“No one could say how old Akim was, and he himself did not know. His mistress died, the children grew up, and he himself became so decrepit that he could no longer work: he only wove linden bast shoes. The family lived together undivided, in one hut, but the need did not decrease every day, but increased. It was hard for Akim to look at this poverty, and he conscientiously, with mental pain, accepted every piece of bread...”