"Here comes the General's cook, ask him...Hi, Prohor! Come here, my dear man! Look at this dog...Is it one of yours?"
"What an idea! We have never had one like that!"
"There's no need to waste time asking," says Otchumyelov. "It's a stray dog! There's no need to waste time talking about it...Since he says it's a stray dog, a stray dog it is...It must be destroyed, that's all about it."
