第4章

"Sir，"hecorrected，notharshly，butsternly。

"Ihavebeenrobbed，sir，"Iamended。

"Howdidithappen？"heasked。

ThenItoldhimthewholecircumstance，howmyclotheshadbeenlefttodryinthegalley，andhow，later，IwasnearlybeatenbythecookwhenImentionedthematter。

Hesmiledatmyrecital。"Pickings，"heconcluded；"Cooky’spickings。

Anddon’tyouthinkyourmiserablelifeworththeprice？Besides，consideritalesson。You’lllearnintimehowtotakecareofyourmoneyforyourself。

Isuppose，uptonow，yourlawyerhasdoneitforyou，oryourbusinessagent。"

Icouldfeelthequietsneerthroughhiswords，butdemanded，"HowcanIgetitbackagain？"

"That’syourlookout。Youhaven’tanylawyerorbusinessagentnow，soyou’llhavetodependonyourself。Whenyougetadollar，hangontoit。Amanwholeaveshismoneylyingaround，thewayyoudid，deservestoloseit。Besides，youhavesinned。Youhavenorighttoputtemptationinthewayofyourfellow—creatures。YoutemptedCooky，andhefell。Youhaveplacedhisimmortalsoulinjeopardy。Bytheway，doyoubelieveintheimmortalsoul？"

Hislidsliftedlazilyasheaskedthequestion，anditseemedthatthedeepswereopeningtomeandthatIwasgazingintohissoul。Butitwasanillusion。Farasitmighthaveseemed，nomanhaseverseenveryfarintoWolfLarsen’ssoul，orseenitatall；ofthisamconvinced。Itwasaverylonelysoul，Iwastolearn，thatneverunmasked，thoughatraremomentsitplayedatdoingso。

"Ireadimmortalityinyoureyes，"Ianswered，droppingthe"sir，"——

anexperiment，forIthoughttheintimacyoftheconversationwarrantedit。

Hetooknonotice。"Bythat，Itakeit，youseesomethingthatisalive，butthatnecessarilydoesnothavetoliveforever。"

"Ireadmorethanthat，"Icontinuedboldly。

"Thenyoureadconsciousness。Youreadtheconsciousnessoflifethatitisalive；butstillnofurtheraway，noendlessnessoflife。"

Howclearlyhethought，andhowwellheexpressedwhathethought！Fromregardingmecuriously，heturnedhisheadandglancedoutovertheleadenseatowindward。Ableaknesscameintohiseyes，andthelinesofhismouthgrewsevereandharsh。Hewasevidentlyinapessimisticmood。

"Thentowhatend？"hedemandedabruptly，turningbacktome。"IfI

amimmortal，why？"

Ihalted。HowcouldIexplainmyidealismtothisman？HowcouldIputintospeechasomethingfelt，asomethinglikethestrainsofmusicheardinsleep，asomethingthatconvincedyettranscendedutterance？

"Whatdoyoubelieve，then？"Icountered。

"Ibelievethatlifeisamess，"heansweredpromptly。"Itislikeyeast，aferment，athingthatmovesandmaymoveforaminute，anhour，ayear，orahundredyears，butthatintheendwillceasetomove。Thebigeatthelittlethattheymaycontinuetomove，thestrongeattheweakthattheymayretaintheirstrength。Theluckyeatthemostandmovethelongest，thatisall。Whatdoyoumakeofthosethings？"

Heswepthisarminanimpatientgesturetowardanumberofthesailorswhowereworkingonsomekindofropestuffamidships。

"Theymove；sodoesthejellyfishmove。Theymoveinordertoeatinorderthattheymaykeepmoving。Thereyouhaveit。Theylivefortheirbelly’ssake，andthebellyisfortheirsake。It’sacircle；yougetnowhere。

Neitherdothey。Intheendtheycometoastandstill。Theymovenomore。

Theyaredead。"

"Theyhavedreams，"Iinterrupted，"radiant，flashingdreams——"

"Ofgrub，"heconcludedsententiously。

"Andofmore——"

