SIMIA, the MONKEY;

SIMIA, the MONKEY; a genus of quadrupeds, belonging to the order of primates. They have four fore-teeth in each jaw, placed near each other: the dog-teeth are solitary and more remote; and the grinders are obtuse. They are a numerous race; but almost all confined to the torrid zone. They fill the woods of Africa, from Senegal to the Cape, and from thence to Ethiopia: they are found in all parts of India, and its islands; in Cochinchina, in the south of China, and in Japan; (and one is met with in Arabia): and they swarm in the forests of South America, from the isthmus of Darien, as far as Paraguay. They are lively, agile, full of frolic, chatter, and grimace. From the structure of their members, they have many actions in common with the human kind. Most of them are fierce and untameable: some are of a milder nature, and will show a degree of attachment: but in general, they are endowed with mischievous intellects; and are filthy, obscene, lascivious, thieving. They inhabit the woods, and live in trees; feeding on fruits, leaves, and insects. In general, they are gregarious, going in vast companies: but the different species never mix with each other, always keeping apart and in different quarters. They leap with vast activity from tree to tree, even when loaded with their young, which cling to them. They are the prey of leopards and others of the feline race; and of serpents, which pursue them to the summit of the trees, and swallow them entire. They are not carnivorous, but for mischief's sake will rob the nests of birds of the eggs and young: in the countries where they most abound, the sagacity of the feathered tribe is more marvellously shown in their contrivances to fix the nest beyond the reach of these invaders. See MOTACILLA.

The simiae being more numerous in their species than any other animals, and differing greatly in their appearances, it seemed necessary to methodize and subdivide the genus. Accordingly Mr Ray first distributed them into three classes:

Simia, Apes, such as wanted tails.

Cercopitheci, Monkeys, such as had tails.

Papiones, Baboons, those with short tails: to distinguish them from the common monkeys, which have very long ones.

From Ray's method, Linnæus formed his. M. de Buffon followed the same; but with a subdivision of the long-tailed apes, or the true monkeys, into such which had prehensile tails, and such which had not. Mr Pennant has adopted the same method; but is more definite as to the class of baboons, in which he comprehends all whose tails do not exceed half the length of their bodies, and are carried in an arched direction. According to those divisions, the following are the principal species:

I. Without tails; the true APES.

1. The satyrus, orang outang, or great ape, has a flat face, and a deformed resemblance of the human;

Simia. ears exactly like those of a man; the hair on the head longer than on the body. The body and limbs are covered with reddish and shaggy hair; longest on the back, thinnest on the fore-parts. The face and paws are swarthy; the buttocks covered with hair. They inhabit the interior parts of Africa, the isles of Sumatra, Borneo, and Java. Are solitary, and live in the most desart places. They grow to the height of six feet: have prodigious strength, and will overpower the strongest man. The old ones are shot with arrows, the young alone can be taken alive. They live entirely on fruits and nuts. They will attack and kill the negroes who wander in the woods; will drive away the elephants, and beat them with their fists or pieces of wood; and will throw stones at people that offend them. They sleep in trees; and make a sort of shelter from the inclemency of the weather. They are of a grave appearance and melancholy disposition, and even when young not inclined to frolic. They go erect, and are vastly swift and agile. These accounts are chiefly taken from Andrew Battel, an English sailor, who was taken prisoner 1589, and lived many years in the inner parts of Congo; his narrative is plain, and seems very authentic: it is preserved in Purchas's collection.

* Descript. Historique du royaume de Mecassar, p. 51.

