Iregardyouinanycaseasamanofnoblecharacterandnotwithoutelementsofmagnanimity,thoughIdon'tagreewithallyourconvictions。Iwantedtotellyouthisfirst,franklyandquitesincerely,foraboveallIdon'twanttodeceiveyou。WhenImadeyouracquaintance,Ifeltattractedbyyou。Perhapsyouwilllaughatmysayingso。Youhavearightto。Iknowyoudislikedmefromthefirstandindeedyou'venoreasontolikeme。Youmaythinkwhatyoulike,butIdesirenowtodoallIcantoeffacethatimpressionandtoshowthatIamamanofheartandconscience。Ispeaksincerely。“
　　PorfiryPetrovitchmadeadignifiedpause。Raskolnikovfeltarushofrenewedalarm。ThethoughtthatPorfirybelievedhimtobeinnocentbegantomakehimuneasy。
　　“It'sscarcelynecessarytogoovereverythingindetail,“PorfiryPetrovitchwenton。“IndeedIcouldscarcelyattemptit。Tobeginwiththerewererumours。Throughwhom,how,andwhenthoserumourscametome……andhowtheyaffectedyou,Ineednotgointo。Mysuspicionswerearousedbyacompleteaccident,whichmightjustaseasilynothavehappened。Whatwasit?Hm!Ibelievethereisnoneedtogointothateither。Thoserumoursandthataccidentledtooneideainmymind。Iadmititopenly-foronemayaswellmakeacleanbreastofit-Iwasthefirsttopitchonyou。Theoldwoman'snotesonthepledgesandtherestofit-thatallcametonothing。
　　Yourswasoneofahundred。Ihappened,too,tohearofthesceneattheoffice,fromamanwhodescribeditcapitally,unconsciouslyreproducingthescenewithgreatvividness。Itwasjustonethingafteranother,RodionRomanovitch,mydearfellow!HowcouldIavoidbeingbroughttocertainideas?Fromahundredrabbitsyoucan'tmakeahorse,ahundredsuspicionsdon'tmakeaproof,astheEnglishproverbsays,butthat'sonlyfromtherationalpointofview-
　　youcan'thelpbeingpartial,forafterallalawyerisonlyhuman。
　　Ithought,too,ofyourarticleinthatjournal,doyouremember,onyourfirstvisitwetalkedofit?Ijeeredatyouatthetime,butthatwasonlytoleadyouon。Irepeat,RodionRomanovitch,youareillandimpatient。Thatyouwerebold,headstrong,inearnestand……
　　hadfeltagreatdealIrecognisedlongbefore。I,too,havefeltthesame,sothatyourarticleseemedfamiliartome。Itwasconceivedonsleeplessnights,withathrobbingheart,inecstasyandsuppressedenthusiasm。Andthatproudsuppressedenthusiasminyoungpeopleisdangerous!Ijeeredatyouthen,butletmetellyouthat,asaliteraryamateur,Iamawfullyfondofsuchfirstessays,fulloftheheatofyouth。Thereisamistinessandachordvibratinginthemist。Yourarticleisabsurdandfantastic,butthere'satransparentsincerity,ayouthfulincorruptibleprideandthedaringofdespairinit。It'sagloomyarticle,butthat'swhat'sfineinit。
　　Ireadyourarticleandputitaside,thinkingasIdidso'thatmanwon'tgothecommonway。'Well,Iaskyou,afterthatasapreliminary,howcouldIhelpbeingcarriedawaybywhatfollowed?Oh,dear,Iamnotsayinganything,Iamnotmakinganystatementnow。I
　　simplynoteditatthetime。Whatisthereinit?Ireflected。There'snothinginit,thatisreallynothingandperhapsabsolutelynothing。Andit'snotatallthethingfortheprosecutortolethimselfbecarriedawaybynotions：hereIhaveNikolayonmyhandswithactualevidenceagainsthim-youmaythinkwhatyoulikeofit,butit'sevidence。Hebringsinhispsychology,too;onehastoconsiderhim,too,forit'samatteroflifeanddeath。WhyamI
　　explainingthistoyou?Thatyoumayunderstand,andnotblamemymaliciousbehaviouronthatoccasion。Itwasnotmalicious,Iassureyou,he-he!DoyousupposeIdidn'tcometosearchyourroomatthetime?Idid,Idid,he-he!Iwasherewhenyouwerelyingillinbed,notofficially,notinmyownperson,butIwashere。Yourroomwassearchedtothelastthreadatthefirstsuspicion;butumsonst!I
　　thoughttomyself,nowthatmanwillcome,willcomeofhimselfandquickly,too;ifhe'sguilty,he'ssuretocome。Anothermanwouldn'tbuthewill。AndyourememberhowMr。Razumihinbegandiscussingthesubjectwithyou?Wearrangedthattoexciteyou,sowepurposelyspreadrumours,thathemightdiscussthecasewithyou,andRazumihinisnotamantorestrainhisindignation。Mr。Zametovwastremendouslystruckbyyourangerandyouropendaring。Thinkofblurtingoutinarestaurant'Ikilledher。'Itwastoodaring,tooreckless。Ithoughtsomyself,ifheisguiltyhewillbeaformidableopponent。ThatwaswhatIthoughtatthetime。Iwasexpectingyou。
　　ButyousimplybowledZametovoverand……well,yousee,itallliesinthis-thatthisdamnablepsychologycanbetakentwoways!Well,Ikeptexpectingyou,andsoitwas,youcame!Myheartwasfairlythrobbing。Ach!
　　“Now,whyneedyouhavecome?Yourlaughter,too,asyoucamein,doyouremember?Isawitallplainasdaylight,butifIhadn'texpectedyousospecially,Ishouldnothavenoticedanythinginyourlaughter。
　　Youseewhatinfluenceamoodhas!Mr。Razumihinthen-ah,thatstone,thatstoneunderwhichthethingswerehidden!Iseemtoseeitsomewhereinakitchengarden。Itwasinakitchengarden,youtoldZametovandafterwardsyourepeatedthatinmyoffice?Andwhenwebeganpickingyourarticletopieces,howyouexplainedit!Onecouldtakeeverywordofyoursintwosenses,asthoughtherewereanothermeaninghidden。
　　“Sointhisway,RodionRomanovitch,Ireachedthefurthestlimit,andknockingmyheadagainstapost,Ipulledmyselfup,askingmyselfwhatIwasabout。Afterall,Isaid,youcantakeitallinanothersenseifyoulike,andit'smorenaturalso,indeed。Icouldn'thelpadmittingitwasmorenatural。Iwasbothered!'No,I'dbettergetholdofsomelittlefact'Isaid。SowhenIheardofthebell-ringing,Iheldmybreathandwasallinatremor。'Hereismylittlefact,'
　　thoughtI,andIdidn'tthinkitover,Isimplywouldn't。Iwouldhavegivenathousandroublesatthatminutetohaveseenyouwithmyowneyes,whenyouwalkedahundredpacesbesidethatworkman,afterhehadcalledyoumurderertoyourface,andyoudidnotdaretoaskhimaquestionalltheway。Andthenwhataboutyourtrembling,whataboutyourbell-ringinginyourillness,insemi-delirium?
