Page 1576 - ANNA KARENINA

Anna Karenina

thing. And she did better still in throwing up that crazy
brother-in-law of yours. You must excuse me. Everybody
used to say he was so clever, so very clever; I was the only
one that said he was a fool. Now that he’s so thick with

Lidia Ivanovna and Landau, they all say he’s crazy, and I
should prefer not to agree with everybody, but this time I
can’t help it.’
‘Oh, do please explain,’ said Stepan Arkadyevitch;
‘what does it mean? Yesterday I was seeing him on my
sister’s behalf, and I asked him to give me a final answer.
He gave me no answer, and said he would think it over.
But this morning, instead of an answer, I received an
invitation from Countess Lidia Ivanovna for this evening.’
‘Ah, so that’s it, that’s it!’ said Princess Myakaya
gleefully, ‘they’re going to ask Landau what he’s to say.’
‘Ask Landau? What for? Who or what’s Landau?’
‘What! you don’t know Jules Landau, le fameux Jules
Landau, le clairvoyant? He’s crazy too, but on him your
sister’s fate depends. See what comes of living in the
provinces—you know nothing about anything. Landau,
do you see, was a commis in a shop in Paris, and he went
to a doctor’s; and in the doctor’s waiting room he fell
asleep, and in his sleep he began giving advice to all the
patients. And wonderful advice it was! Then the wife of

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