An Infant Mias. 53 



the first full-grown specimen I had obtained ; but it was a 

 female, and not nearly so large or remarkable as the full-grown 

 males. It was, however, three feet six inches high, and its 

 arms stretched out to a width of six feet six inches. I pre- 

 served the skin of this specimen in a cask of arrack, and pre- 

 pared a perfect skeleton, which was afterward purchased for 

 the Derby Museum. 



Only four days afterward some Dyaks saw another mias 

 near the same place, and came to tell me. We found it to be 

 a rather large one, very high up on a tall tree. At the second 

 shot it fell, rolling over, but almost immediately got up again 

 and began to climb. At a third shot it fell dead. This was 

 also a full-grown female, and while preparing to carry it home, 

 we found a young one face downward in the bog. This little 

 creature was only about a foot long, and had evidently been 

 hanging to its mother when she first fell. Luckily it did not 

 appear to have been wounded, and after we had cleaned the 

 mud out of its mouth it began to cry out, and seemed quite 

 strong and active. While carrying it home it got its hands 

 in my beard, and grasped so tightly that I had great difiiculty 

 in getting free, for the fingers are habitually bent inward at 

 the last joint so as to form complete hooks. At this time it 

 had not a single tooth, but a few days afterward it cut its two 

 lower front teeth. Unfortunately, I had no milk to give it, as 

 neither Malays, Chinese, nor Dyaks ever use the article, and 

 I in vain inquired for any female animal that could suckle my 

 little infant. I was therefore obliged to give it rice-water 

 from a bottle with a quill in the cork, which after a few trials 

 it learned to suck very well. This was very meagre diet, and 

 the little creature did not thrive well on it, although I added 

 sugar and cocoa-nut milk occasionally, to make it more nour- 

 ishing. When I put my finger in its mouth, it sucked with 

 great vigor, drawing in its cheeks with all its might in the 

 ' vain efibrt to extract some milk, and only after persevering 

 a long time would it give up in disgust, and set up a scream 

 very like that of a baby in similiar circumstances. 



When handled or nui-sed, it was very quiet and contented, 

 but when laid down by itself would invariably cry ; and for 

 the first few nights was very I'estless and noisy. I fitted 

 up a little box for a cradle, with a soft mat for it to lie upon. 



