The Manager Of "The Kremlin"

This story was told me in Paris very early in the morning by the manager of a famous night club, and I am fairly certain that it is true.
I shall not tell you the real name of the manager or of his club, because it is not the sort of advertisement he would like, but I will call them, instead, Boris and “The Kremlin.”
“The Kremlin” occupies a position of its own.
Your hat and coat are taken at the door by a perfectly¹ genuine Cossack of ferocious² appearance; he wears riding boots and spurs, and the parts of his face that are not hidden by beard are cut and scarred like that of a pre-war German student.
The interior is hung with rugs and red, woven stuff to represent a tent. There is a very good tsigain band playing gipsy music, and a very good jazz-band which plays when people want to dance.
The waiters are chosen for their height. They wear magnificent Russian liveries, and carry round flaming skewers³ on which are spitted onions between rounds of meat. Most of them are ex-officers of the Imperial Guard.
Boris, the manager, is quite a young man; he is 6 ft. 5 1/2 in. in height. He wears a Russian silk blouse, loose trousers and top boots, and goes from table to table seeing that everything is all right.
From two in the morning until dawn “The Kremlin” is invariably full, and the American visitors, looking wistfully at their bills, often remark that Boris must be “making a good thing out of it.” So he is.
Fashions change very quickly in Montmartre, but if his present popularity lasts for another season, he talks of retiring to a villa⁴ on the Riviera.
One Saturday night, or rather a Sunday morning, Boris did me the honour of coming to sit at my table and take a glass of wine with me. It was then that Boris told his story.
His father was a general, and when the war broke out Boris was a cadet at the military academy.
He was too young to fight, and was forced to watch, from behind the lines, the collapse⁵ of the Imperial Government.
Then came the confused period when the Great War was over, and various scattered⁶ remnants of the royalist army, with half-hearted support from their former allies, were engaged in a losing fight against the Bolshevists.
Boris was eighteen years old. His father had been killed and his mother had already escaped to America.
The military academy was being closed down, and with several of his fellow cadets Boris decided⁷ to join the last royalist army which, under Kolchak, was holding the Bolshevists at bay in Siberia.
It was a very odd kind of army. There were dismounted cavalry⁸ and sailors who had left their ships, officers whose regiments⁹ had mutinied, frontier garrisons¹⁰ and aides-de-camp, veterans of the Russo-Japanese war, and boys like Boris who were seeing action for the first time.
Besides these, there were units from the Allied¹¹ Powers, who seemed to have been sent there by their capricious Governments and forgotten; there was a corps¹² of British engineers and some French artillery¹³; there were also liaison¹⁴ officers and military attachés to the General Headquarters Staff.
Among the latter was a French cavalry officer a few years older than Boris. To most educated Russians before the war French was as familiar as their own language.
Boris and the French attaché became close friends. They used to smoke together and talk of Moscow and Paris before the war.
As the weeks passed it became clear that Kolchak’s campaign could end in nothing but disaster.
Eventually a council of officers decided that the only course open was to break through to the east coast and attempt to escape to Europe.
A force had to be left behind to cover the retreat, and Boris and his French friend found themselves detailed¹⁵ to remain with this rearguard. In the action which followed, the small covering force was completely routed.
Alone among the officers Boris and his friend escaped with their lives, but their condition was almost desperate.
Their baggage was lost and they found themselves isolated¹⁶ in a waste land, patrolled by enemy troops and inhabited by savage¹⁷ Asiatic tribesmen.
Left to himself, the Frenchman’s chances of escape were negligible, but a certain prestige still attached to the uniform of a Russian officer in the outlying villages.
Boris lent him his military overcoat to cover his uniform, and together they struggled through the snow, begging their way to the frontier.
Eventually they arrived in Japanese territory. Here all Russians were suspect, and it devolved on the Frenchman to get them safe conduct to the nearest French Consulate¹⁸.
Boris’s chief aim now was to join his mother in America. His friend had to return to report himself in Paris, so here they parted.
They took an affectionate farewell, promising¹⁹ to see each other again when their various affairs were settled. But each in his heart doubted whether chance would ever bring them together again.
Two years elapsed, and then one day in spring a poorly-dressed young Russian found himself in Paris, with three hundred francs in his pocket and all his worldly possessions in a kitbag.
He was very different from the debonair²⁰ Boris who had left the military academy for Kolchak’s army. America had proved to be something very different from the Land of Opportunity he had imagined.
