ABSTRACT
In a certain tsardom, in a certain country, there lived a soldier. He had served blamelessly for a long time. He knew the tsar’s service well, he was always washed and in good shape when he came to drills and reviews. He started to serve out the last year of his service, but as ill luck would have it, both the high commander and low chief took a dislike to him, and every now and then he suffered under the rod. The soldier was wretched and took it into his head to run away. With a knapsack across one shoulder and his gun on the other, other, he went to bid his comrades farewell. But they asked him, “Where are you going? Or has the commander given you an order?”
