Много ли человеку земли нужно? Лев Толстой 1886
¿Cuánta tierra necesita un hombre? León Tolstói
How Much Land Does a Man Need? Leo Tolstoy
Érase una vez un campesino llamado Pahom(Пахом), que había trabajado dura y honestamente para su familia, pero que no tenía tierras propias, así que siempre permanecía en la pobreza.
“Ocupados como estamos desde la niñez trabajando la madre tierra -pensaba a menudo- los campesinos siempre debemos morir como vivimos, sin nada propio.
Las cosas serían diferentes si tuviéramos nuestra propia tierra.”
Ahora bien, cerca de la aldea de Pahom vivía una dama, una pequeña terrateniente, que poseía una finca de ciento cincuenta hectáreas.
Un invierno se difundió la noticia de que esta dama iba a vender sus tierras.
Pahom oyó que un vecino suyo compraría veinticinco hectáreas y que la dama había consentido en aceptar la mitad en efectivo y esperar un año por la otra mitad.
There once was a peasant named Pahom who worked hard and honestly for his family, but who had no land of his own, so he always remained as poor as the next man.
"Busy as we are from childhood tilling mother earth," he often thought,
"we peasants will always die as we are living, with nothing of our own.
If only we had our own land, it would be different."
Now, close to Pahom's village there lived a lady, a small landowner, who had an estate of about three hundred acres.
One winter the news got about that the lady was going to sell her land.
Pahom heard that a neighbor of his was buying fifty acres and that the lady had consented to accept one half in cash and to wait a year for the other half.
“Qué te parece -pensó Pahom-. Esa tierra se vende, y yo no obtendré nada.”
Así que decidió hablar con su esposa.
-Otras personas están comprando, y nosotros también debemos comprar unas diez hectáreas. La vida se vuelve imposible sin poseer tierras propias.
Se pusieron a pensar y calcularon cuánto podrían comprar. Tenían ahorrados cien rublos. Vendieron un potrillo y la mitad de sus abejas; contrataron a uno de sus hijos como peón y pidieron anticipos sobre la paga. Pidieron prestado el resto a un cuñado, y así juntaron la mitad del dinero de la compra. Después de eso, Pahom escogió una parcela de veinte hectáreas, donde había bosques, fue a ver a la dama e hizo la compra.
"Look at that," Pahom thought. "The land is being sold, and I shall get none of it."
So he spoke to his wife.
"Other people are buying it, and we must also buy twenty acres or so.
Life is becoming impossible without land of our own."
So they put their heads together and considered how they could manage to buy it.
They had one hundred rubles laid by. They sold a colt, and one half of their bees, hired out one of their sons as a laborer, and took his wages in advance. They borrowed the rest from a brother-in-law, and so scraped together half the purchase money. Having done this, Pahom chose a farm of forty acres, some of it wooded, and went to the lady and bought it.
Así que ahora Pahom tenía su propia tierra. Pidió semilla prestada, y la sembró, y obtuvo una buena cosecha. Al cabo de un año había logrado saldar sus deudas con la dama y su cuñado. Así se convirtió en terrateniente, y talaba sus propios árboles, y alimentaba su ganado en sus propios pastos. Cuando salía a arar los campos, o a mirar sus mieses o sus prados, el corazón se le llenaba de alegría. La hierba que crecía allí y las flores que florecían allí le parecían diferentes de las de otras partes. Antes, cuando cruzaba esa tierra, le parecía igual a cualquier otra, pero ahora le parecía muy distinta.
So now Pahom had land of his own. He borrowed seed, and sowed it, and the harvest was a good one. Within a year he had managed to pay off his debts to the lady and his brother-in-law. So he became a landowner, plowing and sowing his own land, making hay on his own land, cutting his own trees, and feeding his cattle on his own pasture. When he went out to plow his fields, or to look at his growing corn, or at his meadows, his heart would fill with joy. The grass that grew and the flowers that bloomed there seemed to him unlike any that grew elsewhere. Formerly, when he had passed by that land, it had appeared the same as any other land, but now it seemed quite different.
