Eugene Oneguine [Onegin]. A Romance of Russian Life in Verse

The wood she enters—bear behind,—In snow she sinks up to the knee;Now a long branch itself entwinedAround her neck, now violentlyAway her golden earrings tore;Now the sweet little shoes she wore,Grown clammy, stick fast in the snow;Her handkerchief she loses now;No time to pick it up! afraid,She hears the bear behind her press,Nor dares the skirting of her dressFor shame lift up the modest maid.She runs, the bear upon her trail,Until her powers of running fail.

XV

She sank upon the snow. But Bruin Adroitly seized and carried her; Submissive as if in a swoon, She cannot draw a breath or stir.He dragged her by a forest road Till amid trees a hovel showed, By barren snow heaped up and bound, A tangled wilderness around.Bright blazed the window of the place, Within resounded shriek and shout: "My chum lives here," Bruin grunts out. "Warm yourself here a little space!"Straight for the entrance then he made And her upon the threshold laid.

XVI

Recovering, Tania gazes round; Bear gone—she at the threshold placed; Inside clink glasses, cries resound As if it were some funeral feast.But deeming all this nonsense pure, She peeped through a chink of the door. What doth she see? Around the board Sit many monstrous shapes abhorred.A canine face with horns thereon, Another with cock's head appeared, Here an old witch with hirsute beard, There an imperious skeleton;A dwarf adorned with tail, again A shape half cat and half a crane.

XVII

Yet ghastlier, yet more wonderful, A crab upon a spider rides, Perched on a goose's neck a skull In scarlet cap revolving glides.A windmill too a jig performs And wildly waves its arms and storms; Barking, songs, whistling, laughter coarse, The speech of man and tramp of horse.But wide Tattiana oped her eyes When in that company she saw Him who inspired both love and awe, The hero we immortalize.Oneguine sat the table by And viewed the door with cunning eye.

XVIII

All bustle when he makes a sign: He drinks, all drink and loudly call; He smiles, in laughter all combine; He knits his brows—'tis silent all.He there is master—that is plain; Tattiana courage doth regain And grown more curious by far Just placed the entrance door ajar.The wind rose instantly, blew out The fire of the nocturnal lights; A trouble fell upon the sprites; Oneguine lightning glances shot;Furious he from the table rose; All arise. To the door he goes.

XIX