238 ALONGSHORE 



IV 



boat an' dragged her down over beach to the 

 water, an' Jack gets in an' Harry Drake jumps 

 in. I was just shoving an' jumping In too, when 

 Blimp! goes my head up against ol' Bare-knees. 

 I see'd stars. 'Twas him jumping In same time. 

 I hangs on to the boat. '"Tlsn't no use four o'us 

 going," I says, '"TIs only extra weight so's us 

 can't take In so many herrings." Then I turns to 

 Bare-knees: "If you'm going, I baln't." 



'There us stands, the two o'us, wl' the seas 

 lopping in over the starn o' the boat. An' dark 

 'twas too. 



' "Come on!" says Jack to me. "Devil I 'tis 

 thy boat, 'en It?" 



'So I shoves, an' jumps in, leaving ol' Bare- 

 knees standing on the beach. 



'An' he was still there when us come'd back. 

 / wouldn' ha' been, if anybody 'd a-treated me 

 like us did him. Loaded wi' herrings, us was. 

 They'd had to gie up two nets to us. Pretty 

 sweat 'twas, rowing in. 



'Us hauled up, an' then Bare-knees says to me, 

 sideways like: "Gie us a couple o' thy herrings, will 



ee 



?" 



' "Why!" says L "Wasn't I going to tell 'ee 

 to pick up a dozen or two? What's the hurry?" 



