Tom Spink and Buckwheat are serfs and
nothing else. Henry, the training-ship boy, occupies an anomalous
classification. He is of our kind, but he can scarcely be called
even a cadet of our kind. He will some day win to us and become a
mate or a captain, but in the meantime, of course, his past is
against him. He is a candidate, rising from the serf class to our
class. Also, he is only a youth, the iron of his heredity not yet
tested and proven.
Wada, Louis, and the steward are servants of Asiatic breed. So are
the two Japanese sail-makers--scarcely servants, not to be called
slaves, but something in between.
So, all told, there are eleven of us aft in the citadel. But our
followers are too servant-like and serf-like to be offensive
fighters. They will help us defend the high place against all
attack; but they are incapable of joining with us in an attack on the
other end of the ship. They will fight like cornered rats to
preserve their lives; but they will not advance like tigers upon the
enemy. Tom Spink is faithful but spirit-broken.
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