hadbeenresponsibleforhisstate：helookedatmeasifIhadbeentheembodiedeviloflife。“It’sallover，“Istammered。“Yes，“hesaid，thickly。
　　“Andnowletnoman……“Hejerkedhisarmoutofmygrasp。Iwatchedhisbackashewentaway。Itwasalongstreet，andheremainedinsightforsometime。Hewalkedratherslow，andstraddlinghislegsalittle，asifhehadfounditdifficulttokeepastraightline。JustbeforeI
　　losthimIfanciedhestaggeredabit。
　　“`Manoverboard，“saidadeepvoicebehindme。Turninground，IsawafellowIknewslightly，aWestAustralian；Chesterwashisname。He，too，hadbeenlookingafterJim。Hewasamanwithanimmensegirthofchest，arugged，clean-shavedfaceofmahoganycolour，andtwoblunttuftsofiron-grey，thickwiryhairsonhisupperlip。Hehadbeenpearler，wrecker，trader，whaler，too，Ibelieve；inhisownwords——anythingandeverythingamanmaybeatsea，butapirate。ThePacific，northandsouth，washisproperhunting-ground；buthehadwanderedsofarafieldlookingforacheapsteamertobuy。Latelyhehaddiscovered——sohesaid——aguanoislandsomewhere，butitsapproachesweredangerous，andtheanchorage，suchasitwas，couldnotbeconsideredsafe，tosaytheleastofit。“Asgoodasagold-mine，“hewouldexclaim。“RightbanginthemiddleoftheWalpoleReefs，andifit’strueenoughthatyoucangetnoholding-groundanywhereinlessthanfortyfathom，thenwhatofthat？Therearethehurricanes，too。Butit’safirst-ratething。Asgoodasagold-mine——better!Yetthere’snotafoolofthemthatwillseeit。Ican’tgetaskippertocarttheblessedstuffmyself。“……Thiswaswhatherequiredasteamerfor，andIknewhewasjustthennegotiatingenthusiasticallywithaParseefirmforanold，brig-riggedseaanachronismofninetyhorse-power。Wehadmetandspokentogetherseveraltimes。HelookedknowinglyafterJim。“Takeittoheart？“heasked，scornfully。“Verymuch，“Isaid。“Thenhe’snogood，“heopined。“What’salltheto-doabout？Abitofass’sskin。Thatneveryetmadeaman。Youmustseethingsexactlyastheyare——ifyoudon’t，youmayjustaswellgiveinatonce。Youwillneverdoanythinginthisworld。Lookatme。Imadeitapracticenevertotakeanythingtoheart。“
　　“Yes，“Isaid，“youseethingsastheyare。““IwishIcouldseemypartnercomingalong，that’swhatIwishtosee，“hesaid。“Knowmypartner？OldRobinson。Yes；theRobinson。Don’tyouknow？ThenotoriousRobinson。ThemanwhosmuggledmoreopiumandbaggedmoresealsinhistimethananylooseJohnnynowalive。Theysayheusedtoboardthesealing-schoonersupAlaskawaywhenthefogwassothickthattheLordGod，Healone，couldtellonemanfromanother。Holy-TerrorRobinson。That’stheman。Heiswithmeinthatguanothing。Thebestchanceheevercameacrossinhislife。“Heputhislipstomyear。“Cannibal？——well，theyusedtogivehimthenameyearsandyearsago。Yourememberthestory？AshipwreckonthewestsideofStewartIsland；that’sright；sevenofthemgotashore，anditseemstheydidnotgetonverywelltogether。Somemenaretoocantankerousforanything——don’tknowhowtomakethebestofabadjob——don’tseethingsastheyare——astheyare，myboy!Andthenwhat’stheconsequence？
　　Obvious!Trouble，trouble；aslikelyasnotaknockonthehead；andserve’emright，too。Thatsortisthemostusefulwhenit’sdead。ThestorygoesthataboatofHerMajesty’sshipWolverinefoundhimkneelingonthekelp，nakedasthedayhewasborn，andchantingsomepsalm-tuneorother；lightsnowwasfallingatthetime。Hewaitedtilltheboatwasanoar’slengthfromtheshore，andthenupandaway。Theychasedhimforanhourupanddowntheboulders，tillamarineflungastonethattookhimbehindtheearprovidentiallyandknockedhimsenseless。Alone？Ofcourse。Butthat’slikethattaleofsealing-schooners；theLordGodknowstherightandthewrongofthatstory。Thecutterdidnotinvestigatemuch。
