86 



HARD WICKKS SCIENCE- G OS SI P. 



in length, including her abbreviated tail. Her body 

 is covered all over with a beautiful coat of fine silky 

 hair, much resembling human hair under the micro- 

 scope, but much finer. 



In adopting monkeys as members of the house- 

 hold, let it be clearly understood that it is essential 

 to the general peace, to keep them at ordinarj- times 

 confined in a cage, only allowing them their liberty, 

 when their keeper has time to watch them ; other- 

 wise they soon become a nuisance to all, commit 

 numerous delinquencies, and very soon get tabooed 

 and sold to some dealer, or sent in disgrace to the 

 -Zoo. Coming as they do from hot countries, of 

 course they must be kept warm, they also need 

 plenty of exercise, for if kept long in a cramped cage, 

 they are subject to paralysis. I have provided several 

 cages for my little "Jennie," one small light cylin- 

 drical cage of the ordinary galvanised wire-work, for 

 cold days, when she can be carried anywhere we 

 choose ; another larger and more substantially built 

 affair, provided with ropes, a sleeping perch, and 

 a blanket to keep her warm for the night ; and a 

 monkey-house in miniature, built in the garden for 

 sunny days and warm weather. The outside cage is 

 about four feet wide, by three feet from back to front, 

 and six feet in height, with brick back and ends, and 

 wire front and door. It is furnished with swings, 

 ropes, perches, and a box in which to retire in case 

 of cold winds prevailing. By keeping my monkey 

 confined in one or other of these cages at ordinary 

 times, and allowing her liberty when we have time 

 to watch her funny little ways, we have an endless 

 source of amusement to draw from during the dull 

 half hours ; and no household need be dull, with a 

 monkey as an inmate. 



At first Jennie was inclined to be very mischievous 

 when loose, requiring constant looking after, but on 

 the introduction of a poor starving cat into the house 

 (with whom she soon became fast friends) she did not 

 require so much watching ; and the cat and monkey 

 will play by the hour together, without either getting 

 cross or ill-tempered. This is all the more singular 

 as there is another cat in the house, with whom the 

 monkey will not be friends. Jennie gets away with 

 a considerable amount of food, her staple diet being 

 potatoes and bread, and occasionally rice, and carrots, 

 turnips, onions, and green-stuff. 



She eats more sparingly of fruits, her general 

 favourites being oranges, apples, dates, and prunes. 

 She is, of course, fond of nuts, storing away quite a 

 number in the food pouches provided Ijy nature. She 

 well masticates all food previous to swallowing. As 

 instances of what I presume to be inherited instinct, 

 I notice her extreme caution in drinking, she fre- 

 quently starts, and turns her head at the slightest 

 noise ; also when offered anything that she par- 

 ticularly likes, she will stuff as much as possible into 

 the food pouches. The first habit is, I imagine, 

 acquired , through the natural fear of their many 



enemies in their native wilds, and the latter from 

 their gregarious mode of living, and the necessity of 

 taking care of number one. When alarmed or 

 frightened, the bonnet macaque looks simply fright- 

 ful, drawing the skin of the face upwards, elevating 

 the eyebrows and a scalp, and showing the whole of 

 the teeth, and uttering shrill cries, giving the head 

 the appearance of a grinning skull. Is this another 

 result ofinherited instinct, I wonder, designed to 

 strike terror into their enemies, their other means of 

 defence being by no means powerful ? 



There are two great families of monkeys, the old 

 world, and the new world species, known respectively 

 to naturalists as the Catarrhines and Platyrrhines, 

 signifying narrow nostrils, and broad nostrils. The 

 bonnet macaque belongs to the first of these families. 

 It derives its common name from the parting of the 

 hair on the forehead, the hair standing up from the 

 head, and radiating from the crov\n. 



It is a small monkey ; my specimen would have 

 measured about two feet five inches if the tail had 

 not been cut. The prevailing colour of the hair is 

 olive-grey, with a greenish tint, toning down to- 

 wards the under parts which are ashy white. The 

 face is smooth, the ears are somewhat flesh-coloured, 

 and slightly pointed at the upper extremities. The 

 hands are beautifully formed, with long slender 

 fingers, and pretty filbert-shaped nails. The oppos- 

 able thumbs, are rather short and diminutive. The 

 feet are rather ungainly, but are well adapted for 

 climbing purposes. The food pouches are large, the 

 tail non-prehensile, and the dentition is the same 

 as in man, the formula being invariably : I. % Cj , 

 P. M.i , M.§ , X 2 = 32. 



Macacus siniciis has the reputation of being crabbed 

 and savage in old age, but I have an idea that former 

 treatment may be responsible for this ; so many 

 people have a natural love of teasing the monkey 

 tribe, a mode of treatment which they naturally 

 resent, and man himself would soon become ill- 

 tempered and crabbed if constantly teased. 



In India this monkey, in company with Rhesus and 

 several other species, enjoys great protection from 

 the natives. The Hindoos provide them with food, 

 and shelter them in their temples. In conclusion, I 

 should like to add, that I have not yet regretted the 

 adoption of a bonnet-monkey into my home of " queer 

 pets." Should any reader of SciENCE-GossiP desire 

 to know more about these interesting pets, he cannot 

 do better than procure that capital little handbook, 

 entitled "Notes on Pet Monkeys," by Arthur Pat- 

 terson, published by L. Upcott Gill, 170 Strand, 

 W.C. 



I must not forget to mention the callosities with 

 which the bonnet monkey is provided. They are 

 hard protuberances which enable the animal to sit 

 comfortably. 



A. J. Jenkins. 



New Cross. 



