- end_line
- 2459
- extracted_at
- 2026-01-30T20:48:14.838Z
- extracted_by
- structure-extraction-lambda
- start_line
- 2402
- text
- concluding his examination, said, that the first man was the oldest
sailor, for the ends of his teeth were the evenest and most worn down;
which, he said, arose from eating so much hard sea-biscuit; and this
was the reason he could tell a sailor’s age like a horse’s.
At this, every body made merry, and looked at each other, as much as to
_say—come, boys, let’s laugh;_ and they did laugh; and declared it was
a rare joke.
This was always the way with them. They made a point of shouting out,
whenever Jackson said any thing with a grin; that being the sign to
them that he himself thought it funny; though I heard many good jokes
from others pass off without a smile; and once Jackson himself (for, to
tell the truth, he sometimes had a comical way with him, that is, when
his back did not ache) told a truly funny story, but with a grave face;
when, not knowing how he meant it, whether for a laugh or otherwise,
they all sat still, waiting what to do, and looking perplexed enough;
till at last Jackson roared out upon them for a parcel of fools and
idiots; and told them to their beards, how it was; that he had
purposely put on his grave face, to see whether they would not look
grave, too; even when he was telling something that ought to split
their sides. And with that, he flouted, and jeered at them, and laughed
them all to scorn; and broke out in such a rage, that his lips began to
glue together at the corners with a fine white foam.
He seemed to be full of hatred and gall against every thing and every
body in the world; as if all the world was one person, and had done him
some dreadful harm, that was rankling and festering in his heart.
Sometimes I thought he was really crazy; and often felt so frightened
at him, that I thought of going to the captain about it, and telling
him Jackson ought to be confined, lest he should do some terrible thing
at last. But upon second thoughts, I always gave it up; for the captain
would only have called me a fool, and sent me forward again.
But you must not think that all the sailors were alike in abasing
themselves before this man. No: there were three or four who used to
stand up sometimes against him; and when he was absent at the wheel,
would plot against him among the other sailors, and tell them what a
shame and ignominy it was, that such a poor miserable wretch should be
such a tyrant over much better men than himself. And they begged and
conjured them as men, to put up with it no longer, but the very next
time, that Jackson presumed to play the dictator, that they should all
withstand him, and let him know his place. Two or three times nearly
all hands agreed to it, with the exception of those who used to slink
off during such discussions; and swore that they would not any more
submit to being ruled by Jackson. But when the time came to make good
their oaths, they were mum again, and let every thing go on the old
way; so that those who had put them up to it, had to bear all the brunt
of Jackson’s wrath by themselves. And though these last would stick up
a little at first, and even mutter something about a fight to Jackson;
yet in the end, finding themselves unbefriended by the rest, they would
gradually become silent, and leave the field to the tyrant, who would
then fly out worse than ever, and dare them to do their worst, and jeer
at them for white-livered poltroons, who did not have a mouthful of
heart in them. At such times, there were no bounds to his contempt; and
indeed, all the time he seemed to have even more contempt than hatred,
for every body and every thing.
- title
- Chunk 5