第1章

byJosephConrad\"……ButtheDwarfanswered：No； somethinghumanisdearertomethanthewealthofalltheworld。\"GRIMM’STALES。 TOMYWIFE YOUTH：ANARRATIVE THIScouldhaveoccurrednowherebutinEngland，wheremenandseainterpenetrate，sotospeak——theseaenteringintothelifeofmostmen，andthemenknow— ingsomethingoreverythingaboutthesea，inthewayofamusement，oftravel，orofbread—winning。 Weweresittingroundamahoganytablethatreflectedthebottle，theclaret—glasses，andourfacesasweleanedonourelbows。Therewasadirectorofcompanies，anaccountant，alawyer，Marlow，andmyself。Thedirec— torhadbeenaCONWAYboy，theaccountanthadservedfouryearsatsea，thelawyer——afinecrustedTory，HighChurchman，thebestofoldfellows，thesoulofhonor—— hadbeenchiefofficerintheP。&；O。serviceinthegoodolddayswhenmail—boatsweresquare—riggedatleastontwomasts，andusedtocomedowntheChinaSeabeforeafairmonsoonwithstun’—sailssetalowandaloft。Weallbeganlifeinthemerchantservice。Betweenthefiveofustherewasthestrongbondofthesea，andalsothefellowshipofthecraft，whichnoamountofenthusiasmforyachting，cruising，andsooncangive，sinceoneisonlytheamusementoflifeandtheotherislifeitself。 Marlow（atleastIthinkthatishowhespelthisname） toldthestory，orratherthechronicle，ofavoyage： \"Yes，IhaveseenalittleoftheEasternseas；butwhatIrememberbestismyfirstvoyagethere。Youfellowsknowtherearethosevoyagesthatseemorderedfortheillustrationoflife，thatmightstandforasymbolofexistence。Youfight，work，sweat，nearlykillyourself，sometimesdokillyourself，tryingtoaccomplishsome— thing——andyoucan’t。Notfromanyfaultofyours。 Yousimplycandonothing，neithergreatnorlittle—— notathingintheworld——notevenmarryanoldmaid，orgetawretched600—toncargoofcoaltoitsportofdesti— nation。 \"Itwasaltogetheramemorableaffair。ItwasmyfirstvoyagetotheEast，andmyfirstvoyageassecondmate；itwasalsomyskipper’sfirstcommand。You’lladmititwastime。Hewassixtyifaday；alittleman，withabroad，notverystraightback，withbowedshoul— dersandonelegmorebandythantheother，hehadthatqueertwisted—aboutappearanceyouseesoofteninmenwhoworkinthefields。Hehadanut—crackerface——chinandnosetryingtocometogetheroverasunkenmouth—— anditwasframediniron—grayfluffyhair，thatlookedlikeachinstrapofcotton—woolsprinkledwithcoal—dust。 Andhehadblueeyesinthatoldfaceofhis，whichwereamazinglylikeaboy’s，withthatcandidexpressionsomequitecommonmenpreservetotheendoftheirdaysbyarareinternalgiftofsimplicityofheartandrectitudeofsoul。Whatinducedhimtoacceptmewasawonder。 IhadcomeoutofacrackAustralianclipper，whereI hadbeenthirdofficer，andheseemedtohaveaprejudiceagainstcrackclippersasaristocraticandhigh—toned。 Hesaidtome，’Youknow，inthisshipyouwillhavetowork。’IsaidIhadtoworkineveryshipIhadeverbeenin。’Ah，butthisisdifferent，andyougentlemenoutofthembigships；……butthere！Idaresayyouwilldo。Jointo—morrow。’ \"Ijoinedto—morrow。Itwastwenty—twoyearsago； andIwasjusttwenty。Howtimepasses！Itwasoneofthehappiestdaysofmylife。Fancy！Secondmateforthefirsttime——areallyresponsibleofficer！Iwouldn’thavethrownupmynewbilletforafortune。Thematelookedmeovercarefully。Hewasalsoanoldchap，butofanotherstamp。HehadaRomannose，asnow—white，longbeard，andhisnamewasMahon，butheinsistedthatitshouldbepronouncedMann。Hewaswellconnected； yettherewassomethingwrongwithhisluck，andhehadnevergoton。 \"Astothecaptain，hehadbeenforyearsincoasters，thenintheMediterranean，andlastintheWestIndiantrade。HehadneverbeenroundtheCapes。Hecouldjustwriteakindofsketchyhand，anddidn’tcareforwritingatall。Bothwerethoroughgoodseamenofcourse，andbetweenthosetwooldchapsIfeltlikeasmallboybetweentwograndfathers。 \"Theshipalsowasold。HernamewastheJudea。 Queername，isn’tit？ShebelongedtoamanWilmer，Wilcox——somenamelikethat；buthehasbeenbankruptanddeadthesetwentyyearsormore，andhisnamedon’tmatter。ShehadbeenlaidupinShadwellbasinforeversolong。Youcanimagineherstate。Shewasallrust，dust，grime——sootaloft，dirtondeck。Tomeitwaslikecomingoutofapalaceintoaruinedcottage。Shewasabout400tons，hadaprimitivewindlass，woodenlatchestothedoors，notabitofbrassabouther，andabigsquarestern。Therewasonit，belowhernameinbigletters，alotofscrollwork，withthegiltoff，andsomesortofacoatofarms，withthemotto’DoorDie’under— neath。Irememberittookmyfancyimmensely。Therewasatouchofromanceinit，somethingthatmademelovetheoldthing——somethingthatappealedtomyyouth！ \"WeleftLondoninballast——sandballast——toloadacargoofcoalinanorthernportforBankok。Bankok！ Ithrilled。Ihadbeensixyearsatsea，buthadonlyseenMelbourneandSydney，verygoodplaces，charmingplacesintheirway——butBankok！ \"WeworkedoutoftheThamesundercanvas，withaNorthSeapilotonboard。HisnamewasJermyn，andhedodgedalldaylongaboutthegalleydryinghishand— kerchiefbeforethestove。Apparentlyheneverslept。 Hewasadismalman，withaperpetualtearsparklingattheendofhisnose，whoeitherhadbeenintrouble，orwasintrouble，orexpectedtobeintrouble——couldn’tbehappyunlesssomethingwentwrong。Hemistrustedmyyouth，mycommon—sense，andmyseamanship，andmadeapointofshowingitinahundredlittleways。I daresayhewasright。ItseemstomeIknewverylittlethen，andIknownotmuchmorenow；butIcherishahateforthatJermyntothisday。 \"WewereaweekworkingupasfarasYarmouthRoads，andthenwegotintoagale——thefamousOctobergaleoftwenty—twoyearsago。Itwaswind，lightning，sleet，snow，andaterrificsea。Wewereflyinglight，andyoumayimaginehowbaditwaswhenItellyouwehadsmashedbulwarksandafloodeddeck。Onthesecondnightsheshiftedherballastintotheleebow，andbythattimewehadbeenblownoffsomewhereontheDoggerBank。Therewasnothingforitbutgobelowwithshovelsandtrytorighther，andtherewewereinthatvasthold，gloomylikeacavern，thetallowdipsstuckandflickeringonthebeams，thegalehowlingabove，theshiptossingaboutlikemadonherside；thereweallwere，Jermyn，thecaptain，everyone，hardlyabletokeepourfeet，engagedonthatgravedigger’swork，andtry— ingtotossshovelfulsofwetsanduptowindward。Ateverytumbleoftheshipyoucouldseevaguelyinthedimlightmenfallingdownwithagreatflourishofshov— els。Oneoftheship’sboys（wehadtwo），impressedbytheweirdnessofthescene，weptasifhisheartwouldbreak。Wecouldhearhimblubberingsomewhereintheshadows。 \"Onthethirddaythegalediedout，andby—and—byanorth—countrytugpickedusup。WetooksixteendaysinalltogetfromLondontotheTyne！Whenwegotintodockwehadlostourturnforloading，andtheyhauledusofftoatierwhereweremainedforamonth。 Mrs。Beard（thecaptain’snamewasBeard）camefromColchestertoseetheoldman。Shelivedonboard。Thecrewofrunnershadleft，andthereremainedonlytheofficers，oneboy，andthesteward，amulattowhoan— sweredtothenameofAbraham。Mrs。Beardwasanoldwoman，witharaceallwrinkledandruddylikeawinterapple，andthefigureofayounggirl。Shecaughtsightofmeonce，sewingonabutton，andinsistedonhavingmyshirtstorepair。Thiswassomethingdifferentfromthecaptains’wivesIhadknownonboardcrackclippers。 WhenIbroughthertheshirts，shesaid：’Andthesocks？Theywantmending，Iamsure，andJohn’s—— CaptainBeard’s——thingsareallinordernow。Iwouldbegladofsomethingtodo。’Blesstheoldwoman。Sheoverhauledmyoutfitforme，andmeantimeIreadforthefirsttime’SartorResartus’andBurnaby’s’RidetoKhiva。’Ididn’tunderstandmuchofthefirstthen； butIrememberIpreferredthesoldiertothephilosopheratthetime；apreferencewhichlifehasonlyconfirmed。 