on board one of whose
vessels he served in a somewhat similar capacity till the peace, when he
came to Paris, and set up an ordinary for servants, sticking the name of
Katcomb over the door, in allusion to the place where he had his long
sleep. But, whatever his origin was, Jack kept his own counsel, and
appeared to care nothing for what people said about him, or called him.
Yes, I forgot, there was one name he would not be called, and that was
"Portuguese." I once saw Black Jack knock down a coachman, six foot
high, who called him black-faced Portuguese. "Any name but dat, you
shab," said Black Jack, who was a little round fellow, of about five feet
two; "I would not stand to be called Portuguese by Nelson himself." Jack
was rather fond of talking about Nelson, and hearing people talk about
him, so that it is not improbable that he may have sailed with him; and
with respect to his having been King Pharaoh's butler, all I have to say
is, I am not disposed to give the downright lie to the report. Jack was
always ready to do a kind turn to a poor servant out of place, and has
often been known to assist such as were in prison, which charitable
disposition he perhaps acquired from having lost a good place himself,
having seen the inside of a prison, and known the want of a meal's
victuals, all which trials King Pharaoh's butler underwent, so he may
have been that butler; at any rate, I have known positive conclusions
come to on no better premises, if indeed as good. As for the story of
his coming direct from Satan's kitchen, I place no confidence in it at
all, as Black Jack had nothing of Satan about him but blackness, on which
account he was called Black Jack. Nor am I disposed to give credit to a
report that his hatred of the Portuguese arose from some ill treatment
which he had once experienced when on shore, at Lisbon, from certain
gentlewomen of the place, but rather conclude that it arose from an
opinion he entertained that the Portuguese never paid their debts, one of
the ambassadors of that nation whose house he had served, having left
Paris several thousand francs in his debt. This is all that I have to
say about Black Jack, without whose funny jokes and good ordinary I
should have passed my time in Paris in a very disconsolate manner.

'After we had been at Paris between two and three months, we left it in
the direction of Italy, which country the family had a great desire to
see. After travelling a great