A man tells the story of an adventure that happened to him back in the days when he was on San Fransisco's Barbary Coast. The sailor is in Thalia Dance Hall, trying to spend his savings from working the winter in Southern California before he leaves to go to Oregon the next day. The man is sitting at a dark table in the corner, daydreaming about a Mexican maiden. He is startled out of his daydream when his table is jarred by a massive sailor man who is leaning over the table. The sailor silently glares at the man for a minute. The man gets annoyed, calling him Sea-Wolf and telling him to sit down. The sailor sits down and points out a Spanish dancing girl in a green dress. He says that she stopped dancing with him because he said that he was broke and sailing in the morning, which he is not. He tells the man that he'll teach her to think that he's a tramp scum. The sailor then starts talking to the man about sea literature. He says that the man probably calls him Sea-Wolf, thinking that he doesn't know who that is. The sailor insists that he is a romantic, but that his muscle is seen and not his feelings. The man wants to leave, but the sailor says that he has a job for him and will pay well. The sailor tells the man to get the next dance with the Spanish dancer and tell her to be careful, and that the sailor is the original Wolf Larsen. He also asks him to share that the sailor is not leaving in the morning. The man dances with the Spanish girl, and when he tells her what the sailor said she laughs and says she gets a spiel like that every night. She says that if the sailor tries anything he will end up on a stretcher. The man conveys the message back to the sailor. The sailor says that women despise heroes, and he insists that they get more liquor. At this point, the man does not think highly of the sailor and he wants to leave. He tells the sailor he has to go, and the sailor gives him a piece of paper and tells him to take it to a waterfront bar. As the man leaves, he looks backwards and sees the sailor gazing at the Spanish dancer and reaching into his sweater for his last roll of bills. The man notes that the Spanish dancer had conquered the sailor, because in the morning he will be broke and sailing out of the harbor. The man goes to the waterfront bar and is handed a thick package of books. He falls asleep dreaming about the Mexican maiden again, and continues to daydream as he walks to the train. He forgets the books and leaves them behind, and he can not remember a single title. However, he is sure that they are all romantic.