Surprise</i><br/><br/><SPAN name="chapter12">THE LAND OF<br/>THE CIVILIZED MONKEYS<img
src="images/kifly.jpg" alt="Prince Zingle flies his kite" align="right"></SPAN>
<p
align="center"><ANTIMG src="images/civmon.jpg" alt="The civilized monkeys"></p>
<br/><p><b><span class="b3">I</span> MUST</b> now tell you of a very strange adventure that befell Prince Zingle,
which, had it not turned out exactly as it did, might have resulted in making him a captive for life
in a remarkable country.<br/><br/>By consulting Smith's History of Prince Zingle you will notice that
from boyhood he had a great passion for flying kites, and unlike other boys, he always undertook to
make each kite larger than the last one. Therefore his kites grew in size, and became larger and
larger, until at length the Prince made one twice as tall as himself.<br/><br/>When it was finished he
was very proud of this great kite, and took it out to a level place to see how well it would fly,
being accompanied by many of the people of Mo, who took considerable interest in the Prince's
amusement.<br/><br/>There happened to be a strong south wind blowing and, fearing the kite might get
away from him, Zingle tied the string around his waist. It flew beautifully at first, but pulled so
hard the Prince could scarcely hold it.<br/><br/><ANTIMG src="images/drawn.jpg" align="left" alt="Poor
Zingle was drawn into the air">At last, when the string was all let out, there came a sudden gust of
wind, and in an instant poor Zingle was drawn into the air as easily as an ordinary kite draws its
tail. Up and up he soared, and the kite followed the wind and carried him over many countries until
the strength died out of the air, when the kite slowly settled toward the earth and landed the Prince
in the top of a tall tree.<br/><br/>He now untied the string from his waist and fastened it to a branch
of the tree, as he did not wish to lose the kite after all his bother in making it.<br/><br/>Then he
began to climb down to the ground, but on reaching the lower branches he was arrested by a most
curious sight.<br/><br/>Standing on the ground, and gazing up at him, were a dozen monkeys, all very
neatly dressed and all evidently filled with surprise at the Prince's sudden appearance in the
tree.<br/><br/>"What a very queer animal!" exclaimed an old monkey, who wore a tall silk hat and had
white kid gloves on his hands. Gold spectacles rested on his nose, and he pointed toward the Prince
with a gold-headed cane. By his side was a little girl-monkey, dressed in pink skirts and a blue
bonnet; and when she saw Zingle she clung to the old monkey's hand and seemed frightened.<br/><br/>"Oh,
grandpapa!" she cried; "take me back to mamma; I'm afraid the strange beast will bite me."<br/><br/>Just
then a big monkey, wearing a blue coat with brass buttons and swinging a short club in his hand,
strutted up to them and said:<br/><br/>"Don't be afraid, little one. The beast can't hurt you while I'm
around!" And then he tipped his cap over his left ear and shook his club at the Prince, as if he did
not know what fear meant.<br/><br/>Two monkeys, who were dressed in red jackets and carried muskets in
their hands, now came running up, and, having looked at Zingle with much interest, they called for
some one to bring them a strong rope.<br/><br/>"We will capture the brute and put him in the Zoo," said
one of the soldier-monkeys.<br/><br/>"What kind of animal is it?" asked the other.<br/><br/>"I do not
know. But some of our college professors can doubtless tell, and even if they can't they will give it
some scientific name that will satisfy the people just as well."<br/><br/>All this time Prince Zingle
remained clinging to the branches of the tree. He could not understand a word of the monkey language,
and therefore had no idea what they were talking about; but he judged from their actions that the
monkeys were not friendly. When they brought a long and stout rope, and prepared to throw one end of
it over his head, in order to capture him, he became angry and called out to
them:<br/><br/>"Stop—I command you! What is the meaning of this strange conduct? I am Prince
Zingle, eldest son of the Monarch of Mo, and, since I have been blown into your country through an
accident, I certainly deserve kind treatment at your hands."<br/><br/>But this speech had no meaning in
the ears of the monkeys, who said to each other:<br/><br/>"Hear him bark! He jabbers away almost as if
he could talk!"<br/><br/>By this time a large crowd of monkeys had surrounded the tree, some being
barefooted boy-monkeys, and some lady-monkeys dressed in silken gowns and gorgeous raiment of the
latest mode, and others men-monkeys of all sorts and conditions. There were dandified monkeys and
sober-looking business monkeys, as well as several who appeared to be politicians and officials of
high degree.<br/><br/>"Stand back, all of you!" shouted one of the soldiers. "We're going to capture
this remarkable beast for the royal menagerie, and unless you stand out of the way he may show fight
and bite some one."<br/><br/>So they moved back to a safe distance, and the soldier-monkey prepared to
throw a rope.<br/><br/>"Stop!" cried Zingle, again; "do you take me for a thief, that you try to bind
me? I am a prince of the royal blood, and unless you treat me respectfully I shall have my father, the
King, march his army on you and destroy your whole country."<br/><br/>"He barks louder," said the
soldier. "Look out for him; he may be dangerous." The next moment he threw the rope and caught poor
Zingle around his arms and body, so that he was helpless. Then the soldier-monkey pulled hard on the
rope, and Prince Zingle fell out of the tree to the ground.</p>
<p align="center"><img
src="images/zcaught.jpg" alt=""He threw the rope and caught poor Zingle around his arms and
body.""></p>
<p>At first the monkeys all pressed backward, as if frightened, but their soldiers
cried out:<br/><br/>"We've got him; he can't bite now."<br/><br/>Then one of them approached the Prince
and punched him with a stick, saying, "Stand up!"<br/><br/>Zingle did not understand the words, but he
resented being prodded with the stick, so he sprang up and rushed on the soldier, kicking the stick
from his hands, his own arms being bound by the rope.<br/><br/>The monkeys screamed and rushed in every
direction, but the other soldier came behind the Prince and knocked him down with the butt of his gun.
