a Specimen of Lemur tardigradus. 213 



hardish, even when he is not allowed to eat bones. Figs, when 

 given him, have a very laxative effect ; but though his faeces are 

 then soft, they do not lose their characteristic figure. He scat- 

 ters his urine frequently when he moves about, leaving a train 

 behind him. This he does almost as soon as he leaves his 

 cage, rubbing, apparently, his tail upon the ground, as if to 

 assist him in the act of expelling his urine. He has a very 

 peculiar odour, sharp and pungent, especially when kept very 

 warm. It is perhaps his urine that imparts this disagreeable 

 smell. 



He generally sits upon his hind part (the hair of which is 

 much worn by long sitting), close to the bars of his cage, 

 grasping them firmly with his hind paws ; he then rolls him- 

 self up like a ball, with his head in his breast, his thighs 

 closely placed over his belly, and his arms over his head, 

 generally grasping the bars of the cage with his hands also. In 

 this position, and also without moving, he remains the whole 

 of the day. Upon coming into the Channel, the cold weather 

 affected him very much ; he was seized with cramp, and I at 

 that time placed him in a small box, which was filled with 

 very soft down. This he felt so agreeable, that, when cold, 

 he never left it during the whole day, unless disturbed, and 

 slept in it rolled up in the shape of a ball. 



He is exceedingly slow in his motions, and his trivial name, 

 tardigradus, well marks his habit in that particular. He is 

 evidently formed for preying by night, and for climbing trees. 

 When he climbs, he first lays holds of the branch with one of 

 his hands, and then with the other. When he has obtained a 

 firm hold with both hands, he moves one of his hind paws, and, 

 after firmly grasping the branch with it, he moves the other. 

 He never quits his hold with his hind paws till he has obtained 

 a secure grasp with his hands. When he walks, he moves his 

 limbs in the same methodical manner as when he climbs. It 

 is not till night that his activity commences, and this particular 

 shows the beautiful arrangement of Providence. With such 

 slow motions, were he to prey during the day, there is almost 

 no animal but would very easily escape him ; he must, 

 therefore, be awake during the night, and clamber the trees 

 slowly and gently, to secure his prey, which I should think 

 consisted chiefly of birds, when they are at roost. But though 

 very much inclined to sleep almost the whole day, he does not 

 seem so slothful as has been said by Vosmaer ; though, per- 

 haps, his habits may have been broken in upon by the treat- 

 ment he met with on board the ship during his passage. Kept 

 in an open part of the deck, surrounded by half the ship's 

 company, and teased by the sailors in their idle moments, he 



