Criminal monkey

As for Lavenette, his Excellency had used his time in a less perilous way than our heroe. Being alone in the remotest apartment of the palace, engaged in a private conversation with Jacquot, and having nobody to try at such a moment, he had begun to try the little animal, to keep himself busy. The crime for which he blamed the poor monkey consisted in the theft of a coconut, with aggravating circumstances of assault and battery and breach of trust. It must have been the most bizarre sight! The man of law, wearing his emblems, gravely questioned the defendant, asked for surname, forename and occupation, enquired about the place of birth, the age and profession, wanted to know all about the circumstances of the crime and the reasons why it was committed, sought to eloquently demonstrate the blackness of such a deed, suggested repentance, by depicting the disgrace falling upon all kin, and the prospect of the scaffold which would be inevitable, if no change was brought to this reprehensible course and he finally required the most severe sentence against the quadrumane, in the name of morality and the grieving society.
During this time, Jacquot was squatting on a seat, opposite its judge, imitating his gestures, shrieking and answering every questions with leaps and faces.
It is in this comical situation that his Highness was caught by the fire. It became necessary to declare the meeting closed and to leave the collapsing palace. However, the defendant, frightened by the fire, jumped on the shoulders of His Excellency, and clinging to him with its four legs, stayed there all the way to the shore. It is only with the greatest difficulty that it was made to let go.

Extract from Adventures of Robert-Robert, by L. Desnoyers, illustrated by F. de Courcy, 1839.