"It is indeed terribly hot," said Uncle Ivan.
Then came a sailor from the Black Sea Fleet who had made himself famous
during these weeks by his impassioned oratory. He was a thin dark-eyed
fellow, and he obviously knew his business. He threw himself at once
into the thick of it all, paying no attention to the stout frock-coated
gentlemen who sat on the platform, dealing out no compliments, whether
to the audience or the speakers, wasting no time at all. He told them
all that they had debts to pay, that their honour was at stake, and that
Europe was watching them. I don't know that that Face that stared at him
cared very greatly for Europe, but it is certain that a breath of
emotion passed across it, that there was a stir, a movement, a
response....
He sat down, there was a roar of applause; he regarded them
contemptuously. At that moment I caught sight of Boris Grogoff. I had
been on the watch for him. I had thought it very likely that he would be
there. Well, there he was, at the back of the crowd, listening with a
contemptuous sneer on his face, and a long golden curl poking out from
under his cap.
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