Emu and Ostrich Farming. 61 



floored it, and it took the united streng-th of six men to carry it 

 from the point of capture to the part of the field where the large 

 travelling- cases were ranged. During the fun " Tommy " escaped 

 over the fence, an ordinary wire one, and got into the river, and 

 I shall never forget the scene of the huge bird careering down the 

 centre for a quarter of a mile with fountains of water splashing all 

 round and over him. As the hunt had been carried on with con- 

 siderable danger to all taking part in it, I was relieved when the 

 roll was called after it was over to find that no more serious 

 accident than a few cuts and bruises and the destruction of certain 

 garments, both upper and nether, had occurred to mar the day's 

 amusement. 



In 1869 I built a large room and heated it with hot-water 

 pipes, and in it was installed a small menagerie, the inmates of 

 which formed a most miscellaneous collection. I regret very 

 much that I did not keep daily notes of all the curious and interest- 

 ing things I observed during the seven years of its existence. I 

 might now have been able, if not to write a book myself, at least 

 to furnish material for one, which would have been of some value 

 to those whose hobby lay in the same direction as my own ; but 

 no notes were kept, and I can only now call to mind certain 

 incidents which are more vividly impressed upon my memory. 

 One among them, if you will allow me to narrate it, is the story 

 of a monkey. I noticed in a local newspaper an advertisement 

 intimating that there was to be held in this town of Dumfries a 

 sale by auction of sundry foreign birds and animals, the latter 

 including several species of monkeys. As I had long- wished to 

 add a certain kind of monkey to my collection, I started off with- 

 out telling anyone the object of my journey, having serious and 

 cowardly misgivings as to what my friends would say if they 

 knew I was going to invest in a " pug-gy." On arriving in Dum- 

 fries I went straight to the saleroom, and among the " pugs " was 

 the very species I wanted, to wit, a Sooty Mangabey. As its 

 name implies, the colour of this animal is black or nearly so all 

 over, something similar to a " faded chimney sweeper," the face 

 is jet black, and its eyelids are white. As the colour has some 

 connection with the denouement of the story please remember 

 it. The " lot " was duly knocked down to the person whose 

 determination to possess it defied all competition, and that person 

 was myself. I proceeded to the nearest grocer's shop and borrowed 



