God preserve us from that terrible misfortune! I cannot agree with you about Pierre, whom I knew as a child.

He always seemed to me to have an excellent heart, and that is the quality I value most in people.

As to his inheritance and the part played by Prince Vasili, it is very sad for both.

Ah, my dear friend, our divine Saviour's words, that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God, are terribly true.

I pity Prince Vasili but am still more sorry for Pierre.