With sorrow I must say that he did the
latter, in order to bully the lump out of his bull throat. Then the
"toff" broke into a cry of infinite tenderness and pity; he implored the
men to come, and some sturdy fellows sobbed; but Jim did not understand
where they were wanted to go, and he growled another oath.
After this some of the fishermen spoke, and Jim heard how drunkards,
fighting men, and spendthrifts had become peaceable and prosperous
citizens.
Puzzles were heaped on the poor man's brain. He could have broken that
pale man in halves with one hand; yet the pale man mastered him. He knew
some of the burly seamen as old ruffians; yet here they were--talking
gently, and boasting about their happiness and prosperity. When the last
crashing chorus had been sung, the two swells went round and chatted
freely with all comers.
"No ---- 'toffs' never treated me like that afore."
All that day, until the trawl went down, Jim sat growling and brooding.
He was inarticulate, and the crowding thoughts that surged in his dim
soul were chaotic.
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