Part 12
"The white monkeys, says Forbin, are sometimes as big as the largest bull-dogs, and are more dangerous than the black. They have a strong desire for women, and often, after having greatly injured them, finish their cruelty with strangling. Sometimes they even come to their houses, but the natives of Macacar, who are very jealous of their wives, take care to prevent the entrance of such hideous rivals into their habitations; and the females, not liking either the manners or figure of such gallants, boldly assist their husbands to oblige their ugly suitors to retire, but which they are not able to accomplish before they have damaged or plundered every thing that lies in their way."
_Distinctive Characters of this Species._
The ouanderou has pouches on each side of his cheeks, and callosities upon his posteriors. The tail is seven or eight inches long. The canine teeth are much larger and longer than those of man. The muzzle is long and thick; his head is covered with long hair; and he has a great beard of course hairs. His body is long and slender behind. There are some among of this species which vary in the colour of their hair; some have it black on the body, with a white beard; and others, white on the body with a black beard. They walk more commonly on four than on two feet, and when erect they are about three feet, or three feet and a half high. The females are subject to a periodical emanation.
_Engraved for Barr's Buffon._
THE MAIMON.
The apes, baboons, and monkeys, form three tribes, with intervals between each, the first of which is filled by the magot, and the second by the maimon: the latter forms the shade between the baboons and monkeys, as the magot does between the apes and baboons. The maimon resembles the baboons by his thick and large muzzle, and by his short and crooked tail; but he differs from them, and approaches nearer the monkeys, by his gentle disposition and smallness of his size. Edwards has given a figure and description of this animal by the denomination of the _pig-tailed ape_. This particular character is sufficient to distinguish him, for he is the only baboon or monkey that has a naked tail, curled like that of a pig. He is nearly of the same size as the magot, and so strongly resembles the macaque that he might be taken for a variety of that species, if his tail were not entirely different. His face is naked, and of a tawny colour; his eyes are of a chesnut, with black eyebrows. His nose is flat, his lips thin, and furnished with some rough hairs, but too short to form whiskers. His genital parts are concealed within the skin, therefore the maimon, though very spirited and full of fire, has none of that impudent petulance of the baboons. He is gentle, tractable, and even fond. He is found in Sumatra, and probably in some other southern provinces of India; of course it is with difficulty he can endure the cold of our climate. That which we saw at Paris lived but a very short time; and Edwards says, that which he describes lived only one year in London. "The pig-tailed monkey (says that author) was brought to England in 1752. It was extremely spirited and full of action, and was about the size of our common house-cat. It was a male, and lived under my care only one year. While I had mine, a female of the same species, but much larger, was shewn at Bartholomew-fair, London. I brought the two exiles together to compare them, and the moment they came into each other's presence they testified their mutual satisfaction, and seemed quite transported at the interview."
_Distinctive Characters of this Species._
The maimon has pouches on each side of his cheeks, and callosities on his posteriors: his tail is naked, curled up, and about five or six inches in length. The canine teeth are not longer in proportion than those of men: the muzzle is very large; the orbits of the eyes are very prominent above; the face, ears, hands, and feet, are naked, and of a flesh colour. The hair on the body is of a dark olive, and of a reddish yellow on the belly: he sometimes walks erect, and at others upon all fours. When erect he is about two feet, or two feet and a half high. The female is subject to the periodical emanation.
THE MACAQUE, AND THE EGRET.
Of all the guenons, or monkeys, with long tails, the macaque (_fig. 202._) approaches nearest the baboon. Like them his body is short and compact, his head thick, his muzzle broad, his nose flat, his cheeks wrinkled, and he is also larger and taller than most other monkeys. He is so extremely ugly that he might well be looked upon as a smaller kind of baboon, if his tail were not long and tufted; whereas that of the baboon, in general, is extremely short. This species is a native of Congo, and other southern provinces of Africa. It is numerous, and subject to many varieties, with respect to its size, colour, and disposition of the hair. The body of that described by Hasselquist was more than two feet long; and those we have seen were not above one foot and a half. That which we term the _Egret_, (_fig. 203._) because it has on the top its head a tuft of hair, seems to be only a variety of the macaque, which it perfectly resembles, excepting in this and some other slight differences in the hair. Both of them are tractable and docile; but, independently of a disagreeable scent which they diffuse around them; they are so dirty, so ugly, and even so hideous when they grimace, that we cannot look on them without horror and disgust. These monkeys go in troops, especially to plunder orchards of the fruit and plants. Bosman relates, that they take a quantity of millet in each hand, the same under their arms, and some in their mouths, which they go off with, leaping on their hind feet; if pursued they first drop that from under their arms, then that from their hands; and this they do that they may use more speed on their four legs, but they always preserve that in their mouths. This traveller adds, that they examine carefully all they pull, and what does not please them they throw away, and tear up others: so that by this nicety they do much greater injuries than by the quantities they consume or take away.
