Itwouldhavesaid，“Iamhere——stillhere“……andwhatmorecantheeyeofthemostforsakenofhumanbeingssay？Butsheturnedherbackonthemasifindisdainoftheirfate：shehadswunground，burdened，toglarestubbornlyatthenewdangeroftheopenseawhichshesostrangelysurvivedtoendherdaysinabreaking-upyard，asifithadbeenherrecordedfatetodieobscurelyundertheblowsofmanyhammers。WhatwerethevariousendstheirdestinyprovidedforthepilgrimsIamunabletosay；buttheimmediatefuturebrought，ataboutnineo’clocknextmorning，aFrenchgunboathomewardboundfromReunion。Thereportofhercommanderwaspublicproperty。Hehadsweptalittleoutofhiscoursetoascertainwhatwasthematterwiththatsteamerfloatingdangerouslybytheheaduponastillandhazysea。Therewasanensign，uniondown，flyingathermaingafftheseranghadthesensetomakeasignalofdistressatdaylight；butthecookswerepreparingthefoodinthecooking-boxesforwardasusual。
　　Thedeckswerepackedascloseasasheep-pen：therewerepeopleperchedallalongtherails，jammedonthebridgeinasolidmass；hundredsofeyesstared，andnotasoundwasheardwhenthegunboatrangedabreast，asifallthatmultitudeoflipshadbeensealedbyaspell。
　　`TheFrenchmanhailed，couldgetnointelligiblereply，andafterascertainingthroughhisbinocularsthatthecrowdondeckdidnotlookplague-stricken，decidedtosendaboat。Twoofficerscameaboard，listenedtotheserang，triedtotalkwiththeArab，couldn’tmakeheadortailofit：butofcoursethenatureoftheemergencywasobviousenough。Theywerealsoverymuchstruckbydiscoveringawhitemandeadandcurleduppeacefullyonthebridge。“Fortintriguesparcecadavre，“asIwasinformedalongtimeafterbyanelderlyFrenchlieutenantwhomIcameacrossoneafternooninSydney，bythemerestchance，inasortofcafe，andwhorememberedtheaffairperfectly。Indeedthisaffair，Imaynoticeinpassing，hadanextraordinarypowerofdefyingtheshortnessofmemoriesandthelengthoftime：itseemedtolive，withasortofuncannyvitality，inthemindsofmen，onthetipsoftheirtongues。I’vehadthequestionablepleasureofmeetingitoften，yearsafterwards，thousandsofmilesaway，emergingfromtheremotestpossibletalk，comingtothesurfaceofthemostdistantallusions。Hasitnotturnedupto-nightbetweenus？AndIamtheonlyseamanhere。Iamtheonlyonetowhomitisamemory。Andyetithasmadeitswayout!Butiftwomenwho，unknowntoeachother，knewofthisaffairmetaccidentallyonanyspotofthisearth，thethingwouldpopupbetweenthemassureasfate，beforetheyparted。IhadneverseenthatFrenchmanbefore，andattheendofanhourwehaddonewitheachotherforlife：
　　hedidnotseemparticularlytalkativeeither；hewasaquiet，massivechapinacreaseduniformsittingdrowsilyoveratumblerhalffullofsomedarkliquid。Hisshoulder-strapswereabittarnished，hisclean-shavedcheekswerelargeandsallow；helookedlikeamanwhowouldbegiventotakingsnuff——don’tyouknow？Iwon’tsayhedid；butthehabitwouldhavefittedthatkindofman。ItallbeganbyhishandingmeanumberofHomeNews，whichIdidn’twant，acrossthemarbletable。Isaid，“Merci。“
　　Weexchangedafewapparentlyinnocentremarks，andsuddenly，beforeI
　　knewhowithadcomeabout，wewereinthemidstofit，andhewastellingmehowmuchtheyhadbeen“intriguedbythatcorpse。“Itturnedouthehadbeenoneoftheboardingofficers。
　　`Intheestablishmentwherewesatonecouldgetavarietyofforeigndrinkswhichwerekeptforthevisitingnavalofficers，andhetookasipofthedarkmedical-lookingstuff，whichprobablywasnothingmorenastythancassisal’eau，andglancingwithoneeyeintothetumbler，shookhisheadslightly。“Impossibledecomprendre——vousconcevez，“
　　hesaid，withacuriousmixtureofunconcernandthoughtfulness。Icouldveryeasilyconceivehowimpossibleithadbeenforthemtounderstand。
　　NobodyinthegunboatknewenoughEnglishtogetholdofthestoryastoldbytheserang。Therewasagooddealofnoise，too，roundthetwoofficers。
　　“Theycrowdeduponus。Therewasacircleroundthatdeadmanautourdecemort，“hedescribed。“Onehadtoattendtothemostpressing。
　　Thesepeoplewerebeginningtoagitatethemselves——Parbleu!Amoblikethat——don’tyousee？“heinterjectedwithphilosophicindulgence。
