{"product_id":"2940013654501","title":"The Story Of The Rock","description":"CHAPTER ONE.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWRECK OF WINSTANLEY'S LIGHTHOUSE.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"At mischief again, of course: always at it.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMrs Potter said this angrily, and with much emphasis, as she seized her\u003cbr\u003eson by the arm and dragged him out of a pool of dirty water, into which\u003cbr\u003ehe had tumbled.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Always at mischief of one sort or another, he is,\" continued Mrs\u003cbr\u003ePotter, with increasing wrath, \"morning, noon, and night--he is;\u003cbr\u003etumblin' about an' smashin' things for ever he does; he'll break my\u003cbr\u003eheart at last--he will.  There: take that!\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"That,\" which poor little Tommy was desired to take, was a sounding box\u003cbr\u003eon the ear, accompanied by a violent shake of the arm which would have\u003cbr\u003edrawn that limb out of its socket if the child's bones and muscles had\u003cbr\u003enot been very tightly strung together.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMrs Potter was a woman of large body and small brain.  In respect of\u003cbr\u003ereasoning power, she was little better than the wooden cuckoo which came\u003cbr\u003eout periodically from the interior of the clock that stood over her own\u003cbr\u003efireplace and announced the hours.  She entertained settled convictions\u003cbr\u003eon a few subjects, in regard to which she resembled a musical box.  If\u003cbr\u003eyou set her going on any of these, she would harp away until she had\u003cbr\u003eplayed the tune out, and then begin over again; but she never varied.\u003cbr\u003eReasons, however good, or facts, however weighty, were utterly powerless\u003cbr\u003eto penetrate her skull: her \"settled convictions\" were not to be\u003cbr\u003eunsettled by any such means.  Men might change their minds; philosophers\u003cbr\u003emight see fit to alter their opinions; weaklings of both sexes and all\u003cbr\u003eages might trim their sails in accordance with the gales of advancing\u003cbr\u003eknowledge, but Mrs Potter--no: never! _her_ colours were nailed to the\u003cbr\u003emast.  Like most people who unite a strong will with an empty head, she\u003cbr\u003ewas \"wiser in her own conceit than eleven men that can render a reason:\"\u003cbr\u003ein brief, she was obstinate.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOne of her settled convictions was that her little son Tommy was \"as\u003cbr\u003efull of mischief as a hegg is full of meat.\"  Another of these\u003cbr\u003econvictions was that children of all ages are tough; that it does them\u003cbr\u003egood to pull them about in a violent manner, at the risk even of\u003cbr\u003edislocating their joints.  It mattered nothing to Mrs Potter that many\u003cbr\u003eof her female friends and acquaintances held a different opinion.  Some\u003cbr\u003eof these friends suggested to her that the hearts of the poor little\u003cbr\u003ethings were tender, as well as their muscles and bones and sinews; that\u003cbr\u003echildren were delicate flowers, or rather buds, which required careful\u003cbr\u003etending and gentle nursing.  Mrs Potter's reply was invariably,\u003cbr\u003e\"Fiddlesticks!\" she knew better.  They were obstinate and self-willed\u003cbr\u003elittle brats that required constant banging.  She knew how to train 'em\u003cbr\u003eup, she did; and it was of no manner of use, it wasn't, to talk to _her_\u003cbr\u003eupon that point.","brand":"SAP","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47121183899888,"sku":"2940013654501","price":0.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/2940013654501_p0.jpg?v=1763596597","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/2940013654501","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}