his invisible
companion, but his face was like the face of a man that has died struck
from behind--a face from which all feelings and all expression are
suddenly wiped off by the hand of unexpected death.

* * * * *

They slept on the river that night, mooring their canoe under the bushes
and lying down in the bottom side by side, in the absolute exhaustion
that kills hunger, thirst, all feeling and all thought in the
overpowering desire for that deep sleep which is like the temporary
annihilation of the tired body. Next day they started again and fought
doggedly with the current all the morning, till about midday they reached
the settlement and made fast their little craft to the jetty of Lingard
and Co. Almayer walked straight to the house, and Ali followed, paddles
on shoulder, thinking that he would like to eat something. As they
crossed the front courtyard they noticed the abandoned look of the place.
Ali looked in at the different servants' houses: all were empty. In the
back courtyard there was the same absence of sound and life. In the
cooking-shed the fire was out and the black embers were cold. A tall,
lean man came stealthily out of the banana plantation, and went away
rapidly across the open space looking at them with big, frightened eyes
over his shoulder. Some vagabond without a master; there were many such
in the settlement, and they looked upon Almayer as their patron. They
prowled about his premises and picked their living there, sure that
nothing worse could befall them than a shower of curses when they got in
the way of the white man, whom they trusted and liked, and called a fool
amongst themselves. In the house, which Almayer entered through the back
verandah, the only living thing that met his eyes was his small monkey
which, hungry and unnoticed for the last two days, began to cry and
complain in monkey language as soon as it caught sight of the familiar
face. Almayer soothed it with a few words and ordered Ali to bring in
some bananas, then while Ali was gone to get them he stood in the doorway
of the front verandah looking at the chaos of overturned furniture.
Finally he picked up the table and sat on it while the monkey let itself
down from the roof-stick by its chain and perched on his shoulder. When
the bananas came they had their breakfast together; both hungry, both
eating greedily and showering the skins round them recklessly, in the
trusting silence of perfect friendship. Ali