　　Theywrappedhiminaboat-cloakandtookhimoffasquickastheycould，withadarknightcomingon，theweatherthreatening，andtheshipfiringrecallgunseveryfiveminutes。Threeweeksafterwardshewasaswellasever。Hedidn’tallowanyfussthatwasmadeonshoretoupsethim；hejustshuthislipstight，andletpeoplescreech。Itwasbadenoughtohavelosthisship，andallhewasworthbesides，withoutpayingattentiontothehardnamestheycalledhim。That’sthemanforme。“Heliftedhisarmforasignaltosomeonedownthestreet。“He’sgotalittlemoney，soIhadtolethimintomything。Hadto!Itwouldhavebeensinfultothrowawaysuchafind，andIwascleanedoutmyself。Itcutmetothequick，butIcouldseethematterjustasitwas，andifImustshare——thinksI——withanyman，thengivemeRobinson。Ilefthimatbreakfastinthehoteltocometocourt，becauseI’veanidea……Ah!Goodmorning，CaptainRobinson……Friendofmine，CaptainRobinson。“
　　`Anemaciatedpatriarchinasuitofwhitedrill，asolahtopiwithagreen-linedrimonaheadtremblingwithage，joinedusaftercrossingthestreetinatrottingshuffle，andstoodproppedwithbothhandsonthehandleofanumbrella。Awhitebeardwithamberstreakshunglumpilydowntohiswaist。Heblinkedhiscreasedeyelidsatmeinabewilderedway。“Howdoyoudo？howdoyoudo？“hepiped，amiably，andtottered。“A
　　littledeaf，“saidChesteraside。“Didyoudraghimoversixthousandmilestogetacheapsteamer？“Iasked。“Iwouldhavetakenhimtwiceroundtheworldassoonaslookathim，“saidChesterwithimmenseenergy。“Thesteamerwillbethemakingofus，mylad。IsitmyfaultthateveryskipperandshipownerinthewholeofblessedAustralasiaturnsoutablamedfool？
　　OnceItalkedforthreehourstoamaninAuckland。`Sendaship，’Isaid，`sendaship。I’llgiveyouhalfofthefirstcargoforyourself，freegratisfornothing——justtomakeagoodstart。’Sayshe，`Iwouldn’tdoitiftherewasnootherplaceonearthtosendashipto。’Perfectass，ofcourse。Rocks，currents，noanchorage，sheerclifftolayto，noinsurancecompanywouldtaketherisk，didn’tseehowhecouldgetloadedunderthreeyears。Ass!Inearlywentonmykneestohim。`Butlookatthethingasitis，’saysI。`Damnrocksandhurricanes。Lookatitasitis。There’sguanothere，Queenslandsugar-planterswouldfightfor——fightforonthequay，Itellyou。’……Whatcanyoudowithafool？……`That’soneofyourlittlejokes，Chester，’hesays……Joke!Icouldhavewept。
　　AskCaptainRobinsonhere……Andtherewasanothershipowningfellow——afatchapinawhitewaistcoatinWellington，whoseemedtothinkIwasuptosomeswindleorother。`Idon’tknowwhatsortoffoolyou’relookingfor，’hesays，`butIambusyjustnow。Goodmorning。’Ilongedtotakehiminmytwohandsandsmashhimthroughthewindowofhisownoffice。
　　ButIdidn’t。Iwasasmildasacurate。`Thinkofit，’saysI。`Dothinkitover。I’llcallto-morrow。’Hegruntedsomethingaboutbeing`outallday。’OnthestairsIfeltreadytobeatmyheadagainstthewallfromvexation。CaptainRobinsonherecantellyou。Itwasawfultothinkofallthatlovelystufflyingwasteunderthesun——stuffthatwouldsendthesugar-caneshootingsky-high。ThemakingofQueensland!ThemakingofQueensland!AndinBrisbane，whereIwenttohavealasttry，theygavemethenameofalunatic。Idiots!TheonlysensiblemanIcameacrosswasthecabmanwhodrovemeabout。Abroken-downswellhewas，Ifancy。Hey!
