Page:Kangaroo, 1923.pdf/148

 peculiar educated-artisan quality, almost a kind of uppishness that there is in the speech of Australian working men, struck him as incongruous with their picking up the coal-cobs from the shore. He watched them, in the chill of the shadow. Yes, they thought as much of themselves as anybody. But one was palpably a Welshman, and loved picking up something for nothing; and the other mixed his democratic uppishness with a queer lousy quality, like a bushranger. "They are ten times more foreign to me," said Somers, "than Italian scoundrels, or even Indians. They are so foreign to me. And yet their manner of life, their ordinary way of living is almost exactly what I was used to as a boy. Why are they so foreign to me?"

They silently objected to his looking, so he went on. He had come to the huge, high timbers of the tall jetty. There stood the little engine still overhead: and in the gloom among the timbers underneath water was dripping down from her, which gave Somers a distaste for passing just then. He looked up. There was the engine-driver in his dirty shirt and dirty bare arms, talking to another man. The other man saluted—and to Somers' surprise it was William James. He stood quite still, and a surprised smile of recognition greeted the other man, who saluted.

"Why, what are you doing here?" called Somers.

William James came to the edge of the jetty, but could not hear, because of the noise of the sea. His face had that small, subtle smile that was characteristic of him, and which Somers was never quite sure of, whether it was really jeering or in a cunning way friendly.

"Won't you come up a minute?" roared William James.

So Somers scrambled round up the banks, on to the railway track.

"I couldn't come down for the moment," said William James. "I'll have to see the manager, then I'm going off on this boat. We're ready to go. You heard her blowing."

"Where are you going? Back to Sydney."

"Yes. I come down occasionally on this coal-business, and if I like I go back on the collier. The sea is quiet, and I needn't wait for a train. Well, an' how're you