　　“Andso,RodionRomanovitch,canyouwonderthatIplayedsuchpranksonyou?Andwhatmadeyoucomeatthatveryminute?Someoneseemedtohavesentyou,byJove!AndifNikolayhadnotpartedus……anddoyourememberNikolayatthetime?Doyourememberhimclearly?Itwasathunderbolt,aregularthunderbolt!AndhowImethim!Ididn'tbelieveinthethunderbolt,notforaminute。Youcouldseeitforyourself;andhowcouldI?Evenafterwards,whenyouhadgoneandhebeganmakingvery,veryplausibleanswersoncertainpoints,sothatIwassurprisedathimmyself,eventhenI
　　didn'tbelievehisstory!Youseewhatitistobeasfirmasarock!No,thoughtI,morgenfruh。WhathasNikolaygottodowithit！”
　　“RazumihintoldmejustnowthatyouthinkNikolayguiltyandhadyourselfassuredhimofit……“
　　Hisvoicefailedhim,andhebrokeoff。Hehadbeenlisteninginindescribableagitation,asthismanwhohadseenthroughandthroughhimwentbackuponhimself。Hewasafraidofbelievingitanddidnotbelieveit。Inthosestillambiguouswordshekepteagerlylookingforsomethingmoredefiniteandconclusive。
　　“Mr。Razumihin！”criedPorfiryPetrovitch,seeminggladofaquestionfromRaskolnikov,whohadtillthen,beensilent。
　　“He-he-he!ButIhadtoputMr。Razumihinoff;twoiscompany,threeisnone。Mr。Razumihinisnottherightman,besidesheisanoutsider。Hecamerunningtomewithapaleface……Butnevermindhim,whybringhimin!ToreturntoNikolay,wouldyouliketoknowwhatsortofatypeheis,howIunderstandhim,thatis?Tobeginwith,heisstillachildandnotexactlyacoward,butsomethingbywayofanartist。Really,don'tlaughatmydescribinghimso。Heisinnocentandresponsivetoinfluence。Hehasaheart,andisafantasticfellow。Hesingsanddances,hetellsstories,theysay,sothatpeoplecomefromothervillagestohearhim。Heattendsschooltoo,andlaughstillhecriesifyouholdupafingertohim;hewilldrinkhimselfsenseless-notasaregularvice,butattimes,whenpeopletreathim,likeachild。Andhestole,too,then,withoutknowingithimself,for'Howcanitbestealing,ifonepicksitup?'AnddoyouknowheisanOldBeliever,orratheradissenter?TherehavebeenWanderers*inhisfamily,andhewasfortwoyearsinhisvillageunderthespiritualguidanceofacertainelder。IlearntallthisfromNikolayandfromhisfellowvillagers。
　　Andwhat'smore,hewantedtorunintothewilderness!Hewasfulloffervour,prayedatnight,readtheoldbooks,'thetrue'ones,andreadhimselfcrazy-
　　*Areligioussect-TRANSLATOR'SNOTE-
　　“Petersburghadagreateffectuponhim,especiallythewomenandthewine。Herespondstoeverythingandheforgottheelderandallthat。Ilearntthatanartistheretookafancytohim,andusedtogoandseehim,andnowthisbusinesscameuponhim。
　　“Well,hewasfrightened,hetriedtohanghimself!Heranaway!HowcanonegetovertheideathepeoplehaveofRussianlegalproceedings!Theveryword'trial'frightenssomeofthem。Whosefaultisit?Weshallseewhatthenewjurieswilldo。Godgranttheydogood!Well,inprison,itseems,herememberedthevenerableelder,theBible,too,madeitsappearanceagain。Doyouknow,RodionRomanovitch,theforceoftheword'suffering'amongsomeofthesepeople!It'snotaquestionofsufferingforsomeone'sbenefit,butsimply,'onemustsuffer。'Iftheysufferatthehandsoftheauthorities,somuchthebetter。InmytimetherewasaverymeekandmildprisonerwhospentawholeyearinprisonalwaysreadinghisBibleonthestoveatnightandhereadhimselfcrazy,andsocrazy,doyouknow,thatoneday,aproposofnothing,heseizedabrickandflungitatthegovernor,thoughhehaddonehimnoharm。
　　Andthewayhethrewittoo：aimeditayardononesideonpurpose,forfearofhurtinghim。Well,weknowwhathappenstoaprisonerwhoassaultsanofficerwithaweapon。So'hetookhissuffering。'
　　“SoIsuspectnowthatNikolaywantstotakehissufferingorsomethingofthesort。Iknowitforcertainfromfacts,indeed。
　　Onlyhedoesn'tknowthatIknow。What,youdon'tadmitthattherearesuchfantasticpeopleamongthepeasants?Lotsofthem。Theeldernowhasbeguninfluencinghim,especiallysincehetriedtohanghimself。Buthe'llcomeandtellmeallhimself。Youthinkhe'llholdout?Waitabit,he'lltakehiswordsback。Iamwaitingfromhourtohourforhimtocomeandabjurehisevidence。IhavecometolikethatNikolayandamstudyinghimindetail。Andwhatdoyouthink?He-he!Heansweredmeveryplausiblyonsomepoints,heobviouslyhadcollectedsomeevidenceandpreparedhimselfcleverly。
　　Butonotherpointsheissimplyatsea,knowsnothinganddoesn'tevensuspectthathedoesn'tknow!
　　“No,RodionRomanovitch,Nikolaydoesn'tcomein!Thisisafantastic,gloomybusiness,amoderncase,anincidentofto-daywhentheheartofmanistroubled,whenthephraseisquotedthatblood'renews,'whencomfortispreachedastheaimoflife。Herewehavebookishdreams,aheartunhingedbytheories。Hereweseeresolutioninthefirststage,butresolutionofaspecialkind：heresolvedtodoitlikejumpingoveraprecipiceorfromabelltowerandhislegsshookashewenttothecrime。Heforgottoshutthedoorafterhim,andmurderedtwopeopleforatheory。Hecommittedthemurderandcouldn'ttakethemoney,andwhathedidmanagetosnatchuphehidunderastone。Itwasn'tenoughforhimtosufferagonybehindthedoorwhiletheybatteredatthedoorandrungthebell,no,hehadtogototheemptylodging,halfdelirious,torecallthebell-ringing,hewantedtofeelthecoldshiveroveragain……Well,thatwegrant,wasthroughillness,butconsiderthis：heisamurderer,butlooksuponhimselfasanhonestman,despisesothers,posesasinjuredinnocence。No,that'snottheworkofaNikolay,mydearRodionRomanovitch！”
　　Allthathadbeensaidbeforehadsoundedsolikearecantationthatthesewordsweretoogreatashock。Raskolnikovshudderedasthoughhehadbeenstabbed。
　　“Then……whothen……isthemurderer？”heaskedinabreathlessvoice,unabletorestrainhimself。
　　PorfiryPetrovitchsankbackinhischair,asthoughhewereamazedatthequestion。
　　“Whoisthemurderer？”herepeated,asthoughunabletobelievehisears。“Whyyou,RodionRomanovitch!Youarethemurderer,“headdedalmostinawhisper,inavoiceofgenuineconviction。
　　Raskolnikovleaptfromthesofa,stoodupforafewsecondsandsatdownagainwithoututteringaword。Hisfacetwitchedconvulsively。
　　“Yourlipistwitchingjustasitdidbefore,“PorfiryPetrovitchobservedalmostsympathetically。“You'vebeenmisunderstandingme,I
　　think,RodionRomanovitch,“headdedafterabriefpause,“that'swhyyouaresosurprised。Icameonpurposetotellyoueverythinganddealopenlywithyou。“
　　“ItwasnotImurderedher,“Raskolnikovwhisperedlikeafrightenedchildcaughtintheact。
　　“No,itwasyou,youRodionRomanovitch,andnooneelse,“Porfirywhisperedsternly,withconviction。
　　Theywerebothsilentandthesilencelastedstrangelylong,abouttenminutes。Raskolnikovputhiselbowonthetableandpassedhisfingersthroughhishair。PorfiryPetrovitchsatquietlywaiting。
　　SuddenlyRaskolnikovlookedscornfullyatPorfiry。
　　“Youareatyouroldtricksagain,PorfiryPetrovitch!Youroldmethodagain。Iwonderyoudon'tgetsickofit！”
　　“Oh,stopthat,whatdoesthatmatternow?Itwouldbeadifferentmatteriftherewerewitnessespresent,butwearewhisperingalone。
　　YouseeyourselfthatIhavenotcometochaseandcaptureyoulikeahare。Whetheryouconfessitornotisnothingtomenow;formyself,Iamconvincedwithoutit。“
　　“Ifso,whatdidyoucomefor？”Raskolnikovaskedirritably。“I
　　askyouthesamequestionagain：ifyouconsidermeguilty,whydon'tyoutakemetoprison？”
　　“Oh,that'syourquestion!Iwillansweryou,pointforpoint。Inthefirstplace,toarrestyousodirectlyisnottomyinterest。“
　　“Howso?Ifyouareconvincedyouought……“
　　“Ach,whatifIamconvinced?That'sonlymydreamforthetime。WhyshouldIputyouinsafety?Youknowthat'sit,sinceyouaskmetodoit。IfIconfrontyouwiththatworkmanforinstanceandyousaytohim'wereyoudrunkornot?Whosawmewithyou?Isimplytookyoutobedrunk,andyouweredrunk,too。'Well,whatcouldIanswer,especiallyasyourstoryisamorelikelyonethanhis,forthere'snothingbutpsychologytosupporthisevidence-that'salmostunseemlywithhisuglymug,whileyouhitthemarkexactly,fortherascalisaninveteratedrunkardandnotoriouslyso。AndIhavemyselfadmittedcandidlyseveraltimesalreadythatthatpsychologycanbetakenintwowaysandthatthesecondwayisstrongerandlooksfarmoreprobable,andthatapartfromthatIhaveasyetnothingagainstyou。AndthoughIshallputyouinprisonandindeedhavecome-quitecontrarytoetiquette-toinformyouofitbeforehand,yetItellyoufrankly,alsocontrarytoetiquette,thatitwon'tbetomyadvantage。Well,secondly,I'vecometoyoubecause……“