Onewasaman，andtheotherwaseithermore——orless。 However，theyarebothdead，andMrs。Beardisdead，andyouth，strength，genius，thoughts，achievements，simplehearts——alldie……Nomatter。 \"Theyloadedusatlast。Weshippedacrew。Eightableseamenandtwoboys。Wehauledoffoneeveningtothebuoysatthedock—gates，readytogoout，andwithafairprospectofbeginningthevoyagenextday。Mrs。 Beardwastostartforhomebyalatetrain。Whentheshipwasfastwewenttotea。Wesatrathersilentthroughthemeal——Mahon，theoldcouple，andI。I finishedfirst，andslippedawayforasmoke，mycabinbeinginadeck—housejustagainstthepoop。Itwashighwater，blowingfreshwithadrizzle；thedoubledock— gateswereopened，andthesteamcolliersweregoinginandoutinthedarknesswiththeirlightsburningbright，agreatplashingofpropellers，rattlingofwinches，andalotofhailingonthepier—heads。Iwatchedtheprocessionofhead—lightsglidinghighandofgreenlightsglidinglowinthenight，whensuddenlyaredgleamflashedatme，vanished，cameintoviewagain，andremained。Thefore—endofasteamerloomedupclose。 Ishouteddownthecabin，’Comeup，quick！’andthenheardastartledvoicesayingafarinthedark，’Stopher，sir。’Abelljingled。Anothervoicecriedwarningly，’Wearegoingrightintothatbark，sir。’Theanswertothiswasagruff’Allright，’andthenextthingwasaheavycrashasthesteamerstruckaglancingblowwiththebluffofherbowaboutourfore—rigging。Therewasamomentofconfusion，yelling，andrunningabout。 Steamroared。Thensomebodywasheardsaying，’Allclear，sir。’……’Areyouallright？’askedthegruffvoice。Ihadjumpedforwardtoseethedamage，andhailedback，’Ithinkso。’’Easyastern，’saidthegruffvoice。Abelljingled。’Whatsteameristhat？’ screamedMahon。Bythattimeshewasnomoretousthanabulkyshadowmaneuveringalittlewayoff。Theyshoutedatussomename——awoman’sname，MirandaorMelissa——orsomesuchthing。’Thismeansanothermonthinthisbeastlyhole，’saidMahontome，aswepeeredwithlampsaboutthesplinteredbulwarksandbrokenbraces。’Butwhere’sthecaptain？’ \"Wehadnotheardorseenanythingofhimallthattime。Wewentafttolook。Adolefulvoicearosehail— ingsomewhereinthemiddleofthedock，’Judeaahoy！’……Howthedevildidhegetthere？……’Hallo！’ weshouted。’Iamadriftinourboatwithoutoars，’hecried。Abelatedwatermanofferedhisservices，andMahonstruckabargainwithhimforhalf—a—crowntotowourskipperalongside；butitwasMrs。Beardthatcameuptheladderfirst。Theyhadbeenfloatingaboutthedockinthatmizzlycoldrainfornearlyanhour。I wasneversosurprisedinmylife。 \"Itappearsthatwhenheheardmyshout’Comeup，’ heunderstoodatoncewhatwasthematter，caughtuphiswife，ranondeck，andacross，anddownintoourboat，whichwasfasttotheladder。Notbadforasixty—year— old。Justimaginethatoldfellowsavingheroicallyinhisarmsthatoldwoman——thewomanofhislife。Hesetherdownonathwart，andwasreadytoclimbbackonboardwhenthepaintercameadriftsomehow，andawaytheywenttogether。Ofcourseintheconfusionwedidnothearhimshouting。Helookedabashed。Shesaidcheerfully，’Isupposeitdoesnotmattermylosingthetrainnow？’’No，Jenny——yougobelowandgetwarm，’hegrowled。Thentous：’Asailorhasnobusi— nesswithawife——Isay。ThereIwas，outoftheship。 Well，noharmdonethistime。Let’sgoandlookatwhatthatfoolofasteamersmashed。’ \"Itwasn’tmuch，butitdelayedusthreeweeks。Attheendofthattime，thecaptainbeingengagedwithhisagents，IcarriedMrs。Beard’sbagtotherailway—sta— tionandputherallcomfyintoathird—classcarriage。 Sheloweredthewindowtosay，’Youareagoodyoungman。IfyouseeJohn——CaptainBeard——withouthismuffleratnight，justremindhimfrommetokeephisthroatwellwrappedup。’’Certainly，Mrs。Beard，’I said。’