rattled the exasperated female voice. He could hear Virginsky checking
her; but the old maid pushed him away and would not desist.

"I am not going away!" Shatov cried again.

"Wait a little, wait a little," Virginsky cried at last, overpowering
the lady. "I beg you to wait five minutes, Shatov. I'll wake Arina
Prohorovna. Please don't knock and don't shout.... Oh, how awful it all
is!"

After five endless minutes, Arina Prohorovna made her appearance.

"Has your wife come?" Shatov heard her voice at the window, and to his
surprise it was not at all ill-tempered, only as usual peremptory, but
Arina Prohorovna could not speak except in a peremptory tone.

"Yes, my wife, and she is in labour."

"Marya Ignatyevna?"

"Yes, Marya Ignatyevna. Of course it's Marya Ignatyevna."

A silence followed. Shatov waited. He heard a whispering in the house.

"Has she been here long?" Madame Virginsky asked again.

"She came this evening at eight o'clock. Please make haste."

Again he heard whispering, as though they were consulting. "Listen, you
are not making a mistake? Did she send you for me herself?"

"No, she didn't send for you, she wants a peasant woman, so as not to
burden me with expense, but don't be afraid, I'll pay you."

"Very good, I'll come, whether you pay or not. I always thought highly
of Marya Ignatyevna for the independence of her sentiments, though
perhaps she won't remember me. Have you got the most necessary things?"

"I've nothing, but I'll get everything, everything."

"There is something generous even in these people," Shatov reflected,
as he set off to Lyamshin's. "The convictions and the man are two very
different things, very likely I've been very unfair to them!... We are
all to blame, we are all to blame... and if only all were convinced of
it!"

He had not to knock long at Lyamshin's; the latter, to Shatov's
surprise, opened his casement at once, jumping out of bed, barefoot
and in his night-clothes at the risk of catching cold; and he was
hypochondriacal and always anxious about his health. But there was
a special cause for such alertness and haste: Lyamshin had been in a
tremor all the evening, and had not been able to sleep for excitement
after the meeting of the quintet; he was haunted by the dread
of uninvited and undesired visitors. The news of Shatov's giving
information tormented him more than anything.... And suddenly there
was this terrible loud knocking at the window as thou