"Grub。Ofalargerappetiteandmoreluckinsatisfyingit。"Hisvoicesoundedharsh。Therewasnolevityinit。"Forlookyou，theydreamofmakingluckyvoyageswhichwillbringthemmoremoney，ofbecomingthematesofships，offindingfortunes——inshort，ofbeinginabetterpositionforpreyingontheirfellows，ofhavingallnightin，goodgrub，andsomebodyelsetodothedirtywork。YouandIarejustlikethem。Thereisnodifference，exceptthatwehaveeatenmoreandbetter。Iameatingthemnow，andyou，too。ButinthepastyouhaveeatenmorethanIhave。Youhavesleptinsoftbeds，andwornfineclothes，andeatengoodmeals。Whomadethosebeds？andthoseclothes？andthosemeals？Notyou。Younevermadeanythinginyourownsweat。Youliveonanincomewhichyourfatherearned。Youarelikeafrigatebirdswoopingdownupontheboobiesandrobbingthemofthefishtheyhavecaught。Youareonewithacrowdofmenwhohavemadewhattheycallagovernment，whoaremastersofalltheothermen，andwhoeatthefoodtheothermengetandwouldliketoeatthemselves。

Youwearthewarmclothes。Theymadetheclothes，buttheyshiverinragsandaskyou，thelawyer，orbusinessagentwhohandlesyourmoney，forajob。"

"Butthatisbesidethematter，"Icried。

"Notatall。"Hewasspeakingrapidly，now，andhiseyeswereflashing。

"Itispiggishness，anditislife。Ofwhatuseorsenseisanimmortalityofpiggishness？Whatistheend？Whatisitallabout？Youhavemadenofood。Yetthefoodyouhaveeatenorwastedmighthavesavedthelivesofascoreofwretcheswhomadethefoodbutdidnoteatit。Whatimmortalenddidyouserve？Ordidthey？Consideryourselfandme。Whatdoesyourboastedimmortalityamounttowhenyourliferunsfoulofmine？Youwouldliketogobacktotheland，whichisafavorableplaceforyourkindofpiggishness。Itisawhimofminetokeepyouaboardthisship，wheremypiggishnessflourishes。AndkeepyouIwill。Imaymakeorbreakyou。Youmaydieto—day，thisweek，ornextmonth。Icouldkillyounow，withablowofmyfist，foryouareamiserableweakling。Butifweareimmortal，whatisthereasonforthis？TobepiggishasyouandIhavebeenallourlivesdoesnotseemtobejustthethingforimmortalstobedoing。Again，what’sitallabout？WhyhaveIkeptyouhere？"

"Becauseyouarestronger，"Imanagedtoblurtout。

"Butwhystronger？"hewentonatoncewithhisperpetualqueries。"BecauseIamabiggerbitofthefermentthanyou？Don’tyousee？Don’tyousee？"

"Butthehopelessnessofit，"Iprotested。

"Iagreewithyou，"heanswered。"Thenwhymoveatall，sincemovingisliving？Withoutmovingandbeingpartoftheyeasttherewouldbenohopelessness。But，——andthereitis，——wewanttoliveandmove，thoughwehavenoreasonto，becauseithappensthatitisthenatureoflifetoliveandmove，towanttoliveandmove。Ifitwerenotforthis，lifewouldbedead。Itisbecauseofthislifethatisinyouthatyoudreamofyourimmortality。Thelifethatisinyouisaliveandwantstogoonbeingaliveforever。Bah！Aneternityofpiggishness！"

Heabruptlyturnedonhisheelandstartedforward。Hestoppedatthebreakofthepoopandcalledmetohim。

"Bytheway，howmuchwasitthatCookygotawaywith？"heasked。

"Onehundredandeighty—fivedollars，sir，"Ianswered。

Henoddedhishead。Amomentlater，asIstarteddownthecompanionstairstolaythetablefordinner，Iheardhimloudlycursingsomemenamidships。TheSeaWolf：Chapter6CHAPTER6

