I won't be offended in a shady alley. Under the shadow of shady alleys...
THERE ARE NO EMPTY SEATS ON THE BENCH WHERE YOU ARE SIT...
In the life of any city, the central park is as indispensable as the main square. Residents come here to breathe fresh air, take a break from the city noise and bustle, admire the surface of the water, flowers, beautiful groups of trees and shrubs, read quietly, and in winter just stroll along the snow-covered alleys.
The city park in Serpukhov was created in 1872. On this site in the nineteenth century there were wine warehouses and sheds for storing goods produced in Serpukhov, and even earlier there were public gardens here. It was created not only at the expense of benefactors - rich manufacturers and merchants, but also ordinary citizens. Interesting detail: the trees for the park, or as it was called then, the public garden, which were planted by “eminent” people of the city, were brought in already adults. Thus, residents did not have to wait until they grew up - they could stroll along the shady alleys immediately after opening. Linden trees and silver poplars looked very beautiful against the backdrop of several pavilions for reading newspapers, playing chess, and checkers. A pond was dug and filled with water nearby, and grounds were set up for playing croquet, ball, and rounders.
A gazebo was erected in the center, where a military brass band played in the evenings. A wide linden alley led to it from the main entrance, along the sides of which there were benches. The public garden became a favorite recreation spot for the townspeople. It was open to all segments of the population - rich and poor. It was maintained and improved through voluntary donations from the Serpukhov merchants.
During the war years the park was destroyed, but since 1943, for children in winter time A skating rink was organized here, and in the summer there was a ball court.
In the post-war years, the park slowly began to be restored. The fence, however, remained old, but a round wooden veranda appeared on the central alley, from where the sounds of a brass band could be heard in the evenings and on weekends. Then it was the only place of rest and communication for the townspeople.
The Filatovs, who lived together for more than fifty years, remember; for them, the park was and remains one of the most favorite corners of the city:
- In the late forties, there were always a lot of people walking in the park on weekends. The central alley resembled a stormy river: to the sounds of waltzes, polkas, and marches, people walked in a continuous stream, laughing and enthusiastically telling something to each other. Those who were lucky enough to take a place on the bench were in a hurry to buy ice cream from the saleswoman standing next to a blue plywood box with ice: a popsicle, but without a stick, or a masterpiece of two round waffles, between which a creamy round was hidden. It was delicious and the waffles were so fresh they were crunchy.
The straight main alley led to the cinema building. Before the revolution, a wine warehouse was located here. The squat, one-story, semi-basement building had an unprepossessing appearance. However, hardly anyone noticed it then - the cinema was extremely popular. There were huge queues near the entrance.
“At that time we really loved trophy films,” Nina Ivanovna Filatova shares her memories. - They had subtitles, and we had to read the translation all the time, but that didn’t bother us. Comedies were especially successful. To get into, for example, “George from Dinky Jazz,” you had to wait in line for several hours. However, our Soviet films were also very popular.
In the fifties, the cinema building burned down, and later, in 1953, a new one was built, with two cinema halls, according to the design of the Serpukhov architect A.I. Vaneev. It became a real decoration of the park and was called “Central”. One of its first directors A.M. Tikhomirov is an intelligent person with varied hobbies. Thanks to him, the cinema has always been very popular. The city's first tennis table appeared on the second floor, where our future masters of sports Vladimir Stolnikov and Anatoly Kuznetsov learned to play.
At the same time, a shooting range was built in the park, which was constantly besieged by shooting enthusiasts, a wooden library building, where you could play checkers, and where the chess club moved. Not far from the pond, on a side alley, there was a small fountain where anyone could take a photo and then receive a photo in a shaped frame, thanks to which photographs from the fifties could not be confused with any others.
“Immediately behind the shooting range, to the right of the entrance, they began to build a green theater,” says Anatoly Alekseevich Filatov. - The students of the former factory and then construction school, of which I was then a graduate, were vigorously banging with hammers. The stage, benches, fence - everything was built with our own hands, as it should, conscientiously, and that’s why it lasted for almost thirty years. Here, in the summer, films were also shown in the open air, amateur groups and visiting artists performed.
A parachute tower was built not far from the cinema, where everyone could demonstrate their courage. To the right and left of the central alley there were sculptures of Stalin and Lenin. Now in their place there are flower beds.
There were almost no attractions then: a manual carousel with horses rotated by volunteers, and a giant swing. Not only children, but also adults loved them very much.
In 1958, on one of the alleys of the city park, a monument was erected to the Hero of the Soviet Union Oleg Stepanov, who died in the battles for the liberation of the Motherland from the Nazi invaders (sculptor - Serpukhovich A.Ya. Pevzner). Oleg Nikolaevich was born in 1924 in Serpukhov into a working-class family. He was in the active army from July 1943. In a battle on July 26, 1943, Stepanov stood up to his full height and threw a grenade, silencing the enemy machine gun. With his heroic act, he roused the fighters to attack, but he himself, having received a mortal wound in the chest, died. The hero's ashes were transferred and buried in Serpukhov on Cathedral Hill. And in 1985, a city park was named after the Hero.
His mother, Maria Nikolaevna Stepanova, often came to the park until her last days and stood with her head bowed at the monument to her son: “Live flowers at the soldiers’ boots. Rain-washed marble. Woman. Lips whisper: “Son...” And the woman hears: “Mom...” - wrote our Serpukhovitch B. Serman.
During Soviet times, the state allocated significant funds for the development and maintenance of the park. In the late seventies and early eighties there were many attractions, well-groomed alleys, and beautiful flower beds. Horses and ponies were walking, and the kids were happily riding them. The chain carousel for adults and swing boats were very popular among young people at that time. In the evenings, a vocal and instrumental ensemble played, gathering dance lovers by eight o'clock in the evening. Talented musicians Korolev, Polovnikov, Protsenko, Volkov, Schultz... Some of them became teachers at a music school, others found their calling in amateur performances. The dancing continued until eleven o'clock under the watchful eye of the warriors. Tickets were inexpensive, but there were people who wanted to get onto the dance floor through the fence. In the fifties, the administration tried to solve this problem by smearing the fence with tar, after which the clothes of such amateurs were hopelessly damaged, but in the eighties they no longer resorted to such “repressions”.
The cinema continued to be one of my favorite places to relax. The queues were huge if they showed French comedies with Pierre Richard or Louis de Funes. In the foyer next to the saying of V.I. Lenin, “Of all the arts, cinema is the most important for us”, there were photographs of famous artists. There was also a piano there; visitors were not forbidden to play it, and sometimes one could hear very well performed romances, waltzes, or even Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata.” Exhibitions of paintings or photographs were often held on the second floor.
By the end of the 90s, the park fell into disrepair. The recreation area, located in the historical part of the city and occupying about seven hectares, turned out to be abandoned. The swings and carousels rusted and became unusable, the area became unkempt: old and diseased trees died, and new ones were not planted. The walls of the cinema were cracked, the plaster on the colonnades was peeling, the roof was leaking in many places, and the water supply and heating stopped working.
Since 2000, work began on restoring the park: the necessary cleaning and pruning of trees was carried out, several sports fields with a special coating for playing tennis, football, volleyball, and basketball were laid out. The park's energy system has been restored, decorative lighting has been installed, and flower beds have been planted. Over the course of several months, workers tiled the network of walkways, the main alley and the entrance area. The divers cleaned and landscaped the pond, which was previously in a terrible state, and built a pier. The "Central" cinema was transformed into the "Central" Celebration Palace, two restaurants, three summer cafes were built in the park, and a fence was installed around the entire perimeter of the park and pond.