Then he tied his legs with another rope, and, seeing him thus bound, the crowd of monkeys, which had
scattered and fallen over one another in their efforts to escape, came creeping timidly back, and
looked on him with fear and trembling.<br/><br/>"We've subdued him at last," remarked the soldier who
had been kicked. "But he's a very fierce animal, and I shall take him to the Zoo and lock him in one
of the strongest cages."<br/><br/>So they led poor Zingle away to where the Royal Zoological Gardens
were located, and there they put him into a big cage with iron bars, the door being fastened with two
great padlocks.<br/><br/>Before very long every monkey in the country learned that a strange beast had
been captured and brought to the Zoo; and soon a large crowd had gathered before Zingle's cage to
examine him.<br/><br/>"Isn't he sweet!" said a lady-monkey who held a green parasol over her head and
wore a purple veil on her face.<br/><br/>"Sweet!" grunted a man-monkey standing beside her, "he's the
ugliest looking brute I ever saw! Scarcely has any hair on him at all, and no tail, and very little
chin. I wonder where on earth the creature came from?"<br/><br/>"It may be one of those beings from whom
our race is descended," said another onlooker. "The professors say we evolved from some primitive
creature of this sort."<br/><br/>"Heaven forbid!" cried a dandy-monkey, whose collar was so high that it
kept tipping his hat over his eyes. "If I thought such a creature as that was one of my forefathers, I
should commit suicide at once."<br/><br/>Zingle had been sitting on the floor of his cage and wondering
what was to become of him in this strange country of monkeys, and now, to show his authority, one of
the keepers took a long stick and began to poke the Prince to make him stand up.<br/><br/><img
src="images/blow.jpg" align="right" alt="The Prince struck his keeper a sharp blow on the head">"Stop
that!" shouted the angry captive, and catching hold of the stick he jerked it from the keeper's hand
and struck him a sharp blow on the head with it.<br/><br/>All the lady-monkeys screamed at this, and the
men-monkeys exclaimed:<br/><br/>"What an ugly disposition the beast has!"<br/><br/>The children-monkeys
began to throw peanuts between the bars of the cage, and Zingle, who had now become very hungry,
picked them up and ate them. This act so pleased the little monkeys that they shouted with
laughter.<br/><br/>At last two solemn-looking monkeys with gray hair, and wearing long black coats and
white neckties, came up to the cage, where they were greeted with much respect by the other
monkeys.<br/><br/>"So this is the strange animal," said one of the new-comers, putting on his spectacles
and looking sharply at the captive; "do you recognize the species, Professor?"<br/><br/>The other aged
monkey also regarded the Prince critically before he answered:<br/><br/>"I can not say I have ever seen
a specimen of this genus before. But one of our text-books mentions an obscure animal called Homo
Peculiaris, and I have no doubt this is one of that family. I shall write an article on the creature
and claim he is a Homo, and without doubt the paper will create quite a stir in the scientific
world."<br/><br/>"See here," suddenly demanded Prince Zingle, standing up and shaking the bars of his
cage, "are you going to give me anything to eat? Or do you expect me to live on peanuts
forever?"<br/><br/><ANTIMG src="images/zcage.jpg" align="right" alt="The professor monkeys examine
Zingle">Not knowing what he said, none of the monkeys paid any attention to this question. But one of
the professor-monkeys appeared to listen attentively, and remarked to friend: "There seems to be a
smoothness and variety of sound in his speech that indicates that he possesses some sort of language.
