CHAPTERIX
SUBMARINES,BULLPUPS,ANDOTHERTHINGS
Along,weirdblastfromthefoghorn,followedbytwoshort,sharptoots,recalledBarryfromhismorningdream。
\"Fog,\"hegrumbled,andturnedovertore—capturetheenchantmentoftheAthabascarapids,andhisdancingcanoe。
Overheadtheresoundedthetramplingoffeet。
\"Submarines,doc,\"heshoutedandleapedtothefloorbroadawake。
\"What’stherow?\"murmuredtheM。O。,whowasaheavysleeper。
Foranswer,Barryrippedtheclothesfromthedoctor’sbed。
\"Submarines,doc,\"heshoutedagain,andbucklingonhisSamBrown,andseizinghislifebelt,hestoodreadytogo。
\"What!yourbootsoff,doc?\"
Intheordersofthedaybeforehadbeenanannouncementthatofficersandmenweretosleepfullydressed。
\"Oh,thedevil!\"exclaimedthedoctor,huntingthroughhisbedclothesindesperation。\"Ican’tsleepinmyboots。Where’smytunic?Goon,oldfellow,I’llfollowyou。\"
Barryheldhistunicforhim。
\"Hereyouare!Wakeup,doc!Andhere’syourSamBrown。\"
Barrydroppedtolacethedoctor’sboots,whilethelatterwasbucklingontherestofhisequipment。
\"Allright,\"criedthedoctor,rushingfromtheroomandleavinghislifebeltbehindhim。
Barrycaughtupthelifebeltandfollowed。
\"Yourlifebelt,doc,\"hesaid,astheypassedupthecompanionway。
\"Oh,I’mapeachofasoldier,\"saidthedoctor,strugglingintohislifebelt,andswearingdeeplythewhile。
\"Stopswearing,doc!It’sawasteofenergy。\"
\"Oh,gotohell!\"
\"No,IpreferHeaven,ifImustleavethisship,butforthepresent,IbelieveI’mneededhere,andsoareyou,doc。Lookthere!\"
Thedoctorglancedoutuponthedeck。
\"ByJove!You’reright,oldman,weareneededandbadly。Isay,oldchap,\"hesaid,pausingforamomenttoturntoBarry,\"youareadearoldthing,aren’tyou?\"
Thedeckwasamassofsoldiersstruggling,swearing,fightingtheirwaytotheirvariousstations。Officers,halfdressedandhalfawake,wererushinghitherandthither,seekingtheirunits,swearingatthemenandshoutingmeaninglessorders。Overallthestentorianvoiceofthesergeantmajorwasvainlytryingtomakeitselfunderstood。
Intheconfusionthecrywasraised:\"We’retorpedoed!We’regoingdown!\"
Therewasagreatrushforthenearestboats。Menflungdisciplinetothewindsandbeganfightingforachanceoftheirlives。Itwasaterrificandhumiliatingscene。
Suddenly,overthetumult,washeardaloud,ringinglaugh。
\"Oh,Isay,Duff!Notthatway!Notthatway!\"
Againcametheringinglaugh。
Immediatelyasilencefelluponthestrugglingcrowd,andforamomenttheystoodlookinginquiringlyateachother。Thatmomentofsilencewasseizedbythesergeantmajor。Likeatrumpethissonorousvoicerangoutsteadyandclear。
\"Fallin,men!Boatquarters!Silencethere!\"
Hefollowedthiswithsharp,intelligiblecommandstohisN。C。O。’s。
Likemagic,orderfellupontheturbulent,strugglingcrowd。
\"Standsteady,youthere!\"roaredthesergeantmajor,whohavinggotcontrolofhismen,begantoindulgehimselfinafewtellinganddescriptiveadjectives。
Inlessthantwominutes,themenwerestandingsteadyasarockandthepanicwaspassed。
\"Whowasitthatlaughedupthereinthatstampede?\"inquiredtheO。C。,whentheofficersweregatheredabouthimintheorderlyroom。
\"IthinkitwastheSkyPilot,sir——thechaplain,sir,\"saidLieutenantStewartDuff。
\"Wasityouthatlaughed,CaptainDunbar?\"askedthecolonel,turninguponBarry。
\"PerhapsIdid,sir。I’msorryif——\"
\"Sorry!\"exclaimedthecolonel。\"Dammit,sir,yousavedthesituationforusall。Whotoldyouitwasafalsealarm?\"
\"Noone,sir。Ididn’tknowitwasafalsealarm。IwaslookingatLieutenantDuff——\"Hecheckedhimselfpromptly。\"Imean,sir——
