ness. With all my soul. Well, good-bye..."

She turned away from him and began slowly, with a wavering walk, to
climb up the hill.

Platonov returned to work just in the nick of time. The gathering of
tramps, scratching, yawning, working out their accustomed dislocations,
were getting into their places. Zavorotny, at a distance, with his keen
eyes caught sight of Platonov and began to yell over the whole port:

"You did manage to get here in time, you round-shouldered devil ... But
I was already wanting to take you by the tail and chase you out of the
gang ... Well, get in your place! ..."

"Well, but I did get a he-dog in you, Serejka! ..." he added, in a
kindly manner. "If only it was night; but no,--look you, he starts in
playing ring-around-a-rosie in broad daylight..."

CHAPTER V.

Saturday was the customary day of the doctor's inspection, for which
they prepared very carefully and with quaking in all the houses; as,
however, even society ladies prepare themselves, when getting ready for
a visit to a physician-specialist; they diligently made their intimate
toilet and inevitably put on clean underthings, even as dressy as
possible. The windows toward the street were closed with shutters,
while at one of those windows, which gave out upon the yard, was put a
table with a hard bolster to put under the back.

All the girls were agitated ... "And what if there's a disease, which I
haven't noticed myself? ... And then the despatch to a hospital;
disgrace; the tedium of hospital life; bad food; the hard course of
treatment..."

Only Big Manka--or otherwise Manka the Crocodile--Zoe, and
Henrietta--all thirty years old, and, therefore, in the reckoning of
Yama, already old prostitutes, who had seen everything, had grown
inured to everything, grown indifferent to their trade, like white, fat
circus horses--remained imperturbably calm. Manka the Crocodile even
often said of herself:

"I have gone through fire and water and pipes of brass ... Nothing will
stick to me any more."

Jennka, since morning, was meek and pensive. She presented to Little
White Manka a golden bracelet; a medallion upon a thin little chain
with her photograph; and a silver neck crucifix. Tamara she moved
through entreaty into taking two rings for remembrance: one of silver,
in three hoops, that could be moved apart, with a heart in the middle,
and under it two hands that clasped one another when all the three
parts of the ring were