Ailie, being of a romantic temperament, named her monkey Albertino, but the sailors called him Jacko, and their name ultimately became the well-known one of the little foundling, for Ailie was not obstinate; so, seeing that the sailors did not or could not remember Albertino, she soon gave in, and styled her pet Jacko to the end of the chapter, with which piece of information we shall conclude this chapter.
Chapter Fourteen.
Rencontre with Slave-Traders—On Board again—A Start, a Misfortune, a Ghost Story, a Mistake, and an Invitation to Dinner.
On the evening of the second day after the capture of Jacko, as the canoe was descending the river and drawing near to the sea-coast, much to the delight of everyone—for the heat of the interior had begun to grow unbearable—a ship’s boat was observed moored to the wharf near the slave-station which they had passed on the way up. At first it was supposed to be one of the boats of the Red Eric, but on a nearer approach this proved to be an erroneous opinion.
“Wot can it be a-doin’ of here?” inquired Tim Rokens, in an abstracted tone of voice, as if he put the question to himself, and therefore did not expect an answer.
“No doubt it’s a slaver’s boat,” replied the trader; “they often come up here for cargoes of niggers.”
“Och! the blackguards!” exclaimed Phil Briant, all his blood rising at the mere mention of the horrible traffic; “couldn’t we land, capting, and give them a lickin’? I’ll engage meself to put six at laste o’ the spalpeens on their beam-ends.”
“No, Phil, we shan’t land for that purpose; but we’ll land for some gunpowder an’ a barrel or two of plantains; so give way, lads.”