Youareagoodyoungman；Inoticedhowat— tentiveyouaretoJohn——toCaptain——’Thetrainpulledoutsuddenly；Itookmycapofftotheoldwoman：Ineversawheragain……Passthebottle。 \"Wewenttoseanextday。WhenwemadethatstartforBankokwehadbeenalreadythreemonthsoutofLondon。Wehadexpectedtobeafortnightorso——attheoutside。 \"ItwasJanuary，andtheweatherwasbeautiful——thebeautifulsunnywinterweatherthathasmorecharmthaninthesummer—time，becauseitisunexpected，andcrisp，andyouknowitwon’t，itcan’t，lastlong。It’slikeawindfall，likeagodsend，likeanunexpectedpieceofluck。 \"ItlastedalldowntheNorthSea，alldownChannel； anditlastedtillwewerethreehundredmilesorsotothewestwardoftheLizards：thenthewindwentroundtothesou’westandbegantopipeup。Intwodaysitblewagale。TheJudea，hoveto，wallowedontheAtlanticlikeanoldcandlebox。Itblewdayafterday：itblewwithspite，withoutinterval，withoutmercy，withoutrest。 Theworldwasnothingbutanimmensityofgreatfoam— ingwavesrushingatus，underaskylowenoughtotouchwiththehandanddirtylikeasmokedceiling。Inthestormyspacesurroundingustherewasasmuchflyingsprayasair。Dayafterdayandnightafternighttherewasnothingroundtheshipbutthehowlofthewind，thetumultofthesea，thenoiseofwaterpouringoverherdeck。Therewasnorestforherandnorestforus。 Shetossed，shepitched，shestoodonherhead，shesatonhertail，sherolled，shegroaned，andwehadtoholdonwhileondeckandclingtoourbunkswhenbelow，inaconstanteffortofbodyandworryofmind。 \"OnenightMahonspokethroughthesmallwindowofmyberth。Itopenedrightintomyverybed，andI waslyingtheresleepless，inmyboots，feelingasthoughIhadnotsleptforyears，andcouldnotifItried。Hesaidexcitedly—— \"’Yougotthesounding—rodinhere，Marlow？Ican’tgetthepumpstosuck。ByGod！it’snochild’splay。’ \"Igavehimthesounding—rodandlaydownagain，tryingtothinkofvariousthings——butIthoughtonlyofthepumps。WhenIcameondecktheywerestillatit，andmywatchrelievedatthepumps。Bythelightofthelanternbroughtondecktoexaminethesounding— rodIcaughtaglimpseoftheirweary，seriousfaces。 Wepumpedallthefourhours。Wepumpedallnight，allday，alltheweek，——watchandwatch。Shewaswork— ingherselfloose，andleakedbadly——notenoughtodrownusatonce，butenoughtokilluswiththeworkatthepumps。Andwhilewepumpedtheshipwasgoingfromuspiecemeal：thebulwarkswent，thestanchionsweretornout，theventilatorssmashed，thecabin—doorburstin。Therewasnotadryspotintheship。Shewasbeingguttedbitbybit。Thelong—boatchanged，asifbymagic，intomatchwoodwhereshestoodinhergripes。 Ihadlashedhermyself，andwasratherproudofmyhandiwork，whichhadwithstoodsolongthemaliceofthesea。Andwepumped。Andtherewasnobreakintheweather。Theseawaswhitelikeasheetoffoam，likeacaldronofboilingmilk；therewasnotabreakintheclouds，no——notthesizeofaman’shand——no，notforsomuchastenseconds。Therewasforusnosky，therewereforusnostars，nosun，nouniverse——nothingbutangrycloudsandaninfuriatedsea。Wepumpedwatchandwatch，fordearlife；anditseemedtolastformonths，foryears，foralleternity，asthoughwehadbeendeadandgonetoahellforsailors。Weforgotthedayoftheweek，thenameofthemonth，whatyearitwas，andwhetherwehadeverbeenashore。Thesailsblewaway，shelaybroadsideonunderaweather—cloth，theoceanpouredoverher，andwedidnotcare。Weturnedthosehandles，andhadtheeyesofidiots。AssoonaswehadcrawledondeckIusedtotakearoundturnwitharopeaboutthemen，thepumps，andthemainmast，andweturned，weturnedincessantly，withthewatertoourwaists，toournecks，overourheads。Itwasallone。 Wehadforgottenhowitfelttobedry。 \"Andtherewassomewhereinmethethought：ByJove！thisisthedeuceofanadventure——somethingyoureadabout；anditismyfirstvoyageassecondmate—— andIamonlytwenty——andhereIamlastingitoutaswellasanyofthesemen，andkeepingmychapsuptothemark。