It was said he had cheeked the old
man; it was said he had frightened him. Charley maintained that the
"skipper, weepin,' 'as giv' 'im 'is blessin' an' a pot of jam." Knowles
had it from the steward that the unspeakable Jimmy had been reeling
against the cabin furniture; that he had groaned; that he had complained
of general brutality and disbelief; and had ended by coughing all over
the old man's meteorological journals which were then spread on the
table. At any rate, Wait returned forward supported by the steward, who,
in a pained and shocked voice, entreated us:--"Here! Catch hold of him,
one of you. He is to lie-up." Jimmy drank a tin mugful of coffee, and,
after bullying first one and then another, went to bed. He remained
there most of the time, but when it suited him would come on deck and
appear amongst us. He was scornful and brooding; he looked ahead upon
the sea, and no one could tell what was the meaning of that black man
sitting apart in a meditative attitude and as motionless as a carving.
He refused steadily all medicine; he threw sago and cornflour overboard
till the steward got tired of bringing it to him.
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