na called him. The Jew turned his head and came to her. He was
as dirty as he was old. She went with him to the stoop of some
house.

"Do you want to sell anything?" asked the Jew, laying his bag and
stick on the stairs and bending his thin face and red eyes over the
package.

"Yes," answered Janina, unwrapping the paper.

The Jew took the costume in his dirty hands, spread it out in the
sunlight, looked over it a few times, smiled imperceptibly, put it
back in the paper, wrapped it up, picked up his bag and stick and
said, "Such fineries are not for me." He began to descend the
stairway, derisively smacking his lips.

"I will sell it cheap," Janina called after him, thinking with fear
that perhaps she might get at least a ruble or a half-ruble for it.

"If you have some old shoes or pillow-slips, I will buy them, but
such a thing is of no use to me. Who will buy it? Rubbish!"

"I will sell it cheap," she whispered.

"Well, how much do you want for it?"

"A ruble."

"May I fall down dead, if that is worth more than twenty kopecks.
What is it worth, who will buy it?" and he came back, unwrapped the
costume, and again examined it indifferently.

"The ribbons alone cost me a few rubles," said Janina, and she
became silent, deciding that she would take the twenty kopecks.

"Ribbons! What's that . . . all pieces!" chattered the Jew, glancing
over the costume hastily. "Well, I will give you thirty kopecks. Do
you want it? As I'm an honest man, I can't give you more . . . I
have a good heart, but I can't. Well, do you want it?"

This barter filled Janina with such disgust, shame, and grief, that
she felt like throwing down everything and running away.

The Jew counted out the money to her, took the costume and went
away. From the window of her room Janina saw how in the full light
of the yard he examined the dress once more.

"What shall I do with this?" she whispered helplessly, pressing in
her hand the dirty and sticky kopecks.

Janina owed money to Mme. Anna for the rent of her room, to the
tender of the theater-buffet, and to a few of her companions of the
chorus, but she no longer thought of this, only took the thirty
kopecks and went out to the store to buy herself something to eat.

She returned home, and having eaten, she wished to take a little
nap, but Sowinska entered and told her that someone was waiting for
her for the last half-hour and immediately there entered
Niedzielska's servant girl wit