Nostromo : A Tale of the Seaboard
This very madness of fear which both Decoud and Nostromo had seen in the wild and irrational glances, and in the continuous twitchings of his mouth, protected Señor Hirsch from the cruel necessities of this desperate affair. The moment of silencing him forever had passed. As Nostromo remarked in answer to Decoud's regrets, it was too late! It could not be done without noise, especially in the ignorance of the man's exact position. Wherever he had elected to crouch and tremble, it was too hazardous to go near him. He would begin, probably, to yell for mercy. It was much better to leave him quite alone, since he was keeping so still. But to trust to his silence became every moment a greater strain upon Decoud's composure.
"I wish, capataz, you had not let the right moment pass," he murmured.
"What? To silence him forever! I thought it good to hear first how he came to be here. It was too strange. Who could imagine that it was all an accident. Afterwards, señor, when I saw you giving him water to drink I could not do it. Not after I had seen you holding up the can to his lips, as though he were your brother. Señor, that sort of necessity must not be thought of too long. And yet it would have been no cruelty to take away from him his wretched life. It is nothing but fear. Your compassion saved him then, Don Martin, and now it is too late. It couldn't be done without noise."
In the steamer they were keeping a perfect silence, and the stillness was so profound that Decoud felt as if the slightest sound conceivable must travel un-
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