Froger informs us, "that those along the banks of the river Ganges are larger and more mischievous than in any part of Africa: the negroes dread them, and cannot travel alone in the country, without running the hazard of being attacked by these animals, who often present them with a stick, and force them to fight. I have heard the Portuguese say, that they have often seen them hold up young girls, about seven or eight years old, into trees, and that they could not be wrested from them without a great deal of difficulty. The most part of the negroes imagine them to be a foreign nation come to inhabit their country, and that they do not speak for fear of being compelled to work." When taken young, they are capable of being tamed, and taught to perform many menial offices. Francis Pyrad † relates, "that in the province of Sierra Leona, there is a species so strong-limbed, and so industrious, that, when properly trained and fed, they work like servants; that they generally walk on the two hind-feet; that they pound any substances in a mortar; that they go to bring water from the river in small pitchers, which they carry full on their heads. But when they arrive at the door, if the pitchers are not soon taken off, they allow them to fall; and when they perceive the pitchers overturned and broken, they weep and lament." Father Jarrie ‡, quoted by Nieremberg, says the same thing, nearly in the same terms. With regard to the education of these animals, the testimony of Schoutten ¶ accords with that of Pyrad. "They are taken (he remarks) with snares, taught to walk on their hind-feet, and to use their fore-feet as hands in performing different operations, as rinsing glasses, carrying drink round the company, turning a spit, &c." "I saw at Java, (says Guat) ♀, a very extraordinary ape. It was a female. She was very tall, and often walked erect on her hind-feet. On these occasions, she concealed with her hands the parts which distinguish the sex. Except the eye-brows, there was

Simia. no hair on her face, which pretty much resembled the grotesque female faces I saw among the Hottentots at the Cape. She made her bed very neatly every day, lay upon her side, and covered herself with the bedcloaths. When her head ached, she bound it up with a handkerchief; and it was amusing to see her thus hooded in bed. I could relate many other little articles which appeared to me extremely singular. But I admired them not so much as the multitude; because as I knew the design of bringing her to Europe to be exhibited as a show, I was inclined to think that she had been taught many of these monkey-tricks, which the people considered as being natural to the animal. She died in our ship, about the latitude of the Cape of Good Hope. The figure of this ape had a very great resemblance to that of man, &c." Gemelli Careri tells us, that he saw one of these apes, which cried like an infant, walked upon its hind-feet, and carried a matt under its arm to lie down and sleep upon.

An orang-outang which Buffon saw, is described by him as mild, affectionate, and good-natured. His air was melancholy, his gait grave, his movements measured, his dispositions gentle, and very different from those of other apes. He had neither the impatience of the Barbary ape, the maliciousness of the baboon, nor the extravagance of the monkeys. "It may be alleged, (says our author), that he had the benefit of instruction; but the other apes which I shall compare with him, were educated in the same manner. Signs and words were alone sufficient to make our orang-outang act: but the baboon required a cudgel, and the other apes a whip; for none of them would obey without blows. I have seen this animal present his hand to conduct the people who came to visit him, and walk as gravely along with them as if he had formed a part of the company. I have seen him sit down at table, unfold his towel, wipe his lips, use a spoon or a fork to carry the victuals to his mouth, pour his liquor into a glass, and make it touch that of the person who drank along with him. When invited to take tea, he brought a cup and saucer, placed them on the table, put in sugar, poured out the tea, and allowed it to cool before he drank it. All these actions he performed without any other instigation than the signs or verbal orders of his master, and often of his own accord. He did no injury to any person: he even approached company with circumspection, and presented himself as if he wanted to be caressed. He was very fond of dainties, which every body gave him: And as his breast was diseased, and he was afflicted with a teazing cough, this quantity of sweetmeats undoubtedly contributed to shorten his life. He lived one summer in Paris, and died in London the following winter. He eat almost every thing; but preferred ripe and dried fruits to all other kinds of food. He drank a little wine; but spontaneously left it for milk, tea, or other mild liquors." This was only two feet four inches high, and was a young one. There is great possibility that these animals may vary in size and in colour, some being covered with black, others with reddish hairs.—They are not the satyrs of the ancients; which had tails (A), and were a species of monkey. Linnaeus's Homo

homo nocturnus, an animal of this kind, is unnecessarily separated from his simia satyrus.

