Blue Jackets; or, The Adventures of J. Thompson, A.B., Among "the Heathen Chinee": A Nautical NovelGreey, Edward
General
Blue Jackets; or, The Adventures of J. Thompson, A.B., Among "the Heathen Chinee": A Nautical Novel
Greey, Edward
Great Britain. Royal Navy -- Fiction; Seafaring life -- Fiction
When her merriment had somewhat abated, Cops, with wide-open eyes and
expressive action of forefinger, solemnly enjoined her friends not to
tell "no one" about her monkey, as papa and mamma thought she had left
it behind her.
"Is it such a dreadful secret, that the monkey can't go on deck?"
observed Tom, who began to think his friend had enough live stock in his
cabin, his hair being by that time pretty well decorated with rejected
Indian corn rinds. "Don't you think it would be better to let him live
in the pinnace, miss?"
"No," gravely replied the child, "it mustn't live not nowhere but here,
or he'll die, and the blume mouse will come for you."
Barbara believed in a highly-decorative lot of bogeys, but was, while
constantly threatening others with their visits, herself perfectly
indifferent to them. Jerry listened to the child with rapt attention,
and pretended to credit every word she uttered; seeing which Cops
enlarged upon the blue rodent question until Clare began to imagine she
was slightly touched in the brain, he never having before met with an
infant who possessed such wonderful imaginative power.
"Is she all right there?" observed Tom, touching the back of her curly
hair with his forefinger.
"Right! I should rather say she is," replied her champion. "Why, she's
as smart as lightning; and what you think is nonsense is real downright
cleverness, a deal beyond the understanding of you and I. Why, she can
speak French; can't you, pretty?"
"Oui monsieur," archly replied the young lady.
By this time the monkey began to revive, the sugar which it had freely
purloined having acted us a powerful restorative; and when the child
declared she must go, it leaped upon her shoulder, and snicking its
sharp little teeth, offered a determined resistance; whereupon Clare
cleverly manufactured a leathern belt, which he fastened round the
animal's waist, and having secured it with the chain of Thompson's old
call, he drove a nail in a beam; then taking the wriggling creature from
the child's shoulder, deposited it upon a shelf where Jerry usually kept
his books and other treasures.
As the monkey landed overhead, the marine sentry on duty before the door
of the captain's cabin left his post and walked forward, being directed
by Tortle "to find out that child and to bring her aft;" and hearing her
voice in the boatswain's cabin, he put his head inside the door and told
Cops "that her mar wanted her," upon which the pretty creature kissed
Mr. Thompson, blew a similar favour to Clare and the monkey, and having
heard her parrot say "Good-night," trotted aft, and was soon afterwards
undressed by the drowsy Adèle, who was half-dead with sea-sickness.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account