　　Astothebulkhead，hehadadvisedhiscommanderthatthesafestthingwastoleaveitalone，itwassovillainoustolookat。TheygottwohawsersonboardpromptlyentoutehateandtookthePatnaintow——sternforemostatthat——which，underthecircumstances，wasnotsofoolish，sincetherudderwastoomuchoutofthewatertobeofanygreatuseforsteering，andthismanoeuvreeasedthestrainonthebulkhead，whosestate，heexpoundedwithstolidglibness，demandedthegreatestcareexigeaitlesplusgrandsmenagements。Icouldnothelpthinkingthatmynewacquaintancemusthavehadavoiceinmostofthesearrangements：helookedareliableofficer，nolongerveryactive，andhewasseamanlike，too，inaway，thoughashesatthere，withhisthickfingersclaspedlightlyonhisstomach，heremindedyouofoneofthosesnuffy，quietvillagepriests，intowhoseearsarepouredthesins，thesufferings，theremorseofpeasantgenerations，onwhosefacestheplacidandsimpleexpressionislikeaveilthrownoverthemysteryofpainanddistress。Heoughttohavehadathreadbareblacksoutanebuttonedsmoothlyuptohisamplechin，insteadofafrock-coatwithshoulder-strapsandbrassbuttons。Hisbroadbosomheavedregularlywhilehewentontellingmethatithadbeentheverydevilofajob，asdoubtlesssansdouteIcouldfiguretomyselfinmyqualityofaseamanenvotrequalitedemarin。Attheendoftheperiodheinclinedhisbodyslightlytowardsme，and，pursinghisshavedlips，allowedtheairtoescapewithagentlehiss。“Luckily，“hecontinued，“theseawaslevellikethistable，andtherewasnomorewindthanthereishere。“……Theplacestruckmeasindeedintolerablystuffy，andveryhot；myfaceburnedasthoughIhadbeenyoungenoughtobeembarrassedandblushing。
　　Theyhaddirectedtheircourse，hepursued，tothenearestEnglishport“naturellement，“wheretheirresponsibilityceased，“Dieumerci。“……Heblewouthisflatcheeksalittle……“Because，mindyounotezbien，allthetimeoftowingwehadtwoquartermastersstationedwithaxesbythehawsers，tocutusclearofourtowincaseshe……“Hefluttereddownwardshisheavyeyelids，makinghismeaningasplainaspossible……“Whatwouldyou!Onedoeswhatonecanonfaitcequ’onpeut，“
　　andforamomenthemanagedtoinvesthisponderousimmobilitywithanairofresignation。“Twoquartermasters——thirtyhours——alwaysthere。Two!“
　　herepeated，liftinguphisrighthandalittle，andexhibitingtwofingers。
　　ThiswasabsolutelythefirstgestureIsawhimmake。Itgavemetheopportunityto“note“astarredscaronthebackofhishand——effectofagun-shotclearly；and，asifmysighthadbeenmademoreacutebythisdiscovery，Iperceivedalsotheseamofanoldwound，beginningalittlebelowthetempleandgoingoutofsightundertheshortgreyhairatthesideofhishead——thegrazeofaspearorthecutofasabre。Heclaspedhishandsonhisstomachagain。“Iremainedonboardthat——that——mymemoryisgoings’enva。Ah!Patt-na。C’estbienca。Patt-na。Merci。Itisdrollhowoneforgets。Istayedonthatshipthirtyhours……’
　　“`Youdid!“Iexclaimed。Stillgazingathishands，hepursedhislipsalittle，butthistimemadenohissingsound。“Itwasjudgedproper，“
　　hesaid，liftinghiseyebrowsdispassionately，“thatoneoftheofficersshouldremaintokeepaneyeopenpourouvrirl’oeil“……hesighedidly……“andforcommunicatingbysignalswiththetowingship——doyousee？——andsoon。Fortherest，itwasmyopinion，too。Wemadeourboatsreadytodropover——andIalsoonthatshiptookmeasures……Enfin!Onehasdoneone’spossible。Itwasadelicateposition。
　　Thirtyhours。Theypreparedmesomefood。Asforthewine——goandwhistleforit——notadrop。“Insomeextraordinaryway，withoutanymarkedchangeinhisinertattitudeandintheplacidexpressionofhisface，hemanagedtoconveytheideaofprofounddisgust。“I——youknow——whenitcomestoeatingwithoutmyglassofwine——Iamnowhere。“
　　`Iwasafraidhewouldenlargeuponthegrievance，forthoughhedidn’tstiralimbortwitchafeature，hemadeoneawarehowmuchhewasirritatedbytherecollection。Butheseemedtoforgetallaboutit。Theydeliveredtheirchargetothe“portauthorities，“asheexpressedit。Hewasstruckbythecalmnesswithwhichithadbeenreceived。“Onemighthavethoughttheyhadsuchadrollfinddroledetrouvaillebroughtthemeveryday。Youareextraordinary——youothers，“hecommented，withhisbackproppedagainstthewall，andlookinghimselfasincapableofanemotionaldisplayasasackofmeal。Therehappenedtobeaman-of-warandanIndianMarinesteamerintheharbouratthetime，andhedidnotconcealhisadmirationoftheefficientmannerinwhichtheboatsofthesetwoshipsclearedthePatnaofherpassengers。Indeedhistorpiddemeanourconcealednothing：