To enable the reader to form a judgment of this animal which has so great a resemblance to man, it may not be unacceptable to quote from Buffon the differences and conformities which make him approach or recede from the human species. "He differs from man externally by the flatness of his nose, by the shortness of his front, and by his chin, which is not elevated at the base. His ears are proportionally too large, his eyes too near each other, and the distance between his nose and mouth is too great. These are the only differences between the face of an orang-outang and that of a man. With regard to the body and members, the thighs are proportionally too short, the arms too long, the fingers too small, the palm of the hands too long and narrow, and the feet rather resemble hands than the human foot. The male organs of generation differ not from those of man, except that the prepuce has no frænum. The female organs are extremely similar to those of a woman.

"The orang-outang differs internally from the human species in the number of ribs: man has only 12; but the orang-outang has 13. The vertebrae of the neck are also shorter, the bones of the pelvis narrow, the buttocks flatter, and the orbits of the eyes sunk deeper. He has no spinal process on the first vertebra of the neck. The kidneys are rounder than those of man, and the ureters have a different figure, as well as the bladder and gall-bladder, which are narrower and longer than in the human species. All the other parts of the body, head, and members, both external and internal, so perfectly resemble those of man, that we cannot make the comparison without being astonished that such a similarity in structure and organization should not produce the same effects. The tongue, and all the organs of speech, for example, are the same as in man; and yet the orang-outang enjoys not the faculty of speaking; the brain has the same figure and proportions; and yet he possesses not the power of thinking. Can there be a more evident proof than is exhibited in the orang-outang, that matter alone, though perfectly organized, can produce neither language nor thought, unless it be animated by a superior principle? Man and the orang-outang are the only animals who have buttocks and the calfs of the legs, and who, of course, are formed for walking erect; the only animals who have a broad chest, flat shoulders, and vertebrae of the same structure; and the only animals whose brain, heart, lungs, liver, spleen, stomach, and intestines, are perfectly similar, and who have an appendix vermiformis, or blind-gut. In fine, the orang-outang has a greater resemblance to man than even to the baboons or monkeys, not only in all the parts we have mentioned, but in the largeness of the face, the figure of the cranium, of the jaws, of the teeth, and of the other bones of the head and face; in the thickness of the fingers and thumb, the figure of the nails, and the number of vertebrae; and, lastly, in the conformity of the articulations, the magnitude and figure of the rotula, sternum, &c. Hence, as there is a greater similarity between this animal and man, than between those

creatures which resemble him most, as the Barbary ape, the baboon, and monkey, who have all been designed by the general name of apes, the Indians are to be excused for associating him with the human species, under the denomination of orang-outang, or wild man. In fine, if there were a scale by which we could descend from human nature to that of the brutes, and if the essence of this nature consisted entirely in the form of the body, and depended on its organization, the orang-outang would approach nearer to man than any other animal. Placed in the second rank of beings, he would make the other animals feel his superiority, and oblige them to obey him. If the principle of imitation, by which he seems to mimic human actions, were a result of thought, this ape would be still farther removed from the brutes, and have a greater affinity to man. But the interval which separates them is immense. Mind, reflection, and language, depend not on figure or the organization of the body. These are endowments peculiar to man. The orang-outang, though, as we have seen, he has a body, members, senses, a brain, and a tongue, perfectly similar to those of man, neither speaks nor thinks. Though he counterfeits every human movement, he performs no action that is characteristic of man, no action that has the same principle or the same design. With regard to imitation, which appears to be the most striking character of the ape-kind, and which the vulgar have attributed to him as a peculiar talent, before we decide, it is necessary to inquire whether this imitation be spontaneous or forced. Does the ape imitate us from inclination, or because, without any exertion of the will, he feels the capacity of doing it? I appeal to all those who have examined this animal without prejudice; and I am convinced that they will agree with me, that there is nothing voluntary in this imitation. The ape, having arms and hands, uses them as we do, but without thinking of us. The similarity of his members and organs necessarily produces movements, and sometimes successions of movements, which resemble ours. Being endowed with the human structure, the ape must move like man; but the same motions imply not that he acts from imitation. Two bodies which receive the same impulse, two similar pendulums or machines, will move in the same manner; but these bodies or machines can never be said to imitate each other in their motions. The ape and the human body are two machines similarly constructed, and necessarily move nearly in the same manner; but parity is not imitation. The one depends on matter and the other on mind. Imitation presupposes the design of imitating. The ape is incapable of forming this design, which requires a train of thinking: consequently, man, if he inclines, can imitate the ape; but the ape cannot even incline to imitate man."

