240 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



to manage as a troop of these monkeys, which peculiarity hrings them 

 near the hopeful youth of modern age. Another proof of their supe- 

 rior intellect may be found in the fact that they avail themselves of 

 the means afforded by others to make their life as comfortable as pos- 

 sible. 



I had often seen and closely observed individual baboons in cap- 

 tivity, but had never had a chance to meet those interesting animals 

 living the life of liberty in organized troops. That pleasure was in 

 store for me one morning, in the year 1862. I was traveling in Bogos- 

 land at the time. On the morning in question I found myself sepa- 

 rated for a while from my companions, and had just sat down to take 

 a short rest when I heard a kind of strange barking, coming from a 

 steep cluster of rocks in the vicinity. Some minutes before my atten- 

 tion had been aroused by a number of curiously shaped forms on the 

 summit of the rocks, but I came to the conclusion that they were large 

 blocks of stone. The barking disabused me, inasmuch as the forms, 

 true and genuine baboons, were now starting up. Considering the 

 shouting of the animals as a personal provocation, I hurried up the hill 

 and fired a shot at the troop, which at once took to their heels and 

 were soon out of sight. About half an hour later, after I had joined 

 my friends, we saw the same troop in file on a narrow bridge running 

 at considerable height along a rocky wall. Another gunshot made 

 them disappear once more, but a short distance farther, where the 

 valley turned at a sharp angle, we met them just at the moment when 

 they were crossing to reach the opposite hills. Our hounds, though 

 trained to hunt hyenas, hesitated in bewilderment, but soon gave 

 tongue and made an impetuous rush at the monkeys. At once the old 

 males rallied and faced the dogs, forming a wide semicircle, roaring, 

 grinning, and furiously beating the ground with their hands. Their 

 threatening attitude and spiteful glances frightened the hounds, which 

 recoiled in amazement. The monkeys took advantage of this moment- 

 ary failure of our animals and retreated in haste. When the latter 

 were rallied and started for a fresh attack, there were only a few more 

 in the valley, and the last of the stragglers was a pug of about six 

 months, which retreated in agonizing terror to the top of a large block 

 of stone where the hounds set it. " That pug will be ours," I shouted, 

 but was thoroughly mistaken. One of the senior males, a strong, pow- 

 erful individual, started from the other side of the valley, advanced 

 quietly toward the block, pride and mischief shining in his eyes, 

 marched straight to the hounds, which trembled under his vicious 

 glances and threatening gesticulations, climbed the stone, fondled the 

 young one, put it on his back and calmly returned, while we were 

 standing there all startled. Similar acts of self-exposure of a male are 

 only found among monkeys, while among all the other animals, even 

 the lions, it is always the female which risks life to save her cub. 



Some time afterward I crossed the same valley in company with 



