The Doll by Bolesław Prus

Author:Bolesław Prus [Prus, Bolesław]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Tags: Literary, Polish Literature, Fiction
ISBN: 9781590173978
Publisher: NYRB Classics
Published: 1890-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

XXII

Grey Days and Baneful Hours

WITHIN fifteen minutes of leaving Warsaw by the Bydgoszcz railroad, Wokulski felt two peculiar, though completely different sensations: he was enveloped in fresh air, while he himself fell into a strange lethargy. He could move about freely, was sober; he thought clearly and rapidly, but nothing concerned him —neither his fellow travellers nor his destination. This apathy grew as the distance from Warsaw increased. Beyond Pruszków, he almost relished the drops of rain entering through the open window into the compartment; later, he was somewhat stirred by a violent thunderstorm on the far side of Grodzisk: he even longed for a thunderbolt to strike him dead. But, when the storm had passed, he sank into apathy again and did not concern himself with anything, not even with the fact that the neighbour on his right had gone to sleep against his shoulder, nor that the passenger opposite had taken off his boots and was resting his feet almost on Wokulski’s knees, in socks that were at least clean.

Around midnight, something like a dream descended upon him, or perhaps it was merely a still more profound apathy. He drew a curtain over the compartment lamp, shut his eyes and thought that this peculiar apathy would pass with the sunrise. But it did not; indeed, it intensified towards morning, and continued to increase. It made him feel neither good nor wretched: only indifferent.

Then his passport was collected, he had breakfast, bought another ticket, had his luggage moved to another train, and they travelled on. Another railroad station, another change of trains, another departure …The compartment rattled and shook; the engine whistled now and again, kept stopping …People speaking German began getting into the compartment in twos and threes …Then the Polish-speaking people disappeared altogether, and the compartment filled entirely with Germans.

The landscape changed too. Woods surrounded by dikes appeared, consisting of trees standing equidistant from one another, like soldiers. The wooden huts thatched with straw disappeared, and more two-storey houses with tiled roofs and gardens began coming into view. Another stop, another meal …An enormous city …Berlin, probably …Another departure …German-speaking people kept getting in and out of the train, but now they spoke with a slightly different accent. Then night and sleep …No, not sleep: merely apathy.

Two Frenchmen appeared in the compartment. The landscape was again entirely different: wide horizons, mountains, vineyards. Here and there a large, two-storey house, old and solid, screened by trees, enveloped in ivy. Another Customs inspection. A change of trains, two Frenchman and a Frenchwoman got in and made enough noise for ten. They were evidently well-bred people: nevertheless, they laughed, changed places several times and apologised to Wokulski, though he didn’t know why.

At one station, Wokulski wrote a note to Suzin: ‘Paris, Grand Hotel’, and gave it with a banknote to the conductor, not caring how much he gave him, nor even whether the telegram arrived. At the next stop, someone thrust a whole bundle of banknotes into his hand, and they travelled on.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.