Now the park named after Oleg Stepanov is the most comfortable and well-groomed in the city. Last June, the environmental work and recreation team, organized on the basis of the Center for Career Guidance and Youth Employment, cleaned it every day. The main alley with gates, lanterns, wide benches, flower beds and a fountain at the “Central”, and sports grounds look impressive.
Today, a good half of the city’s events are held here. Theatrical performances, fairs, Youth Day, Spring and Labor Day, Children's Day, City Day... In the summer there is a cultural and sports camp, the project of which originated on the initiative of the deputy head of the administration V.I. Serpukhov. Mantulo. Since then it has been called “Camp in the Park.” Holidays are also held for the children and competitions are organized on sports grounds.
Again, just like twenty years ago, carousels are spinning, catamarans are gliding across the pond, and here and there the voices of children are heard, excitedly kicking a ball around the field. In a city with a population of more than one hundred and thirty thousand residents, the park has so far become the only modern recreation area.
Elena Sarycheva
We go through life without aging,
Becoming wiser every day.
Along the shady linden alley,
Leaving happiness, we are waiting for happiness.
And it doesn’t matter how old you are,
We celebrate our birthdays
We don’t notice our happiness.
We walk along the linden alley.
And the linden alley is in bloom,
Will protect us from rain and thunderstorms
Don't regret what didn't happen.
Do not regret the tears not shed!
Walking through life, if you think
about the bad, only about him,
for the most part, turning their gazes,
I can assure you that
that you won’t notice how cluttered it is
your road to his mountains.
***
Subject to gravity
in World Space
everything - from its top to its foot.
And what is its nature, if not Love,
Love is still the same -
all-encompassing of God?!
***
Being immensely rich,
who from his wealth,
does not extract healthy food for the soul,
Having lived at least a hundred years,
And...
Our life is a short intrigue
Will quickly end with a read book...
Who will read this book, look -
There are just racks and racks nearby...
The leaves have shrunk under the pressure of the years,
The letters froze silent, without words -
Has anyone understood the truth, tell me?
No? Everyone went to the racks, to the racks!
Joy once glimmered in the darkness,
Everything disappeared into the setting sun.
The moment of youth flew by like an arrow -
Life is good, but where has it led?
My life is a song of sad tune...
No matter how much you sing, there will be happiness...
If there is someone there, help me!
I scream into the sky, into the blue sky.
Don't let me burn, you're on fire with passion,
Give the children happiness, but give me peace.
There is everything for life and there is happiness in love,
Why then do I have no peace?!
My heart is torn by melancholy, my chest is torn into pieces,
And then the white light is not nice.
On the clock in a circle, the hand moves time,
And no one is able to break that circle.
And the one who was not understood will be cursed
And your closest friend will be offended.
Life runs in circles, we're all...
Living life is not a field to cross;
Life is not only blue sky,
Sometimes on life's journey
We find stones instead of bread.
Sometimes there is pain in the heart;
Sometimes it’s bereavement;
Sometimes, unable to control myself
We throw a stone at our brother's back.
Called by the name of Christ
We live as if we don’t believe;
Not wanting a cross for myself
We are experiencing new losses.
Turning to God in Silence
We don't hear God's answer;
And, groping in the darkness,
We get used to living without seeing the light.
What is the reason, who...
My life is striped
Like a vest on me.
Then I am a winged bird,
Just like a worm on earth.
I wasn't always lucky
Or submissive to fate.
Because I'm striped
I made my life for myself.
Seen a lot of things
Colorful miracles
From the deep gloom,
Until the heavens shine.
Everything goes by in sequence,
Both good and evil.
But my soul has not cooled down yet,
You know, you're lucky so far.
The waves strive to turn again
From fire to fire,
I barely have time to swallow
The air of life into yourself.
And again I rush upward,
Life is like...
Life is hoppier than malt
And stronger than cognac.
What comes for no reason
She will go away for centuries.
Life is like a flame
It will burn out soon.
Will it still be with them?
It just flies into the distance.
Life will cover you with charms
Roofs of all houses.
Fall under the blows
And don't dream.
Life is sometimes long
We have something to look forward to.
Often aggressive
Death cannot be avoided.
Exercise 8.
1. Sponsors made a big contribution to the organization of the holiday.
2. He worked in trade for twenty years, although since childhood he dreamed of becoming a teacher.
3. There were no more tickets to the stalls, so I had to settle for a place on the balcony.
4. The landowners treated their servants cruelly.
5. During a break between lessons, the school principal entered the classroom.
6. Our street looks very beautiful.
7. Olga’s friend deftly wraps herself in a rich shawl.
8. My brother can’t stand either music or singing.
9. The enterprise started producing goods that were in great demand, so it was now considered profitable.
10. Breeders of new wheat varieties also received awards.
11. This portrait stands next to magnificent examples among the world's achievements of portraiture.
12. This issue is not within our competence.
13. Bazarov is a young man with a thin face.
14. Simonov’s poem “Wait for me” became popular.
15. Krylov represents good and evil in his works.
16. We feel nostalgic for the past.
17. I think he will make his career in politics.
18. It is precisely because of such constant persecution of men that the villagers feel horror of the landowner and his mayor.
19. The task assigned to the team was successfully solved.
20. In the summer we made a short trip: we took the train and went to Moscow.
21. The exports of this country consisted of fur products, exported from it in large quantities.
22. He slowly leafed through the pages of the guide to the palace.
23. If you study the art of playing cards well, you can win a lot of money at poker.
24. The truth and only the truth - this is the writer’s motto.
25. The girl changed her name Katya to Carmen, believing that the latter was more suitable for her appearance.
26. When the curtain parted, an actor stood on the stage in a gilded camisole.
27. The new play attracted the attention of critics with its original plot.
28. The good news put him in a positive mood - he was ready to jump with happiness.
29. Three horses with a covered carriage drove up to the entrance.
30. Our successes in the economy have led to significant progress in other areas.
Exercise 9.
1. The squirrel is curled up in its nest, sleeping.
2. After the skating rink, I go home joyful, with pleasant impressions.
3. The role of books in a person’s life is great: he must expand his horizons.
4. Having been to the cinema, I usually wonder if I am capable of such actions as the characters in the film do.
5. We are not very successful.
6. The goal set for us has been achieved.
7. At the demonstration, Sizov joins the revolutionaries.
8. The air is clean. The sun is shining brighter. It's easy to breathe.
9. A group of students came to listen to an optional course of lectures by Associate Professor Yuryev on welding.
10. We ask all members of the mutual aid fund to indicate the amount of remaining funds.
11. A hostel has been organized for men and women, the rooms of which will have iron beds with nets.
12. The carpenter made this bookcase with four legs from oak.
13. The city public is preparing to widely celebrate the anniversary of the famous writer.
14. The girl bought brown stockings.
15. Gogol perfectly described the adventures of Chichikov.
16. The tsarist government persecuted progressive people.
17. The students listened carefully to the teacher’s story.
18. Most of the time was spent on drawing up unnecessary reports.
19. This happened in the spring.
20. The paperwork takes a long time.
21. He was a true friend to me.
22. The athlete was defeated in these competitions.
23. He leaned his head on her shoulder.
24. The son knelt before his mother.
25. This news gave her pleasure.
26. My closest friend and I often go to the cinema.
27. We hasten to congratulate you on your upcoming anniversary.
28. She had huge brown eyes.
29. He felt strong hatred towards him.
30. Traveling to different countries, I really missed my loved ones.
Exercise 10.
