WILD ANIMALS IN CAPTIVITY. 613 



science on account of the difference in its habits from those of 

 former Chimpanzees in the collection. My personal opinion 

 now is that individual animals of a species vary almost as much 

 in temperament and behavioiu" as human beings, and no hard 

 and fast rule can be laid down for their management. One has 

 to learn to know the " ])ersonality " — to use an incongruous term 

 — of each individual animal. 1 say this with reservations, but 

 my meaning will become clearer as I proceed. 



Baboons and Monkeys. — The Chacma Baboon and the 

 Vervet Monkey are both fairly shy animals in the wild state, 

 descending from their mountain fastnesses or leaving their thickly 

 wooded retreats for the vicinity of human liabitations, when 

 driven to do so by hunger, or under cover of night. When 

 young they make interesting and even lovable pets, but when 

 adult their temper becomes uncertain, and they are not to be 

 trusted. Individual examples, however, learn to love and fear 

 their masters, and may be taught to do tricks requiring a con- 

 siderable amount of intelligence. 



One individual — a Chacma Baboon — in the Eastern Pro- 

 vince of the Cape, was so attached to its master, who was maimed., 

 that it assisted him in his work in various ways. 



One Bonnet Monke}' in the Pretoria Zoological Gardens was 

 quite untameable, and could not even be placed in a cage with 

 its own kind. The keeper, however, maintained that the brute 

 liked and respected him, and would play with the animal despite 

 repeated warnings from me. The end of the matter was that, 

 without rhyme or reason, the monkey one dav pounced upon its 

 keeper and bit through his jugular vein. The unfortunate man 

 was laid up in hospital for six weeks, and T had the animal 

 destroyed. 



^^'e liad some South American Capuchin Monkeys, bright 

 and merry little fellows, full of fun and frolic, but ])ositive 'ittle 

 bullies, and tliey led one of their number — a grizzled old chap, 

 who was unfortunately an abject coward — a terrible life until he 

 was removed. Their delight in teasing and biting the unfor- 

 tunate one was almost human ( so far as the bullying element 

 goes), and the natures of the animals were as dift'erent as one 

 could possibly expect. The old chap subsequently became the 

 staff pet, and was fondled and made much off by all the members 

 of the staff, with the excejition of one, whom he could not endure, 

 although the man had done him no harm. He never attempted 

 to bite unless he was deliberately frightened, when his cowardly 

 nature caused him to retaliate without actually meaning to do 

 so. Many Baboons or Monkeys bite from j)ure "' cussedness '' or 

 contempt of man, and not because they are frightened, although 

 no doubf the latter is the reason zvhy most of them do bite. The 

 following striking passage occurs in Bartlett's book, already 

 mentioned : — 



The varialjlene.^s in the h.^bits and dispositions shown by the monkeys 

 selected for performing is Avell worthy of notice. Many of the different 



