Boston Jacky: Being an Account of the Further Adventures of Jacky Faber, Taking Care of Business by L. A. Meyer Page A

intoning
. . .
and by’n’by, Brother Fox comes by the pond lookin’ for somethin’ to eat, him bein’ powerful hungry, when he sees Brother Bullfrog sittin’ on a lily pad . . .
    Ah, yes, it is
so
good to be back at sea and on the
Nancy B.
    Â 

Chapter 11
    James Emerson Fletcher
    State Street
    Boston, Massachusetts, USA
    June 20, 1809
    Â 
    Charles Chen
    House of Chen
    Rangoon, Burma
    Â 
    Honorable Chen,
    I am pleased to report that I have arrived in Boston, and, as instructed, am making inquiries into proper quarters for setting up your trading company, HOC Oriental Shipping.
    I know you will be as pleased as I was to learn that our mutual friend Jacky Faber has recently arrived on these shores, in apparently good health and spirits. My joy at learning this was tempered somewhat by the news that she had recently departed on a voyage to deliver passengers of a particular nature to New Orleans in Louisiana, USA. However, I was cheered by the fact that it is not an especially long journey and she will be back in several weeks.
    I find that she has been throwing money around at an amazing rate, spending like the sailor she is. Faber Shipping Worldwide has recently acquired the Pig and Whistle Publick House & Inn, new corporate offices on State Street, and the Emerald Playhouse, a large theater that was formerly a barn. I begin to strongly suspect that some of the charges against her for misappropriation of the King’s gold might not be totally false. Oh well, we have both suffered enough to make up for any lapses in her judgment.
    I attempted to rent a room at the Pig and Whistle so as to be there when she returned, but was disappointed to find that . . . “All the rooms are let, Sir, sorry . . . but there is one down at Faber Shipping headquarters on State Street, very nice, very comfortable, with a good view of the harbor. Only two dollars a night, dinners here at the Pig included. Oh, good, Sir. Ravi here will show you to your quarters.”
    I recognized Maudie the barkeep from my visit here before, when the girls of the Lawson Peabody were kidnapped and headed for a life of slavery in North Africa. She did not recognize me in my disguise, hunchbacked with eye patch and hooded cloak, leaning on a stick, but the little boy Ravi gazed at me with a certain penetrating interest, his big black eyes looking me over, top to bottom. I had met him very briefly on the
Lorelei Lee
back there off Australia, so he should not remember me, but still, he is a very bright little lad, so I do not know . . . He ushered me into my new billet with great politeness . . . “We have great hopes you will enjoy your stay, Sahib. Clean linen and much good food at the Piggy and Whistle, you bet. Anything you need, you come see Ravi and he fix.”
    I found out from Ravi that Jacky has established an art studio across the hall from me. That shall prove interesting in the future, as she was always good at that sort of thing and I am most curious as to what she has come up with lately.
    Tomorrow I shall seek out a lawyer to set up your corporation. I would like to engage Ezra Pickering, as I know him to be a fine man, but I fear there would be a conflict of interests there, as he is the Clerk of Faber Shipping Worldwide. I have heard that Malcolm Mudgeon enjoys a good reputation, and I shall seek him out.
    Please send my warmest regards to your daughter, Sidrah, my great friend and kind solace in my time of need, and to Master Kwai Chang. Assure him that I continue to heed his wise words as I make my way through this life.
    Â 
    Your humble servant,
    Cheung Tong

Chapter 12
    â€œI sure hope that boy been seein’ to waterin’ my garden,” says Jemimah. “If’n he ain’t, he’s gonna get his tail tanned a few shades darker than it already is.”
    We’re at dinner, a few days out of New Orleans, having made the turn around the Florida Keys,