In his course of daily inspection M. Aramilski also came up upon the roof where I was at work, followed by other officials of the establishment. I continued to sweep without turning round, and I avoided their eyes as much as if I had been a criminal. Some time after they had left, the overseer said, ‘Now rest.’ I seated myself on a heap of sweepings alongside of my companion, a young man, who was tall and well-made, but who had the triple mark on his face, and who seemed of an easy cheerful temper. Overcoming the hesitation which I felt, I spoke first. ‘Have you been long in these works?’ ‘Three years.’ ‘To how many years’ labour are you sentenced?’ ‘For life!’ ‘What was your crime?’ ‘I killed my master.’ I shuddered, but went on: ‘Without doubt it was an accident, you did not intend to kill him?’ ‘Why, for the matter of that I did not _plan_ it,’ he said with a sneering look; ‘I had an axe hanging at my girdle, I took it in both my hands and split his head open for him.’ I was chilled with horror. After a few moments’ silence I said: ‘But why did you kill him so cruelly?’ ‘Why? not for fun, you may be sure. No, our master was a bad man, very cruel, who overworked us and beat us incessantly, almost to death; and to deliver the neighbourhood from a ruffian like that I took upon myself to kill him, and I did so. It was God’s providence that I did not die under the knout, and now I am much happier and better off at this _katorga_ (penal labour) than I ever was at home. The only thing that I regret is my young wife, whom I had to leave; she is young and pretty, and will soon find another husband.’ ‘But you ought to repent of the sin of having slain a man.’ ‘_That_ was not a man! That was a devil!’ We soon after this went to work again, and did not stop till nightfall. I returned to the guard-house, and there my two countrymen came under an escort to visit me, the _smotritel_ having given leave for this indulgence. We conversed together in a low voice, and in the middle of all the racket made by the soldiers and convicts we related to each other the chief events of our lives. These poor friends did not cease exhorting me to absolute patience and submission. They conjured me to master my temper, to suppress all exhibitions of it, and not to despair of seeing myself soon raised to a position which would be by comparison more happy, and which they themselves now occupied--thanks to their patient and irreproachable conduct. We embraced tenderly, then separated, and I fell asleep. Thus ended my first day of convict labour and of convict life: how many more of the same succeeded it and resembled it!