　　“Yes,yes,secondly？”Raskolnikovwaslisteningbreathless。
　　“Because,asItoldyoujustnow,IconsiderIoweyouanexplanation。Idon'twantyoutolookuponmeasamonster,asI
　　haveagenuinelikingforyou,youmaybelievemeornot。AndinthethirdplaceI'vecometoyouwithadirectandopenproposition-
　　thatyoushouldsurrenderandconfess。Itwillbeinfinitelymoretoyouradvantageandtomyadvantagetoo,formytaskwillbedone。
　　Well,isthisopenonmypartornot？”
　　Raskolnikovthoughtaminute。
　　“Listen,PorfiryPetrovitch。Yousaidjustnowyouhavenothingbutpsychologytogoon,yetnowyou'vegoneonmathematics。Well,whatifyouaremistakenyourself,now？”
　　“No,RodionRomanovitch,Iamnotmistaken。Ihavealittlefacteventhen,providencesentitme。“
　　“Whatlittlefact？”
　　“Iwon'ttellyouwhat,RodionRomanovitch。Andinanycase,I
　　haven'ttherighttoputitoffanylonger,Imustarrestyou。Sothinkitover：itmakesnodifferencetomenowandsoIspeakonlyforyoursake。Believeme,itwillbebetter,RodionRomanovitch。“
　　Raskolnikovsmiledmalignantly。
　　“That'snotsimplyridiculous,it'spositivelyshameless。Why,evenifIwereguilty,whichIdon'tadmit,whatreasonshouldI
　　havetoconfess,whenyoutellmeyourselfthatIshallbeingreatersafetyinprison？”
　　“Ah,RodionRomanovitch,don'tputtoomuchfaithinwords,perhapsprisonwillnotbealtogetherarestfulplace。That'sonlytheoryandmytheory,andwhatauthorityamIforyou?Perhaps,too,evennowIamhidingsomethingfromyou?Ican'tlaybareeverything,he-he!Andhowcanyouaskwhatadvantage?Don'tyouknowhowitwouldlessenyoursentence?Youwouldbeconfessingatamomentwhenanothermanhastakenthecrimeonhimselfandsohasmuddledthewholecase。Considerthat!IswearbeforeGodthatI
　　willsoarrangethatyourconfessionshallcomeasacompletesurprise。Wewillmakeacleansweepofallthesepsychologicalpoints,ofansuspicionagainstyou,sothatyourcrimewillappeartohavebeensomethinglikeanaberration,forintruthitwasanaberration。Iamanhonestman,RodionRomanovitch,andwillkeepmyword。“
　　Raskolnikovmaintainedamournfulsilenceandlethisheadsinkdejectedly。Heponderedalongwhileandatlastsmiledagain,buthissmilewassadandgentle。
　　“No！”hesaid,apparentlyabandoningallattempttokeepupappearanceswithPorfiry,“it'snotworthit,Idon'tcareaboutlesseningthesentence！”
　　“That'sjustwhatIwasafraidof！”Porfirycriedwarmlyand,asitseemed,involuntarily。“That'sjustwhatIfeared,thatyouwouldn'tcareaboutthemitigationofsentence。“
　　Raskolnikovlookedsadlyandexpressivelyathim。
　　“Ah,don'tdisdainlife！”Porfirywenton。“Youhaveagreatdealofitstillbeforeyou。Howcanyousayyoudon'twantamitigationofsentence?Youareanimpatientfellow！”
　　“Agreatdealofwhatliesbeforeme？”
　　“Oflife。Whatsortofprophetareyou,doyouknowmuchaboutit?
　　Seekandyeshallfind。ThismaybeGod'smeansforbringingyoutoHim。Andit'snotforever,thebondage……“
　　“Thetimewillbeshortened,“laughedRaskolnikov。
　　“Why,isitthebourgeoisdisgraceyouareafraidof?Itmaybethatyouareafraidofitwithoutknowingit,becauseyouareyoung!Butanywayyoushouldn'tbeafraidofgivingyourselfupandconfessing。“
　　“Ach,hangit！”Raskolnikovwhisperedwithloathingandcontempt,asthoughhedidnotwanttospeakaloud。
　　Hegotupagainasthoughhemeanttogoaway,butsatdownagaininevidentdespair。
　　“Hangit,ifyoulike!You'velostfaithandyouthinkthatIamgrosslyflatteringyou;buthowlonghasyourlifebeen?Howmuchdoyouunderstand?Youmadeupatheoryandthenwereashamedthatitbrokedownandturnedouttobenotatalloriginal!Itturnedoutsomethingbase,that'strue,butyouarenothopelesslybase。Bynomeanssobase!Atleastyoudidn'tdeceiveyourselfforlong,youwentstraighttothefurthestpointatonebound。HowdoIregardyou?I
　　regardyouasoneofthosemenwhowouldstandandsmileattheirtorturerwhilehecutstheirentrailsout,ifonlytheyhavefoundfaithorGod。Finditandyouwilllive。Youhavelongneededachangeofair。Suffering,too,isagoodthing。Suffer!MaybeNikolayisrightinwantingtosuffer。Iknowyoudon'tbelieveinit-butdon'tbeover-wise;flingyourselfstraightintolife,withoutdeliberation;don'tbeafraid-thefloodwillbearyoutothebankandsetyousafeonyourfeetagain。Whatbank?HowcanItell?Ionlybelievethatyouhavelonglifebeforeyou。Iknowthatyoutakeallmywordsnowforasetspeechpreparedbeforehand,butmaybeyouwillrememberthemafter。Theymaybeofusesometime。That'swhyI
　　speak。It'saswellthatyouonlykilledtheoldwoman。Ifyou'dinventedanothertheoryyoumightperhapshavedonesomethingathousandtimesmorehideous。YououghttothankGod,perhaps。Howdoyouknow?PerhapsGodissavingyouforsomething。Butkeepagoodheartandhavelessfear!Areyouafraidofthegreatexpiationbeforeyou?No,itwouldbeshamefultobeafraidofit。Sinceyouhavetakensuchastep,youmusthardenyourheart。Thereisjusticeinit。Youmustfulfilthedemandsofjustice。Iknowthatyoudon'tbelieveit,butindeed,lifewillbringyouthrough。Youwillliveitdownintime。Whatyouneednowisfreshair,freshair,freshair！”
　　Raskolnikovpositivelystarted。
　　“Butwhoareyou?whatprophetareyou?Fromtheheightofwhatmajesticcalmdoyouproclaimthesewordsofwisdom？”
　　“WhoamI?Iamamanwithnothingtohopefor,that'sall。Amanperhapsoffeelingandsympathy,maybeofsomeknowledgetoo,butmydayisover。Butyouareadifferentmatter,thereislifewaitingforyou。Thoughwhoknows,maybeyourlife,too,willpassoffinsmokeandcometonothing。Come,whatdoesitmatter,thatyouwillpassintoanotherclassofmen?It'snotcomfortyouregret,withyourheart!Whatofitthatperhapsnoonewillseeyouforsolong?It'snottime,butyourselfthatwilldecidethat。Bethesunandallwillseeyou。Thesunhasbeforealltobethesun。Whyareyousmilingagain?AtmybeingsuchaSchiller?Ibetyou'reimaginingthatIamtryingtogetroundyoubyflattery。Well,perhapsIam,he-he-he!Perhapsyou'dbetternotbelievemyword,perhapsyou'dbetterneverbelieveitaltogether,-I'mmadethatway,Iconfessit。Butletmeadd,youcanjudgeforyourself,Ithink,howfarI
　　amabasesortofmanandhowfarIamhonest。“
　　“Whendoyoumeantoarrestme？”
　　“Well,Icanletyouwalkaboutanotherdayortwo。Thinkitover,mydearfellow,andpraytoGod。It'smoreinyourinterest,believeme。“
　　“AndwhatifIrunaway？”askedRaskolnikovwithastrangesmile。
　　“No,youwon'trunaway。Apeasantwouldrunaway,afashionabledissenterwouldrunaway,theflunkeyofanotherman'sthought,foryou'veonlytoshowhimtheendofyourlittlefingerandhe'llbereadytobelieveinanythingfortherestofhislife。Butyou'veceasedtobelieveinyourtheoryalready,whatwillyourunawaywith?
　　Andwhatwouldyoudoinhiding?Itwouldbehatefulanddifficultforyou,andwhatyouneedmorethananythinginlifeisadefiniteposition,anatmospheretosuityou。Andwhatsortofatmospherewouldyouhave?Ifyouranaway,you'dcomebacktoyourself。Youcan'tgetonwithoutus。AndifIputyouinprison,-sayyou'vebeenthereamonth,ortwo,orthree-remembermyword,you'llconfessofyourselfandperhapstoyourownsurprise。Youwon'tknowanhourbeforehandthatyouarecomingwithaconfession。Iamconvincedthatyouwilldecide,'totakeyoursuffering。'Youdon'tbelievemywordsnow,butyou'llcometoitofyourself。Forsuffering,RodionRomanovitch,isagreatthing。Nevermindmyhavinggrownfat,I
　　knowallthesame。Don'tlaughatit,there'sanideainsuffering,Nokolayisright。No,youwon'trunaway,RodionRomanovitch。“
　　Raskolnikovgotupandtookhiscap。PorfiryPetrovitchalsorose。
　　“Areyougoingforawalk?Theeveningwillbefine,ifonlywedon'thaveastorm。Thoughitwouldbeagoodthingtofreshentheair。“
　　Hetootookhiscap。
　　“PorfiryPetrovitch,pleasedon'ttakeupthenotionthatIhaveconfessedtoyouto-day,“Raskolnikovpronouncedwithsulleninsistence。“You'reastrangemanandIhavelistenedtoyoufromsimplecuriosity。ButIhaveadmittednothing,rememberthat！”
　　“Oh,Iknowthat,I'llremember。Lookathim,he'strembling!
