alone
]. What do I not suffer! If they really come here I shall perish through shame. Where can I find so much money in such a hurry? One must have time for it, and that fellow may come to-day even—perhaps this minute. Then I am lost—who will trust me then? My creditors will tie a rope around my neck and prevent me from saying a word in my own behalf. "Pay us," they will cry; "pay us!" O Salome, Salome!
Enter Gewo
.
OSSEP. There he is.
GEWO. Good-evening, Ossep.
OSSEP. You have come, too. You want your money, too? Yes, choke me; double my debt; say that I owe you, not 2,000 rubles, but 4,000. Speak! You are my creditor; speak! Have no pity on me. You want your money—why do you wait, then? Slay me; tear my heart out of my body; hack me in pieces and sell it piece by piece, so that your money shall not be lost. [
Gewo wipes his eyes
.] Weep, weep, for your money is lost. I am bankrupt—bankrupt!
GEWO [