Un día Pahom estaba sentado en su casa cuando un viajero se detuvo ante su casa. Pahom le preguntó de dónde venía, y el forastero respondió que venía de allende el Volga, donde había estado trabajando. Una palabra llevó a la otra, y el hombre comentó que había muchas tierras en venta por allá, y que muchos estaban viajando para comprarlas. Las tierras eran tan fértiles, aseguró, que el centeno era alto como un caballo, y tan tupido que cinco cortes de guadaña formaban una avilla. Comentó que un campesino había trabajado sólo con sus manos, y ahora tenía seis caballos y dos vacas.
El corazón de Pahom se colmó de anhelo.
“¿Por qué he de sufrir en este agujero -pensó- si se vive tan bien en otras partes? Venderé mi tierra y mi finca, y con el dinero comenzaré allá de nuevo y tendré todo nuevo”.
Then one day Pahom was sitting at home when a peasant, passing through the village, happened to stop in. Pahom asked him where he came from, and the stranger answered that he came from beyond the Volga, where he had been working. one word led to another, and the man went on to say that much land was for sale there, and that many people were moving there to buy it. The land was so good, he said, that the rye sown on it grew as high as a horse, and so thick that five cuts of a sickle made a sheaf. one peasant, he said, had brought nothing with him but his bare hands, and now he had six horses and two cows of his own.
Pahom's heart was filled with desire.
"Why should I suffer in this narrow hole," he thought, "if one can live so well elsewhere?
I will sell my land and my homestead here, and with the money I will start fresh over there and get everything new."
Pahom vendió su tierra, su casa y su ganado, con buenas ganancias, y se mudó con su familia a su nueva propiedad. Todo lo que había dicho el campesino era cierto, y Pahom estaba en mucha mejor posición que antes. Compró muchas tierras arables y pasturas, y pudo tener las cabezas de ganado que deseaba.
Al principio, en el ajetreo de la mudanza y la construcción, Pahom se sentía complacido, pero cuando se habituó comenzó a pensar que tampoco aquí estaba satisfecho. Quería sembrar más trigo, pero no tenía tierras suficientes para ello, así que arrendó más tierras por tres años.
So Pahom sold his land and homestead and cattle, all at a profit, and moved his family to the new settlement. Everything the peasant had told him was true, and Pahom was ten times better off than he had been. He bought plenty of arable land and pasture, and could keep as many head of cattle as he liked.
At first, in the bustle of building and settling down, Pahom was pleased with it all, but when he got used to it he began to think that even here he was not satisfied. He wanted to sow more wheat, but had not enough land of his own for the purpose, so he rented extra land for three years.
Fueron buenas temporadas y hubo buenas cosechas, así que Pahom ahorró dinero. Podría haber seguido viviendo cómodamente, pero se cansó de arrendar tierras ajenas todos los años, y de sufrir privaciones para ahorrar el dinero.
“Si todas estas tierras fueran mías -pensó-, sería independiente y no sufriría estas incomodidades.”
The seasons turned out well and the crops were good, so that he began to lay money by. He might have gone on living comfortably, but he grew tired of having to rent other people's land every year, and having to scramble to pay for it.
"If it were all my own land," Pahom. thought, "I should be independent, and there would not be all this unpleasantness."
Un día un vendedor de bienes raíces que pasaba le comentó que acababa de regresar de la lejana tierra de los bashkirs, donde había comprado seiscientas hectáreas por sólo mil rublos.
-Sólo debes hacerte amigo de los jefes -dijo-. Yo regalé como cien rublos en vestidos y alfombras, además de una caja de té, y di vino a quienes lo bebían, y obtuve la tierra por una bicoca.
“Vaya -pensó Pahom-, allá puedo tener diez veces más tierras de las que poseo. Debo probar suerte.”
Pahom encomendó a su familia el cuidado de la finca y emprendió el viaje, llevando consigo a su criado. Pararon en una ciudad y compraron una caja de té, vino y otros regalos, como el vendedor les había aconsejado. Continuaron viaje hasta recorrer más de quinientos kilómetros, y el séptimo día llegaron a un lugar donde los bashkirs habían instalado sus tiendas.
Then one day a passing land dealer said he was just returning from the land of Bashkirs, far away, where he had bought thirteen thousand acres of land, all for only one thousand rubles.
"All one need do is to make friends with the chiefs," he said. "I gave away about one hundred rubles' worth of dressing gowns and carpets, besides a case of tea, and I gave wine to those who would drink it, and I got the land for less than twopence an acre."
