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And the woman who sold wine without having a license, and the thief knocking about the town, and Lydia Shoustova hiding proclamations, and the sectarians upsetting superstitions, and Gourkevitch desiring a constitution, were a real hindrance.
He began with the woman punished for the illicit sale of spirits, the boy for theft, the tramp for tramping, the incendiary for setting a house on fire, the banker for fraud, and that unfortunate Lydia Shoustova imprisoned only because they hoped to get such information as they required from her.
Yesterday's temptation seemed like the feeling when one awakes from deep sleep, and, without feeling sleepy, wants to lie comfortably in bed a little longer, yet knows that it is time to rise and commence the glad and important work that awaits one. On that, his last day in Petersburg, he went in the morning to the Vasilievski Ostrov to see Shoustova.
"There is a girl imprisoned in the fortress, and she is ill and innocent." "What is her name?" "Lydia Shoustova. It's in the note." "All right; I'll see what I can do," she said, and lightly jumped into her little, softly upholstered, open carriage, its brightly-varnished splash-guards glistening in the sunshine, and opened her parasol. The footman got on the box and gave the coachman a sign.
Shoustova lived on the second floor, and having been shown the back stairs, Nekhludoff entered straight into the hot kitchen, which smelt strongly of food. An elderly woman, with turned-up sleeves, with an apron and spectacles, stood by the fire stirring something in a steaming pan. "Whom do you want?" she asked severely, looking at him over her spectacles.
"Take a seat here, or better here," said Shoustova, pointing to the battered easy-chair from which the young man had just risen. "My cousin, Zakharov," she said, noticing that Nekhludoff looked at the young man. The young man greeted the visitor with a smile as kindly as Shoustova's, and when Nekhludoff sat down he brought himself another chair, and sat by his side.
The first was the appeal to the Senate in Maslova's case; the second, to hand in Theodosia Birukoff's petition to the committee; the third, to comply with Vera Doukhova's requests i.e., try to get her friend Shoustova released from prison, and get permission for a mother to visit her son in prison.
"So you are that dangerous woman whom Vera Doukhova wished me to intercede for?" Nekhludoff asked, with a smile. "Yes, I am," said Lydia Shoustova, her broad, kind, child-like smile disclosing a row of beautiful teeth. "It was aunt who was so anxious to see you. Aunt!" she called out, in a pleasant, tender voice through a door. "Your imprisonment grieved Vera Doukhova very much," said Nekhludoff.
He made another effort, and asked about the prisoner Shoustova, for whose release, as he had been informed that morning, orders were given. "Shoustova Shoustova? I cannot remember all their names, there are so many of them," he said, as if reproaching them because there were so many. He rang, and ordered the secretary to be called.
And that very night the police searched her room and took her and the papers, and have kept her up to now, demanding that she should say from whom she had them." "But I never told them," said Shoustova quickly, pulling nervously at a lock that was not even out of place. "I never said you did," answered the aunt.
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