BythefollowingmorningthestormhadblownitselfquiteoutandtheGhostwasrollingslightlyonacalmseawithoutabreathofwind。

Occasionallightairswerefelt，however，andWolfLarsenpatrolledthepoopconstantly，hiseyeseversearchingtheseatothenortheastward，fromwhichdirectionthegreattrade—windmustblow。

Themenwereallondeckandbusypreparingtheirvariousboatsfortheseason’shunting。Therearesevenboatsaboard，thecaptain’sdingey，andthesixwhichthehunterswilluse。Three，ahunter，aboat—puller，andaboat—steerer，composeaboat’screw。Onboardtheschoonertheboat—pullersandsteerersarethecrew。Thehunters，too，aresupposedtobeincommandofthewatches，subject，always，totheordersofWolfLarsen。

Allthis，andmore，Ihavelearned。TheGhostisconsideredthefastestschoonerinboththeSanFranciscoandVictoriafleets。Infact，shewasonceaprivateyacht，andwasbuiltforspeed。Herlinesandfittings——thoughIknownothingaboutsuchthings——speakforthemselves。JohnsonwastellingmeaboutherinashortchatIhadwithhimduringyesterday’sseconddog—watch。Hespokeenthusiastically，withtheloveforafinecraftsuchassomemenfeelforhorses。Heisgreatlydisgustedwiththeoutlook，andIamgiventounderstandthatWolfLarsenbearsaveryunsavoryreputationamongthesealingcaptains。ItwastheGhostherselfthatluredJohnsonintosigningforthevoyage，butheisalreadybeginningtorepent。

Ashetoldme，theGhostisaneighty—tonschoonerofaremarkablyfinemodel。Herbeam，orwidth，istwenty—threefeet，andherlengthalittleoverninetyfeet。Aleadkeeloffabulousbutunknownweightmakesherverystable，whileshecarriesanimmensespreadofcanvas。Fromthedecktothetruckofthemaintopmastissomethingoverahundredfeet，whiletheforemastwithitstopmastiseightortenfeetshorter。Iamgivingthesedetailssothatthesizeofthislittlefloatingworldwhichholdstwenty—twomenmaybeappreciated。Itisaverylittleworld，amote，aspeck，andImarvelthatmenshoulddaretoventuretheseaonacontrivancesosmallandfragile。

WolfLarsenhas，also，areputationforrecklesscarryingonofsail。

IoverheardHendersonandanotherofthehunters，Standish，aCalifornian，talkingaboutit。TwoyearsagohedismastedtheGhostinagaleonBeringSea，whereuponthepresentmastswereputin，whicharestrongerandheavierineveryway。Heissaidtohaveremarked，whenheputthemin，thathepreferredturningherovertolosingthesticks。

Everymanaboard，withtheexceptionofJohansen，whoisratherovercomebyhispromotion，seemstohaveanexcuseforhavingsailedontheGhost。

Halfthemenforwardaredeep—watersailors，andtheirexcuseisthattheydidnotknowanythingaboutherorhercaptain。Andthosewhodoknow，whisperthatthehunters，whileexcellentshots，weresonotoriousfortheirquarrelsomeandrascallyproclivitiesthattheycouldnotsignonanydecentschooner。

Ihavemadetheacquaintanceofanotheroneofthecrew，——Louisheiscalled，arotundandjovial—facedNovaScotiaIrishman，andaverysociablefellow，pronetotalkaslongashecanfindalistener。Intheafternoon，whilethecookwasbelowasleepandIwaspeelingtheeverlastingpotatoes，Louisdroppedintothegalleyfora"yarn。"Hisexcuseforbeingaboardwasthathewasdrunkwhenhesigned。Heassuredmeagainandagainthatitwasthelastthingintheworldhewoulddreamofdoinginasobermoment。

Itseemsthathehasbeenseal—huntingregularlyeachseasonforadozenyears，andisaccountedoneofthetwoorthreeverybestboat—steerersinbothfleets。

