Whirlpools: A Novel of Modern PolandSienkiewicz, Henryk
General
Whirlpools: A Novel of Modern Poland
Sienkiewicz, Henryk
Poland -- Fiction
Krzycki awoke, though not in the dusk, nevertheless with the rise of
the sun, for in the country he thus habituated himself to wake,
regardless of whether he retired to bed early or late. He felt in his
bones that he had had too little rest and, stretching out his arms, he
said to himself that he would be repaid only in case Miss Anney at some
time would learn that he lost that sleep for her sake and would pity
him, though slightly. Meanwhile he recalled to his mind all that he was
to do that day and formulated the following plan; he would rouse
himself, drive out the lassitude in his bones; afterwards, before
breakfast, would drive over to Rzeslewo and "look a little in the eyes
of those worthies;" and if possible talk with the peasants; later he
would return; after breakfast he would finish with Laskowicz and send
him away with the team which was to bring the physician; the balance of
his time, he would devote to the guests, to writing letters, and to the
farm. He positively determined to go to Rzeslewo, because, though he
agreed in his heart with Dolhanski that for the nonce he would be
unable to accomplish anything, nevertheless, he did not wish the ladies
to think that he stayed away through fear.
Having arranged everything in this manner, he carelessly put on his
clothes and, slipping his feet into his slippers, repaired to the
bath-room, without any foreboding that he would meet with an unusual
accident and that he was soon to see, not in truth such an alabaster
statuette as the one Laskowicz was raving about all night, but, at any
rate, something resembling Diana in a fountain. In the second in which
he opened the door he saw streams of water splashing and beheld under a
shower-sprinkler a nude, female figure, strewed with pearls of azure,
with head somewhat inclined, and hands raised to her hair, whose black
waves concealed her face. This lasted only a twinkle of the eye. A
suppressed scream and the slam of the closed door resounded
simultaneously. Krzycki rushed like the gale for his room; excited and
at the same time shocked, he clutched with shaking hand a decanter,
filled a glass of water, gulped it, and began to repeat confusedly:
"What has happened? Who is she? For God's sake, what has happened?" In
the first moments he conjectured that she might have been Pani Otocka,
or Marynia, and in such a case the misadventure would be appalling.
Those ladies would undoubtedly leave Jastrzeb at once and it would
perhaps be incumbent upon him to propose marriage to the one whom he
had seen in such paradisiacal shape. "But was it my fault?" he thought.
"Why didn't she lock the door? There was a bolt." He drank another
glass of water to cool his agitated blood and to think more calmly of
what he was to do and who that nymph was. Somehow after an interval he
reached the conclusion that she could not have been either of the
sisters. Firstly, why should they rise so early? and again, both were
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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