　　CaptainRobinson!YourememberItoldyouaboutmycabbyinBrisbane——don’tyou？Thechaphadawonderfuleyeforthings。Hesawitallinajiffy。
　　Itwasarealpleasuretotalkwithhim。OneeveningafteradevilofadayamongstshipownersIfeltsobadthat，saysI，`Imustgetdrunk。Comealong；Imustgetdrunk，orI’llgomad。’`Iamyourman，’hesays；`goahead。’Idon’tknowwhatIwouldhavedonewithouthim。Hey!CaptainRobinson。“
　　`Hepokedtheribsofhispartner。“He!he!he!“laughedtheAncient，lookedaimlesslydownthestreet，thenpeeredatmedoubtfullywithsad，dimpupils……“He!he!he!“……Heleanedheavierontheumbrella，anddroppedhisgazeontheground。Ineedn’ttellyouIhadtriedtogetawayseveraltimes，butChesterhadfoiledeveryattemptbysimplycatchingholdofmycoat。“Oneminute。I’veanotion。““What’syourinfernalnotion？“
　　Iexplodedatlast。“IfyouthinkIamgoinginwithyou……““No，no，myboy。Toolate，ifyouwantedeversomuch。We’vegotasteamer。““You’vegottheghostofasteamer，“Isaid。“Goodenoughforastart——there’snosuperiornonsenseaboutus。Isthere，CaptainRobinson？““No!no!no!“
　　croakedtheoldmanwithoutliftinghiseyes，andtheseniletrembleofhisheadbecamealmostfiercewithdetermination。“Iunderstandyouknowthatyoungchap，“saidChester，withanodatthestreetfromwhichJimhaddisappearedlongago。“He’sbeenhavinggrubwithyouintheMalabarlastnight——soIwastold。“
　　`Isaidthatwastrue，andafterremarkingthathe，too，likedtolivewellandinstyle，onlythat，forthepresent，hehadtobesavingofeverypenny——“nonetoomanyforthebusiness!Isn’tthatso，CaptainRobinson？“——hesquaredhisshouldersandstrokedhisdumpymoustache，whilethenotoriousRobinson，coughingathisside，clungmorethanevertothehandleoftheumbrella，andseemedreadytosubsidepassivelyintoaheapofoldbones。
　　“Yousee，theoldchaphasallthemoney，“whisperedChester，confidentially。
　　“I’vebeencleanedouttryingtoengineerthedrattedthing。Butwaitabit，waitabit。Thegoodtimeiscoming。“……HeseemedsuddenlyastonishedatthesignsofimpatienceIgave。“Oh，crakee!“hecried；“Iamtellingyouofthebiggestthingthateverwas，andyou……““Ihaveanappointment，“
　　Ipleadedmildly。“Whatofthat？“heaskedwithgenuinesurprise；“letitwait。““That’sexactlywhatIamdoingnow，“Iremarked；“hadn’tyoubettertellmewhatitisyouwant？““Buytwentyhotelslikethat，“hegrowledtohimself；“andeveryjokerboardinginthem，too——twentytimesover。“Heliftedhisheadsmartly。“Iwantthatyoungchap。““Idon’tunderstand，“
　　Isaid。“He’snogood，ishe？“saidChester，crisply。“Iknownothingaboutit，“Iprotested。“Why，youtoldmeyourselfhewastakingittoheart，“
　　arguedChester。“Well，inmyopinionachapwho……Anyhow，hecan’tbemuchgood；butthenyouseeIamonthelook-outforsomebody，andI’vejustgotathingthatwillsuithim。I’llgivehimajobonmyisland。“
　　Henoddedsignificantly。“I’mgoingtodumpfortycooliesthere——ifI’vegottosteal’em。Somebodymustworkthestuff。Oh!Imeantoactsquare：
