Vladimir Nabokov. Bachmann : Клуб изучающих испанский языкVladimir Nabokov. Bachmann
in Switzerland. It was a glorious evening, I recall. I was not alone. Yes, a woman—but that's a different libretto. And then, what do you know, I see a small crowd gathered around a short man in a shabby black coat and black hat. He was thrusting a coin into a music box, and sobbing uncontrollably. He would put in a coin, listen to the tinny melody, and sob. Then the roll or something broke down. The coin jammed. He began shaking the box, wept louder, gave up, and went away. I recognized him immediately, but, you understand, I was not alone, I was with a lady, and there were people around, sort of gaping. It would have been awkward to go up to him and say Wie geht's dir, Bachmann?"