pon
the enemy in the most effective way possible. But the civilized man is
'all abroad.' His glasses fall off his nose, he loses his balance and
his breath, he flinches, goes blind with helpless rage and indignation,
and is held in contempt by the very policeman he pays to take the job
off his hands and lock his enemy up. It's no exaggeration to say that
some of us lack that power of instantly marshalling our faculties,
maintaining a clear view and keeping the blood out of our eyes, which is
called 'presence of mind.' It is a good phrase, that, because an
intellectual person, when he is attacked with sudden violence, hasn't
for the time being any mind at all. He is just a heap of nerves, a
compound of puerile passion and hysterical protest.

"It seemed to me that my throat was held for a long time, in that grip.
As a matter of fact it could not have been more than a couple of
seconds. But it seemed long. It seemed to me as though the pressure,
which was choking me to begin with, increased and increased. The power
of it was not like the power of a machine, but evil, personal, spiteful.
I remember I shut my eyes. I remember hot breath on my face. And then I
remember a blank. In my memory it is like a space between inverted
commas, without anything written. A blank....

"My head had slid down against the back of the seat, my knees were all
cigar-dust, and my hat had fallen off, when I opened my eyes. I heard
someone say, 'Sit up, for God's sake!' and I tried to do as I was told,
to 'sit up for God's sake.' Somebody was sitting beside me, pulling at
my shoulder. Now and again I heard him say, 'You damn fool!' He was
angry with me then. I wondered what I'd done to make anybody angry. I
tried to think. I'd been sitting on a seat in the _Parque Colon_. Very
good. Why was I a damn fool? I decided to argue the point with this
chap. I struggled up and felt for my hat. I heard him say, 'Listen, you
fool!' There he was again. Always a fool. Then he said, 'Well, _look_
then, if you can't hear,' and he struck a match and held it before his
face. Humph!

"He pinched the match between his fingers and we were in the dark again.
He said, 'Well, Charley, old man, that was a near squeak for you, a damn
near squeak. What the devil d'you go sitting round a place like this
for?'

"I remember being very much amused at this. He was actually angry with
me! He had nearly choked the life out of me, and he was angry with me! I
had nothing to s