Resurrection | Page 6

only to
serve the ladies in a half-hearted and negligent way, but once, without
knowing how it happened, was very rude to them, and gave them notice,
a thing she repented of later, and the ladies let her go, noticing
something wrong and very dissatisfied with her. Then she got a
housemaid's place in a police-officer's house, but stayed there only
three months, for the police officer, a man of fifty, began to torment her,
and once, when he was in a specially enterprising mood, she fired up,
called him "a fool and old devil," and gave him such a knock in the
chest that he fell. She was turned out for her rudeness. It was useless to
look for another situation, for the time of her confinement was drawing
near, so she went to the house of a village midwife, who also sold wine.
The confinement was easy; but the midwife, who had a case of fever in
the village, infected Katusha, and her baby boy had to be sent to the

foundlings' hospital, where, according to the words of the old woman
who took him there, he at once died. When Katusha went to the
midwife she had 127 roubles in all, 27 which she had earned and 100
given her by her betrayer. When she left she had but six roubles; she
did not know how to keep money, but spent it on herself, and gave to
all who asked. The midwife took 40 roubles for two months' board and
attendance, 25 went to get the baby into the foundlings' hospital, and 40
the midwife borrowed to buy a cow with. Twenty roubles went just for
clothes and dainties. Having nothing left to live on, Katusha had to look
out for a place again, and found one in the house of a forester. The
forester was a married man, but he, too, began to annoy her from the
first day. He disgusted her, and she tried to avoid him. But he, more
experienced and cunning, besides being her master, who could send her
wherever he liked, managed to accomplish his object. His wife found it
out, and, catching Katusha and her husband in a room all by themselves,
began beating her. Katusha defended herself, and they had a fight, and
Katusha got turned out of the house without being paid her wages.
Then Katusha went to live with her aunt in town. The aunt's husband, a
bookbinder, had once been comfortably off, but had lost all his
customers, and had taken to drink, and spent all he could lay hands on
at the public-house. The aunt kept a little laundry, and managed to
support herself, her children, and her wretched husband. She offered
Katusha the place of an assistant laundress; but seeing what a life of
misery and hardship her aunt's assistants led, Katusha hesitated, and
applied to a registry office for a place. One was found for her with a
lady who lived with her two sons, pupils at a public day school. A week
after Katusha had entered the house the elder, a big fellow with
moustaches, threw up his studies and made love to her, continually
following her about. His mother laid all the blame on Katusha, and
gave her notice.
It so happened that, after many fruitless attempts to find a situation,
Katusha again went to the registry office, and there met a woman with
bracelets on her bare, plump arms and rings on most of her fingers.
Hearing that Katusha was badly in want of a place, the woman gave her
her address, and invited her to come to her house. Katusha went. The
woman received her very kindly, set cake and sweet wine before her,
then wrote a note and gave it to a servant to take to somebody. In the

evening a tall man, with long, grey hair and a white beard, entered the
room, and sat down at once near Katusha, smiling and gazing at her
with glistening eyes. He began joking with her. The hostess called him
away into the next room, and Katusha heard her say, "A fresh one from
the country," Then the hostess called Katusha aside and told her that
the man was an author, and that he had a great deal of money, and that
if he liked her he would not grudge her anything. He did like her, and
gave her 25 roubles, promising to see her often. The 25 roubles soon
went; some she paid to her aunt for board and lodging; the rest was
spent on a hat, ribbons, and such like. A few days later the author sent
for her, and she went. He gave her another 25 roubles, and offered her a
separate lodging.
Next door to the lodging rented for