Part 17 (2/2)

”And what after that?” he asked again

”Nothing, Jake,--nothing That's all”

”No it ain't No it ain't, I tell you;--after that,--it's the bughouse for yours It's the thinking,--it's the thinking that does it every tie You'll be clean, pluot up, after two unsuccessful atteht in any aniht He put out another and staggered to the left All the time, his eyes were half closed He was quite insensible of our presence, for he was as drunk as any waterfront loafer Staggering, stu, he made his way back to his place beside the stove, where, in a ,--as a Westerner would put it,--to beat the cars

Meaghan noticed my interest in the phenomenon

”That's nothin',” he volunteered ”Mike has his drink with ht, for the sake o' company Why not? He doesn't see any fun in lookin' at the stars and watching the tide cohts Worst is, he can't stand up to liquor It kind o' gets his goat; yet he's been tipplin' for three years now”

Jake finished off his cup of whisky

”Good Heavens, ust and dis that stuff in that way?”

”Guess nit,” he growled, but quite good-naturedly ”I ain't started

I've been drinkin' ht for ten years and I ain't dead yet,--not by a daht No! nor I ain't never been drunk, neither”

He took up the other cupful of whisky as he spoke and slowly drained it off before runt of satisfaction, pulling at his long e Better'n seein' stars, too”

I could see his end

”I'd much rather see stars than snakes,” I rehed it off

I rose in a kind of cold perspiration Tofor no apparent reason

He came with me to the door His voice was as steady as could be; so were his legs The effects of the liquor he had consumed did not show on him except maybe for a bloodshot appearance in the whites of his baby-blue eyes

I orried I had known such another as Jake in the little village of Brammerton; and I knehat the inevitable end had been and what Jake's would be also

”Don't be sore at ot now”

”It is not any friend of yours, Jake”

”Well,--maybe it ain't, but I think it is and that's about the only e can reckon our friends

”When you find I ain't doin' my share o' the work because o' the booze or when you catch e”

I wished hiruffly, hurried over the beach, scrambled into the boat and rowed quickly for my new home