" "Aha, Federov? Then take this!" and they would slit his
belly with a knife. They nicknamed these blades just that in the
city--"rippers"; and there were among them names of which the city
news seemed actually proud: the two brothers Polishchuk (Mitka and
Dundas), Volodka the Greek, Fedor Miller, Captain Dmitriev,
Sivocho, Dobrovolski, Shpachek, and many others.
Both day and night on the main streets of the frenzied city stood,
moved, and yelled the mob, as though at a fire. It would be almost
impossible to describe what went on in the Yamkas then. Despite
the fact that the madams had increased the staff of their patients
to more than double and increased their prices trebly, their poor
demented girls could not catch up in satisfying the demands of the
drunken, crazed public, which threw money around like chips. It
happened that in the drawing room, filled to overflowing with
people, each girl would be awaited for by some seven, eight, at
times even ten, men. It was, truly, some kind of a mad,
intoxicated, convulsive time!
And from that very time began all the misfortunes of the Yamkas,
which brought them to ruin.
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