Текст книги "The Gambler and other stories. Poor People. The Landlady"
Автор книги: Федор Достоевский
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At first Granny began looking about at the players. She began in a half whisper asking me abrupt, jerky questions. Who was that man and who was this woman ? She was particularly delighted by a young man at the end of the table who was playing for very high stakes, putting down thousands, and had, as people whisp)ered around, already won as much as forty thousand francs, which lay before him in heaps of gold and banknotes. He was pale; his eyes glittered and his hands were shaking; he was staking i.ow without counting, by handfuls, and yet he kept on winning and winning, kept raking in the money. The attendants hung about him solicitously, set a chair for him, cleared a place roxmd him that he might have more room, that he might not be crowded—all this in expectation of a liberal tip. Some players, after they have won, tip the attendants without counting a handful of coins in their joy. A Pole had already established himself at his side, and was deferentially but continually whispering to him, probably telling him what to stake on, advising and directing his play—of course, he, too, expecting a tip later on! But the player scarcely looked at him. He staked at random and kept winning. He evidently did not know what he was doing.
Granny watched him for some minutes.
"Tell him," Granny said suddenly, growing excited and giving me a poke, "tell him to give it up, to take his money quickly and go away. He'll lose it all directly, he'll lose it all!" she urged, almost breathless with agitation. "Where's Potapitch? Send Potapitch to him. Come, tell him, tell him," she went on, poking me. "Where is Potapitch? Sortez! SortezJ" —she began herself shouting to the young man.
I bent.down to her and whispered resolutely that she must not shout like this here, that even talking aloud was forbidden,
because it hindered counting and that we should be turned out directly.
"How vexatious! The man's lost I I suppose it's his own doing. ... I can't look at him, it quite upsets me. What a doltT" and Granny made haste to turn in another direction.
On the left, on the other side of the table, there was conspicuous among the players a young lady, and beside her a sort of dwarf. Who this dwarf was, eind whether he was a relation or brought by her for the sake of effect, I don't know. I had noticed the lady before; she made her appearance at the gambUng table every day, at one o'clock in the afternoon, and went away exactly at two; she always played for an hour. She was already known, and a chair was set for her at once. She took out of her pocket some gold, some thousand-franc notes, and began staking quietly, coolly, prudently, making pencil notes on a bit of paper of the numbers about which the chances grouped themselves, and trying to work out a sjretem. She staked considerable sums. She used to win every day—one, two, or at the most three thousand francs—^not more, and instantly went away. Granny scrutinised her for a long time.
"Well, that one won't lose! That one there won't lose! Of what class is she? Do you know? Who is she?"
"She must be a Frenchwoman, of a certain class, you know," I whispered.
"Ah, one can tell the bird by its flight. One can see she has a sharp claw. Explain to me now what every turn means and how one has to bet I"
I explained as far as I could to Granny all the various points on which one could stake: rouge et now, pair et impmr, manque et passe, and finally the various subtleties in the S3^tem of the numbers. Grajiny listened attentively, remembered, asked questions, eind began to master it. One could point to examples of every kind, so that she very quickly and readily picked up a great deal.
"But what about zero?. You see that croupier, the curly-headed one, the chief one, showed z6ro just now? And why did he scoop up everything that was on the table? Such a heap, he took it all for himself. What is the meaning of it?"
"Z^ro, Granny, means that the bank wins all. If the little ball falls on z^ro, everything on the table goes to the bank. It is true you can stake your money so as to keep it, but the bank pays nothing."
"You don't say so! And shall I get nothing?"
"No, Granny, if before this you had staked on z6ro you would have got thirty-five times what you staked."
"W^atl thirty-five times, and does it often turn up? Why don't they stake on it, the fools."
"There are thirty-six chances against it. Granny."
"What nonsense. Potapitch! Potapitch! Stay, I've money with me—^here." She took out of her pocket a tightly packed purse, and picked out of it a friedrich d'or. "Stake it on the z^ro at once."
"Granny, zero has only just turned up," I said; "so now it won't turn up for a long time. You will lose a great deal; wait a Uttle, anjrway."
"Oh, nonsense; put it down!"
"As you please, but it may not turn up again tiU the evening. You may go on staking thousands; it has happened."
"Oh, nonsense, nonsense. If you are afraid of the wolf you shouldn't go into the forest. What? Have I lost? Stake again!"
