Leo Tolstoy Archive
Written: 1852
Source: Original Text from WikiSource.org
Transcription/Markup: Andy Carloff
Online Source: RevoltLib.com; 2021
" I WANTED to ask your Grace about my children," said the old man, accidentally or purposely paying no attention to the master's angry look.
" What ? "
" Thank the Lord, we are well off for horses, and we have a hired man, so there will be no trouble about the manorial dues."
" What of it ? "
" If you would be kind enough to let my sons substitute money payment for their manorial labor, Ilyushka and Ignat would take out three troykas to do some teaming all summer. They may be able to earn something."
" Where will they go ? "
" Wherever it may be," replied Ilyushka, who had in the meantime tied the horses under the shed, and had come up to his father. " The Kadma boys took eight troykas out to Eomen, and they made a good living, and brought back home thirty rubles for each troyka ; and they say fodder is cheap in Odessa."
" It is precisely this that I wanted to talk to you about," said the master, turning to the old man, and trying to introduce the discussion about the farm as deftly as possible. " Tell me, if you please, is it more profitable to do hauling than attend to a farm ? "
" No end more profitable, your Grace ! " again interrupted Ilya, boldly shaking his hair. " There is no fodder at home to feed the horses with."
"Well, and how much do you expect to earn in a summer ? "
" In the spring, when fodder was dreadfully expensive, we traveled to Kiev with goods ; in Kursk we again took a load of grits for Moscow, and we made our living, the horses had enough to eat, and I brought fifteen rubles home."
" It is not a disgrace to have an honest trade," said the master, again turning to the old man, " but it seems to me one might find another occupation ; besides, it is a kind of work where a young fellow travels about, sees all kinds of people, and gets easily spoiled," he said, repeating Karp's words.
" What are we peasants to take up, if not hauling ? " answered the old man, with his gentle smile. "If you have a good job at teaming, you yourself have enough to eat, and so have the horses. And as to spoiling, thank the Lord, they are not hauling the first year ; and I myself have done teaming, and have never seen anything bad, nothing but good."
" There are many things you might take up at home : land and meadows — "
" How can we, your Grace ? " Ilyiishka interrupted him with animation. " We were born for this ; we know all about it ; the business is adapted to us, and we like it very much, your Grace, and there is nothing like teaming for us fellows."
" Your Grace, will you do us the honor to walk into the hut? You have not yet seen our new house," said the old man, bowing low, and winking to his son. Ilyushka ran at full speed into the hut, and Nekhlyudov followed him, with the old man.