Protasov's flat in Moscow. The scene represents a small dining-room.
Anna Pavlovna, a stout grey-haired lady, tightly laced, is sitting alone at the tea-table on which is a samovar. Enter nurse, carrying a teapot.
NURSE. May I have a little hot water, ma'am?
ANNA PAVLOVNA. Yes. How's Baby?
NURSE. He's restless.? There's nothing worse than for a lady to nurse her baby herself! She has her troubles, and the child must suffer. What can her milk be like, when she lies awake crying all night?
ANNA PAVLOVNA. But she seems quieter now.