A second friedrich d'or was lost: she staked a third. Granny could scarcely sit still in her seat. She stared with feverish eyes at the Uttle boll dancing on the spokes of the turning wheel. She lost a third, too. Granny was beside herself, she could not sit stiE, she even thumped on the table with her fist when the croupier announced "trente-six" instead of the z6ro she was expecting.
"There, look at it," said Granny angrily; "isn't that cursed little z^ro coming soon? As sure as I'm alive, I'll sit here till zdro does come! It's that cursed curly-headed croupier's doing; he'll never let it come! Alexey Ivanovitch, stake two gold pieces at once! Staking as much as you do, even if zero does come you'll get nothing by it."
"Granny!"
"Stake, stake! it is not your money."
I staked two friedrichs d'or. The ball flew about the wheel for a long time, at last it began dancing about the spokes. Granny was nmnb with excitement, and squeezed my fingers, and dl at once—
"Zero!" boomed the croupier.
"You see, you see!"—Graimy turned to me quickly, beaming and delighted. "I told you so. The Lord Himself put it into my head to stake those two gold pieces! Well, how much do I get now? Why don't they give it me? Potapitch, Marfa, where are they? Where have all our people got to? Potapitch, Potapitch!"
"Granny, afterwards," I whispered; "Potapitch is at the door, they won't let him in. Look, Granny, they are giving you the money, take iti" ,A heavy roll of printed blue notes, worth fifty friedrichs d'or, was thrust towards Granny and twenty friedrich d'or were counted out to her. I scooped it all up in a shovel and handed it to Granny.
"Ftdtes le jew, messieurs! Ftdtes le jeu. messieurs! Rien ne va plus!" called the croupier, inviting the public to stake, and preparing to turn the wheel.
"Heavens 1 we are too late. They're just going to turn it. Put it down, put it down!" Granny urged me in a flurry. "Don't dawdle, make haste 1" She was beside herself and poked me with all her might.
"What am I to stake it on. Granny?"
"On zero, on z6ro! On z6ro again! Stake as much as possible! How much have we got altogether? Seventy friedrichs d'or. There's no need to spare it. Stake twenty friedrichs d'or at once."
"Think what you are doing, Granny! sometimes it does not turn up for two hundred times running I I assure you, you may go on staking your whole fortune."
"Oh, nonsense, nonsense! Put it down! How your tongue does wag! I know what I'm about." Graimy was positively quivering with excitement.
"By the regulations it's not allowed to stake more than twelve roubles on z^ro at once. Granny; here I have staked that."
"Why is it not allowed? Aren't you lying? Monsieur! Monsieur!"—she nudged the croupier, who was sitting near her on the left, and was about to set tiie wheel turning. "Comhien zero? Douze? Douze?"
I immediately interpreted the question in French.
"Old, madame," tiie croupier confirmed politely; "as the winnings from no single stake must exceed four thousand florins by the regulations," he added in explanation.
"Well, there's no help for it, stake twelve."
"Le jeu est fait," cried the croupier. The wheel rotated, and thirty turned up. She had lost.
"Again, again, again! Stake again!" cried Granny. I no longer resisted, and, shrugging my shoulders, staked another twelve friedrichs d'or. The wheel turned a long time. Granny was simply quivering as she watched the wheel. "Can she really imagine that z6ro will win again?" I thought, looking at
her with wonder. Her face was beaming with a firm conviction of winning, an unhesitating expectation that in another minute they would shout z6ro. The ball jumped into the cage.
"Z6rol" cried the croupier.
"What! I!" Granny turned to me with intense triumph.
I was a gambler myself, I felt that at the moment my arms and legs were trembhng, there was a throbbing in my head. Of course, this was a rare chance that z6ro should have come up three times in some dozen turns; but there was nothing particularly wonderful about it. I had myself seen z6ro turn up three times runnmg two days before, and a gambler who had been zealously noting down the lucky numbers, observed aloud that, only the day before, zero had turned up only once in twenty-four hours.
Granny's wirmings were counted out to her with particular attention and deference as she had won such a large sum. She received four hundred and twenty friedrichs d'or, that is, four thousand florins and seventy friedrichs d'or. She was given twenty friedrichs d'or in gold, and four thousand florins in banknotes.
This time Greinny did not call Potapitch; she had other preoccupations. She did not even babble or quiver outwardly 1 She was, if one may so express it, quivering inwardly. She was entirely concentrated on something, absorbed in one aim.
"Alexey Ivanovitch, he said that one could only stake four thousand florins at once, didn't he? Come, take it, stake the whole four thousand on the red," Granny commanded.
