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Kuprin, A. I. (Aleksandr Ivanovich), 1870-1938

"Yama: the pit"

And it happens even worse when it's some chimney sweep and
can't do business himself and spoils business for you too. Here
you go to all sorts of tricks: let him drink till he's drunk or
let him go off somewhere on a false track. Not an easy trade!
Besides that, I have one more line--that's false eyes and teeth.
But it ain't a profitable line. I want to drop it. And besides I'm
thinking of leaving all this business. I understand, it's all
right for a young man, in the bloom of his powers, to flutter
around like a moth, but once you have a wife, and may be a whole
family even ..." he playfully patted the woman on the knee, from
which she became scarlet and looked uncommonly better. "For the
Lord has blessed us Jews with fecundity for all our misfortunes
... Then you want to have some business of your own, you want, you
understand, to become settled in one place, so's there should be a
shack of your own, and your own furniture, and your own bedroom,
and kitchen ... Isn't that so, your excellency?"
"Yes ... Yes ... eh--eh ... Yes, of course, of course,"
condescendingly responded the general.


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