Now he did not mean to cut such capers as you eat with boiled mutton . It was the commandant of artillery at Valetta who used to amuse himself with cutting them , and who stuck upon one of the bastions a notice , `` No one allowed to cut capers here but me , '' which greatly edified the midshipmen in port , and the Maltese on the Nix Mangiare stairs . But all that the mayor meant was that he would go and have an afternoon 's fun , like any schoolboy , and catch lobsters with an iron hook . So to the Mewstone he went , and for lobsters he looked . And when he came to a certain crack in the rocks he was so excited that , instead of putting in his hook , he put in his hand ; and Mr. Lobster was at home , and caught him by the finger , and held on . `` Yah ! '' said the mayor , and pulled as hard as he dared : but the more he pulled , the more the lobster pinched , till he was forced to be quiet . Then he tried to get his hook in with his other hand ; but the hole was too narrow . Then he pulled again ; but he could not stand the pain . Then he shouted and bawled for help : but there was no one nearer him than the men-of-war inside the breakwater . Then he began to turn a little pale ; for the tide flowed , and still the lobster held on . Then he turned quite white ; for the tide was up to his knees , and still the lobster held on . Then he thought of cutting off his finger ; but he wanted two things to do it with -- courage and a knife ; and he had got neither . Then he turned quite yellow ; for the tide was up to his waist , and still the lobster held on . Then he thought over all the naughty things he ever had done ; all the sand which he had put in the sugar , and the sloe-leaves in the tea , and the water in the treacle , and the salt in the tobacco -LRB- because his brother was a brewer , and a man must help his own kin -RRB- . Then he turned quite blue ; for the tide was up to his breast , and still the lobster held on . Then , I have no doubt , he repented fully of all the said naughty things which he had done , and promised to mend his life , as too many do when they think they have no life left to mend . Whereby , as they fancy , they make a very cheap bargain . But the old fairy with the birch rod soon undeceives them . And then he grew all colours at once , and turned up his eyes like a duck in thunder ; for the water was up to his chin , and still the lobster held on .
And then came a man-of-war 's boat round the XXXXX , and saw his head sticking up out of the water .
Mangiare Mewstone Valetta afternoon bastions brewer left lobsters sloe-leaves treacle