\^ , Anecdotes (^a Diana Motikei/, 



myself burst into a laugh, upon which Jack dropped his victim, 

 and scampered up the rigging. The unhappy litde beast 

 began licking himself^ but I called the steward, who washed 

 him so well with turpentine, that all injury was prevented ; but 

 during our bustle Jack was peeping with his black nose through 

 the bars of the maintop, apparently enjoying the confusion. 

 For three days he persisted in remaining aloft ; no one could 

 catch him, he darted with such rapidity from rope to rope ; at 

 length, impelled by hunger, he dropped unexpectedly from 

 some height on my knees, as if for refuge, and as he had 

 thus confided in me, I could not deliver him up to punish- 

 ment. 



The only way in which I could control his tricks was by 

 showing him to the panther on board, which excited his fears 

 very strongly. I used to hold him up by his tail, and the in- 

 stant he saw the panther he would become perfectly stiff, shut 

 his eyes, and pretend to be dead. When I moved away, he 

 would relax his limbs, and open one eye very cautiously, but 

 if he caught a glimpse of the panther's cage, the eyes were 

 quickly closed, and he resumed the rigidity of death. After 

 four months' sojourn together, I quitted Jack off the Scilly 

 Islands, and understood that I was very much regretted : he 

 unceasingly watched for me in the morning, and searched for 

 me in every direction, even venturing into the cabin ; nor was 

 he reconciled to my departure when my servants left the ves- 

 sel at Gravesend. It may not be out of place to mention here 

 the extraordinary animal which is said to exist in the coun- 

 tries to the north of the Gaboon river. The natives describe 

 it as the largest of all monkeys, but of a breadth more tre- 

 mendous than its height ; they declare that one blow of its 

 paw would fell a man to the earth. Both males and females 

 are very much attached to their young, and the latter carry 

 them about after death till they drop from their arms. They 

 are fond of imitating men ; walk upright ; and, having seen the 

 natives collect ivory, if they find a tusk, they carry it on their 

 shoulders till they sink with fatigue. They are said to build 

 huts with leaves and boughs of trees, but not to have sufficient 

 sagacity to live in them, as they get on the roof, and there 

 abide the inclemencies of the tornado season. They attack 

 travellers as if they thought them intruders, and have never 

 yet been taken alive. 



It is alleged that the African ourang approaches nearer to 

 man than any other. It would, therefore, be extremely inte- 

 resting to procure one of these Ingheenas, which are probably 

 quite new ; for although we know nothing of them except by 

 report, and doubtless hear a number of absurdities respecting 



