it beside her; after which she said something to her daughter in
English, and Sonetchka left the room--a fact which still further helped
to relieve me. Madame then inquired after my father and brother, and
passed on to speak of her great bereavement--the loss of her husband.
Presently, however, she seemed to become sensible of the fact that I was
not helping much in the conversation, for she gave me a look as much as
to say: "If, now, my dear boy, you were to get up, to take your leave,
and to depart, it would be well." But a curious circumstance had
overtaken me. While she had been speaking of her bereavement, I had
recalled to myself, not only the fact that I was in love, but the
probability that the mother knew of it: whereupon such a fit of
bashfulness had come upon me that I felt powerless to put any member of
my body to its legitimate use. I knew that if I were to rise and walk I
should have to think where to plant each foot, what to do with my head,
what with my hands, and so on. In a word, I foresaw that I should
be very much as I had been on the night when I partook too freely of
champagne, and therefore, since I felt uncertain of being able to manage
myself if I DID rise, I ended by feeling UNABLE to rise. Meanwhile, I
should say, Sonetchka had returned to the room with her work, and
seated herself in a far corner--a corner whence, as I was nevertheless
sensible, she could observe me. Madame must have felt some surprise as
she gazed at my crimson face and noted my complete immobility, but I
decided that it was better to continue sitting in that absurd position
than to risk something unpleasant by getting up and walking. Thus I sat
on and on, in the hope that some unforeseen chance would deliver me from
my predicament. That unforeseen chance at length presented itself in the
person of an unforeseen young man, who entered the room with an air
of being one of the household, and bowed to me politely as he did so:
whereupon Madame rose, excused herself to me for having to speak with
her "homme d'affaires," and finally gave me a glance which said: "Well,
if you DO mean to go on sitting there for ever, at least I can't drive
you away." Accordingly, with a great effort I also rose, but, finding it
impossible to do any leave-taking, moved away towards the door, followed
by the pitying glances of mother and daughter. All at once I stumbled
over a chair, although it was lying quite out of my route: the reason
for my stumbl