“What are they like?”

That, too, I explained as far as I was able.

“And where do they live?”

“In hot countries. There are some in the island of Sumatra.”

“That’s in America, isn’t it? Don’t they say that the people in those parts walk on their heads?”

“Not on their heads. You mean the Antipodes.”

I explained what America was like and what was meant by the Antipodes. He listened as attentively as though he had come simply to hear about the Antipodes.

“A‑ah! Last year I read about the Countess La Vallière. Arefyev got the book from the adjutant’s. Is it true or is it just invented? It’s written by Dumas.”

“It’s invented, of course.”