Iwaspleased。Iwouldnothavegivenuptheexperienceforworlds。Ihadmomentsofexultation。 Whenevertheolddismantledcraftpitchedheavilywithhercounterhighintheair，sheseemedtometothrowup，likeanappeal，likeadefiance，likeacrytothecloudswithoutmercy，thewordswrittenonherstern：’Judea，London。DoorDie。’ \"Oyouth！Thestrengthofit，thefaithofit，theimaginationofit！Tomeshewasnotanoldrattle—trapcartingabouttheworldalotofcoalforafreight——tomeshewastheendeavor，thetest，thetrialoflife。I thinkofherwithpleasure，withaffection，withregret—— asyouwouldthinkofsomeonedeadyouhaveloved。I shallneverforgether……Passthebottle。 \"Onenightwhentiedtothemast，asIexplained，wewerepumpingon，deafenedwiththewind，andwithoutspiritenoughinustowishourselvesdead，aheavyseacrashedaboardandsweptcleanoverus。AssoonasI gotmybreathIshouted，asindutybound，’Keepon，boys！’whensuddenlyIfeltsomethinghardfloatingondeckstrikethecalfofmyleg。Imadeagrabatitandmissed。Itwassodarkwecouldnotseeeachother’sfaceswithinafoot——youunderstand。 \"Afterthatthumptheshipkeptquietforawhile，andthething，whateveritwas，struckmylegagain。 ThistimeIcaughtit——anditwasasauce—pan。Atfirst，beingstupidwithfatigueandthinkingofnothingbutthepumps，IdidnotunderstandwhatIhadinmyhand。 Suddenlyitdawneduponme，andIshouted，’Boys，thehouseondeckisgone。Leavethis，andlet’slookforthecook。’ \"Therewasadeck—houseforward，whichcontainedthegalley，thecook’sberth，andthequartersofthecrew。Aswehadexpectedfordaystoseeitsweptaway，thehandshadbeenorderedtosleepinthecabin——theonlysafeplaceintheship。Thesteward，Abraham，however，persistedinclingingtohisberth，stupidly，likeamule——fromsheerfrightIbelieve，likeananimalthaton’tleaveastablefallinginanearthquake。Sowewenttolookforhim。Itwaschancingdeath，sinceonceoutofourlashingswewereasexposedasifonaraft。 Butwewent。Thehousewasshatteredasifashellhadexplodedinside。Mostofithadgoneoverboard——stove，men’squarters，andtheirproperty，allwasgone；buttwoposts，holdingaportionofthebulkheadtowhichAbraham’sbunkwasattached，remainedasifbyamir— acle。Wegropedintheruinsandcameuponthis，andtherehewas，sittinginhisbunk，surroundedbyfoamandwreckage，jabberingcheerfullytohimself。Hewasoutofhismind；completelyandforevermad，withthissuddenshockcominguponthefag—endofhisendurance。 Wesnatchedhimup，luggedhimaft，andpitchedhimhead—firstdownthecabincompanion。Youunderstandtherewasnotimetocarryhimdownwithinfinitepre— cautionsandwaittoseehowhegoton。Thosebelowwouldpickhimupatthebottomofthestairsallright。 Wewereinahurrytogobacktothepumps。Thatbusi— nesscouldnotwait。Abadleakisaninhumanthing。 \"Onewouldthinkthatthesolepurposeofthatfiend— ishgalehadbeentomakealunaticofthatpoordevilofamulatto。Iteasedbeforemorning，andnextdaytheskycleared，andastheseawentdowntheleaktookup。 Whenitcametobendingafreshsetofsailsthecrewdemandedtoputback——andreallytherewasnothingelsetodo。Boatsgone，deckssweptclean，cabingutted，menwithoutastitchbutwhattheystoodin，storesspoiled，shipstrained。Weputherheadforhome，and——wouldyoubelieveit？Thewindcameeastrightinourteeth。 Itblewfresh，itblewcontinuously。Wehadtobeatupeveryinchoftheway，butshedidnotleaksobadly，thewaterkeepingcomparativelysmooth。Twohours’ pumpingineveryfourisnojoke——butitkeptherafloatasfarasFalmouth。 \"Thegoodpeoplethereliveoncasualtiesofthesea，andnodoubtweregladtoseeus。Ahungrycrowdofshipwrightssharpenedtheirchiselsatthesightofthatcarcassofaship。And，byJove！theyhadprettypick— ingsoffusbeforetheyweredone。Ifancytheownerwasalreadyinatightplace。Thereweredelays。