"There now," thought Pahom, "out there I can get more than ten times as much land as I have now. I must try it."
So Pahom left his family to look after the homestead and started on the journey, taking his servant with him. They stopped at a town on their way, and bought a case of tea, some wine, and other presents, as the tradesman had advised him. on and on they went until they had gone more than three hundred miles, and on the seventh day they came to a place where the Bashkirs had pitched their tents.
En cuanto vieron a Pahom, salieron de las tiendas y se reunieron en torno al visitante. Le dieron té y kurniss, y sacrificaron una oveja y le dieron de comer. Pahom sacó presentes de su carromato y los distribuyó, y les dijo que venía en busca de tierras. Los bashkirs parecieron muy satisfechos y le dijeron que debía hablar con el jefe. Lo mandaron a buscar y le explicaron a qué había ido Pahom.
El jefe escuchó un rato, pidió silencio con un gesto y le dijo a Pahom:
-De acuerdo. Escoge la tierra que te plazca. Tenemos tierras en abundancia.
-¿Y cuál será el precio? -preguntó Pahom.
-Nuestro precio es siempre el mismo: mil rublos por día.
Pahom no comprendió.
-¿Un día? ¿Qué medida es ésa? ¿Cuántas hectáreas son?
-No sabemos calcularlo -dijo el jefe-. La vendemos por día. Todo lo que puedas recorrer a pie en un día es tuyo, y el precio es mil rublos por día.
As soon as they saw Pahom, they came out of their tents and gathered around their visitor. They gave him tea and kumiss, and had a sheep killed, and gave him mutton to eat. Pahom took presents out of his cart and distributed them, and told them he had come about some land. The Bashkirs seemed very glad, and told him he must talk to their chief about it. So they sent for him and explained to him why Pahom had come.
The chief listened for a while, then made a sign with his head for them to be silent, and addressing himself to Pahom, said:
"Well, let it be so. Choose whatever piece of land you like. We have plenty of it."
"And what will be the price?" asked Pahom.
"Our price is always the same: one thousand rubles a day."
Pahom did not understand.
"A day? What measure is that? How many acres would that be?"
“We do not know how to reckon it out," said the chief. "We sell it by the day, As much as you can go round on your feet in a day is yours, and the price is one thousand rubles a day."
Pahom quedó sorprendido.
-Pero en un día se puede recorrer una vasta extensión de tierra -dijo.
El jefe se echó a reír.
-¡Será toda tuya! Pero con una condición. Si no regresas el mismo día al lugar donde comenzaste, pierdes el dinero.
-¿Pero cómo debo señalar el camino que he seguido?
-Iremos a cualquier lugar que gustes, y nos quedaremos allí. Puedes comenzar desde ese sitio y emprender tu viaje, llevando una azada contigo. Donde lo consideres necesario, deja una marca. En cada giro, cava un pozo y apila la tierra; luego iremos con un arado de pozo en pozo. Puedes hacer el recorrido que desees, pero antes que se ponga el sol debes regresar al sitio de donde partiste. Toda la tierra que cubras será tuya.
Pahom was surprised.
"But in a day you can get round a large tract of land," he said.
The chief laughed.
"It will all be yours!" said he. "But there is one condition: if you don't return on the same day to the spot whence you started, your money is lost."
"But how am I to mark the way that I have gone?"
"Why, we shall go to any spot you like, and stay there.
You must start from that spot and make your round, taking a spade with you.
Wherever you think necessary, make a mark. At every turning, dig a hole and pile up the turf, then afterward we will go round with a plow from hole to hole. You may make as large a circuit as you please, but before the sun sets you must return to the place you started from. All the land you cover will be yours."
Pahom estaba alborozado. Decidió comenzar por la mañana. Charlaron, bebieron más kurniss, comieron más oveja y bebieron más té, y así llegó la noche. Le dieron a Pahom una cama de edredón, y los bashkirs se dispersaron, prometiendo reunirse a la mañana siguiente al romper el alba y viajar al punto convenido antes del amanecer.
Pahom se quedó acostado, pero no pudo dormirse. No dejaba de pensar en su tierra.
“¡Qué gran extensión marcaré! -pensó-. Puedo andar fácilmente cincuenta kilómetros por día. Los días ahora son largos, y un recorrido de cincuenta kilómetros representará gran cantidad de tierra. Venderé las tierras más áridas, o las dejaré a los campesinos, pero yo escogeré la mejor y la trabajaré. Compraré dos yuntas de bueyes y contrataré dos peones más. Unas noventa hectáreas destinaré a la siembra y en el resto criaré ganado.”
