the air, and the whole scene around us served but
to throw into the more tragic relief.

* * * * *

Just as the steamer was leaving Sundir the man threw himself into the
water; in the sight of everybody he sprang overboard. Upon that all
shouted, jostled their neighbours as they rushed to the side, and fell
to scanning the river where from bank to bank it lay wrapped in
blinding glitter.

The whistle sounded in fitful alarm, the sailors threw lifebelts
overboard, the deck rumbled like a drum under the crowd's surging
rush, steam hissed afflightedly, a woman vented an hysterical cry, and
the captain bawled from the bridge the imperious command:

"Avast heaving lifebelts! By now the fool will have got one! Damn you,
calm the passengers!"

An unwashed, untidy priest with timid, staring eyes thrust back his
long, dishevelled hair, and fell to repeating, as his fat shoulder
jostled all and sundry, and his feet tripped people up.

"A muzhik, is it, or a woman? A muzhik, eh?"

By the time that I had made my way to the stern the man had fallen far
behind the stern of the barge, and his head looked as small as a fly on
the glassy surface of the water. However, towards that fly a
fishing-boat was already darting with the swiftness of a water beetle,
and causing its two oars to show quiveringly red and grey, while from
the marshier of the two banks there began hastily to put out a second
boat which leapt in the steamer's wash with the gaiety of a young calf.

Suddenly there broke into the painful hubbub on the steamer's deck a
faint, heartrending cry of "A-a-ah!"

In answer to it a sharp-nosed, black-bearded, well-dressed peasant
muttered with a smack of his lips:

"Ah! That is him shouting. What a madman he must have been! And an ugly
customer too, wasn't he?"

The peasant with the curly beard rejoined in a tone of conviction
engulfing all other utterances:

"It is his conscience that is catching him. Think what you like, but
never can conscience be suppressed."

Therewith, constantly interrupting one another, the pair betook
themselves to a public recital of the tragic story of the fair-haired
young fellow, whom the fishermen had now lifted from the water, and
were conveying towards the steamer with oars that oscillated at top
speed.

The bearded peasant continued:

"As soon as it was seen that he was but running after the soldier's
wife."

"Besides," the other peasant interrupted,