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“ Good , ” said the landlord . “ He comes from the islands of the South Seas , and he’s a fine fellow . He’s out in the town at the moment . He’s trying to sell some things that he brought back from his travels . ” I ate my supper and waited by the fire , but the harpooneer did not come . The later it got , the more nervous I felt . What kind of man was he ? The landlord only laughed at my questions . At last , near midnight , he took a candle and led me upstairs . “ Go to bed , ” he said . “ He’s a quiet man . He won’t hurt you . ” The room was small and freezing cold . There was a big bed , a chair and a rough sea bag in the corner . Next to the bag I saw a harpoon and a strange small axe . Its handle was hollow , and on the back of the blade there was the bowl of a pipe . It was an axe and a pipe at the same time . Then I undressed , blew out the candle and got into bed . I was very tired , but I could not sleep . II . Queequeg At last I heard heavy steps on the stairs , and a light came under the door . The door opened , and the harpooneer came in with a candle in his hand . He did not see me in the bed . He put the candle on the floor and began to untie his bag . When he turned his face towards the light , I nearly cried out . His skin was a dark , yellowish brown , and it was covered with black squares and lines . At first I thought that he had been in a terrible fight . Then I understood . They were tattoos , pictures and patterns drawn into the skin with ink . His head was shaved , except for one small knot of hair on the top . When he took off his shirt , I saw that his chest and arms had the same dark patterns . Next he took a small black wooden figure out of his bag and put it in the cold fireplace . Then he lit a few wood shavings in front of it . He bowed to it and sang something quietly in his own language . I realised that the little figure was his god , and that he was saying his prayers . After his prayers he put out the little fire and put the figure back in his bag . Then he picked up the strange axe and lit the pipe on top of it . He blew out the candle , and with the pipe still in his mouth he jumped into bed . I could not stay quiet any longer . I gave a loud cry . The stranger jumped too , and gave a deep shout of surprise . “ Who are you ? ” he said angrily . “ Speak ! Speak , or I will kill you ! ” He waved the burning pipe over my head in the dark . “ Landlord ! ” I shouted . “ Help ! Peter Coffin ! ” The landlord came running up the stairs with a light . He was laughing .
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