　　ithadthatmysterious，almostmiraculous，powerofproducingstrikingeffectsbymeansimpossibleofdetectionwhichisthelastwordofthehighestart。“Twenty-fiveminutes——watchinhand——twenty-five，nomore。“……Heunclaspedandclaspedagainhisfingerswithoutremovinghishandsfromhisstomach，andmadeitinfinitelymoreeffectivethanifhehadthrownuphisarmstoheaveninamazement……“Allthatlottoutcemondeonshore——withtheirlittleaffairs——nobodyleftbutaguardofseamenmarinsdel’Etatandthatinterestingcorpsecetinteressantcadavre。Twenty-fiveminutes。“……Withdowncasteyesandhisheadtiltedslightlyononesideheseemedtorollknowinglyonhistonguethesavourofasmartbitofwork。Hepersuadedonewithoutanyfurtherdemonstrationthathisapprovalwaseminentlyworthhaving，andresuminghishardlyinterruptedimmobility，hewentontoinformmethat，beingunderorderstomakethebestoftheirwaytoToulon，theyleftintwohours’time，“sothatdesortequetherearemanythingsinthisincidentofmylifedanscetepisodedemavie
　　whichhaveremainedobscure。“’
　　thesewords，andwithoutachangeofattitude，he，sotospeak，submittedhimselfpassivelytoastateofsilence。Ikepthimcompany；andsuddenly，butnotabruptly，asiftheappointedtimehadarrivedforhismoderateandhuskyvoicetocomeoutofhisimmobility，hepronounced，“MonDieu!howthetimepasses!“Nothingcouldhavebeenmorecommonplacethanthisremark；butitsutterancecoincidedformewithamomentofvision。It’sextraordinaryhowwegothroughlifewitheyeshalfshut，withdullears，withdormantthoughts。Perhapsit’sjustaswell；anditmaybethatitisthisverydullnessthatmakeslifetotheincalculablemajoritysosupportableandsowelcome。Nevertheless，therecanbebutfewofuswhohadneverknownoneoftheseraremomentsofawakeningwhenwesee，hear，understandeversomuch——everything——inaflash——beforewefallbackagainintoouragreeablesomnolence。Iraisedmyeyeswhenhespoke，andIsawhimasthoughIhadneverseenhimbefore。
　　Isawhischinsunkonhisbreast，theclumsyfoldsofhiscoat，hisclaspedhands，hismotionlesspose，socuriouslysuggestiveofhishavingbeensimplyleftthere。Timehadpassedindeed：ithadovertakenhimandgoneahead。Ithadlefthimhopelesslybehindwithafewpoorgifts；theiron-greyhair，theheavyfatigueofthetannedface，twoscars，apairoftarnishedshoulder-straps；oneofthosesteady，reliablemenwhoaretherawmaterialofgreatreputations，oneofthoseuncountedlivesthatareburiedwithoutdrumsandtrumpetsunderthefoundationsofmonumentalsuccesses。“IamnowthirdlieutenantoftheVictorieuse“shewastheflagshipoftheFrenchPacificsquadronatthetime，hesaid，detachinghisshouldersfromthewallacoupleofinchestointroducehimself。Ibowedslightlyonmysideofthetable，andtoldhimIcommandedamerchantvesselatpresentanchoredinRushcutter’sBay。Hehad“remarked“her——aprettylittlecraft。Hewasverycivilaboutitinhisimpassiveway。Ievenfancyhewentthelengthoftiltinghisheadincomplimentasherepeated，breathingvisiblythewhile，“Ah，yes。Alittlecraftpaintedblack——verypretty——veryprettytrescoquent。’Afteratimehetwistedhisbodyslowlytofacetheglassdooronourright。“Adulltowntristeville，“
　　heobserved，staringintothestreet。Itwasabrilliantday；asoutherlybusterwasraging，andwecouldseethepassers-by，menandwomen，buffetedbythewindonthesidewalks，thesunlitfrontsofthehousesacrosstheroadblurredbythetallwhirlsofdust。“Idescendedonshore，“hesaid，“tostretchmylegsalittle，but……“Hedidn’tfinish，andsankintothedepthsofhisrepose。“Pray——tellme，“hebegan，comingupponderously，“whatwasthereatthebottomofthisaffair——preciselyaujuste？
　　Itiscurious。Thatdeadman，forinstance——andsoon。“
　　“`Therewerelivingmen，too，“Isaid；“muchmorecurious。“