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战争与和平(上)-第213章

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hon; from which he inquired several times whether his son had gone。 The following day before starting; Prince Andrey went to the part of the house where his son was to be found。 The sturdy little boy; with curls like his mother’s; sat on his knee。 Prince Andrey began telling him the story of Bluebeard; but he sank into dreamy meditation before he had finished the story。 He was not thinking of the pretty boy; his child; even while he held him on his knee; he was thinking of himself。 He sought and was horrified not to find in himself either remorse for having provoked his father’s anger; or regret at leaving home (for the first time in his life) on bad terms with him。 What meant still more to him was that he could not detect in himself a trace of the tender affection he had once felt for his boy; and had hoped to revive in his heart; when he petted the child and put him on his knee。
“Come; tell me the rest;” said the boy。 Prince Andrey took him off his knee without answering; and went out of the room。
As soon as Prince Andrey gave up his daily pursuits; especially to return to the old surroundings in which he had been when he was happy; weariness of life seized upon him as intensely as ever; and he made haste to escape from these memories; and to find some work to do as quickly as possible。
“Are you really going; Andrey?” his sister said to him。
“Thank God that I can go;” said Prince Andrey。 “I am very sorry you can’t too。”
“What makes you say that?” said Princess Marya。 “How can you say that when you are going to this awful war; and he is so old? Mademoiselle Bourienne told me he keeps asking about you。…” As soon as she spoke of that; her lips quivered; and tears began to fall。 Prince Andrey turned away and began walking up and down the room。
“Ah; my God! my God!” he said。 “And to think what and who—what scum can be the cause of misery to people!” he said with a malignance that terrified Princess Marya。
She felt that when he uttered the word “scum;” he was thinking not only of Mademoiselle Bourienne; who was the cause of her misery; but also of the man who had ruined his own happiness。 “Andrey; one thing I beg; I beseech of you;” she said; touching his elbow and looking at him with eyes that shone through her tears。 “I understand you。” (Princess Marya dropped her eyes。) “Don’t imagine that sorrow is the work of men。 Men are His instruments。” She glanced upwards a little above Prince Andrey’s head with the confident; accustomed glance with which one looks towards a familiar portrait。 “Sorrow is sent by Him; and not by men。 Men are the instrument of His will; they are not to blame。 If it seems to you that some one has wronged you—forget it; and forgive。 We have no right to punish。 And you will know the happiness of forgiveness。”
“If I were a woman; I would; Marie。 That’s woman’s virtue。 But a man must not; and cannot; forgive and forget;” he said; and though till that minute he had not been thinking of Kuragin; all his unsatisfied revenge rose up again in his heart。 “If Marie is beginning to persuade me to forgive; it means that I ought long ago to have punished him;” he thought。
And making no further reply to Princess Marya; he began dreaming now of the happy moment of satisfied hate when he would meet Kuragin。 He knew he was with the army。
Princess Marya besought her brother to stay another day; telling him how wretched her father would be; she knew; if Andrey went away without being reconciled to him。 But Prince Andrey answered that he would probably soon be back from the army; that he would certainly write to his father; and that their quarrel would only be more embittered by his staying longer now。 “Remember that misfortunes come from God; and that men are never to blame;” were the last words he heard from his sister; as he said good…bye to her。
“So it must be so!” thought Prince Andrey; as he drove out of the avenue。 “She; poor innocent creature; is left to be victimised by an old man; who has outlived his wits。 The old man feels he is wrong; but he can’t help himself。 My boy is growing up and enjoying life in which he will be deceived or deceiving like every one else。 I am going to the army—what for? I don’t know myself; and I want to meet that man whom I despise; so as to give him a chance to kill me and sneer at me!” All the conditions of life had been the same before; but before they had all seemed to him coherent; and now they had all fallen apart。 Life seemed to Prince Andrey a series of senseless phenomena following one another without any connection。


Chapter 9
PRINCE ANDREY reached the headquarters of the army at the end of June。 The first army; with which the Tsar was; was stationed in a fortified camp at Drissa。 The second army was retreating; striving to effect a junction with the first army; from which—so it was said—it had been cut off by immense forces of the French。 Every one was dissatisfied with the general course of events in the Russian army。 But no one even dreamed of any danger of the Russian provinces being invaded; no one imagined the war could extend beyond the frontiers of the western Polish provinces。
Prince Andrey found Barclay de Tolly; to whom he was sent; on the bank of the Drissa。 Since there was not one large village nor dwelling…place in the neighbourhood of the camp; the immense multitude of generals and courtiers accompanying the army were distributed about the neighborhood for ten versts round in the best houses of the village on both sides of the river。 Barclay de Tolly was staying four versts away from the Tsar。 He gave Bolkonsky a dry and frigid reception; and said in his German accent that he would mention him to the Tsar so that a definite appointment might be given him; and that meanwhile he begged him to remain on his staff。 Anatole Kuragin; whom Prince Andrey had expected to find in the army; was not here。 He was in Petersburg; and Bolkonsky was glad to hear it。 He was absorbed in the interest of being at the centre of the immense war that was in progress; and he was relieved to be free for a time from the irritability produced in him by the idea of Kuragin。 The first four days; during which he was not called upon to do anything; he spent in riding round the whole of the fortified camp; and by the aid of his experiences and his conversations with persons of greater experience; he tried to form a definite idea about it。 But the question whether such a camp were of use at all or not remained an open one in his mind。 He had already; from his own military experience; formed the conviction that in war the most deeply meditated plans are of no avail (as he had seen at Austerlitz); that everything depends on how unexpected actions of the enemy; actions that cannot possibly be foreseen; are met; that all depends on how; and by whom; the battle is led。 In order to settle this last question to his own satisfaction; Prince Andrey took advantage of his position and his acquaintances to try to get an insight into the character of the persons and parties who had a hand in the organisation of the army。 This was the general idea he gained of the position of affairs。
While the Tsar had been at Vilna; the army had been divided into three。 The first army was under the command of Barclay de Tolly; the second under the command of Bagration; and the third under the command of Tormasov。 The Tsar was with the first army; but not in the capacity of commander…in…chief。 In the proclamations; it was announced that the Tsar would be with the army; but it was not announced that he would take the command。 Moreover; there was in attendance on the Tsar personally not a commander…in…chief’s staff; but the staff of the imperial headquarters。 The chief officer of the imperial staff was General…Quartermaster Volkonsky; and it contained generals; aides…de…camp; diplomatic officials; and an immense number of foreigners; but it was not a military staff。 The Tsar had also in attendance on him in no definite capacity; Araktcheev; the late minister of war; Count Bennigsen; by seniority the first of the generals; the Tsarevitch; Konstantin Pavlovitch; Count Rumyantsev; the chancellor; Stein; the former Prussian minister; Armfeldt; the Swedish general; Pfuhl; the

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