Pahom was delighted. It was decided to start early next morning. They talked awhile, and after drinking some more kumiss and eating some more mutton, they had tea again, and then the night came on.
They gave Pahom a featherbed to sleep on, and the Bashkirs dispersed for the night, promising to assemble the next morning at daybreak and ride out before sunrise to the appointed spot.
Pahom lay on the featherbed, but could not sleep. He kept thinking about the land.
"What a large tract I will mark off!" thought he. "I can easily do thirty-five miles in a day. The days are long now, and within a circuit of thirty-five miles what a lot of land there will be! I will sell the poorer land, or let it to peasants, but I'll pick out the best and farm it.
I will buy two ox teams, and hire two more laborers. About a hundred and fifty acres shall be plow land, and I will pasture cattle on the rest."
Por la puerta abierta vio que estaba rompiendo el alba.
-Es hora de despertarlos -se dijo-. Debemos ponernos en marcha.
Se levantó, despertó al criado (que dormía en el carromato), le ordenó uncir los caballos y fue a despertar a los bashkirs.
-Es hora de ir a la estepa para medir las tierras -dijo.
Los bashkirs se levantaron y se reunieron, y también acudió el jefe.
Se pusieron a beber más kurniss, y ofrecieron a Pahom un poco de té, pero él no quería esperar.
-Si hemos de ir, vayamos de una vez. Ya es hora.
Looking round he saw through the open door that the dawn was breaking.
"It's time to wake them up," thought he. "We ought to be starting.”
He got up, roused his man (who was sleeping in his cart), bade him harness; and went to call the Bashkirs.
"It's time to go to the steppe to measure the land," he said.
The Bashkirs rose and assembled, and the chief came too.
Then they began drinking kumiss again, and offered Pahom some tea, but he would not wait.
"If we are to go, let us go. It is high time," said he.
Los bashkirs se prepararon y todos se pusieron en marcha, algunos a caballo, otros en carros.
Pahom iba en su carromato con el criado, y llevaba una azada. Cuando llegaron a la estepa, el cielo de la mañana estaba rojo. Subieron una loma y, apeándose de carros y caballos, se reunieron en un sitio.
El jefe se acercó a Pahom y extendió el brazo hacia la planicie.
-Todo esto, hasta donde llega la mirada, es nuestro. Puedes tomar lo que gustes.
A Pahom le relucieron los ojos, pues era toda tierra virgen, chata como la palma de la mano y negra como semilla de amapola, y en las hondonadas crecían altos pastizales.
El jefe se quitó la gorra de piel de zorro, la apoyó en el suelo y dijo:
-Ésta será la marca. Empieza aquí y regresa aquí. Toda la tierra que rodees será tuya.
The Bashkirs got ready and they all started: some mounted on horses, and some in carts.
Pahom drove in his own small cart with his servant, and took a spade with him.
When they reached the steppe, the morning red was beginning to kindle.
They ascended a hillock and, dismounting from their carts and their horses, gathered in one spot.
The chief came up to Pahom and stretched out his arm toward the plain.
"See," said he, "all this, as far as your eye can reach, is ours. You may have any part of it you like."
Pahom's eyes glistened: it was all virgin soil, as flat as the palm of your hand, as black as the seed of a poppy, and in the hollows different kinds of grasses grew breast high.
The chief took off his fox fur cap, placed it on the ground and said:
"This will be the mark. Start from here, and return here again. All the land you go round shall be yours."
Pahom sacó el dinero y lo puso en la gorra. Luego se quitó el abrigo, quedándose con su chaquetón sin mangas. Se aflojó el cinturón y lo sujetó con fuerza bajo el vientre, se puso un costal de pan en el pecho del jubón y, atando una botella de agua al cinturón, se subió la caña de las botas, empuñó la azada y se dispuso a partir. Tardó un instante en decidir el rumbo. Todas las direcciones eran tentadoras.
-No importa -dijo al fin-. Iré hacia el sol naciente.
