100 THE PINCHE. 
its house well furnished with soft and warm bedding, which it piles up in a corner, and 
under which it delights to hide itself. 
The Marmosets do not seem to be possessed of a very large share of intelligence, but 
yet are engaging little creatures if kindly treated. They are very fond of flies and other 
insects, and will often take a fly from the hand of the visitor. One of these animals with 
whom I struck up an acquaintance, took great pleasure in making me catch flies for its use, 
and taking them daintily out of my hand. When it saw my hand sweep over a doomed 
fly, the bright eyes sparkled with eager anticipation ; and when I approached the cage, 
the little creature thrust its paw through the bars as far as the wires would permit, and 
opened and closed the tiny fingers with restless impatience. It then insinuated its hand 
among my closed fingers, and never failed to find and to capture the imprisoned fly. 
When properly tamed, the Marmoset will come and sit on its owner's hand, its little 
paws clinging tightly to his fingers, and its tail coiled over his hand or wrist. Or it 
will clamber up his arm and sit on his shoulders, or if chilly, hide itself beneath his 
coat, or even creep into a convenient pocket. 
The Marmoset has a strange liking for hair, and is fond of playing with the locks of 
its owner, One of these little creatures, which was the property of a gentleman adorned 
with a large bushy beard, was wont to creep to its master’s face, and to nestle among the 
thick masses of beard which decorated his chin. Another Marmoset, which belonged to 
a lady, and which was liable to the little petulances of its race, used to vent its anger 
by nibbling the end of her ringlets. If the hair were bound round her head, the curious 
little animal would draw a tress down, and bite its extremity, as if it were trying to eat 
the hair by degrees. The same individual was possessed of an accomplishment which is 
almost unknown among these little monkeys, namely, standing on its head. 
Generally, the Marmoset preserves silence ; but if alarmed or irritated, it gives vent 
to a little sharp whistle, from which it has gained its name of Ouistiti. It is sufficiently 
active when in the enjoyment of good health, climbing and leaping about from bar to bar 
with an agile quickness that reminds the observer of a squirrel. 
Its food is both animal and vegetable in character ; the animal portion being chiefly 
composed of various insects, eggs, and it may be, an occasional young bird, and the vege- 
table diet ranging through most of the edible fruits. A tame Marmoset has been known 
to pounce upon a living gold fish, and to eat it. In consequence of this achievement, 
some young eels were given to the animal, and at first terrified it by their strange 
writhings, but in a short time they were mastered, and eaten. 
Cockroaches are a favourite article of food with the Marmoset, who might be put to 
good service in many a house. In eating these troublesome insects, the Marmoset nips 
off the head, wings, and bristly legs, eviscerates the abdomen, and so prepares the insect 
before it is finally eaten. These precautions, however, are only taken when the cockroach 
is one of the larger specimens, the smaller insects being eaten up at once, without any 
preparation whatever. 
Several instances of the birth of young Marmosets have taken place in Europe, but 
the young do not seem to thrive well in these climates. The colour of the young animal 
is a dusky grey, without the beautiful markings which distinguish them when adult, 
and the tail is destitute of hair. 
The length of the full-grown Marmoset is from seven to eight inches, exclusive of the 
tail, which measures about a foot. 
The two elegant little animals which are represented in the preceding page are 
members of the same genus as the Marmoset, inhabitants of nearly the same localities, 
and possessed of many similar qualities. 
The Pincus is remarkable for the tuft of white and long hair which it bears on its 
head, and which is so distinctly marked, that the little creature almost seems to be wear- 
ing an artificial head of hair. The throat, chest, abdomen, and arms, are also white, and 
the edges of the thighs are touched with the same tint. On each shoulder there is a patch 
of reddish-chestnut, fading imperceptibly into the white fur of the chest, and the greyish- 
brown hair that covers the remainder of the body. Its eyes are quite black. 
The tail of the animal is long and moderately full; its colour slightly changes from 
