And so with everything. Our agriculture always needed to be helped forward."
"Yes! but it would need some power, Nikolaï Ivanovitch. Very well for you; but when one has one son at the university, and several others at school, as I have, he can't afford to buy Percherons."
"There are banks on purpose."
"To have my last goods and chattels sold under the hammer. No, thank you!"
"I don't agree that it is necessary or possible to lift the level of agriculture much higher," said Levin. "I am much interested in this question ; and I have the means, but I cannot do anything. And as for banks, I don't know whom they profit. Up to the present time, whatever I have spent on my estate, has resulted only in loss. Cattle — loss; machines — loss."
"That is true," said the old proprietor with the gray mustache, laughing with hearty satisfaction.
"And I am not the only man," continued Levin. "I call to mind all those who have made experiments in the 'rational manner.' All, with few exceptions, have come out of it with losses. Will you admit that your farming is profitable?" he asked, and at that instant he detected in Sviazhsky's face that transient expression of embarrassment which he noticed when he wanted to penetrate farther into the inner chambers of Sviazhsky's mind.
However, the question was not entirely fair play on Levin's part. His hostess had told him at tea that they had just had a German expert up from Moscow, who, for five hundred rubles' fee, agreed to put the book-keeping of the estate in order; and he found that there had been a net loss of more than three thousand rubles. She could not remember exactly how much, but the German accountant had calculated it to within forty kopeks.
The old proprietor smiled when he heard Levin's question about the profits of Sviazhsky's management. It was evident that he knew about the state of his neighbors' finances.
"Maybe it is unprofitable," replied Sviazhsky. "This
