Part 3 - Chapter 9 - Page 2

regard to him
none of that strange feeling of shyness and hostility which
children so often experience towards hypocritical, grown-up
people, and for which they are so often and miserably punished.
Hypocrisy in anything whatever may deceive the cleverest and most
penetrating man, but the least wide-awake of children recognizes
it, and is revolted by it, however ingeniously it may be
disguised. Whatever faults Levin had, there was not a trace of
hypocrisy in him, and so the children showed him the same
friendliness that they saw in their mother's face. On his
invitation, the two elder ones at once jumped out to him and ran
with him as simply as they would have done with their nurse or
Miss Hoole or their mother. Lily, too, began begging to go to
him, and her mother handed her to him; he sat her on his shoulder
and ran along with her.

"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, Darya Alexandrovna!" he said,
smiling good-humoredly to the mother; "there's no chance of my
hurting or dropping her."

And, looking at his strong, agile, assiduously careful and
needlessly wary movements, the mother felt her mind at rest, and
smiled gaily and approvingly as she watched him.

Here, in the country, with children, and with Darya Alexandrovna,
with whom he was in sympathy, Levin was in a mood not infrequent
with him, of childlike light-heartedness that she particularly
liked in him. As he ran with the children, he taught them
gymnastic feats, set Miss Hoole laughing with his queer English
accent, and talked to Darya Alexandrovna of his pursuits in the
country.

After dinner, Darya Alexandrovna, sitting alone with him on the
balcony, began to speak of Kitty.

"You know, Kitty's coming here, and is going to spend the summer
with me."

"Really," he said, flushing, and at once, to change the
conversation, he said: "Then I'll send you two cows, shall I? If
you insist on a bill you shall pay me five roubles a month; but
it's really too bad of you."

"No, thank you. We can manage very well now."

"Oh, well, then, I'll have a look at your cows, and if you'll
allow me, I'll give directions about their food. Everything
depends on their food."

And Levin, to turn the conversation, explained to Darya
Alexandrovna the theory of cow-keeping, based on the principle
that the cow is simply a machine for the transformation of food
into milk, and so on.

He talked of this, and passionately longed to hear more of Kitty,
and, at the same time, was afraid of hearing it. He dreaded the
breaking up of the inward peace he had gained with such effort.

"Yes, but still all this has to be looked after, and who is there
to look after it?" Darya Alexandrovna responded,