She was naturally of the sweetest and gentlest disposition imaginable, but on the river it was quite awful to hear her.
"Oh, drat the man!" she would exclaim, when some unfortunate sculler would get in her way; "why don't he look where he's going ?" And, "Oh, bother the silly old thing!" she would say indignantly, when the sail would not go up properly.

And she would catch hold of it, and shake it quite brutally.
Yet, as I have said, when on shore she was kind-hearted and amiable enough.
[Picture: Man at the lock] [Picture: Man at the lock] The air of the river has a demoralising effect upon one's temper, and this it is, I suppose, which causes even barge men to be sometimes rude to one another, and to use language which, no doubt, in their calmer moments they regret..