Opposite to me lay the study door, and presently I saw Jakoff enter it, accompanied by several long-bearded men in kaftans.  Then the door shut again.

“Now they are going to begin some business or other,” I thought.  I believed the affairs transacted in that study to be the most important ones on earth.  This opinion was confirmed by the fact that people only approached the door of that room on tiptoe and speaking in whispers.  Presently Papa’s resonant voice sounded within, and I also scented cigar smoke—­always a very attractive thing to me.  Next, as I dozed, I suddenly heard a creaking of boots that I knew, and, sure enough, saw Karl Ivanitch go on tiptoe, and with a depressed, but resolute, expression on his face and a written document in his hand, to the study door and knock softly.  It opened, and then shut again behind him.

“I hope nothing is going to happen,” I mused.  “Karl Ivanitch is offended, and might be capable of anything—­” and again I dozed off.

Nevertheless something did happen.  An hour later I was disturbed by the same creaking of boots, and saw Karl come out, and disappear up the stairs, wiping away a few tears from his cheeks with his pocket handkerchief as he went and muttering something between his teeth.  Papa came out behind him and turned aside into the drawing-room.

“Do you know what I have just decided to do?” he asked gaily as he laid a hand upon Mamma’s shoulder.

“What, my love?”

“To take Karl Ivanitch with the children.  There will be room enough for him in the carriage.  They are used to him, and he seems greatly attached to them.  Seven hundred roubles a year cannot make much difference to us, and the poor devil is not at all a bad sort of a fellow.”  I could not understand why Papa should speak of him so disrespectfully.

“I am delighted,” said Mamma, “and as much for the children’s sake as his own.  He is a worthy old man.”

“I wish you could have seen how moved he was when I told him that he might look upon the 500 roubles as a present!  But the most amusing thing of all is this bill which he has just handed me.  It is worth seeing,” and with a smile Papa gave Mamma a paper inscribed in Karl’s handwriting.  “Is it not capital?” he concluded.

The contents of the paper were as follows:  [The joke of this bill consists chiefly in its being written in very bad Russian, with continual mistakes as to plural and singular, prepositions and so forth.]

“Two book for the children—­70 copeck.  Coloured paper, gold frames, and a pop-guns, blockheads [This word has a double meaning in Russian.] for cutting out several box for presents—­6 roubles, 55 copecks.  Several book and a bows, presents for the childrens—­8 roubles, 16 copecks.  A gold watches promised to me by Peter Alexandrovitch out of Moscow, in the years 18—­ for 140 roubles.  Consequently Karl Mayer have to receive 139 rouble, 79 copecks, beside his wage.”