"Ah，myboy，"heshookhisheadominouslyatme，"’tistheworstschooneryecouldivselected，norwereyedrunkatthetimeaswasI。’Tissealin’

isthesailor’sparadise——onothershipsthanthis。Thematewasthefirst，butmarkmewords，there’llbemoredeadmenbeforethetripisdonewith。Hist，now，betweenyouan’meselfandthestanchionthere，thisWolfLarsenisaregulardevil，an’theGhost’llbeahell—shiplikeshe’salwaysbensincehehadholdivher。Don’tIknow？Don’tIknow？

Don’tIrememberhiminHakodatetwoyearsgone，whenhehadarowan’

shotfourivhismen？Wasn’tIa—layin’ontheEmmaL。，notthreehundredyardsaway？An’therewasamanthesameyearhekilledwithablowivhisfist。Yes，sir，killed’imdead—oh。Hisheadmustivsmashedlikeaneggshell。An’wasn’ttheretheGovernorofKuraIsland，an’theChiefivPolice，Japanesegentlemen，sir，an’didn’ttheycomeaboardtheGhostashisguests，abringin’theirwivesalong——weean’prettylittlebitsofthingslikeyousee’empaintedonfans。An’ashewasa—gettin’

underway，didn’tthefondhusbandsgetleftastern—likeintheirsampan，asitmightbebyaccident？An’wasn’titaweeklaterthatthepoorlittleladieswasputashoreontheothersideoftheisland，withnothin’before’embuttowalkhomeacrostthemountainsontheirweeny—teenylittlestrawsandalswhichwouldn’thangtogetheramile？Don’tknow？’Tisthebeastheis，thisWolfLarsen——thegreatbigbeastmentionedivinRevelation；

an’nogoodendwillheevercometo。ButI’vesaidnothin’toye，mindye。I’vewhisperedneveraword；foroldfatLouis’lllivethevoyageoutifthelastmother’ssonofyezgotothefishes。"

"WolfLarsen！"hesnortedamomentlater。"Listentotheword，willye！Wolf——’tiswhatheis。He’snotblack—heartedlikesomemen。’Tisnohearthehasatall。Wolf，justwolf，’tiswhatheis。D’yewonderhe’swellnamed？"

"Butifheissowellknownforwhatheis，"Iqueried，"howisitthathecangetmentoshipwithhim？"

"An’howisityecangetmentodoanythingonGod’searthan’sea？"

LouisdemandedwithCelticfire。"Howd’yefindmeaboardif’twasn’tthatIwasdrunkasapigwhenIputmenamedown？There’sthemthatcan’tsailwithbettermen，likethehunters，andthemthatdon’tknow，likethepoordevilsofwind—jammersfor’ardthere。Butthey’llcometoit，they’llcometoit，an’besorrythedaytheywasborn。Icouldweepforthepoorcreatures，didIbutforgetpooroldfatLouisandthetroublesbeforehim。But’tisnotawhisperI’vedropped，mindye，notawhisper。"

"Themhuntersisthewickedboys，"hebrokeforthagain，forhesufferedfromaconstitutionalplethoraofspeech。"Butwaittilltheygettocuttingupivjinksandrowin’’round。He’stheboy’llfix’em。’Tishimthat’llputthefearofGodintheirrottenblackhearts。Lookatthathunterivmine，Horner。`Jock’Hornertheycallhim，soquiet—likean’easy—goin’，soft—spokenasagirl，tillye’dthinkbutterwouldn’tmeltinthemouthivhim。Didn’thekillhisboat—steererlastyear？’Twascalledasadaccident，butImettheboat—pullerinYokohamaan’thestraightivitwasgivenme。An’there’sSmoke，theblacklittledevil——didn’ttheRoosianshavehimforthreeyearsinthesaltminesofSiberia，forpoachin’onCopperIsland，whichisaRoosianpreserve？Shackledhewas，handan’foot，withhismate。An’didn’ttheyhavewordsoraructionofsomekind？——for’twastheotherfellowSmokesentupinthebucketstothetopofthemine；

an’apieceatthetimehewentup，alegto—day，an’to—morrowanarm，thenextdaythehead，an’soon。"