It was useless to protest; the wheel began rotating.
"Rouge/' the croupier proclaimed.
Again she had won four thousand florins, making eight in all.
"Give me four, and stake four again on red," Granny conmianded.
Again I staked four thousand.
"Rouge," the croupier pronounced again.
"Twelve thousand altogether! Give it me all here. Pour the gold here into the purse and put away the notes. That's enough 1 Home I Wheel my chair out."
CHAPTER XI
THE chair was wheeled to the door at the other end of the room. Granny was radiant. All our party immediately thronged round her with congratulations. However eccentric Granny's behaviour might be, her triumph covered a multitude of sins, and the General was no longer afraid of compromising himself in public by his relationship with such a strange woman. With a condescending and familiarly good-humoured smile, as though humouring a child, he congratulated Granny. He was, however, evidently impressed, like all the other spectators. People talked all round and pointed at Graimy. Many passed by to get a closer view of her! Mr. Astley was talking of her aside, with two English acquaintances. Some majestic ladies gazed at her with majestic amazement, as though at a marvel . . . De Grieux positively showered congratulatioiis and smiles upon her.
"Qti/e^ victoirei!" he said.
"Mais, Madame, c'etait du feu," Mile. Blanche commented, with an ingratiating smile.
"Yes, I just went and won twelve thousand florins! Twelve, indeed; what about the gold? With the gold it makes almost thirteen. What is that in oiu: money? Will it be six thousand?"
I explained that it made more than seven, and in the present state of exchange might even amount to eight.
"Well, that's something worth having, eight thousand! And you stay here, you noodles, cind do nothing! Potapitch, Marfa, did you see?"
"My goodness! how did you do it. Ma'am? Eight thousand!" exclaimed Marfa, wriggling.
"There! there's five gold pieces for you, here!"
Potapitch and Marfa flew to kiss her hand.
"And give the porters, too, a friedrich d'or each. Give it them in gold, Alexey Ivanovitch. Why is that flunkey bowing and the other one too? Are they congratulating me? Give them a friedrich d'or too."
"Madame la princesse ... mm pamrre expatrii . . . mdhmr contmuel. . . les princes russes sont si ginireux ..." A person with moustaches and an obsequious smile, in a threadbare coat and gay-coloured waistcoat, came cringing about Granny's chair, waving his hat in his hand.
"Give him a friedrich d'or too. ... No, give him two; that's
enough, or there will be no end to them. Lift me up and carry me out. Praskovya"—she turned to Polina Alexandrovna– "I'll buy you a dress to-morrow, and I'll buy MUe. . . . what's her name, MUe. Blanche, isn't it? I'll buy her a dress too. Translate that to her, Praskovya 1"
"Merd, Madame." MUe. Blanche made a grateful curtsey while she exchanged an ironical smile with De Grieux and the General. The General was rather embarrassed and was greatly relieved when we reached the avenue.
"Fedosya—^won't Fedosya be surprised," said Granny, thinking of the General's nurse. "I must make her a present of a dress. Hey, Alexey Ivanovitch, Alexey Ivanovitch, give this to the poor man."
A man in rags, with bent back, passed us on the road, and looked at us.
"And perhaps he is not a poor man, but a rogue. Granny."
"Give him a gulden, give it him!"
I went up to Sie man and gave it him. He looked at me in wild amazement, but took the gulden, however. He smelt of spirits.
"And you, Alexey Ivanovitch. Have you not tried your luck yet?"
"No, Granny."
"But your eyes were burning, I saw them."
"I shall try. Granny, I certainly shaU later."
"And stake on zlro strsiight away. You will see! How much have you in hand?"
"Only twenty friedrichs d'or. Granny."
"That's not much. I will give you fifty friedrichs d'or. I will lend it if you like. Here, take this roll—^but don't you expect anything, all the same, my good man, I am not going to give you anything," she said, suddenly addressing the General.
The latter winced, but he said nothing. De Grieux frowned.
"Qua diable, c'est wne terrible vieille!" he muttered to the General through his teeth.
"A beggar, a beggar, another beggar!" cried Granny. "Give him a gulden, too, Alexey Ivanovitch."
This time it was a grey-headed old man with a wooden leg, in a long-skirted blue coat and with a long stick in his hand. He looked like an old soldier. But when I held out a gulden to him he stepped back and looked at me angrily.
"Was ist's der Teufel," he shouted, following up with a dozen oaths.
