Part 6. Chapter 28.

Levin was standing rather far off. Levin se tenait assez loin. A nobleman breathing heavily and hoarsely at his side, and another whose thick boots were creaking, prevented him from hearing distinctly. He could only hear the soft voice of the marshal faintly, then the shrill voice of the malignant gentleman, and then the voice of Sviazhsky. They were disputing, as far as he could make out, as to the interpretation to be put on the act and the exact meaning of the words: "liable to be called up for trial." Ils se disputaient, autant qu'il pouvait le comprendre, sur l'interprétation à donner à l'acte et sur le sens exact des mots: «susceptible d'être appelé à comparaître». The crowd parted to make way for Sergey Ivanovitch approaching the table. La foule se sépara pour laisser la place à Sergey Ivanovitch qui s'approchait de la table. Sergey Ivanovitch, waiting till the malignant gentleman had finished speaking, said that he thought the best solution would be to refer to the act itself, and asked the secretary to find the act. Sergey Ivanovitch, attendant que le méchant monsieur ait fini de parler, a déclaré qu'il pensait que la meilleure solution serait de se référer à l'acte lui-même, et a demandé au secrétaire de trouver l'acte. The act said that in case of difference of opinion, there must be a ballot.

Sergey Ivanovitch read the act and began to explain its meaning, but at that point a tall, stout, round-shouldered landowner, with dyed whiskers, in a tight uniform that cut the back of his neck, interrupted him. He went up to the table, and striking it with his finger ring, he shouted loudly: "A ballot! Put it to the vote! No need for more talking!" Then several voices began to talk all at once, and the tall nobleman with the ring, getting more and more exasperated, shouted more and more loudly. But it was impossible to make out what he said.

He was shouting for the very course Sergey Ivanovitch had proposed; but it was evident that he hated him and all his party, and this feeling of hatred spread through the whole party and roused in opposition to it the same vindictiveness, though in a more seemly form, on the other side. Il criait pour le cours même que Sergey Ivanovitch avait proposé; mais il était évident qu'il le haïssait ainsi que tout son parti, et ce sentiment de haine se répandit dans tout le parti et suscita en opposition à lui la même vindicte, quoique sous une forme plus convenable, de l'autre côté. Shouts were raised, and for a moment all was confusion, so that the marshal of the province had to call for order.

"A ballot! A ballot! Every nobleman sees it! We shed our blood for our country!… The confidence of the monarch…. Nous avons versé notre sang pour notre pays!… La confiance du monarque…. No checking the accounts of the marshal; he's not a cashier…. Pas de vérification des comptes du maréchal; ce n'est pas un caissier…. But that's not the point…. Votes, please! Beastly!…" shouted furious and violent voices on all sides. Looks and faces were even more violent and furious than their words. They expressed the most implacable hatred. Levin did not in the least understand what was the matter, and he marveled at the passion with which it was disputed whether or not the decision about Flerov should be put to the vote. He forgot, as Sergey Ivanovitch explained to him afterwards, this syllogism: that it was necessary for the public good to get rid of the marshal of the province; that to get rid of the marshal it was necessary to have a majority of votes; that to get a majority of votes it was necessary to secure Flerov's right to vote; that to secure the recognition of Flerov's right to vote they must decide on the interpretation to be put on the act. "And one vote may decide the whole question, and one must be serious and consecutive, if one wants to be of use in public life," concluded Sergey Ivanovitch. "Et un vote peut décider de toute la question, et il faut être sérieux et consécutif, si l'on veut être utile dans la vie publique", a conclu Sergey Ivanovitch. But Levin forgot all that, and it was painful to him to see all these excellent persons, for whom he had a respect, in such an unpleasant and vicious state of excitement. To escape from this painful feeling he went away into the other room where there was nobody except the waiters at the refreshment bar. Seeing the waiters busy over washing up the crockery and setting in order their plates and wine glasses, seeing their calm and cheerful faces, Levin felt an unexpected sense of relief as though he had come out of a stuffy room into the fresh air. He began walking up and down, looking with pleasure at the waiters. He particularly liked the way one gray-whiskered waiter, who showed his scorn for the other younger ones and was jeered at by them, was teaching them how to fold up napkins properly. Il aimait particulièrement la façon dont un serveur aux moustaches grises, qui montrait son mépris pour les autres plus jeunes et était raillé par eux, leur apprenait à plier correctement les serviettes. Levin was just about to enter into conversation with the old waiter, when the secretary of the court of wardship, a little old man whose specialty it was to know all the noblemen of the province by name and patronymic, drew him away.

