On the Torpidity of Monkeys and other Animals, 247 



parate the territory of Chiavenne from that of the Grlsons^ 

 One oF the three was a little awake: I preserved it two 

 years, in order to study its habits. The other two were in 

 the lethargic state. 



The same day I weighed the latter, in order to ascertain 

 how much of their weight they lost in a given time of con- 

 stant lethargy ; the one weighed 25 Milanese ounces, and 

 the second 22 ounces 3 deniers *. At first sight they seemed 

 as if totally deprived of life ; they were rolled up like a ball, 

 with the nose applied to the anus, their eyes closed, the 

 teeth locked, and they felt perfectly cold when taken into 

 the hands. 



When pinched, however, or shaken, they gave unequi* 

 vocal signs of irritability ; and sometimes, although rarely, 

 I perceived a feeble dilatation and a successive sinking in 

 the flanks, or other signs of a languishing respiration. 



The two monkeys remaiiiled in the most profound lethargy 

 until January 3d, 1804. Reaumur's thermometer, placed 

 in the room where they were, having varied from five td 

 nine degrees above zero, on the evening of this day the 

 largest awoke and removed from its companion, in order 

 to find a place where it might be more secure from the cold. 



As soon as I saw that it was awake, I weighed both ; and 

 I found that the largest had lost 18 deniers of its primitive 

 weight, and the other 17|. At the end of 24 hours, the 

 monkey which had awoke, again fell into a lethargy, and 

 remained in this state until the Uth ; t|^e temperature of 

 the room being from 5 to 8 degrees. 



On the 11th in the evening, the external temperature 

 being about 4 degrees, I exposed the same animal to the 

 free air on the sole of my window. A short tintfe after- 

 wards it began to tremble and give signs of pain. I also 

 remarked a small indication of breathing ; and fearing lest a 

 greater cold should waken it entirely, I replaced it in its bed 

 in about an hour. In spite of my precaution its respiration 

 became more frequent. In fact, two hours afterwards I 

 J?aun<i it almost entirely awaice j but it had not removed 



• Xhe denier is the 24th part of an ounce. 



§4 froin 



