Perroquet

Perroquet is the trusted personal servant of Admiral Desmoulins, the senior French officer at Brest. He is of unusual appearance, being as small as a child and (for a European) very dark-skinned.

He is also of considerable intelligence. Few of us have the ability to detect minute differences between what we expect to see and what we actually do see. Perroquet has this gift. He observes minutely, and when sure of his observations pursues them to a logical conclusion, however outré it at first appears to be.

Thus it is Perroquet who in November 1807 notices that the British fleet which is apparently blockading Brest is behaving in a way contrary to the normal nature of ships - holding its position without regard to wind or water.Together with Admiral Desmoulins and a Captain Jumeau, he sails among the vessels to examine them at close quarters and correctly deduces that they are made out of rainwater. Perroquet has in fact observed and detected Gilbert Norrell's first act of magical warfare[11].