"Please come, Konstantin Dmitrievitch," he said, "your brother's looking for you. They are voting on the legal point." Levin walked into the room, received a white ball, and followed his brother, Sergey Ivanovitch, to the table where Sviazhsky was standing with a significant and ironical face, holding his beard in his fist and sniffing at it. Levin entra dans la pièce, reçut un ballon blanc et suivit son frère, Sergey Ivanovitch, jusqu'à la table où se tenait Sviazhsky avec un visage significatif et ironique, tenant sa barbe dans son poing et la reniflant. Sergey Ivanovitch put his hand into the box, put the ball somewhere, and making room for Levin, stopped. Sergey Ivanovitch a mis sa main dans la surface, a mis le ballon quelque part et fait de la place à Levin, s'est arrêté. Sergejus Ivanovičius įkišo ranką į dėžę, kažkur padėjo kamuolį ir, padaręs vietą Levinui, sustojo. Levin advanced, but utterly forgetting what he was to do, and much embarrassed, he turned to Sergey Ivanovitch with the question, "Where am I to put it?" Levin s'avança, mais oubliant complètement ce qu'il devait faire, et très embarrassé, il se tourna vers Sergey Ivanovitch avec la question: «Où dois-je le mettre? He asked this softly, at a moment when there was talking going on near, so that he had hoped his question would not be overheard. Il demanda cela doucement, à un moment où il y avait des discussions proches, de sorte qu'il avait espéré que sa question ne serait pas entendue. But the persons speaking paused, and his improper question was overheard. Mais les personnes qui parlaient se sont arrêtées et sa mauvaise question a été entendue. Sergey Ivanovitch frowned.

"That is a matter for each man's own decision," he said severely. «C'est une question qui dépend de la décision de chaque homme», dit-il sévèrement. Several people smiled. Levin crimsoned, hurriedly thrust his hand under the cloth, and put the ball to the right as it was in his right hand. Levin cramoisi, passa précipitamment sa main sous le tissu et mit la balle à droite comme dans sa main droite. Having put it in, he recollected that he ought to have thrust his left hand too, and so he thrust it in though too late, and, still more overcome with confusion, he beat a hasty retreat into the background. L'ayant mis en place, il se souvint qu'il aurait dû lui aussi pousser la main gauche, et ainsi il l'enfonça bien trop tard, et, encore plus confus, il battit précipitamment en arrière-plan.

"A hundred and twenty-six for admission! Ninety-eight against!" sang out the voice of the secretary, who could not pronounce the letter r . chanta la voix du secrétaire, qui ne put prononcer la lettre r. Then there was a laugh; a button and two nuts were found in the box. The nobleman was allowed the right to vote, and the new party had conquered.

But the old party did not consider themselves conquered. Levin heard that they were asking Snetkov to stand, and he saw that a crowd of noblemen was surrounding the marshal, who was saying something. Levin went nearer. In reply Snetkov spoke of the trust the noblemen of the province had placed in him, the affection they had shown him, which he did not deserve, as his only merit had been his attachment to the nobility, to whom he had devoted twelve years of service. En réponse, Snetkov a parlé de la confiance que les nobles de la province lui avaient placée, de l'affection qu'ils lui avaient témoignée, qu'il ne méritait pas, car son seul mérite avait été son attachement à la noblesse, à laquelle il avait consacré douze ans de un service. Several times he repeated the words: "I have served to the best of my powers with truth and good faith, I value your goodness and thank you," and suddenly he stopped short from the tears that choked him, and went out of the room. Plusieurs fois, il a répété les mots: "J'ai servi au mieux de mes pouvoirs avec vérité et bonne foi, j'apprécie votre bonté et merci", et soudain il s'arrêta net devant les larmes qui l'étouffaient et sortit de la pièce . Whether these tears came from a sense of the injustice being done him, from his love for the nobility, or from the strain of the position he was placed in, feeling himself surrounded by enemies, his emotion infected the assembly, the majority were touched, and Levin felt a tenderness for Snetkov. Que ces larmes venaient du sentiment de l'injustice qui lui était faite, de son amour pour la noblesse, ou de la tension de la position dans laquelle il était placé, se sentant entouré d'ennemis, son émotion infectait l'assemblée, la majorité était touchée, et Levin ressentit une tendresse pour Snetkov.