1. To visit the theater more often, I bought a subscription.
2. The hero is always in limbo.
3. On this day I heard a lot of hurtful words.
4. Any wrongdoing deserves condemnation.
5. Everything around is attractive: both nearby and distant hills.
6. The student quickly learned the material.
7. My brother is a practical person, he doesn’t throw away old things.
8. The boy answered questions with a somewhat guilty look.
9. The tallest buildings are located in the new quarters of the city.
10. She prepared a hearty breakfast.
11. Swamp silt is an excellent fertilizer.
12. She came in a colored dress.
13. The neighbor's cat walked importantly into the kitchen.
14. At the age of ten months the child was transferred to artificial feeding.
15. We live in the same house, but on different floors.
16. On a hot day it’s nice to walk along the shady alleys.
17. The land had to be dewatered.
18. In the clearing we saw a high earthen hill.
19. These photographs were preserved in the family because my grandmother was very thrifty.
20. Let's find hidden reserves in ourselves and get to the top.
21. The teacher noted with particular satisfaction the success of the weak student.
22. He was given the opportunity to go south.
23. Qualifying competitions in gymnastics were held.
24. A letter came to the radio, the addressee of which characterizes himself as follows: “I am lonely.”
25. He didn’t want to study, so he grew up ignorant.
26. Terrible poverty forced him to eke out a miserable existence.
27. He did not like to work and led an idle lifestyle.
29. The poet’s early works are understandable and accessible to everyone.
Exercise 11.
1. We were unable to leave because it started to rain (tautology).
2. His palms immediately began to sweat (pleonasm).
3. You should first consult with colleagues (pleonasm).
4. The price list is posted on the shop window (pleonasm).
5. The guest tried to collect the fragments of the vase (pleonasm).
6. In conclusion, the narrator told another funny story (tautology).
7. Racer number 5 is in the lead (pleonasm).
8. There is no longer any difference between nature and man (tautology).
9. The work was done carelessly (pleonasm).
10. Even under unfavorable conditions, plant development continues (pleonasm).
11. As soon as you read the book, return it to the library (pleonasm).
12. They graduated from university last year (pleonasm).
13. The speech was chaotic, ill-conceived, so it was difficult to grasp its essence (pleonasm).
14. Sooner or later, everyone will know the background of the rumors being spread (pleonasm).
15. The images of men in “Notes of Hunters” are drawn by Turgenev with great sympathy (pleonasm).
16. A.N. Ostrovsky creates realistic images and pictures of reality (pleonasm).
17. The “Thunderstorm” exposes the tyranny of merchants (pleonasm).
18. It took more than two hours to complete this task (pleonasm).
19. In the kiosks of our city you can buy souvenirs and gifts (pleonasm).
20. The people will be able to defend their independence and territorial integrity (pleonasm).
21. We saw him in profile (pleonasm).
22. Old methods of leadership were recognized as erroneous (pleonasm).
23. Some managers do not focus on solving pressing issues (pleonasm).
24. The exchange of experience was very useful (pleonasm).
25. The forest, shrouded in darkness, terrified us (pleonasm).
26. The writer showed how youth fought against enemies (pleonasm).
27. Warm days occurred at the beginning of April (pleonasm).
28. Students are actively preparing for the winter session (pleonasm).
29. A progress report should be prepared by March (pleonasm).
30. Many complaints about poor delivery of correspondence were received from village residents (pleonasm).
Exercise 12.
1. Hide your tongue now!
2. Did you fall from the moon?
3. And now everyone will go about their business.
4. We must look at the matter through the eyes of future descendants.
5. I will leave in English.
6. As you know, chickens are counted in the fall.
7. Tomorrow is the baptism of fire for our athletes.
8. Music had a strong impact on everyone.
9. Semyon Davydov did not have a chance to enjoy the happiness of family life.
10. All actions of citizen Petrov were aimed at rubbing points against the authoritative commission.
11. Due to lack of evidence, the case was shelved.
12. Mutual understanding and trust are of great importance in family life.
13. Russian writers have always paid great attention to the problem of using foreign words in the Russian literary language.
14. The boy loved to show off, talking about his successes.
15. Yes, I simply have to be angry with you! Tell me, why did I go? Why did you take time away from work? For what joy?
16. Last night I went out to check on the sentry, but my dear fellow was not at his post - it turns out that he was sleeping on the sofa in the peaceful sleep of a baby and blowing bubbles. This is an extraordinary case!
17. Don’t talk to me here. We know who Tolstoy is, we figure it out. You think the police are just crooks here, their ears flapping.
18. If you look at it, he’s worthless on market day.
19. A major theft of construction materials was discovered, in which Kacherovsky plays the first violin.
20. Among the general silence, Homeric laughter is heard.
21. She always has seven Fridays a week: either she will help with work, or she doesn’t want to talk about it.
22. Oh, good, brothers! And I’ll tell you what, gentlemen, Russian officers, we deserved a divine rest, fate caressed us - we remained intact, we have something to return to Russia with. The main thing is to have your head on your shoulders.
23. This discrepancy runs like a red thread in student work.
24. The workers were engaged in Sisyphean labor, unloading and shifting the bricks by hand, loading them again and lifting them upstairs to the scaffolding.
25. Without further ado, I will quote from the report.
26. Although he was not the timid type, he could not help but get scared.
27. Dozens of complaints against the management of the enterprise remain a voice crying in the wilderness.
28. The planning departments and accounting departments prepare financial reports for the past year.
29. We worked hard, and when we completed the work, we felt relief.
Exercise 48. Highlight grammar basics V complex sentences, define the type subordinate clause. Indicate how the subordinate clause is attached to the main clause (by a conjunction or a conjunctive word). Add missing punctuation marks.
A) 1. Frost ran through my whole body at the thought of whose hands I was in (Pushkin). 2. I know very well whose jokes these are (Gogol). 3. I am the one whose gaze destroys hope (Lermontov). 4. Whoever you are, come in (Leskov).
B) 1. Don’t you understand who I am? (Leskov) 2. Let that daughter help out her father for whom he got the scarlet flower (Aksakov). 3. We, who happened to be at home, jumped out of our rooms (Aksakov). 4. This did not promise well-being either on foot or on horseback, no matter who turned up (Leskov).
C) 1. He will not allow himself anything that could cast a shadow on his behavior (Leskov). 2. No matter what you say, I will not believe in his guilt (Leskov). 3. Fermor’s excitement reached such a degree that a spasm seized his throat (Leskov). 4. The cutlets served at breakfast had a lot of onions (Chekhov). 5. The main thing in their meeting was that both could not tell each other (Grossman). 6. Yegorushka heard a quiet, very gentle murmur and felt that some other air had touched his face like cool velvet (Chekhov). 7. The young grouse did not respond to my whistle for a long time, probably because I did not whistle naturally enough (Turgenev). 8. Boris still winced a little like a drunkard in front of a glass of wine (Pushkin).
D) 1. And he doesn’t know how to vent his frustration (Leskov). 2. I am what I was, what I am, what I will be (Polezhaev). 3. Aurora arrived a little earlier than she promised (Leskov). 4. The darker the night, the brighter the stars (Maikov). 5. Treat yourself with whatever you hurt yourself (proverb).
