Nostromo - A Tale of the Seaboard.pdf - Planet eBook

‘Who are you?’Already Nostromo had seemed to recognize Dr.Monygham. He had no doubt now. He hesitated the space ofa second. The idea of bolting without a word presented itselfto his mind. No use! An inexplicable repugnance to pronouncethe name by which he was known kept him silent alittle longer. At last he said in a low voice—‘A Cargador.’He walked up to the other. Dr. Monygham had receiveda shock. He flung his arms up and cried out his wonderaloud, forgetting himself before the marvel of this meeting.Nostromo angrily warned him to moderate his voice. TheCustom House was not so deserted as it looked. There wassomebody in the lighted room above.There is no more evanescent quality in an accomplishedfact than its wonderfulness. Solicited incessantly by theconsiderations affecting its fears and desires, the humanmind turns naturally away from the marvellous side ofevents. And it was in the most natural way possible that thedoctor asked this man whom only two minutes before hebelieved to have been drowned in the gulf—‘You have seen somebody up there? Have you?’‘No, I have not seen him.’‘Then how do you know?’‘I was running away from his shadow when we met.’‘His shadow?’‘Yes. His shadow in the lighted room,’ said Nostromo,in a contemptuous tone. Leaning back with folded arms atthe foot of the immense building, he dropped his head, bit-