Walt Read Online Free PDF

to hide or run from other people.
    The diet was not so much different from what he had eaten on Tristan, except that the tuna was not cooked, of course. His piles of sweaters kept him reasonably warm. Most of all he enjoyed the sensation of spending all day alone on the water, where he had always felt most comfortable, without having to return to the Plant to drop off his catch. He realized that he had always hoped in some small way to sail off into the sunset, to leave Tristan far behind.
    It is axiomatic that fishermen somehow long to be possessed by the sea. Walt had no way of explaining the slight disappointment he had always felt when he took his first step onto dry land after a day of fishing. He had now, in abandoning himself entirely to the ocean’s will, actualized the symbiotic trust that fishermen have in the sea. He would endure because he was one with his boat and the water.
    The reader will no doubt have noticed that the preceding bit of intellectualization came not from Walt, but from me. Forgive me if I intrude.
    One other thing: Walt had no idea where he was or which way he was going. He had never had any occasion to go out of sight of land fishing for lobsters. As one might expect of the residents of the most isolated spot on Earth, Tristanians did not go about visiting other islands very often. Consequently, Walt knew absolutely nothing about navigation. He did not even know from what direction the sun rose, and into which it set. All he was aware of was the current that carried him along.
    Walt was very fortunate to have strayed into this current, for it was reliably strong and steady. Important for Walt’s future survival, it was also known to the captains of some ocean-going ships who used it to increase their speed and cut their fuel consumption.
    It was for this reason, and this reason alone, that on the afternoon of Walt’s seventh day at sea, he was spotted and picked up by the freighter San Geronimo .
    Walt was of mixed feelings about being rescued. He knew that his precious solitude was at an end, and for this he was sorry. He also knew that the remains of the tuna would be totally inedible within one day. As it was, while on board the cargo ship, Walt would come down with a serious case of amoebic dysentery.
    Walt’s most pressing emotion as a skiff from the freighter was dispatched and drew near was one of incredible fear. He vaguely remembered from school on Tristan that people around the world spoke many different languages. Communicating was so difficult for him under any circumstances that he dreaded to think of what another language might be like.
    One thing that bears mentioning before Walt is rescued: during his week at sea, Walt continued to hear the Easybeats playing in his mind. The sound was in a way comforting to him. He now enjoyed its regularity and dependability. Along with the motion of the waves, the music was a constant in his life on his tiny vessel.
    Another thing: even though Walt was only barely aware of it at the time, the music was already becoming louder and more distinct. If he thought about this phenomenon at all, and he would not have thought of it in such concrete terms, he probably attributed the increased strength of the signal to his familiarity with the music. If in fact that was what he thought, he was wrong.
    In any case, the San Geronimo’s tender soon drew near. As a heaving line was thrown, Walt had time for one last thought alone. He wondered if he would be received with the same revulsion that had been a constant part of his life on Tristan.
    As it was, he was treated very warmly and civilly. He was brought aboard the freighter and his own little fishing skiff was hauled aboard and lashed to the deck. Walt was introduced to the Captain and given quarters to use until such a time as the freighter reached land or encountered authorities who could be of assistance to him.
    In his bunk, Walt pondered the Captain’s offer of assistance. For the first time