The Torrents Of Spring

‘I should be satisfied with a few thousand francs at first. Your husband
knows my estate. You can consult him – I would take a very moderate
price.’
Maria Nikolaevna tossed her head from left to right. ‘In the first place,’
she began in deliberate tones, drumming with the tips of her fingers on
the cuff of Sanin’s coat, ‘I am not in the habit of consulting my husband,
except about matters of dress – he’s my right hand in that; and in the
second place, why do you say that you will fix a low price? I don’t want to
take advantage of your being very much in love at the moment, and
ready to make any sacrifices… . I won’t accept sacrifices of any kind
from you. What? Instead of encouraging you … come, how is one to express
it properly? – in your noble sentiments, eh? am I to fleece you?
that’s not my way. I can be hard on people, on occasion – only not in that
way.’
Sanin was utterly unable to make out whether she was laughing at
him or speaking seriously, and only said to himself: ‘Oh, I can see one
has to mind what one’s about with you!’
A man-servant came in with a Russian samovar, tea-things, cream, biscuits,
etc., on a big tray; he set all these good things on the table between
Sanin and Madame Polozov, and retired.
She poured him out a cup of tea. ‘You don’t object?’ she queried, as
she put sugar in his cup with her fingers … though sugar-tongs were lying
close by.
‘Oh, please!… From such a lovely hand … ’
He did not finish his phrase, and almost choked over a sip of tea,
while she watched him attentively and brightly.
‘I spoke of a moderate price for my land,’ he went on, ‘because as you
are abroad just now, I can hardly suppose you have a great deal of cash
available, and in fact, I feel myself that the sale … the purchase of my
land, under such conditions is something exceptional, and I ought to
take that into consideration.’
Sanin got confused, and lost the thread of what he was saying, while
Maria Nikolaevna softly leaned back in her easy-chair, folded her arms,
and watched him with the same attentive bright look. He was silent at
last.
‘Never mind, go on, go on,’ she said, as it were coming to his aid; ‘I’m
listening to you. I like to hear you; go on talking.’
Sanin fell to describing his estate, how many acres it contained, and
where it was situated, and what were its agricultural advantages, and
what profit could be made from it … he even referred to the picturesque
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