Short stories; United States -- Social life and customs -- 19th century -- Fiction
Directly the tall man went and lay down and began to groan.
The freckled man felt the miseries of the world upon him. He grew angry
at the tall man awakening him. They quarrelled.
"Well," said the tall man, finally, "we're in a fix."
"I know that," said the other, sharply.
They regarded the ceiling in silence.
"What in the thunder are we going to do?" demanded the tall man, after
a time. His companion was still silent. "Say," repeated he, angrily,
"what in the thunder are we going to do?"
"I'm sure I don't know," said the freckled man in a dismal voice.
"Well, think of something," roared the other. "Think of something, you
old fool. You don't want to make any more idiots of yourself, do you?"
"I ain't made an idiot of myself."
"Well, think. Know anybody in the city?"
"I know a fellow up in Harlem," said the freckled man.
"You know a fellow up in Harlem," howled the tall man. "Up in Harlem!
How the dickens are we to--say, you're crazy!"
"We can take a cab," cried the other, waxing indignant.
The tall man grew suddenly calm. "Do you know any one else?" he asked,
measuredly.
"I know another fellow somewhere on Park Place."
"Somewhere on Park Place," repeated the tall man in an unnatural
manner. "Somewhere on Park Place." With an air of sublime resignation
he turned his face to the wall.
The freckled man sat erect and frowned in the direction of his
companion. "Well, now, I suppose you are going to sulk. You make me
ill! It's the best we can do, ain't it? Hire a cab and go look that
fellow up on Park--What's that? You can't afford it? What nonsense! You
are getting--Oh! Well, maybe we can beg some clothes of the captain.
Eh? Did I see 'im? Certainly, I saw 'im. Yes, it is improbable that a
man who wears trousers like that can have clothes to lend. No, I won't
wear oilskins and a sou'-wester. To Athens? Of course not! I don't know
where it is. Do you? I thought not. With all your grumbling about other
people, you never know anything important yourself. What? Broadway?
I'll be hanged first. We can get off at Harlem, man alive. There are no
cabs in Harlem. I don't think we can bribe a sailor to take us ashore
and bring a cab to the dock, for the very simple reason that we have
nothing to bribe him with. What? No, of course not. See here, Tom
Sharp, don't you swear at me like that. I won't have it. What's that? I
ain't, either. I ain't. What? I am not. It's no such thing. I ain't.
I've got more than you have, anyway. Well, you ain't doing anything so
very brilliant yourself--just lying there and cussin'." At length the
tall man feigned prodigiously to snore. The freckled man thought with
such vigor that he fell asleep.
After a time he dreamed that he was in a forest where bass drums grew
on trees. There came a strong wind that banged the fruit about like
empty pods. A frightful din was in his ears.
He awoke to find the captain of the schooner standing over him.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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