D) 1. During the conversation, we did not hear the bell ring again (Leskov). 2. At these moments the fighters already knew how to get to the shore (Grossman). 3. Often, as soon as we sit down by the lamp, the conversation unnoticed and turns to “terrible hearts and disgusting tastes” (Leskov). 4. But everything was not quite as I thought (Leskov). 5. She experienced a feeling of amazing mental fatigue, just like the body feels tired after a hard day (Pasternak). 6. You will find a business as you want (Ostrovsky). 7. No matter how hard I resisted, I had to sit next to him (Leskov).
E) 1. Bryanchikov went to St. Petersburg where his stay seemed very dangerous (Leskov). 2. Now I can’t make out where exactly this wooden house stood (Leskov). 3. Where the patient wants, let it be (Leskov). 4. Wherever salmon live to spawn, they will definitely come to their river (Dikoy).
G) 1. Now when he interrupted his silence with a phrase from Hamlet, Peak was even more offended (Leskov). 2. The moment has come when we have to say goodbye (Grossman). 3. Mother nature! If you didn’t sometimes send such people to the world, the field of life would die out (Nekrasov). 4. And whenever I opened my eyes, you [mother] were always near me (Fadeev). 5. While waiting in the reception area to be invited, he took off his formerly chocolate straw and now lilac hat and gave it to Vita (Fedin) to hold.
Exercise 49. Highlight the grammatical basics in complex sentences, determine the type of subordinate clause. Name the means of communication in complex sentences. Add missing punctuation marks. Give a complete analysis of the highlighted complex sentences.
1. I was drawn to look for the missing money here (Leskov). 2. As soon as I moved away from the shore, some kind of anxiety arose in my soul (Leskov). 3. They don’t want to know about our tricks because they don’t want to be asked about them (Leskov). 4. He left completely so that after his departure not even some parquet floors were found in the governor’s house (Leskov). 5. Don’t get carried away to the point of recklessness, so as not to feel betrayal of Russian customs (Leskov). 6. People invented vices for themselves so as not to be considered insipid (A.N. Tolstoy). 7. She was so spoiled that she did not know the limits of her whims (Leskov). 8. As he became excited, he began to puff, whistle and shout (Leskov). 9. For my uncle, everything always came out so well and pompously, as if he had written an editorial for Aksakov in the newspaper (Leskov). 10. He walked easily, as if he was only touching the ground out of mercy (Leskov). eleven. Before the evening she had recovered enough to call Nadya(Rasputin). 12. This promise kept Nastya from going to Novosibirsk, even though at first she was going to see her husband (Rasputin). 13. But at the time to which my memories relate, among Trubetskoy’s contemporaries there were several such governors(Leskov). 14. Everything that could be done has already been done (Soloukhin). 15. Razumikhin was also remarkable because no failures ever embarrassed him (Dostoevsky). 16. What usually happens to a child happened (Lipyagin). 17. In the general turmoil, everyone rushes about and takes for the most important something that is not important at all (Leskov). 18. Of all my peers, not one experienced such terrible sensations as I could boast of (Leskov). 19. Will he really be the same again as he once was? (Leskov). 20. I’m not stupid enough not to figure this out (Fedin). 21. From the end of the corridor, on the side where the captain’s spacious room was located, several voices were heard (Leskov). 22. The poor thing kept imagining August Matveich and just like he really was (Leskov). 23. Everyone who called Selivan a “scarecrow” was himself a “scarecrow” for him(Leskov). 24. Until now, I could not be considered mediocrity for the reason that I did not know how to work at all (Tendryakov). 25. In her black eyes there was such a swift expression as if she was flying (Leskov). 26. What is a secret must remain a secret (Leskov). 27. As soon as he starts telling the story, you’ll burst your stomach with laughter (Lermontov). 28. My grandmother was extremely happy with me because she had not expected me at all (M. Gorky). 29. Due to the fact that the summer was hot and dry, it was necessary to water every tree (Chekhov). 30. The cadets decided to quit military career despite the fact that she could really “smile” at them (Leskov). 31. And, princess! The girl is crying that the dew will fall (Pushkin). 32. And your neighbor knows the callous nature that you can’t see a tear on you? (Krylov). 33. I spied Lyoshka drying bread on the stove in secret from his mother (Aksakov). 34. The grandmother wrapped her arms around her granddaughters like a hen covers her chickens with wings (Leskov). 35. As the dance evening came to an end, the dining room became noisier (Kuprin). 36. Every time I had to hire a cab driver, I entered into a conversation with him (Turgenev). 37. It would be better if grandma and I were left alone altogether (Kuprin). 38. I told the landlady to send for the police (Leskov). 39. This pension was enough to live comfortably with my daughter in my town (Leskov). 40. I by no means said that you are not suitable for this service (Leskov). 41. They reprimanded him that he couldn’t serve like that.(Leskov). 42. No matter how much I listened, I could not distinguish a single sound (Paustovsky). 43. She never found out why she was never sent to the gymnasium then (Pasternak). 44. But probably because Marya Ivanovna’s gentle character was the opposite of her character, she became very attached to Marya Ivanovna(Grossman). 45. One of them was waiting for this frank conversation to begin (Gusev). 46. The next day, her mother told her what to do in such cases (Pasternak).
D. N. MAMI-SIBIRYAK
COMPLETE WORKS
VOLUME TEN
PUBLISHED BY A.F. MARKS and PETROGRAD
Supplement to the magazine "Niva" for 1917
AUTUMN LEAVES
Essays and stories.
