"At early mass to-day the church regent
again ripped up the ear of one of the choir boys."
An elderly man in the uniform of a retired soldier coughed aloud
and remarked:
"These choir boys are such loafers!"
A short, bald, little man with short legs, long arms, and protruding
jaw, ran officiously up and down the room. Without stopping he said
in a cracked, agitated voice:
"The cost of living is getting higher and higher. An inferior
quality of beef, fourteen cents; bread has again risen to two
and a half."
Now and then prisoners came into the room--gray, monotonous, with
coarse, heavy, leather shoes. They blinked as they entered; iron
chains rattled at the feet of one of them. The quiet and calm and
simplicity all around produced a strange, uncouth impression. It
seemed as if all had grown accustomed to their situation. Some sat
there quietly, others looked on idly, while still others seemed to
pay their regular visits with a sense of weariness. The mother's
heart quivered with impatience, and she looked with a puzzled air at
everything around her, amazed at the oppressive simplicity of life
in this corner of the world.
Next to Vlasova sat a little old woman with a wrinkled face, but
youthful eyes.
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