At first the old lady did no more than watch the gamblers, and
ply me, in a half-whisper, with sharp-broken questions as to who
was so-and-so. Especially did her favour light upon a very young
man who was plunging heavily, and had won (so it was whispered)
as much as 40,000 francs, which were lying before him on the
table in a heap of gold and bank-notes. His eyes kept flashing,
and his hands shaking; yet all the while he staked without any
sort of calculation--just what came to his hand, as he kept
winning and winning, and raking and raking in his gains. Around
him lacqueys fussed--placing chairs just behind where he was
standing-- and clearing the spectators from his vicinity, so that
he should have more room, and not be crowded--the whole done, of
course, in expectation of a generous largesse. From time to time
other gamblers would hand him part of their winnings--being glad
to let him stake for them as much as his hand could grasp; while
beside him stood a Pole in a state of violent, but respectful,
agitation, who, also in expectation of a generous largesse, kept
whispering to him at intervals (probably telling him what to
stake, and advising and directing his play). Yet never once did
the player throw him a glance as he staked and staked, and raked
in his winnings. Evidently, the player in question was dead to
all besides.
For a few minutes the Grandmother watched him.
"Go and tell him," suddenly she exclaimed with a nudge at my
elbow, "--go and tell him to stop, and to take his money with
him, and go home. Presently he will be losing--yes, losing
everything that he has now won." She seemed almost breathless
with excitement.
"Where is Potapitch?" she continued. "Send Potapitch to speak
to him. No, YOU must tell him, you must tell him,"--here she
nudged me again--"for I have not the least notion where
Potapitch is. Sortez, sortez," she shouted to the young man,
until I leant over in her direction and whispered in her ear
that no shouting was allowed, nor even loud speaking, since to
do so disturbed the calculations of the players, and might lead
to our being ejected.
"How provoking!" she retorted. "Then the young man is done
for! I suppose he WISHES to be ruined. Yet I could not bear to
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