Page 485 - nostromo-a-tale-of-the-seaboard

sented, briefly. He was mollified by what seemed a sign of
some faint interest in such things as had befallen him, and
dropped a few descriptive phrases with an affected and curt
nonchalance. At that moment he felt communicative. He
expected the continuance of that interest which, whether
accepted or rejected, would have restored to him his per-
sonality—the only thing lost in that desperate affair. But
the doctor, engrossed by a desperate adventure of his own,
was terrible in the pursuit of his idea. He let an exclamation
of regret escape him.
‘I could almost wish you had shouted and shown a light.’
This unexpected utterance astounded the Capataz by its
character of cold-blooded atrocity. It was as much as to say,
‘I wish you had shown yourself a coward; I wish you had
had your throat cut for your pains.’ Naturally he referred
it to himself, whereas it related only to the silver, being ut-
tered simply and with many mental reservations. Surprise
and rage rendered him speechless, and the doctor pursued,
practically unheard by Nostromo, whose stirred blood was
beating violently in his ears.
‘For I am convinced Sotillo in possession of the silver
would have turned short round and made for some small
port abroad. Economically it would have been wasteful,
but still less wasteful than having it sunk. It was the next
best thing to having it at hand in some safe place, and using
part of it to buy up Sotillo. But I doubt whether Don Car-
los would have ever made up his mind to it. He is not fit for
Costaguana, and that is a fact, Capataz.’
The Capataz had mastered the fury that was like a tem-

Nostromo: A Tale of the Seaboard