Butwheneventsassumedtheirtruehistoricalcharacter, whenexpressinghatredfortheFrenchinwordsprovedinsufficient, whenitwasnotevenpossibletoexpressthathatredbyfightingabattle, whenself-confidencewasofnoavailinrelationtotheonequestionbeforeMoscow, whenthewholepopulationstreamedoutofMoscowasoneman, abandoningtheirbelongingsandprovingbythatnegativeactionallthedepthoftheirnationalfeeling, , weak, andalone, withnogroundtostandon.
When, awakenedfromhissleep, hereceivedthatcold, peremptorynotefromKutuzov, , thestatepropertywhichheshouldhaveremoved, wasstillinMoscowanditwasnolongerpossibletotakethewholeofitaway.
"Whoistoblameforit? Whohasletthingscometosuchapass?" heruminated."NotI, ! Villains! Traitors!" hethought, withoutclearlydefiningwhothevillainsandtraitorswere, butfeelingitnecessarytohatethosetraitorswhoevertheymightbewhoweretoblameforthefalseandridiculouspositioninwhichhefoundhimself.
AllthatnightCountRostopchinissuedorders, .
"Yourexcellency, theDirectoroftheRegistrar'sDepartmenthassentforinstructions...FromtheConsistory, fromtheSenate, fromtheUniversity, fromtheFoundlingHospital, theSuffraganhassent...askingforinformation....WhatareyourordersabouttheFireBrigade? Fromthegovernoroftheprison...fromthesuperintendentofthelunaticasylum..." Allnightlongsuchannouncementswerecontinuallybeingreceivedbythecount.
Toalltheseinquirieshegavebriefandangryrepliesindicatingthatordersfromhimwerenotnowneeded, thatthewholeaffair, carefullypreparedbyhim, hadnowbeenruinedbysomebody, andthatthatsomebodywouldhavetobearthewholeresponsibilityforallthatmighthappen.
"Oh, tellthatblockhead," hesaidinreplytothequestionfromtheRegistrar'sDepartment, "? Theyhavehorses, letthembeofftoVladimir, andnotleavethemtotheFrench."
"Yourexcellency, thesuperintendentofthelunaticasylumhascome: whatareyourcommands?"
"Mycommands? Letthemgoaway, that'sall....."
Inreplytoaninquiryabouttheconvictsintheprison, CountRostopchinshoutedangrilyatthegovernor:
"Doyouexpectmetogiveyoutwobattalions—whichwehavenotgot—foraconvoy? Releasethem, that'sallaboutit!"
"Yourexcellency, therearesomepoliticalprisoners, Meshkov, Vereshchagin..."
"Vereshchagin! Hasn'thebeenhangedyet?" shoutedRostopchin."Bringhimtome!"
