Ashtabula telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1874-1880, 1877-11-30
A Voyage with Ship LOad of Mon
KEYS.
keys.


lngtOn on leave of absence, relates a yer,
funny occurrence which came under his OBJ
servation during his official residence il
Liverpool. A successful and wealthy ship
owner, having devoted more time to The
business of money making than to the cult
walton Of any of the unnecessary embelIisb-
ments of the intellect, was considered bv his
business associates a little "off7 in his ortbo-
graph. He sent an orler to Bombay, and.
among other things, wrote for two monkeys,
which he wanted to present to some friends;
but departing from the usual mode of spell,
Isg the word t'0O, he put it too. Perhaps
the hand writing was not very legible, as is
often the case with others than illiterate
shlpowners. At any rate the master of the
ship read 1t 100, as did the agent al Bonn
bay. There was much astonishment at so
strange an order, but the master was bound
to obey it. Accordingly the services of a
number of natives were secured, the couG-
try round about was secured, and in few
days hundred monkeys of all colors and
previous conditions were secured. There
were little black monkeys, with eyes ike
beads, bigger monkeys with whiskers, and
balloons whose grave expression Of counte-
nance presented a ridiculous contrastto their
dndignified antics. The whole crowd chat
tered, screamed and fought in the cage which
had been provided for them in the ship in
spite of all efforts to keep them quiet. In i
few days the homeward voyage was com.
menced, and with it the troubles of the
crew.
As soon as the motion of the ship was
felt the monkeys redoublcd their noise.
making & regular pandemonium of the shin,
Relays of them shook the bars Of the cage
without moments hesitation for twenty
three hours out of each twenty -four, until |
the cage was literally shaken to pieces. and
the astonished sailors beheld a cloud of
monkeys suddenly issuing from the hold. !
scrambling, fighting and tumbliug over
each other as if their lives depended upon
getting into the rigging in the shortest pos.
slhle time. From that moment poor Jack
had not moments peace The monkeys.
with mischievousness unparalleled, would
steal everything they could Law their hands
on, IT clothes were hung up to dry they
would carry them up to the highest point at
talna6ie and pick them to. pieces 1t was
necessary to set guard over everything
that was washed OF dried When the cab
in-boy swept the deck be had to lock up
the broom, for if he hid it eyer so securely
hls back would be scarcely turned before
an old ape, Lalf as big as a man, would
have 1t going through the motion of sweep
ing the deck with an air of indescribable
gravity SO great was the ANNOYANCE that
1t was with the greatest difficulty that the
officers could prevent the men shooting their
tormentors, and when the ship tonched at
Alden half of the crew deserted, prelerring
to take their chances at this inhospitable {;
place than to endure the persecution of the
monkeys.
Finally the ship reached home. She had
been signaled at Lands End, and the own !
ar was at the dock when she arrived. Ship
owners generally pride themselves on the
trim appearance of their ships, and our !
friend was weakin this respect, if in no /
others. What then was his astonishment
to see bis slips rigging crowded with knots a
1r punches, with here and there festoon 1
where several monkeys bad suspended
themselves from a spar in string, holding f
zach other by the tall Everybody about t
he docks viewed with wonder the approach a
ng spectacle. The ship moved closely to
ier berth, and presently her yardarms near =
ID those of several other vessels living at
ne dock. In an instant the monkeys leap
ID from one to another, and began a tour
Im0ng the forest of masts that fTinged the
larbor of Liverpool. All the boys and a
dlers around tie dock we're engaged, and f
grand hunt eusued. I'D and down the rin.