Too eager to please

A long time ago, before there were cross channel ferries, a little boat was sailing from Singapore to Jakarta. On board was a man who played a barrel-organ, and with him was the monkey that sat on his shoulder while he played.

A big storm arose, and the boat began to sink. Everybody tried to rescue themselves, but the monkey couldn't swim. Luckily for him, a porpoise that was swimming under the boat took pity on him. It put the monkey on its back and began to swim towards Jakarta. "Do you know Jakarta?" it asked the monkey. "Oh, yes, very well," said the monkey. He didn't know what Jakarta was, but he tried to sound important. "Very good," answered the porpoise. "And do you like Singapore?" The monkey had no idea that Singapore was a big town, so he said "Oh, Singapore is one of my very best friends." "Whoosh!" And it dived deep down, leaving the monkey to splash about as best it could.