“Yes, I am indeed, and have no wish to sleep again,” she added with a deep sigh.

I felt as though I wanted to speak to her of our misfortune, since I knew her sincerity and love, and thought that it would be a consolation to me to weep with her.

“Natalia Savishna,” I said after a pause, as I seated myself upon the bed, “who would ever have thought of this?”

The old woman looked at me with astonishment, for she did not quite understand my question.

“Yes, who would ever have thought of it?” I repeated.

“Ah, my darling,” she said with a glance of tender compassion, “it is not only ‘Who would ever have thought of it?’ but