The visitor bowed from the waist, drew a chair to himself, but
did not sit down, as every oneelse was standing. He merely gazed
around the room with his bright though half-closed eyes.

"Goodbye, Alexai Dmitritch," Mashurina exclaimed suddenly. "I
will come again presently."

"And I too," Ostrodumov added.

Mashurina did not take the slightest notice of the visitor as she
passed him, but went straight up to Nejdanov, gave him a hearty
shake of the hand, and left the room without bowing to anyone.
Ostrodumov followed her, making an unnecessary noise with his
boots, and snorting out once or twice contemptuously, "There's a
beaver collar for you!"

The visitor accompanied them with a polite though slightly
inquisitive look, and then directed his gaze to Paklin, hoping
the latter would follow their example, but Paklin withdrew into a
corner and settled down. A peculiarly suppressed smile played on
his lips ever since the appearance of the stranger. The visitor
and Nejdanov also sat down.

"My name is Sipiagin. You may perhaps have heard of me," the
visitor began with modest pride.

We must first relate how Nejdanov had met him at the theatre.

There had been a performance of Ostrovsky's play "Never Sit in
Another Man's Sledge", on the occasion of the great actor