well,itseemedagoodplacetolaugh,soIjustletitcome。\"
Thecolonel’seyesrestedwithcuriousinquiryupontheserenefaceofthechaplain,withitsglowingeyesandcandidexpression。\"A
goodplaceforalaugh?Itwasadamnedgoodplaceforalaugh,andgentlemen,IthankGodIhaveoneofficerwhofindsinthefaceofsuddendangeragoodplaceforalaugh。AndnowIhavesomethingtosaytoyou。\"
TheO。C。’sremarksdidnotimprovetheofficers’opinionofthemselves,andtheyslunkoutoftheroom——nootherwordproperlydescribesthecowedandshamedappearanceofthatcompanyofmen——
theyslunkoutoftheroom。TheyhadfailedtoplaythepartofBritishofficersinthefaceofsuddenperil。
Inhisspeechtothemen,theC。O。madeonlyasinglereferencetotheincident,butthatreferencebitdeep。
\"Men,Iamthoroughlyashamedanddisappointed。Youacted,notlikesoldiers,butlikeaherdofsteers。Thedifferencebetweenaherdofsteersandabattalionofsoldiers,inthefaceofsuddendanger,isonlythis:——thesteersbreakblindlyforGodknowswhere,andendpiledupoveracutbank;soldiersstandsteadylisteningforthewordofcommand。\"
IftheO。C。handledthemenwithalighthand,thesergeantmajordidnot。Histongueraspedthemtotheraw。NooneknowsasoldierasdoeshisN。C。O。,andnoN。C。O。isqualifiedtosetforththesoldier’scharacteristicswiththeintimateknowledgeandadequatefluencyofthesergeantmajor。Onebyonehepeeledfromtheirshiveringsoulsthevariouslayersoftheirmoralcuticle,untiltheystood,intheirownandineachother’seyes,objectsofcommiseration。
\"There’sjustonethingmoreIwadliketasaytoye。\"Thesergeantmajor’stendencytoDoricwasmorenoticeableinhismomentsofdeeperfeeling,\"butit’ssomethingforyouladstogiveheedta。
Whenyewerescrammlin’upyonder,likealoto’mavericksatabrandin’,andyowlin’likeabuncho’coyotes,therewasonemanintheregimentwhocouldlaugh。There’slotso’animalsthattheAlmightymadecanyowl,butthere’sonlyonecanlaugh,andthat’samon。ForGod’ssake,men,whenye’reinatightplace,tryalaugh。\"
Forsomeweeksafterthiseventthechaplainwasknownthroughoutthebattalionas\"themanthatcanlaugh,\"andcertainitisthatfromthatdaythereexistedbetweentheM。O。andthechaplainanewbondoffriendship。
Astheshipadvanceddeeperintothesubmarinezone,thesoletopicofthoughtandofconversationcametobetheconvoy。Wherewasthatconvoyanyway?Whilethedaylightlasted,athousandpairsofeyessweptthehorizon,andtheinterveningspacesoftossing,blue—greywater,forthesightofasinisterperiscope,orforthesmudgeofafriendlycruiser,andwhennightfell,athousandpairsofearslistenedwithstrainedintentnessfortheimpactofthedeadlytorpedoorforthesignaloftheprotectingconvoy。
Whilestilladayandanightoutfromland,Barryawokeinthedimlightofamistymorning,andproceededtothedeckforhisconstitutional。TherehefellinwithCaptainNeilFraserandCaptainHopetonpacingupanddown。
\"Comealong,Pilot!\"saidCaptainNeil,heartily,betweenwhomandthechaplainduringthelastfewdaysacordialfriendshiphadsprungup。\"We’relookingforsubmarines。ThisistheplaceandthetimeforFritz,ifheisgoingtogetusatall。\"
Arminarmtheymadethecircleofthedeck。Themist,lyinglikeabankuponthesea,shiftedthehorizontowithinathousandyardsoftheship。
\"IwishIknewjustwhatliesbehindthatbankthere,\"saidCaptainHopeton,pointingoverthebow。
Forsomemomentstheystood,peeringidlyintothemist。
\"ByJove,thereISsomethingthere,\"saidBarry,whohadahawk’seye。
\"You’vegot’emtoo,eh,\"laughedHopeton。\"I’vehad’emforthelastforty—eighthours。I’vebeen’seein’things’allnight。\"
