stiff as a pike-staff, looking at me, and rubbing his eyes
as if he did not altogether remember how I came to be there,
though a dim consciousness of knowing something about me seemed
slowly dawning over him. Meanwhile, I lay quietly eyeing him,
having no serious misgivings now, and bent upon narrowly observing
so curious a creature. When, at last, his mind seemed made
up touching the character of his bedfellow, and he became,
as it were, reconciled to the fact; he jumped out upon the floor,
and by certain signs and sounds gave me to understand that,
if it pleased me, he would dress first and then leave me
to dress afterwards, leaving the whole apartment to myself.
Thinks I, Queequeg, under the circumstances, this is a very
civilized overture; but, the truth is, these savages have an
innate sense of delicacy, say what you will; it is marvellous
how essentially polite they are. I pay this particular
compliment to Queequeg, because he treated me with so much
civility and consideration, while I was guilty of great rudeness;
staring at him from the bed, and watching all his toilette motions;
for the time my curiosity getting the better of my breeding.
Nevertheless, a man like Queequeg you don't see every day,
he and his ways were well worth unusual regarding.

He commenced dressing at top by donning his beaver hat,
a very tall one, by the by, and then--still minus his trowsers--
he hunted up his boots. What under the heavens he did it for,
I cannot tell, but his next movement was to crush himself--
boots in hand, and hat on--under the bed; when, from sundry
violent gaspings and strainings, I inferred he was hard at work
booting himself; though by no law of propriety that I ever heard of,
is any man required to be private when putting on his boots.