Deep Waters

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Pages: 99

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About this book

Sailors with money in their pockets provide the night-watchman with plenty to talk about in W. W. Jacobs's collection of humorous short stories. In the opening tale, Sam Small returns from a long voyage ready to enjoy his wages. A friendly stranger, a notice offering a reward for a lost gold locket, and a chance encounter near the Mint turn his ordinary day ashore into a doubtful bargain. London coffee shops, pubs and streets supply the setting for talk that is both sociable and calculating.

The wharf brings its own troubles. Another scene follows a watchman trying to keep a noisy group outside his gate, while a skipper and mate insist on passing through. Jacobs builds the comedy through spoken exchanges, the narrator's wounded pride and the growing pressure of an awkward situation. The stories offer readers a close view of everyday waterfront life and the small misunderstandings that people make worse by arguing.

About the author

W. W. Jacobs

W. W. Jacobs (William Wymark Jacobs, 1863 to 1943) was an English writer born in London, the son of a wharf manager. He drew on that dockside world for comic stories of sailors and night watchmen, though he is best remembered for the chilling tale "The Monkey's Paw."