Peter Gerasimovitch's assumption was correct. The president came
back from the debating room with a paper, and read as
follows:--"April 28th, 188-. By His Imperial Majesty's ukase No.
----- The Criminal Court, on the strength of the decision of the
jury, in accordance with Section 3 of Statute 771, Section 3 of
Statutes 770 and 777, decrees that the peasant, Simeon Kartinkin,
33 years of age, and the meschanka Katerina Maslova, 27 years of
age, are to be deprived of all property rights and to be sent to
penal servitude in Siberia, Kartinkin for eight, Maslova for four
years, with the consequences stated in Statute 25 of the code.
The meschanka Botchkova, 43 years of age, to be deprived of all
special personal and acquired rights, and to be imprisoned for
three years with consequences in accord with Statute 48 of the
code. The costs of the case to be borne equally by the prisoners;
and, in the case of their being without sufficient property, the
costs to be transferred to the Treasury. Articles of material
evidence to be sold, the ring to be returned, the phials
destroyed." Botchkova was condemned to prison, Simeon Kartinken
and Katerina Maslova to the loss of all special rights and
privileges and to penal servitude in Siberia, he for eight and
she for four years.
Kartinkin stood holding his arms close to his sides and moving
his lips. Botchkova seemed perfectly calm. Maslova, when she
heard the sentence, blushed scarlet. "I'm not guilty, not
guilty!" she suddenly cried, so that it resounded through the
room. "It is a sin! I am not guilty! I never wished--I never
thought! It is the truth I am saying--the truth!" and sinking on
the bench she burst into tears and sobbed aloud. When Kartinkin
and Botchkova went out she still sat crying, so that a gendarme
had to touch the sleeve of her cloak.
"No; it is impossible to leave it as it is," said Nekhludoff to
himself, utterly forgetting his bad thoughts. He did not know why
he wished to look at her once more, but hurried out into the
corridor. There was quite a crowd at the door. The advocates and
jury were going out, pleased to have finished the business, and
he was obliged to wait a few seconds, and when he at last got out
into the corridor she was far in front. He hurried along the
corridor after her, regardless of the attention he was arousing,
caught her up, passed her, and stopped. She had ceased crying and
only sobbed, wiping her red, discoloured face with the end of the
kerchief on her head. She passed without noticing him. Then he
hurried back to see the president. The latter had already left
the court, and Nekhludoff followed him into the lobby and went up
to him just as he had put on his light grey overcoat and was
taking the silver-mounted walking-stick which an attendant was
handing him.