his face and behind his
back; but Volintsev could not bring himself to like him and always felt
an involuntary impatience and annoyance when Rudin devoted himself to
enlarging on his good points in his presence. 'Is he making fun of me?'
he thought, and he felt a throb of hatred in his heart. He tried to keep
his feelings in check, but in vain; he was jealous of him on Natalya's
account. And Rudin himself, though he always welcomed Volintsev with
effusion, though he called him a knight-errant, and borrowed money from
him, did not feel exactly friendly towards him. It would be difficult
to define the feelings of these two men when they pressed each other's
hands like friends and looked into each other's eyes.

Bassistoff continued to adore Rudin, and to hang on every word he
uttered. Rudin paid him very little attention. Once he spent a whole
morning with him, discussing the weightiest problems of life, and
awakening his keenest enthusiasm, but afterwards he took no further
notice of him. Evidently it was only a phrase when he said that he was
seeking for pure and devoted souls. With Lezhnyov, who began to be a
frequent visitor at the house, Rudin did not enter into discussion;
he seemed even to avoid him. Lezhnyov, on his part, too, treated him
coldly. He did not, however, report his final conclusions about him,
which somewhat disquieted Alexandra Pavlovna. She was fascinated
by Rudin, but she had confidence in Lezhnyov. Every one in Darya
Mihailovna's house humoured Rudin's fancies; his slightest preferences
were carried out He determined the plans for the day. Not a single
_partie de plaisir_ was arranged without his co-operation.

He was not, however, very fond of any kind of impromptu excursion or
picnic, and took part in them rather as grown-up people take part
in children's games, with an air of kindly, but rather wearied,
friendliness. He took interest in everything else, however. He discussed
with Darya Mihailovna her plans for the estate, the education of her
children, her domestic arrangements, and her affairs generally; he
listened to her schemes, and was not bored by petty details, and, in his
turn, proposed reforms and made suggestions. Darya Mihailovna agreed to
them in words--and that was all. In matters of business she was really
guided by the advice of her bailiff--an elderly, one-eyed Little
Russian, a good-natured and crafty old rogue. 'What is old is fat,
what is new is thin,' he used to say, with