Thenitwasdecidedtotakepartofthecargooutandcalkhertopsides。Thiswasdone，therepairsfinished，cargore— shipped；anewcrewcameonboard，andwewentout—— forBankok。Attheendofaweekwewerebackagain。 Thecrewsaidtheyweren’tgoingtoBankok——ahundredandfiftydays’passage——inasomethinghookerthatwantedpumpingeighthoursoutofthetwenty—four； andthenauticalpapersinsertedagainthelittlepara— graph：’Judea。Bark。TynetoBankok；coals；putbacktoFalmouthleakyandwithcrewrefusingduty。’ \"Thereweremoredelays——moretinkering。Theownercamedownforaday，andsaidshewasasrightasalittlefiddle。PooroldCaptainBeardlookedliketheghostofaGeordieskipper——throughtheworryandhumiliationofit。Rememberhewassixty，anditwashisfirstcommand。Mahonsaiditwasafoolishbusiness，andwouldendbadly。Ilovedtheshipmorethanever，andwantedawfullytogettoBankok。ToBankok！ Magicname，blessedname。Mesopotamiawasn’tapatchnit。RememberIwastwenty，anditwasmyfirstsecondmate’sbillet，andtheEastwaswaitingforme。 \"Wewentoutandanchoredintheouterroadswithafreshcrew——thethird。Sheleakedworsethanever。 Itwasasifthoseconfoundedshipwrightshadactuallymadeaholeinher。Thistimewedidnotevengooutside。Thecrewsimplyrefusedtomanthewindlass。 \"Theytowedusbacktotheinnerharbor，andwebe— cameafixture，afeature，aninstitutionoftheplace。 Peoplepointedusouttovisitorsas’That’erebarkthat’sgoingtoBankok——hasbeenheresixmonths——putbackthreetimes。’Onholidaysthesmallboyspullingaboutinboatswouldhail，’Judea，ahoy！’andifaheadshowedabovetherailshouted，’Whereyouboundto？—— Bankok？’andjeered。Wewereonlythreeonboard。 Thepooroldskippermoonedinthecabin。Mahonun— dertookthecooking，andunexpectedlydevelopedallaFrenchman’sgeniusforpreparingnicelittlemesses。I lookedlanguidlyaftertherigging。WebecamecitizensofFalmouth。Everyshopkeeperknewus。Atthebar— ber’sortobacconist’stheyaskedfamiliarly，’DoyouthinkyouwillevergettoBankok？’Meantimetheowner，theunderwriters，andthechartererssquabbledamongstthemselvesinLondon，andourpaywenton……Passthebottle。 \"Itwashorrid。Morallyitwasworsethanpumpingforlife。Itseemedasthoughwehadbeenforgottenbytheworld，belongedtonobody，wouldgetnowhere；itseemedthat，asifbewitched，wewouldhavetoliveforeverandeverinthatinnerharbor，aderisionandaby— wordtogenerationsoflong—shoreloafersanddishonestboatmen。Iobtainedthreemonths’payandafivedays’ leave，andmadearushforLondon。Ittookmeadaytogetthereandprettywellanothertocomeback——butthreemonths’paywentallthesame。Idon’tknowwhatIdidwithit。Iwenttoamusic—hall，Ibelieve，lunched，dined，andsuppedinaswellplaceinRegentStreet，andwasbacktotime，withnothingbutacompletesetofByron’sworksandanewrailwayrugtoshowforthreemonths’work。Theboatmanwhopulledmeofftotheshipsaid：’Hallo！Ithoughtyouhadlefttheoldthing。 SHEwillnevergettoBankok。’’That’sallYOUknowaboutit，’Isaidscornfully——butIdidn’tlikethatproph— ecyatall。 \"Suddenlyaman，somekindofagenttosomebody，appearedwithfullpowers。Hehadgrogblossomsalloverhisface，anindomitableenergy，andwasajollysoul。Weleapedintolifeagain。Ahulkcamealong— side，tookourcargo，andthenwewentintodrydocktogetourcopperstripped。Nowondersheleaked。Thepoorthing，strainedbeyondendurancebythegale，had，asifindisgust，spatoutalltheoakumofherlowerseams。Shewasrecalked，newcoppered，andmadeastightasabottle。Wewentbacktothehulkandre— shippedourcargo。 \"Thenonafinemoonlightnight，alltheratslefttheship。 \"Wehadbeeninfestedwiththem。Theyhaddestroyedoursails，consumedmorestoresthanthecrew，affablysharedourbedsandourdangers，andnow，whentheshipwasmadeseaworthy，concludedtoclearout。I calledMahontoenjoythespectacle。