"Your own fault, you know, my dear sir," Fanarin said, smiling.
"We'd all be in 'eaven were it not for hour sins."
"Oh. yes, yes; we all know that," and both laughed un-naturally.
"Oh, Prince Nekhludoff! Please to step in," said Fanarin, seeing
him, and, nodding once more to the merchant, he led Nekhludoff
into his business cabinet, furnished in a severely correct style.
"Won't you smoke?" said the advocate, sitting down opposite
Nekhludoff and trying to conceal a smile, apparently still
excited by the success of the accomplished transaction.
"Thanks; I have come about Maslova's case."
"Yes, yes; directly! But oh, what rogues these fat money bags
are!" he said. "You saw this here fellow. Why, he has about
twelve million roubles, and he cannot speak correctly; and if he
can get a twenty-five rouble note out of you he'll have it, if
he's to wrench it out with his teeth."
"He says ''eaven' and 'hour,' and you say 'this here fellow,'"
Nekhludoff thought, with an insurmountable feeling of aversion
towards this man who wished to show by his free and easy manner
that he and Nekhludoff belonged to one and the same camp, while
his other clients belonged to another.
"He has worried me to death--a fearful scoundrel. I felt I must
relieve my feelings," said the advocate, as if to excuse his
speaking about things that had no reference to business. "Well,
how about your case? I have read it attentively, but do not
approve of it. I mean that greenhorn of an advocate has left no
valid reason for an appeal."
"Well, then, what have you decided?"
"One moment. Tell him," he said to his assistant, who had just
come in, "that I keep to what I have said. If he can, it's all
right; if not, no matter."
"But he won't agree."
"Well, no matter," and the advocate frowned.
"There now, and it is said that we advocates get our money for
nothing," he remarked, after a pause. "I have freed one insolvent
debtor from a totally false charge, and now they all flock to me.
Yet every such case costs enormous labour. Why, don't we, too,
'lose bits of flesh in the inkstand?' as some writer or other has
said. Well, as to your case, or, rather, the case you are taking
an interest in. It has been conducted abominably. There is no
good reason for appealing. Still," he continued, "we can but try
to get the sentence revoked. This is what I have noted down." He
took up several sheets of paper covered with writing, and began
to read rapidly, slurring over the uninteresting legal terms and
laying particular stress on some sentences. "To the Court of
Appeal, criminal department, etc., etc. According to the
decisions, etc., the verdict, etc., So-and-so Maslova pronounced
guilty of having caused the death through poison of the merchant
Smelkoff, and has, according to Statute 1454 of the penal code,
been sentenced to Siberia," etc., etc. He stopped. Evidently, in
spite of his being so used to it, he still felt pleasure in
listening to his own productions. "This sentence is the direct
result of the most glaring judicial perversion and error," he
continued, impressively, "and there are grounds for its
revocation. Firstly, the reading of the medical report of the
examination of Smelkoff's intestines was interrupted by the
president at the very beginning. This is point one."