she was a
handsome creature, and very tame, but it was chiefly in connection with
Quacko, who was soon taught to ride upon her. Quacko was certainly very
well aware that he must never venture upon the quarter-deck, and before,
therefore, he reached the sacred precincts on his daily rides, he always
managed to wheel the goat about and retrace his steps forward. Quacko
was a wonderfully sagacious monkey, and held his position in the good
opinion of the crew in spite of my rival claims. Had I been thrown
entirely upon their mercy as Quacko was, I might have completely cut him
out; but having my mother and Mrs King, with two or three select
friends to look after me, the remainder very naturally felt that they
had not so much interest in the matter. On one occasion, when I was
about three years old, the frigate was caught in a typhoon. I was safe
below in my poor mother's arms, but Quacko remained on deck to see what
was going forward. Nobody was thinking of him. The seamen, indeed, had
to hold on with might and main to secure their own lives. Some
preparation had been made, and fortunately it was so, for all the sails
still set were blown out of the bolt ropes. The frigate was hove on her
beam-ends. Where Quacko had come from nobody knew, when on a sudden he
was seen hanging to the slack end of a rope. In vain one of the topmen
made an attempt to grasp him. The rope swung away far over the foaming
sea. He swung back, but it was to strike the side apparently, for the
next instant the rope returned on board and no Quacko hanging to it.
The ship righted without having suffered much damage; indeed, the loss
of Quacko was our greatest misfortune.

After the sad event just mentioned, Quacko's friends made various
attempts to appropriate me; indeed, Mrs King and Toby Kiddle had, in
order to console them for their loss, to give me up to them
occasionally.

"Here, Toby, let's have the little chap and learn him to ride," said Tom
Trimmers, one of the topmen. "Why, Nanny will be forgetting how to
carry a human being as she has been accustomed to do, and you will soon
see what a capital horseman he will make, won't you, Ben?"

"Ay, ay," I answered, for though I could not say much I could say that,
and so Nanny was brought forth, and I was placed on her back, Toby,
however, remarking, that though some day I should have more sense than
the defunct Quacko ever had, yet at present, as I had no experience in
riding, he must