\"Butthereis,\"insistedBarry,pointingovertheportbow。
\"Whatisitlike?\"askedCaptainNeil,whileHopetonranforhisglass。
\"I’lltellyouwhatit’slike——exactlyliketheeyeofanoysterinitspulp。And,byJove,there’sanother!\"addedBarryexcitedly。
\"Ican’tseeanything,\"saidCaptainNeil。
\"ButIcan,\"insistedBarry。\"Lookthere,Hopeton!\"
Hopetonfixedhisglassuponthemist,whereBarrypointed。
\"You’reright!Thereissomething,andtherearetwoofthem。\"
\"GivethePilottheglass,Hopeton,\"saidNeil。\"He’sgotagoodeye。\"
\"Therearetwoships,boys,asI’masinner,butwhattheyare,I
don’tknow,\"criedBarryinavoicetensewithexcitement。\"Here,Neil,taketheglass。Youknowaboutships。\"
Longandearnestly,CaptainNeilheldtheglassinthedirectionindicated。
\"Boys,byallthat’sholy,they’redestroyers,\"hesaidatlengthinalowvoice。
Evenastheygazed,thetwoblackdotsrapidlytookshape,growingoutofthemistintotwoseamonsters,allheadandshoulders,boringthroughtheseas,eachflinginghighahugecombofwhitespray,andwithanindescribablesuggestionofarrogant,resistlesspower,bearingdownupontheshipatfuriousspeed。
\"Destroyers!\"shoutedCaptainNeil,inavoicethatrangthroughtheship。\"Bygad,destroyers!\"
Therewasnoquestionoffriendorfoe;onlyGreatBritain’snavyrodeoverthoseseasimmune。
Uponeveryhandthewordwascaughtupandpassedalong。Inamarvellouslyshortspaceoftime,therails,theboats,therigging,allthepointsofvantagewerethrongedwithmen,roaring,waving,cheering,likemad。
Withundiminishedspeed,eachenvelopedinitscloudofspray,thedestroyerscame,oneoneachside,rushedfoamingpast,sweptinacirclearoundtheshipandtooktheirstationsalongside,ridingquietlyathalfspeedlikebulldogstuggingataleash。
\"Greatheavens,whatasight!\"AtthecroakinHopeton’svoice,theothersturnedandlookedathim。
\"You’vegotittoo,eh!\"saidCaptainNeil,clearinghisownthroat。
\"I’vegotsomething,Godknows!\"answeredHopeton,wipinghiseyes。
\"I,too,\"saidBarry,swallowingtheproverbiallump。\"Thoselittle——little——\"
\"Bulldogs,\"suggestedHopeton。
\"Bulldogpups,\"saidCaptainNeil。
\"That’sit,\"saidBarry。\"That’swhattheyare,littlebulldogpups,gotmebythethroatallright。\"
\"Me,too,bygad!\"saidCaptainNeil。\"Ishouldhavehowledoutloudinanotherminute。\"
\"Listentotheboys!\"criedBarry。
Fromendtoendoftheshiproseonecontinuousroar,\"GoodoldNavy!GoodoldJohnBull!\"whileHopeton,openlyabandoningthetraditionalreserveandself—controlsupposedtobeacharacteristicoftheEnglishpublicschoolboy,climbedupontherailand,hangingbyastanchionwithonehand,andwiththeotherfranticallywavinghiscapoverhishead,continuedtoshout:
\"England!England!Englandforever!\"
Thenabovethecheeringcrieswasheardthebattalionband,andfromathousandthroatsinsolemnchantthererosetheEmpire’snationalanthem,\"GodSavetheKing。\"
ThatnighttheysteamedintooldPlymouthtown,andthefollowingmorningwereanchoredsafeatDevonportdock。Strictordersheldtheofficersandmenonboardshipuntilarrangementsfordebarkationshouldbecompleted,buttoBarryandthedoctor,theCommandingOfficergaveshoreleaveforanhour。
\"AndIwouldsuggest,\"hesaid,\"thatyougoandhaveatalkwiththatoldboywalkingupanddownthedockthere。YarntohimaboutCanada,he’swildtoknowaboutit。\"
Theoldnavalofficerwasindeed\"wildtoknowaboutCanada,\"sothatthegreaterpartoftheirshoreleavewasspentinansweringhisquestions,andeagerthoughhewastoexploretheoldhistorictown,beforeBarryknewit,hewasinthefulltideofaglowingdescriptionofhisownProvinceofAlberta,extollingitsgreatranches,itssweepingvalleys,itsimmenseresources。
