Chapter 1

Produced by David Edwards, Anne Storer and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This book was produced from scanned images of public domain material from the Google Print project.)

Transcriber's Note: One instance of each orang-otang and ourang-outang, left as in original text.

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A HUNDRED ANECDOTES OF ANIMALS WITH PICTURES BY PERCY J. BILLINGHURST

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A HUNDRED ANECDOTES OF ANIMALS

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A HUNDRED ANECDOTES OF ANIMALS WITH PICTURES BY PERCY J. BILLINGHURST

JOHN LANE THE BODLEY HEAD LONDON AND NEW YORK 1901.

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Printed by BALLANTYNE, HANSON & CO. At the Ballantyne Press

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CONTENTS.

Page A

_Are Beasts mere Machines?_ 76 _Ass Cast Away, An_ 196 _Assisting the Aged_ 144

B

_Bear and Child, The_ 48 _Bear Cubs, The_ 184 _Broken Heart, The_ 62

C

_Calculating Crow, A_ 56 _Canine Sheep-Stealer, A_ 38 _Canine Smugglers_ 36 _Carrier's Dog, A_ 170 _Cat and Crows, The_ 26 _Catcher Caught, The_ 188 _Charitable Canary, A_ 166 _Child Saved, A_ 200 _Choice Retaliation, A_ 82 _Comedy of Quadrupeds, A_ 64 _Concerts of Animals_ 90 _Conversing Parrot, A_ 20 _Crab Fishing_ 152 _Cunning as a Fox_ 66

D

_Death of Antiochus Revenged, The_ 52 _Deceiving the Fowler_ 190 _Dinner Bell, The_ 30 _Division of Labour_ 150 _Dog and Goose, The_ 40 _Dog of Montargis, The_ 46 _Dolphin, The_ 50 _Domesticated Seal, A_ 122 _Drawing Water_ 60

E

_Elephant Rope Dancing_ 70 _Escape of Jengis Khan_ 176

F

_Faithful Companion, A_ 8 _False Alarm, A_ 10 _Filial Duty_ 28 _Foraging_ 132 _Fox Chasing_ 174

G

_Generous Revenge, A_ 74 _Goat, The_ 86 _Going to Market_ 134 _Good Finder, A_ 106 _Grateful Lioness, A_ 104 _Grateful Return, A_ 142

H

_Heroism of a Hen, The_ 24 _Honours Paid to Living and Departed Worth_ 198 _Horse and Greyhound, The_ 84 _Humane Society_ 172

I

_Immovable Fidelity_ 138 _Infant Fascination_ 120

L

_Lion and his Keeper, The_ 136 _Long Lost Found Again_ 78

M

_Making Sure_ 16 _Maternal Affection_ 116 _Mice as Navigators_ 54 _Mimic_ 22 _Monkey versus Snake_ 160 _More Faithful than Favoured_ 68 _Mother Watching her Young, A_ 88 _Musical Mice_ 162 _Musical Seals_ 108

N

_Newfoundland Dog, The_ 4 _Newsman Extraordinary, A_ 182 _Noble Perseverance_ 186

O

_Odd Fraternity_ 34 _Of Two Evils Choosing the Least_ 156 _Old Habits_ 192 _Ostrich Riding_ 80 _Oyster Opening_ 146

P

_Philosophic Cat, A_ 194 _Pig Pointer, The_ 118 _Porus Saved by his Elephant_ 58 _Power of Music, The_ 18 _Providential Safe Conduct, A_ 72 _Pugnacity_ 168

R

_Rare Honesty_ 154 _Refugee Squirrel, A_ 178 _Remorse_ 2 _Retaliation_ 180 _Retribution_ 124 _Rights of Hospitality, The_ 102

S

_Sabinus and his Dog_ 42 _Sagacious Bruin_ 12 _Sense of Ridicule, A_ 112 _Shepherd's Dog, The_ 130 _Shrewd Guesser, A_ 96 _Singular Foster-Mother, A_ 128 _Singular Interposition, A_ 32 _Sly Couple, A_ 110 _Snake Destroyers_ 158 _Soliciting Succour_ 164 _Sonnini and his Cat_ 148 _Strange Mouser, A_ 14 _Strange Rooks_ 126 _Studying_ 6

T

_Tame Colony, A_ 98 _Tame Hares_ 140 _Tame Sea-gull, The_ 114 _Travellers_ 92

U

_Usurper Punished, An_ 100

W

_Watch Dog, The_ 94 _Wrens Learning to Sing_ 44

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A HUNDRED ANECDOTES OF ANIMALS

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ANECDOTE I.

Remorse.

