jihe1012

@@@@@All the bitterness and frustration of losing Wilson had been tucked away in his brain, encysted temporarily by the stupor that had followedHe had slept for a day and a half, and the journey with the litter seemed remoteHe even liked Brown and Stanley because they were a little uneasy with him and seemed afraid to bother himThere was an understanding between Ridges and himThe day they had spent on the beach waiting for the rest of the platoon had not been unpleasantAnd automatically they had selected bunks next to each other when they got on the boat He had his moments of rebellionThe goy friend he got was a goy -- a peasant, an outcast himselfHe would get somebody like thatBut he was ashamed for thinking this, with almost the shame he felt whenever a random caustic thought about his wife slipped through his headIt ended by his being defiantFor a friend he had an illiterate, but so what? Ridges was a good manThere was something enduring about himThe salt of the earth, Goldstein told himself The boat wallowed along about a mile offshoreAs the afternoon wore by the men began to move about a little, and stare over the sideThe island skidded by slowly, always impenetrable, always green and opaque with the jungle skirting the waterThey passed a small peninsula which they had noticed on the trip out, and some of them began to calculate how long it would be before they reached the bivouacPolack climbed up on the rear hatch where the pilot was steering the boat and rested under the canvas canopyThe sun shifted over the water, reflecting brightly from each ripple, and the air held a subtle bouquet of vegetation and ocean "Jeez, it's nice out here," Polack said to the driverHis feelings were hurt because the platoon had been spitting in the boat "Aaah, what's eatin' ya, Jack?" Polack asked "You were one of the wise guys who was giving me some lip before"Aaah, listen, Jack, you don' wanta take an attitude like tha