He went away hurriedly and left Sasha standing confused and frightened. "You're in for it," said the other boys to him. "He'll lecture you till evening." Khripatch loved to deliver lengthy reprimands and the students dreaded his invitations above everything. After the exercises Sasha timidly went to the Head-Master. Khripatch received him promptly. He went close to Sasha, looked intently into his eyes and asked: "Tell me, Pilnikov, do the gymnastic exercises really tire you? You look quite a healthy youngster but 'appearances are deceptive.' Are you sure you haven't some illness? Perhaps it's injurious for you to do these exercises." "No, Nikolai Vlasyevitch, I'm quite well," answered Sasha, red with confusion. "However," said Khripatch, "Aleksey Alekseyevitch was complaining about your languidness and that you get tired soon. And I myself noticed to-day that you had a tired look. Or perhaps I was mistaken?" Sasha did not know how to shield his eyes from Khripatch's penetrating look. He muttered in a confused way: "I'm very sorry--I won't do it again--I was just a little lazy--really I'm quite well. I will work hard at the exercises." Suddenly, quite unexpectedly to himself, he burst into tears. "You see," said Khripatch, "it's obvious that you're tired: you cry as if I had given you a severe scolding. Now, quiet yourself." He laid his hand on Sasha's shoulder and said: "I called you in not to lecture you but to make things clear.... Sit down, Pilnikov, I can see you're tired." Sasha quickly dried his wet eyes with his handkerchief and said: "I'm not a bit tired." "Sit down, sit down," said Khripatch, not unkindly, and pushed a chair over to Sasha. "Really I'm not tired, Nikolai Vlasyevitch," Sasha assured him. Khripatch took him by the shoulders and made him sit down, sat down himself opposite the boy and said: "Let's talk the matter over quietly, Pilnikov. You yourself cannot tell the actual condition of your health. You're very good and conscientious in all respects. That is why I can understand your wanting to be relieved from the gymnastic exercises. By the way, I've asked Evgeny Ivanovitch to come here to-day as I don't feel quite myself; he might incidentally look at you. I hope you have nothing against that?" Khripatch looked at his watch and without waiting for an answer began to talk with Sasha as to how he had spent the summer. Evgeny Ivanovitch Sourovtsev, the school physician, a little dark alert man, soon appeared; he delighted in conversations on politics and news generally. His knowledge was not great but he attended his patients conscientiously, and as he preferred diet and hygiene to medicines he was generally successful in his cases.