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A DROP IN THE BUCKET OF BLOOD.
In Birmingham I found a job in a rolling mill and established myself in a good boarding-house.

In those days a "good boarding-house" in iron workers' language meant one where you got good board.

One such was called "The Bucket of Blood." It got its name because a bloody fight occurred there almost every day.

Any meal might end in a knock-down-and-drag-out.