MARK TWAIN

plcmcnt with second-cabin passengers—a dosen—and
came near being swamped by them. Took 3 hrs. to dis-
embark the New York passengers and then we got un-
der way.

Everlasting curses on the man who invented the
villainous little lamp they put in a man's stateroom on
shipboard. That is as honest a prayer as I ever uttered.

Jan. 2. All right now on this ship, got plenty of ice
and ice-water, no more melting here in the tropics.

That infernal monkey is having a perfect carnival all to
himself. Smith and Kingman gave him a good square
drink of brandy and now he feels it—one moment he is
in the quarter boat abreast my room and the next he is
at the top-gallant crosstrees and scampering wildly from
rope to rope, capering out on the yards like a lunatic—
the dizxy height, the blowing of the gale and the plunging
of the ship have no terrors for him.

A sailor scared the monkey awhile ago and he jumped
from the top-gallant yard arm and caught a back stay or
something away down 20 or 30 ft. below.

The next note is brief, but ominous:

Jan. 2, 1867. Two cases of cholera reported in the
steerage today.

Kingman's report of small-pox kept the steerage from
getting ashore at Grey Town, and now I don't more than
half believe his report that there are 2 cases yellow fever
(cholera!) belowdecks.

Got captain's permission to have a safety lantern in
my room,

4 P.M. Jan. 2. The surgeon of the ship has just re-
ported to the captain in my hearing that 2 of the cases
are "mighty bad" and the third "awful bad."

42