Pahom took out his money and put it on the cap. Then he took off his outer coat, remaining in his sleeveless undercoat. He unfastened his girdle and tied it tight below his stomach, put a little bag of bread into the breast of his coat, and tying a flask of water to his girdle, he drew up the tops of his boots, took the spade from his man, and stood ready to start.
He considered for some moments which way he had better go - it was tempting everywhere.
"No matter, " he concluded, " I will go toward the rising sun.”
Se volvió hacia el este, se desperezó y aguardó a que el sol asomara sobre el horizonte.
“No debo perder tiempo -pensó-, pues es más fácil caminar mientras todavía está fresco.”
Los rayos del sol no acababan de chispear sobre el horizonte cuando Pahom, azada al hombro, se internó en la estepa.
Pahom caminaba a paso moderado. Tras avanzar mil metros se detuvo, cavó un pozo y apiló terrones de hierba para hacerlo más visible. Luego continuó, y ahora que había vencido el entumecimiento apuró el paso. Al cabo de un rato cavó otro pozo.
He turned his face to the east, stretched himself, and waited for the sun to appear above the rim.
“I must lose no time," he thought, "and it is easier walking while it is still cool."
The sun's rays had hardly flashed above the horizon, before Pahom, carrying the spade over his shoulder, went down into the steppe.
Pahom started walking neither slowly nor quickly. After having gone a thousand yards he stopped, dug a hole, and placed pieces of turf one on another to make it more visible.
Then he went on; and now that he had walked off his stiffness he quickened his pace.
After a while he dug another hole.
Miró hacia atrás. La loma se veía claramente a la luz del sol, con la gente encima, y las relucientes llantas de las ruedas del carromato. Pahom calculó que había caminado cinco kilómetros. Estaba más cálido; se quitó el chaquetón, se lo echó al hombro y continuó la marcha. Ahora hacía más calor; miró el sol; era hora de pensar en el desayuno.
-He recorrido el primer tramo, pero hay cuatro en un día, y todavía es demasiado pronto para virar. Pero me quitaré las botas -se dijo.
Se sentó, se quitó las botas, se las metió en el cinturón y reanudó la marcha. Ahora caminaba con soltura.
“Seguiré otros cinco kilómetros -pensó-, y luego giraré a la izquierda. Este lugar es tan promisorio que sería una pena perderlo. Cuanto más avanzo, mejor parece la tierra.”
Pahom looked back. The hillock could be distinctly seen in the sunlight, with the people on it, and the glittering tires of the cart wheels. At a rough guess Pahom concluded that he had walked three miles.
It was growing warmer; he took off his undercoat, flung it across his shoulder, and went on again.
It had grown quite warm now; he looked at the sun, it was time to think of breakfast.
"The first shift is done, but there are four in a day, and it is too soon yet to turn.
But I will just take off my boots," said he to himself.
He sat down, took off his boots, stuck them into his girdle, and went on. It was easy walking now.
"I will go on for another three miles," thought he, "and then turn to the left.
This spot is so fine, that it would be a pity to lose it. The further one goes, the better the land seems.”
Siguió derecho por un tiempo, y cuando miró en torno, la loma era apenas visible
y las personas parecían hormigas, y apenas se veía un destello bajo el sol.
“Ah -pensó Pahom-, he avanzado bastante en esta dirección, es hora de girar.
Además estoy sudando, y muy sediento.”
Se detuvo, cavó un gran pozo y apiló hierba. Bebió un sorbo de agua y giró a la izquierda.
Continuó la marcha, y la hierba era alta, y hacía mucho calor.
Pahom comenzó a cansarse. Miró el sol y vio que era mediodía.
“Bien -pensó-, debo descansar.”
He went straight on for a while, and when he looked round, the hillock was scarcely visible and the people on it looked like black ants, and he could just see something glistening there in the sun.
"Ah," thought Pahom, "I have gone far enough in this direction, it is time to turn.
Besides I am in a regular sweat, and very thirsty."
He stopped, dug a large hole, and heaped up pieces of turf.
Next he untied his flask, had a drink, and then turned sharply to the left.
He went on and on; the grass was high, and it was very hot.
Pahom began to grow tired: he looked at the sun and saw that it was noon.
"Well," he thought, "I must have a rest."
Se sentó, comió pan y bebió agua, pero no se acostó, temiendo quedarse dormido. Después de estar un rato sentado, siguió andando. Al principio caminaba sin dificultad, y sentía sueño, pero continuó, pensando: “Una hora de sufrimiento, una vida para disfrutarlo”.
