CHAPTER III.
JACKO RUNNING AWAY.
Minnie had a cousin Frank, the son of Mr. Harry Lee. He was three yearsolder than Minnie, and was full of life and frolic.
At one time he came to visit Minnie; and fine fun indeed they had withthe pets, the monkey being his especial favorite.
Every day some new experiment was to be tried with Jacko, who, as Frankdeclared, could be taught any thing that they wished. One time, he tookthe little fellow by the chain for a walk, Minnie gayly running by hisside, and wondering what her cousin was going to do.
On their way to the barn, they met Leo, who at once began to barkfuriously.
"That will never do, my brave fellow," exclaimed the boy; "for we wantyou to turn horse, and take Jacko to ride."
"O, Frank! Leo will kill him. Don't do that!" urged Minnie, almostcrying.
"But I mean to make them good friends," responded the lad. "Here, youtake hold of the chain, and I will coax the dog to be quiet while I putJacko on his back."
This was not so easy as he had supposed; for no amount of coaxing orflattery would induce Leo to be impressed into this service. He hatedthe monkey, and was greatly disgusted at his appearance as he hopped,first on Frank's shoulder, and then to the ground, his head sticking outof his little red jacket, and his face wearing a malicious grin.
Finding they could not succeed in this, they went into the stable tovisit Star, when, with a quick motion, Jacko twitched the chain fromMinnie's hand, and running up the rack above the manger, began to laughand chatter in great glee.
His tail, which had now fully healed, was of great use to him on thisoccasion, when, to Minnie's great surprise, he clung with it to the barof the rack, and began to swing himself about.
JACKO RUNNING AWAY. Page 52.]
"I heard of a monkey once," exclaimed Frank, laughing merrily, "who madegreat use of his tail. If a nut or apple were thrown to him which fellbeyond his reach, he would run to the full length of his chain, turn hisback, then stretch out his tail, and draw toward him the coveteddelicacy."
"Let's see whether Jacko would do so," shouted Minnie, greatly excitedwith the project.
"When we can catch him. But see how funny he looks. There he goes up thehay mow, the chain dangling after him."
"If we don't try to catch him, he'll come quicker," said Minnie,gravely.
"I know another story about a monkey--a real funny one," added the boy."I don't know what his name was; but he used to sleep in the barn withthe cattle and horses. I suppose monkeys are always cold here; at anyrate, this one was; and when he saw the hostler give the horse a nicefeed of hay, he said to himself, 'What a comfortable bed that would makefor me!'
"When the man went away, he jumped into the hay and hid, and every timethe horse came near enough to eat, he sprang forward and bit her earswith his sharp teeth.
"Of course, as the poor horse couldn't get her food, she grew very thin,and at last was so frightened that the hostler could scarcely get herinto the stall. Several times he had to whip her before she would enterit, and then she stood as far back as possible, trembling like a leaf.
"It was a long time before they found out what the matter was; and thenthe monkey had to take a whipping, I guess."
"If his mother had been there, she would have whipped him," said Minnie,laughing.
"What do you mean?"
The little girl then repeated what her mother had told her of thediscipline among monkeys, at which he was greatly amused.
All this time, they were standing at the bottom of the hay mow, andsupposed that Jacko was safe at the top; but the little fellow was morecunning than they thought. He found the window open near the roof, wherehay was sometimes pitched in, and ran down into the yard as quick aslightning.
The first they knew of it was when John called out from the barnyard,"Jacko, Jacko! Soh, Jacko! Be quiet, sir!"
It was a wearisome chase they had for the next hour, and at the end theycould not catch the runaway; but at last, when they sat down calmly inthe house, he stole back to his cage, and lay there quiet as a lamb.
Minnie's face was flushed with her unusual exercise, but in a fewminutes she grew very pale, until her mother became alarmed. After a fewdrops of lavender, however, she said she felt better, and that if Frankwould tell her a story she should be quite well.
"That I will," exclaimed the boy, eagerly. "I know a real funny one;you like funny stories--don't you?"
"Yes, when they're true," answered Minnie.
"Well, this is really true. A man was hunting, and he happened to kill amonkey that had a little baby on her back. The little one clung so closeto her dead mother, that they could scarcely get it away. When theyreached the gentleman's house, the poor creature began to cry atfinding itself alone. All at once it ran across the room to a block,where a wig belonging to the hunter's father was placed, and thinkingthat was its mother, was so comforted that it lay down and went tosleep.
"They fed it with goat's milk, and it grew quite contented, for threeweeks clinging to the wig with great affection.
"The gentleman had a large and valuable collection of insects, whichwere dried upon pins, and placed in a room appropriated to suchpurposes.
"One day, when the monkey had become so familiar as to be a favoritewith all in the family, he found his way to this apartment, and made ahearty breakfast on the insects.
"The owner, entering when the meal was almost concluded, was greatlyenraged, and was about to chastise the animal, who had so quicklydestroyed the work of years, when he saw that the act had brought itsown punishment. In eating the insects, the animal had swallowed thepins, which very soon caused him such agony that he died."
"I don't call the last part funny at all," said Minnie, gravely.
"But wasn't it queer for it to think the wig was its mother?" asked theboy, with a merry laugh. "I don't think it could have had much sense todo that."
"But it was only a baby monkey then, Harry."
"How did it happen," inquired Mrs. Lee, "that Jacko got away from you?"
"He watched his chance, aunty, and twitched the chain away from Minnie.Now he's done it once, he'll try the game again, I suppose, he is sofond of playing us tricks."
And true enough, the very next morning the lady was surprised at a visitfrom the monkey in her chamber, where he made himself very much at home,pulling open drawers, and turning over the contents, in the hope offinding some confectionery, of which he was extremely fond.
"Really," she exclaimed to her husband, "if Jacko goes on so, I shallbe of cook's mind, and not wish to live in the house with him."