An Honest Thief

One night in a pub, Astafy Ivanovich happened upon Emelyan Ilyitch. The two knew each other on beforehand, but now Emelyan was obviously poor from the look of his tattered coat. He was aching for a drink but had not the money. Astafy was moved by Emelyan's acutely pathetic position, and he bought him a drink. From then on, Emelyan followed Astafy everywhere, eventually moving into his apartment. Astafy did not have much money himself, but he allowed Emelyan's imposition because he was very ...