　　Don'tbeuneasy,mydearfellow,haveityourownway。Walkaboutabit,youwon'tbeabletowalktoofar。Ifanythinghappens,Ihaveonerequesttomakeofyou,“headded,droppinghisvoice。“It'sanawkwardone,butimportant。IfanythingweretohappenthoughindeedIdon'tbelieveinitandthinkyouquiteincapableofit,yetincaseyouweretakenduringthesefortyorfiftyhourswiththenotionofputtinganendtothebusinessinsomeotherway,insomefantasticfashion-layinghandsonyourself-it'sanabsurdproposition,butyoumustforgivemeforitdoleaveabriefbutprecisenote,onlytwolinesandmentionthestone。Itwillbemoregenerous。Come,tillwemeet!Goodthoughtsandsounddecisionstoyou！”
　　Porfirywentout,stoopingandavoidinglookingatRaskolnikov。
　　ThelatterwenttothewindowandwaitedwithirritableimpatiencetillhecalculatedthatPorfiryhadreachedthestreetandmovedaway。
　　Thenhetoowenthurriedlyoutoftheroom。
　　ChapterThreeHEHURRIEDtoSvidrigailov's。Whathehadtohopefromthatmanhedidnotknow。Butthatmanhadsomehiddenpoweroverhim。Havingoncerecognisedthis,hecouldnotrest,andnowthetimehadcome。
　　Ontheway,onequestionparticularlyworriedhim：hadSvidrigailovbeentoPorfiry's?
　　Asfarashecouldjudge,hewouldsweartoit,thathehadnot。
　　Heponderedagainandagain,wentoverPorfiry'svisit;no,hehadn'tbeen,ofcoursehehadn't。
　　Butifhehadnotbeenyet,wouldhego?Meanwhile,forthepresenthefanciedhecouldn't。Why?Hecouldnothaveexplained,butifhecould,hewouldnothavewastedmuchthoughtoveritatthemoment。Itallworriedhimandatthesametimehecouldnotattendtoit。Strangetosay,nonewouldhavebelieveditperhaps,butheonlyfeltafaintvagueanxietyabouthisimmediatefuture。
　　Another,muchmoreimportantanxietytormentedhim-itconcernedhimself,butinadifferent,morevitalway。Moreover,hewasconsciousofimmensemoralfatigue,thoughhismindwasworkingbetterthatmorningthanithaddoneoflate。
　　Andwasitworthwhile,afterallthathadhappened,tocontendwiththesenewtrivialdifficulties?Wasitworthwhile,forinstance,tomanoeuvrethatSvidrigailovshouldnotgotoPorfiry's?Wasitworthwhiletoinvestigate,toascertainthefacts,towastetimeoveranyonelikeSvidrigailov?
　　Ohhowsickhewasofitall!
　　AndyethewashasteningtoSvidrigailov;couldhebeexpectingsomethingnewfromhim,information,ormeansofescape?Menwillcatchatstraws!Wasitdestinyorsomeinstinctbringingthemtogether?Perhapsitwasonlyfatigue,despair;perhapsitwasnotSvidrigailovbutsomeotherwhomheneeded,andSvidrigailovhadsimplypresentedhimselfbychance。Sonia?ButwhatshouldhegotoSoniafornow?Tobeghertearsagain?HewasafraidofSonia,too。
　　Soniastoodbeforehimasanirrevocablesentence。Hemustgohisownwayorhers。Atthatmomentespeciallyhedidnotfeelequaltoseeingher。No,woulditnotbebettertotrySvidrigailov?Andhecouldnothelpinwardlyowningthathehadlongfeltthathemustseehimforsomereason。
　　Butwhatcouldtheyhaveincommon?Theirveryevil-doingcouldnotbeofthesamekind。Theman,moreover,wasveryunpleasant,evidentlydepraved,undoubtedlycunninganddeceitful,possiblymalignant。Suchstoriesweretoldabouthim。ItistruehewasbefriendingKaterinaIvanovna'schildren,butwhocouldtellwithwhatmotiveandwhatitmeant?Themanalwayshadsomedesign,someproject。
　　TherewasanotherthoughtwhichhadbeencontinuallyhoveringoflateaboutRaskolnikov'smind,andcausinghimgreatuneasiness。Itwassopainfulthathemadedistincteffortstogetridofit。HesometimesthoughtthatSvidrigailovwasdogginghisfootsteps。
　　SvidrigailovhadfoundouthissecretandhadhaddesignsonDounia。
　　Whatifhehadthemstill?Wasn'titpracticallycertainthathehad?Andwhatif,havinglearnthissecretandsohavinggainedpoweroverhim,heweretouseitasaweaponagainstDounia?
　　Thisideasometimeseventormentedhisdreams,butithadneverpresenteditselfsovividlytohimasonhiswaytoSvidrigailov。
　　Theverythoughtmovedhimtogloomyrage。Tobeginwith,thiswouldtransformeverything,evenhisownposition;hewouldhaveatoncetoconfesshissecrettoDounia。WouldhehavetogivehimselfupperhapstopreventDouniafromtakingsomerashstep?Theletter?ThismorningDouniahadreceivedaletter。FromwhomcouldshegetlettersinPetersburg?Luzhin,perhaps?It'strueRazumihinwastheretoprotecther,butRazumihinknewnothingoftheposition。
　　PerhapsitwashisdutytotellRazumihin?Hethoughtofitwithrepugnance。
　　InanycasehemustseeSvidrigailovassoonaspossible,hedecidedfinally。ThankGod,thedetailsoftheinterviewwereoflittleconsequence,ifonlyhecouldgetattherootofthematter;butifSvidrigailovwerecapable……ifhewereintriguingagainstDounia,-
　　then……
　　Raskolnikovwassoexhaustedbywhathehadpassedthroughthatmonththathecouldonlydecidesuchquestionsinoneway;“thenI
　　shallkillhim,“hethoughtincolddespair。
　　Asuddenanguishoppressedhisheart,hestoodstillinthemiddleofthestreetandbeganlookingabouttoseewherehewasandwhichwayhewasgoing。HefoundhimselfinX。Prospect,thirtyorfortypacesfromtheHayMarket,throughwhichhehadcome。Thewholesecondstoreyofthehouseontheleftwasusedasatavern。Allthewindowswerewideopen;judgingfromthefiguresmovingatthewindows,theroomswerefulltooverflowing。Thereweresoundsofsinging,ofclarionetandviolin,andtheboomofaTurkishdrum。Hecouldhearwomenshrieking。HewasabouttoturnbackwonderingwhyhehadcometotheX。Prospect,whensuddenlyatoneoftheendwindowshesawSvidrigailov,sittingatatea-tablerightintheopenwindowwithapipeinhismouth,Raskolnikovwasdreadfullytakenaback,almostterrified。Svidrigailovwassilentlywatchingandscrutinisinghimand,whatstruckRaskolnikovatonce,seemedtobemeaningtogetupandslipawayunobserved。Raskolnikovatoncepretendednottohaveseenhim,buttobelookingabsentmindedlyaway,whilehewatchedhimoutofthecornerofhiseye。Hisheartwasbeatingviolently。Yet,itwasevidentthatSvidrigailovdidnotwanttobeseen。Hetookthepipeoutofhismouthandwasonthepointofconcealinghimself,butashegotupandmovedbackhischair,heseemedtohavebecomesuddenlyawarethatRaskolnikovhadseenhim,andwaswatchinghim。WhathadpassedbetweenthemwasmuchthesameaswhathappenedattheirfirstmeetinginRaskolnikov'sroom。AslysmilecameintoSvidrigailov'sfaceandgrewbroaderandbroader。Eachknewthathewasseenandwatchedbytheother。AtlastSvidrigailovbrokeintoaloudlaugh。
　　“Well,well,comeinifyouwantme;Iamhere！”heshoutedfromthewindow。
　　Raskolnikovwentupintothetavern。HefoundSvidrigailovinatinybackroom,adjoiningthesalooninwhichmerchants,clerksandnumbersofpeopleofallsortsweredrinkingteaattwentylittletablestothedesperatebawlingofachorusofsingers。Theclickofbilliardballscouldbeheardinthedistance。OnthetablebeforeSvidrigailovstoodanopenbottle,andaglasshalffullofchampagne。Intheroomhefoundalsoaboywithalittlehandorgan,ahealthy-lookingred-cheekedgirlofeighteen,wearingatucked-upstripedskirt,andaTyrolesehatwithribbons。Inspiteofthechorusintheotherroom,shewassingingsomeservants'hallsonginaratherhuskycontralto,totheaccompanimentoftheorgan。
