n, I rushed upon him and threw him off, and he
fell into the wherry, and, as it afterwards appeared, he strained his
back very much; nevertheless he came out to thrash me; and this time it
was a regular fight, as the pensioners and watermen interfered, taking
us both up on the higher ground, and seeing that it was fair play. Ben
the Whaler acted as my second, and we set to. The boy was too powerful
for me, had it not been for the hurt he had received, and the
instructions I obtained from Ben every time that I sat on his knee
between each round. Still it was a very hard fight, and I was terribly
beaten; but I could not give up, for so many betted upon my winning, and
Ben told me, at the end of every round, that, if I only stood up one
more, I should be certain to beat him, and that then I should be _Poor
Jack for ever_! The last inducement stimulated me to immense exertion:
we closed and wrestled, and my antagonist was thrown; and, in
consequence of the strain he had before received, he could not stand up
any more. Poor fellow! he was in great pain; he was taken home, and
obliged to have a doctor, and an abscess formed in his side. He was a
long while getting well, and, when he came out of doors again, he was so
pale. I was very sorry for him, and we were always the best friends
afterwards, and I gave him many a half penny, until I had an opportunity
of serving him.

I mention these two fights, because they obtained for me a greater
reputation than I deserved: this reputation perhaps saved me a great
deal more fighting, and obtained me the mastery over the other boys on
the beach. Indeed, I became such a favourite with the watermen, that
they would send the other boys away; and thus did I become, at last, the
acknowledged, true, lawful, and legitimate "Poor Jack of Greenwich."

CHAPTER NINE.

IN WHICH I TAKE A CRUISE CONTRARY TO THE RECEIVED RULES OF NAVIGATION--
ON MY RETURN FROM A COLD EXPEDITION, I MEET WITH A COLD RECEPTION.

As soon as I was fairly in possession of my office, I gained sufficient
money to render me almost entirely independent of my mother.
Occasionally I procured an old jacket or trowsers, or a pair of shoes,
at the store of an old woman who dealt in everything that could be
imagined; and, if ever I picked up oakum or drifting pieces of wood, I
used to sell them to old Nanny,--for that was the only name she was
known by. My mother, having lost her lodgers by her ill temper and
contin