must see we don't get into trouble over it. The leather is dear,
and the gentleman hot-tempered. We must make no mistakes. Come,
your eye is truer and your hands have become nimbler than mine, so
you take this measure and cut out the boots. I will finish off the
sewing of the vamps."

Michael did as he was told. He took the leather, spread it out on
the table, folded it in two, took a knife and began to cut out.

Matryona came and watched him cutting, and was surprised to see how
he was doing it. Matryona was accustomed to seeing boots made, and
she looked and saw that Michael was not cutting the leather for
boots, but was cutting it round.

She wished to say something, but she thought to herself: "Perhaps I
do not understand how gentleman's boots should be made. I suppose
Michael knows more about it--and I won't interfere."

When Michael had cut up the leather, he took a thread and began to
sew not with two ends, as boots are sewn, but with a single end, as
for soft slippers.

Again Matryona wondered, but again she did not interfere. Michael
sewed on steadily till noon. Then Simon rose for dinner, looked
around, and saw that Michael had made slippers out of the
gentleman's leather.

"Ah," groaned Simon, and he thought, "How is it that Michael, who
has been with me a whole year and never made a mistake before,
should do such a dreadful thing? The gentleman ordered high boots,