ze, and I was not a little
gratified when he obtained leave to take me with him. My traps were
soon on board, and we then shaped a course for Rio de Janeiro.

STORY ONE, CHAPTER 5.

PETER PONGO.

I forgot to say that Dickey Snookes was sent on board the prize to keep
me company. He told me that the captain had called him into the cabin,
and given him a long lecture about playing tricks, and that he had made
up his mind to behave very circumspectly. I doubted that he would keep
very long to his good resolution. I felt excessively proud when I first
walked the deck of the prize as officer of the watch, though that fellow
Snookes would declare that the old quartermaster who kept it with me was
my dry-nurse, and that I was a mere make-believe. I know that I kept
pacing up and down on the weather side of the quarter-deck with great
dignity, looking up at the sails, and every now and then giving a glance
at the compass, to assure myself that the man at the helm was steering a
proper course. I should like to know what officer in the service, under
the circumstances, could do more. We were ordered to keep the frigate
always in sight, and as the prize sailed well, we had little difficulty
in doing that. In the day time we collected the poor blacks to come on
deck in fifties at a time, and walk up and down. We had a black man on
board the frigate, who was now sent with us, and he understood the
language of some of the slaves. I had not forgotten the poor boy whose
mother I had seen die, and I got permission for him to attend at our
mess. The other black seaman was able to explain to him what he had to
do, and I set to work to teach him English. He learned with surprising
rapidity, and could soon exchange words with me. I wished to give him a
name, and succeeded in learning that his native one was Pongo. He, of
course, had no Christian name, so I proposed calling him Peter, and he
was always afterwards known as Peter Pongo. He soon became a capital
servant, though he did now and then make curious mistakes. Once he
brought our soup into the cabin in a wash-bowl, and another time emptied
into a pail two bottles of wine which he had been ordered to cool in
water. Snookes was for punishing him, but I saved the poor fellow, as I
was certain that he had not done either of the things being aware of
their incorrectness. He exhibited, in consequence, the greatest
gratitude towards me, and evidently looked up to me a