Ratafterratap— pearedonourrail，tookalastlookoverhisshoulder，andleapedwithahollowthudintotheemptyhulk。 Wetriedtocountthem，butsoonlostthetale。Mahonsaid：’Well，well！don’ttalktomeabouttheintelligenceofrats。Theyoughttohaveleftbefore，whenwehadthatnarrowsqueakfromfoundering。Thereyouhavetheproofhowsillyisthesuperstitionaboutthem。Theyleaveagoodshipforanoldrottenhulk，wherethereisnothingtoeat，too，thefools！……Idon’tbelievetheyknowwhatissafeorwhatisgoodforthem，anymorethanyouorI。’ \"Andaftersomemoretalkweagreedthatthewisdomofratshadbeengrosslyoverrated，beinginfactnogreaterthanthatofmen。 \"Thestoryoftheshipwasknown，bythis，alluptheChannelfromLand’sEndtotheForelands，andwecouldgetnocrewonthesouthcoast。TheysentusoneallcompletefromLiverpool，andweleftoncemore——forBankok。 \"Wehadfairbreezes，smoothwaterrightintothetropics，andtheoldJudealumberedalonginthesun— shine。Whenshewenteightknotseverythingcrackedaloft，andwetiedourcapstoourheads；butmostlyshestrolledonattherateofthreemilesanhour。Whatcouldyouexpect？Shewastired——thatoldship。Heryouthwaswheremineis——whereyoursis——youfellowswholistentothisyarn；andwhatfriendwouldthrowyouryearsandyourwearinessinyourface？Wedidn’tgrumbleather。Tousaft，atleast，itseemedasthoughwehadbeenborninher，rearedinher，hadlivedinherforages，hadneverknownanyothership。Iwouldjustassoonhaveabusedtheoldvillagechurchathomefornotbeingacathedral。 \"Andformetherewasalsomyyouthtomakemepa— tient。TherewasalltheEastbeforeme，andalllife，andthethoughtthatIhadbeentriedinthatshipandhadcomeoutprettywell。AndIthoughtofmenofoldwho，centuriesago，wentthatroadinshipsthatsailednobetter，tothelandofpalms，andspices，andyellowsands，andofbrownnationsruledbykingsmorecruelthanNerotheRomanandmoresplendidthanSolomontheJew。Theoldbarklumberedon，heavywithherageandtheburdenofhercargo，whileIlivedthelifeofyouthinignoranceandhope。Shelumberedonthroughaninterminableprocessionofdays；andthefreshgild— ingflashedbackatthesettingsun，seemedtocryoutoverthedarkeningseathewordspaintedonherstern，’Judea，London。DoorDie。’ \"ThenweenteredtheIndianOceanandsteerednorth— erlyforJavaHead。Thewindswerelight。Weeksslippedby。Shecrawledon，doordie，andpeopleathomebegantothinkofpostingusasoverdue。 \"OneSaturdayevening，Ibeingoffduty，themenaskedmetogivethemanextrabucketofwaterorso—— forwashingclothes。AsIdidnotwishtoscrewonthefresh—waterpumpsolate，Iwentforwardwhistling，andwithakeyinmyhandtounlocktheforepeakscuttle，intendingtoservethewateroutofasparetankwekeptthere。 \"Thesmelldownbelowwasasunexpectedasitwasfrightful。Onewouldhavethoughthundredsofpar— affin—lampshadbeenflaringandsmokinginthatholefordays。Iwasgladtogetout。Themanwithmecoughedandsaid，’Funnysmell，sir。’Ianswerednegli— gently，’It’sgoodforthehealth，theysay，’andwalkedaft。 \"ThefirstthingIdidwastoputmyheaddownthesquareofthemidshipventilator。AsIliftedthelidavisiblebreath，somethinglikeathinfog，apuffoffainthaze，rosefromtheopening。Theascendingairwashot，andhadaheavy，sooty，paraffinysmell。Igaveonesniff，andputdownthelidgently。Itwasnousechokingmy— self。Thecargowasonfire。 \"Nextdayshebegantosmokeinearnest。Youseeitwastobeexpected，forthoughthecoalwasofasafekind，thatcargohadbeensohandled，sobrokenupwithhandling，thatitlookedmorelikesmithycoalthanany— thingelse。Thenithadbeenwetted——morethanonce。 Itrainedallthetimeweweretakingitbackfromthehulk，andnowwiththislongpassageitgotheated，andtherewasanothercaseofspontaneouscombustion。 \"Thecaptaincalledusintothecabin。Hehadachartspreadonthetable，andlookedunhappy。Hesaid，’ThecoastofWestAustraliaisnear，butImeantoproceedtoourdestination。