Joseph Conrad

Heart of Darkness Joseph Conrad

"One evening as I was lying flat on the deck of my steamboat, I heard voices approaching-andthere were the nephew and the uncle strolling along the bank. I laid my head on my arm again, andhad nearly lost myself in a doze, when somebody said in my ear, as it were: 'I am as harmless as alittle child, but I don't like to be dictated to. Am I the manager-or am I not? I was ordered to sendhim there. It's incredible.' ... I became aware that the two were standing on the shore alongside theforepart of the steamboat, just below my head. I did not move; it did not occur to me to move: Iwas sleepy. 'It is unpleasant, ' grunted the uncle. 'He has asked the Administration to be sent there, 'said the other, 'with the idea of showing what he could do; and I was instructed accordingly. Look atthe influence that man must have. Is it not frightful?' They both agreed it was frightful, then madeseveral bizarre remarks: 'Make rain and fine weather-one man-the Council-by the nose'-bitsof absurd sentences that got the better of my drowsiness, so that I had pretty near the whole of mywits about me when the uncle said, 'The climate may do away with this difficulty for you. Is he alonethere?' 'Yes, ' answered the manager; 'he sent his assistant down the river with a note to me in theseterms: "Clear this poor devil out of the country, and don't bother sending more of that sort. I hadrather be alone than have the kind of men you can dispose of with me." It was more than a year ago. Can you imagine such impudence!' 'Anything since then?' asked the other hoarsely. 'Ivory, ' jerked thenephew; 'lots of it-prime sort-lots-most annoying, from him.' 'And with that?' questioned theheavy rumble. 'Invoice, ' was the reply fired out, so to speak. Then silence. They had been talkingabout Kurtz."I was broad awake by this time, but, lying perfectly at ease, remained still, having no inducementto change my position. 'How did that ivory come all this way?' growled the elder man, who seemedvery vexed. The other explained that it had come with a fleet of canoes in charge of an English halfcaste clerk Kurtz had with him; that Kurtz had apparently intended to return himself, the stationbeing by that time bare of goods and stores, but after coming three hundred miles, had suddenlydecided to go back, which he started to do alone in a small dugout with four paddlers, leaving thehalf-caste to continue down the river with the ivory. The two fellows there seemed astounded atanybody attempting such a thing. They were at a loss for an adequate motive. As to me, I seemed tosee Kurtz for the first time. It was a distinct glimpse: the dugout, four paddling savages, and the lonewhite man turning his back suddenly on the headquarters, on relief, on thoughts of home-perhaps;setting his face towards the depths of the wilderness, towards his empty and desolate station. I didnot know the motive. Perhaps he was just simply a fine fellow who stuck to his work for its ownsake. His name, you understand, had not been pronounced once. He was 'that man.' The half-caste, who, as far as I could see, had conducted a difficult trip with great prudence and pluck, wasinvariably alluded to as 'that scoundrel.' The 'scoundrel' had reported that the 'man' had been veryill-had recovered imperfectly.... The two below me moved away then a few paces, and strolled backand forth at some little distance. I heard: 'Military post-doctor-two hundred miles-quite alonenow-unavoidable delays-nine months-no news-strange rumours.' They approached again, justas the manager was saying, 'No one, as far as I know, unless a species of wandering trader-apestilential fellow, snapping ivory from the nat