An Anthology of Czechoslovak Literature/The Recruits

MARTIN KUKUČÍN (pseudonym ofMatěj Bencúr)
1860–1928 (Slovak)
The RecruitsI
“WELL, so it’s morning already. I wish to God it didn’t shine on me,” thought Mišo Dzúrik to himself, as he woke up. His head was tousled and the confusion inside it was like a Jewish huxter’s den. “And why is the bed turning round with me? Ugh, what a taste there is in my mouth, ugh!”
He tried to stand up, but one foot went to the left and the other to the right. Both of them were shaky.
“Brr,” he shivered, making a wry face. “I do feel ill.”
The previous evening, far into the night, he had been at Moses’ tavern. They had had something to eat, it was supposed to have been goose; there had been a lot of drinking and even more smoking. It was this which had left the taste in his mouth and the confusion in his head.
“I suppose I had better get up, if it must be. Well, here goes, then.” He yawned and eyed the clothes which he was to put on. They were such as he wouldn’t have stolen from a scarecrow. The trousers were one mass of patches, while on the jacket the lining shone through.
“Have you got up yet, Mišo?” came the sorrowful voice of the distressed woman who had just entered the room. She was short, reachi

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