.. and yet he won't
fight at all ... an' if you do him an injury he's like as not likely to
up an' commit suicide at your door, to get even!"
"That's a bally orful way to get even with a henemy!" exclaimed a
stoker, who sat on the edge of the forward hatch.
"I should say so, too!"
Then, far and faint, were heard a crew of Chinese sailors, on the
nearest junk, singing a curious, falsetto chantey as they hauled on a
bamboo-braced sail....
"A feller wot never travelled wouldn't bloody well believe they was
such queer people in the world," further observed the philosophic
coal-heaver.
* * * * *
Next morning the coast of China lay right against us, on the starboard
side ... we ran into the thick of a fleet of sampans, boats fashioned
flat like overgrown rowboats, propelled each by a huge sculling oar,
from the stern ... they were fishers who manned them ... two or three to
a boat ... huge, bronze-bodied, fine-muscled, breech-clouted men ... as
they sculled swiftly to give us sea-room each one looked fit to be a
sculptor's model.
Their bodies shone in the sun like bronze. Several, fearing we might run
them down, as we clove straight through their midst, raised their arms
with a shout full of pleading and fright.
"What's the matter? are they trying to murder some of these poor chaps?"
I asked.
"No .
Pages:
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176