Theotherdayhetookitintohisheadtocrosstheroomwithnootherpurposebuttoopenadoorforme；andIfeltmoreintouchwithmankindthanIhadbeenforyears。Ridiculous，isn’tit？OfcourseIguessthereissomething——someawfullittlescrape——whichyouknowallabout——butifIamsurethatitisterriblyheinous，Ifancyonecouldmanagetoforgiveit。Formypart，IdeclareIamunabletoimaginehimguiltyofanythingmuchworsethanrobbinganorchard。Isitmuchworse？Perhapsyououghttohavetoldme；butitissuchalongtimesincewebothturnedsaintsthatyoumayhaveforgottenwe，too，hadsinnedinourtime？ItmaybethatsomedayIshallhavetoaskyou，andthenIshallexpecttobetold。Idon’tcaretoquestionhimmyselftillIhavesomeideawhatitis。Moreover，it’stoosoonasyet。Lethimopenthedoorafewtimesmoreforme……“Thusmyfriend。Iwastreblypleased——atJim’sshapingsowell，atthetoneoftheletter，atmyowncleverness。EvidentlyIhadknownwhatIwasdoing。Ihadreadcharactersaright，andsoon。Andwhatifsomethingunexpectedandwonderfulweretocomeofit？Thatevening，reposinginadeck-chairundertheshadeofmyownpoopawningitwasinHongKongharbour，IlaidonJim’sbehalfthefirststoneofacastleinSpain。
`Imadeatriptothenorthward，andwhenIreturnedIfoundanotherletterfrommyfriendwaitingforme。ItwasthefirstenvelopeItoreopen。“TherearenospoonsmissingasfarasIknow，“ranthefirstline；
“Ihaven’tbeeninterestedenoughtoinquire。Heisgone，leavingonthebreakfast-tableaformallittlenoteofapology，whichiseithersillyorheartless。Probablyboth——andit’sallonetome。Allowmetosay，lestyoushouldhavesomemoremysteriousyoungmeninreserve，thatIhaveshutupshop，definitelyandforever。ThisisthelasteccentricityI
shallbeguiltyof。DonotimagineforamomentthatIcareahang；butheisverymuchregrettedattennis-parties，andformyownsakeI’vetoldaplausiblelieattheclub……“Iflungtheletterasideandstartedlookingthroughthebatchonmytable，tillIcameuponJim’shandwriting。
Wouldyoubelieveit？Onechanceinahundred!Butitisalwaysthathundredthchance!ThatlittlesecondengineerofthePatnahadturnedupinamoreorlessdestitutestate，andgotatemporaryjoboflookingafterthemachineryofthemill。“Icouldn’tstandthefamiliarityofthelittlebeast，“Jimwrotefromasea-portsevenhundredmilessouthoftheplacewhereheshouldhavebeeninclover。“IamnowforthetimewithEgstrom&；Blake，ship-chandlers，astheir——well——runner，tocallthethingbyitsrightname。ForreferenceIgavethemyourname，whichtheyknowofcourse，andifyoucouldwriteawordinmyfavouritwouldbeapermanentemployment。“Iwasutterlycrushedundertheruinsofmycastle，butofcourseIwroteasdesired。Beforetheendoftheyearmynewchartertookmethatway，andIhadanopportunityofseeinghim。
`HewasstillwithEgstrom&；Blake，andwemetinwhattheycalled“ourparlour“openingoutofthestore。Hehadthatmomentcomeinfromboardingaship，andconfrontedmeheaddown，readyforatussle。“Whathaveyougottosayforyourself？“Ibeganassoonaswehadshakenhands。
“WhatIwroteyou——nothingmore，“hesaidstubbornly。“Didthefellowblab——orwhat？“Iasked。Helookedupatmewithatroubledsmile。“Oh，no!Hedidn’t。