　　“Come,that'senough,“SvidrigailovstoppedheratRaskolnikov'sentrance。Thegirlatoncebrokeoffandstoodwaitingrespectfully。
　　Shehadsunghergutturalrhymes,too,withaseriousandrespectfulexpressioninherface。
　　“Hey,Philip,aglass！”shoutedSvidrigailov。
　　“Iwon'tdrinkanything,“saidRaskolnikov。
　　“Asyoulike,Ididn'tmeanitforyou。Drink,Katia!Idon'twantanythingmoreto-day,youcango。“Hepouredheroutafullglass,andlaiddownayellownote。
　　Katiadrankoffherglassofwine,aswomendo,withoutputtingitdown,intwentygulps,tookthenoteandkissedSvidrigailov'shand,whichheallowedquiteseriously。Shewentoutoftheroomandtheboytrailedafterherwiththeorgan。Bothhadbeenbroughtinfromthestreet。SvidrigailovhadnotbeenaweekinPetersburg,buteverythingabouthimwasalready,sotospeak,onapatriarchalfooting;thewaiter,Philip,wasbynowanoldfriendandveryobsequious。
　　Thedoorleadingtothesaloonhadalockonit。Svidrigailovwasathomeinthisroomandperhapsspentwholedaysinit。Thetavernwasdirtyandwretched,notevensecondrate。
　　“Iwasgoingtoseeyouandlookingforyou,“Raskolnikovbegan,“butIdon'tknowwhatmademeturnfromtheHayMarketintotheX。
　　Prospectjustnow。Inevertakethisturning。IturntotherightfromtheHayMarket。Andthisisn'tthewaytoyou。Isimplyturnedandhereyouare。Itisstrange！”
　　“Whydon'tyousayatonce'it'samiracle?'“
　　“Becauseitmaybeonlychance。“
　　“Oh,that'sthewaywithallyoufolk,“laughedSvidrigailov。“Youwon'tadmitit,evenifyoudoinwardlybelieveitamiracle!Hereyousaythatitmaybeonlychance。Andwhatcowardstheyallarehere,abouthavinganopinionoftheirown,youcan'tfancy,RodionRomanovitch。Idon'tmeanyou,youhaveanopinionofyourownandarenotafraidtohaveit。That'showitwasyouattractedmycuriosity。“
　　“Nothingelse？”
　　“Well,that'senough,youknow,“Svidrigailovwasobviouslyexhilarated,butonlyslightlyso,hehadnothadmorethanhalfaglassofwine。
　　“IfancyyoucametoseemebeforeyouknewthatIwascapableofhavingwhatyoucallanopinionofmyown,“observedRaskolnikov。
　　“Oh,well,itwasadifferentmatter。Everyonehashisownplans。
　　AndaproposofthemiracleletmetellyouthatIthinkyouhavebeenasleepforthelasttwoorthreedays。Itoldyouofthistavernmyself,thereisnomiracleinyourcomingstraighthere。I
　　explainedthewaymyself,toldyouwhereitwas,andthehoursyoucouldfindmehere。Doyouremember？”
　　“Idon'tremember,“answeredRaskolnikovwithsurprise。
　　“Ibelieveyou。Itoldyoutwice。Theaddresshasbeenstampedmechanicallyonyourmemory。Youturnedthiswaymechanicallyandyetpreciselyaccordingtothedirection,thoughyouarenotawareofit。WhenItoldyouthen,Ihardlyhopedyouunderstoodme。Yougiveyourselfawaytoomuch,RodionRomanovitch。Andanotherthing,I'mconvincedtherearelotsofpeopleinPetersburgwhotalktothemselvesastheywalk。Thisisatownofcrazypeople。Ifonlywehadscientificmen,doctors,lawyersandphilosophersmightmakemostvaluableinvestigationsinPetersburgeachinhisownline。Therearefewplaceswheretherearesomanygloomy,strongandqueerinfluencesonthesoulofmanasinPetersburg。Themereinfluencesofclimatemeansomuch。Andit'stheadministrativecentreofallRussiaanditscharactermustbereflectedonthewholecountry。Butthatisneitherherenortherenow。ThepointisthatIhaveseveraltimeswatchedyou。Youwalkoutofyourhouse-holdingyourheadhigh-
　　twentypacesfromhomeyouletitsink,andfoldyourhandsbehindyourback。Youlookandevidentlyseenothingbeforenorbesideyou。
　　Atlastyoubeginmovingyourlipsandtalkingtoyourself,andsometimesyouwaveonehandanddeclaim,andatlaststandstillinthemiddleoftheroad。That'snotatallthething。Someonemaybewatchingyoubesidesme,anditwon'tdoyouanygood。It'snothingreallytodowithmeandIcan'tcureyou,but,ofcourse,youunderstandme。“
　　“DoyouknowthatIambeingfollowed？”askedRaskolnikov,lookinginquisitivelyathim。
　　“No,Iknownothingaboutit,“saidSvidrigailov,seemingsurprised。
　　“Well,then,letusleavemealone,“Raskolnikovmuttered,frowning。
　　“Verygood,letusleaveyoualone。“
　　“Youhadbettertellme,ifyoucomeheretodrink,anddirectedmetwicetocomeheretoyou,whydidyouhide,andtrytogetawayjustnowwhenIlookedatthewindowfromthestreet?Isawit。“
　　“He-he!Andwhywasityoulayonyoursofawithclosedeyesandpretendedtobeasleep,thoughyouwerewideawakewhileIstoodinyourdoorway?Isawit。“
　　“Imayhavehad……reasons。Youknowthatyourself。“
　　“AndImayhavehadmyreasons,thoughyoudon'tknowthem。“
　　Raskolnikovdroppedhisrightelbowonthetable,leanedhischininthefingersofhisrighthand,andstaredintentlyatSvidrigailov。
　　Forafullminutehescrutinisedhisface,whichhadimpressedhimbefore。Itwasastrangeface,likeamask;whiteandred,withbrightredlips,withaflaxenbeard,andstillthickflaxenhair。Hiseyesweresomehowtooblueandtheirexpressionsomehowtooheavyandfixed。Therewassomethingawfullyunpleasantinthathandsomeface,whichlookedsowonderfullyyoungforhisage。Svidrigailovwassmartlydressedinlightsummerclothesandwasparticularlydaintyinhislinen。Heworeahugeringwithapreciousstoneinit。
　　“HaveIgottobothermyselfaboutyoutoonow？”saidRaskolnikovsuddenly,comingwithnervousimpatiencestraighttothepoint。
　　“Eventhoughperhapsyouarethemostdangerousmanifyoucaretoinjureme,Idon'twanttoputmyselfoutanymore。IwillshowyouatoncethatIdon'tprizemyselfasyouprobablythinkIdo。I'vecometotellyouatoncethatifyoukeeptoyourformerintentionswithregardtomysisterandifyouthinktoderiveanybenefitinthatdirectionfromwhathasbeendiscoveredoflate,Iwillkillyoubeforeyougetmelockedup。Youcanreckononmyword。YouknowthatIcankeepit。Andinthesecondplaceifyouwanttotellmeanything-forIkeepfancyingallthistimethatyouhavesomethingtotellme-makehasteandtellit,fortimeispreciousandverylikelyitwillsoonbetoolate。“
　　“Whyinsuchhaste？”askedSvidrigailov,lookingathimcuriously。
　　“Everyonehashisplans,“Raskolnikovansweredgloomilyandimpatiently。
　　“Youurgedmeyourselftofranknessjustnow,andatthefirstquestionyourefusetoanswer,“Svidrigailovobservedwithasmile。
　　“YoukeepfancyingthatIhaveaimsofmyownandsoyoulookatmewithsuspicion。Ofcourseit'sperfectlynaturalinyourposition。ButthoughIshouldliketobefriendswithyou,Ishan'ttroublemyselftoconvinceyouofthecontrary。Thegameisn'tworththecandleandI
　　wasn'tintendingtotalktoyouaboutanythingspecial。“
　　“Whatdidyouwantme,for,then?Itwasyouwhocamehangingaboutme。“
　　“Why,simplyasaninterestingsubjectforobservation。Ilikedthefantasticnatureofyourposition-that'swhatitwas!Besidesyouarethebrotherofapersonwhogreatlyinterestedme,andfromthatpersonIhadinthepastheardaverygreatdealaboutyou,fromwhichIgatheredthatyouhadagreatinfluenceoverher;isn'tthatenough?
