“Uncle Pierre, you⁠ ⁠… no⁠ ⁠… If Papa were alive⁠ ⁠… would he agree with you?” he asked.

And Pierre suddenly realized what a special, independent, complex, and powerful process of thought and feeling must have been going on in this boy during that conversation, and remembering all he had said he regretted that the lad should have heard him. He had, however, to give him an answer.

“Yes, I think so,” he said reluctantly, and left the study.

The lad looked down and seemed now for the first time to notice what he had done to the things on the table. He flushed and went up to Nikoláy.

“Uncle, forgive me, I did that⁠ ⁠… unintentionally,” he said, pointing to the broken sealing wax and pens.

Nikoláy started angrily.

“All right, all right,” he said, throwing the bits under the table.