2. The sylvanus, or pigmy, has a flattish face; ears Fig. 2. like those of a man; body, of the size of a cat; colour above, of an olive brown; beneath, yellowish: nails flat: buttocks naked. Sits upright. Inhabits Africa. This species is not uncommon in our exhibitions of animals; and is very tractable and good-natured. Most probably the Pigmy of the ancients. They abound in Ethiopia,

with tails like those with which satyrs are painted, whence called the isles of satyrs. Keeping, a Swede, pretended to have discovered these homines caudati; that they would have trafficked with him, offering him live parrots; that afterwards they killed some of the crew that went on shore, and eat them, &c. &c. Amer. Acad. vi. 71.

Simia. Ethiopia, one feat of that imaginary nation. They were believed to dwell near the fountains of the Nile: they descended annually to make war on the cranes, i. e. to steal their eggs, which the birds may be supposed naturally to defend; whence the fiction of their combats. Strabo judiciously observes, that no person worthy of credit ever ventured to assert that he had ever seen this nation. Aristotle speaks of them only by hearsay: they were said to be mounted on little horses, on goats, on rams, and even on partridges. The Indians, taking advantage of the credulity of people, embalmed this species of ape with spices, and sold them to merchants as true pigmies: such, doubtless, were the diminutive inhabitants mentioned by Mr Grose† to be found in the forests of the Carnatic. They feed on fruits: are very fond of insects, particularly of ants; assembling in troops, and turning over every stone in search of them. If attacked by wild beasts, they take to flight; but if overtaken, will face their pursuers, and, by flinging the subtle sand of the desert in their eyes, often escape.

Fig. 3. 3. The gibbon, or long-armed ape, with a flat swarthy face surrounded with grey hairs: hair on the body black and rough: buttocks bare: nails on the hands flat; on the feet, long: arms of a most disproportionate length, reaching quite to the ground when the animal is erect, its natural posture: of a hideous deformity.—Inhabits India, Malacca, and the Molucca isles: a mild and gentle animal: grows to the height of four feet. The great black ape of Mangsi, a province in China, seems to be of this kind.

Fig. 4. 4. The innuus, magot, or Barbary ape, has a long face, not unlike that of a dog: canine teeth, long and strong: ears like the human: nails flat: buttocks bare: colour of the upper part of the body, a dirty greenish brown; belly, of a dull pale yellow: grows to above the length of four feet.—They inhabit many parts of India, Arabia, and all parts of Africa except Egypt, where none of this genus are found. A few are found on the hill of Gibraltar, which breed there: probably from a pair that had escaped from the town; as they are not found in any other part of Spain.—They are very ill-natured, mischievous, and fierce; agreeing with the character of the ancient Cynocephali. They are a very common kind in exhibitions. By force of discipline, are made to play some tricks; otherwise, they are more dull and sullen than the rest of this genus. They assemble in great troops in the open fields in India; and will attack women going to market, and take their provisions from them. The females carry the young in their arms, and will leap from tree to tree with them. Apes were worshipped in India, and had magnificent temples erected to them. When the Portuguese plundered one in Ceylon, they found in a little golden casket (u) the tooth of an ape; a relic held by the natives in such veneration, that they offered 700,000 ducats to redeem it, but in vain; for it was burnt by the viceroy, to stop the progress of idolatry.

