Evening by Isaac Babel. Short summary

5 seconds

Many members of the Konarmia were tired of the constant strain, the killings, and the non-healing wounds. Galina, Slinkin, and Sychev, employees of the newspaper, were sent to the rear to re-ignite the Cossacks with their leaflets.

1 minute

Red Cavalryman staff members were sent to the rear to prepare newspapers «full of courage and rude fun.» The activities of Galin, Slinkin, and Sychev were a dynamite cord planted under the army.

The pale Galin was unrequitedly in love with the train laundress Irina. The man told her about the murders of tyrants. Irina was not very interested in these stories. She dozed on the shoulder of the muzzled cook Vasily. The cook called the laundress to sleep: «Come to squash the fleas….» The couple left Galin alone.

Galin headed to the sleeping pond. There he met the narrator, who confessed to him that he was tired of living in the horse army. For this, Galin called the narrator names: «You are a wimp, and we are destined to put up with you wimps….» However, he understood that the revolution threw in the first ranks of the Cossacks, who were imbued with various prejudices. Galin was sure that the fighters would be «blasted» with an iron brush.