Project Gutenberg's Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow, by Jerome K. Jerome

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Title: Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow

Author: Jerome K. Jerome

Posting Date: July 26, 2008 [EBook #849]
Release Date: March 1997

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK IDLE THOUGHTS OF AN IDLE FELLOW ***

Produced by Ron Burkey, and Amy Thomte

THE IDLE THOUGHTS OF AN IDLE FELLOW.

by Jerome K. Jerome

TO

THE VERY DEAR AND WELL-BELOVED

FRIEND

OF MY PROSPEROUS AND EVIL DAYS--

TO THE FRIEND
WHO, THOUGH IN THE EARLY STAGES OF OUR ACQUAINTANCESHIP
DID OFTTIMES DISAGREE WITH ME, HAS SINCE
BECOME TO BE MY VERY WARMEST COMRADE--

TO THE FRIEND
WHO, HOWEVER OFTEN I MAY PUT HIM OUT, NEVER (NOW)
UPSETS ME IN REVENGE--

TO THE FRIEND
WHO, TREATED WITH MARKED COOLNESS BY ALL THE FEMALE
MEMBERS OF MY HOUSEHOLD, AND REGARDED WITH SUSPICION
BY MY VERY DOG, NEVERTHELESS SEEMS DAY BY
DAY TO BE MORE DRAWN BY ME, AND IN RETURN
TO MORE AND MORE IMPREGNATE ME WITH
THE ODOR OF HIS FRIENDSHIP--

TO THE FRIEND
WHO NEVER TELLS ME OF MY FAULTS, NEVER WANTS TO
BORROW MONEY, AND NEVER TALKS ABOUT HIMSELF--

TO THE COMPANION
OF MY IDLE HOURS, THE SOOTHER OF MY SORROWS,
THE CONFIDANT OF MY JOYS AND HOPES--

MY OLDEST AND STRONGEST

PIPE,

THIS LITTLE VOLUME

IS

GRATEFULLY AND AFFECTIONATELY

DEDICATED.

PREFACE

One or two friends to whom I showed these papers in MS. having observed
that they were not half bad, and some of my relations having promised to
buy the book if it ever came out, I feel I have no right to longer delay
its issue. But for this, as one may say, public demand, I perhaps should
not have ventured to offer these mere "idle thoughts" of mine as mental
food for the English-speaking peoples of the earth. What readers ask
nowadays in a book is that it should improve, instruct, and elevate.
This book wouldn't elevate a cow. I cannot conscientiously recommend it
for any useful purposes whatever. All I can suggest is that when you get
tired