The original stock, I imagine, was Malay which had been crossed
with Indian coolie. Also, somewhere or other, there was a dash of
white and possibly, but of this I am not sure, a little Hottentot. The
result was a person of few vices and many virtues. Sammy, I may say at
once, was perhaps the biggest coward I ever met. He could not help it,
it was congenital, though, curiously enough, this cowardice of his
never prevented him from rushing into fresh danger. Thus he knew that
the expedition upon which I was engaged would be most hazardous;
remembering his weakness I explained this to him very clearly. Yet
that knowledge did not deter him from imploring that he might be
allowed to accompany me. Perhaps this was because there was some
mutual attachment between us, as in the case of Hans. Once, a good
many years before, I had rescued Sammy from a somewhat serious scrape
by declining to give evidence against him. I need not enter into the
details, but a certain sum of money over which he had control had
disappeared.
Pages:
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126