"Oh, he's a fool," cried Granny, dismissing hkn with a wave of her hand. "Go on I I'm hungry! Now we'll have dinner directly; then I'll rest a little, and back here again."
"You want to play again, Granny 1" I cried.
"What do you expect? That you should all sit here and sulk while I watch you?"
"Mais, maSame —" De Grieux drew near– '-les chau^s peuvent tourner, une seule m "Vous perdrez ahsohtment," chirped Mile. Blanche. "But what is it to do with all of you? I shouldn't lose your money, but my own! And where is that Mr. Astley?" she asked me. "He stayed in the Casino, Granny." "I'm sorry, he's such a nice man." On reaching home Granny met the oher-kellner on the stairs, called him and began bragging of her winnings; then she sent for Fedosya, made her a present of three friedrichs d'or and ordered dinner to be served. Fedosya and Marfa hovered over her at dinner. "I watched you, ma'am," Marfa cackled, "and said to Potapitch, 'What does our lady want to do?' And the money on the table—saints alive! the money 1 I haven't seen so much money in the whole of my Ufe, and all round were gentlefolk– nothing but gentlefolk sitting. 'And wherever do all these gentlefolk come from, Potapitch?' said I. May our Lady Herself help her, I thought. I was praying for you, ma'am, and my heart was simply sinking, simply sinking; I was all of a tremble. Lord help her, I thought, and here the Lord has sent you luck. I've been trembling ever since, ma'am. I'm all of a tremble now." "Alexey Ivanovitch, after dinner, at four o'clock, get ready and we'll go. Now good-bye for a time; don't forget to send for a doctor for me. I must drink the waters, too. Go, or maybe you'll forget." As I left Granny I was in a sort of stupor. I tried to imagine what would happen now to all our people and what turn things would take. I saw clearly that they (especially the General) had not yet succeeded in recovering from the first shock. The fact of Granny's arrival instead of the telegram which they were expecting from hour to hour to announce her death (and consequently the inheritance of her fortune) had so completely shattered the whole fabric of their plans and intentions that Granny's further exploits at roulette threw them into positive bewilderment and a sort of stupefaction seemed to have come over all of them. Meanwhile this second fact was almost more important than the first; for though Granny had repeated twice that she would not give the General any money, yet, who knows?—^there was no need to give up all hope yet. De Grieux, who was involved in all the General's affairs, had not lost hope. I am convinced that Mile. Blanche, also much involved in the General's affairs (I should think so: to marry a General and with a considerable fortune!), would not ha^^ given up hope, and would have tried aU her fascinating arts upon Granny—^in contrast with the proud and incomprehensible Polina, who did not know how to curry favour with anyone. But now, now that Granny had had such success at roulette, now that Granny's personality had shown itself so clearly and so typically (a refractory and imperious old lady, et tmnbde en mfmnce), now, perhaps, all was lost. Why, she was as pleased as a child, so pleased that she would go on tiU she was ruined and had lost everj^thing. Heavens! I thought (and, God forgive me, with a malignant laugh), why, every friedrich d'or Granny staked just now must have been a fresh sore in the General's heart, must have maddened De Grieux and infuriated Mile, de Cominges, who saw the cup slipping from her lips. Another fact: even in her triumph and joy of winning, when Granny was giving money away to everyone, and taking every passer-by for a beggar, even then she had let fall to the General, "I'm not going to give you anything, though!" That meant that she had fastened upon that idea, was sticking to it, had made up her mind about it. There was danger! danger! All these reflections were revolving in my mind as I mounted the front stairs from Granny's apartments to my garret in the very top storey. All this interested me strongly. Though, of course, I could before have divined the strongest leading motives prompting the actors before me, yet I did not know for certain all the m37steries and intrigues of tiie drama. Polina had never been fully open with me. Though it did happen at times that she revealed her feelings to me, yet I noticed that almost always after such confidences she would make fim of all she had said, or would try to obscure the matter and put it in a different light. Oh, she had hidden a great deal! In any case, I foresaw that the denouement of this mysterious and constrained position was at hand. One more shock—and everjrthing would be ended and revealed. About my fortunes, which were also involved in aU this, I scarcely troubled. I was in a strange mood: I had only twenty friedrichs d'or in my pocket; I was in a foreign land without a job or means of livelihood, withxmt hope, without prospects, and—I did not trouble my head about it! If it had not been for the thought of Polina, I should have abandoned myself to the comic interest of the