"Devil take him!" said the doctor. "There's no making head or tail of what he means!... Just listen, my good fellow. Be off with you as quickly as you can, and thank your lucky stars that I let you off so easily! I might have given you over to the police, you fool! Now, be off!" Grischka cast a lowering look at the doctor. He would rather have been beaten, or given into custody; but the doctor was a kind-hearted man, and could see that Orloff was not at the present moment responsible for his actions. "For the last time; are you coming with me?" Grischka asked his wife, in a hoarse voice. "No, I am not going," she answered, throwing back her head, as if she expected a blow. "Well--go to the devil, all of you!" he cried, with a hopeless gesture. "What the deuce do I want with any of you?" "You poor fool!" exclaimed the doctor almost compassionately. "Don't swear!" shouted Grigori; then turning to his wife, "Well, you damned hussy, you see I am off!... Perhaps we shall never meet again in this life ... perhaps we shall ... that will be just as I choose. But if we do meet--it won't go well with you.... That I can promise you!" Then he turned towards the door. "Farewell, you tragic hero!" cried the doctor in a sarcastic voice, as Grigori passed him. Orloff stopped, and turning his sad glowing eyes on the doctor, said in a restrained voice-- "You had better leave me alone ... don't wind up the spring any more ... it was lucky it unwound without hurting any one ... don't try it on again!". He picked up his wet cap from the floor, put it on his head, lingered for a moment, and then went out without once glancing at Matrona. The doctor looked at Orloff's wife with a searching glance, as she stood in front of him with a pale death-like look on her face. Then nodding in the direction of Grigori, he asked her, "What is the matter with him?" "I don't know...." "H'm--and where is he going now?" "He will go and get drunk," Matrona replied in a convinced tone of voice. The doctor frowned and left her. Matrona looked out of the window. Through the darkness of the night, and through the rain and wind, she could discern the figure of a man leaving the Infirmary, and walking towards the town. He was the only living thing to be seen in the dreary wet expanse of fields. Matrona's face grew still whiter; she went towards a corner of the room, dropped on her knees, and began to pray fervently, her head bowed almost to the floor. Deep sighs and ardent words of passionate prayer escaped from her lips, whilst in her excitement and anguish her hands clutched feverishly at her throat and breast. CHAPTER IX I was inspecting one day the technical school of the town of N----. One of the founders of the school, a personal friend of mine, was showing me round. He pointed out all the new and model arrangements and gave me an account of everything.