Page 1341 - ANNA KARENINA

Anna Karenina

you don’t understand all the difficulty of my
position...there in Petersburg,’ she added. ‘Here I’m
perfectly at ease and happy. Well, of that later on, though.
Then Sviazhsky—he’s the marshal of the district, and he’s

a very good sort of a man, but he wants to get something
out of Alexey. You understand, with his property, now
that we are settled in the country, Alexey can exercise
great influence. Then there’s Tushkevitch—you have seen
him, you know—Betsy’s admirer. Now he’s been thrown
over and he’s come to see us. As Alexey says, he’s one of
those people who are very pleasant if one accepts them for
what they try to appear to be, et puis il est comme il faut,
as Princess Varvara says. Then Veslovsky...you know him.
A very nice boy,’ she said, and a sly smile curved her lips.
‘What’s this wild story about him and the Levins?
Veslovsky told Alexey about it, and we don’t believe it. Il
est tres gentil et naif,’ she said again with the same smile.
‘Men need occupation, and Alexey needs a circle, so I
value all these people. We have to have the house lively
and gay, so that Alexey may not long for any novelty.
Then you’ll see the steward—a German, a very good
fellow, and he understands his work. Alexey has a very
high opinion of him. Then the doctor, a young man, not
quite a Nihilist perhaps, but you know, eats with his

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