His mother sold the jewels and a few personal possessions she had been able to bring away with her, and had started a small dressmaking business.
There seemed no chance of permanent employment for Boris, so after two or three months of casual jobs he worked his passage to England.
During the months that followed, Boris obtained temporary employment as a waiter, a chauffeur²¹, a professional dancing-partner, a dock-labourer, and he came very near to starvation.
Finally, he came across an old friend of his father’s, a former first secretary in the diplomatic corps, who was now working as a hairdresser.
This friend advised him to try Paris, where a large Russian colony had already formed, and gave him his fare.
It was thus that one morning, as the buds were just beginning to break in the Champs Elysées and the couturiers were exhibiting their Spring fashions, Boris found himself, ill-dressed and friendless, in another strange city.
His total capital was the equivalent of about thirty shillings; and so, being uncertain of what was to become of him, he decided to have luncheon²².
An Englishman finding himself in this predicament would no doubt have made careful calculations.
He would have decided what was the longest time that his money would last him, and would have methodically kept within his budget while he started again “looking for a job.”
But as Boris stood working out this depressing sum, something seemed suddenly to snap in his head.
With the utmost privation he could hardly hope to subsist²³ for more than two or three weeks.
At the end of that time he would be in exactly the same position, a fortnight older, with all his money spent and no nearer a job.
Why not now as well as in a fortnight’s time? He was in Paris, about which he had read and heard so much. He made up his mind to have one good meal and leave the rest to chance.
He had often heard his father speak of a restaurant called Larne. He had no idea where it was, so he took a taxi.
He entered the restaurant and sat down in one of the red-plush seats, while the waiters eyed his clothes with suspicion.
He looked about him in an unembarrassed way. It was quieter and less showy in appearance than the big restaurants he had passed in New York and London, but a glance at the menu told him that it was not a place where poor people often went.
Then he began ordering his luncheon, and the waiter’s manner quickly changed as he realized that this eccentrically dressed customer did not need any advice about choosing his food and wine.
He ate fresh caviare and ortolansan porto and crepes suzettes; he drank a bottle of vintage claret and a glass of very old fine champagne²⁴, and he examined several boxes of cigars before he found one in perfect condition.
When he had finished, he asked for his bill. It was 260 francs. He gave the waiter a tip of 26 francs and 4 francs to the man at the door who had taken his hat and kitbag. His taxi had cost 7 francs.
Half a minute later he stood on the kerb with exactly 3 francs in the world. But it had been a magnificent lunch, and he did not regret it.
As he stood there, meditating²⁵ what he could do, his arm was suddenly taken from behind, and turning he saw a smartly dressed Frenchman, who had evidently just left the restaurant. It was his friend the military attaché.
“I was sitting at the table behind you,” he said. “You never noticed me, you were so intent on your food.”
“It is probably my last meal for some time,” Boris explained, and his friend laughed at what he took to be a joke.
They walked up the street together, talking rapidly. The Frenchman described how he had left the army when his time of service was up, and was now a director of a prosperous motor business.
“And you, too,” he said. “I am delighted to see that you also have been doing well.”
“Doing well? At the moment I have exactly three francs in the world.”
“My dear fellow, people with three francs in the world do not eat caviare at Larne.”
Then for the first time he noticed Boris’s frayed²⁶ clothes. He had only known him in a war-worn uniform and it had seemed natural at first to find him dressed as he was.
Now he realized that these were not the clothes which prosperous young men usually wear.
“My dear friend,” he said, “forgive me for laughing. I didn’t realize..... Come and dine with me this evening at my flat, and we will talk about what is to be done.”
“And so,” concluded Boris, “I became the manager of ‘The Kremlin.’ If I had not gone to Larne that day it is about certain we should never have met!
“My friend said that I might have a part in his motor business, but that he thought anyone who could spend his last 300 francs on one meal was ordained²⁷ by God to keep a restaurant.
“So it has been. He financed me. I collected some of my old friends to work with us. Now, you see, I am comparatively a rich man.”
The last visitors had paid their bill and risen, rather unsteadily, to go. Boris rose, too, to bow them out. The daylight shone into the room as they lifted the curtain to go out.
Suddenly, in the new light, all the decorations looked bogus and tawdry; the waiters hurried away to change their sham²⁸ liveries. Boris understood what I was feeling.
“I know,” he said. “It is not Russian. It is not anything even to own a popular night club when one has lost one’s country.”

