He had then seemed to him much older and heavier.

He was surprised at the lithe figure, broad of shoulder, narrow at the hips, the fire of the deep-set eyes, the springiness of the walk.

The captain gave him a steady stare, nodded slightly, and went on pacing the poop with an air of not being aware of what was going on, his head rigid, his movements rapid.
Powell stole several glances at him with a curiosity very natural under the circumstances.

He wore a short grey jacket and a grey cap.

In the light of the dawn, growing more limpid rather than brighter, Powell noticed the slightly sunken cheeks under the trimmed beard, the perpendicular fold on the forehead, something hard and set about the mouth.
It was too early yet for the work to have begun in the dock.