The narrator tells us this story in the final chapter, Chapter XIX, of Three Men in a Boat. He recalls a previous time when he and some friends made arrangements to hire a boat for a jaunt on this same river. They had asked for a “double sculling skiff,” which is a row boat with two oars. What was brought to them was
an antediluvian chunk of wood, that looked as though it had been recently dug out of somewhere, and dug out carelessly, so as to have been unnecessarily damaged in the process.
Ironically, the boat was named The Pride of the Thames. The narrator and his friends questioned the boat dealer and his son on whether or not the craft was really water-worthy. They were assured several times that it was the best one in stock, and that it had served folks without complaint for forty years. We are told that the group did the best they could with it and paid thirty-five shillings for its use. No further details come to light here, for the narrator then returns to telling the conclusion of his current story.
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