Tim thought I wus a prutty gud frien' an' cum over yere ter liquor, an' eat.

Ther joke ov it is, he never know'd thet Joe hed told me all 'bout the fix he wus in, afore we cum ashore.
Hell, it wus all fixed up whut wus ter be done--only we didn't expect the steamer wus goin' on north.

Thar's sum boys wantin' a drink; see yer agin." I finished shaving, making no attempt to hurry, busily thinking over this new situation.

In the first place why had Rale told me all this?
Quite probably the indiscretion never occurred to him, or a thought that the matter would prove of any personal interest to me.

He had been drinking, and was in a reckless mood; he believed me a common river roustabout, with few scruples of conscience, and possibly had even picked me out as an assistant in the affair.