\"AndtothinkyouareallBritishoutthere,\"exclaimedtheoldsalt。
\"We’reallBritish,ofcourse,\"repliedBarry,\"butnotallfromBritain。\"
\"Iknow,Iknow,\"saidtheofficer,\"butthatonlymakesitmorewonderful。\"
\"Wonderful!Why,whyshoulditbewonderful?\"
\"Yes,wonderful。Oh,youCanadians,\"criedtheoldsalt,impulsivelystretchingouthishandtoBarry。\"YouCanadians!\"
Surprised,Barryglancedathisface。Thosehardblueeyeswerebrimmingwithtears;theleatherlikeskinwasworkingcuriouslyaboutthemouth。
\"Why,sir,Idon’tquiteunderstandwhatyoumean,\"saidBarry。
\"No,andyouneverwill。Thinkofit,rushingthreethousandmiles——\"
\"Fivethousandforsomeofus,\"interruptedBarry。
\"Fancythat!Rushingfivethousandmilesinthisway,tohelpoldmotherEngland,andallofyourownfreewill。Wedidn’taskitofyou。Though,byheaven,we’regratefulforit。Ifinditdifficult,sir,tospeakquietlyofthis。\"
NotuntilthatmomenthadBarrycaughttheBritishpointofview。
Tohim,astoallCanadians,ithadonlybeenaperfectlyreasonableandnaturalthingthatwhentheEmpirewasthreatened,theyshouldspringintothefight。Theysawnothingheroicinthat。Theyweredoingtheirsimpleduty。
\"Butthinkofthewonderofit,\"saidthenavalofficeragain,\"thatCanadashouldfeelinthatwayitsresponsetothecalloftheblood。\"
Theoldman’slipswerestillquivering。
\"Thatistrue,sir,\"saidtheM。O。,joininginthetalk,\"butthereissomethingmore。Frankly,myopinionisthatthebiggestthing,sir,withsomeofusinCanada,isnotthatthemotherlandwasinneedofhelp,though,ofcourse,weallfeelthat,butthatthefreedomoftheworldisthreatened,andthatCanada,asoneofthefreenationsoftheworld,mustdoherpartinitsdefence。\"
\"Afinespirit,\"saidtheoldgentleman。
\"Thisfight,\"continuedtheM。O。,\"isours,yousee,aswellasyours,andwehateabully。\"
Theoldsaltsworeagreatoath,andsaid:
\"Youarepupsoftheoldbreed,andyouruntruetotype。I’mgladtoknowyou,gentlemen,\"hecontinued,shakingthemwarmlybythehand。
AftertheyhadgoneafewstepshecalledBarrybacktohim。
\"That’smycard,sir。IshouldlikeyoutocometoseemeinLondonsometimewhenyouareonleave。\"
Barryglancedatthecardandread,\"CommanderHowardVincent,R。N。R。\"
\"Itwasverydecentoftheoldboy,\"hesaidtotheCommandingOfficerafterwards,whenrecountingtheinterview。\"Idon’tsupposeI’lleverusethecard,butIdothinkhereallymeantit。\"
\"Meantit,\"exclaimedtheCommandingOfficer。\"Why,Dunbar,I’manoldcountryman,andIknow。Makenomistake。Thesepeople,andespeciallythesenavalpeople,donotthrowtheircardslooselyabout。Youwillundoubtedlyhearfromhim。\"
\"It’snotlikely,\"repliedBarry,\"buttheoldgentlemanisgreatstuff,allright。\"
Duringthelong,sunnyspringday,theirdinkylittletrainwhiskedthembrisklythroughthesweetandrestfulbeautyoftheEnglishsoutherncounties。Tothesemen,however,fromthewidesunbaked,windsweptplainsofwesternCanada,theEnglishlandscapesuggestedadaintypicture,doneinsoftgreysandgreens,withhereandthereavividsplashofcolour,wheretherichredsoilbrokethroughthegreen。Butitstinyfieldssetoffwithhedges,andlinesoftrees,itslittle,clean—sweptvillages,withtheirpicturesquechurchspires,itsparkswithdeerthatactuallystoodstilltolookatyou,itssplendidmanorhouses,and,atrareintervals,itsturretedcastles,gavethesemen,freshfromtheraw,unmeasuredandunmadewest,asenseofunreality。Tothemitseemedatoylandscapeforchildrentoplaywith,but,astheypassedthroughthebigtownsandcitieswiththeirtall,clusteringchimneys,theircrowdingpopulations,withunmistakableevidencesofgreatwealth,theirshipping,wheretheharboursbitintotheredcoastline,therebegantowakeninthemthethoughtthatthistinyEngland,sobeautifullyfinished,andsoneatlyadorned,wassomethingmightierthantheyhadeverknown。