Dad, turn three quarters... in profile... - the young girl commanded, and dissatisfied notes were heard in her voice. - Well, now en face. “Listen, Rita, you train me like a fire horse,” a short, gray-haired old man in a retired military uniform answered with slight resentment in his voice, “It seems good...” “You know, dad, I’m always outraged by your shortness.” legs... Well, what does it look like? I can only be surprised at my mother, who married such a short man... She had such magnificent height. - It always happens like this, Rita, that small men marry big women... - Nonsense... I will never do this, although God did not offend me with my height. The girl straightened up and looked at herself in the mirror, not without pleasure. She was really tall and very beautifully built. The small head was especially well placed. Rita could not be called a beauty, but she was piquant. In this pale face with a characteristic mouth, long greenish eyes and the soft, capricious nose was something that men liked. Rita was especially proud of her small ears, which looked like pink shells. She already knew her worth, and this spoiled her, like any girl of “several seasons” who had lost the charm of naivety. Her father found her beautiful and revered her idol. - Dad, is your mustache turning yellow again? I think I told you to throw away your stupid pipe and smoke cigarettes. And then... My God, that braid behind the ear again! I'll kill the hairdresser - there's nothing else left... - Rita, I'll go to the hairdresser today... - Okay, okay. Turn around again... Oh, yes, where is your stick? - Listen, Rita, this is finally stupid. - Please, no talking. Take a stick and walk around the room. You know how rheumatic patients walk... Imagine that your leg hurts, which I leave to you to choose from. - Why should I limp when I’m completely healthy?!.. - Oh, what are you like... In that case, why did we come to the waters? I don’t at all want to be considered sick... And if you don’t limp, everyone will point their fingers at us: “Dear dad brought his sweet daughter-bride to the waters and together they are practicing catching the groom.” Beautiful? And when you limp, everyone will say: “What a sweet girl... How she loves this sick little father!” Please, don’t be lazy and do a rehearsal with a stick every morning... The old man with a serious face walked around the room, trying to limp. The girl watched him with a smile, and then dissatisfaction again showed on her face. She sat down on the sofa and said in despair: “Lord, what am I going to do with him?!.. If you were tall, if you had a big gray beard, which gives old people such a patriarchal look, otherwise...” How can I say this? There’s something about you, Dad... as if you’ve just been pulled out of the water and haven’t gotten over yourself yet, or forgot your handkerchief at home, or didn’t put on your braces, or... in general, you look like a person who is very moth-eaten!.. Rita knew how to be angry and witty, and the happy father could not help laughing. - Moth-eaten? Ha ha... Rita, you're killing me. - Excuse me, dear dad, please don’t laugh like that... Now you have some kind of cheap expression on your face... - I absolutely don’t understand what you want to say! - It’s very simple... Rich people never laugh, but only smile, they don’t make hasty movements, and it’s written on their faces that they are used to being rich. Make a face as if our estate is not mortgaged to the Noble Bank and you are slowly lending money to your neighbors. Such short people have money because they have nothing else to do but save it for their daughter... This scene took place in the Karabanov hotel room, where rich patients stayed who came to Dubki for the summer season. The room was good and consisted of two rooms. Now there were the remains of breakfast on the table. The pouring summer heat was still scorching through the open window. At home, Ivan Vasilyevich had the modest habit of taking a nap on the sofa after breakfast with a newspaper in his hands, which also served as a repellent for flies and as an excuse for fun, but now he suspected that he would not have to rest today. Rita was dressed “in combat style,” as he put it to himself when his daughter dressed for going out. She knew how to dress with expensive simplicity. Every detail of the costume was thought out - the gray woolen skirt, the light gray silk shirt, the wide belt, and the gray umbrella. Oh, how sweet she was, that minx Rita... “We’re going to the Kurhaus now,” Rita declared in the tone in which one speaks to children. “I suspect that we did big mistake , going to these Dubki... How many times have I told you that all decent people go to the Caucasus or Crimea. - Yes, but, Rita, our means force us to be modest. But Dubki is still a decent resort. If you knew what was going on here thirty years ago... - When you were young? So I’m beginning to guess that you brought me here precisely for your memories... Dad, you are the most terrible egoist of which only one specimen will be born in this century. But this, however, doesn’t matter, and, as it seems to me, it’s quite late to correct you, and it’s useless, because even in your corrected form, no one needs you. The provincial hydrotherapy resort of Dubki had outlived its glory and was now dying a slow death, unable to endure the struggle with the indifference of the public. And just forty or fifty years ago, Dubka thundered throughout Russia. Landowners from different provinces came here in the summer, and nobles from the capitals were drawn here. As a fashionable place, Dubki was an exhibition for brides, and more than one old woman sighs, remembering her time inextricably connected with Dubki. Thousands of happy couples met in Dubki, and several generations passed through this resort, which gave its name - not being in Dubki for the season was equal to a kind of civil death. But - alas! - everything in the world is transitory... First the railways killed Dubki, opening access to other resorts, and then emancipation came to an end. The landowner who exhibited his nest here has hatched, and the grimy one who replaced him does not recognize any waters. The cheap railway tariff finally killed Dubki. Some extraordinary monument, standing in the middle of the only city square, remained in Dubki as a memory of its past glory. It was a cast-iron triangular obelisk, ending in a sharp point. The monument was erected more than a hundred years ago, and the city boys had long been picking out the gold letters, so that it remained completely unknown for what purpose it was built. The most ancient old-timers could not remember anything. They said that the monument was built supposedly in memory of Potemkin, who had never been to Dubki, and according to another version - in memory of the victory over the Swedes. Now Torzhok has formed near the monument. The women sold rolls, hot liver, cucumbers, rotten apples and some other rubbish covered with rags. One joke circulated among the water public about this monument. Some merchant came to Dubki and wanted to get acquainted with the sights of the city. He was taken to the monument as the only attraction. The merchant looked and said: “What kind of monument is this?” There is no place for a bird to sit here... When Ivan Vasilyevich and his daughter walked into the Kurhaus past this monument, Rita, of course, heard this anecdote, which was passed down from generation to generation. “What nonsense!” she said disgustedly. Ivan Vasilyevich was offended by such inattention and generally felt bad. I wanted to relax after breakfast, but now I was off to the park. However, he still had a faint hope that he could take a nap somewhere on a garden bench. Then the offensive phrase pounded in his head: “moth-eaten.” Is it he - Ivan Vasilyevich Trunin - who is moth-eaten? Oh, if only Rita could have seen him just some thirty years ago... He-he!.. Yes, sir, it was his time. The old man even straightened up, narrowed one eye and smartly twirled his mustache. “Dad!..” Rita said meaningfully, pointing at the stick with her eyes. “Oh, yes!..” muttered guiltily the old man, who had become brave at the wrong time, and began to lean heavily on his stick. Rita liked the resort park: it lay in a basin where a once famous spring came out of the ground; there was a central alley, shaded by hundred-year-old linden trees, and several cozy areas, and the main area in front of the Kurhaus building, built in the Arakcheev style, and a whole network of secondary alleys, shady corners and simply neglected green wilderness. Ivan Vasilyevich was delighted when he learned all this, as if he had met a good old friend. - Oh, what happened here, Rita!.. My God, what happened!.. At least at this time: all the course students drank water and took the obligatory walk in the sun. The entire alley was filled with people. And what an audience: guards youth, landowners, foreigners, no matter the name, there’s a whole story. Princes, counts, barons... Was; even one French viscount and some Tatar Murza. And the ladies... No; There will be more ladies like this, Rita, and there won’t be any more. Just look down the side alley, and