harming; he laughed, jested, put Yura on the ladder; he
himself climbed the thin, creaking rungs of the ladder, and finally both
fell down together with the ladder upon the grass, but they were not
hurt. Yura jumped up, while father remained lying on the grass, hands
thrown back under his head, looking with half-closed eyes at the
shining, infinite azure of the sky. Thus lying on the grass, with a
serious expression on his face, apparently not in the mood for play,
father looked very much like Gulliver longing for his land of giants.
Yura recalled something unpleasant; but to cheer his father up he sat
down astride upon his knees and said:

"Do you remember, father, when I was a little boy I used to sit down on
your knees and you used to shake me like a horse?"

But before he had time to finish he lay with his nose on the grass; he
was lifted in the air and thrown down with force--father had thrown him
high up with his knees, according to his old habit. Yura felt offended;
but father, entirely ignoring his anger, began to tickle him under his
armpits, so that Yura had to laugh against his will; and then father
picked him up like a little pig by the legs and carried him to the
terrace. And mamma was frightened.

"What are you doing? The blood will rush to his head!"

After which Yura found himself standing on his legs, red faced,
dishevelled, feeling very miserable and terribly happy at the same time.

The day was rushing fast, like a cat that is chased by a dog. Like
forerunners of the coming great festival, certain messengers appeared
with notes, wonderfully tasty cakes were brought, the dressmaker came
and locked herself in with mamma in the bedroom; then two gentlemen
arrived, then another gentleman, then a lady--evidently the entire city
was in a state of agitation. Yura examined the messengers as though they
were strange people from another world, and walked before them with
an air of importance as the son of the lady whose birthday was to be
celebrated; he met the gentlemen, he escorted the cakes, and toward
midday he was so exhausted that he suddenly started to despise life. He
quarrelled with the nurse and lay down in his bed face downward in order
to have his revenge on her; but he fell asleep immediately. He awoke
with the same feeling of hatred for life and a desire for revenge, but
after having looked at things with his eyes, which he washed with cold
water, he felt that both the world and life were so f