Inthesetinyfields,inthesecleansweptvillages,inthesemanorhouses,inthesecastles,infactoryandinshipyard,werestruckdeeptherootsofanEnglandwhosegreatnesstheyhadneveryetguessed。
ThenextafternoonbroughtthemtothegreatmilitarycampatShorncliffe,inamistyrain,hungry,fortheirrationshadbeenexhaustedearlyintheday,wearyfromshipandtraintravel,andeagertogettheirfeetonceagainonmotherearth。
Atthelittlestationtheywerekeptwaitinginapouringrainforsomethingtohappen,theyknewnotwhat。TheR。T。O。,ayoungImperialofficer,blasewithhistenmonthsofwarinEngland,hadsomeoccultreasonfordelayingtheirdeparture。So,whilethenightgreweverymomentwetteranddarker,themensatontheirkit—bagsorfoundsuchshelterastheycouldinthetinystation,orintheleeofthe\"goodstrains\"blockingtherailroadtracks,growingmoreindignantandmoredisgustedwiththeBritishhighcommand,thewaringeneral,andregisteringwithincreasingintensityvowsofvengeanceagainsttheKaiser,who,inthelastanalysis,theyconsideredresponsiblefortheirmisery。
Atlengththe\"brasshat\"forwhomtheyhadbeenwaitingappeareduponthescene,notintheslightestdegreeapologetic,butverybusinesslike,andwithahighlyemphasisedmilitarymanner。AfteralittleconversationbetweenthebrasshatandtheirCommandingOfficer,thelattergavethecommandandofftheysetinthedarknessfortheirfirstroutemarchonEnglishsoil。
Throughmuddyroadsandlanes,overfields,slushyandsodden,uphillanddowndale,theyploddedsteadilyalong。AttherearofthecolunmmarchedBarrywiththeM。O。
Longbeforetheyreachedtheirdestination,theirconversationhadgivenout,theM。O。suckingsullenlyathispipe,thebowlupsidedown。Therearendofthecolumnwasveryfrayedandstraggling。
Whyitisthataperfectlyfitcompanywillinvariablyfrayoutifplacedattherearofamarchingcolumn,nomilitaryexperthasquitesucceededinsatisfactorilyexplaining。
Ashetrampedalonginthedarkbythesideoftheroad,theM。O。
stumbledoverasoldiersittinguponthesoggybank。
\"Whoareyou?\"heinquiredshortly。
\"CorporalThom,sir。\"
\"What’sthematterwithyou?\"
\"I’mallin,sir。I’vebeensickallday,sir。\"
\"Whydidn’tyoureportsick,then?Can’tyougeton?\"
\"Idon’tthinkso,sir。Notforawhile,atleast。\"
\"Haveyouanypain,anynausea?\"
\"No,sir,I’mjustallin。\"
\"Doyouknowourroute?\"
\"Yes,sir,I’vegottheturnsdown。\"
\"Well,comealongthenwhenyoucan。I’llsendbackawaggonlater,butdon’twaitforthat。\"
\"Yes,sir,\"saidCorporalThom。
\"Comeon,Dunbar!We’llsendawaggonbackforthesestragglers。
Therewillbeagoodmanyofthembeforelong。\"
\"Yougoon,doc。I’llcomelater,\"saidBarry。\"I’llcatchuptoyou。\"
ButtheM。O。,atthevarioushalts,waitedinvainforthechaplaintoappear。
Onarrivingatthecamp,afteralongstruggle,hesucceededinsendingbackanArmyServicewaggontobringinthestragglers,butjustasthewaggonwasabouttoleave,heheardcominguptheroad,apartysteppingoutbrisklytothemusicoftheirownwhistling。
Intherearofthepartymarchedthechaplain,ladendownwithoneman’srifleandanotherman’skit—bag。
\"They’reallhere,sir,\"saidCorporalThomtotheM。O。,withadistinctnoteoftriumphinhisvoice。\"Allhere,sir,\"herepeated,asheobservedthesergeantmajorstandingatthedoctor’sside。