there’s already an umbrella flashing by and a military cap right there... He-he!.. And what balls were held in this Kursaal. An orchestra of military guards music, everything is decorated with flowers... lights are everywhere... My God, where do you think everything went! The old man stopped and looked around with a sigh. The alleys were almost empty, there was no one on the platforms. Here and there on the benches one could see the mournful figures of real patients, as if they were shadows of the past, and two pale-faced girls came across. Rita looked contemptuously at these unfortunate people and just shrugged her shoulders. This is not water, but some kind of almshouse. It was worth going for this. Nothing to say, cheerful landscape! Only in one place did Ivan Vasilyevich definitely smell of the past. In one of the most shady corners, a beautiful old woman in a white cap was sitting on a bench, and three bored girls sat around her. They pretended to be carefully reading yellow books from some French publication. The appearance of Rita and her father attracted their rapt attention, and then all the young faces again bent down to the books. Rita's sensitive ear caught some French phrase , said by the old woman, apparently at her address. Young laughter was heard, and Rita looked around angrily. Alas!.. she could not even understand the insult inflicted, because in French Margot did not go beyond her textbook. To spite this family group, she turned back and, passing by them, cast a defiant glance. -- Dad! Look, there’s a whole nest of sleeping maidens here!” she said in a calculatedly loud voice. Ivan Vasilyevich looked pleadingly at his daughter. Is it possible to express yourself like that? Rita became completely angry. “There will be a lot of people here in the evening!” Ivan Vasilyevich seemed to be making excuses. “You’ll see for yourself!” - I imagine!.. - I read in the advertisement that every day in the evenings music is played and the park is illuminated with electricity. They went to the Kursaal, where white tables were placed on the wide balcony. In the shade of the canopy, several retired old men, armed with newspapers, were dozing blissfully. Ivan Vasilyevich looked at everyone and did not find a single acquaintance, which again upset him. He was hoping to meet someone. They sat down at the same table. Ivan Vasilyevich asked himself for tea. Rita didn’t want anything and looked with embitterment at the main platform with an electric lantern in the middle. How stupid all this is... At least one living dog showed up. The sick, like poisoned flies, hid along the alleys. Rita sat and got angry. Her mood reached its extreme limits when the three girls from earlier fluttered onto the platform. They laughed loudly and pretended that they were having a lot of fun. “Lovers!” Rita summed up her impression when the girls defiantly walked right under the balcony. “That blond one has a harelip, and the brunette’s left shoulder is lined with cotton wool!” - Rita! “Is it my fault, dad, that they bring some kind of freaks to Dubki?” - So, we are included in the same number? Rita did not deign to answer, because at that moment a tall man in a light pair of Chinese silk appeared on the platform and very politely bowed to the walking young ladies. “A fashionable water doctor and he’s the lion of the season!” Rita remarked venomously, narrowing her eyes. “He pretends to be single, but he himself has three children and an estranged wife.” In a word, several pleasant specialties. He dances the mazurka, plays cards badly, tells jokes and gets drunk in the evenings. The waiter handed over a course sheet on which the names of all the course doctors and all the patients who had come to the water were printed for the edification of posterity. Rita delved into the study of this interesting synod. The newcomers were all from the forest and the pine trees. The main contingent consisted of officials, then merchants and finally ladies. The last category took up the most space. “Here we are, dad!” Rita read loudly. “Karabanov’s numbers... retired lieutenant colonel Trunin with his daughter... Who is this for?” Wait, I’ll find this old woman with her three freaks now. “Mineral numbers”... the widow of General Ivkov, Varvara Sergeevna, and with her the girls: Olga Pyatusova, Nadezhda Grim and Sofya Krutova... Dad!.. This is it!.. I just heard the old woman call one freak Olya! “Generalsha Ivkova?” Ivan Vasilyevich asked mechanically, sipping tea from a glass. “Varvara Sergeevna?.. Let me!.. No, this can’t be!.. Read more, Rita.” - The widow of General Ivkov... - My God, it’s her, Varvara Sergeevna!.. And I didn’t recognize her!.. Yes, yes, I remember... Only she was taller and so slender. .. - A pleasant memory of your youth? “Rita, you’ve been angry all morning today, like an autumn fly!” This is finally boring!.. I’ll go see her now!.. My God!.. Varvara Sergeevna!.. Exactly, Ivkova!.. Yes, it was a whole novel that made so much noise here then!.. She now , well, about sixty!.. So, absolutely right!.. Let's go, Rita! - Not for anything in the world!.. I hate this nasty old woman. If you want, go alone. Nobody will eat me. Ivan Vasilyevich was glad to have a merciful leave and hobbled off the balcony. He somehow perked up and seemed to immediately look younger. What a meeting!.. For this alone it was worth coming here, and he definitely had a presentiment. Ivan Vasilyevich’s heart even began to beat when in the distance he saw a white cap sitting alone on a bench. The old lady was sitting and knitting something when Ivan Vasilyevich approached her and hesitantly said: “If I’m not mistaken, I have the honor to see Varvara Sergeevna?” She calmly raised her eyes to him and calmly answered: “If I’m not mistaken in turn, Ivan Vasilyevich Trunin?” Instead of answering, he kissed her hand. The old men carefully examined each other for some time, making a silent examination, and then she said: “However, father, you have grown old!.. yes!..” “How much time has passed, Varvara Sergeevna?” “Just now I looked as if something was familiar, and I also joked with my young ladies: “Look, I say, how a father shepherds his daughter like a goose!” That's right, that's what she said. From the outside it’s even very funny to look at... What year is your daughter? “Yes, apparently, twenty!” Ivan Vasilyevich timidly answered and even looked back. - Hm... Well, the girl is just in time! The time has not yet passed! - And your young ladies? - One, the youngest - my granddaughter. And the two older ones are nieces. I’m also herding them!.. Oh, it’s time for everyone to get married, but there are no suitors! We’ve been crowding around here for two weeks now, and there’s nothing suitable! If it had happened before... remember? I’ll say “you” now. -- Please! - Do you remember what used to be here?.. It was as if the bees were buzzing in a hive, the grooms!.. And where has the groom gone now?.. There are as many young ladies as you like, but there is no groom!.. It’s even disgusting from the outside look... Time passes, but the age of a girl is not long. “Yes, yes!.. amazing!” agreed Ivan Vasilyevich. - Well, if the groom left the provinces, then at least he should be in the capitals... I spent this winter in Moscow and - imagine - the same thing: no groom! This interesting conversation was interrupted by approaching girls, who looked at each other cheerfully when they recognized the “goose.” “I recommend my own art gallery...” joked the old lady. “Terrible minxes!” Ivan Vasilyevich bowed and began to hurry to retreat, remembering his Rita. “I’m very glad, very glad...” the old lady repeated. “Are you limping, father?” - Yes, yes. I myself don’t know very well what it is: either the old contusion is taking its toll, or rheumatism. So I came to consult with doctors and get treatment. I wanted to go alone, but my daughter would never let me go. She’s terribly kind to me... “How are you going to go alone, Dad? I won’t let you go alone...” She’s terribly kind! When Trunin left, the old woman shook her head and remarked: “And I couldn’t lie... I would say straight out that out of old memory I brought my daughter-bride.” Oh, business, business!.. And the girl with the marigold. I love people like that... This one will find a groom for herself! In a few days, Rita studied her resort to the smallest detail and came to the saddest conclusion, namely, that Dubki is a retired place, and various retired people also came here. “There are even more retired women than retired men,” she reasoned. “Take this old general lady... Brrr!.. I am always horrified by the thought that I could someday be the same.” Well, who needs it, dad? And, in general, why does she exist in this world?.. If I were her, I would have been poisoned long ago. And what’s funny is that all these retired women imagine that someone needs them... The logic of a housefly, in a word. - Old age does not depend on us, Rita... - Old age is different, dad. There are such nice old people, and I can even fall in love with such an old man, but there is indecent old age. As a form of entertainment, Rita was busy coming up with all sorts of ways to tease the old general’s