The Project Gutenberg EBook of Dixon's Return, by W.W. Jacobs

This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or
re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.net

Title: Dixon's Return
Odd Craft, Part 10.

Author: W.W. Jacobs

Release Date: April 30, 2004 [EBook #12210]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DIXON'S RETURN ***

Produced by David Widger

ODD CRAFT

By W.W. Jacobs

DIXON'S RETURN

Talking about eddication, said the night-watchman, thoughtfully, the
finest eddication you can give a lad is to send 'im to sea. School is
all right up to a certain p'int, but arter that comes the sea. I've been
there myself and I know wot I'm talking about. All that I am I owe to
'aving been to sea.

[Illustration: "Talking about eddication, said the night-watchman."]

There's a saying that boys will be boys. That's all right till they go
to sea, and then they 'ave to be men, and good men too. They get knocked
about a bit, o' course, but that's all part o' the eddication, and when
they get bigger they pass the eddication they've received on to other
boys smaller than wot they are. Arter I'd been at sea a year I spent all
my fust time ashore going round and looking for boys wot 'ad knocked me
about afore I sailed, and there was only one out o' the whole lot that I
wished I 'adn't found.

Most people, o' course, go to sea as boys or else not at all, but I mind
one chap as was pretty near thirty years old when 'e started. It's a
good many years ago now, and he was landlord of a public-'ouse as used to
stand in Wapping, called the Blue Lion.

His mother, wot had 'ad the pub afore 'im, 'ad brought 'im up very quiet
and genteel, and when she died 'e went and married a fine, handsome young
woman who 'ad got her eye on the pub without thinking much about 'im. I
got to know about it through knowing the servant that lived there. A
nice, quiet gal she was, and there wasn't much went on that she didn't
hear. I've known 'er to cry for hours with the ear-ache, pore gal.

Not caring much for 'er 'usband, and being spoiled by 'im into the
bargain, Mrs. Dixon soon began to lead 'im a terrible life. She was
always throwing his meekness and mildness up into 'is face, and arter
they 'ad be