Page 306 - the-idiot

said, ‘and I don’t intend to.’ ‘Ha, ha! you are playing off your
pride against your stomach! That sort of heroism doesn’t sit
well on you,’ she said.
‘With that she did as she had said she would; she went to
bed, and did not lock her door. In the morning she came
out. ‘Are you quite mad?’ she said, sharply. ‘Why, you’ll die
of hunger like this.’ ‘Forgive me,’ I said. ‘No, I won’t, and I
won’t marry you. I’ve said it. Surely you haven’t sat in this
chair all night without sleeping?’ ‘I didn’t sleep,’ I said. ‘H’m!
how sensible of you. And are you going to have no break-
fast or dinner today?’ ‘I told you I wouldn’t. Forgive me!’
‘You’ve no idea how unbecoming this sort of thing is to you,’
she said, ‘it’s like putting a saddle on a cow’s back. Do you
think you are frightening me? My word, what a dreadful
thing that you should sit here and eat no food! How terribly
frightened I am!’ She wasn’t angry long, and didn’t seem to
remember my offence at all. I was surprised, for she is a vin-
dictive, resentful woman—but then I thought that perhaps
she despised me too much to feel any resentment against
me. And that’s the truth.
‘She came up to me and said, ‘Do you know who the Pope
of Rome is?’ ‘I’ve heard of him,’ I said. ‘I suppose you’ve read
the Universal History, Parfen Semeonovitch, haven’t you?’
she asked. ‘I’ve learned nothing at all,’ I said. ‘Then I’ll lend
it to you to read. You must know there was a Roman Pope
once, and he was very angry with a certain Emperor; so the
Emperor came and neither ate nor drank, but knelt before
the Pope’s palace till he should be forgiven. And what sort
of vows do you think that Emperor was making during all

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