Paying Off Deep Waters, Part 2.

"Paying Off" by W. W. Jacobs is a funny story from the early 1900s about a night-watchman who always tries to help people, even when it's not smart. The story makes you think about who you can trust and what happens when you're too nice, all told in an amusing way. The watchman gets tricked into holding a box with £25 by a coworker named George Tebb. When the watchman goes to a bar with George, some drunk sailors steal the box from him. George is mad and makes the watchman pay him back five shillings every week. The story has a surprise ending that shows the watchman might not have even seen the money, highlighting how silly it was for him to trust so easily. Jacobs uses this funny story to show what can go wrong when you're too trusting and don't think things through.