　　Ha-ha-ha!StillImustadmitthatyourquestionisrathercomplex,andisdifficultformetoanswer。Here,you,forinstance,havecometomenotonlyforadefiniteobject,butforthesakeofhearingsomethingnew。Isn'tthatso?Isn'tthatso？”persistedSvidrigailovwithaslysmile。“Well,can'tyoufancythenthatI,too,onmywayhereinthetrainwasreckoningonyou,onyourtellingmesomethingnew,andonmymakingsomeprofitoutofyou!Youseewhatrichmenweare！”
　　“Whatprofitcouldyoumake？”
　　“HowcanItellyou?HowdoIknow?YouseeinwhatatavernIspendallmytimeandit'smyenjoyment,that'stosayit'snogreatenjoyment,butonemustsitsomewhere;thatpoorKatianow-yousawher?……IfonlyIhadbeenagluttonnow,aclubgourmand,butyouseeIcaneatthis。“
　　Hepointedtoalittletableinthecornerwheretheremnantsofaterriblelookingbeef-steakandpotatoeslayonatindish。
　　“Haveyoudined,bytheway?I'vehadsomethingandwantnothingmore。Idon'tdrink,forinstance,atall。ExceptforchampagneI
　　nevertouchanything,andnotmorethanaglassofthatalltheevening,andeventhatisenoughtomakemyheadache。Iordereditjustnowtowindmyselfup,forIamjustgoingoffsomewhereandyouseemeinapeculiarstateofmind。ThatwaswhyIhidmyselfjustnowlikeaschoolboy,forIwasafraidyouwouldhinderme。ButI
　　believe,“hepulledouthiswatch,“Icanspendanhourwithyou。It'shalf-pastfournow。IfonlyI'dbeensomething,alandowner,afather,acavalryofficer,aphotographer,ajournalist……Iamnothing,nospecialty,andsometimesIampositivelybored。Ireallythoughtyouwouldtellmesomethingnew。“
　　“Butwhatareyou,andwhyhaveyoucomehere？”
　　“WhatamI?Youknow,agentleman,Iservedfortwoyearsinthecavalry,thenIknockedabouthereinPetersburg,thenImarriedMarfaPetrovnaandlivedinthecountry。Thereyouhavemybiography！”
　　“Youareagambler,Ibelieve？”
　　“No,apoorsortofgambler。Acard-sharper-notagambler。“
　　“Youhavebeenacard-sharperthen？”
　　“Yes,I'vebeenacard-sharpertoo。“
　　“Didn'tyougetthrashedsometimes？”
　　“Itdidhappen。Why？”
　　“Why,youmighthavechallengedthem……altogetheritmusthavebeenlively。“
　　“Iwon'tcontradictyouandbesidesIamnohandatphilosophy。I
　　confessthatIhastenedhereforthesakeofthewomen。“
　　“AssoonasyouburiedMarfaPetrovna？”
　　“Quiteso,“Svidrigailovsmiledwithengagingcandour。“Whatofit?Youseemtofindsomethingwronginmyspeakinglikethataboutwomen？”
　　“YouaskwhetherIfindanythingwronginvice？”
　　“Vice!Oh,that'swhatyouareafter!ButI'llansweryouinorder,firstaboutwomeningeneral;youknowIamfondoftalking。
　　Tellme,whatshouldIrestrainmyselffor?WhyshouldIgiveupwomen,sinceIhaveapassionforthem?It'sanoccupation,anyway。“
　　“Soyouhopefornothingherebutvice？”
　　“Oh,verywell,forvicethen。Youinsistonitsbeingvice。ButanywayIlikeadirectquestion。Inthisviceatleastthereissomethingpermanent,foundedindeeduponnatureandnotdependentonfantasy,somethingpresentinthebloodlikeanever-burningember,foreversettingoneonfireandmaybe,nottobequicklyextinguished,evenwithyears。You'llagreeit'sanoccupationofasort。“
　　“That'snothingtorejoiceat,it'sadiseaseandadangerousone。“
　　“Oh,that'swhatyouthink,isit?Iagree,thatitisadiseaselikeeverythingthatexceedsmoderation。And,ofcourse,inthisonemustexceedmoderation。Butinthefirstplace,everybodydoessoinonewayoranother,andinthesecondplace,ofcourse,oneoughttobemoderateandprudent,howevermeanitmaybe,butwhatamItodo?IfIhadn'tthis,Imighthavetoshootmyself。Iamreadytoadmitthatadecentmanoughttoputupwithbeingbored,butyet……“
　　“Andcouldyoushootyourself？”
　　“Oh,come！”Svidrigailovparriedwithdisgust。“Pleasedon'tspeakofit,“headdedhurriedlyandwithnoneofthebraggingtonehehadshowninallthepreviousconversation。Hisfacequitechanged。“I
　　admitit'sanunpardonableweakness,butIcan'thelpit。IamafraidofdeathandIdislikeitsbeingtalkedof。DoyouknowthatIamtoacertainextentamystic？”
　　“Ah,theapparitionsofMarfaPetrovna!Dotheystillgoonvisitingyou？”
　　“Oh,don'ttalkofthem;therehavebeennomoreinPetersburg,confoundthem！”hecriedwithanairofirritation。“Let'srathertalkofthat……though……H'm!Ihavenotmuchtime,andcan'tstaylongwithyou,it'sapity!Ishouldhavefoundplentytotellyou。“
　　“What'syourengagement,awoman？”
　　“Yes,awoman,acasualincident……No,that'snotwhatIwanttotalkof。“
　　“Andthehideousness,thefilthinessofallyoursurroundings,doesn'tthataffectyou?Haveyoulostthestrengthtostopyourself？”
　　“Anddoyoupretendtostrength,too?He-he-he!Yousurprisedmejustnow,RodionRomanovitch,thoughIknewbeforehanditwouldbeso。
　　Youpreachtomeaboutviceandaesthetics!You-aSchiller,you-anidealist!Ofcoursethat'sallasitshouldbeanditwouldbesurprisingifitwerenotso,yetitisstrangeinreality……Ah,whatapityIhavenotime,foryou'reamostinterestingtype!Andby-the-way,areyoufondofSchiller?Iamawfullyfondofhim。“
　　“Butwhatabraggartyouare,“Raskolnikovsaidwithsomedisgust。
　　“Uponmyword,Iamnot,“answeredSvidrigailovlaughing。
　　“However,Iwon'tdisputeit,letmebeabraggart,whynotbrag,ifithurtsnoone?IspentsevenyearsinthecountrywithMarfaPetrovna,sonowwhenIcomeacrossanintelligentpersonlikeyou-
　　intelligentandhighlyinteresting-Iamsimplygladtotalkandbesides,I'vedrunkthathalf-glassofchampagneandit'sgonetomyheadalittle。Andbesides,there'sacertainfactthathaswoundmeuptremendously,butaboutthatI……willkeepquiet。Whereareyouoffto？”heaskedinalarm。
　　Raskolnikovhadbegungettingup。Hefeltoppressedandstifledand,asitwere,illateaseathavingcomehere。HefeltconvincedthatSvidrigailovwasthemostworthlessscoundrelonthefaceoftheearth。
　　“A-ach!Sitdown,stayalittle！”Svidrigailovbegged。“Letthembringyousometea,anyway。Stayalittle,Iwon'ttalknonsense,aboutmyself,Imean。I'lltellyousomething。IfyoulikeI'lltellyouhowawomantried'tosave'me,asyouwouldcallit?Itwillbeananswertoyourfirstquestionindeed,forthewomanwasyoursister。MayItellyou?Itwillhelptospendthetime。“
　　“Tellme,butItrustthatyou……“
　　“Oh,don'tbeuneasy。Besides,eveninaworthlesslowfellowlikeme,AvdotyaRomanovnacanonlyexcitethedeepestrespect。“
　　ChapterFour“YOUknowperhaps-yes,Itoldyoumyself,“beganSvidrigailov,“thatIwasinthedebtors'prisonhere,foranimmensesum,andhadnotanyexpectationofbeingabletopayit。There'snoneedtogointoparticularsofhowMarfaPetrovnaboughtmeout;doyouknowtowhatapointofinsanityawomancansometimeslove?Shewasanhonestwoman,andverysensible,althoughcompletelyuneducated。Wouldyoubelievethatthishonestandjealouswoman,aftermanyscenesofhystericsandreproaches,condescendedtoenterintoakindofcontractwithmewhichshekeptthroughoutourmarriedlife?ShewasconsiderablyolderthanI,andbesides,shealwayskeptacloveorsomethinginhermouth。Therewassomuchswinishnessinmysoulandhonestytoo,ofasort,astotellherstraightoutthatIcouldn'tbeabsolutelyfaithfultoher。Thisconfessiondrovehertofrenzy,butyetsheseemsinawaytohavelikedmybrutalfrankness。ShethoughtitshowedIwasunwillingtodeceiveherifIwarnedherlikethisbeforehandandforajealouswoman,youknow,that'sthefirstconsideration。Aftermanytearsanunwrittencontractwasdrawnupbetweenus：first,thatIwouldneverleaveMarfaPetrovnaandwouldalwaysbeherhusband;secondly,thatIwouldneverabsentmyselfwithoutherpermission;thirdly,thatIwouldneversetupapermanentmistress;fourthly,inreturnforthis,MarfaPetrovnagavemeafreehandwiththemaidservants,butonlywithhersecretknowledge;fifthly,Godforbidmyfallinginlovewithawomanofourclass;sixthly,incaseI-whichGodforbid-shouldbevisitedbyagreatseriouspassionIwasboundtorevealittoMarfaPetrovna。