approaching catastrophe, and would have been shouting with laughter. But I was troubled about Polina; her fate was being decided, I divined that; but I regret to say that it was not altogether her fate that troubled me. I wanted to fathom her secrets; I wanted her to come to me and say: "I love you," and if not that, if that was senseless insanity, then . . . well, what was there to care about? Did I know what I wanted? I was like one demented: all I wanted was to be near her, in the halo of her glory, in her radiance, always, for ever, all my life. I knew nothing morel And could I leave her? In their passage on the third storey I felt as though something nudged me. I turned roimd and, twenty paces or more from me, I saw coming out of a door, Polina. She seemed waiting: and as soon as she saw me beckoned to me. "Polina Alexandrovna ..." "Hush!" she said. "Imagine," I whispered to her, "I felt as though someone had nudged me just now; I looked round—^you! It seems as though there were a sort of electricity from youl" "Take this letter," PoUna articulated anxiotisly with a frown, probably not hearing what I had said, "and give it into Mr. Astley's own hands at once. Make haste, I Ijeg you. There is no need of an answer. He will ..." She did not finish. "Mr. Astley?" I repeated in surprise. But Polina had already disappeared behind the door. "Aha, so they are in correspondence!" I ran at once, of course, to Mr. Astley; first to his hotel, where I did not find him, then to the Casino, where I hurried through all the rooms: and at last, as I was returning home in vexation, almost in despair, I met him by chance, witti a party of Englishmen and Englishwomen on horseback. I beckoned to him, stopped him and gave him the letter: we had not time even to exchange a glance. But I suspect that Mr. Astley purposely gave rein to his horse. Was I tortured by jealousy? An5:way, I was in an utterly shattered condition. I did not even want to find out what th^ were writing to one another about. And so he was trasted by her I "Her friend, her friend," I thought, "and that is clear (and when has he had time to become her friend?), but is there love in the case? Of course not," common-sense whispered to me. But common-sense alone counts for little in such cases; anyway, this, too, had to be cleared up. Things were growing unpleasantly complicated. Before I had time to go into the hotel, first the porter and then the ober-keUner. coming out of his room, informed me that I was wanted, that I had been asked for, three times they had sent to ask: where was I?—^that I was asked to go as quickly as possible to the General's rooms. I was in the most disagreeable frame of mind. In the General's room I found, besides the General himself, De Grieux and Mile. Blanche—alone, without her mother. The mother was evidently an official one, only used for show. But when it came to real bimness she acted for herself. And probably the woman knew little of her so-called daughter's affairs. They were, however, consulting warmly about something, and the doors of the study were actually locked—^which had never happened before. Coming to the door, I heard loud voices—De Grieux's insolent and malignant voice, Blanche's shrill fury, and the General's pitiful tones, evidently defending himself about something. Upon my enfrance they all, as it were, pulled themselves up and restrained themselves. De Grieux smoothed his hair and forced a smile into his angry face—^that horrid official French smile which I so detest. The crushed and desperate General tried to assume an air of dignity, but it was a mechanical effort. Only Mile. Blanche's countenjince, blazing with anger, scarcely changed. She only ceased speaking while she fixed her eyes upon me in impatient expectation. I may mention that hitherto she had freated me with extraordinary casualness, had even refused to respond to my bows, and had simply declined to see me. "Alexey Ivanovitch," the General began in a soft and mollifying tone; "allow me to tell you that it is strange, exceedingly strange ... in fact, yoixr conduct in regard to me and my family ... in fact, it is exceedingly strange ..." "Eh! ce m'esi pas ga," De Grieux interposed, with vexation and contempt. (There's no doubt he was the leading spirit.) "Mem cher monsiew, twire cher general se trompe, in taking up this tone" (I franslate the rest of his speech in Russian), "but he meant to say . . . that is to warn you, or rather to beg you most earnestly not to ruin him—^yes, indeed, not to ruin him I I make use of that expression." "But how, how?" I interrapted. "Why, you are undertaking to be the guide (or how shall I express it?) of this old woman, cette pcmvre terrible vieill&"r-De Grieux himself hesitated—"but you know she'll lose everything; she will gamble away her whole fortune! You know yourself, you have seen yourself, how she plays I If she begins to lose; she will never leave off, from obstinacy, from anger, and will lose everything, she will gamble away everything, and in such cases one can never regain one's losses and then . . . then . . ." "And then," the General