course, sensible of gratitude. That was all I wanted to express. It's not that I had doubts of my friends: I can find here the truest friends at once—Stepan Mihalovitch Bagautov, for instance. But you know, Alexey Ivanovitch, our acquaintance with you—friendship rather, as I gratefully recall it—was over nine years ago, you never came back to us; there was no interchange of letters. . . .”
The visitor chanted his phrases as though to music, but all the while that he was holding forth he looked at the floor, though, no doubt, all the time he saw everything. But Velchaninov had by now regained his composure.
With a very strange impression, which grew stronger and stronger, he listened to Pavel Pavlovitch and watched him, and when the latter suddenly paused, the most incongruous and surprising ideas rushed in a sudden flash into his mind.
"But how was it I didn’t recognize you till now?" he cried, growing more animated. "Why, we've stumbled across each other five times in the street!"
"Yes; I remember that, too; you were constantly crossing my path—twice, or perhaps three times. . . ."
"That is, you were constantly coming upon me, not I upon you?"
Velchaninov stood up and suddenly, quite unexpectedly, he began laughing. Pavel Pavlovitch paused, looked at him attentively, but at once continued—
"And as for your not recognizing me, you might well have forgotten me, and, besides, I’ve had smallpox and it has left some traces on my face."
"Smallpox? To be sure, he has had smallpox! However did you———”
"Manage that? Anything may happen. One never can tell, Alexey Ivanovitch; one does have such misfortunes."
"Only it’s awfully funny all the same. But continue, continue, my dear friend!"
"Though I met you, too———"
"Stay! Why did you say 'manage that' just now? I meant to use a much more polite expression. But go on, go on!"
For some reason he felt more and more good-humoured. The feeling of shock was completely effaced by other emotions. He walked up and down the room with rapid steps.
"Even though I met you, and though when I set out for Petersburg I intended to seek you out, yet now, I repeat, I have
