Anton Chekhov as a Zemstvo Physician Yukimura SAKON This paper looks into the medical activities of Anton Chekhov (1860-1904). Chekhov was a physician in the employment of the zemstvo, a local self-government in late imperial Russia. It played an active part in preventing the spread of a cholera epidemic in 1892. He often criticized the zemstvo in his works or letters. The zemstvo had many problems. Especially its relations with both Tsar government and peasants were hardly amicable. Nevertheless many intellectuals became zemstovo physicians and went into villages. Most of them were the raznochintsy, people of various ranks, and saw in 'the small deeds theory' the rationale for their social activities. Initially they found themselves powerless among peasants, but the cholera epidemic was a turning point. From then on they exercised no small influence over the Russian society. Some physicians took part in political activities. But other physicians were convinced of significance of small deeds. Chekhov was one of the latter. Despite many hardships he carried out small deeds, and his efforts bore fruit in the end.