Captured by Apes; or, How Philip Garland Became King of Apeland

by Harry Prentice

Probably no man ever so desired to escape observation as did Philip, when, just after sunset, he arose cautiously and made his way toward the kitchen in the hope of being able to penetrate that portion of the house, where he might find some degree of privacy. Surely, there should be a small apartment in which he could barricade himself, and it was with this in his mind that he entered the building.

Here, however, the gloom was already filling the room—for night in the tropics comes on very rapidly—rendering some artificial light necessary. With every reason to believe there might be lamps or candles in the cupboard he opened the door once more, closing it very suddenly as the entire body of apes rushed in, ready for any further mischief which might present itself.

Philip stood for an instant with his back to the closet, wondering if it would be safe to make any investigations while his companions were so near, and as he faced the party it was impossible to check his mirth despite all the reasons he had for sorrow.

The monkey-topers, now partially recovered from the effects of the wine, were looking thoroughly demoralized and repentant. Some were holding their paws to their heads as if to check the pain, while others appeared to be suffering most in the region of the stomach. The majority of the party yet walked unsteadily, and at short intervals squads of from ten to twenty would return to the pond in order to quench the unnatural thirst which was causing them to feel very wretched.

Under such a condition of affairs Philip believed that his followers were incapable of any serious mischief, and, holding the cupboard door only partially open, he reached inside for the purpose of providing himself with a light.

Again chance aided, and the apes outwitted him. His hand struck the lid of a box, and, displacing the cover, he found that it was filled with candles, while piled in one corner immediately behind it was a quantity of matches.

Now it became necessary to use both hands, and with one he extracted a candle from the box, while with the other he ignited the wick.

This movement necessarily prevented him from retaining his hold on the cupboard-door, and the half-sobered apes in the rear immediately seized upon the opportunity. Philip’s candle was but just lighted when with a rush they dashed into the closet, and behold! three hundred apes each with a candle and a package of matches, forming a cordon around Philip, and making the air heavy with brimstone as they rubbed the “fire-sticks” on the doors, floor, stove, or more than once on their own hides. As Philip had done so did every ape in the room, and with the most alarming consequences. Now and then one less sober than his companions would ignite a full bunch of matches, much to his alarm and confusion. As a matter of course, such a blunderer immediately threw the blazing bits of wood to the floor, thereby causing the animal-trainer no slight fear, for it was impossible to say when the others might not do the same thing.

It seemed as if this was the culmination of all Philip’s troubles, for to place a match and candle in the hands of a sober ape is to supply the means of a conflagration, and what must be the result when these dangerous things are controlled by intoxicated brutes?

Philip’s first thought was to extinguish his own candle; but even while on the point of doing so it flashed into his mind that by causing the flame to disappear he might seem to have thrown it away, and then would ensue a scene similar to the one with the bottles, making the immediate destruction of the building inevitable.