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"

She

turned

away

slowly

,

walked

on

,

following

the

bank

,

and

passed

into

the

bushes

to

the

left

.

Once

only

her

eyes

gleamed

back

at

us

in

the

dusk

of

the

thickets

before

she

disappeared

.

"

'

If

she

had

offered

to

come

aboard

I

really

think

I

would

have

tried

to

shoot

her

,

'

said

the

man

of

patches

,

nervously

.

'

I

have

been

risking

my

life

every

day

for

the

last

fortnight

to

keep

her

out

of

the

house

.

She

got

in

one

day

and

kicked

up

a

row

about

those

miserable

rags

I

picked

up

in

the

storeroom

to

mend

my

clothes

with

.

I

was

n't

decent

.

At

least

it

must

have

been

that

,

for

she

talked

like

a

fury

to

Kurtz

for

an

hour

,

pointing

at

me

now

and

then

.

I

do

n't

understand

the

dialect

of

this

tribe

.

Luckily

for

me

,

I

fancy

Kurtz

felt

too

ill

that

day

to

care

,

or

there

would

have

been

mischief

.

I

do

n't

understand

...

No

--

it

's

too

much

for

me

.

Ah

,

well

,

it

's

all

over

now

.

'

"

At

this

moment

I

heard

Kurtz

's

deep

voice

behind

the

curtain

:

'

Save

me

!

--

save

the

ivory

,

you

mean

.

Do

n't

tell

me

.

Save

ME

!

Why

,

I

've

had

to

save

you

.

You

are

interrupting

my

plans

now

.

Sick

!

Sick

!

Not

so

sick

as

you

would

like

to

believe

.

Never

mind

.

I

'll

carry

my

ideas

out

yet

--

I

will

return

.

I

'll

show

you

what

can

be

done

.

Отключить рекламу

You

with

your

little

peddling

notions

--

you

are

interfering

with

me

.

I

will

return

.

I.

.

.

'

"

The

manager

came

out

.

He

did

me

the

honour

to

take

me

under

the

arm

and

lead

me

aside

.

'

He

is

very

low

,

very

low

,

'

he

said

.

He

considered

it

necessary

to

sigh

,

but

neglected

to

be

consistently

sorrowful

.

'

We

have

done

all

we

could

for

him

--

have

n't

we

?

But

there

is

no

disguising

the

fact

,

Mr.

Kurtz

has

done

more

harm

than

good

to

the

Company

.

He

did

not

see

the

time

was

not

ripe

for

vigorous

action

.

Cautiously

,

cautiously

--

that

's

my

principle

.

We

must

be

cautious

yet

.

The

district

is

closed

to

us

for

a

time

.

Deplorable

!

Upon

the

whole

,

the

trade

will

suffer

.

I

do

n't

deny

there

is

a

remarkable

quantity

of

ivory

--

mostly

fossil

.

We

must

save

it

,

at

all

events

--

but

look

how

precarious

the

position

is

--

and

why

?

Because

the

method

is

unsound

.

'

'

Do

you

,

'

said

I

,

looking

at

the

shore

,

'

call

it

"

unsound

method

?

"

'

'

Without

doubt

,

'

he

exclaimed

hotly

.

'

Do

n't

you

?

'

...

'

No

method

at

all

,

'

I

murmured

after

a

while

.

'

Exactly

,

'

he

exulted

.

'

I

anticipated

this

.

Shows

a

complete

want

of

judgment

.

It

is

my

duty

to

point

it

out

in

the

proper

quarter

.

'

'

Oh

,

'

said

I

,

'

that

fellow

--

what

's

his

name

?

--

the

brickmaker

,

will

make

a

readable

report

for

you

.

'

He

appeared

confounded

for

a

moment

.

It

seemed

to

me

I

had

never

breathed

an

atmosphere

so

vile

,

and

I

turned

mentally

to

Kurtz

for

relief

--

positively

for

relief

.

'

Nevertheless

I

think

Mr.

Kurtz

is

a

remarkable

man

,

'

I

said

with

emphasis

.

He

started

,

dropped

on

me

a

heavy

glance

,

said

very

quietly

,

'

he

WAS

,

'

and

turned

his

back

on

me

.

