s the opposite of luxurious. At the same
time Ivan, rather weary of his idle existence, looked forward with some
enthusiasm to aiding his captain in whipping their company into shape.
Despite the fact that their regiment was one of the few that remained in
barracks during the winter, it was in anything but "crack" condition.
Indeed, as its under-officers admitted, sadly, among themselves, they
were living now upon their past reputation, gained in a year when they
had led the camp in marching, and won the medals for drill and the
spotless nattiness of their arms and uniforms. They had fairly earned
their nickname of the "Imperial Dandies." But that had been in the time
of Mezentsoff. Since the day when his promotion had brought his
adjutant, Brodsky, to the colonelcy, the regiment had retrograded
steadily. And now, it appeared, they were about to reach their climax of
disgrace. Already there were whispers in the air concerning the utter
incompetency of their leader. But it was left for the first month at
Krasnoe to reveal to the whole army the dire truth of the whispers.

Meantime, as the northern days lengthened till the night was a bare two
hours in length, the great houses of the Admiralty quarter were closing,
one by one. The city was filling with merchants, come down from
Helsingfors and the various Finnish towns, for their annual holiday; and
there was the usual invasion of ubiquitous tourists, whose dread of the
Russian winter led them to visit the city at the dismal season when
brown holland covers and fast-boarded windows shroud and coffin the
corpse of the dead winter. In short, the season, Ivan's first season,
was over. The imperial family were at Peterhoff. Tsarskoe-Selo was
brilliant with arrivals from the cream of the court society, among whom,
naturally, the Dravikines occupied a foremost place. The Grand-Duchess
Helena, with both Rubinsteins in her train, had gone to Baden-Baden to
drink the waters and listen to half a dozen summer concerts which the
brothers were to conduct. Lastly, two young officers, Ivan and de Windt,
were closing their snug apartment, and preparing kits suitable for tent
accommodation. The younger of the two men, looking back over the
happenings of his first winter in the great world, that first winter of
his happiness, felt in his heart a pang of regret that those bright
months were gone, carrying with them the great beautiful freshness which
was so soon to pass out of his life forev