Some Monkey Stories

Oood Words is responsible for the following: On board her Majesty's sliip Euryalus there was a large black monkey with a long tail for whom the master had a particular aversión ; he was convinced that it would some day get at and injure the chronometer of which he was in charge, and he always kept his room fast locked. One day, however, the monkey crept in, carried off the chronometer, and rushed up the rigging with it in his hand, the poor master following with tears in his eyes, while the sailors in the ship were set to try and catch the thief. Higher and higher they climbed, but still the monkey kept an inch above them, and when they were within an inch of him he dropped from one part of the rigging to enother, with only a glancing hold on the ropes, where nothing but a four-armed beast with a prehensible tail could follow. At last one active fellow climbed closer and closer, there was no outlet right or left, above or below, his hand was almost seizing the creature's leg, when suddenly the beast, seeing he was brought to bay, waved the chronometer viciously over his head, raised his arm as high as possible, and then flung it as far as possible inte the sea. A monkey on board another queen's ship feil overboard in very bad weather; the sea was so high that the captain refused to allow a boat to be lowered ; bnt the feeling of the sailors for their pet was so great that at last he gave way. They rowed round and round in vain, and were returning very sadly up the ship's side when they saw the monkey, who had climbed up by the chain of t'ie rudder, mocking and grinning at them for their uselesa pains as he sat on the figure-head. Another monkey, one Jocko, on board the , much petted bythe sailors, was excessively jealousof a white kitten, which divided their affeotions with himself. One day the man on the bridge saw him creeping very stealthily round to where the kitten lay asleep in the kitchen ; suddenly he stretehed out his hand and chucked her overboard bef ore any one could interf ere, "Jocko," said the narrator angrüy "was an abominable beast. I could not bear him ; he used to get drunk and play underhand tricks ; still he was not altogether bad. A spaniel on board had had puppies, with which Jocko was extremely anxious to play ; the mother, however, would have nothing to say to him, and would not allow him to enter her den. One day, however, she had left her ohildren alone for a moment, and coming back, found Jocko sitting nursing all the puppies together in his arms - great, fat, heavy, lumbering lumps which he could hardly lift." Af ter this proof of good intention the dog-mother used to take her usual walks about the ship, contentedly leaving her ehildren in his charge.