Hemadeitakindofconfidentialbusinessbetweenus。HewasmostdamnablymysteriouswheneverIcameovertothemill；hewouldwinkatmeinarespectfulmanner——asmuchastosay，“Weknowwhatweknow。“Infernallyfawningandfamiliar——andthatsortofthing。“Hethrewhimselfintoachairandstareddownhislegs。“Onedaywehappenedtobealoneandthefellowhadthecheektosay，`Well，Mr。James’——IwascalledMr。JamesthereasifIhadbeentheson——`herewearetogetheroncemore。Thisisbetterthantheoldship——ain’tit？’……Wasn’titappalling，eh？Ilookedathim，andheputonaknowingair。`Don’tyoubeuneasy，sir，’hesays。`IknowagentlemanwhenIseeone，andIknowhowagentlemanfeels。Ihope，though，youwillbekeepingmeonthisjob。Ihadahardtimeofit，too，alongofthatrottenoldPatnaracket。’Jove!Itwasawful。Idon’tknowwhatIshouldhavesaidordoneifIhadnotjustthenheardMr。Denvercallingmeinthepassage。Itwastiffin-time，andwewalkedtogetheracrosstheyardandthroughthegardentothebungalow。Hebegantochaffmeinhiskindlyway……Ibelievehelikedme……“
`Jimwassilentforawhile。
“`Iknowhelikedme。That’swhatmadeitsohard。Suchasplendidman!
Thatmorningheslippedhishandundermyarm……He，too，wasfamiliarwithme。“Heburstintoashortlaugh，anddroppedhischinonhisbreast。
“Pah!WhenIrememberedhowthatmeanlittlebeasthadbeentalkingtome，“hebegansuddenlyinavibratingvoice，“Icouldn’tbeartothinkofmyself……Isupposeyouknow……“Inodded……“Morelikeafather，“hecried；hisvoicesank。“Iwouldhavehadtotellhim。Icouldn’tletitgoon——couldI？““Well？Imurmured，afterwaitingawhile。“Ipreferredtogo，“hesaid，slowly；“thisthingmustbeburied。“
`WecouldhearintheshopBlakeupbraidingEgstrominanabusive，strainedvoice。Theyhadbeenassociatedformanyyears，andeverydayfromthemomentthedoorswereopenedtothelastminutebeforeclosing，Blake，alittlemanwithsleek，jettyhairandunhappy，beadyeyes，couldbeheardrowinghispartnerincessantlywithasortofscathingandplaintivefury。
Thesoundofthateverlastingscoldingwaspartoftheplaceliketheotherfixtures；evenstrangerswouldverysooncometodisregarditcompletelyunlessitbeperhapstomutter“Nuisance，“ortogetupsuddenlyandshutthedoorofthe“parlour。“Egstromhimself，arawboned，heavyScandinavian，withabusymannerandimmenseblondewhiskers，wentondirectinghispeople，checkingparcels，makingoutbillsorwritinglettersatastand-updeskintheshop，andcomportedhimselfinthatclatterexactlyasthoughhehadbeenstone-deaf。Nowandagainhewouldemitabotheredperfunctory“Sssh，“whichneitherproducednorwasexpectedtoproducetheslightesteffect。“Theyareverydecenttomehere，“saidJim。“Blake’salittlecad，butEgstrom’sallright。“Hestoodupquickly，andwalkingwithmeasuredstepstoatripodtelescopestandinginthewindowandpointedattheroadstead，heappliedhiseyetoit。“There’sthatshipwhichhadbeenbecalmedoutsideallthemorninghasgotabreezenowandiscomingin，“heremarked，patiently；
“Imustgoandboard。“Weshookhandinsilence，andheturnedtogo。“Jim!“