　　Onthislastscore,however,MarfaPetrovnawasfairlyatease。Shewasasensiblewomanandsoshecouldnothelplookinguponmeasadissoluteprofligateincapableofreallove。Butasensiblewomanandajealouswomanaretwoverydifferentthings,andthat'swherethetroublecamein。Buttojudgesomepeopleimpartiallywemustrenouncecertainpreconceivedopinionsandourhabitualattitudetotheordinarypeopleaboutus。Ihavereasontohavefaithinyourjudgmentratherthaninanyone's。PerhapsyouhavealreadyheardagreatdealthatwasridiculousandabsurdaboutMarfaPetrovna。Shecertainlyhadsomeveryridiculousways,butItellyoufranklythatI
　　feelreallysorryfortheinnumerablewoesofwhichIwasthecause。
　　Well,andthat'senough,Ithink,bywayofadecorousoraisonfunebreforthemosttenderwifeofamosttenderhusband。Whenwequarrelled,Iusuallyheldmytongueanddidnotirritateherandthatgentlemanlyconductrarelyfailedtoattainitsobject,itinfluencedher,itpleasedher,indeed。Theseweretimeswhenshewaspositivelyproudofme。Butyoursistershecouldn'tputupwith,anyway。Andhowevershecametorisktakingsuchabeautifulcreatureintoherhouseasagoverness!MyexplanationisthatMarfaPetrovnawasanardentandimpressionablewomanandsimplyfellinloveherself-literallyfellinlove-withyoursister。Well,littlewonder-lookatAvdotyaRomanovna!Isawthedangeratthefirstglanceandwhatdoyouthink,Iresolvednottolookathereven。ButAvdotyaRomanovnaherselfmadethefirststep,wouldyoubelieveit?WouldyoubelieveittoothatMarfaPetrovnawaspositivelyangrywithmeatfirstformypersistentsilenceaboutyoursister,formycarelessreceptionofhercontinualadoringpraisesofAvdotyaRomanovna。Idon'tknowwhatitwasshewanted!Well,ofcourse,MarfaPetrovnatoldAvdotyaRomanovnaeverydetailaboutme。Shehadtheunfortunatehabitoftellingliterallyeveryoneallourfamilysecretsandcontinuallycomplainingofme;howcouldshefailtoconfideinsuchadelightfulnewfriend?IexpecttheytalkedofnothingelsebutmeandnodoubtAvdotyaRomanovnaheardallthosedarkmysteriousrumoursthatwerecurrentaboutme……Idon'tmindbettingthatyoutoohaveheardsomethingofthesortalready？”
　　“Ihave。Luzhinchargedyouwithhavingcausedthedeathofachild。
　　Isthattrue？”
　　“Don'trefertothosevulgartales,Ibeg,“saidSvidrigailovwithdisgustandannoyance。“Ifyouinsistonwantingtoknowaboutallthatidiocy,Iwilltellyouoneday,butnow……“
　　“Iwastoldtooaboutsomefootmanofyoursinthecountrywhomyoutreatedbadly。“
　　“Ibegyoutodropthesubject,“Svidrigailovinterruptedagainwithobviousimpatience。
　　“Wasthatthefootmanwhocametoyouafterdeathtofillyourpipe?……youtoldmeaboutityourself,“Raskolnikovfeltmoreandmoreirritated。
　　SvidrigailovlookedathimattentivelyandRaskolnikovfanciedhecaughtaflashofspitefulmockeryinthatlook。ButSvidrigailovrestrainedhimselfandansweredverycivilly。
　　“Yes,itwas。Iseethatyou,too,areextremelyinterestedandshallfeelitmydutytosatisfyyourcuriosityatthefirstopportunity。Uponmysoul!IseethatIreallymightpassforaromanticfigurewithsomepeople。JudgehowgratefulImustbetoMarfaPetrovnaforhavingrepeatedtoAvdotyaRomanovnasuchmysteriousandinterestinggossipaboutme。Idarenotguesswhatimpressionitmadeonher,butinanycaseitworkedinmyinterests。WithallAvdotyaRomanovna'snaturalaversionandinspiteofmyinvariablygloomyandrepellentaspect-shedidatleastfeelpityforme,pityforalostsoul。Andifonceagirl'sheartismovedtopity,it'smoredangerousthananything。Sheisboundtowantto'savehim,'tobringhimtohissenses,andlifthimupanddrawhimtonobleraims,andrestorehimtonewlifeandusefulness,-well,weallknowhowfarsuchdreamscango。Isawatoncethatthebirdwasflyingintothecageofherself。AndItoomadeready。Ithinkyouarefrowning,RodionRomanovitch?There'snoneed。Asyouknow,itallendedinsmoke。Hangitall,whatalotI
　　amdrinking!Doyouknow,Ialways,fromtheverybeginning,regrettedthatitwasn'tyoursister'sfatetobeborninthesecondorthirdcenturyA。D。,asthedaughterofareigningprinceorsomegovernororproconsulinAsiaMinor。Shewouldundoubtedlyhavebeenoneofthosewhowouldenduremartyrdomandwouldhavesmiledwhentheybrandedherbosomwithhotpincers。Andshewouldhavegonetoitofherself。AndinthefourthorfifthcenturyshewouldhavewalkedawayintotheEgyptiandesertandwouldhavestayedtherethirtyyearslivingonrootsandecstasiesandvisions。Sheissimplythirstingtofacesometortureforsomeone,andifshecan'tgethertorture,she'llthrowherselfoutofawindow。I'veheardsomethingofaMr。
　　Razumihin-he'ssaidtobeasensiblefellow;hissurnamesuggestsit,indeed。He'sprobablyadivinitystudent。Well,he'dbetterlookafteryoursister!IbelieveIunderstandher,andIamproudofit。Butatthebeginningofanacquaintance,asyouknow,oneisapttobemoreheedlessandstupid。Onedoesn'tseeclearly。Hangitall,whyisshesohandsome?It'snotmyfault。Infact,itbeganonmysidewithamostirresistiblephysicaldesire。AvdotyaRomanovnaisawfullychaste,incrediblyandphenomenallyso。Takenote,Itellyouthisaboutyoursisterasafact。Sheisalmostmorbidlychaste,inspiteofherbroadintelligence,anditwillstandinherway。Therehappenedtobeagirlinthehousethen,Parasha,a。black-eyedwench,whomIhadneverseenbefore-shehadjustcomefromanothervillage-verypretty,butincrediblystupid：sheburstintotears,wailedsothatshecouldbeheardallovertheplaceandcausedscandal。OnedayafterdinnerAvdotyaRomanovnafollowedmeintoanavenueinthegardenandwithflashingeyesinsistedonmyleavingpoorParashaalone。Itwasalmostourfirstconversationbyourselves。
　　I,ofcourse,wasonlytoopleasedtoobeyherwishes,triedtoappeardisconcerted,embarrassed,infactplayedmypartnotbadly。Thencameinterviews,mysteriousconversations,exhortations,entreaties,supplications,eventears-wouldyoubelieveit,eventears?Thinkwhatthepassionforpropagandawillbringsomegirlsto!I,ofcourse,threwitallonmydestiny,posedashungeringandthirstingforlight,andfinallyresortedtothemostpowerfulweaponinthesubjectionofthefemaleheart,aweaponwhichneverfailsone。It'sthewell-knownresource-flattery。Nothingintheworldisharderthanspeakingthetruthandnothingeasierthanflattery。Ifthere'sthehundredthpartofafalsenoteinspeakingthetruth,itleadstoadiscord,andthatleadstotrouble。Butifall,tothelastnote,isfalseinflattery,itisjustasagreeable,andisheardnotwithoutsatisfaction。Itmaybeacoarsesatisfaction,butstillasatisfaction。Andhowevercoarsetheflattery,atleasthalfwillbesuretoseemtrue。That'ssoforallstagesofdevelopmentandclassesofsociety。Avestalvirginmightbeseducedbyflattery。IcanneverrememberwithoutlaughterhowIonceseducedaladywhowasdevotedtoherhusband,herchildren,andherprinciples。Whatfunitwasandhowlittletrouble!Andtheladyreallyhadprinciples,ofherown,anyway。Allmytacticslayinsimplybeingutterlyannihilatedandprostratebeforeherpurity。Iflatteredhershamelessly,andassoonasIsucceededingettingapressureofthehand,evenaglancefromher,Iwouldreproachmyselfforhavingsnatcheditbyforce,andwoulddeclarethatshehadresisted,sothatIcouldneverhavegainedanythingbutformybeingsounprincipled。I