wife. Varvara Sergeevna felt every time that Rita had come up with something when the girl approached her with such a submissive and affectionate face. The old woman pursed her lips sternly and began to worry, not knowing from which side the blow would be delivered. The excitement reached its highest degree when Rita became unusually tender with the general’s young ladies. She perfectly studied all the sore spots of Varvara Sergeevna and tormented her with the art of a real artist. “How sweet this Sonya is!” began Rita, narrowing her eyes like a cat. “If I were a man, Varvara Sergeevna... I actually wonder where these nasty men’s eyes are!.. When Sonya puts on her a dress with pink stripes and this hat with white feathers... Do you know, Varvara Sergeevna, Shura Koptelova? - I don’t know any Shura... - The daughter of the local butcher... He actually does something with meat. Yes, that’s his daughter Shura. She was here for a walk last night... and imagine, her hat is exactly the same as Sonya’s, only the trim is more elegant. It’s amazing how some butcher’s daughter has so much taste! - Well, excuse me, little girl!.. that is, regarding the taste. Sonya has a hat straight from m-me Marie!.. One of the best stores in Moscow! - Look for yourself, Varvara Sergeevna. Probably Shura will come to the garden again today. - And I don’t want to... You understand: I don’t want to! - No, I’m serious, Varvara Sergeevna. I love merchants in general, because they have a lot of money. And I myself will certainly marry a merchant. I will have whole mountains of pillows, lamps in every room, roosters crowing somewhere downstairs, a bathhouse every Saturday. Varvara Sergeevna could not always maintain her temper and began to argue with Rita in the most serious manner. Ivan Vasilyevich - if he happened to be present at such a gratuitous performance - all the time he felt like he was on hot coals. “Rita, what are you doing?” he grumbled when he was alone with his daughter. “Is it possible to behave like this?” - Nothing, dad! I moved the old lady for three days. This is good for her... It polishes the blood. The water public was all against it. In some way unknown to anyone, the biography of almost everyone became known, and therefore the appearance of a new person created a kind of sensation. The “water mothers” were especially excited when some landowner Pospelov arrived in Dubki in his own troika. He was a middle-aged man, tall and stocky, with the manners of a fair repairman of blessed memory. He stayed in Karabanov’s rooms and in a few days became acquainted with people in his circle, including the family of General Ivkeva and the Trunnies. With the ladies he behaved with the refined courtesy of a gentleman of the old school. Varvara Sergeevna turned to the archive of her matrimonial memories, and it turned out that she knew Pospelov’s sister, who had an entire affair in Dubki that almost ended in a duel. Pospelov reported that his sister had already died five years ago, which did not stop him from remembering her with tears in his eyes. He avoided talking about his real marital status, but it was difficult to hide from the water mothers that he was an old bachelor who had come to Dubki to seek his fortune. Anxiety began throughout the entire line, and Pospelov himself apparently showed preference to the Ivkov family and even made it clear that of all the girls he liked Olenka the best. Ivan Vasilyevich informed Rita about this under the greatest secret. “Varvara Sergeevna herself told me this.” Of course, he is not in his first youth, but he is a distinguished man. Yesterday I myself saw him walking along the alley with Olenka. Well, the girl is good and can make a profitable match. “Dad, you talk like an old woman!” Rita got angry. - I’m so... by the way... Of course, it’s none of my business. - Absolutely not yours... You will soon gossip like a water mother. - Rita!.. I’m surprised how you allow yourself to talk to your father like that! - Dad, you know that frankness is my misfortune. In the depths of her soul, Rita felt insulted by this very Pospelov, whom she, in essence, did not like at all. She decided to take revenge. At the very first dance party she was charming and danced with such enthusiasm that poor Olenka remained completely in the shadows. Pospelov openly began to court Rita. “You’re forgetting your lady!” Rita remarked when they went out into the garden to freshen up. - Which lady!? -- You do not know? I’ll call her for you: Olenka! You didn't notice that her eyes are red, like a rabbit's. And all because of you! “I don’t quite understand what you want to say, Vera Ivanovna.” - I want to talk about your cruelty. Do you understand now? No wonder they say about you that you were on trial for bigamy. The gentleman was embarrassed and did not know in what tone to answer him. A very brave girl. “Who could say that?” he muttered. “It seems I didn’t give any reason... yes...” “Really, I don’t remember who said it... Oh, yes, the conversation turned to Olenka.” ... They felt sorry for her, and someone... Well, I completely forgot! However, it is worth paying attention to water gossip. Pospelov couldn’t even find what to answer to the lively water lady; moreover, for some reason he imagined Varvara Sergeevna as the culprit of the water gossip, which he let her notice quite transparently. One can imagine the righteous indignation of the venerable old woman. - Who do you take me for, my sir? “Who do you take me for, Varvara Sergeevna?” The result was that Pospelov, walking in the park with Rita, only bowed to the Ivkovs from afar. Rita triumphed like an evil, beautiful animal. However, this trick was not in vain for her. “What are you, girl, as if you’re hiding from me?” Varvara Sergeevna once asked, looking inquisitively straight into Rita’s eyes. “It’s not good, my friend... And I miss you.” My girls are as kind as sheep, and that’s why it’s boring. Yes... And you are evil. -- Thank you. - I’m telling the truth... - Thank you again... - But you still don’t know, baby, how right you are: you need to be evil, that is, not evil, but evil. Only the wicked take advantage of life, and all sheep must cry... - And the men! “I look at men as a lower breed.” Are they capable of high movements of the soul, delicate feelings, and in general that feat for which every woman is always ready? This is, in general, a rude animal and even worse - stupid... It’s only a pity that we women discover this truth quite late, when we have already lost all power over a man. The most ordinary story... This conversation ended completely unexpectedly. Varvara Sergeevna hugged Rita, kissed her deeply and burst into tears. “What’s the matter with you, Varvara Sergeevna?” asked the girl embarrassedly, who couldn’t stand other people’s tears and couldn’t cry herself. - Oh, you won’t understand... But I still love you, evil girl, because I was once like that myself. This is not anger in the proper sense, but only the consciousness of one’s youthful strength... - But still, there’s no point in crying about it, Varvara Sergeevna... - Old tears are ugly, darling, and old women should cry on the sly from everyone so as not to get bored. Young grief is beautiful and makes a favorable impression on the public... The old woman didn’t finish saying something and smiled through her tears, and then said in a low voice: “But it was you who came up with the idea about Pospelov’s bigamy?” Yes, yes, I guessed it later... And you were right, little bastard; he is as stupid as two bigamists. Then, did you say about me that I have the logic of a housefly? Oh, how sweetly said... Let me kiss you, you beautiful, angry, young animal who can’t help but kick, because she’s smart. And the stench and my little hairs and little hairs are coming... The interesting conversation was cut short, and a guard expression appeared on Varvara Sergeevna’s face, like that of a hen. Ivan Vasilyevich did not waste time in his own way and pursued his own policy. He in different ways I found out all the ins and outs of the patients who came to Dubki. First of all, this water public was divided into two, far from equal halves. The larger half were completely uninteresting people, like all women and married people, and all attention was focused on the smaller half, made up of Rita’s prospective suitors. In Ivan Vasilyevich’s notebook, a whole groom’s section was created, where everyone’s year, origin, social status were listed, and under the heading “special features” amazing things were entered: “the aunt on his mother’s side ran away with a Cossack officer,” or — “ grandfather sat one and a half years in a madhouse,” or “I was a sleepwalker as a child.” The further Ivan Vasilyevich delved into his research, the more difficult the task became. Frankly speaking, there was not a single groom who satisfied all the requirements, and Ivan Vasilyevich, with spiritual sorrow, had already crossed out several names. In the end, Ivan Vasilyevich came to the conclusion that the trip to Dubki was a very sad mistake, and only sad necessity forced him to get to know almost everyone. It was impossible to directly approach the groom and say: “Let’s get