Avanzó un largo trecho en esa dirección, y ya iba a girar de nuevo a la izquierda cuando vio un fecundo valle. “Sería una pena excluir ese terreno -pensó-. El lino crecería bien aquí.”. Así que rodeó el valle y cavó un pozo del otro lado antes de girar. Pahom miró hacia la loma. El aire estaba brumoso y trémulo con el calor, y a través de la bruma apenas se veía a la gente de la loma.
He sat down, and ate some bread and drank some water; but he did not lie down, thinking that if he did he might fall asleep. After sitting, a little while, he went on again. At first he walked easily: the food had strengthened him; but it had become terribly hot, and he felt sleepy; still he went on, thinking: "An hour to suffer, a lifetime to live.”
He went a long way in this direction also, and was about to turn to the left again, when he perceived a damp hollow: "It would be a pity to leave that out," he thought. "Flax would do well there." So he went on past the hollow, and dug a hole on the other side of it before he turned the corner. Pahom looked toward the hillock. The heat made the air hazy: it seemed to be quivering, and through the haze the people on the hillock could scarcely be seen.
“¡Ah! -pensó Pahom-. Los lados son demasiado largos. Este debe ser más corto.”
Y siguió a lo largo del tercer lado, apurando el paso. Miró el sol. Estaba a mitad de camino del horizonte,
y Pahom aún no había recorrido tres kilómetros del tercer lado del cuadrado.
Aún estaba a quince kilómetros de su meta.
“No -pensó-, aunque mis tierras queden irregulares, ahora debo volver en línea recta.
Podría alejarme demasiado, y ya tengo gran cantidad de tierra.”
Pahom cavó un pozo de prisa.
Echó a andar hacia la loma, pero con dificultad.
Estaba agotado por el calor, tenía cortes y magulladuras en los pies descalzos, le flaqueaban las piernas.
Ansiaba descansar, pero era imposible si deseaba llegar antes del poniente.
El sol no espera a nadie, y se hundía cada vez más.
"Ah!" thought Pahom, "I have made the sides too long; I must make this one shorter."
And he went along the third side, stepping faster. He looked at the sun: it was nearly halfway to the horizon, and he had not yet done two miles of the third side of the square. He was still ten miles from the goal.
"No," he thought, "though it will make my land lopsided, I must hurry back in a straight line now. I might go too far, and as it is I have a great deal of land."
So Pahom hurriedly dug a hole, and turned straight toward the hillock.
Pahom went straight toward the hillock, but he now walked with difficulty. He was done up with the heat, his bare feet were cut and bruised, and his legs began to fail. He longed to rest, but it was impossible if he meant to get back before sunset. The sun waits for no man, and it was sinking lower and lower.
“Cielos -pensó-, si no hubiera cometido el error de querer demasiado. ¿Qué pasará si llego tarde?”
Miró hacia la loma y hacia el sol. Aún estaba lejos de su meta, y el sol se aproximaba al horizonte.
Pahom siguió caminando, con mucha dificultad, pero cada vez más rápido. Apuró el paso, pero todavía estaba lejos del lugar. Echó a correr, arrojó la chaqueta, las botas, la botella y la gorra, y conservó sólo la azada que usaba como bastón.
"Oh dear," he thought, "if only I have not blundered trying for too much! What if I am too late?"
He looked toward the hillock and at the sun. He was still far from his goal, and the sun was already near the rim.
Pahom walked on and on; it was very hard walking, but he went quicker and quicker. He pressed on, but was still far from the place.
He began running, threw away his coat, his boots, his flask, and his cap, and kept only the spade, which he used as a support.
“Ay de mí. He deseado mucho, y lo eché todo a perder. Tengo que llegar antes de que se ponga el sol.”
El temor le quitaba el aliento. Pahom siguió corriendo, y la camisa y los pantalones empapados se le pegaban a la piel, y tenía la boca reseca. Su pecho jadeaba como un fuelle, su corazón batía como un martillo, sus piernas cedían como si no le pertenecieran. Pahom estaba abrumado por el terror de morir de agotamiento.
