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10 go and let yourselves be licked by those bloody fools of Russians?

“Then, not only our crab canneries but also our salmon and trout fisheries in Kamchatka give us a great advantage over the other nations. And they are of special importance in such a densely populated country as ours, besides helping to supply the community with food supplies. I want you all to realize we are serving our Empire when we risk our lives braving the stormy seas of Hokkaido. So if any one of you start imitating the Russian tactics that are popular nowadays and stir up trouble, I tell you, that man would be doing nothing short of selling his country. I don’t think such a thing is likely, but I give you fair warning.” The boss sneezed as if recovering from intoxication.

One important guest, who was a little drunk, went down the gangway with jerky, uncertain steps to get into the waiting launch. Sailors lifted him like a big sack of pebbles, but he was almost too much for them. He waved his arms and kicked out with his legs, and screamed out all sorts of things, and the sailors kept getting a shower of spit right in their faces.

“In public they say all sorts of fine things, but this is about all it amounts to,” the sailor remarked.

Having got him aboard, one of them, undoing the rope from the bottom of the gang way and glancing over at the launch, said in a low voice:

“Shall we do for him?”

They held their breath for a moment and then burst out laughing.