The Washington herald., 1907-08-22
SNAKE AN ACROBAT
First Officer RegaleS Report
er on Events of Voyage.
BEST LANGUAGE FOR SWEARING
Tamil :ppeaIs Even 40 the Parrot,
and Can BE Combined with the
serang's PrayeFs-The Disappear
ing Lascar Takes Stewards Cap,
and 81 SpOon-shaped Comet Sighted.

New York. Aug. A.-The British steam
ship Kilkerran, dispensing the smell of
raw sugar and with decks aswarm with
Bombay lascars. docked to-day at the
Arbuclles stores. Brooklyn, bringing the
hrst cargo Of Javanese sugar that has
come into port this year. There were
about $500 tons of the product IN the
Kilkerran's holds.
Capt. Smith looked upon the voyage
as uneventful and the officers, from
First officer McMillin down. were unan-
imOus in declaring that the hot weather
OF the Eastern seas was preferable to
that OF New York. McMillin is from
Arran, off the Scottish coast. and his
language is the rolling Arab kind.
Great Place for Snakes.
AS to the long voyage from Java Mr..
McAIilln thought that one thing and
another had made It interesting. There
was a white and yellow parrot, two mon
keys and a disappearing lascar, TO say
nothing Of a comet that had helped vary
the monotony of cruising.
And the snakes" remarked the first
officer; we sh'ud hear aboot the snakes.
Ye may say there's no such thing as sea
serpents. but that'n not be true. In the
Bay of Bengal in the nor'wes monsoons,
there is where ye see the snakes-when
the waters smooth. Aye. mon, thatTn be
bad, but what abOOt Cheribon, where the
ship lays az anchor and the chantin'
coolies load the sugar out OF lighters.
Thatn be a main fine place for snakes,
CheribOn on the Java sea, and some O the
beasJies were ear maxim us trouble.
Fine Lingo to Swear In.
III tell We these are acrobatic snakes,
aye, gymnasts. and one night off Cheri-
bon there was a terrible squawking for
ward among the Lascars, and a Big, tall
black chap comes running aft and says
that a devil has come on board and the
sIang is swearing in Tamil and praying
at the same time frCsn the sacred carpet
Mr.. Horn, the second officer, he's on deck
and goes forward 10 see wots Oop, and
there. In the forecastle, Is a snake. as fine
as yer please, rollin' round like Old Nick
wuz arfter 'um Wul. he wuz a pretty
snake, red and yellow diamonds and all
that. but Horn, who is no hand fer
beauty. he kills the pretty snake and
chucks him oversides. Then all the Las
cars grew quiet and the serang stopped
swearing. especially in Tamil which is a
most pertekular langwich fer swesrin'.
'But I never said, did I, how TIE
snake gets aboard US? Why, he erawls VI
the anchor chains. the bliddin' rascal
and that's what ye call an acrobat rep
tile"
Tamil Again ResOrted To.
Mr.. McMnlin fills a pipe and declares
that Mr. Horn must tell of the disap-
pearing I.ascar. 8ir. Horn asserts that he
does not know what caused it. whether il
was the serang's swearing OF the prcx-
unity OF Mahomers tomb, but at any
rate SumsOo Sulyman. valued seaman
departed from the steamship at Port said
and has not been seen since. Not only
this. bur in going the unregenerate sum
500 carried with him the velvet cap ci
the steward, a most decorative headpiece
and this caused the steward to swear
likewise in Tamil a most forceful tongue
fol the voicing Of exeCrations.
another Excuse for Tamil.
The Comet-well. that was a beautiful
sight in the early morning, said Mr. Horn
II was shaped ike a huge and GLOWING
spoon. and as Mr.. Horn had discovered
it. the waggish second engineer called
it the great Horn spoon" This caused
all hands. even the white and yello~ par
rot, TO swear in Tamil, most pictur-
esque language to swear by. Fhe comet
was first seen or the Azores ABOUT ter
days ago.
The Kilkerran, besides her copioUs tors
Of sugar, brings a reminder of the King,
ston disaster She was named or the
Ayrshire estate Of Sir William Ferguson
who was killed in the Jamaica earth
nIlnLra