What Men Live By, and Other Tales
ground, nor ate bread. Their cattle and horses grazed in herds on the
steppe. The colts were tethered behind the tents, and the mares were
driven to them twice a day. The mares were milked, and from the milk
kumiss was made. It was the women who prepared kumiss, and they also
made cheese. As far as the men were concerned, drinking kumiss and tea,
eating mutton, and playing on their pipes, was all they cared about.
They were all stout and merry, and all the summer long they never
thought of doing any work. They were quite ignorant, and knew no
Russian, but were good-natured enough.
As soon as they saw Pahom, they came out of their tents and gathered
round their visitor. An interpreter was found, and Pahom told them he
had come about some land. The Bashkirs seemed very glad; they took Pahom
and led him into one of the best tents, where they made him sit on some
down cushions placed on a carpet, while they sat round him. They gave
him tea and kumiss, and had a sheep killed, and gave him mutton to
eat. Pahom took presents out of his cart and distributed them among the
Bashkirs, and divided amongst them the tea. The Bashkirs were delighted.
They talked a great deal among themselves, and then told the interpreter
to translate.
"They wish to tell you," said the interpreter, "that they like you, and
that it is our custom to do all we can to please a guest and to repay
him for his gifts. You have given us presents, now tell us which of the
things we possess please you best, that we may present them to you."
"What pleases me best here," answered Pahom, "is your land. Our land is
crowded, and the soil is exhausted; but you have plenty of land and it
is good land. I never saw the like of it."
The interpreter translated. The Bashkirs talked among themselves for a
while. Pahom could not understand what they were saying, but saw that
they were much amused, and that they shouted and laughed. Then they were
silent and looked at Pahom while the interpreter said:
"They wish me to tell you that in return for your presents they will
gladly give you as much land as you want. You have only to point it out
with your hand and it is yours."
The Bashkirs talked again for a while and began to dispute. Pahom asked
what they were disputing about, and the interpreter told him that some
of them thought they ought to ask their Chief about the land and not act
in his absence, while others thought there was no need to wait for his
return.
VI
While the Bashkirs were disputing, a man in a large fox-fur cap appeared
on the scene. They all became silent and rose to their feet. The
interpreter said, "This is our Chief himself."
Pahom immediately fetched the best dressing-gown and five pounds of
tea, and offered these to the Chief. The Chief accepted them, and seated
himself in the place of honour. The Bashkirs at once began telling him
something. The Chief listened for a while, then made a sign with his
head for them to be silent, and addressing himself to Pahom, said in
Russian:
"Well, let it be so. Choose whatever piece of land you like; we have
plenty of it."
"How can I take as much as I like?" thought Pahom. "I must get a deed to
make it secure, or else they may say, 'It is yours,' and afterwards may
take it away again."
"Thank you for your kind words," he said aloud. "You have much land, and
I only want a little. But I should like to be sure which bit is mine.
Could it not be measured and made over to me? Life and death are in
God's hands. You good people give it to me, but your children might wish
to take it away again."
"You are quite right," said the Chief. "We will make it over to you."
"I heard that a dealer had been here," continued Pahom, "and that you
gave him a little land, too, and signed title-deeds to that effect. I
should like to have it done in the same way."
The Chief understood.
"Yes," replied he, "that can be done quite easily. We have a scribe, and
we will go to town with you and have the deed properly sealed."
"And what will be the price?" asked Pahom.
"Our price is always the same: one thousand roubles a day."
Pahom did not understand.
"A day? What measure is that? How many acres would that be?"
"We do not know how to reckon it out," said the Chief. "We sell it by
the day. As much as you can go round on your feet in a day is yours, and
the price is one thousand roubles a day."
Pahom was surprised.
"But in a day you can get round a large tract of land," he said.
The Chief laughed.
"It will all be yours!" said he. "But there is one condition: If you
don't return on the same day to the spot whence you started, your money
is lost."
"But how am I to mark the way that I have gone?"
"Why, we shall go to any spot you like, and stay there. You must start
from that spot and make your round, taking a spade with you. Wherever
you think necessary, make a mark. At every turning, dig a hole and pile
up the turf; then afterwards we will go round with a plough from hole to
hole. You may make as large a circuit as you please, but before the sun
sets you must return to the place you started from. All the land you
cover will be yours."
Pahom was delighted. It-was decided to start early next morning. They
talked a while, and after drinking some more kumiss and eating some more
mutton, they had tea again, and then the night came on. They gave Pahom
a feather-bed to sleep on, and the Bashkirs dispersed for the night,
promising to assemble the next morning at daybreak and ride out before
sunrise to the appointed spot.
VII
Pahom lay on the feather-bed, but could not sleep. He kept thinking
about the land.
"What a large tract I will mark off!" thought he. "I can easily go
thirty-five miles in a day. The days are long now, and within a circuit
of thirty-five miles what a lot of land there will be! I will sell the
poorer land, or let it to peasants, but I'll pick out the best and farm
it. I will buy two ox-teams, and hire two more laborers. About a hundred
and fifty acres shall be plough-land, and I will pasture cattle on the
rest."
