Poison Island
a moment us if in doubt of his bearings. He was flagrantly drunk, but not aggressively. He reminded
nked at one another, but forbore to interfer
ed nor threadbare-and a blue and yellow spotted neckerchief, the bow of which had worked around towards his right ear. His hat, perched a-cock over his left eye, had made acquaintance with the tavern sawdust. Next to his drunkenness,
g, they swarmed close an
k he couldn't find it?" "Where's your ship, Cap'n Danny?" These were some of the taunts flung; and
that stood out from it at something like right angles, I had time to take very little stock of him; for just then, us Captain Coffin turned about to smite, a stone came flying and struck him s
murder; and just then, while I stood at gaze, a boy steppe
-straddle. "Doggy Bates tells me that you told
d told Doggy Bates
," said he. "Then
under lip-not to mention his ears-protruded in
depe
in the same reasonable tone. "And
deed!"
the nose; whereupon I hit him on the point of the chin, and, unconsciously imitating Captain
s, but to this moment I cannot understand why we two suddenly found ourselv
f men staring and offering bets. The lamp at the street-corner shone on their fac
e-jerseyed Irishman, to whose knee I returned at the end of each round to be freshened up around the face and neck with a dripping boat-sponge. He had an extraordi
I remember yet more vividly the strangeness of it all, and the uncanny sensation that the fight itself, the street-lamp, the crowd, and the d
e; it was blow for blow, plain give-and-take, from the start. But what distressed me was the extreme tenderness of my knuckles; and what chiefly irritated me was the behaviour of Doggy Bates, dancing
closed; and the two of us went to ground together. Then I lay panting, and my opponent under me-the pair of us too weary for the moment to strike a blow; and then, as breath came
table, to whom he appealed for confirmation, pointing to my fa
oys, sir," said
th an unsteady wave of his hand-"that don't 'pply 'case
ir-take the boy home
e from the crowd. "'Cos why? The
his throat for a public speech; but was forestalled by the constable
's own pluck-and-lights. Then he, too, faded away into the night; and I found myself alongside of Doggy Bate
tes, who understood his preceptor's habits to a hair, checked me with a knowing squeeze of the arm, and b
my mauled face by the light of a street-lamp. "The begga
to be distresse
m the missus! She sent him out to get change for your aunt's notes-'fees payable in advance.' I
o a run, then appeared to falter; and, peering into the dark interval between us and the next l
called huskily. "No
y Bates; but my courage was oozing as I walked towards the o
od boy, don't be afraid. W
Brook
n my coach-and-six if I chose; and some day you may see it. Ho
finely, sir," said
slops to a bear, not one of 'em. But you're different. And, see here: any time you're in trouble, just pay a call on me. Understand? Mind you, I make no promises." Here, to my exceeding f
falling back a pace, loo
me and the gatepo
rned and shuffled away down the street. I stared after him into the