“Tse! Tse! The master!”
“Be quiet, Luiz, and listen to what I say.”
Yes, it was the master, the strong master who was never known to raise his voice, the man blindly obeyed and never questioned. He talked low and rapidly in the quiet night, as if every minute were precious. On learning that three guests were coming to stay Luiz clicked his tongue rapidly. These clicks were the uniform, stenographic symbols of his emotions, and he could give them an infinite variety of meaning. He listened to the rest in a deep silence hardly affected by the low, “Yes, master,” whenever Renouard paused.
“You understand?” the latter insisted. “No preparations are to be made till we land in the morning. And you are to say that Mr. Walter has gone off in a trading schooner on a round of the islands.”
“Yes, master.”
“No mistakes—mind!”
“No, master.”
Renouard walked back towards the sea. Luiz, following him, proposed to call out half a dozen boys and man the canoe.
“Imbecile!”
“Tse! Tse! Tse!”