y how, at her death, Glafira Petrovna had
bitten her own arm, and after a brief pause, added with a sigh: "Every
man, dear master, is destined to devour himself." It was late when
Lavretsky set off on the way back. He was haunted by the music of
the day before, and Lisa's image returned to him in all its sweet
distinctness; he mused with melting tenderness over the thought that she
loved him, and reached his little house in the town, soothed and happy.

The first thing that struck him as he went into the entrance hall was
a scent of patchouli, always distasteful to him; there were some high
travelling-trunks standing there. The face of his groom, who ran out
to meet him, seemed strange to him. Not stopping to analyse his
impressions, he crossed the threshold of the drawing room.... On his
entrance there rose from the sofa a lady in a black silk dress with
flounces, who, raising a cambric handkerchief to her pale face, made a
few paces forward, bent her carefully dressed, perfumed head, and fell
at his feet.... Then, only, he recognised her: this lady was his wife!

He caught his breath.... He leaned against the wall.

"Theodore, do not repulse me!" she said in French, and her voice cut to
his heart like a knife.

He looked at her senselessly, and yet he noticed involuntarily at once
that she had grown both whiter and fatter.

"Theodore!" she went on, from time to time lifting her eyes and
discreetly wringing her marvellously-beautiful fingers with their rosy,
polished nails. "Theodore, I have wronged you, deeply wronged you; I
will say more, I have sinned: but hear me; I am tortured by remorse, I
have grown hateful to myself, I could endure my position no longer; how
many times have I thought of turning to you, but I feared your anger;
I resolved to break every tie with the past.... Puis j'ai ete si
malade.... I have been so ill," she added, and passed her hand over
her brow and cheek. "I took advantage of the widely-spread rumour of my
death, I gave up everything; without resting day or night I hastened
hither; I hesitated long to appear before you, my judge... paraitre
devant vous, mon juge; but I resolved at last, remembering your constant
goodness, to come to you; I found your address at Moscow. Believe me,"
she went on, slowly getting up from the floor and sitting on the very!
edge of an arm-chair, "I have often thought of death, and I should have
found courage enough to take my life... ah! life is a burden unb