A Monkey Trick.
In1818, a vessel that sailed between Whitehaven (England) and Jamaica, embarked on her homeward voyage, and among other passengers, carried Mrs. B., who had at the breast a child only a few weeks old. One beautiful afternoon, the captain perceived a distant sail, and after he had gratified his curiosity, he politely offered his glass to the lady, that she might obtain a clear view of the object. She had the baby in her arms, but now she wrapped her shawl about it and placed it on a sofa upon which she had been sitting.
Scarcely had she applied her eye to the glass, when the helmsman exclaimed, “See what the mischievous monkey has done.” The reader may judge of the mother’s feelings, when, on turning round, she beheld the animal in the act of transporting her child apparently to the very top of the mast! The monkey was a very large one, and so strong and active, that while it grasped the infant firmly with one arm, it climbed the shrouds nimbly by the other, totally unembarrassed by the weight of its burthen.
One look was sufficient for the terrified mother, and, had it not been for the assistance of those around her, she would have fallen prostrate on the deck, where she was soon afterwards stretched apparently a lifeless corpse. The sailors could climb as well as the monkey, but the latter watched their motions narrowly; and as it ascended higher up the mast the moment they attempted to put a foot on the shrouds, the captain became afraid that it would drop the child, and endeavor to escape by leaping from one mast to another.
In the mean time, the little innocent was heard to cry; and though many thought it was suffering pain, their fears on this point were speedily dissipated when they observed the monkey imitating exactly the motions of a nurse, by dandling, soothing and caressing its charge, and even endeavoring to hush it to sleep.
From the deck the lady was conveyed to the cabin, and gradually restored to her senses. In the mean time, the captain ordered every man to conceal himself below, and quietly took his own station on the cabin stair, where he could see all that passed, without being seen. The plan happily succeeded; the monkey, on perceiving that the coastwas clear, cautiously descended from his lofty perch, and replaced the infant on the sofa, cold, fretful, and perhaps frightened, but in every other respect as free from harm as when he took it up. The captain had now a most grateful task to perform; the babe was restored to its mother’s arms, amidst tears and thanks, and blessings.