m like a fish, but
the boy could not, and as Captain Marryat, upon rising to the surface of
the water and preparing to strike out for the ship, found himself most
needlessly clutched and borne up by this lady, he shook her off
impatiently, saying: 'Go to the boy! Go to the boy! He can't swim!'

"'_Go to the boy!_' she echoed above the winds and waves. 'What! hold up
a midshipman when I can save the life of a captain! Not I indeed!' And
no entreaties could prevail on her to relinquish her impending honours.
Who eventually did the 'dirty work' on this occasion is not recorded,
but it is certain that no one was drowned."

As is well known, sailors are devoted to animals, and Marryat was no
exception to the rule. He has left on record a story of a pet baboon,
which was on board the _Tees_ with him--

"I had on board a ship which I commanded a very large Cape baboon, who
was a pet of mine, and also a little boy, who was a son of mine. When
the baboon sat down on his hams he was about as tall as the boy when he
walked. The boy, having a tolerable appetite, received about noon a
considerable slice of bread-and-butter to keep him quiet till
dinner-time. I was on one of the carronades, busy with the sun's lower
limb, bringing it into contact with the horizon, when the boy's lower
limbs brought him into contact with the baboon, who, having, as well as
the boy, a strong predilection for bread-and-butter, and a stronger arm
to take it withal, thought proper to help himself to that to which the
boy had already been helped. In short, he snatched the bread-and-butter,
and made short work of it, for it was in his pouch in a moment.

"Upon this the boy set up a yell, which attracted my notice to this
violation of the articles of war, to which the baboon was equally
amenable as any other person in the ship, for it is expressly stated in
the preamble of every article, 'all who are _in_, or _belonging_ to.'
Whereupon I jumped off the carronade and, by way of assisting his
digestion, I served out to the baboon _monkey's allowance_, which is
more kicks than halfpence! The master reported that the heavens
intimated that it was twelve o'clock, and, with all the humility of a
captain of a man-of-war, I ordered him to 'make it so'; whereupon it was
made, and so passed that day.

"I do not remember how many days it was afterwards that I was on the
carronade as usual, about the same time, and all parties were precisely
in the same situations-