acquainted...” Eh, real Bismarckian politics often had to be done here. Take Pospelov for example: first Ivan Vasilyevich met an old general, whom Pospelov knew, and then with him. "We his we’ll find... - Ivan Vasilyevich sometimes thought, winking into space. - No, brother, you’re naughty! . After all, he undoubtedly exists somewhere, why, in such a case, hide and be cunning? Sometimes he even wanted to just shout: “Hey, my dear, come out quickly, there’s no point in breaking down here!” that Rita did not understand his politics at all and behaved like a tomboy as usual. And what the stupid girl doesn’t understand is that her father is working hard for her... After all, other girls get married, and how sometimes they get married successfully. The last thought simply killed Ivan Vasilyevich, and he began to see a competitor in every water girl. Yes, suitors are snatched right from under their noses. Women, in general, are terribly cunning, and this is their only sport. He began to suspect even his old friend Varvara Sergeevna of various intrigues and even noticed daughter: - Rita, be careful with this general's wife... These old women are terribly cunning. She has three brides in her arms and will just let her down... that is, I don’t want to say that we would like to catch the groom and so on, but in general... Caution never hurts. “She suits me very well, dad.” It turns out that you once courted her... - Me? Hm... Women in this case are convinced that everyone once courted them. A simple courtesy... It was, indeed, very interesting in its time. Yes... Be careful with her, Rita. - Dad, they say Pospelov asked you for money? - Nonsense... So, there was one serious conversation... He, in general, is a helipad. Women's cunning, in general, served as an inexhaustible source of the most subtle sorrows for Ivan Vasilyevich. Oh, he, as it turned out, didn’t know women at all and lived his whole life as a gullible fool. Now only he began to understand what a woman is in essence. Yes, this is the living embodiment of all sorts of cunning. A woman is cunning even when she sleeps. It turned out that Ivan Vasilyevich lived his whole life in some kind of half-asleep. Try it, guess what a woman thinks when she smiles so sweetly at you and seems like an angel of kindness. “No, wait, mesdames!” Ivan Vasilyevich repeated to himself, taking a defiant pose. “We’ll see, for that matter... Yes, sir, we’ll see.” Sometimes moments of cowardice attacked the old man. Time passed, and he still had absolutely no time to do anything. So the whole summer will pass, and another, and a third, and Rita will get stuck in old girls. The last thought made him feel cold, and he began to feel infinitely guilty. Yes, others They give their daughters away in marriage, but somehow things don’t go well for him. For example, he lent Pospelov two hundred rubles, and he took it and left. Of course, Ivan Vasilyevich did not tell anyone about this mistake, but it’s still a shame. Things reached ridiculous extremes. Ivan Vasilyevich went to the station to be the first to find out who had arrived “from the new ones”, gave the servants a tip in order to find out various information at hand, got acquainted with the counter and cross ones and generally did not stop at anything. It is true that so far there have been no results, but this did not stop them from appearing any day. After all, in these matters, often the whole life is decided by some walk in a shady alley, a successful mazurka, a cheerful dinner, and especially these impromptu quick walks somewhere in the grove, on some lake. Passionate about his work, Ivan Vasilyevich was sure that no one would notice anything. He took on such a carefree, good-natured appearance and began to limp less, assuring everyone that the Oak trees were healing him. Only Rita still upset him, because she didn’t want to listen to him at all. How many of the most ingenious plans she ruined during this time... Ivan Vasilyevich attributed this to the influence of the cunning Varvara Sergeevna, whom he began to treat with restrained coldness. Oh, he will outwit this old intriguer... “Why are you, father, turning your nose up at me?” she stopped him when he wanted to get rid of it with a bow from afar. -- I?! For mercy, Varvara Sergeevna... I’m always so happy... yes... - Don’t lie anymore, please... This doesn’t suit you and me. Let's go, I need to talk to you seriously... There's a matter. - With pleasure... Ivan Vasilyevich had an unpleasant premonition, but there was no salvation. All that remained was to obey, especially since it was completely unnecessary for Varvara Sergeevna to argue and contradict. - Come on, give me your hand, father... In the old days, we used to walk arm in arm. Oh-ho-ho!.. Forgot? - No, why, Varvara Sergeevna. “He was also courting me somehow... He wanted to shoot himself.” Forgot? Well, it’s a thing of the past, and whoever remembers the old things is out of his sight. It was, but it has passed and is overgrown with the past. They walked along the alley further and further. Varvara Sergeevna examined the trees with special attention and repeated as if to herself: “They were so sticky when they were very small, but now look how spread out they are... And the oaks too.” Yes... And there is the place where the cast-iron sofa stood... Forgotten, I suppose? - Hm... no, that is, yes. .. Which sofa? - And such! Don’t be cunning, father... I sat on it, and you stood on your knees in front of me and uttered various crafty words. He was evasive... Well, that's a thing of the past. Oh, here it is, the sofa... The old lady was delighted, as if she had met a good old friend. The same sofa, only a green thicket of lindens, acacias and lilacs has grown all around. It was a cozy place then and is now features - present green nest. The old woman even sighed. This convenient place stands completely empty. And before, every step in the park, there was a new couple. We didn’t waste precious summer time in vain, not like today’s grieving people... - The battle of the unbeaten leads... - Varvara Sergeevna joked, sitting down on the sofa. - Oh, the bad weather hurts my lower back, father... You have here my leg is playing, but my lower back is bad. It’s as if she’s about to become a complete stranger... Well, sit down. Ivan Vasilyevich obediently sat down on the sofa, continuing to expect an unpleasant conversation. And the old woman kept dragging on... - That’s what, father... I’ve been wanting to tell you for a long time. Yes...” she finally began after a pause. “I’ve been watching for a long time how you try for your daughter... Do you think no one sees anything?” Everyone, father, sees and laughs... You're only ruining things for your Rita. Don't worry, she'll get by without you. A clever girl, in a word... - What am I doing, Varvara Sergeevna? - But this is the very thing... You think that kind people are stupider than you. You are the only smart one... You make people laugh, Ivan Vasilyevich. Who bribes the servants? Who runs to the station to meet grooms? Who looks after every scoundrel as if he were a birthday boy? Listen to me, old woman, and drop everything... this is not a man’s business, my dear. It was already the end of July. Cold rains began to fall, reminiscent of the approaching autumn. The park felt damp at times. And when the cold wind blew through, the trees rustled so sadly with their dried leaves. Fewer and fewer people gathered for music in the evenings. “We’re leaving tomorrow, Varvara Sergeevna,” said Rita. “I absolutely don’t understand what’s going on with dad... I spent two whole weeks in the room, and now I’m suddenly getting ready to leave.” - It’s okay, it will pass... It was I who brought him to sin. Varvara Sergeevna frankly related her conversation with Ivan Vasilyevich and added: “It’s us, that is, women who have adult daughters in their arms, but of necessity we become a common laughing stock.” For mercy's sake, isn't it funny when a mother cares about the fate of her own daughter - it's very funny, after all? Suddenly this mother is looking for a groom, that is, choosing a person with whom her daughter will live forever - it’s terribly funny... And then this mother turns into a mother-in-law who watches her daughter’s happiness even more. This is absolutely funny... Oh, how funny! We are the victims of humorous leaflets and merciless caricature, and the fathers remain on the sidelines, like noble witnesses. So your father tried how This easy... Well, goodbye, baby, be happy. Rita immediately returned home, and she was offended for her father, whom the water mothers called goose. In this mood, she entered her room and silently kissed her father. Ivan Vasilyevich was even embarrassed by this unexpected affection and somehow blinked his eyes guiltily. “You’re my dear little shorty...” Rita whispered, hugging him tightly. “I won’t let anyone laugh at you... no one!” Tomorrow we are leaving this damned pit... - Rita... did you... actually hear anything? - Yes, I know everything, dad, and I love you even more... - Oh, this is Varvara Sergeevna... All women are terribly cunning, and you should beware of them. Rita. - Dad, I’m a woman too. 1896.
