Project Gutenberg 2004-01-01 Public domain in the USA. 158 Jacobs, W. W. (William Wymark) 1863 1943 Jacobs, William Wymark Owen, Will 1869 1957 Watch-Dogs Ship's Company, Part 5. Produced by David Widger "Watch-Dogs" by W. W. Jacobs is a humorous short story likely written during the early 20th century. This piece blends elements of comedy with a keen observation of village life and human behavior, focusing specifically on the theme of kindness to animals. The story presents the quaint and quirky dynamics of a small community reacting to a gentleman's strange obsession with animal welfare, leading to unforeseen and comical consequences. The narrative centers around Bob Pretty, a village laborer who becomes entangled in a local contest for a gold watch offered by Mr. Bunnett, a wealthy Londoner passionate about animal kindness. Bob's nonchalant demeanor contrasts sharply with other villagers, who clumsily attempt to outdo one another in showing kindness to animals, often leading to ridiculous scenarios. As Bob appears to play along with the charade while maintaining his cool, he surprisingly manages to manipulate the situation to his advantage. Eventually, through a farcical encounter involving his dog Joseph and Mr. Bunnett, Bob cleverly secures the gold watch by presenting a farcical display of compassion, showcasing Jacobs' sharp wit and commentary on societal tendencies towards irrationality. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 90.0 (6th grade). Easy to read. en Humorous stories, English England -- Social life and customs -- Fiction PR Text Category: Short Stories Category: Humour Category: British Literature 50276 2025-08-05T03:59:43.083707 text/html 44565 2020-12-20T01:22:10 text/html 706484 2025-08-05T03:59:44.954718 application/epub+zip 705181 2025-08-05T03:59:43.562745 application/epub+zip 84283 2025-08-05T03:59:43.328699 application/epub+zip 739621 2025-08-05T03:59:46.178713 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 731653 2025-08-05T03:59:44.776712 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 110170 2022-09-05T08:31:41.067462 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 40607 2025-08-05T03:59:42.939751 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 20964 2024-10-28T17:52:49 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 42033 2020-12-20T01:22:10 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 20147 2025-08-05T03:59:46.312696 application/rdf+xml 16137 2025-08-05T03:59:43.443704 image/jpeg 2711 2025-08-05T03:59:43.382705 image/jpeg 676832 2020-12-20T01:22:10 application/octet-stream application/zip 15977 2020-12-20T01:22:10 application/octet-stream application/zip 681766 2025-08-05T03:59:43.111772 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia en.wikipedia