Fig. 5. 5. The tufted ape, a species of most disgusting deformity, described in the Philosophical Transactions, abridged, No 290. It had a nose and head 14 inches in length: the nose of a deep red, face blue, both na-

ked; black eye-brows; ears like the human: on the top of the head a long upright tuft of hair; on the chin another; two long tufts in the upper jaw: fore-feet exactly resembling hands, and the nails on the fingers flat: the fore-part of the body, and the inside of the legs and arms, naked: the outside covered with mottled brown and olive hair. Length, from the nose to the rump, three feet two inches. It was very fierce and salacious: went on all-fours; but would sit up on its rump, and support itself with a stick: in this attitude, it would hold a cup in its hand, and drink out of it. Its food was fruits.

6. The sphynx, or great baboon, with hazel irises; Fig. 6. ears small and naked; face canine, and very thick; middle of the face and fore-head naked, and of a bright vermilion colour; tip of the nose of the same, and ending tricated like that of a hog; sides of the nose broadly ribbed, and of a fine violet hue; the opening of the mouth very small; cheeks, throat, and goat-like beard yellow; hair on the fore-head very long, turns back, is black, and forms a kind of pointed crest. Head, arms, and legs, covered with short hair, yellow and black intermixed; the breast with long whitish yellow hairs, the shoulders with long brown hair. Nails flat; feet and hands black; tail four inches long, and very hairy: buttocks bare, red, and filthy; but the space about them is of a most elegant purple colour, which reaches to the inside of the upper part of the thighs.

This was described by Mr Pennant from a stuffed specimen in Sir Ashton Lever's museum. In August 1779, a live animal of this species was shown at Edinburgh, and in October following at Chester, where being seen by Mr Pennant, that inquisitive naturalist has described it in his History of Quadrupeds. "It differed little (he observes) in colour from the above, being in general much darker. Eyes much sunk in the head, and small. On the internal side of each ear was a white line, pointing upwards. The hair on the fore-head turned up like a toupee. Feet black; in other respects resembled the former. In this I had an opportunity of examining the teeth. The cutting teeth were like those of the rest of the genus; but, in the upper and lower jaw, were two canine, or rather tufts, near three inches long, and exceedingly sharp and pointed. This animal was five feet high, of a most tremendous strength in all its parts; was excessively fierce, libidinous, and strong.

Mr Schreber says, that this species lives on succulent fruits, and on nuts; is very fond of eggs, and will put eight at once into its pouches, and, taking them out one by one, break them at the end, and swallow the yolk and white: rejects all flesh-meat, unless it be dressed: would drink quantities of wine or brandy: was less agile than other baboons: very cleanly; for it would immediately fling its excrements out of its hut. That which was shown at Chester was particularly fond of cheese. Its voice was a kind of roar, not unlike that of a lion, but low and somewhat inward. It went upon all-fours, and never stood on its hind-legs, unless forced by the keeper; but would frequently sit on its rump in a crouching man-

Simia. Baboons. Fig. 7. ner, and drop its arms before the belly. Inhabits the hotter parts of Africa."

7. The wood-baboon, with a long dog-like face, covered with a small glossy black skin; hands and feet naked, and black like the face; hair on all parts long, elegantly mottled with black and tawny; nails white. About three feet high when erect; tail not three inches, and very hairy on the upper part.—Inhabits Guinea, where it is called the man of the wood.

8. The nemestrina, or pig-tail baboon, with a pointed face, which is naked, of a swarthy redness: two sharp canine teeth; ears like the human: hair on the limbs and body brown inclining to ash-colour, palest on the belly: fingers black: nails long and flat: thumbs on the hind-feet very long, connected to the nearest toe by a broad membrane: tail four inches long, slender, exactly like a pig's, and almost naked; the bare spaces on the rump red, and but small: length, from head to tail, 22 inches. Inhabits the isles of Sumatra and Japan: is very docile. In Japan it is taught several tricks, and carried about the country by mountebanks. Kempfer was informed by one of these people, that the baboon he had was 102 years old.