1 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

2 ferocious   

adj.凶猛的，残暴的，极度的，十分强烈的

参考例句：

• The ferocious winds seemed about to tear the ship to pieces.狂风仿佛要把船撕成碎片似的。
• The ferocious panther is chasing a rabbit.那只凶猛的豹子正追赶一只兔子。

3 skewers   

n.串肉扦( skewer的名词复数 )；烤肉扦；棒v.（用串肉扦或类似物）串起，刺穿( skewer的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Damaged skewers and clogged bobbin holder. 木锭子破损，纱管支架底座阻塞。 来自互联网
• I heard you really like mutton skewers and that you can eat 50 at one time. 听说你特别爱吃羊肉串儿，一次能吃五十串儿。 来自互联网

4 villa   

n.别墅，城郊小屋

参考例句：

• We rented a villa in France for the summer holidays.我们在法国租了一幢别墅消夏。
• We are quartered in a beautiful villa.我们住在一栋漂亮的别墅里。

5 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

6 scattered   

adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的

参考例句：

• Gathering up his scattered papers,he pushed them into his case.他把散乱的文件收拾起来，塞进文件夹里。

7 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

8 cavalry   

n.骑兵；轻装甲部队

参考例句：

• We were taken in flank by a troop of cavalry. 我们翼侧受到一队骑兵的袭击。
• The enemy cavalry rode our men down. 敌人的骑兵撞倒了我们的人。

9 regiments   

（军队的）团( regiment的名词复数 )； 大量的人或物

参考例句：

• The three regiments are all under the command of you. 这三个团全归你节制。
• The town was garrisoned with two regiments. 该镇有两团士兵驻守。

10 garrisons   

守备部队，卫戍部队( garrison的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• I've often seen pictures of such animals at the garrisons. 在要塞里，我经常看到这种动物的画片。
• Use a Black Hand to garrisons, and take it for yourself. 用黑手清空驻守得步兵，为自己占一个。

11 allied   

adj.协约国的；同盟国的

参考例句：

• Britain was allied with the United States many times in history.历史上英国曾多次与美国结盟。
• Allied forces sustained heavy losses in the first few weeks of the campaign.同盟国在最初几周内遭受了巨大的损失。

12 corps   

n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组

参考例句：

• The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

13 artillery   

n.(军)火炮，大炮；炮兵(部队)

参考例句：

• This is a heavy artillery piece.这是一门重炮。
• The artillery has more firepower than the infantry.炮兵火力比步兵大。

14 liaison   

n.联系，（未婚男女间的）暖昧关系，私通

参考例句：

• She acts as a liaison between patients and staff.她在病人与医护人员间充当沟通的桥梁。
• She is responsible for liaison with researchers at other universities.她负责与其他大学的研究人员联系。

15 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。

16 isolated   

adj.与世隔绝的

参考例句：

• His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
• Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。

17 savage   

adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人

参考例句：

• The poor man received a savage beating from the thugs.那可怜的人遭到暴徒的痛打。
• He has a savage temper.他脾气粗暴。

18 consulate   

n.领事馆

参考例句：

• The Spanish consulate is the large white building opposite the bank.西班牙领事馆是银行对面的那栋高大的白色建筑物。
• The American consulate was a magnificent edifice in the centre of Bordeaux.美国领事馆是位于波尔多市中心的一座宏伟的大厦。

19 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

20 debonair   

adj.殷勤的，快乐的

参考例句：

• He strolled about,look very debonair in his elegant new suit.他穿了一身讲究的新衣服逛来逛去，显得颇为惬意。
• He was a handsome,debonair,death-defying racing-driver.他是一位英俊潇洒、风流倜傥、敢于挑战死神的赛车手。

21 chauffeur   

n.(受雇于私人或公司的)司机；v.为…开车

参考例句：

• The chauffeur handed the old lady from the car.这个司机搀扶这个老太太下汽车。
• She went out herself and spoke to the chauffeur.她亲自走出去跟汽车司机说话。

22 luncheon   

n.午宴，午餐，便宴

参考例句：

• We have luncheon at twelve o'clock.我们十二点钟用午餐。
• I have a luncheon engagement.我午饭有约。

23 subsist   

vi.生存，存在，供养

参考例句：

• We are unable to subsist without air and water.没有空气和水我们就活不下去。
• He could subsist on bark and grass roots in the isolated island.在荒岛上他只能靠树皮和草根维持生命。

24 champagne   

n.香槟酒；微黄色

参考例句：

• There were two glasses of champagne on the tray.托盘里有两杯香槟酒。
• They sat there swilling champagne.他们坐在那里大喝香槟酒。

25 meditating   

a.沉思的，冥想的

参考例句：

• They were meditating revenge. 他们在谋划进行报复。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics. 这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。

26 frayed   

adj.磨损的v.（使布、绳等）磨损，磨破( fray的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• His shirt was frayed. 他的衬衫穿破了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The argument frayed their nerves. 争辩使他们不快。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

27 ordained   

v.任命（某人）为牧师( ordain的过去式和过去分词 )；授予（某人）圣职；（上帝、法律等）命令；判定

参考例句：

• He was ordained in 1984. 他在一九八四年被任命为牧师。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He was ordained priest. 他被任命为牧师。 来自辞典例句

28 sham   

n./adj.假冒(的)，虚伪(的)

参考例句：

• They cunningly played the game of sham peace.他们狡滑地玩弄假和平的把戏。
• His love was a mere sham.他的爱情是虚假的。