Aunque temía la muerte, no podía detenerse. “Después que he corrido tanto, me considerarán un tonto si me detengo ahora”, pensó. Y siguió corriendo, y al acercarse oyó que los bashkirs gritaban y aullaban, y esos gritos le inflamaron aún más el corazón. Juntó sus últimas fuerzas y siguió corriendo.
"What shall I do," he thought again.
"I have grasped too much, and ruined the whole affair. I can't get there before the sun sets."
And this fear made him still more breathless.
Pahom went on running, his soaking shirt and trousers stuck to him, and his mouth was parched.
His breast was working like a blacksmith's bellows, his heart was beating like a hammer, and his legs were giving way as if they did not belong to him. Pahom was seized with terror lest he should die of the strain.
Though afraid of death, he could not stop.
"After having run all that way they will call me a fool if I stop now," thought he.
And he ran on and on, and drew near and heard the Bashkirs yelling and shouting to him, and their cries inflamed his heart still more. He gathered his last strength and ran on.
El hinchado y brumoso sol casi rozaba el horizonte, rojo como la sangre.
Estaba muy bajo, pero Pahom estaba muy cerca de su meta. Podía ver a la gente de la loma, agitando los brazos para que se diera prisa. Veía la gorra de piel de zorro en el suelo, y el dinero, y al jefe sentado en el suelo, riendo a carcajadas.
“Hay tierras en abundancia -pensó-,
¿pero me dejará Dios vivir en ellas? ¡He perdido la vida, he perdido la vida! ¡Nunca llegaré a ese lugar!”
Pahom miró el sol, que ya desaparecía, ya era devorado. Con el resto de sus fuerzas apuró el paso, encorvando el cuerpo de tal modo que sus piernas apenas podían sostenerlo.
Cuando llegó a la loma, de pronto oscureció. Miró el cielo. ¡El sol se había puesto!
The sun was close to the rim, and cloaked in mist looked large, and red as blood.
Now, yes now, it was about to set! The sun was quite low, but he was also quite near his aim.
Pahom could already see the people on the hillock waving their arms to hurry him up. He could see the fox fur cap on the ground, and the money on it, and the chief sitting on the ground holding his sides.
"There is plenty of land," thought he,
"but will God let me live on it? I have lost my life, I have lost my life! I shall never reach that spot!"
Pahom looked at the sun, which had reached the earth; one side of it had already disappeared.
With all his remaining strength he rushed on, bending his body forward so that his legs could hardly follow fast enough to keep him from falling. just as he reached the hillock it suddenly grew dark.
He looked up-the sun had already set!
Pahom dio un alarido. “Todo mi esfuerzo ha sido en vano”, pensó, y ya iba a detenerse, pero oyó que los bashkirs aún gritaban, y recordó que aunque para él, desde abajo, parecía que el sol se había puesto, desde la loma aún podían verlo. Aspiró una buena bocanada de aire y corrió cuesta arriba. Allí aún había luz. Llegó a la cima y vio la gorra. Delante de ella el jefe se reía a carcajadas. Pahom soltó un grito. Se le aflojaron las piernas, cayó de bruces y tomó la gorra con las manos.
He gave a cry: "All my labor has been in vain," thought he, and was about to stop, but he heard the Bashkirs still shouting, and remembered that though to him, from below, the sun seemed to have set, they on the hillock could still see it.
He took a long breath and ran up the hillock. It was still light there. He reached the top and saw the cap. Before it sat the chief laughing and holding his sides. Pahom uttered a cry: his legs gave way beneath him, he fell forward and reached the cap with his hands.
-¡Vaya, qué sujeto tan admirable! -exclamó el jefe-. ¡Ha ganado muchas tierras!
El criado de Pahom se acercó corriendo y trató de levantarlo, pero vio que le salía sangre de la boca.
¡Pahom estaba muerto!
Los pakshirs chasquearon la lengua para demostrar su piedad.
Su criado empuñó la azada y cavó una tumba para Pahom, y allí lo sepultó.
Dos metros de la cabeza a los pies era todo lo que necesitaba.
"Ah, that's a fine fellow!" exclaimed the chief. "He has gained much land!"
Pahom's servant came running up and tried to raise him,
but he saw that blood was flowing from his mouth. Pahom was dead!
The Bashkirs clicked their tongues to show their pity.
His servant picked up the spade and dug a grave long enough for Pahom to lie in, and buried him in it.
Six feet from his head to his heels was all he needed.