_Distinctive Characters of this Species._
The macaque has pouches on each side of his cheeks, and callosities on his posteriors. His tail is nearly as long us all the rest of the body, being about eighteen or twenty inches in length. His head is large, and his muzzle thick; his visage naked, pale, and wrinkled; his ears are covered with hair; his body short and compact; and his legs short and thick. The hair on the upper part of the body is of a greenish ash colour, and on the breast and belly of a yellowish. He has a kind of crest of hair on the top of his head. He walks on four and sometimes on two feet. The length of his body, including the head, is about eighteen or twenty inches. There appears to be varieties in this species, some larger and others smaller.
The egret seems to be only a variety of the macaque. He is about a third smaller in all his dimensions. Instead of a small crest of hair, which is found on the top of the head of the macaque, this animal has it sharp and pointed. The hair on the forehead of this is black, whereas that of the macaque is greenish. The egret also has a longer tail than the macaque, in proportion to the length of its body. The females are subject to the periodical emanation like women.
_Engraved for Barr's Buffon._
THE PATAS.
This animal (_fig. 205._) is a native of the same country, and is nearly of the same size as the macaque; but the body is longer, the face not so ugly, and the hair much finer. He is remarkable for the colour of his hair, which is of so brilliant a red as to make him appear as if he were painted. We have seen two of these animals much varied; the first had a line of black hairs above the eyes, extending from ear to ear. The second differed from the first only by the colour of this line which was white. The hair about the cheeks and under the chin of both was long, which made them large beards: but the colour of the first was yellow, and the other white. This variety seemed to indicate others in the colour of the hair: and I am inclined to think, that the monkey spoken of by Marmol, which is said to be of the colour of the wild cat, and to be a native of Africa, is only a variety of the Patas. These monkeys are not so subtle as the other kinds, but are possessed of an extreme curiosity. "I have seen them, says Brue, descend from the top of very high trees, to the extremities of the branches to view the vessels on the water; they admired them for some time and seemed to discourse with each other about what they had seen; and then quit their stations for their companions, who came after to have the same sight. Some even became so familiar as to throw branches at the Frenchman, who returned their salute by the shots of their muskets; some were killed others wounded, and the rest were thrown into the utmost consternation. One party uttered most hideous cries, while another picked up stones to throw at their enemies, but perceiving at length, how unequal the battle was, they desisted, and prudently retired."
It is to be presumed, that it is this species of monkey which le Maire speaks of. "It is hardly possible to express, says this traveller, the havock these animals make in Senegal, when the rice, millet, and other grains, on which they feed, are ripe. They assemble together in companies of forty or fifty: one of them remains as centinel on a tree, while the rest commit their depredations. As soon as the centinel perceives any person near, he utters a loud cry, as a signal to the rest, who immediately obey and scamper off with their plunder, leaping from tree to tree with prodigious agility. The females, who carry their young clinging to their breasts, retreat in the same manner as the rest, and leap as if they were not incumbered with any burthen."
_Distinctive Characters of this Species._
The patas has pouches on each side of his cheeks, and callosities on his posteriors. His tail is as long as both his head and body: the crown of his head is flat. His muzzle, body, and legs, are long. He has black hair on the nose, and a narrow line of the same colour over the eyes, extending the breadth of the face. The hair on the upper parts of his body is of a reddish colour; and that of the lower, as the throat, breast, and belly, of a yellowish hue. There is a variety in this species, with respect to the colour of the line over the eyes, which is black in some, and white in others. They do not make grimaces when they are angry, like other monkeys. They walk on all fours more frequently than erect. They are from a foot and a half to two feet long, from the muzzle to the origin of the tail. The females are subject to a periodical emanation.
THE MALBROUCK, AND THE BONNET CHINOIS.
Malbrouck (_fig. 204._) is the name of this animal in its native country, Bengal, and Bonnet Chinois (_fig. 207._) is a term given to the long tailed monkey, which has a kind of trencher cap on the crown of the head, like the Chinese bonnets.