　　woodenshed，corrugated-ironroof——IknowamaninHobartwhowilltakemybillatsixmonthsforthematerials。Ido。Honourbright。Thenthere’sthewater-supply。I’llhavetoflyroundandgetsomebodytotrustmeforhalfadozensecond-handirontanks。Catchrain-water，hey？Lethimtakecharge。Makehimsupremebossoverthecoolies。Goodidea，isn’tit？Whatdoyousay？““TherearewholeyearswhennotadropofrainfallsonWalpole，“
　　Isaid，tooamazedtolaugh。Hebithislipandseemedbothered。“Oh，well，Iwillfixupsomethingforthem——orlandasupply。Hangitall!That’snotthequestion。“
　　`Isaidnothing。IhadarapidvisionofJimperchedonashadowlessrock，uptohiskneesinguano，withthescreamsofsea-birdsinhisears，theincandescentballofthesunabovehishead；theemptyskyandtheemptyoceanalla-quiver，simmeringtogetherintheheatasfarastheeyecouldreach。“Iwouldn’tadvisemyworstenemy……“Ibegan。“What’sthematterwithyou？“criedChester；“Imeantogivehimagoodscrew——thatis，assoonasthethingissetgoing，ofcourse。It’saseasyasfallingoffalog。Simplynothingtodo；twosix-shootersinhisbelt……Surelyhewouldn’tbeafraidofanythingfortycooliescoulddo——withtwosix-shootersandhetheonlyarmedman，too!It’smuchbetterthanitlooks。Iwantyoutohelpmetotalkhimover。““No!“Ishouted。OldRobinsonliftedhisblearedeyesdismallyforamoment，Chesterlookedatmewithinfinitecontempt。“Soyouwouldn’tadvisehim？“heuttered，slowly。“Certainlynot，“Ianswered，asindignantasthoughhehadrequestedmetohelpmurdersomebody；“moreover，Iamsurehewouldn’t。Heisbadlycutup，butheisn’tmadasfarasIknow。“Heisnoearthlygoodforanything，“Chestermusedaloud。“Hewouldjusthavedoneforme。Ifyouonlycouldseeathingasitis，youwouldseeit’stheverythingforhim。Andbesides……
　　Why!it’sthemostsplendid，surechance……“Hegotangrysuddenly。
　　“Imusthaveaman。There!……“Hestampedhisfootandsmiledunpleasantly。
　　“Anyhow，Icouldguaranteetheislandwouldn’tsinkunderhim——andIbelieveheisabitparticularonthatpoint。““Goodmorning，“Isaid，curtly。
　　HelookedatmeasthoughIhadbeenanincomprehensiblefool……“Mustbemoving，CaptainRobinson，“heyelledsuddenlyintotheoldman’sear。
　　“TheseParseeJohnniesarewaitingforustoclinchthebargain。“Hetookhispartnerunderthearmwithafirmgrip，swunghimround，and，unexpectedly，leeredatmeoverhisshoulder。“Iwastryingtodohimakindness，“heasserted，withanairandtonethatmademybloodboil。“Thankyoufornothing——inhisname，“Irejoined。“Oh!youaredevilishsmart，“hesneered；
　　“butyouareliketherestofthem。Toomuchintheclouds。Seewhatyouwilldowithhim。““Idon’tknowthatIwanttodoanythingwithhim。“
　　“Don’tyou？“hespluttered；hisgreymoustachebristledwithanger，andbyhissidethenotoriousRobinson，proppedontheumbrella，stoodwithhisbacktome，aspatientandstillasaworn-outcab-horse。“Ihaven’tfoundaguanoisland，“Isaid。“It’smybeliefyouwouldn’tknowoneifyouwereledrightuptoitbythehand，“heripostedquickly；“andinthisworldyou’vegottoseeathingfirst，beforeyoucanmakeuseofit。Gottoseeitthroughandthroughatthat，neithermorenorless。“