The Wilmingtonian, and Delaware advertiser., 1825-12-29
DEcEMBER 20, 1925.

passengers, carried lady who had a.rhild
at the breast who was only few weeks old.
| When the weather permitted, the lady took
regular exercise on the deck, sometimes
| with her infant charge in her arms, but Oft
ner at moment whea it had been hushed
to slumber by the motion of the ship, the
rushing of the waters, and the whispering
of the breeze-opiates custom soon renders
powerful, and which, in tile present instance
were allowed to supercede both the neces.
sity of a cradle and the lullaby of nurse
In August the we;.her became remarkably
fine, and one beautiful afternoon, when the
vessel was ploughing the, watery waste.
with clusters of sea fowl desporting in her
wake, the sun looking forth in all his ma.
jesty, and next to himself Illuminating the
two sublimest objects in nature--the ex-
papded ocean, and the expanded sky--the
captain perceived distant sail--a sight
that is always welcome at sea, and which.
amidst the past solitudes of the Atlantic,
may be compared to the meeting OF pill
grims in the desert. This discovery attract
ed the attention of all on beard, and after
the captain had gratihed his curiosity he
| politely offered his glass to the lady, that
she might obtain clear view of an object
which the naked eye was unable to distin-
guish from the heecy clouds that every where
| fringed the horizons verge. At this time,
| Mrs. b. had the babe in her arms, but, be-
| ing aware that it could not harm itself by
| rolling, she wrapt her shawl about the little
| innocent, and placed it on a sefa on which
she had been sitting. Capt C.assisted her
to steady the glass. but scarcely had she ap-
piled her eye to the instrument, when the
helmsman exclaimed, in a tone that indicated
the deepest cmotion--"G ood Cod see what
the mischievous monkey has done." A moth
er's fears are easily excited, and the reader
may Judge of the lady's feelings, when, on
turning round, she beheld the animal in the
act of transporting her beloved child to the
very top of the mast. And here it may be
necessary to explain that the monkey was
nearly four feet high, and so strong and ac-
tive, that while it grasped the infant firmly
with one arm, it climbed the shrouds by the
aid of the other, with astonishing haste, and
seemingly uncmbarrassed by the weight of
its BURDEN. One look was sufficient for the
mother, anA that look had we'll nigh been
her last-Though she attempted to speak,
the words either died. away on her lips, OF
we're rendered inarticulate by her sobs and
groans; and had it not been for the prompt
humanity of those around her, she would
have fallen PROSTATE on the deck where she
was afterwards stretched to all appearance
a lifeless corpse. Situated as he was, the
captain knew not what to dc: when he looked
at his passenger, speechless, motionless, and
deadly pale, he almost fancied that life had
fed, and when he thought OF her child that
was swimming aloft under the care of so
strange nurse, he expected everys minute
that the capricious monkey would become
tired of His toy, and drop it into the ocean
or dash it on the deck. Often as he had
crossed the wide Atlantic, and braved the
perls of the winters storm-often as he had
been placed in circumstances in which he
would have given the wealth of nations if
they had been his to give, for the privilege
of treading the earth with safety-never
amid all the chances of a seaman's life, had
his feelings been exposed to so severe a trial.
The sailors could climb as we'll as the
monkey, but the latter watched their motions
narrowly; and as it assembled higher up the
mast, the moment one of them put his foot
upon the shrouds, the captain became afraid
that he would drop the child and endeavor
to escape by leaping from one mast to anoth-
er In the mean time thu little innocent was
heard to cry; and though many thought it
was suffering pain, their fears OH this point
were soon dissipated, when they observed
the animal initiating exactly the motions of
a nurse, by danding, soothing and caressing
its charge, and even endeavoriug to hush it
asleep.-From the deck the lady was con-
veyed to the cabin, and gradually restored
to the use of her senses, but then her cries
were most distressing, and though she was
kindly assured that all would soon be we'll
1t required the utmost attention of two men
to prevent her from rushing on deck with
the view of ascending herself In the mean
time, many plans were tried to lure the cul-
prit from his birth above; but finding all fail
the captain, as dernier resort, ordered ev-
cry man to conceal himself below.-This
order was promptly obeyed, and Mr.. C. him
self quietly took his station in the cabin chair,
where he could see all that passed without
being seen. This plan happily succeeded;
for the monkey on perceiying that the coast
was clear, cautiously descended from his
lofty perch, and replaced the infant on the
sofa cold and fretful and frightened indeed,
but in every other respect as free from harm
as when he took it up. The humane sea-
men had now a most grateful task to per-
form; the babe was restored to its mothers
arms, amidst tears, and thanks, and prayers
and blessings--thanks to man for his sympa-
thy and aid, and deep gratitude to that Di-
vine Being, whose arm, though unseen, had
shielded the innocent amidst pains and per-
lis, such as perhaps never before impentled
over the head of a creature so young