And a species of consolation entered his breast, as if the remembrance rejoiced him that there was some one more guilty than he.
Soon, however, more grievous thoughts must have come to his head, for his face grew dark, and he repeated a number of times,—
“Jesus! Jesus! Jesus!”
And again choking attacked him; a rattling began in his throat more terrible than before. Meanwhile from without came the sound of musketry, at first infrequent, then more frequent; but amidst the drifting of the snow and the howling of the whirlwind they did not sound too loudly, and it might have been thought that that was some continual knocking at the gate.
“They are fighting!” said the prince’s physician.
“As usual!” answered Kharlamp. “People are freezing in the snow-drifts, and they wish to fight to grow warm.”
“This is the sixth day of the whirlwind and the snow,” answered the doctor. “Great changes will come in the kingdom, for this is an unheard of thing.”
“God grant it!” said Kharlamp. “It cannot be worse.”
Further conversation was interrupted by the prince, to whom a new relief had come.
“Kharlamp!”