BĂșlka and the Wild Boar (Tolstoy)
Division into chapters is editorial.
Setting out for the hunt and BĂșlkas disappearance
The narrator went hunting for wild boar in the Caucasus in November, when the animals were at their fattest from feeding on the abundant forest fruits.
His dog BĂșlka accompanied him on the hunt.
The Caucasus forests provided rich feeding grounds for boars with wild grapes, cones, apples, pears, blackberries, acorns, and wild plums. When these fruits ripened and were touched by frost, the boars grew extremely fat.
At that time a boar gets so fat that he cannot run from the dogs. When they chase him for about two hours, he makes for the thicket and there stops.
When the hounds started, BĂșlka rushed after them and disappeared into the forest.
Following the sounds through the forest
The narrator ran through the forest for a long time without crossing any boar tracks. Finally, he heard the distinctive long-drawn bark and howl of the hounds that indicated the boar had stopped running. He could tell by their barking that they were circling the boar but not catching him. As he approached, he heard crashing in the thicket where the boar was turning on the dogs.
Suddenly, the narrator heard rustling behind him and saw BĂșlka approaching. The dog had evidently strayed from the hounds and lost his way, but was now following their barking like his master.
He ran across a clearing through the high grass, and all I could see of him was his black head and his tongue clinched between his white teeth.
The narrator called BĂșlka back, but the dog did not look around and ran past him into the thicket. Following after him, the narrator found the forest growing denser, with branches knocking off his cap and thorns catching his garments. Though he was near the barking, he could see nothing through the thick undergrowth.
When the dogs barked louder and something crashed, followed by the boar's puffing and snorting, the narrator realized BĂșlka had reached the boar and was engaged with it. He ran with all his might toward the sound.
The confrontation with the boar
In the densest part of the thicket, the narrator saw a dappled hound barking and howling, with something black moving around within three steps of her.
Coming nearer, the narrator could make out the boar and heard BĂșlka whining shrilly.
The boar grunted and charged at the hound, which tucked its tail between its legs and leaped away. The narrator could see the boar's side and head clearly. He aimed at the boar's side and fired, hitting his target. The wounded boar grunted and crashed through the thicket away from him, with the dogs whimpering and barking in pursuit.
As the narrator tried to follow through the undergrowth, he suddenly saw and heard something almost under his feet.
Suddenly I saw and heard something almost under my feet. It was BĂșlka. He was lying on his side and whining. Under him there was a puddle of blood.
The narrator thought the dog was lost, but had no time to examine him as he continued pursuing the boar. Soon he found the wounded animal, with dogs trying to catch it from behind while it turned from side to side. When the boar saw the narrator, it moved toward him. The narrator fired a second shot, almost resting the barrel against the boar so that its bristles caught fire. The boar groaned, tottered, and dropped heavily to the ground with its whole body. The boar was dead, its body only jerking and twitching occasionally while some dogs tore at its belly and legs and others lapped blood from its wounds.
Victory and recovery
The narrator then remembered BĂșlka and went back to find him crawling toward him and groaning. Examining the dog's wound, he discovered that BĂșlka's belly was ripped open with a whole piece of his intestines sticking out and dragging on the dry leaves. When his companions arrived, they helped put the intestines back and sewed up the dog's belly.
While they sewed him up, sticking the needle through his skin, BĂșlka kept licking the narrator's hand. The dead boar was tied to a horse's tail to be pulled from the forest, while BĂșlka was placed on the horse and taken home.
BĂșlka was sick for about six weeks, and got well again.