\"Welldone,corporal,\"saidthesergeantmajor。\"Youbrought’emallin?Thatmeansthatnomanhasfallenoutonourfirstmarchinthiscountry。\"
Thecorporalmadenoreply,butlateron,heexplainedthemattertothesergeantmajor。
\"It’sthatSkyPilotofours,sir,\"hesaid。\"Blowedifhe’dletusfallout。\"
\"Keptyoumarching,eh?\"
\"No,it’shischocolateandhisjaw,butmorehisjawthanhischocolate。He’sgotlotsofboth。Iwasallin。I’dbeensickalldayinthetrain。Couldn’teatabite。Well,thefirstthing,hegivesmeacakeofhischocolate。Thenhesetshimselfdowninthemudbesideme,andmewishin’allthetimehe’dgoonandleavemeforthewaggontopickup。Thenhegivesmeacigarette,andthenhebeginstotalk。\"
\"Talk,whatabout?\"
\"DamnedifIknow,butthefirstthingIknewIwastellin’himaboutthebronchobustin’,——that’smyjob,youknow——andhowIwonoutfromNiggerJakeintheCalgaryStampede,untilIwasthatstuckonmyselfthatIsaid:’Well,sir,we’dbettergetamoveon,’anduphegetswithmykit—bagonhisback。Byandby,wepicksupanotherlameduckandthenanother,feedin’’emwithchocolateandslingin’hisjaw,andwhenwewasatthelimit,hehaltsusoutsideoneofthemstoneshacksandknocksatthedoor。
’Nosoldiershere,’snapsthered—headedangel,shuttin’thedoorrightinhisface。Thenheopensthedoorandstepsrightinwhereshecouldseehim,andstartstotalktoher,anduslisteningoutintherain。Say!Infifteenminuteswewasallstandin’uptoafeedofcoffeeandbuns,andthenhegetsHarryHobbswhistlin’andsingin’,anddernedifwecouldn’thavemarchedtoBerlin。Say!
He’sagoodone,ain’tnoquitter,andhewon’tletnobodyelsebeaquitter。\"
AndthusitcamethatwithCorporalThomandhisderelictsthechaplainmarchedintoanewplaceintheesteemofthemenofhisbattalion,andofitssergeantmajor。
Butofthis,ofcourse,Barryhadnoknowledge。Heknewthathehadmadesomelittleprogressintotheconfidenceofbothofficersandmeninhisbattalion。Hehadmade,too,somefirmfriendshipswhichhadrelieved,toacertainextent,thesenseofisolationandlonelinessthathadmadehisfirstmonthswiththebattalionsoappalling。Buttherestillremainedthesenseoffailureinasfarashisspecificdutyaschaplainwasconcerned。
TheexperiencesofthefirstweeksinEnglandonlyservedtodeepeninhimtheconvictionthathisinfluenceonthemenagainsttheevilswhichweretheirespecialsnarewasasthewindagainsttheincomingtide,beatinginfromtheNorthSea。Hecouldmakearipple,acertainamountoffussynoise,butthetideoftemptationrolledsteadilyonward,uncheckedinitsflow。
Theoldtemptationstoprofanity,drinkandlust,thathadhauntedthesoldiers’stepsathome,werefoundtobelyinginwaitforthemhereandinaggravatedform。True,inthemessandinhispresenceamongthementherewaslessprofanitythantherehadbeenatthefirst,butitfilledhimwithakindofragetofeelthatthischangewasduetonosenseoftheevilofthehabit,butsolelytoanunwillingnesstogiveoffencetoonewhommanyofthemwerecomingtoregardwithrespectandsomeevenwithaffection。
\"Ihatethat,\"hesaidtotheM。O。,towhomhewouldoccasionallyunburdenhissoul。\"You’dthinkIwasakindofpolicemanovertheirmorals。\"
\"Oh,Iwouldn’tworryaboutthat,\"saidtheM。O。,towhomthehabitofprofanitywasaveryvenialsin。\"Yououghttobemightygladthatyourpresencedoesactasakindofmoralprophylactic。
Anditdoes,Iassureyou。IconfessthatsinceIhavecometobeassociatedwithyou,Iamconsciousofaveryreal,andattimes,distressinglimitationofmyvocabulary。Imaynotbemorevirtuous,butcertainlyIammorerespectable。\"