the tula artisans, who had executed a marvellous bit of business, had only just completed their work. the cossacks of the suite dashed up to them breathless, and the simple members of the curious public never arrived at all, because, through lack of practice, they flung their feet widely over the road, and tumbled down, whereupon they fled homewards, and hid themselves in the[pg 42] first place that offered, through fear of encountering platoff's eye.

but as soon as the cossacks of the suite rushed up, they instantly began to shout, and when they saw that the men did not open to them, they immediately proceeded to tear at the bolts and shutters, without ceremony. but the bolts were so stout that they did not yield in the least, and they wrenched at the door; but the door was backed up inside by oaken bars. then the cossacks picked up a beam in the street, fixed it under the roof-frame, after the fashion customary at conflagrations, and tipped the whole roof off the little house at one toss. but no sooner had they removed the roof than they instantly tumbled over backwards themselves, for such a spiral[22] of sweat arose from the artisans in their confined quarters, caused by their unresting toil, that[pg 43] it was impossible for an unaccustomed man, coming directly from the fresh air, to breathe it all at once.

the messengers shouted: "what are you doing, you scoundrels, you thus and so? and how dare you to infect us with such a spiral, to boot? after this, god is not with you!"

but they replied: "we will instantly drive in the last little nail, and when that is in place, we will bring out our work."

but the messengers said: "he'll devour us alive before that time, and leave not enough to remember our souls by."

but the gunsmiths replied: "he will not succeed in swallowing you, because, lo! while you have been speaking we have already driven in that last tiny nail. run and say that we will bring it immediately."

the suite-cossacks ran, but not with[pg 44] confidence—they thought the gunsmiths were deceiving them; therefore, while they ran as hard as they could, they kept glancing back. but the workmen followed them, and made such extreme haste that they did not manage to get their clothes quite on, as was meet before presenting themselves to such an important personage, but fastened the hooks of their kaftans as they ran. two of them had nothing in their hands, but the third, the left-handed man, held the imperial casket with the english steel flea, in a green case.