put in, "then you will ruin the whole family! I and my family are her heirs, she has no nearer relations. I tell you openly: my affairs are in a bad way, a very bad way. You know my position to some extent ... If she loses a considerable sum or even (Lord help us!) her whole fortune, what will become of me, of my children!" (The General looked round at De Grieux.) "Of me." (He looked round at Mile. Blanche, who turned away from him with contempt.) "Alexey Ivanovitch, save us, save us! . . ." "But how. General, how, how can I? . . . What influence have I in the matter?" "Refuse, refuse, give her up! . . ." "Then someone else will turn up," I said. "Ce n'est pas ga, ce n'est pas ga," De Grieux interrupted again, "qtte dmbie! No, don't desert her, laoit at least advise her, dissuade her, draw her away . . . don't let her play too much, distract her in some way." "But how can I do that? If you would undertake the task yourself, M. de Grieux," I added, as naively as I could. Here I caught a rapid, fiery, questioning glance from Mile. Blanche at M. de Grieux. And in De Grieux's own face there was something peculiar, something he could not himself disguise. "The point is, she won't accept me now!" De Grieux cried, with a wave of his hand. "If only . . . later on . . ." De Grieux looked rapidly and meaningly at Mile. Blanche. "0, mon che>r M. Alexis, soyez si hon." Mile. Blanche herself took a step towards me with a most fascinating smile, she seized me by both hands and pressed them warmly. Damn it all! That diabolical face knew how to change completely in one moment. At that instant her face was so imploring, so sweet, it was such a child-like and even mischievous smile; at the end of the phrase she gave me such a sly wink, unseen by all the rest; she meant to do for me completely, and it was successfully done; only it was horribly coarse. Then the General leapt up, positively leapt up. "Alexey Ivanovitch, forgive me for beginning as I did just now. I did not mean that at all. ... I beg you, I beseech you, I bow down before you in Russian style—^you alone, you alone can save us. Mile, de Cominges and I implore you—^you understand, you understand, of course." He besought me, indicating Mile. Blanche with his eyes. He was a very pitiful figure. At that instant there came three subdued and respectful knocks at the door; it was opened—^the corridor attendant was knocking and a few steps behind him stood Potapitch. They came with messages from Granny; they were charged to find and bring me at once. "She is angry," Potapitch informed me. "But it is only half-past three." "She could not get to sleep; she kept tossing about, and then at last she got up, sent for her chair and for you. She's at the front door now." "Quelle megere," cried De Grieux. I did, in fact, find Granny on the steps, out of all patience at my not being there. She could not wait till four o'clock. "Come," she cried, and we set off again to roulette. CHAPTER XII GRANNY was in an impatient and irritable mood; it was evident that roulette had made a deep impression on her mind. She took no notice of anything else and was altogether absent-minded. For instance, she asked me no questions on the road as she had done before. Seeing a luxurious carriage whirling by, she was on the point of raising her hand and asking: W[iat is it? Whose is it?—but I believe she did not hear what I answered: her absorption was continually interrupted by abrupt and impatient gesticulations. When I pointed out to her Baron and Baroness Burmerhelm, who were approaching the Casino, she looked absent-mindedly at them and said, quite indifferently, "Ah!" and, turning round quickly to Potapitch and Marfa, who were walking behind her, snapped out to them— "Why are you hanging upon us? We can't take you every time! Go home! You and I are enough," she added, when they had hurriedly turned and gone home. They were akeady expecting Granny at the Casino. They immediately made room for her in the same place, next to the croupier. I fancy that these croupiers, who are always so strictiy decorous and appear to be ordinary officials who are absolutely indifferent as to whether the bank wins or loses, are by no means so unconcerned at the bank's losses and, of course, receive instructions for attracting players and for augmenting the profits—for which they doubtless receive prizes and bonuses. They looked upon Granny, anyway, as their prey. Then just what we had expected happened. This was how it was. Granny pounced at once on z&ro and immediately ordered me to stake twelve friedrichs d'or. She staked once, twice, three times—zero never turned up. "Put it down! Put it down!" Granny nudged me, impatiently. I obeyed. "How many times have we staked?" she asked at last, grinding her teeth with impatience. "I have staked twelve times, Granny. I have put down a hundred and forty-four friedrichs d'or. I tell you. Granny, very likely till evening ..." "Hold your tongue!" Granny interrupted. "Stake on z6ro, and stake at once a thousand gulden on red. Here, take the note." Red won, and zero failed once more; a thousand gulden was gained.
