"You told me to," I ses.

"Oh, yes," she ses, trembling with temper. "You always do wot I tell
you, don't you? Al-ways 'ave, especially when it's anything you like."

She fetched a bucket o' water and scrubbed the kitchen while I was having
my brekfuss, but I kept my eye on 'er, and, the moment she 'ad finished,
I did the perlite and emptied the bucket for 'er, to prevent mistakes.

I read about the case in the Sunday paper, and I'm thankful to say my
name wasn't in it. All the magistrate done was to make 'er promise that
she wouldn't do it again, and then he let 'er go. I should ha' felt more
comfortable if he 'ad given 'er five years, but, as it turned out, it
didn't matter. Her 'usband happened to read it, and, whether 'e was
tired of living alone, or whether he was excited by 'caring that she 'ad
got a little general shop, 'e went back to her.

The fust I knew about it was they came round to the wharf to see me. He
'ad been a fine-looking chap in 'is day, and even then 'e was enough like
me for me to see 'ow she 'ad made the mistake; and all the time she was
telling me 'ow it 'appened, he was looking me up and down and sniffing.

"'Ave you got a cold?" I ses, at last.

"Wot's that got to do with you?" he ses. "Wot do you mean by walking out
with my wife? That's what I've come to talk about."

For a moment I thought that his bad luck 'ad turned 'is brain. "You've
got it wrong," I ses, as soon as I could speak. "She walked out with