Page:Leskov - The Sentry and other Stories.djvu/224

 208 the highways: "Those are fine priests—they are no good. They themselves send for our sorcerers to drive away shaytan. There was no end to the nonsensical talk. For a time long I trimmed these smoking icon lamps, as well as I could, and my parochial duties were rendered unbearably wearisome to me by them, but at last the long awaited and long desired moment arrived, when I could devote myself entirely to the work of enlightening the wild sheep of my flock, that were grazing without a shepherd.

I collected all the documents relating to this question, and began to study them so diligently that I scarcely ever left my writing-table.