The boy closed his eyelids gladly, and at once saw a beautiful street in which mamma never allowed Basil to walk alone.
Now Basil went along with both his hands in his pockets. One pocket was full of apples, the other full of pears. Basil took them out by turns, first one and then the other, and ate to his great content. When he got tired of the fruit he felt nuts in his pockets instead of apples, and dates and dried figs instead of pears. After a while he could not help thinking of sweets. And as soon as he did so the nuts turned into chocolate, and the dates and figs into sugar-candy.
Besides this, at every curbstone stood a prettily-dressed girl, very like those who served Basil at the confectioner's when Petr Petróvich took him there and offered him some choice morsel.
One regaled him with grapes, another with ice cream, a third with pineapple, a fourth with strawberries, and a fifth with apricots; and so on.
Basil walked on gaily, looking around on all sides, and taking a good piece from each plate. What was the most wonderful was that he never suffered after it.
Basil walked on and on in the happiest frame of mind. Nevertheless he could not help noticing that the street was somewhat long. He had hardly thought this when he perceived that the street had vanished, and he stood in the middle of a toy-shop. Goodness me! what beautiful things he saw there! Drums, swords, guns, mechanical dogs, balls, furniture, rocking-horses, loto, pictures—a regular furnished house.... But no! let us stop enumerating. It would be impossible to remember all the splendid things displayed in the shop. Basil's eyes were simply dazzled at the cupboards and shelves. After a good while, when he had surveyed all these treasures, his attention became attracted by a crossbow with a steel spring, a capital bowstring, and the butt end well polished. Next to the crossbow was a quiver attached to a strap with all sorts of arrows. For a long time Basil had longed for such a bow. With this bow you might hit any mark, and you might even, if on the watch, shoot the raven that was in the habit of stealing small chickens from the yard. Basil had seen just such a bow at a little friend's house. How easy it was to shoot with it! Basil had asked his mamma to buy him such a bow, but his mamma said she could not afford it; it cost five roubles.[6] And now Basil saw his pet bow in the shop. Suddenly the door creaked, and Basil's mamma entered. She paid down the money, took the bow and the quiver, and walked out. Basil was so overjoyed that he nearly jumped out of his bed; but at the same moment the shop vanished from his sight, and in its place stood a shoemaker's workshop, where his mamma used to order her boots. How happy he was walking with her and holding his bow in his hands. He looked around on all sides, and thought all other people were happy to see him with his beautiful bow. Suddenly he perceived how greatly he was mistaken, for he saw the master of the workshop, a rather short, square-built man, standing before his apprentice, scolding him, and preparing by his gestures to thrash him. The unhappy boy cried hard, trembled with fear, and begged for mercy, but the master was angry, and did not listen to him. Seeing some visitors, the master in a moment put on an amiable expression, turned to them, and threw away the strap. The trembling apprentice drew back towards the door. Basil pitied the boy dreadfully. He went up to the poor fellow and asked in a whisper, 'What does he want to beat you for?' The boy did not answer, and drew back towards the door with downcast eyes. Basil went after him and asked again: 'Did you do anything?'
'I've done nothing, and I'm not guilty,' answered the apprentice, after a long silence.
'What does he want to beat you for then?'
'Peter informed about me.'