Дублінці
An Encounter
WepleasedourselveswiththespectacleofDublin’scommerce—thebargessignalledfromfarawaybytheircurlsofwoollysmoke,thebrownfishingfleetbeyondRingsend,thebigwhitesailingvesselwhichwasbeingdischargedontheoppositequay.MahonysaiditwouldberightskittorunawaytoseaononeofthosebigshipsandevenI,lookingatthehighmasts,saw,orimagined,thegeographywhichhadbeenscantilydosedtomeatschoolgraduallytakingsubstanceundermyeyes.Schoolandhomeseemedtorecedefromusandtheirinfluencesuponusseemedtowane.
WecrossedtheLiffeyintheferryboat,payingourtolltobetransportedinthecompanyoftwolabourersandalittleJewwithabag.Wewereserioustothepointofsolemnity,butonceduringtheshortvoyageoureyesmetandwelaughed.Whenwelandedwewatchedthedischargingofthegracefulthreemasterwhichwehadobservedfromtheotherquay.SomebystandersaidthatshewasaNorwegianvessel.Iwenttothesternandtriedtodecipherthelegenduponitbut,failingtodoso,IcamebackandexaminedtheforeignsailorstoseehadanyofthemgreeneyesforIhadsomeconfusednotion....Thesailors’eyeswereblueandgreyandevenblack.Theonlysailorwhoseeyescouldhavebeencalledgreenwasatallmanwhoamusedthecrowdonthequaybycallingoutcheerfullyeverytimetheplanksfell:
“Allright!Allright!”
WhenweweretiredofthissightwewanderedslowlyintoRingsend.