My

hour

of

favour

was

over

;

I

found

myself

lumped

along

with

Kurtz

as

a

partisan

of

methods

for

which

the

time

was

not

ripe

:

I

was

unsound

!

Ah

!

but

it

was

something

to

have

at

least

a

choice

of

nightmares

.

"

I

had

turned

to

the

wilderness

really

,

not

to

Mr.

Kurtz

,

who

,

I

was

ready

to

admit

,

was

as

good

as

buried

.

And

for

a

moment

it

seemed

to

me

as

if

I

also

were

buried

in

a

vast

grave

full

of

unspeakable

secrets

.

I

felt

an

intolerable

weight

oppressing

my

breast

,

the

smell

of

the

damp

earth

,

the

unseen

presence

of

victorious

corruption

,

the

darkness

of

an

impenetrable

night

...

The

Russian

tapped

me

on

the

shoulder

.

I

heard

him

mumbling

and

stammering

something

about

'

brother

seaman

--

could

n't

conceal

--

knowledge

of

matters

that

would

affect

Mr.

Kurtz

's

reputation

.

'

I

waited

.

For

him

evidently

Mr.

Kurtz

was

not

in

his

grave

;

I

suspect

that

for

him

Mr.

Kurtz

was

one

of

the

immortals

.

'

Well

!

'

said

I

at

last

,

'

speak

out

.

As

it

happens

,

I

am

Mr.

Kurtz

's

friend

--

in

a

way

.

'

Отключить рекламу

"

He

stated

with

a

good

deal

of

formality

that

had

we

not

been

'

of

the

same

profession

,

'

he

would

have

kept

the

matter

to

himself

without

regard

to

consequences

.

'

He

suspected

there

was

an

active

ill-will

towards

him

on

the

part

of

these

white

men

that

--

'

'

You

are

right

,

'

I

said

,

remembering

a

certain

conversation

I

had

overheard

.

'

The

manager

thinks

you

ought

to

be

hanged

.

'

He

showed

a

concern

at

this

intelligence

which

amused

me

at

first

.

'

I

had

better

get

out

of

the

way

quietly

,

'

he

said

earnestly

.

'

I

can

do

no

more

for

Kurtz

now

,

and

they

would

soon

find

some

excuse

.

What

's

to

stop

them

?

There

's

a

military

post

three

hundred

miles

from

here

.

'

'

Well

,

upon

my

word

,

'

said

I

,

'

perhaps

you

had

better

go

if

you

have

any

friends

amongst

the

savages

near

by

.

'

'

Plenty

,

'

he

said

.

'

They

are

simple

people

--

and

I

want

nothing

,

you

know

.

'

He

stood

biting

his

lip

,

then

:

'

I

do

n't

want

any

harm

to

happen

to

these

whites

here

,

but

of

course

I

was

thinking

of

Mr.

Kurtz

's

reputation

--

but

you

are

a

brother

seaman

and

--

'

'

All

right

,

'

said

I

,

after

a

time

.

'

Mr.

Kurtz

's

reputation

is

safe

with

me

.

'

I

did

not

know

how

truly

I

spoke

.

"

He

informed

me

,

lowering

his

voice

,

that

it

was

Kurtz

who

had

ordered

the

attack

to

be

made

on

the

steamer

.

'

He

hated

sometimes

the

idea

of

being

taken

away

--

and

then

again

...

But

I

do

n't

understand

these

matters

.

I

am

a

simple

man

.

He

thought

it

would

scare

you

away

--

that

you

would

give

it

up

,

thinking

him

dead

.

I

could

not

stop

him

.

Oh

,

I

had

an

awful

time

of

it

this

last

month

.

'

'

Very

well

,

'

I

said

.

'

He

is

all

right

now

.

'

'

Ye-e-es

,

'

he

muttered

,

not

very

convinced

apparently

.

'

Thanks

,

'

said

I

;

'

I

shall

keep

my

eyes

open

.

'

'

But

quiet-eh

?

'

he

urged

anxiously

.

'

It

would

be

awful

for

his

reputation

if

anybody

here

--

'

I

promised

a

complete

discretion

with

great

gravity

.

'

I

have

a

canoe

and

three

black

fellows

waiting

not

very

far

.

I

am

off

.

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