The Monkey's Frolic: A Humorous Tale, in Verse

In Short

This humorous narrative poem chronicles the escalating mischief of a monkey, "Pug," who attempts to shave a cat with a paper knife. Their antics move from the domestic parlor to the rooftop, eventually crashing through a chimney into the bedroom of an ailing, gout-stricken gentleman. The resulting commotion terrifies the invalid so thoroughly that his gout vanishes, proving that an irrational fear can sometimes be a potent, albeit unintentional, medicine. It has endured as a classic of nineteenth-century juvenile literature for its whimsical rhythm and playful subversion of authority.

The Story

The tale begins in an ordinary household where a mischievous monkey named Pug spots a house cat, Puss, and decides to entertain himself by playing barber. Despite the cat’s clear reluctance, Pug captures her, binds her to a chair, and attempts to lather her face with soap. Lacking a razor, he settles for an ivory paper knife, prompting the terrified Puss to struggle and flee. When the household servant, Susan, bursts into the room to investigate the commotion, Pug seizes the opportunity to escape, hoisting the cat into his arms and scrambling up to the roof.

The household is immediately thrown into a panic. The Master orders a servant to fetch a ladder and rescue the pair, but Pug is clever and defensive. He holds his ground on the roof, repelling the servant with a barrage of loose tiles. While maintaining this standoff, Pug’s demeanor shifts; he pauses to wipe the soap from the cat’s face with a napkin, cradling her as if she were a child, which only adds to the bewilderment of the onlookers watching from below.

As the siege continues, a second, more determined servant attempts to climb the ladder. Pug, sensing his limited options, hops to an adjacent chimney-pot. By an unfortunate stroke of luck, he loses his footing and tumbles straight down the chimney, cat in tow, landing directly in a chamber occupied by an elderly gentleman suffering from a severe case of gout. Covered in thick black soot and screeching like demons, the monkey and the cat begin a wild, frantic dance around the room.

The sick man, startled beyond measure by the sudden appearance of these soot-stained "phantoms," finds himself miraculously cured of his ailment. In a surge of adrenaline, he forgets his pain and bolts from the room, pursued by the equally panicked animals. They descend to the parlor, where they collide with a physician. The scene becomes a cacophony of yells and frantic movement until the owner of the animals arrives to intervene.

The chaos concludes with the owner pulling the intruders out of the chimney. The atmosphere shifts from alarm to hilarity as the gout-stricken patient realizes he is completely recovered, attributing his sudden mobility to the monkey’s "pill and potion." The physician, intrigued by this unconventional cure, shakes hands with Pug, resolving to use such startling methods in his own practice should the opportunity arise.

How It Unfolds

A morning encounter The story opens with a polite, if wary, meeting between a monkey and a cat in a quiet room. Their initial, seemingly friendly greeting quickly dissolves when the monkey’s instinct for mischief takes hold.

The barber’s prank Pug forces Puss into the role of a client, lathering her face and binding her to a chair against her will. This act of playful cruelty serves as the catalyst for the entire series of mishaps.

The rooftop siege Following a narrow escape from a servant, the monkey retreats to the house-top with his captive. He successfully fends off rescue attempts by throwing tiles at those climbing the ladder.

The chimney descent A simple slip leads to a dramatic, soot-covered entry into a sickroom. This transition marks the shift from a domestic comedy to a slapstick encounter with a suffering patient.

The miraculous recovery The terrified patient finds himself free of his chronic pain due to the shock of the event. The story concludes with the reconciliation of all parties and the doctor’s realization that fright can be a potent medicine.

The People

Pug, the monkey, is the primary driver of the narrative. He is motivated by a compulsive need for mischief and play, which he pursues with total disregard for the comfort or safety of others. While he begins as a nuisance, he demonstrates a strange, nurturing side when he cleans the cat’s face on the roof, suggesting he is more of a chaotic agent than a malicious one.

Puss, the cat, serves as the reluctant foil to Pug’s antics. She represents the domestic order that Pug disrupts. Her experience is one of constant alarm, moving from a peaceful washing of her face to being bound, dragged across rooftops, and coated in soot. She ends the story as a passive participant in the monkey’s grand spectacle.

The Patient is an elderly man whose life is defined by the physical limitations of his gout. His desire is simply to be left alone in his misery, but his experience is radically altered by the monkey’s arrival. He is the most transformed character, moving from a helpless invalid to a man energized by terror and eventually healed by the absurdity of his situation.

The Physician and the Master represent the authority figures who attempt to intervene but are ultimately rendered ineffective by the monkey’s chaotic energy. They provide the necessary context to appreciate the absurdity of the "cure" that occurs, as they are left to reconcile the impossible events with their own understanding of science and household management.

In Its Own Voice

If terrors assail you, examine the cause, / And all will be well;--for, by NATURE'S kind laws, / Nor Goblins nor Spectres on earth have a station,-- / These phantoms are all of ideal creation.

The narrator introduces this moral at the start to remind readers that even frightening events often have a simple, rational explanation.

And yelling and chattering they raised such a clatter, / That Susan rush'd in to learn what was the matter; / When Pug, overturning the chair midst the clack, / Ran off, leaving Pussy stretched out on her back.

This describes the moment the monkey’s prank turns into a full-scale domestic disturbance, forcing the household staff to intervene.

"Your Ape pill and potion has put to the rout, / And cured me, I thank him, at once of the Gout."

The patient acknowledges the monkey’s role in his unexpected and comical recovery after the soot-covered animals crash into his bedroom.

What It's Really About

The book functions as a playful meditation on the difference between perceived danger and reality. The "towers" of terror—goblins and phantoms—that the invalid experiences are merely a soot-covered monkey and a frightened cat. The central argument is that our most debilitating constraints, such as the gentleman’s gout, can sometimes be upended by sudden, irrational disruptions to our daily routine. It explores the thin line between a chaotic nuisance and a miraculous solution, suggesting that life’s most unexpected moments of disorder can force us to abandon our self-imposed limitations. Ultimately, it emphasizes a lighthearted resilience, teaching readers not to be overwhelmed by the "spectres" of their own making.

Why Read It Today

Modern readers will find this a fascinating artifact of nineteenth-century children’s literature. It provides a window into a time when "humorous tales in verse" were a standard form of domestic entertainment. The rhythm is bouncy and the imagery—especially the image of a soot-covered monkey causing a medical miracle—is genuinely funny and memorable.

However, the reader should be prepared for the period-specific tone. The humor relies on the physical distress of both the cat and the elderly patient, which reflects the more boisterous and sometimes insensitive comedic sensibilities of its era. There is no deep character development here; the pleasure lies entirely in the escalating sequence of absurd events and the jaunty, driving meter of the poetry.

It is best suited for those who enjoy archival curiosities or classic nursery-style verse. It is short, punchy, and moves with a frantic, cinematic speed. If you are looking for a quick read that doesn't take itself seriously and leans into the slapstick, this tale offers a charming, if slight, diversion. The moral at the beginning—that our fears are often just "ideal creations"—remains as relevant today as it was when the book first appeared on a London bookstore shelf.