Valeria and Liudmilla had made for themselves unoriginal but artistic costumes; Liudmilla dressed herself as a gipsy, Valeria as a Spanish woman. Liudmilla wore bright red rags of silk and velvet, while the thin, frail Valeria wore black silk and lace, and had a black lace fan in her hand. Darya did not make herself a new costume, she kept last year's, that of a Turkish woman. She said:
"It isn't worth while making a new one!"
When Sasha arrived all three girls began to dress him. The wig worried Sasha most of all.
"Suppose it should come off?" he kept repeating timorously.
At last they strengthened the wig with ribbons tied under the chin.
[CHAPTER XXIX]
The masked ball took place at the Club House in the Market Square—a two-storied building of stone, painted bright red, resembling a barracks. It was arranged by Gromov-Chistopolsky, the actor-manager of the local theatre. The entrance, which was covered in by a calico canopy, was lighted by lamps. The crowd standing in the street criticised the arrivals, for the most part unfavourably, the more so since in the streets the costumes were almost hidden under outside wraps; the crowd judged chiefly by guesswork. The policemen zealously kept order in the street, while in the hall itself the Commissioner of Police and a police-inspector were present as guests.
Every guest received on entering two cards, one pink, for the best woman's costume; one green, for the man's, which were to be handed to the chosen persons. Some asked: