3 1 Cornelius Van Damm was once, as i've got indicated, tall and skinny, however it used to be not just his fluting, effeminate voice that had such a unprecedented impression upon these assembly him for the 1st time. once we had either exchanged nods, perfunctorily acknowledging Scarsdale’s sketchy advent, and the Professor had introduced us all again in the direction of the fireplace, I had extra relaxation to review him. either he and Scarsdale engaged in a sort of bickering which I later got here to grasp was once a pose, a job either performed to the total; the Professor emphasized his virile, bear-like traits whereas the surgeon built a waspish querulousness which appropriate his squeaky voice. beneath all of it lay a profound theatricality, a streak universal to either males; either have been wonderful of their personal spheres; as well as being a first class electric engineer, Van Damm was once realized in lots of fields, being additionally a geologist and metallurgist in addition to an outstanding revolver and rifle shot. He used to be to discover his skills totally exercised at the nice Northern day trip. thankfully, neither of the 2 final individuals, whom I had but to satisfy, had such temperaments as these of Van Damm and the Professor: they most well-liked to go away the limelight to the 2 prima donnas, and have been either immensely sensible and phlegmatic by means of nature, which used to be doubtless why Scarsdale had chosen them within the first example. As for myself, I had no nice awl to grind, as i've got already indicated, and most well-liked purely to watch and instruction my very own specialized topic of images. Now, because the males snapped at each other within the firelight, the older guy biting off his phrases like a pike swallowing a delectable morsel, the Professor blandly using rough-shod over the other’s objections, i used to be amusedly summing up the health practitioner. What I observed was once a guy of quite gaunt point; with an excellent craggy face, from which a couple of funny brown eyes shone from inside of deep sockets. His skinny sandy hair grew calmly over his scalp in order that his cranium resembled not anything loads as a pineapple; a fragile wisp of moustache bisected his face and a gold pince-nez, based from a fragile silver chain, dangled from his 3rd waistcoat button. He wore a eco-friendly corduroy jacket, the waistcoat used to be of a few darkish brown fabric, and his trousers have been of gray flannel. Over the full used to be a type of lengthy brown dustcoat, equivalent to that worn via stockmen or cattle-drovers within the outdated West, and the darkish brown driving boots, stained with dust, which accomplished his outfit, marked him as one of many oddest and such a lot person of guys. even if, he almost immediately grew calmer and seeming to remember my presence, became to me and grasped me by means of the hand; nonetheless with a crimson flush on his cheeks and a moderate stammer in his voice, while he grew to become to interject an occasional comment on the Professor, he proved himself an wonderful speaker. Later i used to be to find that his eccentric external hid one of many kindliest of fellows. notwithstanding, all he stated at the beginning used to be, ‘You will locate this a tricky kind of agreement, Plowright.