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A Russian Proprietor; the Death of Ivan Ilyitch, and Other Stories (1899)
A Russian Proprietor the Death of Ivan Ilyitch and Other Stories - 1899 Author:Leo Tolstoy Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: RECOLLECTIONS OF A BILLIARD-MARKER A STORY WELL, it happened about three o'clock. The gentlemen were playing. There was the tall visitor, as our men calle... more »d him. The prince was there, — the two are always together. The mustached barin was there; also the little hussar, Oliver, who was an actor; there was the Polish pan.1 It was a pretty good crowd. The tall visitor and the prince were playing together. Now, here I was walking up and down around the billiard-table with my stick, keeping tally,—ten and forty- seven, twelve and forty-seven. Everybody knows it's our business to score. You don't get a chance to get a bite of anything, and you don't get to bed till two o'clock o' nights, but you 're always being screamed at to bring the balls. I was keeping tally; and I look, and see a new barin comes in at the door. He gazed and gazed, and then sat down on the divan. Very good ! " Now, who can that be ? " thinks I to myself. " He must be somebody." His dress was neat, — neat as a pin,—checkered tricot pants, stylish little short coat, plush vest, and gold chain and all sorts of trinkets dangling from it. He was dressed neat; but there was something about the man neater still; slim, tall, his hair brushed forward in style, and his face fair and ruddy, — well, in a word, a fine young fellow. 1 Polish name for lord or gentleman. You must know our business brings us into contact with all sorts of people. And there's many that ain't of much consequence, and there's a good deal of poor trash. So, though you 're only a scorer, you get used to telling folks ; that is, in a certain way you learn a thing or two. I looked at the barin. I see him sit down, modest and quiet, not knowing anybody; and the clothes on him are so brand-new that, thinks I, " Either he's ...« less