease and
confidence in conversation, which, in the end, might well impress people
who knew him more favorably than the bearing of Alexander, whose soft
voice and graceful attitudes began to savor of affectation when he had
attained to mature manhood. As they stood together on the quay at
Buyukdere, one could guess that, in the course of years, Alexander would
be an irritable, peevish old dandy, while Paul would turn out a stern,
successful old man.

They stood looking at the water, watching the caiques shoot out from
the shore upon the bosom of the broad stream.

"Have you made up your mind?" asked Paul, without looking at his
brother.

"Oh, yes. I do not care where we go. I suppose it is worth seeing?"

"Well worth seeing. You have never seen anything like it."

"Is it as fine as Easter Eve in Moscow?" asked Alexander, incredulously.

"It is different," said Paul. "It corresponds to our Easter Eve in some
ways. All through the Ramazan they fast all day--never smoke, nor drink
a glass of water, and of course they eat nothing--until sunset, when the
gun is fired. During the last week there are services in Santa Sophia
every night, and that is what is most remarkable. They go on until the
news comes that the new moon has been seen."

"That does not sound very interesting," remarked Alexander, languidly,
lighting a cigarette with a bit of yellow fuse that dangled from his
heavy Moscow case.

"It is interesting, nevertheless, and you must see it. You cannot be
here at this time and not see what is most worth seeing."

"Is there nothing else this evening?" asked Alexander.

"No. We have to respect the prejudices of the country a little. After
all, we really have a holiday during this