JOSEPH BRODSKY
Democracy!
(co
II till
lied
Jrolll
pa,Qe
194)
Different bank notes.
Means five grand per nose.
What do you mean, per nose' For Gustav, too'
Gustav, too.
But he didn 't want to share it, Mr. President. That is, Basil Modestovich, why
him' He was resisting.
He is as much a member of the cabinet, Petrovich, as
YOll,
Cecilia, and
I.
Yeah, he is simply in the minority.
Demagoguery' Your brains have gone soft because of democracy, isn't it'
Our
share goes up by five hundred grand. This, even if divided by three.
Nobody can divide five hundred by three - moreover evenly. Even Gustav can't,
not to mention you.
And I won't.
[Explodes. J
Neither by four, nor by three, nor by half All of you go
to he ll' Soft bourgeois' Rot' All is mine' I grabbed it and it's mine' Bye, bye. See
you in Paris.
[PerYOlJich rl/shes ro rhe exir.
'1he
bear ClllelXCS ,,,irh a halldgllll
ill
i,is
palV.]
[Pallse. ]
Don't be a fool, Petrovich. Sit down and finish your dumplings , or else they'll
get co ld.
[PerYOlJich, colllpletely dellastared, shllflles bark ro the rab/e, rhroll's rhe
bri~(case
011
it,
and
sits dOll!lI.
[
That Bandylcgs works for you now , in other words.
I give you my word of honor, Petrovich , that I am as surprised as you arc.
Simply a highly-trained bear, Basil Modestovich. The vestiges of folklore.
Gypsies in days of yore were performing with things like that at country fairs.
But - inanimate.
The on ly consolation. Though we should check that out.
