The countess began to soothe Natasha, who after first listening to her mother's words, suddenly interrupted her: "Leave off, Mamma! I don't think, and don't want to think about it! He just came and then left off, left off..." Her voice trembled, and she again nearly cried, but recovered and went on quietly: "And I don't at all want to get married.

And I am afraid of him; I have now become quite calm, quite calm.

" The day after this conversation Natasha put on the old dress which she knew had the peculiar property of conducing to cheerfulness in the mornings, and that day she returned to the old way of life which she had abandoned since the ball.

Having finished her morning tea she went to the ballroom, which she particularly liked for its loud resonance, and began singing her solfeggio.

When she had finished her first exercise she stood still in the middle of the room and sang a musical phrase that particularly pleased her.