Fig. 8. 9. The hamadryas, or dog-faced baboon, with a long, thick, and strong nose, covered with a smooth red skin: ears pointed, and hid in the hair: head great, and flat: hair on the head, and fore-part of the body as far as the waist, very long and shaggy; grey and olive-brindled; the sides of the head very full, the hair on the limbs and hind-part of the body very short: limbs strong and thick: hands and feet dusky: the nails on the fore-feet flat; those on the hind like a dog's: buttocks very bare, and covered with a skin of a bloody colour: tail scarce the length of the body, and carried generally erect. They inhabit the hottest parts of Africa and Asia; where they keep in vast troops, and are very fierce and dangerous. They rob gardens. They will run up trees when passengers go by, shake the boughs at them with great fury, and chatter very loud. They are excessively impudent, indecent, lascivious: most detestable animals in their manners as well as appearance. They range the woods in hundreds; which obliges the owners of the coffee-plantations to be continually on their guard against their depredations. One of them was shown in London some years ago: it came from Mokha, in the province of Yeman, in Arabia Felix in the Persian gulph; and was above five feet high. It was very fierce, and untameable; so strong, as easily to matter its keeper, a stout young man. Its inclinations to women appeared in the most violent manner. A footman, who brought a girl to see it, in order to tease the animal, kissed and hugged her: The beast, enraged at being so tantalized, caught hold of a quart pewter-pot, which he threw with such force and so sure an aim, that, had not the man's hat and wig softened the blow, his skull must have been fractured; but he fortunately escaped with a common broken head.

Fig. 9. 10. The faunus, filenus, or lion-tailed baboon, with a dog-like face, naked, and of a dusky colour: a very large and full white or hoary beard: large canine teeth: body covered with black hair; belly of a light-colour: tail terminated with a tuft of hair like that of a lion.

Its bulk that of a middling sized dog. It inhabits the East-Indies and the hotter parts of Africa.

III. With tails longer than their bodies, or MONKEYS.

A. Thole of the old world, or the continent of Asia and Africa, having within each lower jaw pouches for the reception of their food: buttocks generally naked.

11. The purple-faced monkey, with a great triangular white beard, short, and pointed at the bottom and on each side of the ears, extending in a winged fashion far beyond them; face and hands purple, body black. Inhabit Ceylon. They are very harmless; live in the woods, and feed on leaves and buds of trees; and when taken soon become tame.

12. The fabæa, or green monkey, has a black and flatish face: the side of it bounded by long white hairs, falling backwards, and almost covering the ears, which are black, and like the human: head, limbs, and whole upper part of the body and tail, covered with soft hair, of a yellowish green colour at their ends, cinereous at their roots: under-side of the body and tail, and inner side of the limbs, of a silvery colour: tail very long and slender. Size of a small cat.—Inhabit different parts of Africa: keep in great flocks, and live in the woods: are scarce discernible when among the leaves, except by their breaking the boughs with their gambols: in which they are very agile and silent: even when shot at, do not make the least noise; but will unite in company, knit their brows, and gnash their teeth, as if they meant to attack the enemy: are very common in the Cape Verd islands.

13. The æthiops, mangaby, or white-eyelid monkey, Fig. 10, has a long, black, naked, and dog-like face: the upper eye-lids of a pure white: ears black, and like the human: no canine teeth: hairs on the sides of the face beneath the cheeks, longer than the rest: tail long: colour of the whole body tawny and black: flat nails on the thumbs and fore-fingers; blunt claws on the others: hands and feet black.—Shown in London some years ago: place uncertain: that described by M. de Buffon came from Madagascar; was very good-natured; went on all-fours.