An elephant, from some motive of revenge, killed his _cornack_, or conductor. The man's wife, who beheld the dreadful scene, took her two children, and threw them at the feet of the enraged animal, saying, "Since you have slain my husband, take my life also, as well as that of my children." The elephant instantly stopped, relented, and as if stung with remorse, took up the eldest boy with his trunk, placed him on its neck, adopted him for his _cornack_, and would never afterwards allow any other person to mount it.

ANECDOTE II.

The Newfoundland Dog.

One of the magistrates in Harbour Grace, in Newfoundland, had an old dog of the regular web-footed species peculiar to that island, who was in the habit of carrying a lantern before his master at night, as steadily as the most attentive servant could do, stopping short when his master made a stop, and proceeding when he saw him disposed to follow. If his master was absent from home, on the lantern being fixed to his mouth, and the command given, "Go fetch thy master," he would immediately set off and proceed directly to the town, which lay at the distance of more than a mile from the place of his master's residence: he would then stop at the door of every house which he knew his master was in the habit of frequenting, and laying down his lantern, growl and strike the door, making all the noise in his power until it was opened; if his master was not there, he would proceed farther in the same manner, until he had found him. If he had accompanied him only once into a house, this was sufficient to induce him to take that house in his round.

ANECDOTE III.

Studying.

A magpie, belonging to a barber at Rome, could imitate to a nicety almost every word it heard. Some trumpets happened one day to be sounded before the shop, and for a day or two afterwards the magpie was quite mute, and seemed pensive and melancholy. All who knew it were greatly surprised at its silence; and it was supposed that the sound of the trumpets had so stunned it, as to deprive it at once of both voice and hearing. It soon appeared, however, that this was far from being the case; for the bird had been all the time occupied in profound meditation, studying how to imitate the sound of the trumpets; and when at last master of it, the magpie, to the astonishment of all its friends, suddenly broke its long silence, by a perfect imitation of the flourish of trumpets it had heard; observing with the greatest exactness all the repetitions, stops, and changes. The acquisition of this lesson had, however, exhausted the whole of the magpie's stock of intellect; for it made it forget everything it had learned before.

ANECDOTE IV.

A Faithful Companion.

A gardener, in removing some rubbish, discovered two ground toads of an uncommon size, weighing no less than seven pounds. On finding them, he was surprised to see that one of them got upon the back of the other, and both proceeded to move slowly on the ground towards a place of retreat; upon further examination he found that the one on the back of the other had received a severe contusion from his spade, and was rendered unable to get away, without the assistance of its companion!

ANECDOTE V.

A False Alarm.

Some years ago, a soldier doing duty at the castle of Cape Town, kept a tame baboon for his amusement. One evening it broke its chains unknown to him. In the night, climbing up into the belfry, it began to play with, and ring the bell. Immediately the whole place was in an uproar; some great danger was apprehended. Many thought that the castle was on fire; others, that an enemy had entered the bay, and the soldiers began actually to turn out, when it was discovered that the baboon had occasioned the disturbance. On the following morning a court-martial was held, when Cape justice dictated, that whereas the baboon had unnecessarily put the castle into alarm, the master should receive fifty lashes; the soldier, however, found means to evade the punishment.

ANECDOTE VI.

Sagacious Bruin.

The captain of a Greenland whaler being anxious to procure a bear, without wounding the skin, made trial of the stratagem of laying the noose of a rope in the snow, and placing a piece of meat within it. A bear ranging the neighbouring ice was soon enticed to the spot by the smell of the dainty morsel. He perceived the bait, approached, and seized it in his mouth; but his foot at the same time, by a jerk of the rope, being entangled in the noose, he pushed it off with his paw, and deliberately retired. After having eaten the piece he had carried away with him, he returned. The noose, with another piece of meat, being replaced, he pushed the rope aside, and again walked triumphantly off with his capture. A third time the noose was laid; but excited to caution by the evident observations of the bear, the sailors buried the rope beneath the snow, and laid the bait in a deep hole dug in the centre. The bear once more approached, and the sailors were assured of their success. But bruin, more sagacious than they expected, after snuffing about the place for a few moments, scraped the snow away with his paw, threw the rope aside, and again escaped unhurt with his prize.

ANECDOTE VII.

A Strange Mouser.

A gentleman once had in his possession a hen, which answered the purpose of a cat in destroying mice. She was constantly seen watching close to a corn rick, and the moment a mouse appeared, she seized it in her beak, and carried it to a meadow adjoining, where she would play with it like a young cat for some time, and then kill it. She has been known to catch four or five mice a day in this manner.

ANECDOTE VIII.

Making Sure.

