Nostromo: A Tale of the Seaboard
confidence," he said to himself, with a certain acuteness of insight into the nature he had to deal with.
On Nostromo's side the silence had been full of black irresolution, anger, and mistrust. He was the first to break it, however.
"The swimming was no great matter," he said. "It is what went before—and what comes after that—"
He did not quite finish what he meant to say, breaking off short, as though his thought had butted against a solid obstacle. The doctor's mind pursued its own schemes with Machiavellian subtlety. He said, as sympathetically as he was able:
"It is unfortunate, capataz. But no one would think of blaming you. Very unfortunate. To begin with, the treasure ought never to have left the mountain. But it was Decoud who— However, he is dead. There is no need to talk of him."
"No," assented Nostromo, as the doctor paused, "there is no need to talk of dead men. But I am not dead yet."
"You are all right. Only a man of your intrepidity could have saved himself."
In this Dr. Monygham was sincere. He esteemed highly the intrepidity of that man, whom he valued but little, being disillusioned as to mankind in general because of the particular instance in which his own manhood had failed. Having had to encounter single-handed during his period of eclipse many physical dangers, he was well aware of the most dangerous element common to them all—of the crushing, paralyzing sense of human littleness, which is what really defeats a man struggling with natural forces, alone,
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