Chap. V. MONKEYS. 143 



their compartment; 21 for in the course of a few min- 

 utes some of the monkeys ventured to approach and 

 touch the turtle. On the other hand, some of the larger 

 baboons were greatly terrified, and grinned as if on the 

 point of screaming out. When I showed a little dressed- 

 up doll to the Cynopithecus niger, it stood motionless, 

 stared intently with widely opened eyes, and advanced 

 its ears a little forwards. But when the turtle was 

 placed in its compartment, this monkey also moved 

 its lips in an odd, rapid, jabbering manner, which the 

 keeper declared was meant to conciliate or please the 

 turtle. 



I was never able clearly to perceive that the eye- 

 brows of astonished monkeys were kept permanently 

 raised, though they were frequently moved up and down. 

 Attention, which precedes astonishment, is expressed by 

 man by a slight raising of the eyebrows; and Dr. Du- 

 chenne informs me that when he gave to the monkey 

 formerly mentioned some quite new article of food, it 

 elevated its eyebrows a little, thus assuming an appear- 

 ance of close attention. It then took the food in its 

 fingers, and, with lowered or rectilinear eyebrows, 

 scratched, smelt, and examined it, — an expression of re- 

 flection being thus exhibited. Sometimes it would 

 throw back its head a little, and again with sud- 

 denly raised eyebrows re-examine and finally taste the 

 food. 



In no case did any monkey keep its mouth open when 

 it was astonished. Mr. Sutton observed for me a young 

 orang and chimpanzee during a considerable length of 

 time; and however much they were astonished, or whilst 

 listening intently to some strange sound, they did not 

 keep their mouths open. This fact is surprising, as with 



21 ' Descent of Man,' vol. i. p. 43. 