During the war between Augustus Cæsar and Marc Antony, when all the world stood wondering and uncertain which way Fortune would incline herself, a poor man at Rome, in order to be prepared for making, in either event, a bold hit for his own advancement, had recourse to the following ingenious expedient. He applied himself to the training of two crows with such diligence, that he brought them the length of pronouncing with great distinctness, the one a salutation to Cæsar, and the other a salutation to Antony. When Augustus returned conqueror, the man went out to meet him with the crow suited to the occasion perched on his fist, and every now and then it kept exclaiming, "_Salve, Cæsar, Victor Imperator!_" "Hail, Cæsar, Conqueror and Emperor!" Augustus, greatly struck and delighted with so novel a circumstance, purchased the bird of the man for a sum which immediately raised him into opulence.

ANECDOTE IX.

The Power of Music.

One Sunday evening, five choristers were walking on the banks of a river; after some time, being tired with walking, they sat down on the grass, and began to sing an anthem. The field on which they sat was terminated at one extremity by a wood, out of which, as they were singing, they observed a hare to pass with great swiftness towards the place where they were sitting, and to stop at about twenty yards' distance from them. She appeared highly delighted with the harmony of the music, often turning up the side of her head to listen with more facility. As soon as the harmonious sound was over, the hare returned slowly towards the wood; when she had nearly reached the end of the field, the choristers began the same piece again; at which the hare stopped, turned round, and came swiftly back to about the same distance as before, where she seemed to listen with rapture and delight, till they had finished the anthem, when she returned again by a slow pace up the field, and entered the wood.

ANECDOTE X.

A Conversing Parrot.

During the government of Prince Maurice in Brazil, he had heard of an old parrot that was much celebrated for answering like a rational creature many of the common questions put to it. It was at a great distance; but so much had been said about it that the prince's curiosity was roused, and he directed it to be sent for. When it was introduced into the room where the prince was sitting, in company with several Dutchmen, it immediately exclaimed in the Brazilian language, "What a company of white men are here!" They asked it, "Who is that man?" (pointing to the prince). The parrot answered, "Some general or other." When the attendants carried it up to him, he asked it, through the medium of an interpreter (for he was ignorant of its language), "Whence do you come?" The parrot answered, "From Marignan." The prince asked, "To whom do you belong?" It answered, "To a Portuguese." He asked again, "What do you there?" It answered, "I look after chickens." The prince laughing, exclaimed, "You look after chickens!" The parrot in answer said, "Yes, I; and I know well enough how to do it;" clucking at the same time in imitation of the noise made by the hen to call together her young.

The prince afterwards observed that although the parrot spoke in a language he did not understand, yet he could not be deceived, for he had in the room both a Dutchman who spoke Brazilian, and a Brazilian who spoke Dutch; that he asked them separately and privately, and both agreed exactly in their account of the parrot's discourse.

ANECDOTE XI.

Mimic.

A priest once brought up an ourang-outang, which became so fond of him that, wherever he went, it was always desirous of accompanying him. Whenever therefore he had to perform the service of his church, he was under the necessity of shutting it up in his room. Once, however, the animal escaped, and followed the father to the church; where silently mounting the sounding-board above the pulpit, he lay perfectly still till the sermon commenced. He then crept to the edge, and overlooking the preacher, imitated all his gestures in so grotesque a manner, that the whole congregation were unavoidably urged to laugh. The father, surprised and confounded at this ill-timed levity, severely rebuked his audience for their inattention. The reproof failed in its effect; the congregation still laughed, and the preacher in the warmth of his zeal redoubled his vociferation and his action; these the ape imitated so exactly that the congregation could no longer restrain themselves, but burst out into a loud and continued laughter. A friend of the preacher at length stepped up to him, and pointed out the cause of this improper conduct; and such was the arch demeanour of the animal that it was with the utmost difficulty he could himself command his gravity, while he ordered the servants of the church to take him away.

ANECDOTE XII.

The Heroism of a Hen.

A contest of rather an unusual nature took place in the house of a respectable innkeeper in Ireland. The parties concerned were, a hen of the game species, and a rat of the middle size. The hen, in an accidental perambulation round a spacious room, accompanied by an only chicken, the sole surviving offspring of a numerous brood, was roused to madness by an unprovoked attack made by a voracious cowardly rat on her unsuspecting chirping companion. The shrieks of the beloved captive, while being dragged away by the enemy, excited every maternal feeling in the affectionate bosom of the feathered dame; she flew at the corner whence the alarm arose, seized the lurking enemy by the neck, writhed him about the room, put out one of his eyes in the engagement, and so fatigued her opponent by repeated attacks of spur and bill, that in the space of twelve minutes, during which time the conflict lasted, she put a final period to the nocturnal invader's existence; nimbly turned round, in wild but triumphant distraction, to her palpitating nestling, and hugged it in her victorious bosom.

ANECDOTE XIII.

The Cat and Crows.

