W.W. Jacobs 
The Old Man of the Sea 

Dodo Collections brings you another classic from W.W Jacobs, ‘The Old Man of the Sea.’




 




‘What I want you to do, ‘ said Mr. George Wright, as he leaned towards the old sailor, ‘is to be an uncle to me.’ ‘Aye, aye, ‘ said the mystified Mr. Kemp, pausing with a mug of beer midway to his lips. ‘A rich uncle, ‘ continued the young man, lowering his voice to prevent any keen ears in the next bar from acquiring useless knowledge. ‘An uncle from New Zealand, who is going to leave me all ‘is money.’ ‘Where’s it coming from?’ demanded Mr. Kemp, with a little excitement.




 




In 1896 Jacobs’ first collection of short stories was titled Many Cargoes of which Punch magazine said his favourite subjects were ‘men who go down to the sea in ships of moderate tonnage.’ It was followed in 1897 by a novelette titled The Skipper’s Wooing and in 1898 by another collection of short stories Sea Urchins. By 1899 Jacobs was confident enough to resign from the civil service to devote his full time to writing. In 1900 he married suffragette Agnes Eleanor with whom he would have two sons and three daughters.