<ul> <li>This edition includes the following editor&#39;s introduction:<i> </i><i>Poverty in London during the 19th century and the splendorous Victorian Era</i></li></ul><br />Originally published in 1840, &ldquo;Poor Jack&rdquo; is a novel by English author Frederick Marryat.<br />&ldquo;Poor Jack&rdquo; tells the story of Thomas Saunders, a sailor&#39;s son and neglected street urchin struggling to survive in Greenwich, London in the early 19th century. (<i>Poor Jack</i> was the title given by the waterfront boys, or mudlarks, to their chief.) In a rags-to-riches story Saunders eventually rises by his own efforts to become a pilot on the Thames, makes his fortune and retires to the life of a wealthy squire.<br />&ldquo;Poor Jack&rdquo; includes interesting descriptions of domestic life among the naval lower ranks and contains many anecdotes of seafaring life.