A pasty English boy confronts "natives" swimming through a long tunnel. The natives symbolize the shedding of stuffiness.
The tunnel is a moist hole that the boy, just reaching puberty, wishes to enter.
He feels that penetrating the hole will make him a man.
He sticks his head in several times to get a feel for things. The growth around the mouth of the cave tickles his face.
He nearly passes out while going through the tunnel.
He exits, breathing heavily, head covered in blood.
