"Here's Dolly for you, princess, you were so anxious to see her,"

said Anna, coming out with Darya Alexandrovna onto the stone

terrace where Princess Varvara was sitting in the shade at an

embroidery frame, working at a cover for Count Alexey

Kirillovitch's easy chair. "She says she doesn't want anything

before dinner, but please order some lunch for her, and I'll go

and look for Alexey and bring them all in."

Princess Varvara gave Dolly a cordial and rather patronizing

reception, and began at once explaining to her that she was

living with Anna because she had always cared more for her than

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her sister Katerina Pavlovna, the aunt that had brought Anna up,

and that now, when every one had abandoned Anna, she thought it

her duty to help her in this most difficult period of transition.

"Her husband will give her a divorce, and then I shall go back to

my solitude; but now I can be of use, and I am doing my duty,

however difficult it may be for me--not like some other people.

And how sweet it is of you, how right of you to have come! They

live like the best of married couples; it's for God to judge

them, not for us. And didn't Biryuzovsky and Madame

Avenieva...and Sam Nikandrov, and Vassiliev and Madame Mamonova,

and Liza Neptunova... Did no one say anything about them? And

it has ended by their being received by everyone. And then,

_c'est un intérieur si joli, si comme il faut. Tout-à-fait à

l'anglaise. On se réunit le matin au breakfast, et puis on se

sépare._ Everyone does as he pleases till dinnertime. Dinner at

seven o'clock. Stiva did very rightly to send you. He needs

their support. You know that through his mother and brother he

can do anything. And then they do so much good. He didn't tell

you about his hospital? _Ce sera admirable_--everything from

Paris."

Their conversation was interrupted by Anna, who had found the men

of the party in the billiard room, and returned with them to the

terrace. There was still a long time before the dinner-hour, it

was exquisite weather, and so several different methods of

spending the next two hours were proposed. There were very many

methods of passing the time at Vozdvizhenskoe, and these were all

unlike those in use at Pokrovskoe.

"_Une partie de lawn-tennis,_" Veslovsky proposed, with his

handsome smile. "We'll be partners again, Anna Arkadyevna."

"No, it's too hot; better stroll about the garden and have a row

in the boat, show Darya Alexandrovna the river banks." Vronsky

proposed.




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