Also I have heard it rumoured that he had run
a bit wild in his youth, found himself within the law or outside of
it (I forget which), and come down to the South Pacific for the
good of his health. But that was many years ago. He was now a
middle-aged man, and had learnt enough about these waters to call you
a fool if you suggested by way of flattery that what he didn't know
about them wasn't worth knowing.
"--Something, at any rate, in his past had turned him into a silent,
brooding man, seldom coming out of his thoughts until it came to a
bargain, when he woke up like a giant from sleep. His deafness
helped to fasten this silent habit deeper upon him. Also he was
touchy about his deafness: didn't like at any time to be reminded of
it; and was apt to fly into a sudden rage if anyone brought up a
reminder, even by a chance hint. And that, belike, was the main
reason why he alone on board--barring yourself, Foe--never heard tell
of this barking which he had missed to hear with his own ears.
"--And now for one thing more, Foe--and it'll make you squirm by and
by! Like most deaf men he was a bit suspicious: and looking at you
sideways as you came on board--what with one thing and another, not
liking missionaries as a line in trade, and, in particular,
mistrusting the cut of _your_ jib, he thought things over a bit and
altered his helm.
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