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A plank or two creaked under a heavy tread; he swung



half round on the music…stool; listening with his finger…



tips at rest on the keyboard。  His little terrier barked



violently; backing in from the veranda。  A deep voice



apologized gravely for 〃this intrusion。〃  He walked out



quickly。







At the head of the steps the patriarchal figure; who



was the new captain of the Sofala apparently (he had



seen a round dozen of them; but not one of that sort);



towered without advancing。  The little dog barked un…



ceasingly; till a flick of Mr。 Van Wyk's handkerchief



made him spring aside into silence。  Captain Whalley;



opening the matter; was met by a punctiliously polite



but determined opposition。







They carried on their discussion standing where they



had come face to face。  Mr。 Van Wyk observed his



visitor with attention。  Then at last; as if forced out of



his reserve







〃I am surprised that you should intercede for such a



confounded fool。〃







This outbreak was almost complimentary; as if its



meaning had been; 〃That such a man as you should



intercede!〃  Captain Whalley let it pass by without



flinching。  One would have thought he had heard noth…



ing。  He simply went on to state that he was personally



interested in putting things straight between them。



Personally 。 。 。







But Mr。 Van Wyk; really carried away by his disgust



with Massy; became very incisive







〃Indeedif I am to be frank with youhis whole



character does not seem to me particularly estimable or



trustworthy 。 。 。〃







Captain Whalley; always straight; seemed to grow an



inch taller and broader; as if the girth of his chest had



suddenly expanded under his beard。







〃My dear sir; you don't think I came here to discuss



a man with whom I amI amh'mclosely asso…



ciated。〃







A sort of solemn silence lasted for a moment。  He was



not used to asking favors; but the importance he at…



tached to this affair had made him willing to try。 。 。 。



Mr。 Van Wyk; favorably impressed; and suddenly mol…



lified by a desire to laugh; interrupted







〃That's all right if you make it a personal matter;



but you can do no less than sit down and smoke a cigar



with me。〃







A slight pause; then Captain Whalley stepped forward



heavily。  As to the regularity of the service; for the



future he made himself responsible for it; and his name



was Whalleyperhaps to a sailor (he was speaking to



a sailor; was he not?) not altogether unfamiliar。  There



was a lighthouse now; on an island。  Maybe Mr。 Van



Wyk himself 。 。 。







〃Oh yes。  Oh indeed。〃  Mr。 Van Wyk caught on at



once。  He indicated a chair。  How very interesting。



For his own part he had seen some service in the last



Acheen War; but had never been so far East。  Whalley



Island?  Of course。  Now that was very interesting。



What changes his guest must have seen since。







〃I can look further back evenon a whole half…



century。〃







Captain Whalley expanded a bit。  The flavor of a



good cigar (it was a weakness) had gone straight to his



heart; also the civility of that young man。  There was



something in that accidental contact of which he had



been starved in his years of struggle。







The front wall retreating made a square recess fur…



nished like a room。  A lamp with a milky glass shade;



suspended below the slope of the high roof at the end



of a slender brass chain; threw a bright round of light



upon a little table bearing an open book and an ivory



paper…knife。  And; in the translucent shadows beyond;



other tables could be seen; a number of easy…chairs of



various shapes; with a great profusion of skin rugs



strewn on the teakwood planking all over the veranda。



The flowering creepers scented the air。  Their foliage



clipped out between the uprights made as if several



frames of thick unstirring leaves reflecting the lamp…



light in a green glow。  Through the opening at his



elbow Captain Whalley could see the gangway lantern



of the Sofala burning dim by the shore; the shadowy



masses of the town beyond the open lustrous darkness



of the river; and; as if hung along the straight edge



of the projecting eaves; a narrow black strip of the



night sky full of starsresplendent。  The famous cigar



in hand he had a moment of complacency。







〃A trifle。  Somebody must lead the way。  I just



showed that the thing could be done; but you men



brought up to the use of steam cannot conceive the



vast importance of my bit of venturesomeness to



the Eastern trade of the time。  Why; that new route



reduced the average time of a southern passage by



eleven days for more than half the year。  Eleven days!



It's on record。  But the remarkable thingspeaking



to a sailorI should say was 。 。 。〃







He talked well; without egotism; professionally。  The



powerful voice; produced without effort; filled the



bungalow even into the empty rooms with a deep and



limpid resonance; seemed to make a stillness outside;



and Mr。 Van Wyk was surprised by the serene quality



of its tone; like the perfection of manly gentleness。



Nursing one small foot; in a silk sock and a patent



leather shoe; on his knee; he was immensely entertained。



It was as if nobody could talk like this now; and the



overshadowed eyes; the flowing white beard; the big



frame; the serenity; the whole temper of the man; were



an amazing survival from the prehistoric times of the



world coming up to him out of the sea。







Captain Whalley had been also the pioneer of the early



trade in the Gulf of Pe…tchi…li。  He even found occasion



to mention that he had buried his 〃dear wife〃 there



six…and…twenty years ago。  Mr。 Van Wyk; impassive;



could not help speculating in his mind swiftly as to



the sort of woman that would mate with such a man。



Did they make an adventurous and well…matched pair?



No。  Very possible she had been small; frail; no doubt



very feminineor most likely commonplace with do…



mestic instincts; utterly insignificant。  But Captain



Whalley was no garrulous bore; and shaking his head



as if to dissipate the momentary gloom that had settled



on his handsome old face; he alluded conversationally to



Mr。 Van Wyk's solitude。







Mr。 Van Wyk affirmed that sometimes he had more



company than he wanted。  He mentioned smilingly



some of the peculiarities of his intercourse with 〃My



Sultan。〃  He made his visits in force。  Those people



damaged his grass plot in front (it was not easy to



obtain some approach to a lawn in the tropics; and the



other day had broken down some rare bushes he had



planted over there。  And Captain Whalley remembered



immediately that; in 'forty…seven; the then Sultan; 〃this



man's grandfather;〃 had been notorious as a great pro…



tector of the piratical fleets of praus from farther East。



They had a safe refuge in the river at Batu Beru。  He



financed more especially a Balinini chief called Haji



Daman。  Captain Whalley; nodding significantly his



bushy white eyebrows; had very good reason to know



something of that。  The world had progressed since



that time。







Mr。 Van Wyk demurred with unexpected acrimony。



Progressed in what? he wanted to know。







Why; in knowledge of truth; in decency; in justice; in



orderin honesty too; since men harmed each other



mostly from ignorance。  It was; Captain Whalley con…



cluded quaintly; more pleasant to live in。







Mr。 Van Wyk whimsically would not admit that Mr。



Massy; for instance; was more pleasant naturally than



the Balinini pirates。







The river had not gained much by the change。  They



were in their way every bit as honest。  Massy was less



ferocious than Haji Daman no doubt; but 。 。 。







〃And what about you; my good sir?〃  Captain



Whalley laughed a deep soft laugh。  〃YOU are an im…



provement; surely。〃







He continued in a vein of pleasantry。  A good cigar



was better than a knock on the headthe sort of wel…



come he would have found on this river forty or fifty



years ago。  Then leaning forward slightly; he became



earnestly serious。  It seems as if; outside their own sea…



gypsy tribes; these rovers had hated all mankind with



an incomprehensible; bloodthirsty hatred。  Meantime



their depredations had been stopped; and what was the



consequence?  The new generation was orderly; peace…



able; settled 

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