"Why, what's an actress? Nothing else but a harlot!" replied Novikoff,
with sudden heat. Jealousy tortured him; the thought that the young
woman whose body he loved could appear before other men in an alluring
dress that would exhibit her charms in order to provoke their passions.
"Surely it is going too far to say that," replied Sarudine, raising his
eyebrows.
Novikoff's glance was full of hatred. He regarded Sarudine as one of
those men who meant to rob him of his beloved; moreover, his good looks
annoyed him.
"No, not in the least too far," he retorted. "To appear half nude on
the stage and in some voluptuous scene exhibit one's personal charms to
those who in an hour or so take their leave as they would of some
courtesan after paying the usual fee! A charming career indeed!"
"My friend," said Sanine, "every woman in the first instance likes to
be admired for her personal charms."
Novikoff shrugged his shoulders irritably.
"What a silly, coarse statement!" said he.
"At any rate, coarse or not, it's the truth," replied Sanine. "Lida
would be most effective on the stage, and I should like to see her
there.
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