14. The aygula, or egret monkey, has a long face, Fig. 12, and an upright sharp-pointed tuft of hair on the top of the head. The hair on the fore-head is black; the tuft, and the upper part of the body, light grey; the belly, white: the eye-brows are large; the beard very small. Size of a small cat. They inhabit Java. They fawn on men, on their own species, and embrace each other. They play with dogs, if they have none of their own species with them. If they see a monkey of another kind, they greet him with a thousand grimaces. When a number of them sleep, they put their heads together. They make a continual noise during night.

15. The Chinese monkey, (le bonnet Chinois of Buffon), has a long smooth nose, of a whitish colour: hair on the crown of the head long, lying flat, and parted like that of a man: colour, a pale cinereous brown. Inhabit Ceylon. They keep in great troops; and rob the gardens of fruit, and fields of the corn; to prevent which, the natives are obliged to watch the whole day: yet these animals are so bold, that, when driven from one end of the field, they will immediately enter at the other.

Simia. other, and carry off with them as much as their mouth
MONKEYS. and arms can hold. Bosman, speaking of the thefts
of the monkeys of Guiney, says, that they will take in
each paw one or two stalks of millet, as many under
their arms, and two or three in their mouth; and thus
laden, hop away on their hind-legs; but, if pursued,
they fling away all, except what is in their mouths,
that it may not impede their flight. They are very
nice in the choice of the millet; examine every stalk;
and if they do not like it, fling it away: so that this
delicacy does more harm to the fields than their thievery.

Fig. 13. 16. Full-bottom monkey, with a short, black, and
naked face; that and the shoulders covered with long,
coarse, flowing hairs like a full-bottomed perriwig; of
a dirty-yellowish colour, mixed with black: body, arms,
and legs, of a fine glossy blackness, covered with short
hairs: hands naked, furnished with only four fingers;
on each foot four very long slender toes: tail very long,
of a snowy whiteness, with a tuft at the end: body
and limbs slender; length above three feet. Inhabits
the forests of Sierra Leone in Guiney; where it is called
the hey or king monkey. The negroes hold the skin
in high estimation; and use it for pouches, and for coverings
to their guns.

B. Monkeys of the new world, or the continent of
America, having neither pouches in their jaws, nor
naked buttocks. Tails of many prehensile, and naked
on the under side for a certain space next their
end.

17. Beelzebub, or the preacher, has black shining
eyes; short round ears; and a round beard under the
chin and throat. The hairs on the body are of a shi-
ning black, long, yet lie so close on each other that
the animal appears quite smooth: the feet and end of
the tail are brown; the tail very long, and always
twisted at the end. Size of a fox. Inhabit the woods
of Brasil and Guiana in vast numbers, and make a most
dreadful howling. Sometimes one mounts on a higher
branch, the rest seat themselves beneath: the first be-
gins as if it was to harangue, and sets up so loud and
sharp a howl as may be heard a vast way, and a person
at a distance would think that a hundred joined in the
cry: after a certain space, he gives a signal with his
hand, when the whole assembly joins in chorus; but on
another signal, is silent, and the orator finishes his ad-
dress (c). Their clamour is the most disagreeable and
tremendous that can be conceived; owing to a hollow
and hard bone placed in the throat, which the English
call the throttle-bone. These monkeys are very fierce,
untameable, and bite dreadfully. There is a variety
of a ferruginous or reddish bay colour, which the In-
dians call the king of the monkeys: it is large, and as
noisy as the former. The natives eat this species, as
well as several other sorts of monkeys, but are parti-
cularly fond of this. Europeans will also eat it, espe-
cially in those parts of America where food is scarce:
when it is scalded in order to get off the hair, it looks
very white; and has a resemblance shocking to huma-

nity, that of a child of two or three years old, when
crying (d).

