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him。







〃Mr。 Sterne;〃 he said violently; 〃let me tell you



as a shipownerthat you are no better than a con…



founded fool。〃











VII







Sterne went down smirking and apparently not at



all disconcerted; but the engineer Massy remained on



the bridge; moving about with uneasy self…assertion。



Everybody on board was his inferioreveryone with…



out exception。  He paid their wages and found them in



their food。  They ate more of his bread and pocketed



more of his money than they were worth; and they had



no care in the world; while he alone had to meet all the



difficulties of shipowning。  When he contemplated his



position in all its menacing entirety; it seemed to him



that he had been for years the prey of a band of para…



sites: and for years he had scowled at everybody con…



nected with the Sofala except; perhaps; at the Chinese



firemen who served to get her along。  Their use was



manifest: they were an indispensable part of the ma…



chinery of which he was the master。







When he passed along his decks he shouldered those



he came across brutally; but the Malay deck hands had



learned to dodge out of his way。  He had to bring him…



self to tolerate them because of the necessary manual



labor of the ship which must be done。  He had to



struggle and plan and scheme to keep the Sofala afloat



and what did he get for it?  Not even enough respect。



They could not have given him enough of that if all



their thoughts and all their actions had been directed



to that end。  The vanity of possession; the vainglory



of power; had passed away by this time; and there re…



mained only the material embarrassments; the fear of



losing that position which had turned out not worth



having; and an anxiety of thought which no abject sub…



servience of men could repay。







He walked up and down。  The bridge was his own



after all。  He had paid for it; and with the stem of



the pipe in his hand he would stop short at times as



if to listen with a profound and concentrated attention



to the deadened beat of the engines (his own engines)



and the slight grinding of the steering chains upon the



continuous low wash of water alongside。  But for these



sounds; the ship might have been lying as still as if



moored to a bank; and as silent as if abandoned by every



living soul; only the coast; the low coast of mud and



mangroves with the three palms in a bunch at the back;



grew slowly more distinct in its long straight line; with…



out a single feature to arrest attention。  The native



passengers of the Sofala lay about on mats under the



awnings; the smoke of her funnel seemed the only sign



of her life and connected with her gliding motion in a



mysterious manner。







Captain Whalley on his feet; with a pair of binoculars



in his hand and the little Malay Serang at his elbow;



like an old giant attended by a wizened pigmy; was tak…



ing her over the shallow water of the bar。







This submarine ridge of mud; scoured by the stream



out of the soft bottom of the river and heaped up far



out on the hard bottom of the sea; was difficult to get



over。  The alluvial coast having no distinguishing



marks; the bearings of the crossing…place had to be



taken from the shape of the mountains inland。  The



guidance of a form flattened and uneven at the top like



a grinder tooth; and of another smooth; saddle…backed



summit; had to be searched for within the great un…



clouded glare that seemed to shift and float like a dry



fiery mist; filling the air; ascending from the water;



shrouding the distances; scorching to the eye。  In this



veil of light the near edge of the shore alone stood



out almost coal…black with an opaque and motionless



solidity。  Thirty miles away the serrated range of the



interior stretched across the horizon; its outlines and



shades of blue; faint and tremulous like a background



painted on airy gossamer on the quivering fabric of an



impalpable curtain let down to the plain of alluvial soil;



and the openings of the estuary appeared; shining



white; like bits of silver let into the square pieces snipped



clean and sharp out of the body of the land bordered



with mangroves。







On the forepart of the bridge the giant and the pigmy



muttered to each other frequently in quiet tones。  Be…



hind them Massy stood sideways with an expression of



disdain and suspense on his face。  His globular eyes



were perfectly motionless; and he seemed to have for…



gotten the long pipe he held in his hand。







On the fore…deck below the bridge; steeply roofed with



the white slopes of the awnings; a young lascar seaman



had clambered outside the rail。  He adjusted quickly



a broad band of sail canvas under his armpits; and



throwing his chest against it; leaned out far over the



water。  The sleeves of his thin cotton shirt; cut off close



to the shoulder; bared his brown arm of full rounded



form and with a satiny skin like a woman's。  He swung



it rigidly with the rotary and menacing action of a



slinger: the 14…lb。 weight hurtled circling in the air;



then suddenly flew ahead as far as the curve of the bow。



The wet thin line swished like scratched silk running



through the dark fingers of the man; and the plunge of



the lead close to the ship's side made a vanishing silvery



scar upon the golden glitter; then after an interval the



voice of the young Malay uplifted and long…drawn de…



clared the depth of the water in his own language。







〃Tiga stengah;〃 he cried after each splash and pause;



gathering the line busily for another cast。  〃Tiga



stengah;〃 which means three fathom and a half。  For



a mile or so from seaward there was a uniform depth



of water right up to the bar。  〃Half…three。  Half…



three。  Half…three;〃and his modulated cry; returned



leisurely and monotonous; like the repeated call of a



bird; seemed to float away in sunshine and disappear in



the spacious silence of the empty sea and of a lifeless



shore lying open; north and south; east and west; with…



out the stir of a single cloud…shadow or the whisper of



any other voice。







The owner…engineer of the Sofala remained very still



behind the two seamen of different race; creed; and



color; the European with the time…defying vigor of



his old frame; the little Malay; old; too; but slight and



shrunken like a withered brown leaf blown by a chance



wind under the mighty shadow of the other。  Very



busy looking forward at the land; they had not a glance



to spare; and Massy; glaring at them from behind;



seemed to resent their attention to their duty like a per…



sonal slight upon himself。







This was unreasonable; but he had lived in his own



world of unreasonable resentments for many years。  At



last; passing his moist palm over the rare lanky wisps



of coarse hair on the top of his yellow head; he began



to talk slowly。







〃A leadsman; you want!  I suppose that's your cor…



rect mail…boat style。  Haven't you enough judgment



to tell where you are by looking at the land?  Why;



before I had been a twelvemonth in the trade I was up



to that trickand I am only an engineer。  I can point



to you from here where the bar is; and I could tell you



besides that you are as likely as not to stick her in the



mud in about five minutes from now; only you would



call it interfering; I suppose。  And there's that written



agreement of ours; that says I mustn't interfere。〃







His voice stopped。  Captain Whalley; without relax…



ing the set severity of his features; moved his lips to ask



in a quick mumble







〃How near; Serang?〃







〃Very near now; Tuan;〃 the Malay muttered rapidly。







〃Dead slow;〃 said the Captain aloud in a firm tone。







The Serang snatched at the handle of the telegraph。



A gong clanged down below。  Massy with a scornful



snigger walked off and put his head down the engine…



room skylight。







〃You may expect some rare fooling with the engines;



Jack;〃 he bellowed。  The space into which he stared was



deep and full of gloom; and the gray gleams of steel



down there seemed cool after the intense glare of the



sea around the ship。  The air; however; came up clammy



and hot on his face。  A short hoot on which it would



have been impossible to put any sort of interpretation



came from the bottom cavernously。  This was the way



in which the second enginee

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