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

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

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CHAPTER NINEDISTRACTED between doubts and hopes, dismayed by<strong>the</strong> sound <strong>of</strong> bells pealing out <strong>the</strong> arrival <strong>of</strong> PedritoMontero, Sotillo had spent <strong>the</strong> morning in battling withhis thoughts; a contest to which he was unequal, from <strong>the</strong>vacuity <strong>of</strong> his mind and <strong>the</strong> violence <strong>of</strong> his passions. Disappointment,greed, anger, and fear made a tumult, in <strong>the</strong>colonel’s breast louder than <strong>the</strong> din <strong>of</strong> bells in <strong>the</strong> town.Nothing he had planned had come to pass. Nei<strong>the</strong>r Sulaconor <strong>the</strong> silver <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> mine had fallen into his hands. He hadperformed no military exploit to secure his position, andhad obtained no enormous booty to make <strong>of</strong>f with. PedritoMontero, ei<strong>the</strong>r as friend or foe, filled him with dread. Thesound <strong>of</strong> bells maddened him.Imagining at first that he might be attacked at once, he hadmade his battalion stand to arms on <strong>the</strong> shore. He walkedto and fro all <strong>the</strong> length <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> room, stopping sometimes tognaw <strong>the</strong> finger-tips <strong>of</strong> his right hand with a lurid sidewaysglare fixed on <strong>the</strong> floor; <strong>the</strong>n, with a sullen, repelling glanceall round, he would resume his tramping in savage alo<strong>of</strong>ness.His hat, horsewhip, sword, and revolver were lying on<strong>the</strong> table. His <strong>of</strong>ficers, crowding <strong>the</strong> window giving <strong>the</strong> view<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> town gate, disputed amongst <strong>the</strong>mselves <strong>the</strong> use <strong>of</strong>his field-glass bought last year on long credit from Anzani.It passed from hand to hand, and <strong>the</strong> possessor for <strong>the</strong> time

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