Simia.
MONKEYS. 18. The paniscus, four-fingered, or spider-monkey,
Fig. 14. has a long flat face, of a swarthy flesh-colour: the eyes
are sunk in the head; ears like the human; limbs of a
great length, and uncommonly slender: the hair is
black, long, and rough. There are only four fingers
on the hands, being quite destitute of a thumb; five
toes on the feet. The tail is long; and naked below,
near the end. The body is slender; about a foot and
a half long: the tail near two feet, and so prehensile
as to serve every purpose of a hand.—They inhabit the
neighbourhood of Carthagena, Guiana, Brasil, and
Peru; associate in vast herds; and are scarce ever seen
on the ground. Dampier describes their gambols in
a lively manner: "There was (says he) a great com-
pany dancing from tree to tree over my head, chat-
tering, and making a terrible noise and a great many
grim faces and antic gestures; some broke down dry
sticks and flung them at me, others scattered their urine
and dung about my ears: at last one bigger than the
rest came to a small limb just over my head, and leap-
ing directly at me, made me leap back; but the mon-
key caught hold of the bough with the tip of its tail,
and there continued swinging to and fro, making
mouths at me. The females with their young ones are
much troubled to leap after the males; for they have
commonly two, one she carries under her arm, the other
fits on her back, and claps its two fore-paws about her
neck: are very full when taken; and very hard to
be got when shot, for they will cling with their tail
or feet to a bough, as long as any life remains; when
I have shot at one, and broke a leg or arm, I have pi-
tied the poor creature to see it look and handle the
broken limb, and turn it from side to side."—They are
the most active of monkeys, and quite enliven the for-
ests of America. In order to pass from top to top of
lofty trees, whose branches are too distant for a leap,
they will form a chain, by hanging down, linked to
each other by their tails, and swinging in that manner
till the lowest catches hold of a bough of the next tree,
and draws up the rest; and sometimes they pass rivers
by the same expedient. They are sometimes brought
to Europe; but are very tender, and seldom live long
in our climate.

19. The tai, or weeper, with a round and flat face,
Fig. 15. of a reddish brown colour, very deformed: the hair on
the head, and upper part of the body, black, tinged
with brown; beneath and on the limbs, tinged with
red: tail black, and much longer than the head and
body: the young excessively deformed; their hair very
long, and thinly dispersed: in the British Museum are
specimens of old and young. M. de Buffon has a va-
riety with a white throat. Inhabits Surinam and Bra-
sil: appear as if they were always weeping: of a me-
lancholy disposition; but very full of imitating what
they see done. These probably are the monkeys Damp-
pier saw in the Bay of All Saints, which he says are very
ugly, and smell strongly of musk. They keep in large
com-

Simia. companies; and make a great chattering, especially in stormy weather; reside much on a species of tree which bears a potted fruit, which they feed on.

Fig. 16. Simoniants. B. With straight tails, not prehensile.
20. The pithecia, or fox-tailed monkey, with a swarthy face, covered with short white down: forehead and sides of the face with whitish, and pretty long hair: body with long dusky brown hairs; white or yellowish at their tips: hair on the tail very long and bushy; sometimes black, sometimes reddish: belly and lower part of the limbs a reddish white: length from nose to tail, near a foot and a half: tail longer, and like that of a fox: hands and feet black, with claws instead of nails. Inhabits Guiana.

Fig. 17. 21. The iacchus, or striated monkey, with a very round head: about the ears two very long full tufts of white hairs standing out on each side: irides reddish: face a swarthy flesh colour: ears like the human: head black: body ash-coloured, reddish, and dusky; the last forms striated bars cross the body: tail full of hair, annulated with ash-colour and black: body seven inches long; tail, near eleven: hands and feet covered with short hairs: fingers like those of a squirrel: nails, or rather claws, sharp. Inhabits Brasil: feeds on vegetables; will also eat fish: makes a weak noise: very restless: often brought over to Europe.

Fig. 18. 22. The mico, or fair monkey, with a small round head: face and ears of the most lively vermilion colour: body covered with most beautiful long hairs of a bright and silvery whiteness, of matchless elegance: tail of a shining dark chestnut: head and body eight inches long; tail twelve. Inhabits the banks of the Amazons; discovered by M. de Condamine.