48 THE MAGOT. 



death of a monkey, at which they had thoughtlessly fired. But although the monkeys 

 may not be hurt, and are allowed to plunder the crops at their own sweet will, the Hindoo 

 cultivators are by no means pleased to see their fields so often devastated, and would 

 willingly preserve them from the depredators in spite of their divine, though thievish 

 character. 



To drive away the monkeys is almost an impossible act on the part of the native proprietor ; 

 for the monkeys consider themselves as quite on an equality with any dark-skinned human 

 being, and decline to move an inch. So the only resource is to beg a European to undertake 

 the task ; and the monkeys, knowing that a white man is not so scrupulous as a black one, 

 take the hint, and move off. 



One ready-witted gentleman succeeded in keeping the monkeys away from his plantation 

 for more than two years, and that without using any violence, or offending the prejudices of 

 the natives. 



He had planted a patch of sugar-canes, and had seen his growing crops eaten by elephants, 

 swine, deer, monkeys and other animals, without being able to guard the ground from the 

 robbers. The heavier animals he excluded by means of a deep trench surrounding the cane- 

 patch, and a strong palisading of bamboos just within the ditch. But the monkeys cared 

 nothing for moat or wall, and carried off whole canes in their hands, eating them complacently 

 as they proceeded to the shelter of the trees. 



For a long time this state of things continued, and the planter was doomed to see the 

 ripening canes devoured in his very presence, and the chewed fragments spit in his face by the 

 robbers. This last insult proved too great a strain for his patience to endure, and after some 

 thought, he hit upon a stratagem which answered even beyond his expectation. 



He chased a flock of the monkeys into a tree, which he then felled ; and by the help of his 

 assistants, captured a number of the young, which he conveyed home. 



He then mixed some treacle with as much tartar-emetic as could be spared from the store, 

 and after painting all the young monkeys with this treacherous mixture set them free. Their 

 anxious parents had been watching for their offspring, and carried them away out of danger. 

 The liberated captives were then surrounded by the whole troop, who commenced licking the 

 treacle from their fur. Before very long, the expected effects made their appearance, and the 

 poor monkeys presented a most pitiful appearance. 



The result of the affair was, that the monkeys were so terrified at the internal anguish 

 which their depredations had caused them to suffer, that they fled the place, and not a monkey 

 was seen in that locality until long afterwards. 



In captivity they are most mischievous, and are always on the watch for an opportunity 

 of exhibiting a little malice. 



They tear pieces out of the dress of anybody who may happen to approach near their cage ; 

 they snatch at any ornament that strikes their quick eyes ; they grin and chatter with exulta- 

 tion when they succeed in their mischief, and scream with rage when they are foiled. They 

 prefer to exercise these abilities on human sufferers ; but in default of man, whom they con- 

 sider their legitimate game, they are not above playing practical jokes upon each other, and, 

 better still, upon the inhabitants of neighboring cages. 



Some are of so jealous a disposition that the sight of another monkey eating a nut will 

 throw them into a state of angry irritation, which is not always pacified even by the gift of a 

 similar or even a better article. 



The skin of this monkey is very loose about the throat and abdomen, and generally hangs 

 in folds. 



The animal which is shown in the accompanying engraving is one of the best known of the 

 monkey tribe ; as it is tolerably hardy, it endures the changeable and chilly European climates 

 better than most of its race. 



As its name implies, it is a native of Barbary, where it is found in great numbers, but has 

 also been naturalized upon the rock of Gibraltar. The Gibraltar MAGOTS are frequently men- 

 tioned in books of travel, and display great ingenuity in avoiding pursuit and discovering food. 

 They keep to the most inaccessible portions of the rock, and scamper away hurriedly on the 



