It required ten minutes of difficult work before Philip could succeed in leaving the room where he had thoughtlessly done so much mischief, and then, with all the drunken apes close at his heels, he ran into the court-yard and threw himself on the bank of the tiny stream, so thoroughly disheartened as to be careless of what further trouble might come.

The scene which was presented under the awning during the next half-hour would have given a disinterested spectator no slight amount of amusement, but in Philip’s eyes it was too painful to admit of even a smile.

The party were seated as near the border of the pond as possible, and to have some idea of the picture the reader should multiply any grossly intoxicated person he has seen by about four hundred; but even then, and with the most vivid imagination, he could hardly do full justice to the spectacle.

They leered at each other, called names in the monkey language, very likely told improbable stories, and argued after the fashion of men. Here and there a party of a dozen were raising their[126] voices in discordant notes, which was not unlike the maudlin singing of human beings. Now and then one would stagger back and forth in a vain attempt to get nearer the pond, while his companions did all in their power to keep him back. Then an ape, catching a glimpse of his own tail, and believing that it belonged to his neighbor, would seize and pull it until he literally overturned himself. If in falling he struck any other member of the party, an incipient riot was started, but not to continue very long, owing to the inebriated condition of all.

Those nearest the prisoner overwhelmed him with rough caresses, which at times threatened to leave him entirely bald, because of the desire to show affection by examining each particular hair on his head. If they had understood the custom and significance of hand-shaking, the animal-trainer’s troubles would have been much greater; but as it was, he had even more in the way of trials than could be borne with any respectable show of equanimity.

Taking the scene as a whole, and knowing exactly how these disagreeable companions had been made more brutish than was natural, it presented such a lesson as Philip must have profited by, for one cannot see even drunken men without realizing the beauties and benefits of temperance.

To move ever so slightly was to find the others doing the same thing, and Philip waited patiently throughout the whole of that long, dreary day, hoping his companions would soon be wrapped in[127] slumber, when he might make his escape to the grotto.

But he waited in vain. At intervals certain members of the party would doze; but there was no moment when more than fifty were in a state even approaching unconsciousness, although the entire troop grew more quiet, if not more sober, when the shadows of night began to gather.

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[128] 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[129] 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 conflagra............