The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1873-12-17

asked my captain one Gay, While stroiling on
| the quarter deck after tiffin-. you don't OBJ
jet, hope, to the somewhat curious pets n
at times bring on boarden
"0bject 20 he replied. " Well, no; not
as a rule. Ofcourse, you know don't like
your snakes to get gliding all over the ship,
as they were the other DAY. But. doctor,
what's the good of my objcctings Ifany one
were to let the unholy beast in the box yon-
der loose--'s
Don't think of It, captain, interrupted;
ehe'd be the death Of somebody, to dead
certainty" M
"No Tn not such FOOL he continued
:. But, if shot him, why, in a few days you
be billeting'a boa-constrictor or an alligator
ON me. and telling me It was for the good of
science and tlicseryice."
The upholy beast in the box was The most
splendid and graceful specimen of the monitor
lizard have ever seen. Fnlly five feet long
from tip to tail, he swelled' and tapced in the
most perfect lines Of beauty. smooth,
sca,ly, and ifky black, tartaned all over with
transverse rows of bright yellow spots, with
eyes that snonc like wild-iire, and teeth like
quartz with his forked tongue continually
flashing out from his bright-red mouth, lie
had n Wild, weird loneliness that was most
uncanny. Mephistopleles, as the captain not
maptly called him, knew me, however and
took his cocltroach from my hand, although
perfectly frantic when any ono else went near
him. If q piece of wood, however hard, were
dropped into his cage, it was instantly torn to
pieces and, il he seized the end Of a rope,
he might quit partnership with his head,
but never with the rope
One day, greatly to my horror, the steward
enter the wardroom, pale with fear, and re
ported: " Mcphistophcles is escaped, sir +; ant
yafiing" (rendingl the men," rushed OF
deck. The animal had indeed escaped. II,
had torn his cage into splinters, and declared
war against all hands. Making for the fore
hatchway, he had seized a man by the jacket
skirts, going down tho ladder. The man got
out of the garment without delay, and fled
faster than any British sailor ought to have
done. On the lower deck he chased the cook
from the coppers, and the carpenter from his
Dcncn y circle Oh hTOulneu Wtfc S1ttiUp
mending n foresail; Mcphistopheles suddenly
appeared in their midst. The blacks nnani-
mously threw up their toes, individually
turned somersaults backward, and sought the
four winds of heaven. These routed, my pet
turned his attention to People. People was n
little Arab slave-lass. She was .squatting by
a calabash singing low to herself and eating
rice. lie seized her cummerbund it was her
only garment. But People wriggled clear
1raturally-and ran ON Heck, the innocent, like
the funny little maiden y in Hans Breitmann
that chad got holdings ON, On the GUNNER
bund Mephistophelcs spent the remainder of
his fury, and the rest Of his life for not
knowing what might happen next, sent for
a fowling piece, and the plueiy fellow sue
cumbed to the force of circumstances and n
ppcful of buckshot. l have him yonder on
the sidcboard, in body and in spirit (gin),
botllc-mates with u sand-snake three cent?
pcdes, and tarantua Chambers journal.