Page 405 - the-idiot

‘Allow me, Mr. Ivolgin,’ he said irritably. ‘What is the
good of all this rigmarole? Pardon me. All is now clear,
and we acknowledge the truth of your main point. Why go
into these tedious details? You wish perhaps to boast of the
cleverness of your investigation, to cry up your talents as
detective? Or perhaps your intention is to excuse Burdo-
vsky, by roving that he took up the matter in ignorance?
Well, I consider that extremely impudent on your part! You
ought to know that Burdovsky has no need of being excused
or justified by you or anyone else! It is an insult! The affair
is quite painful enough for him without that. Will nothing
make you understand?’
‘Enough! enough! Mr. Terentieff,’ interrupted Gania.
‘Don’t excite yourself; you seem very ill, and I am sorry
for that. I am almost done, but there are a few facts to which
I must briefly refer, as I am convinced that they ought to
be clearly explained once for all….’ A movement of impa-
tience was noticed in his audience as he resumed: ‘I merely
wish to state, for the information of all concerned, that the
reason for Mr. Pavlicheff’s interest in your mother, Mr. Bur-
dovsky, was simply that she was the sister of a serf-girl with
whom he was deeply in love in his youth, and whom most
certainly he would have married but for her sudden death.
I have proofs that this circumstance is almost, if not quite,
forgotten. I may add that when your mother was about
ten years old, Pavlicheff took her under his care, gave her
a good education, and later, a considerable dowry. His re-
lations were alarmed, and feared he might go so far as to
marry her, but she gave her hand to a young land-survey-

0 The Idiot