He heard his horses chewing hay; then how the master and his eldest son got ready and rode away for the night to pasture their horses; then how the soldier settled down to sleep on the other side of the barn with his nephew, their host's little son; he heard the boy in his treble voice imparting to his uncle his impressions of the dogs, which seemed to him terrible and enormous; then how the boy asked what those dogs were going to catch, and he heard how the soldier replied in a hoarse and sleepy voice that the sportsmen would go next day to the marshes and fire guns, adding, to stop the questioning: 'Sleep, Vaska, sleep, or else look out!'
Finalmente, percibió cómo el soldado se arreglaba para dormir al otro lado del pajar, con su sobrino, hijo menor del amo. Oyó al niño explicar a su tío la impresión que le habían causado los perros, que le parecieron enormes y terribles, y preguntarle que a quién iban a coger aquellos animales.