Had I time to study this brute, I might learn his method of communicating with his fellows. Indeed,
there is a possibility that he may turn out to be the missing link."<br/><br/>However, the professor not
yet having learned his language, Prince Zingle was obliged to remain hungry. The monkeys threw several
cocoanuts into the cage, but the prisoner did not know what kind of fruit these were; so, after
several attempts to bite the hard shell, he decided they were not good to eat.<br/><br/>Day after day
now passed away, and, although crowds of monkeys came to examine Zingle in his cage, the poor Prince
grew very pale and thin for lack of proper food, while the continuance of his unhappy imprisonment
made him sad and melancholy.<br/><br/>"Could I but escape and find my way back to my father's valley,"
he moaned, wearily, "I should be willing to fly small kites forever afterward."<br/><br/>Often he begged
them to let him go, but the monkeys gruffly commanded him to "stop his jabbering," and poked him with
long sticks having sharp points; so that the Prince's life became one of great misery.<br/><br/>At the
end of about two weeks a happy relief came to Zingle, for then a baby hippopotamus was captured and
brought to the Royal Zoo, and after this the monkeys left the Prince's cage and crowded around that of
the new arrival.<br/><br/>Finding himself thus deserted, Prince Zingle began to seek a means of escape
from his confinement. His first attempt was to break the iron bars; but soon he found they were too
big and strong. Then he shook the door with all his strength; but the big padlocks held firm, and
could not be broken. Then the prisoner gave way to despair, and threw himself on the floor of the
cage, weeping bitterly.<br/><br/>Suddenly he heard a great shout from the direction of the cage where
the baby hippopotamus was confined, and, rising to his feet, the Prince walked to the bars and
attempted to look out and discover what was causing the excitement. To his astonishment he found he
was able to thrust his head between two of the iron bars, having grown so thin through hunger and
abuse, that he was much smaller than when the monkeys had first captured him. He realized at once that
if his head would pass between the bars, his body could be made to do so, likewise. So he struggled
bravely, and at last succeeded in squeezing his body between the bars and leaping safely to the
ground.<br/><br/><ANTIMG src="images/zesc.jpg" align="left" alt="Zingle's escape">Finding himself at
liberty, the Prince lost no time in running to the tree where he had left his kite. But on the way
some of the boy-monkeys discovered him and raised a great cry, which soon brought hundreds of his
enemies in pursuit.<br/><br/>Zingle had a good start, however, and soon reached the tree. Quickly he
climbed up the trunk and branches until he had gained the limb where the string of his kite was still
fastened. Untying the cord, he wound it around his waist several times, and then, finding a strong
north wind blowing, he skilfully tossed the kite into the air. At once it filled and mounted to the
sky, lifting Zingle from the tree and carrying him with perfect ease.<br/><br/>It was fortunate he got
away at that moment, for several of the monkeys had scrambled up the tree after him, and were almost
near enough to seize him by the legs when, to their surprise, he shot into the air. Indeed, so amazed
were they by this remarkable escape of their prisoner that the monkeys remained staring into the air
until Prince Zingle had become a little speck in the sky above them and finally
disappeared.<br/><br/>That was the last our Prince ever saw of the strange country of the monkeys, for
the wind carried his kite straight back to the Valley of Mo. When Zingle found himself above his
father's palace, he took out his pocket-knife and cut the string of the kite, and immediately fell
head foremost into a pond of custard that lay in the back yard, where he dived through a floating
island of whipped cream and disappeared from view.<br/><br/>Nuphsed, who was sitting on the bank of the
custard lake, was nearly frightened into fits by this sight; and he ran to tell the King that a new
meteor had fallen and ruined one of his floating islands.<br/><br/>Thereupon the monarch and several of
his courtiers rushed out and found Prince Zingle swimming ashore; and the King was so delighted at
seeing his lost son again that he clasped him joyfully in his arms.<br/><br/>The next moment he
regretted this act, for his best ermine robe was smeared its whole length with custard, and would need
considerable cleaning before it would be fit to wear again.<br/><br/>The Prince and the King soon
changed their clothes, and then there was much rejoicing throughout the land. Of course the first
thing Zingle asked for was something to eat, and before long he was sitting at a table heaped with all
sorts of good things, plucked fresh from the trees.<br/><br/>The people crowded around him, demanding
the tale of his adventures, and their surprise was only equaled by their horror when they learned he
had been captured by a band of monkeys, and shut up in a cage because he was thought to be a dangerous
wild beast.<br/><br/>Experience is said to be an excellent teacher, although a very cruel one. Prince
Zingle had now seen enough of foreign countries to remain contented with his own beautiful Valley,
and, although it was many years before he again attempted to fly a kite, it was noticed that, when he
at last did indulge in that sport, the kite was of a very small size.</p>
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