Icried。Helookedroundwithhishandonthelock。“You——youhavethrownawaysomethinglikeafortune。“Hecamebacktomeallthewayfromthedoor。“Suchasplendidoldchap，“hesaid。“HowcouldI？HowcouldI？“
Hislipstwitched。“Hereitdoesnotmatter。““Oh!you——you——“I
began，andhadtocastaboutforasuitableword，butbeforeIbecameawarethattherewasnonamethatwouldjustdo，hewasgone。IheardoutsideEgstrom’sdeepgentlevoicesayingcheerily，“That’stheSarahW。Granger，Jimmy。Youmustmanagetobefirstaboard；“anddirectlyBlakestruckin，screamingafterthemannerofanoutragedcockatoo，“Tellthecaptainwe’vegotsomeofhismailhere。That’llfetchhim。D’yehear，MisterWhat’s-your-name？“
AndtherewasJimansweringEgstromwithsomethingboyishinhistone。
“Allright。I’llmakearaceofit。“Heseemedtotakerefugeintheboat-sailingpartofthatsorrybusiness。
“Ididnotseehimagainthattrip，butonmynextIhadasixmonths’
charterIwentuptothestore。TenyardsawayfromthedoorBlake’sscoldingmetmyears，andwhenIcameinhegavemeaglanceofutterwretchedness；
Egstrom，allsmiles，advanced，extendingalargebonyhand。“Gladtoseeyou，captain……Sssh……Beenthinkingyouwereaboutduebackhere。
Whatdidyousay，sir？……Sssh……Oh!him!Hehasleftus。Comeintotheparlour。“……AftertheslamofthedoorBlake’sstrainedvoicebecamefaint，asthevoiceofonescoldingdesperatelyinawilderness……“Putustoagreatinconvenience，too。Usedusbadly，Imustsay……““Where’shegoneto？Doyouknow？“Iasked。“No。It’snouseaskingeither，“saidEgstrom，standingbewhiskeredandobligingbeforemewithhisarmshangingdownhissidesclumsilyandathinsilverwatch-chainloopedverylowonarucked-upbluesergewaistcoat。“Amanlikethatdon’tgoanywhereinparticular。“Iwastooconcernedatthenewstoaskfortheexplanationofthatpronouncement，andhewenton。“Heleft——let’ssee——theverydayasteamerwithreturningpilgrimsfromtheRedSeaputinherewithtwobladesofherpropellergone。Threeweeksagonow。““Wasn’ttheresomethingsaidaboutthePatnacase？“Iasked，fearingtheworst。Hegaveastart，andlookedatmeasifIhadbeenasorcerer。“Why，yes!Howdoyouknow？Someofthemweretalkingaboutithere。Therewasacaptainortwo，themanagerofVanlo’sengineeringshopattheharbour，twoorthreeothers，andmyself。Jimwasinhere，too，havingasandwichandaglassofbeer；whenwearebusy——yousee，captain——there’snotimeforapropertiffin。Hewasstandingbythistableeatingsandwiches，andtherestofuswereroundthetelescopewatchingthatsteamercomein；
andbyandbyVanlo’smanagerbegantotalkaboutthechiefofthePatna；
hehaddonesomerepairsforhimonce，andfromthathewentontotelluswhatanoldruinshewas，andthemoneythathadbeenmadeoutofher。
Hecametomentionherlastvoyage，andthenweallstruckin。Somesaidonethingandsomeanother——notmuch——whatyouoranyothermanmightsay；
andtherewassomelaughing。CaptainO’BrienoftheSarahW。Granger，alarge，noisyoldmanwithastick——hewassittinglisteningtousinthisarm-chairhere——heletdrivesuddenlywithhisstickatthefloor，androarsout，`Skunks!’……Madeusalljump。Vanlo’smanagerwinksatusandasks，`What’sthematter，CaptainO’Brien？’`Matter!matter!’
