lips, from the hairs of which transparent drops fell into the trough;
then standing still as if in thought, he suddenly gave a loud snort.

'If you don't want any more, you needn't. But don't go asking for any
later,' said Nikita quite seriously and fully explaining his conduct to
Mukhorty. Then he ran back to the shed pulling the playful young horse,
who wanted to gambol all over the yard, by the rein.

There was no one else in the yard except a stranger, the cook's husband,
who had come for the holiday.

'Go and ask which sledge is to be harnessed--the wide one or the small
one--there's a good fellow!'

The cook's husband went into the house, which stood on an iron
foundation and was iron-roofed, and soon returned saying that the little
one was to be harnessed. By that time Nikita had put the collar and
brass-studded belly-band on Mukhorty and, carrying a light, painted
shaft-bow in one hand, was leading the horse with the other up to two
sledges that stood in the shed.

'All right, let it be the little one!' he said, backing the intelligent
horse, which all the time kept pretending to bite him, into the shafts,
and with the aid of the cook's husband he proceeded to harness. When
everything was nearly ready and only the reins had to be adjusted,
Nikita sent the other man to the shed for some straw and to the barn for
a drugget.

'There, that's all right! Now, now, don't bristle up!' said Nikita,
pressing down into the sledge the freshly threshed oat straw the cook's