These two monkeys seem to belong to one species; and this species, though somewhat different from that of the macaque, is nevertheless, so far bordering on it, as to make us doubt whether the macaque, the egret, the malbrouck, and the bonnet chinois, are not merely four varieties, or permanent races of the same species. As these animals do not propagate in our climate, we have not been able to acquire any knowledge respecting the unity or diversity of their species, and therefore are obliged to judge only by the difference of their figures, and other external attributes. The macaque and the egret, appeared to us so similar, that we presumed them to be of one and the same species. It is the same with respect to the malbrouck, and the bonnet chinois; but, as they differ in a greater degree from the two first than between themselves, we thought it best to separate them.
With respect to the diversity of these two species, our presumption is founded, 1. On the difference of their external form; 2. On the colour and disposition of the hair; 3. On the difference which is found in the proportion of their skeletons; and 4. On the first two mentioned being natives of the southern countries of Africa, and the two that we are now treating of, being natives of Bengal. This last consideration is of as great weight as any of the rest, for we have had sufficient proofs, that in wild animals the distance of climate is a sufficient mark of the remoteness of the species. Besides, the malbrouck and the bonnet chinois, are not the only species or breeds of monkeys which are found in Bengal. By the testimonies of travellers there seem to be four varieties, white, black, red and grey; they likewise tell us that the black kind are more easily tamed than any of the rest. Those we saw were reddish, and appeared very docile and familiar.
"These animals, according to travellers, plunder whole fields of grain, and plantations of sugar-cane; and while one stands centinel on a tree, the others load themselves with the booty. If any person appears, the centinel gives notice by crying _houp, houp, houp_, which the rest perfectly understand, and all at once throw down the plunder which they hold in their left hands, and scamper off upon three legs; if close pursued they also throw down what they have in their right, and save themselves from their pursuers by climbing up trees, which is their general abode. They leap from tree to tree, and even the females, though loaded with their young ones, leap like the others; but they sometimes, in their haste, miss their aim and fall. They are very difficult to render in any degree docile, and are never so far tamed as to be suffered to go unchained. Even in their own country they will not produce unless at perfect freedom in the woods. When they cannot procure fruits they feed upon insects, and sometimes go to the sides of the rivers, for the purpose of catching fish and crabs, the latter of which they take by watching the opening of its claws and then putting their tails between; the crab instantly closes them, when they, with all speed, drag it ashore, and eat it at leisure. They are fond of cocoa-nuts, and are very expert in extracting the juice for drink, and afterwards getting at the kernel, the shell of which is generally made use of as a snare to catch them; a small hole being made in one of them, the animal who meets with it thrusts his paw in with difficulty, when those who have laid the trap run and seize him before he can disengage himself. They sometimes place bamboos on the tops of trees for the purpose of extracting the _zari_, which drops from them, and which they drink. In the provinces of India, where the Bramins reside, and whose religious tenets do not allow them to kill any animals, the monkeys are almost numberless. They assemble in large troops, come into the towns, and enter the houses with perfect freedom, and hesitate not to take such provisions, fruits, or herbs as they can meet with, and which it is very difficult to preserve from them." There are three kinds of hospitals in the town of Amadabad, which is the capital of Guzarat, for animals, and where not only the lame and sick monkeys but also such as are well, if they chuse to live there, are plentifully supplied with provisions. It is said that the monkeys in the neighbourhood regularly assemble twice a week in the streets of the town, that they go to the tops of the houses, which have a sort of terraces or flat roofs, where they lie in the sun; and that on these days the inhabitants are careful to lay upon these terraces rice, millet, sugar-canes, and other fruits in season; for if by chance they omit to do so, these animals pull off the tiles from the other part of the house, and do great damage to the inside. They do not eat a single thing without smelling at it for a long time, and when they have satisfied their hunger they fill the pouches on the sides of their cheeks for another occasion: they destroy the nests of birds, and never fail to throw the eggs on the ground when they want appetite or inclination to eat them.
The most formidable enemy these animals have is the serpent; no other animal of the forest being able to surprise them, as they are so exceedingly swift and subtle, that they climb up and seat themselves on the tops of the highest trees. "The apes, says a traveller, have it in their power to be masters of the forest, for neither tigers nor lions are able to dispute the possession with them. The only animal they have to fear is the serpent, which attacks them both night and day. There are some serpents in those forests of a prodigious size, which wind up the trees where the monkeys reside, and when they happen to surprise them sleeping, swallow them whole before they have time to make a defence."
_Distinctive Characters of this Species._
The malbrouck has pouches on each side of his cheeks, and callosities on his posteriors. His tail is nearly as long as both the body and head. The eyelids are of a flesh colour, and the face a cinereous grey; the eyes are large, the muzzle broad and turned upwards; the ears are large, thin, and of a flesh colour. They have a line of grey hairs on them like the mone, but the other parts of their bodies are of a uniform colour, a yellowish brown on the upper and a yellowish grey on the lower. He goes on all fours, and is about a foot and a half long from the muzzle to the insertion of the tail.