Itisthehurricanemonthtoo；butwewilljustkeepherheadforBankok，andfightthefire。 Nomoreputtingbackanywhere，ifweallgetroasted。 Wewilltryfirsttostiflethis’eredamnedcombustionbywantofair。’ \"Wetried。Webatteneddowneverything，andstillshesmoked。Thesmokekeptcomingoutthroughim— perceptiblecrevices；itforceditselfthroughbulkheadsandcovers；itoozedhereandthereandeverywhereinslenderthreads，inaninvisiblefilm，inanincomprehen— siblemanner。Itmadeitswayintothecabin，intotheforecastle；itpoisonedtheshelteredplacesonthedeck，itcouldbesniffedashighasthemainyard。Itwasclearthatifthesmokecameouttheaircamein。Thiswasdisheartening。Thiscombustionrefusedtobestifled。 \"Weresolvedtotrywater，andtookthehatchesoff。 Enormousvolumesofsmoke，whitish，yellowish，thick，greasy，misty，choking，ascendedashighasthetrucks。 Allhandsclearedoutaft。Thenthepoisonouscloudblewaway，andwewentbacktoworkinasmokethatwasnothickernowthanthatofanordinaryfactorychimney。 \"Weriggedtheforcepump，gotthehosealong，andby—and—byitburst。Well，itwasasoldastheship——aprehistorichose，andpastrepair。Thenwepumpedwiththefeeblehead—pump，drewwaterwithbuckets，andinthiswaymanagedintimetopourlotsofIndianOceanintothemainhatch。Thebrightstreamflashedinsun— shine，fellintoalayerofwhitecrawlingsmoke，andvan— ishedontheblacksurfaceofcoal。Steamascendedminglingwiththesmoke。Wepouredsaltwaterasintoabarrelwithoutabottom。Itwasourfatetopumpinthatship，topumpoutofher，topumpintoher；andafterkeepingwateroutofhertosaveourselvesfrombeingdrowned，wefranticallypouredwaterintohertosaveourselvesfrombeingburnt。 \"Andshecrawledon，doordie，inthesereneweather。 Theskywasamiracleofpurity，amiracleofazure。 Theseawaspolished，wasblue，waspellucid，wasspark— linglikeapreciousstone，extendingonallsides，allroundtothehorizon——asifthewholeterrestrialglobehadbeenonejewel，onecolossalsapphire，asinglegemfashionedintoaplanet。AndonthelusterofthegreatcalmwaterstheJudeaglidedimperceptibly，envelopedinlanguidanduncleanvapors，inalazycloudthatdriftedtoleeward，lightandslow：apestiferousclouddefilingthesplendorofseaandsky。 \"Allthistimeofcoursewesawnofire。Thecargosmolderedatthebottomsomewhere。OnceMahon，aswewereworkingsidebyside，saidtomewithaqueersmile：’Now，ifsheonlywouldspringatidyleak—— likethattimewhenwefirstlefttheChannel——itwouldputastopperonthisfire。Wouldn’tit？’Iremarkedirrelevantly，’Doyouremembertherats？’ \"Wefoughtthefireandsailedtheshiptooascarefullyasthoughnothinghadbeenthematter。Thestewardcookedandattendedonus。Oftheothertwelvemen，eightworkedwhilefourrested。Everyonetookhisturn，captainincluded。Therewasequality，andifnotexactlyfraternity，thenadealofgoodfeeling。Some— timesaman，ashedashedabucketfulofwaterdownthehatchway，wouldyellout，’HurrahforBankok！’andtherestlaughed。Butgenerallyweweretaciturnandseri— ous——andthirsty。Oh！howthirsty！Andwehadtobecarefulwiththewater。Strictallowance。Theshipsmoked，thesunblazed……Passthebottle。 \"Wetriedeverything。Weevenmadeanattempttodigdowntothefire。Nogood，ofcourse。Nomancouldremainmorethanaminutebelow。Mahon，whowentfirst，faintedthere，andthemanwhowenttofetchhimoutdidlikewise。Weluggedthemoutondeck。 ThenIleapeddowntoshowhoweasilyitcouldbedone。 Theyhadlearnedwisdombythattime，andcontentedthemselvesbyfishingformewithachain—hooktiedtoabroom—handle，Ibelieve。Ididnotoffertogoandfetchupmyshovel，whichwasleftdownbelow。 \"Thingsbegantolookbad。Weputthelong—boatintothewater。Thesecondboatwasreadytoswingout。 Wehadalsoanother，afourteen—footthing，ondavitsaft，whereitwasquitesafe。