Pahom lay awake all night, and dozed off only just before dawn. Hardly
were his eyes closed when he had a dream. He thought he was lying in
that same tent, and heard somebody chuckling outside. He wondered who it
could be, and rose and went out, and he saw the Bashkir Chief sitting
in front of the tent holding his side and rolling about with laughter.
Going nearer to the Chief, Pahom asked: "What are you laughing at?" But
he saw that it was no longer the Chief, but the dealer who had recently
stopped at his house and had told him about the land. Just as Pahom
was going to ask, "Have you been here long?" he saw that it was not the
dealer, but the peasant who had come up from the Volga, long ago, to
Pahom's old home. Then he saw that it was not the peasant either, but
the Devil himself with hoofs and horns, sitting there and chuckling,
and before him lay a man barefoot, prostrate on the ground, with
only trousers and a shirt on. And Pahom dreamt that he looked more
attentively to see what sort of a man it was lying there, and he saw
that the man was dead, and that it was himself! He awoke horror-struck.
"What things one does dream," thought he.
Looking round he saw through the open door that the dawn was breaking.
"It's time to wake them up," thought he. "We ought to be starting."
He got up, roused his man (who was sleeping in his cart), bade him
harness; and went to call the Bashkirs.
"It's time to go to the steppe to measure the land," he said.
The Bashkirs rose and assembled, and the Chief came, too. Then they
began drinking kumiss again, and offered Pahom some tea, but he would
not wait.
"If we are to go, let us go. It is high time," said he.
VIII
The Bashkirs got ready and they all started: some mounted on horses, and
some in carts. Pahom drove in his own small cart with his servant, and
took a spade with him. When they reached the steppe, the morning red was
beginning to kindle. They ascended a hillock (called by the Bashkirs a
shikhan) and dismounting from their carts and their horses, gathered in
one spot. The Chief came up to Pahom and stretched out his arm towards
the plain:
"See," said he, "all this, as far as your eye can reach, is ours. You
may have any part of it you like."
Pahom's eyes glistened: it was all virgin soil, as flat as the palm of
your hand, as black as the seed of a poppy, and in the hollows different
kinds of grasses grew breast high.
The Chief took off his fox-fur cap, placed it on the ground and said:
"This will be the mark. Start from here, and return here again. All the
land you go round shall be yours."
Pahom took out his money and put it on the cap. Then he took off his
outer coat, remaining in his sleeveless under coat. He unfastened his
girdle and tied it tight below his stomach, put a little bag of bread
into the breast of his coat, and tying a flask of water to his girdle,
he drew up the tops of his boots, took the spade from his man, and stood
ready to start. He considered for some moments which way he had better
go--it was tempting everywhere.
"No matter," he concluded, "I will go towards the rising sun."
He turned his face to the east, stretched himself, and waited for the
sun to appear above the rim.
"I must lose no time," he thought, "and it is easier walking while it is
still cool."
The sun's rays had hardly flashed above the horizon, before Pahom,
carrying the spade over his shoulder, went down into the steppe.
Pahom started walking neither slowly nor quickly. After having gone a
thousand yards he stopped, dug a hole and placed pieces of turf one on
another to make it more visible. Then he went on; and now that he had
walked off his stiffness he quickened his pace. After a while he dug
another hole.
Pahom looked back. The hillock could be distinctly seen in the sunlight,
with the people on it, and the glittering tires of the cartwheels. At
a rough guess Pahom concluded that he had walked three miles. It
was growing warmer; he took off his under-coat, flung it across his
shoulder, and went on again. It had grown quite warm now; he looked at
the sun, it was time to think of breakfast.
"The first shift is done, but there are four in a day, and it is
too soon yet to turn. But I will just take off my boots," said he to
himself.
He sat down, took off his boots, stuck them into his girdle, and went
on. It was easy walking now.
"I will go on for another three miles," thought he, "and then turn to
the left. The spot is so fine, that it would be a pity to lose it. The
further one goes, the better the land seems."
He went straight on a for a while, and when he looked round, the hillock
was scarcely visible and the people on it looked like black ants, and he
could just see something glistening there in the sun.
"Ah," thought Pahom, "I have gone far enough in this direction, it is
time to turn. Besides I am in a regular sweat, and very thirsty."
He stopped, dug a large hole, and heaped up pieces of turf. Next he
untied his flask, had a drink, and then turned sharply to the left. He
went on and on; the grass was high, and it was very hot.
Pahom began to grow tired: he looked at the sun and saw that it was
noon.
"Well," he thought, "I must have a rest."
He sat down, and ate some bread and drank some water; but he did not
lie down, thinking that if he did he might fall asleep. After sitting a
little while, he went on again. At first he walked easily: the food had
strengthened him; but it had become terribly hot, and he felt sleepy;
still he went on, thinking: "An hour to suffer, a life-time to live."
He went a long way in this direction also, and was about to turn to