out and beckoned to Levin. The thought till that moment locked up in Levin's brain began to stir, but he made haste to bring it to order. "It will be arranged somehow," he said to himself and went toward the ambo. He mounted several steps, turned to the right, and saw the priest, a little old man, whose thin beard was almost white, with kindly but rather weary eyes, standing near the reading-desk, turning over the leaves of a missal. After a slight bow to Levin, he began to read the prayers; having iinished them, he kneeled and faced Levin:—
"Christ is here, invisible though, to hear your confession," said he, pointing to the crucifix. "Do you believe all that the Holy Apostolic Church teaches us?" he continued, turning his eyes from Levin's face and crossing his hand under his stole.
"I have doubted, I still doubt everything ...." said Levin, in a voice which sounded disagreeable to his own ears, and he was silent.
The priest waited a few moments to see if he would say anything more, then closing his eyes and speaking rapidly with a Vladimirsky accent, he said:—
"To doubt is characteristic of human weakness; we must pray the Lord Almighty to strengthen you. What are your principal sins?"
The priest spoke without the least interruption, and as if he were afraid of losing time.
"My principal sin is doubt. I doubt everything, and I am generally doubting."
"To doubt is characteristic of human weakness," said the priest, using the same words; "what do you doubt principally?"
"Everything. I sometimes even doubt the existence of God," said Levin, in spite of himself, horrified at the impropriety of what he was saying. But his words seemed to make no impression on the priest.
"How can you doubt the existence of God?" he asked, with an almost imperceptible smile.
Levin was silent.
"What doubts can you have about the Creator when