"Butyoucan’tmeanit！"Icriedout，overcomewiththehorrorofit。

"Meanwhat？"hedemanded，quickasaflash。"’Tisnothin’I’vesaid。

DeefIam，anddumb，asyeshouldbeforthesakeivyourmother；an’neveroncehaveIopenedmelipsbuttosayfinethingsivtheman’him，Godcursehissoul，an’mayherotinpurgatorytenthousandyears，andthengodowntothelastan’deepesthellivall！"

Johnson，themanwhohadchafedmerawwhenIfirstcameaboard，seemedtheleastequivocalofthemenforwardoraft。Infact，therewasnothingequivocalabouthim。Onewasstruckatoncebyhisstraightforwardnessandmanliness，which，inturn，weretemperedbyamodestywhichmightbemistakenfortimidity。Buttimidhewasnot。Heseemed，rather，tohavethecourageofhisconvictions，thecertaintyofhismanhood。Itwasthisthatmadehimprotest，atthecommencementofouracquaintance，againstbeingcalledYonson。Anduponthis，andhim，Louispassedjudgmentandprophecy。

"’Tisafinechap，thatsquareheadJohnsonwe’vefor’ardwithus，"hesaid。"Thebestsailormaninthefo’c’sle。He’smyboat—puller。Butit’stotroublehe’llcomewithWolfLarsen，asthesparksflyupward。It’smeselfthatknows。Icanseeitbrewin’an’comin’uplikeastorminthesky。I’vetalkedtohimlikeabrother，butit’slittleheseesintakin’

inhislightsorflyin’falsesignals。Hegrumblesoutwhenthingsdon’tgotosuithim，andthere’llbealwayssometelltalecarryin’wordivitafttotheWolf。TheWolfisstrong，andit’sthewayofawolftohatestrength，an’strengthitishe’llseeinJohnson——noknucklin’under，anda`Yes，sir，thankyekindly，sir，’foracurseorablow。Oh，she’sa—comin’！She’sa—comin’！An’GodknowswhereI’llgetanotherboat—puller！

Whatdoesthefoolupan’say，whentheoldmancallshimYonson，but`MenameisJohnson，sir，’an’thenspellsitout，letterforletter。Yeshouldivseentheoldman’sface！Ithoughthe’dletdriveathimonthespot。

Hedidn’t，buthewill，an’he’llbreakthatsquarehead’sheart，orit’slittleIknowivthewaysivmenontheshipsivthesea。"

ThomasMugridgeisbecomingunendurable。IamcompelledtoMisterhimandtoSirhimwitheveryspeech。OnereasonforthisisthatWolfLarsenseemstohavetakenafancytohim。Itisanunprecedentedthing，Itakeit，foracaptaintobechummywiththecook；butthisiscertainlywhatWolfLarsenisdoing。TwoorthreetimesheputhisheadintothegalleyandchaffedMugridgegood—naturedly，andonce，thisafternoon，hestoodbythebreakofthepoopandchattedwithhimforfullyfifteenminutes。

Whenitwasover，andMugridgewasbackinthegalley，hebecamegreasilyradiant，andwentabouthiswork，hummingcostersongsinanerve—rackinganddiscordantfalsetto。

"Ialwaysgetalongwiththeofficers，"heremarkedtomeinaconfidentialtone。"Iknowthew’y，Ido，tomykemyselfuppreciyted。Therewasmylastskipper——w’yIthoughtnothin’ofdroppin’downinthecabinforalittlechatandafriendlyglass。`Mugridge，’sez’etome，`Mugridge，’sez’e，`you’vemissedyervokytion。’`An’’ow’sthat？’sezI。`Yershould’abeenbornagentleman，an’never’adtoworkforyerlivin’。’Godstrikemedead，’Ump，ifthatayn’twot’esez，an’mea—sittin’therein’isowncabin，jolly—likean’comfortable，a—smokin’’iscigarsan’drinkin’’isrum。"

