THE SLOW LEMURS, OR LORIS 231 



observes that it was also partial to small birds, which, "when put into his cage, he 

 kills speedily ; and plucking the feathers off with the skill of a poulterer, soon 

 lodges the carcass in his stomach. He eats the bones as well as the flesh; and 

 though birds, and mice perhaps, are his favorite food, he eats other meat very 

 readily, especially when quite fresh ; if boiled, or otherwise cooked, he will not taste 

 it. He prefers veal to all other kinds of butcher's meat ; eggs, also he is fond of, 

 and sugar is especially grateful to his palate ; he likewise eats gum arabic. As 

 flesh is not always to be had quite fresh (the only state in which it is acceptable to 

 him), he has for some time past been fed upon bread sopped in water and sprinkled 

 with sugar ; this he eats readily, and seems to relish much. . . . When food is 

 presented to him, if hungry, he seizes it with both hands, and, letting go with his 

 right, holds it with his left all the time he is eating. Frequently, when feeding, 

 he grasps the bars in the upper part of his cage with his hind paws, and hangs 

 inverted, appearing very much intent upon the food he holds in his left hand. He 

 is exceedingly fond of oranges, but when they are at all hard, he seems very much 

 puzzled how to extract the juice. I have, upon such an occasion, seen him lie all 

 his length upon his back, in the bottom of the cage, and firmly grasping the piece 

 of orange in both hands, squeeze the juice into his mouth. He generally sits upon 

 his hind part (the hair of which is much worn by long sitting), close to the bars of 

 his cage, grasping them firmly with his hind paws ; he then rolls himself up like a 

 ball, with his head on his breast, his thighs closely placed over his belly, and his 

 arms over his head, generally grasping the bars of the cage with his hands also. 

 In this position, and also without moving, he remains the whole day. Upon coming 

 into the Channel, the cold weather affected him very much ; he was seized with 

 cramps, and I at that time placed him in a small box, which was filled with very 

 soft down. This he felt so agreeable that, when cold, he never left it during the 

 whole day, unless disturbed, and slept in it rolled up in the shape of a ball. He is 

 extraordinarily slow in his motions, and his trivial name, tardigradus, well marks 

 his habit in that particular. . . . When he climbs he first lays hold of the 

 branch with one of his hands, and then with the other. When he has obtained a 

 firm hold with both hands, he moves one of his hind paws, and, after firmly grasp- 

 ing the branch with it, he moves the other. He never quits his hold with his hind 

 paws, until he has obtained a secure grasp with his hands. When he walks, he 

 moves his limbs in the same methodical manner as when he climbs. 



"His temper, in cold weather especially, is very quick; but, in general, he is 

 rather timid, and never offers any injury unless incautiously touched, teased, or 

 provoked ; he then makes a shrill, plaintive cry, evidently expressive of much 

 annoyance, and bites very sharply." He was obtained from the island of Penang, 

 lying off the Malay Peninsula, and belonged to that variety in which the brown 

 stripe of the back expands into a large triangular patch on the crown of the head. 



The Javan loris (N. javanicus} , said to be confined to the island from which it 

 derives its name, is distinguished by having four brown bands running down the 

 head and face from the crown, one band going to each eye, and one to each ear; 

 the interspaces being pale, and the space between the eyes white. As Mr. Blanford 

 remarks, this coloration is only one step in advance of that obtaining in the third 



