The material on this page is available to AustLit subscribers. If you are a subscriber or are from a subscribing organisation, please log in to gain full access. To explore options for subscribing to this unique teaching, research, and publishing resource for Australian culture and storytelling, please contact us or find out more.
* Contents derived from the Sydney,New South Wales,:Herbert Scanlon,1928 version. Please note that other versions/publications may contain different contents. See the Publication Details.
A World War I veteran fondly addresses his old, moth-eaten, but cherished, service uniform as he reminisces about the experiences he had while wearing it.
Scanlon tells a story about a schoolboy accused of cheating at marbles. A fight ensued and, as the accused fought viciously enough to cause blood to flow, he was sternly reprimanded by the headmaster and received several strokes of the cane. Scanlon entreats readers to realise the moral in his story.
The narrator recounts the adventures of a resilient rat named Whiskers who weathered all sorts of hardship and near-misses, travelled around the world, then ended up back where he was born, though now with a large family in tow.