He was tall and had red hair; he stooped and
was depressed and even sentimental; and in spite of his being humbled by
his life, he was obstinate and persistent as an ox, though always at
the wrong moment. For Andrey Antonovitch he, as well as his wife and
numerous family, had cherished for many years a reverent devotion.
Except Andrey Antonovitch no one had ever liked him. Yulia Mihailovna
would have discarded him from the first, but could not overcome her
husband's obstinacy. It was the cause of their first conjugal quarrel.
It had happened soon after their marriage, in the early days of their
honeymoon, when she was confronted with Blum, who, together with the
humiliating secret of his relationship, had been until then carefully
concealed from her. Andrey Antonovitch besought her with clasped hands,
told her pathetically all the story of Blum and their friendship from
childhood, but Yulia Mihailovna considered herself disgraced for ever,
and even had recourse to fainting. Von Lembke would not budge an
inch, and declared that he would not give up Blum or part from him for
anything in the world, so that she was surprised at last and was obliged
to put up with Blum. It was settled, however, that the relationship
should be concealed even more carefully than before if possible, and
that even Blum's Christian name and patronymic should be changed,
because he too was for some reason called Andrey Antonovitch. Blum knew
no one in the town except the German chemist, had not called on anyone,
and led, as he always did, a lonely and niggardly existence. He had
long been aware of Andrey Antonovitch's literary peccadilloes. He was
generally summoned to listen to secret _tete-a-tete_ readings of his
novel; he would sit like a post for six hours at a stretch, perspiring
and straining his utmost to keep awake and smile. On reaching home he
would groan with his long-legged and lanky wife over their benefactor's
unhappy weakness for Russian literature.

Andrey Antonovitch looked with anguish at Blum.

"I beg you to leave me alone, Blum," he began with agitated haste,
obviously anxious to avoid any renewal of the previous conversation
which had been interrupted by Pyotr Stepanovitch.

"And yet this may be arranged in the most delicate way and with no
publicity; you have full power." Blum respectfully but obstinately
insisted on some point, stooping forward and coming nearer and nearer by
small steps to Andrey Antonovitch.

"Blum, yo