"No," I said, smiling at his earnestness. "We don't want a servant."

"Yes; want boy. Quong. Me Quong, talk ploper Inglis. No talkee
pidgin."

"Get out!" cried Esau. "Who ever heard of talking pigeon! You mean a
parrot."

"Hey? Pallot. Yes, talkee pallot--pletty polly what o'clock?"

"Yes, that's right!" cried Esau.

"Quong talk ploper Inglis. Allee same Melican man. No talkee pidgin,
no talkee pallot. Quong come along cally big pack. Cookee. Washee
clean do."

"But we don't want you," I said.

"No wantee Quong? Hey?"

"No."

"Ah."

He nodded as good-humouredly as if we had engaged him to cook and wash
for us, and as we stood there leaning over the side of the puffing
little steamer, we saw him go from one to another, and amongst them to
Gunson. But he was everywhere received with a shake of the head, and at
last, apparently in no wise discouraged, he sat down forward on the
deck, took his little bundle on his knees, and curled up his tail again.

They were a curious lot of people on board, and I was dividing my time
between watching the panorama of hills and mountains that seemed to rise
up out of the sea, and trying to make out what the people might be by
whom I was surrounded, thinking that one or two must be Englishmen,
others Americans, and some people who had settled down in the country to
which we were going, when a big, roughly-bearded fellow, who was very
loud and noisy in his conversation, suddenly burst into a roar of
laughter, and gave his leg a slap, while some of the men about him
joined in his mirth.

For some minutes I could not make out what was the object which
attracted them, but Esau was quicker, and gave me a nudge with his
elbow.

"They're going to play some games," he said; and I grasped directly what
it meant, for the big fellow went quietly up behind the little Chinaman,
and with a clever twitch unfastened the pin, or whatever it was which
held up the coil, and the long tail untwisted and rolled down on the
deck amidst a roar of laughter--one which increased as the Chinaman
turned to see who had played the trick, but only to find the man
standing near with his back toward him, apparently talking thoughtfully.

"You pullee?" said the Chinaman good-humouredly.

"What?" came back in a voice of thunder.

"You pullee tail?"

The man gave him a furious scowl, and uttered a low growl like that of
some savage beast, while the little Chinaman slunk toward the bulwark