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"They walk about naked here!" squealed Doulebov. Trirodov retorted: "They will be healthier and cleaner than those children who leave your school." Doulebov shouted: "Even your instructresses walk about naked. You've taken on depraved girls as instructresses." Trirodov replied calmly: "That's a lie!"
The boy pulled his cap off and reached it out to Shabalov with the remark: "Here!" Shabalov growled savagely: "Idiot!" Then he turned away. The boy looked at him in astonishment. Doulebov, and even more his wife, were terribly annoyed because they had not put on more clothes for their visitors, not even shoes. The Vice-Governor looked dully and savagely. Everything displeased him at once.
All resumed their former places. Then the oral examination began. Doulebov bent over the roll-call and called out three boys at once. Each of them was questioned first about the Holy Scriptures, and immediately afterwards about the Russian language and arithmetic. The examiners cavilled at everything. Nothing satisfied Doulebov.
Kirsha was also acquainted with some of the students who attended the girls' gymnasia. He told his father a great deal about the affairs and ways of these institutions. His information contained much that was singular and unexpected. The personality of the Headmaster of the National Schools, Doulebov, particularly interested Trirodov of late.
"Sit down, children," ordered Doulebov. The children resumed their places, while the elders seated themselves at a table in the order of their rank the Vice-Governor and Doulebov in the middle, with the others to their right and left. Doulebova looked round with an anxious, angry expression. At last she said in a bass voice, extraordinarily coarse for a woman: "Shut the windows.
"Why?" asked Voronok with a flushed face. "He laughed," growled the Vice-Governor morosely. Doulebov turned to Poterin and asked in a loud voice: "And I hope you have no rebels in your school." "No, thank God, I have nothing of that kind," replied Poterin. "But, to tell the truth, the children are very loose nowadays."
But he conducted himself towards him very cautiously, so that he might not be suspected of too intimate relations with this evil, morose, badly trained man and his vulgar wife. Doulebov had pleasant manners, a youngish face, and a slender voice which resembled the squeal of a young pig. He was light and agile in his movements.
After the written exercises Trirodov asked the uninvited guests to luncheon. "It was such a long journey here," said Doulebov as if he were explaining why he did not refuse the invitation to eat. The children scattered a short way into the wood, while the elders went into a neighbouring house, where the luncheon was ready. The conversation during luncheon was constrained and captious.
Inspector Poterin, fawning before Doulebov and his wife, said in a flustered way: "Our building is anything but showy." Doulebov smiled amiably and replied encouragingly: "The building is not the important thing. The school itself is good. The instruction is to be valued and not the walls."
But Doulebov, of course, knew very well that however great was his attentiveness to his duties, that in itself would not take him very far. It was indispensable to cultivate the proper personages. Doulebov had no influential aunts and grandmothers, and he had to make efforts on his own behalf.
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