Beautiful Joe [22]
looked at her anxiously, and
said, "Show off now, can't ye?"
I didn't know what he meant by all this, until afterward. I had never heard of
such a thing as birds talking. I stood on the table staring hard at her, and she
stared hard at me. I was just thinking that I would not like to have her sharp
little beak fastened in my skin, when I heard some one say, "Beautiful Joe." The
voice seemed to come from the room, but I knew all the voices there, and this
was one I had never heard before, so I thought I must be mistaken, and it was
some one in the hall. I struggled to get away from Jack to run and see who it
was. But he held me fast, and laughed with all his might. I looked at the other
boys and they were laughing, too. Presently, I heard again, "Beautiful Joe,
Beautiful Joe." The sound was close by, and yet it did not come from the cabin
boy, for he was all doubled up laughing, his face as red as a beet.
"It's the parrot, Joe!" cried Ned. "Look at her, you gaby." I did look at her,
and with her head on one side, and the sauciest air in the world, she was
saying: "Beau-ti-ful Joe, Beau-ti-ful Joe!"
I had never heard a bird talk before, and I felt so sheepish that I tried to get
down and hide myself under the table. Then she began to laugh at me. "Ha, ha,
ha, good dog sic 'em, boy. Rats, rats! Beau-ti-ful Joe, Beau-ti-ful Joe," she
cried, rattling off the words as fast as she could.
I never felt so queer before in my life, and the boys were just roaring with
delight at my puzzled face. Then the parrot began calling for Jim. "Where's Jim,
where's good old Jim? Poor old dog. Give him a bone."
The boys brought Jim in the parlor, and when he heard her funny, little, cracked
voice calling him, he nearly went crazy: "Jimmy, Jimmy, James Augustus!" she
said, which was Jim's long name
He made a dash out of the room, and the boys screamed so that Mr. Morris came
down from his study to see what the noise meant. As soon as the parrot saw him,
she would not utter another word. The boys told him though what she had been
saying, and he seemed much amused to think that the cabin boy should have
remembered so many sayings his boys made use of, and taught them to the parrot.
"Clever Polly," he said, kindly; "good Polly."
The cabin boy looked at him shyly, and Jack, who was a very sharp boy, said
quickly, "Is not that what you call her, Henry?"
"No," said the boy; "I call her Bell, short for Bellzebub."
"I beg your pardon," said Jack, very politely.
"Bell short for Bellzebub," repeated the boy. "Ye see, I thought ye'd like a
name from the Bible, bein' a minister's sons. I hadn't my Bible with me on this
cruise, savin' yer presences an' I couldn't think of any girls' names out of it:
but Eve or Queen of Sheba, an' they didn't seem very fit, so I asked one of me
mates, an' he says, for his part he guessed Bellzebub was as pretty a girl's
name as any, so I guv her that. 'Twould 'a been better to let you name her, but
ye see 'twouldn't 'a been handy not to call her somethin', where I was teachin'
her every day."
Jack turned away and walked to the window, his face a deep scarlet. I heard him
mutter, "Beelzebub, prince of devils," so I suppose the cabin boy had given his
bird a bad name.
Mr. Morris looked kindly at the cabin boy "Do you ever call the parrot by her
whole name?"
"No, sir," he replied; "I always give her Bell but she calls herself Bella."
"Bella," repeated Mr. Morris, "that is a very pretty name. If you keep her,
boys, I think you had better stick to that."
"Yes, father," they all said; and then Mr. Morris started to go back to his
study. On the doorsill he paused to ask the cabin boy when his ship sailed.
Finding that it was to be in a few days, he took out his pocket-book and wrote
something in it. The next day he asked Jack to go to town with him, and when
they came home, Jack said that his father had bought an oil-skin coat for Henry
Smith, and a handsome Bible, in which they were all to write their names.
said, "Show off now, can't ye?"
I didn't know what he meant by all this, until afterward. I had never heard of
such a thing as birds talking. I stood on the table staring hard at her, and she
stared hard at me. I was just thinking that I would not like to have her sharp
little beak fastened in my skin, when I heard some one say, "Beautiful Joe." The
voice seemed to come from the room, but I knew all the voices there, and this
was one I had never heard before, so I thought I must be mistaken, and it was
some one in the hall. I struggled to get away from Jack to run and see who it
was. But he held me fast, and laughed with all his might. I looked at the other
boys and they were laughing, too. Presently, I heard again, "Beautiful Joe,
Beautiful Joe." The sound was close by, and yet it did not come from the cabin
boy, for he was all doubled up laughing, his face as red as a beet.
"It's the parrot, Joe!" cried Ned. "Look at her, you gaby." I did look at her,
and with her head on one side, and the sauciest air in the world, she was
saying: "Beau-ti-ful Joe, Beau-ti-ful Joe!"
I had never heard a bird talk before, and I felt so sheepish that I tried to get
down and hide myself under the table. Then she began to laugh at me. "Ha, ha,
ha, good dog sic 'em, boy. Rats, rats! Beau-ti-ful Joe, Beau-ti-ful Joe," she
cried, rattling off the words as fast as she could.
I never felt so queer before in my life, and the boys were just roaring with
delight at my puzzled face. Then the parrot began calling for Jim. "Where's Jim,
where's good old Jim? Poor old dog. Give him a bone."
The boys brought Jim in the parlor, and when he heard her funny, little, cracked
voice calling him, he nearly went crazy: "Jimmy, Jimmy, James Augustus!" she
said, which was Jim's long name
He made a dash out of the room, and the boys screamed so that Mr. Morris came
down from his study to see what the noise meant. As soon as the parrot saw him,
she would not utter another word. The boys told him though what she had been
saying, and he seemed much amused to think that the cabin boy should have
remembered so many sayings his boys made use of, and taught them to the parrot.
"Clever Polly," he said, kindly; "good Polly."
The cabin boy looked at him shyly, and Jack, who was a very sharp boy, said
quickly, "Is not that what you call her, Henry?"
"No," said the boy; "I call her Bell, short for Bellzebub."
"I beg your pardon," said Jack, very politely.
"Bell short for Bellzebub," repeated the boy. "Ye see, I thought ye'd like a
name from the Bible, bein' a minister's sons. I hadn't my Bible with me on this
cruise, savin' yer presences an' I couldn't think of any girls' names out of it:
but Eve or Queen of Sheba, an' they didn't seem very fit, so I asked one of me
mates, an' he says, for his part he guessed Bellzebub was as pretty a girl's
name as any, so I guv her that. 'Twould 'a been better to let you name her, but
ye see 'twouldn't 'a been handy not to call her somethin', where I was teachin'
her every day."
Jack turned away and walked to the window, his face a deep scarlet. I heard him
mutter, "Beelzebub, prince of devils," so I suppose the cabin boy had given his
bird a bad name.
Mr. Morris looked kindly at the cabin boy "Do you ever call the parrot by her
whole name?"
"No, sir," he replied; "I always give her Bell but she calls herself Bella."
"Bella," repeated Mr. Morris, "that is a very pretty name. If you keep her,
boys, I think you had better stick to that."
"Yes, father," they all said; and then Mr. Morris started to go back to his
study. On the doorsill he paused to ask the cabin boy when his ship sailed.
Finding that it was to be in a few days, he took out his pocket-book and wrote
something in it. The next day he asked Jack to go to town with him, and when
they came home, Jack said that his father had bought an oil-skin coat for Henry
Smith, and a handsome Bible, in which they were all to write their names.