In the doorway the marshal of the province jostled against Levin. Sur le seuil, le maréchal de province se bouscula contre Levin.

"Beg pardon, excuse me, please," he said as to a stranger, but recognizing Levin, he smiled timidly. It seemed to Levin that he would have liked to say something, but could not speak for emotion. His face and his whole figure in his uniform with the crosses, and white trousers striped with braid, as he moved hurriedly along, reminded Levin of some hunted beast who sees that he is in evil case. Son visage et toute sa silhouette dans son uniforme avec des croix et un pantalon blanc rayé de tresse, alors qu'il se déplaçait à la hâte, rappellent à Levin une bête traquée qui voit qu'il est dans une mauvaise affaire. This expression in the marshal's face was particularly touching to Levin, because, only the day before, he had been at his house about his trustee business and had seen him in all his grandeur, a kind-hearted, fatherly man. The big house with the old family furniture; the rather dirty, far from stylish, but respectful footmen, unmistakably old house serfs who had stuck to their master; the stout, good-natured wife in a cap with lace and a Turkish shawl, petting her pretty grandchild, her daughter's daughter; the young son, a sixth form high school boy, coming home from school, and greeting his father, kissing his big hand; the genuine, cordial words and gestures of the old man—all this had the day before roused an instinctive feeling of respect and sympathy in Levin. This old man was a touching and pathetic figure to Levin now, and he longed to say something pleasant to him.

"So you're sure to be our marshal again," he said. "It's not likely," said the marshal, looking round with a scared expression. "Ce n'est pas probable", dit le maréchal en regardant autour de lui avec une expression effrayée. "I'm worn out, I'm old. If there are men younger and more deserving than I, let them serve." And the marshal disappeared through a side door.

The most solemn moment was at hand. They were to proceed immediately to the election. Ils devaient procéder immédiatement aux élections. The leaders of both parties were reckoning white and black on their fingers. Les dirigeants des deux partis comptaient du blanc et du noir sur leurs doigts. De leiders van beide partijen rekenden wit en zwart op hun vingers.

The discussion upon Flerov had given the new party not only Flerov's vote, but had also gained time for them, so that they could send to fetch three noblemen who had been rendered unable to take part in the elections by the wiles of the other party. La discussion sur Flerov avait donné au nouveau parti non seulement le vote de Flerov, mais avait aussi gagné du temps pour eux, de sorte qu'ils pouvaient envoyer chercher trois nobles qui avaient été empêchés de participer aux élections par les ruses de l'autre parti. Two noble gentlemen, who had a weakness for strong drink, had been made drunk by the partisans of Snetkov, and a third had been robbed of his uniform. Deux nobles gentilshommes, qui avaient un faible pour les boissons fortes, avaient été ivres par les partisans de Snetkov, et un troisième s'était fait voler son uniforme.

On learning this, the new party had made haste, during the dispute about Flerov, to send some of their men in a sledge to clothe the stripped gentleman, and to bring along one of the intoxicated to the meeting. En apprenant cela, le nouveau parti s'était empressé, pendant la dispute sur Flerov, d'envoyer quelques-uns de leurs hommes dans un traîneau pour vêtir le gentilhomme dépouillé, et pour amener l'un des ivres à la réunion.

"I've brought one, drenched him with water," said the landowner, who had gone on this errand, to Sviazhsky. «J'en ai apporté un, je l'ai trempé avec de l'eau», dit le propriétaire foncier, qui avait fait cette course, à Sviazhsky. "He's all right? he'll do." "Not too drunk, he won't fall down?" said Sviazhsky, shaking his head.

"No, he's first-rate. If only they don't give him any more here…. I've told the waiter not to give him anything on any account." J'ai dit au serveur de ne rien lui donner. "