Thischitter—chatterdrovemetodistraction。IneverheardavoiceIhatedso。Hisoily，insinuatingtones，hisgreasysmile，andhismonstrousself—conceitgratedonmynervestillsometimesIwasallinatremble。

Positively，hewasthemostdisgustingandloathsomepersonIhaveevermet。Thefilthofhiscookingwasindescribable；and，ashecookedeverythingthatwaseatenaboard，IwascompelledtoselectwhatIatewithgreatcircumspection，choosingfromtheleastdirtyofhisconcoctions。

Myhandsbotheredmeagreatdeal，unusedastheyweretowork。Thenailswerediscoloredandblack，whiletheskinwasalreadygrainedwithdirtwhichevenascrubbing—brushcouldnotremove。Thenblisterscame，inapainfulandnever—endingprocession，andIhadagreatburnonmyforearm，acquiredbylosingmybalanceinarolloftheshipandpitchingagainstthegalleystove。Norwasmykneeanybetter。Theswellinghadnotgonedown，andthecapwasstilluponedge。Hobblingaboutonitfrommorningtonightwasnothelpingitany。WhatIneededwasrest，ifitwereevertogetwell。

Rest！Ineverbeforeknewthemeaningoftheword。Ihadbeenrestingallmylifeanddidnotknowit。Butnow，couldIsitstillforonehalf—houranddonothing，noteventhink，itwouldbethemostpleasurablethingintheworld。Butitisarevelation，ontheotherhand。Ishallbeabletoappreciatethelivesoftheworkingpeoplehereafter。Ididnotdreamthatworkwassoterribleathing。Fromhalf—pastfiveinthemorningtillteno’clockatnightIameverybody’sslave，withnotonemomenttomyself，exceptsuchasIcanstealneartheendoftheseconddog—watch。Letmepauseforaminutetolookoutovertheseasparklinginthesun，ortogazeatasailorgoingalofttothegaff—topsails，orrunningoutthebowsprit，andIamsuretohearthehatefulvoice，"’Ere，you，’Ump，nosodgerin’。

I’vegotmypeepersonyer。"

Therearesignsoframpantbadtemperinthesteerage，andthegossipisgoingaroundthatSmokeandHendersonhavehadafight。Hendersonseemsthebestofthehunters，aslow—goingfellow，andhardtorouse；butrousedhemusthavebeen，forSmokehadabruisedanddiscoloredeye，andlookedparticularlyviciouswhenhecameintothecabinforsupper。

Acruelthinghappenedjustbeforesupper，indicativeofthecallousnessandbrutishnessofthesemen。Thereisonegreenhandinthecrew，Harrisonbyname，aclumsy—lookingcountryboy，mastered，imagine，bythespiritofadventure，andmakinghisfirstvoyage。Inthelightbafflingairstheschoonerhadbeentackingaboutagreatdeal，atwhichtimesthesailspassfromonesidetotheotherandamanissentalofttoshiftoverthefore—gaff—topsail。Insomeway，whenHarrisonwasaloft，thesheetjammedintheblockthroughwhichitrunsattheendofthegaff。AsIunderstoodit，thereweretwowaysofgettingitcleared，——first，byloweringtheforesail，whichwascomparativelyeasyandwithoutdanger；andsecond，byclimbingoutthepeak—halyardstotheendofthegaffitself，anexceedinglyhazardousperformance。

JohansencalledouttoHarrisontogooutthehalyards。Itwaspatenttoeverybodythattheboywasafraid。Andwellhemightbe，eightyfeetabovethedeck，totrusthimselfonthosethinandjerkingropes。Hadtherebeenasteadybreezeitwouldnothavebeensobad，buttheGhostwasrollingemptilyinalongsea，andwitheachrollthecanvasflappedandboomedandthehalyardsslackedandjerkedtaut。Theywerecapableofsnappingamanofflikeaflyfromawhip—lash。