A pair of crows once made their nest in a tree, of which there were several planted round the garden of a gentleman, who, in his morning walks, was often amused by witnessing furious combats between the crows and a cat. One morning the battle raged more fiercely than usual, till at last the cat gave way, and took shelter under a hedge, as if to wait a more favourable opportunity of retreating into the house. The crows continued for a short time to make a threatening noise; but perceiving that on the ground they could do nothing more than threaten, one of them lifted a stone from the middle of the garden, and perched with it on a tree planted in the hedge, where she sat, watching the motions of the enemy of her young. As the cat crept along under the hedge, the crow accompanied her, flying from branch to branch, and from tree to tree; and when at last puss ventured to quit her hiding-place, the crow, leaving the trees and hovering over her in the air, let the stone drop from on high on her back.

ANECDOTE XIV.

Filial Duty.

A surgeon's mate on board a ship relates that while lying one evening awake he saw a rat come into his berth, and after well surveying the place, retreat with the greatest caution and silence. Soon after it returned, leading by the ear another rat, which it left at a small distance from the hole which they entered. A third rat joined this kind conductor; they then foraged about, and picked up all the small scraps of biscuit; these they carried to the second rat, which seemed blind, and remained in the spot where they had left it, nibbling such fare as its dutiful providers, whom the narrator supposes were its offspring, brought to it from the more remote parts of the floor.

ANECDOTE XV.

The Dinner Bell.

It is customary in large boarding-houses to announce the dinner-hour by the sound of a bell. A cat belonging to one of these houses always hastened to the hall on hearing the bell, to get its accustomed meal; but it happened one day that she was shut up in a chamber, and it was in vain for her that the bell had sounded. Some hours after, having been released from her confinement, she hastened to the hall, but found nothing left for her. The cat thus disappointed got to the bell, and sounding it, endeavoured to summon the family to a second dinner, in which she doubted not to participate.

ANECDOTE XVI.

A Singular Interposition.

A lady had a tame bird which she was in the habit of letting out of its cage every day. One morning as it was picking crumbs of bread off the carpet, her cat, who always before showed great kindness for the bird, seized it on a sudden, and jumped with it in her mouth upon a table. The lady was much alarmed for the fate of her favourite, but on turning about instantly discerned the cause. The door had been left open, and a strange cat had just come into the room! After turning it out, her own cat came down from her place of safety, and dropped the bird without having done it the smallest injury.

ANECDOTE XVII.

Odd Fraternity.

A gentleman travelling through Mecklenburg was witness to the following curious circumstance in an inn at which he was staying. After dinner, the landlord placed on the floor a large dish of soup, and gave a loud whistle. Immediately there came into the room a mastiff, a fine Angora cat, an old raven, and a remarkably large rat with a bell about its neck. These four animals went to the dish, and without disturbing each other, fed together; after which the dog, cat, and rat lay before the fire, while the raven hopped about the room.

ANECDOTE XVIII.

Canine Smugglers.

In the Netherlands, they use dogs of a very large and strong breed, for the purpose of draught. They are harnessed like horses, and chiefly employed in drawing little carts with fish, vegetables, &c., to market. Previous to the year 1795, such dogs were also employed in smuggling; which was the more easy, as they are exceedingly docile. The dogs were trained to go backwards and forwards between two places on the frontiers, without any person to attend them. Being loaded with little parcels of goods, lace, &c., like mules, they set out at midnight, and only went when it was perfectly dark. An excellent quick-scented dog always went some paces before the others, stretched out his nose towards all quarters, and when he scented custom-house officers, turned back, which was the signal for immediate flight. Concealed behind bushes, or in ditches, the dogs waited till all was safe, then proceeded on their journey, and reached at last beyond the frontier the dwelling-house of the receiver of the goods, who was in the secret. But here, also, the leading dog only at first showed himself; on a certain whistle, which was a signal that all was right, they all hastened up. They were then unloaded, taken to a convenient stable, where there was a good layer of hay, and well fed. There they rested until midnight, and then returned in the same manner back, over the frontiers.

ANECDOTE XIX.

A Canine Sheep-Stealer.

A shepherd, who was hanged for sheep-stealing, used to commit his depredations by means of his dog. When he intended to steal any sheep, he detached the dog to perform the business. With this view, under pretence of looking at the sheep, with an intention to purchase them, he went through the flock with the dog at his foot, to whom he secretly gave a signal, so as to let him know the particular sheep he wanted, perhaps to the number of ten or twelve, out of a flock of some hundreds; he then went away, and from a distance of several miles, sent back the dog by himself in the night time, who picked out the individual sheep that had been pointed out to him, separated them from the flock, and drove them before him, frequently a distance of ten or twelve miles, till he came up with his master, to whom he delivered up his charge.