Page 248 - the-idiot

about my doing you honour by marrying you-well, Totski
can tell you all about that. You had your eye on Aglaya, Ga-
nia, you know you had; and you might have married her
if you had not come bargaining. You are all like this. You
should choose, once for all, between disreputable women,
and respectable ones, or you are sure to get mixed. Look at
the general, how he’s staring at me!’
‘This is too horrible,’ said the general, starting to his feet.
All were standing up now. Nastasia was absolutely beside
herself.
‘I am very proud, in spite of what I am,’ she continued.
‘You called me ‘perfection’ just now, prince. A nice sort of
perfection to throw up a prince and a million and a half of
roubles in order to be able to boast of the fact afterwards!
What sort of a wife should I make for you, after all I have
said? Afanasy Ivanovitch, do you observe I have really and
truly thrown away a million of roubles? And you thought
that I should consider your wretched seventy-five thou-
sand, with Gania thrown in for a husband, a paradise of
bliss! Take your seventy-five thousand back, sir; you did not
reach the hundred thousand. Rogojin cut a better dash than
you did. I’ll console Gania myself; I have an idea about that.
But now I must be off! I’ve been in prison for ten years. I’m
free at last! Well, Rogojin, what are you waiting for? Let’s
get ready and go.’
‘Come along!’ shouted Rogojin, beside himself with joy.
‘Hey! all of you fellows! Wine! Round with it! Fill the glass-
es!’
‘Get away!’ he shouted frantically, observing that Daria