Page 446 - the-idiot

her already. She was staying with Daria Alexeyevna, in an
ugly little house in Mattrossky Street, but drove about in
the smartest carriage in the place. A crowd of followers had
pursued her from the first, young and old. Some escorted
her on horse-back when she took the air in her carriage.
She was as capricious as ever in the choice of her acquain-
tances, and admitted few into her narrow circle. Yet she
already had a numerous following and many champions on
whom she could depend in time of need. One gentleman on
his holiday had broken off his engagement on her account,
and an old general had quarrelled with his only son for the
same reason.
She was accompanied sometimes in her carriage by a girl
of sixteen, a distant relative of her hostess. This young lady
sang very well; in fact, her music had given a kind of noto-
riety to their little house. Nastasia, however, was behaving
with great discretion on the whole. She dressed quietly,
though with such taste as to drive all the ladies in Pavlofsk
mad with envy, of that, as well as of her beauty and her car-
riage and horses.
‘As for yesterday’s episode,’ continued Gania, ‘of course it
was pre-arranged.’ Here he paused, as though expecting to
be asked how he knew that. But the prince did not inquire.
Concerning Evgenie Pavlovitch, Gania stated, without being
asked, that he believed the former had not known Nasta-
sia Philipovna in past years, but that he had probably been
introduced to her by somebody in the park during these
four days. As to the question of the IOU’s she had spoken of,
there might easily be something in that; for though Evgenie