wspaper; "here's a half-ruble, and a twenty-kopek
piece, and twenty kopeks in copper coins." I immediately dragged him
off to my bookseller. "Here are eleven books, which cost altogether
thirty-two rubles and a half; I have thirty; put your two rubles and a
half with mine, and we will buy all these books and give them to him
in partnership." The old man was quite beside himself with joy, and
the bookseller loaded him down with our common library.

The next day the old man came to see his son, sat with him a little
while, then came to us and sat down beside me with a very comical air
of mystery. Every moment he grew more sad and uneasy; at last he could
hold out no longer.

"Listen, Varvara Alexievna," he began timidly, in a low voice: "do you
know what, Varvara Alexievna?" The old man was dreadfully embarrassed.
"You see, when his birthday comes, do you take ten of those little
books and give them to him yourself, that is to say, from yourself, on
your own behalf; then I will take the eleventh and give it from
myself, for my share. So you see, you will have something to give, and
I shall have something to give; we shall both have something to give."

I was awfully sorry for the old man. I did not take long to think it
over. The old man watched me anxiously. "Listen to me, Zakhar
Petrovitch," I said: "do you give him all."--"How all? Do you mean all
the books?"--"Yes, certainly, all the books."--"And from
myself?"--"From yourself."--"From myself alone--that is, in my own
name?"--"Yes, in your own name." I thought I was expressing myself
with sufficient clearness, but the old man could not understand me for
a long time.

"You see," he explained to me at last, "I sometimes indulge myself,
Varvara Alexievna,--that is to say, I wish to state to you that I
nearly always indulge myself,--I do that which is not right,--that is,
you know, when it is cold out of doors, and when various unpleasant
things happen at times, or when I feel sad for any reason, or
something bad happens,--then sometimes, I do not restrain myself, and
I drink too much. This is very disagreeable to Petrushka, you see,
Varvara Alexievna; he gets angry, and he scolds me and reads me moral
lectures. So now I should like to show him by my gift that I have
reformed, and am beginning to conduct myself well; that I have been
saving up my money to buy a book, saving for a long time, because I
hardly ever have any money, except when it happens that Petrushka
g