　　maintainedthatshewassoinnocentthatshecouldnotforeseemytreachery,andyieldedtomeunconsciously,unawares,andsoon。Infact,Itriumphed,whilemyladyremainedfirmlyconvincedthatshewasinnocent,chaste,andfaithfultoallherdutiesandobligationsandhadsuccumbedquitebyaccident。AndhowangryshewaswithmewhenIexplainedtoheratlastthatitwasmysincereconvictionthatshewasjustaseagerasI。PoorMarfaPetrovnawasawfullyweakonthesideofflattery,andifIhadonlycaredto,Imighthavehadallherpropertysettledonmeduringherlifetime。Iamdrinkinganawfullotofwinenowandtalkingtoomuch。Ihopeyouwon'tbeangryifImentionnowthatIwasbeginningtoproducethesameeffectonAvdotyaRomanovna。ButIwasstupidandimpatientandspoileditall。AvdotyaRomanovnahadseveraltimes-andonetimeinparticular-beengreatlydispleasedbytheexpressionofmyeyes,wouldyoubelieveit?Therewassometimesalightinthemwhichfrightenedherandgrewstrongerandstrongerandmoreunguardedtillitwashatefultoher。Noneedtogointodetail,butweparted。ThereIactedstupidlyagain。Ifelltojeeringinthecoarsestwayatallsuchpropagandaandeffortstoconvertme;Parashacameontothesceneagain,andnotshealone;infacttherewasatremendousto-do。Ah,RodionRomanovitch,ifyoucouldonlyseehowyoursister'seyescanflashsometimes!Nevermindmybeingdrunkatthismomentandhavinghadawholeglassofwine。Iamspeakingthetruth。Iassureyouthatthisglancehashauntedmydreams;theveryrustleofherdresswasmorethanIcouldstandatlast。IreallybegantothinkthatImightbecomeepileptic。IcouldneverhavebelievedthatIcouldbemovedtosuchafrenzy。Itwasessential,indeed,tobereconciled,butbythenitwasimpossible。AndimaginewhatIdidthen!Towhatapitchofstupidityamancanbebroughtbyfrenzy!Neverundertakeanythinginafrenzy,RodionRomanovitch。I
　　reflectedthatAvdotyaRomanovnawasafterallabeggarach,excuseme,that'snottheword……butdoesitmatterifitexpressesthemeaning?,thatshelivedbyherwork,thatshehadhermotherand,youtokeepach,hangit,youarefrowningagain,andIresolvedtoofferherallmymoney-thirtythousandroublesIcouldhaverealisedthen-ifshewouldrunawaywithmehere,toPetersburg。OfcourseIshouldhavevowedeternallove,rapture,andsoon。Doyouknow,IwassowildaboutheratthattimethatifshehadtoldmetopoisonMarfaPetrovnaortocutherthroatandtomarryherself,itwouldhavebeendoneatonce!Butitendedinthecatastropheofwhichyouknowalready。YoucanfancyhowfranticIwaswhenIheardthatMarfaPetrovnahadgotholdofthatscoundrellyattorney,Luzhin,andhadalmostmadeamatchbetweenthem-whichwouldreallyhavebeenjustthesamethingasIwasproposing。Wouldn'tit?Wouldn'tit?I
　　noticethatyou'vebeguntobeveryattentive……youinterestingyoungman……“
　　Svidrigailovstruckthetablewithhisfistimpatiently。Hewasflushed。Raskolnikovsawclearlythattheglassorglassandahalfofchampagnethathehadsippedalmostunconsciouslywasaffectinghim-
　　andheresolvedtotakeadvantageoftheopportunity。HefeltverysuspiciousofSvidrigailov。
　　“Well,afterwhatyouhavesaid,IamfullyconvincedthatyouhavecometoPetersburgwithdesignsonmysister,“hesaiddirectlytoSvidrigailov,inordertoirritatehimfurther。
　　“Oh,nonsense,“saidSvidrigailov,seemingtorousehimself。“Why,I
　　toldyou……besidesyoursistercan'tendureme。“
　　“Yes,Iamcertainthatshecan't,butthat'snotthepoint。“
　　“Areyousosurethatshecan't？”Svidrigailovscreweduphiseyesandsmiledmockingly。“Youareright,shedoesn'tloveme,butyoucanneverbesureofwhathaspassedbetweenhusbandandwifeorloverandmistress。There'salwaysalittlecornerwhichremainsasecrettotheworldandisonlyknowntothosetwo。WillyouanswerforitthatAvdotyaRomanovnaregardedmewithaversion？”
　　“Fromsomewordsyou'vedropped,Inoticethatyoustillhavedesigns-andofcourseevilones-onDouniaandmeantocarrythemoutpromptly。“
　　“What,haveIdroppedwordslikethat？”Svidrigailovaskedinnaivedismay,takingnottheslightestnoticeoftheepithetbestowedonhisdesigns。
　　“Why,youaredroppingthemevennow。Whyareyousofrightened?
　　Whatareyousoafraidofnow？”
　　“Me-afraid?Afraidofyou?Youhaverathertobeafraidofme,cherami。Butwhatnonsense……I'vedrunktoomuchthough,Iseethat。I
　　wasalmostsayingtoomuchagain。Damnthewine!Hi!there,water！”
　　Hesnatchedupthechampagnebottleandflungitwithoutceremonyoutofthewindow。Philipbroughtthewater。
　　“That'sallnonsense！”saidSvidrigailov,wettingatowelandputtingittohishead。“ButIcanansweryouinonewordandannihilateallyoursuspicions。DoyouknowthatIamgoingtogetmarried？”
　　“Youtoldmesobefore。“
　　“DidI?I'veforgotten。ButIcouldn'thavetoldyousoforcertainforIhadnotevenseenmybetrothed;Ionlymeantto。ButnowIreallyhaveabetrothedandit'sasettledthing,andifitweren'tthatIhavebusinessthatcan'tbeputoff,Iwouldhavetakenyoutoseethematonce,forIshouldliketoaskyouradvice。Ach,hangit,onlytenminutesleft!See,lookatthewatch。ButImusttellyou,forit'saninterestingstory,mymarriage,initsownway。Whereareyouoffto?Goingagain？”
　　“No,I'mnotgoingawaynow。“
　　“Notatall?Weshallsee。I'lltakeyouthere,I'llshowyoumybetrothed,onlynotnow。Foryou'llsoonhavetobeoff。YouhavetogototherightandItotheleft。DoyouknowthatMadameResslich,thewomanIamlodgingwithnow,eh?Iknowwhatyou'rethinking,thatshe'sthewomanwhosegirltheysaydrownedherselfinthewinter。
　　Come,areyoulistening?Shearrangeditallforme。You'rebored,shesaid,youwantsomethingtofillupyourtime。For,youknow,Iamagloomy,depressedperson。DoyouthinkI'mlight-hearted?No,I'mgloomy。Idonoharm,butsitinacornerwithoutspeakingawordforthreedaysatatime。AndthatResslichisaslyhussy,Itellyou。Iknowwhatshehasgotinhermind;shethinksIshallgetsickofit,abandonmywifeanddepart,andshe'llgetholdofherandmakeaprofitoutofher-inourclass,ofcourse,orhigher。Shetoldmethefatherwasabroken-downretiredofficial,whohasbeensittinginachairforthelastthreeyearswithhislegsparalysed。Themamma,shesaid,wasasensiblewoman。Thereisasonservingintheprovinces,buthedoesn'thelp;thereisadaughter,whoismarried,butshedoesn'tvisitthem。Andthey'vetwolittlenephewsontheirhands,asthoughtheirownchildrenwerenotenough,andthey'vetakenfromschooltheiryoungestdaughter,agirlwho'llbesixteeninanothermonth,sothatthenshecanbemarried。Shewasforme。Wewentthere。Howfunnyitwas!Ipresentmyself-alandowner,awidower,ofawell-knownname,withconnections,withafortune。
　　WhatifIamfiftyandsheisnotsixteen?Whothinksofthat?Butit'sfascinating,isn'tit?Itisfascinating,ha-ha!YoushouldhaveseenhowItalkedtothepapaandmamma。Itwasworthpayingtohaveseenmeatthatmoment。Shecomesin,curtseys,youcanfancy,stillinashortfrock-anunopenedbud!Flushinglikeasunset-shehadbeentold,nodoubt。Idon'tknowhowyoufeelaboutfemalefaces,buttomymindthesesixteenyears,thesechildisheyes,shynessandtearsofbashfulnessarebetterthanbeauty;andsheisaperfectlittlepicture,too。Fairhairinlittlecurls,likealamb's,fulllittlerosylips,tinyfeet,acharmer!……Well,wemadefriends。I
　　toldthemIwasinahurryowingtodomesticcircumstances,andthenextday,thatisthedaybeforeyesterday,wewerebetrothed。WhenIgonowItakeheronmykneeatonceandkeepherthere……Well,sheflusheslikeasunsetandIkisshereveryminute。Hermammaofcourseimpressesonherthatthisisherhusbandandthatthismustbeso。It'ssimplydelicious!Thepresentbetrothedconditionisperhapsbetterthanmarriage。Hereyouhavewhatiscalledlanatureetlaverite,ha-ha!I'vetalkedtohertwice,sheisfarfromafool。