an."

He put his 'and in 'is pocket and takes out fifteen bob and 'olds it out
to me.

"No, no," I ses. "I can't take your money, Joe Peel. It wouldn't be
right. Pore Sam is welcome to the fifteen bob--I don't want it."

"You must take it," ses Joe. "The ghost said if you didn't it would come
to me agin and agin till you did, and I can't stand any more of it."

"I can't 'elp your troubles," I ses.

"You must," ses Joe. "'Give Bill the fifteen bob,' it ses, 'and he'll
give you a gold watch and chain wot I gave 'im to mind till it was
paid.'"

I see his little game then. "Gold watch and chain," I ses, laughing.
"You must ha' misunderstood it, Joe."

"I understood it right enough," ses Joe, getting a bit closer to me as I
stepped outside the gate. "Here's your fifteen bob; are you going to
give me that watch and chain?"

"Sartainly not," I ses. "I don't know wot you mean by a watch and chain.
If I 'ad it and I gave it to anybody, I should give it to Sam's widder,
not to you."

"It's nothing to do with 'er," ses Joe, very quick. "Sam was most
pertikler about that."

"I expect you dreamt it all," I ses. "Where would pore Sam get a gold
watch and chain from? And why should 'e go to you about it? Why didn't
'e come to me? If 'e thinks I 'ave got it let 'im come to me."

"All right, I'll go to the police-station," ses Joe.

"I'll come with you," I ses. "But 'ere's a policeman coming along.
Let's go to 'im."

I moved towards 'im, but Joe hung back, and, arter using one or two words
that would ha' made any ghost ashamed to know 'im, he sheered off. I 'ad
a word or two with the policeman about the weather, and then I went
inside and locked the gate.

My idea was that Sam 'ad told Joe about the watch and chain afore he fell
overboard. Joe was a nasty customer, and I could see that I should 'ave
to be a bit careful. Some men might ha' told the police about it--but I
never cared much for them. They're like kids in a way, always asking
questions--most of which y

William Wymark Jacobs (September 8, 1863 September 1, 1943), was an English author of short stories and novels. He is now best remembered for his macabre tales The Monkeys Paw (published 1902) and The Toll House (in the collection of short stories The Lady of the Barge). However the majority of his output was humorous in tone. His favourite subjects were marine life: men who go down to the sea in ships of moderate tonnage said Punch, reviewing his first collection of stories, Many Cargoes, which achieved great popular success on its publication in 1896.

William Wymark Jacobs (September 8, 1863 September 1, 1943), was an English author of short stories and novels. He is now best remembered for his macabre tales The Monkeys Paw (published 1902) and The Toll House (in the collection of short stories The Lady of the Barge). However the majority of his output was humorous in tone. His favourite subjects were marine life: men who go down to the sea in ships of moderate tonnage said Punch, reviewing his first collection of stories, Many Cargoes, which achieved great popular success on its publication in 1896.

William Wymark Jacobs (September 8, 1863 September 1, 1943), was an English author of short stories and novels. He is now best remembered for his macabre tales The Monkeys Paw (published 1902) and The Toll House (in the collection of short stories The Lady of the Barge). However the majority of his output was humorous in tone. His favourite subjects were marine life: men who go down to the sea in ships of moderate tonnage said Punch, reviewing his first collection of stories, Many Cargoes, which achieved great popular success on its publication in 1896.