study. Dressed in a long coat, with a cigar in his mouth, he was pretending to read the newspaper. On seeing them, he at once jumped up, and fussed about, turning red, shouting for some refreshment to be brought immediately, asking questions, laughing─all at the same time. Markelov and Solomin he knew; Nezhdanov was a stranger to him. Hearing that he was a student, Golushkin laughed again, shook his hand a second time, and said: 'Capital! capital! our forces are growing. . . . Learning is light, ignorance is darkness. I've not a ha'porth of learning myself, but I've insight—that's how I've got on!'
It struck Nezhdanov that Mr. Golushkin was nervous and ill at ease . . . and that was actually the fact. 'Look out, brother Kapiton! mind you don't come a cropper in the mud!' was his first thought at the sight of any new person. Soon, however, he recovered himself, and in the same hurried, lisping, muddled language began talking of Vassily Nikolaevitch, of his character, of the necessity of pro-pa-gan-da (he had that word very pat, but he articulated it slowly); of how he, Golushkin, had discovered a capital new recruit, most trustworthy; of how it seemed now that the time was at hand, was ready for . . . for the lancet (at this he glanced at Markelov, who did
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