sed
as a fellar who's bought a ton of shell for a condemned army musket.

My, but they were good to that man, forever inviting him to breakfast or
that, and sending for him first thing if they were in a fix! It was all
Afiola this, and Afiola that; and he got texts, too, from Mrs. Tweedie,
and red worsted dogs, and "God Bless Our Home." By the time they had
engineered him into shoes and pants, no one daring to laugh for fear
he'd shoot them, they promoted him deacon, and put him on the committee
for reroofing the church. Of all mutton-headed proceedings, I never saw
the like, specially as he hoodwinked them right along, and acted worse,
even, than before. You can imagine Captain Coe's feelings when, rounding
up a three months' cruise, he found this six-foot-three of black devil
and hypocrite snugged in the Mission house like a maggot in a
breadfruit. They say he went on awful, speaking out the truth before
them all, and daring Afiola to deny it. But Mrs. Tweedie she got him
outside on the veranda, walking up and down with her arm through his,
and pleading and going on and begging to beat the band. It shows the
power she had over him, that at last he went in and asked Afiola's
pardon, and the next day sent him a case of kerosene by way of
reparation. I suppose if she had told him to go on his knees he would
have done it, being that crazy to please her in everything.

On second thoughts, however, and after hearing how Afiola had been
kicking up, he went to the king and tried to stiffen him to take a stand
against Afiola, volunteering to do the job himself, if supported, and
proposing to exile the fellar to Makatea, and disperse the rest of the
gang about the Group gratis in the _Peep o' Day_. He said otherwise he
was afraid to leave Puna Punou with such a scoundrel loose, and
threatened to write to Sydney for a man-of-war. But Maunga the king was
a saphead and a coward, and he couldn't see it Coe's way at all; and not
having the sense to keep his mouth shut, what does he do but traipse
around the settlement, telling everybody what the captain said and
wanted.

After that the Mission-house door was shut in Coe's face, and when Mrs.
Tweedie passed him on the road it was with her pretty head in the air,
and not looking. This nearly broke the captain's heart, and if you've
ever seen a dog as has been kicked out by his master, you can picture
Coe for yourself. He got very down and miserable, and talked some of
chucking the