theoldmanbegantoshout；`whatareyouInjunslaughingat？It’snolaughingmatter。It’sadisgracetohumannatur’——that’swhatitis。Iwoulddespisebeingseeninthesameroomwithoneofthosemen。Yes，sir!’Heseemedtocatchmyeyelike，andIhadtospeakoutofcivility。`Skunks!’saysI，`ofcourse，CaptainO’Brien，andIwouldn’tcaretohavethemheremyself，soyou’requitesafeinthisroom，CaptainO’Brien。Havealittlesomethingcooltodrink。’`Damnyourdrink，Egstrom，’sayshe，withatwinkleinhiseye；`whenIwantadrinkIwillshoutforit。Iamgoingtoquit。
Itstinksherenow。’Atthisalltheothersburstoutlaughing，andouttheygoaftertheoldman。Andthen，sir，thatblastedJimheputsdownthesandwichhehadinhishandandwalksroundthetabletome；therewashisglassofbeerpouredoutquitefull。`I’moff，’hesays——justlikethis。`Itisn’thalf-pastoneyet，’saysI；`youmightsnatchasmokefirst。’
Ithoughthemeantitwastimeforhimtogodowntohiswork。WhenIunderstoodwhathewasupto，myarmsfell——so!Can’tgetamanlikethateveryday，youknow，sir；aregulardevilforsailingaboat；readytogooutmilestoseatomeetshipsinanysortofweather。Morethanonceacaptainwouldcomeinherefullofit，andthefirstthinghewouldsaywouldbe，`That’sarecklesssortofalunaticyou’vegotforawater-clerk，Egstrom。Iwasfeelingmywayinatdaylightundershortcanvaswhentherecomesflyingoutofthemistrightundermyforefootaboathalfunderwater，spraysgoingoverthemasthead，twofrightenedniggersonthebottomboards，ayellingfiendatthetiller。Hey!hey!Shipahoy!ahoy!Captain!Hey!hey!
Egstrom&；Blake’smanfirsttospeaktoyou!Hey!hey!Egstrom&；
Blake!Hallo!hey!whoop!Kicktheniggers——outreefs——asquallonatthetime——shootsaheadwhoopingandyellingtometomakesailandhewouldgivemealeadin——morelikeademonthanaman。Neversawaboathandledlikethatinallmylife。Couldn’thavebeendrunk——washe？Suchaquiet，soft-spokenchap，too——blushedlikeagirlwhenhecameonboard……“
Itellyou，CaptainMarlow，nobodyhadachanceagainstuswithastrangeshipwhenJimwasout。Theothership-chandlersjustkepttheiroldcustomers，and……“
`Egstromappearedovercomewithemotion。
“`Why，sir——itseemedasthoughhewouldn’tmindgoingahundredmilesouttoseainanoldshoetonabashipforthefirm。Ifthebusinesshadbeenhisownandalltomakeyet，hecouldn’thavedonemoreinthatway。
Andnow……allatonce……likethis!ThinksItomyself：`Oho!ariseinthescrew——that’sthetrouble——isit？Allright，’saysI，`noneedofallthatfusswithme，Jimmy。Justmentionyourfigure。Anythinginreason。’Helooksatmeasifhewantedtoswallowsomethingthatstuckinhisthroat。`Ican’tstopwithyou。’`What’sthatbloomingjoke？’I
asks。Heshakeshishead，andIcouldseeinhiseyehewasasgoodasgonealready，sir。SoIturnedtohimandslangedhimtillallwasblue。
`Whatisityou’rerunningawayfrom？’Iasks。`Whohasbeengettingatyou？Whatscaredyou？Youhaven’tasmuchsenseasarat；theydon’tclearoutfromagoodship。Wheredoyouexpecttogetabetterberth？——youthisandyouthat。’Imadehimlooksick，Icantellyou。`Thisbusinessain’tgoingtosink，’saysI。Hegaveabigjump。`Good-bye，’hesays，noddingatmelikealord；`youain’thalfabadchap，Egstrom。Igiveyoumywordthatifyouknewmyreasonsyouwouldn’tcaretokeepme。’`That’sthebiggestlieyouevertoldinyourlife，’saysI；`Iknowmyownmind。’