The Adventures of Toto

GRANDFATHER bought Toto from a tonga-driver for the sum of fiverupees. The tonga-driver used to keep the little red monkey tiedto a feeding-trough, and the monkey looked so out of place therethat Grandfather decided he would add the little fellow to hisprivate zoo.Toto was a pretty monkey. His bright eyes sparkled withmischief beneath deep-set eyebrows, and his teeth, which were apearly white, were very often displayed in a smile that frightenedthe life out of elderly Anglo-lndian ladies. But his hands lookeddried-up as though they had been pickled in the sun for manyyears. Yet his fingers were quick and wicked; and his tail, whileadding to his good looks (Grandfather believed a tail would addto anyone’s good looks), also served as a third hand. He coulduse it to hang from a branch; and it was capable of scooping upany delicacy that might be out of reach of his hands.Grandmother always fussed when Grandfather brought homesome new bird or animal. So it was decided that Toto’s presenceshould be kept a secret from her until she was in a particularlygood mood. Grandfather and I put him away in a little closet openinginto my bedroom wall, where he was tied securely — or so wethought — to a peg fastened into the wall.A few hours later, when Grandfather and I came back torelease Toto, we found that the walls, which had been coveredwith some ornamental paper chosen by Grandfather, now stoodout as naked brick and plaster. The peg in the wall had beenwrenched from its socket, and my school blazer, which had beenhanging there, was in shreds. I wondered what Grandmother2. The Adventures of TotoHave you ever had a baby monkey as a pet? Totois a baby monkey. Let’s find out whether he ismischievous or docile.

would say. But Grandfather didn’t worry; he seemed pleasedwith Toto’s performance. “He’s clever,” said Grandfather. “Given time, I’m sure he couldhave tied the torn pieces of your blazer into a rope, and made hisescape from the window!”His presence in the house still a secret, Toto was nowtransferred to a big cage in the servants’ quarters where a numberof Grandfather’s pets lived very sociably together—a tortoise, apair of rabbits, a tame squirrel and, for a while, my pet goat. Butthe monkey wouldn’t allow any of his companions to sleep atnight; so Grandfather, who had to leave Dehra Dun next day tocollect his pension in Saharanpur, decided to take him along.Unfortunately I could not accompany Grandfather on that trip,but he told me about it afterwards. A big black canvas kit-bagwas provided for Toto. This, with some straw at the bottom, becamehis new abode. When the bag was closed, there was no escape.Toto could not get his hands through the opening, and the canvaswas too strong for him to bite his way through. His efforts to getout only had the effect of making the bag roll about on the flooror occasionally jump into the air — an exhibition that attracted acurious crowd of onlookers on the Dehra Dun railway platform.Toto remained in the bag as far as Saharanpur, but whileGrandfather was producing his ticket at the railway turnstile,Toto suddenly poked his head out of the bag and gave the ticket-collector a wide grin.The poor man was taken aback; but, with great presence ofmind and much to Grandfather’s annoyance, he said, “Sir, youhave a dog with you. You’ll have to pay for it accordingly.”In vain did Grandfather take Toto out of the bag; in vain didhe try to prove that a monkey did not qualify as a dog, or evenas a quadruped. Toto was classified a dog by the ticket-collector;and three rupees was the sum handed over as his fare.Then Grandfather, just to get his own back, took from hispocket our pet tortoise, and said, “What must I pay for this, sinceyou charge for all animals?”The ticket-collector looked closely at the tortoise, prodded itwith his forefinger, gave Grandfather a pleased and triumphantlook, and said, “No charge. It is not a dog.”

The Adventures of Toto:

When Toto was finally accepted by Grandmother he was givena comfortable home in the stable, where he had for a companionthe family donkey, Nana. On Toto’s first night in the stable,Grandfather paid him a visit to see if he was comfortable. To hissurprise he found Nana, without apparent cause, pulling at herhalter and trying to keep her head as far as possible from abundle of hay.Grandfather gave Nana a slap across her haunches, and shejerked back, dragging Toto with her. He had fastened on to herlong ears with his sharp little teeth.Toto and Nana never became friends.A great treat for Toto during cold winter evenings was thelarge bowl of warm water given him by Grandmother for his bath.He would cunningly test the temperature with his hand, thengradually step into the bath, first one foot, then the other (as hehad seen me doing), until he was into the water up to his neck.

MomentsOnce comfortable, he would take the soap in his hands or feet,and rub himself all over. When the water became cold, he wouldget out and run as quickly as he could to the kitchen-fire in orderto dry himself. If anyone laughed at him during this performance,Toto’s feelings would be hurt and he would refuse to go on withhis bath. One day Toto nearly succeeded in boiling himself alive.A large kitchen kettle had been left on the fire to boil for teaand Toto, finding himself with nothing better to do, decided toremove the lid. Finding the water just warm enough for a bath,he got in, with his head sticking out from the open kettle. Thiswas just fine for a while, until the water began to boil. Toto thenraised himself a little; but, finding it cold outside, sat down again.He continued hopping up and down for some time, untilGrandmother arrived and hauled him, half-boiled, out of the kettle.If there is a part of the brain especially devoted to mischief, thatpart was largely developed in Toto. He was always tearing things topieces. Whenever one of my aunts came near him, he made everyeffort to get hold of her dress and tear a hole in it.One day, at lunch-time, a large dish of pullao stood in thecentre of the dining-table. We entered the room to find Toto stuffinghimself with rice. My grandmother screamed — and Toto threw aplate at her. One of my aunts rushed forward — and received a glassof water in the face. When Grandfather arrived, Toto picked up thedish of pullao and made his exit through a window. We foundhim in the branches of the jackfruit tree, the dish still in hisarms. He remained there all afternoon, eating slowly through therice, determined on finishing every grain. And then, in order tospite Grandmother, who had screamed at him, he threw the dishdown from the tree, and chattered with delight when it broke intoa hundred pieces.Obviously Toto was not the sort of pet we could keep for long.Even Grandfather realised that. We were not well-to-do, and couldnot afford the frequent loss of dishes, clothes, curtains andwallpaper. So Grandfather found the tonga-driver, and sold Totoback to him — for only three rupees.