- cid
- bafkreicqovwiimblmduox3mee2a7qjcsvbgaw7uejjlp22o3q55yarre2a
- content_type
- image/jpeg
- filename
- crimepunishment00dostiala_page_0040.jpg
- key
- pdf-page-1768922932939-1sctg3o4wm
- page_number
- 40
- pdf_type
- born_digital
- size
- 225727
- text
- ?2 CRIME AND PUNISHMENT
she endured it all and tried to comfort me and cheer me up! She
is an angel! But by God's mercy, our sufferings were cut short:
Mr. Svidrigailov returned to his senses and repented and, prob-
ably feeling sorry for Dounia, he laid before Marfa Petrovna a
complete and unmistakable proof of Dounia's innocence, in the
form of a letter Dounia had been forced to write and give to
him, before Marfa Petrovna came upon them in the garden.
This letter, which remained in Mr. Svidrigailov's hands after
Iier departure, she had written to refuse personal explanations
and secret interviews, for which he was entreating her. In that
letter she reproached him with great heat and indignation for
the baseness of his behaviour in regard to Marfa Petrovna, re-
minding him that he was the father and head of a family and
telling him how infamous it was of him to torment and make
unhappy a defenceless girl, unhappy enough already. Indeed,
dear Rodya, the letter was so nobly and touchingly written that
I sobbed when I read it and to this day I cannot read it without
tears. Moreover, the evidence of the servants, too, cleared
Dounia's reputation; they had seen and known a great deal
more than Mr. Svidrigailov had himself supposed — as indeed is
always the case with servants. Marfa Petrovna was completely
taken aback, and 'again crushed' as she said herself to us, but
she was completely convinced of Dounia's innocence. The very
next day, being Sunday, she went straight to the Cathedral,
knelt down and prayed with tears to Our Lady to give her
strength to bear this new trial and to do her duty. Then she
came straight from the Cathedral to us, told us the whole story,
wept bitterly and, fully penitent, she embraced Dounia and
besought her to forgive her. The same morning, without any
delay, she went roiind to all the houses in the town and every-
where, shedding tears, she asserted in the most flattering terms
Dounia's innocence and the nobility of her feelings and her be-
haviour. What was more, she showed and read to every one the
letter in Dounia's own handwriting to Mr. Svidrigailov and
even allowed them to take copies of it— which I must say I
think was superfluous. In this way she was busy for several days
in driving about the whole town, because some people had taken
offence through precedence having been given to others. And
therefore they had to take turns, so that in every house she was
expected before she arrived, and every one knew that on such
- text_extracted_at
- 2026-01-20T15:28:52.939Z
- text_extracted_by
- pdf-processor
- text_has_content
- true
- text_source
- born_digital
- uploaded
- true