Harrisonheardtheorderandunderstoodwhatwasdemandedofhim，buthesitated。Itwasprobablythefirsttimehehadbeenaloftinhislife。

Johansen，whohadcaughtthecontagionofWolfLarsen’smasterfulness，burstoutwithavolleyofabuseandcurses。

"That’lldo，Johansen，"WolfLarsensaidbrusquely。"I’llhaveyouknowthatIdotheswearingonthisship。IfIneedyourassistance，I’llcallyouin。"

"Yes，sir，"themateacknowledgedsubmissively。

InthemeantimeHarrisonhadstartedoutonthehalyards。waslookingupfromthegalleydoor，andIcouldseehimtrembling，aswithague，ineverylimb。Heproceededveryslowlyandcautiously，aninchatatime。

Outlinedagainsttheclearblueofthesky，hehadtheappearanceofanenormousspidercrawlingalongthetraceryofitsweb。

Itwasaslightuphillclimb，fortheforesailpeakedhigh；andthehalyards，runningthroughvariousblocksonthegaffandmast，gavehimseparateholdsforhandsandfeet。Butthetroublelayinthatthewindwasnotstrongenoughnorsteadyenoughtokeepthesailfull。Whenhewashalfwayout，theGhosttookalongrolltowindwardandbackagainintothehollowbetweentwoseas。Harrisonceasedhisprogressandheldontightly。Eightyfeetbeneath，Icouldseetheagonizedstrainofhismusclesashegrippedforverylife。Thesailemptiedandthegaffswungamidships。Thehalyardsslackened，and，thoughitallhappenedveryquickly，Icouldseethemsagbeneaththeweightofhisbody。Thenthegaffswungtothesidewithanabruptswiftness，thegreatsailboomedlikeacannon，andthethreerowsofreef—pointsslattedagainstthecanvaslikeavolleyofrifles。Harrison，clingingon，madethegiddyrushthroughtheair。Thisrushceasedabruptly。Thehalyardsbecameinstantlytaut。

Itwasthesnapofthewhip。Hisclutchwasbroken。Onehandwastornloosefromitshold。Theotherlingereddesperatelyforamoment，andfollowed。

Hisbodypitchedoutanddown，butinsomewayhemanagedtosavehimselfwithhislegs。Hewashangingbythem，headdownward。Aquickeffortbroughthishandsuptothehalyardsagain；buthewasalongtimeregaininghisformerposition，wherehehung，apitiableobject。

"I’llbethehasnoappetiteforsupper，"IheardWolfLarsen’svoice，whichcametomefromaroundthecornerofthegalley。"Standfromunder，you，Johansen！Watchout！Hereshecomes！"

Intruth，Harrisonwasverysick，asapersonisseasick；andforalongtimeheclungtohisprecariousperchwithoutattemptingtomove。

Johansen，however，continuedviolentlytourgehimontothecompletionofhistask。

"Itisashame，"IheardJohnsongrowlinginpainfullyslowandcorrectEnglish。Hewasstandingbythemainrigging，afewfeetawayfromme。

"Theboyiswillingenough。Hewilllearnifhehasachance。Butthisis——"Hepausedawhile，fortheword"murder"washisfinaljudgment。

"Hist，willye！"Louiswhisperedtohim。"Fortheloveivyourmotherholdyourmouth！"

ButJohnson，lookingon，stillcontinuedhisgrumbling。

"Lookhere，"thehunter，Standish，spoketoWolfLarsen，"that’smyboat—puller，andIdon’twanttolosehim。"

"That’sallright，Standish，"wasthereply。"He’syourboat—pullerwhenyou’vegothimintheboat；buthe’smysailorwhenIhavehimaboard，andI’lldowhatIdamnwellpleasewithhim。"

"Butthat’snoreason——"Standishbeganinatorrentofspeech。

"That’lldo，easyasshegoes，"WolfLarsencounselledback。"I’vetoldyouwhat’swhat，andletitstopatthat。Theman’smine，andI’llmakesoupofhimandeatitifIwantto。"