Page 1572 - ANNA KARENINA

Anna Karenina

The Petersburg attitude on pecuniary matters had an
especially soothing effect on Stepan Arkadyevitch.
Bartnyansky, who must spend at least fifty thousand to
judge by the style he lived in, had made an interesting

comment the day before on that subject.
As they were talking before dinner, Stepan
Arkadyevitch said to Bartnyansky:
‘You’re friendly, I fancy, with Mordvinsky; you might
do me a favor: say a word to him, please, for me. There’s
an appointment I should like to get—secretary of the
agency..’
‘Oh, I shan’t remember all that, if you tell it to me....
But what possesses you to have to do with railways and
Jews?... Take it as you will, it’s a low business.’
Stepan Arkadyevitch did not say to Bartnyansky that it
was a ‘growing thing’—Bartnyansky would not have
understood that.
‘I want the money, I’ve nothing to live on.’
‘You’re living, aren’t you?’
‘Yes, but in debt.’
‘Are you, though? Heavily?’ said Bartnyansky
sympathetically.
‘Very heavily: twenty thousand.’
Bartnyansky broke into good-humored laughter.

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