saw nothing would be understood from her explanation; but aware that her talk was pleasant and her hands beautiful she went on explaining.
“More like little penknives,” Veslovsky said playfully, never taking his eyes off her.
Anna gave a just perceptible smile, but made no answer. “Isn’t it true, Karl Fedoritch, that it’s just like little scissors?” she said to the steward.
“ Oh, ja ,” answered the German. “ Es ist ein ganz einfaches Ding ,” and he began to explain the construction of the machine.
“It’s a pity it doesn’t bind too. I saw one at the Vienna exhibition, which binds with a wire,” said Sviazhsky. “They would be more profitable in use.”
“ Es kommt drauf an. … Der Preis vom Draht muss ausgerechnet werden. ” And the German, roused from his taciturnity, turned to Vronsky. “ Das lässt sich ausrechnen, Erlaucht. ” The German was just feeling in the pocket where were his pencil and the notebook he always wrote in, but recollecting that he was at a dinner, and observing Vronsky’s chilly glance, he checked himself. “ Zu compliziert, macht zu viel Klopot ,” he concluded.
“ Wünscht man Dochots, so hat man auch Klopots ,” said Vassenka Veslovsky, mimicking the German. “ J’adore l’allemand ,” he addressed Anna again with the same smile.
“ Cessez ,” she said with playful severity.
“We expected to find you in the fields, Vassily Semyonitch,” she said to the doctor, a sickly-looking man; “have you been there?”
“I went there, but I had taken flight,” the doctor answered with gloomy jocoseness.