第249页 / 共788页

"Sir, it is womanish to complain," said the Bernardine, "and a

Jewish trick to wait with folded hands until some one rides up to

the tavern and knocks on the door. With Napoleon it is not so

hard to beat the Muscovites; he has already three times thrashed

the hide of the Suabians, he has trodden down the nasty

Prussians, and has cast back the English straight across the sea:

surely he will be equal to the Muscovites. But, my dear sir, do

you know what will be the result? The gentry of Lithuania will

mount their steeds and seize their sabres, but not until there is

no longer any enemy with whom to fight. Napoleon, after crushing

everybody alone, will finally say: 'I can get along without you:

who are you?' So it is not enough to await a guest, not enough

even to invite him in; one needs to gather the servants and set

up the tables; and before the banquet one must clean the house of

dirt; clean the house, I repeat; clean the house, my boys!"