The Beggar and Other Stories by Gaito Gazdanov

Author:Gaito Gazdanov [Gaito Gazdanov]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781782274025
Publisher: Steerforth Press
Published: 2018-10-10T16:00:00+00:00

He believed in nothing. Once Anatoly, while showing him a Russian newspaper that had recently come into existence and was foredoomed to a swift closure because of insufficient capital, was talking about an article condemning the Revolution, which had been composed in energetic and the most uncompromising language. “You know, Uncle,” he said, “so long as there are people like this in the world…” “Like what?” “Well, convinced…” “Do you want me to prove to you that you’re a fool?” “How will you do that?” “Wait and see.” This entertained him for a certain time; he telephoned, arranged meetings, discussed things, and a week later, when Anatoly came to visit, he showed him the typescript of an article. Anatoly read it through. The article was consecrated to giving proof that without revolution and revolt, creativity, art, “proud and free thought”, and even the prospect of a different, better humanity, were impossible. The article was signed with that same name, so familiar to Anatoly.

“What’s all this?” said Anatoly.

“Dear Tolya, it’s very simple. It cost me”—he extracted a notebook—“seven hundred and forty-six francs all told.”

“How did you do it?”

“Curiosity killed the cat…”

Alexei Stepanovich did not tell Anatoly that he had rung up the author of the article, arranged a meeting, then over lunch in a restaurant said that he was planning to publish a leftist newspaper and that among the regular contributors he, naturally… He said that he was collating material for the first issue, which promised to be a particular success, and would pay a fee up front, at an inflated rate for this issue, and after several days he received the article about art and revolution.

He admittedly knew in advance that everything would be just as he had envisaged, but nevertheless he had not imagined that it would be so easy and inexpensive. And if before the days of his wealth he had not much liked people in general and mistrusted them, then now they incited in him disgust and repugnance. He had always known theoretically that money changes human relationships; yet this had been an abstract knowledge, from which it was possible to draw abstract conclusions about the value of such relationships in general, but which he would discuss as one would any psychological problem. Now he possessed a long experience that was impossible to contradict. He even knew that if Marya Matveyevna were not certain that he would never refuse her—she had merited this through long years of self-sacrifice—she would be just as kind to him as the rest and would not allow herself any sharp rejoinders, though her emotions would not have corresponded to her actions. Yet she might have allowed herself everything; for too long she had shared with Alexei Stepanovich her frugal dinners, her paltry sums of money, with which they sometimes took themselves to a cheap cinema, shared with him her few joys and her body—all that she had. Alexei Stepanovich was amazed to notice that he felt no gratitude towards her whatsoever and

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