Page 159 - war-and-peace

princess timidly opened the door which moved noiseless-
ly and easily. She paused at the entrance. The prince was
working at the lathe and after glancing round continued his
work.
The enormous study was full of things evidently in con-
stant use. The large table covered with books and plans, the
tall glass-fronted bookcases with keys in the locks, the high
desk for writing while standing up, on which lay an open ex-
ercise book, and the lathe with tools laid ready to hand and
shavings scattered aroundall indicated continuous, varied,
and orderly activity. The motion of the small foot shod in
a Tartar boot embroidered with silver, and the firm pres-
sure of the lean sinewy hand, showed that the prince still
possessed the tenacious endurance and vigor of hardy old
age. After a few more turns of the lathe he removed his foot
from the pedal, wiped his chisel, dropped it into a leath-
er pouch attached to the lathe, and, approaching the table,
summoned his daughter. He never gave his children a bless-
ing, so he simply held out his bristly cheek (as yet unshaven)
and, regarding her tenderly and attentively, said severely:
‘Quite well? All right then, sit down.’ He took the exer-
cise book containing lessons in geometry written by himself
and drew up a chair with his foot.
‘For tomorrow!’ said he, quickly finding the page and
making a scratch from one paragraph to another with his
hard nail.
The princess bent over the exercise book on the table.
‘Wait a bit, here’s a letter for you,’ said the old man sud-
denly, taking a letter addressed in a woman’s hand from a

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