The bonnet chinois seems to be a variety of the malbrouck. They differ in the hair on the crown of the head, which in the latter is disposed in the shape of a cap or flat bonnet, and in the tail which is larger. The females of both are subject to a periodical emanation.
THE MANGABEY.[V]
[Footnote V: This is a precarious name which we have given to this animal, until we know what it is called in its native country. As it is found at Madagascar in the vicinity of _Mangabey_, this name will make it familiar to travellers, who will thus be led to observe it with more precision.]
We have seen two individuals of this species, both of which were sent to us by the denomination of _Madagascar apes_. They are easily distinguished from all other monkeys by a very apparent character. The mangabey (_fig. 206._) has its eyelids naked, and of a very striking whiteness. Their muzzle also is large, thick, and long; and they have a ring round their eyes. Those we are speaking of varied also in colour, the hair of one being of a blackish brown on the head, neck, and upper parts of the body, and white on the belly; and in the other it was much lighter over all the body, with a collar of white hair round the neck and cheeks. Both carry their tails turned backwards, the hair of which is long and bushy. They are natives of the same country as the vari, and as they resemble that animal in the length of the muzzle and tail, in the manner of carrying it, and in the varieties of colour; they seem to fill up the chasm betwixt the makis and guenons, or long-tailed monkeys.
_Distinctive Characters of this Species._
The mangabey has pouches on each side of his cheeks, and callosities on his posteriors. His tail is as long as the head and body: he has a prominent ring of hair over his eyes, and his upper eyelids are particularly white. His muzzle is thick and long; his eyebrows are rough and bristly: his ears black, and almost naked. The hair of the upper parts of his body is brown, and those below are grey. There are varieties in this species, some being of an uniform colour, and others having a circle of white hair round the neck and the cheeks in the form of a beard. They walk on four feet, and are nearly a foot and a half long, from the point of the muzzle to the origin of the tail. The females are subject to the periodical emanation.
THE MONA.[W]
[Footnote W: Mona is the name this animal bears in the Spanish and provincial languages. The English word monkey is derived from _monichi_, and both seem to owe their rise to _mona_, or _monima_, the primitive name of these animals.]
This animal (_fig. 209._) is the most common of the monkey tribe; we kept one of them alive for many years, which, with the magot, seems to agree best with the temperature of our climate. This alone is sufficient to prove the mona is not a native of the southern countries of Africa and India. In fact, it is met with in Barbary, Arabia, Persia, and other parts of Asia which were known to the ancients, who denoted it by the name of _kébos_, _cebus_, and _coephus_, because of the variety of its colours. The visage of this animal is of a brown hue, with a kind of white beard, mixed with yellow and a little black. The hair on the top of the head and neck is yellow and black intermixed; that on the back red and black; the belly and the inner parts of the thighs and legs whitish, though the external parts of the two latter are black, and the tail of a deep ash colour, marked with two white spots, one on each side, at its insertion. On its forehead there are some grey hairs in the form of a crescent; from the eyes to the ears there is a black stripe, as there also is from the ears to the shoulders and arms. Some persons have called this animal _nonne_, from a corruption of _mone_ or _mona_; others have termed it the old man, from the grey colour of its beard; but the denomination by which the mona is most generally known is that of the _variegated monkey_; and this perfectly agrees with the name of _kébos_ given it by the Greeks, and the definition of Aristotle, a monkey with a long tail, and of various colours.
In general the disposition of the monkeys is much more tractable than that of the baboons, and not so sullen as that of the apes. They are extravagantly spirited, but not ferocious, for they become docile through fear the moment they find themselves subjected by restraint. The mona is particularly susceptible of education, and even attached to those persons who take care of him. That which we brought up would suffer himself to be stroaked and handled by those he knew, but would not permit this freedom to strangers, whom he would often bite. He was kept chained, appearing very desirous of liberty, for when he either broke his chain, or got loose, he would fly to the fields, but he would suffer himself to be retaken by his master. He ate every thing that was offered him, roasted meat, bread, and grain; but his favourite food was fruits; and he would also search after spiders, ants, and insects. Whenever several pieces were given him together he put them in the pouches on each side of his cheeks. This practice is common to all the baboon and monkey kind, Nature having furnished them with those reservoirs, where they can store a quantity of food sufficient to support them for one or two days.
_Engraved for Barr's Buffon._
_Distinctive Characters of this Species._