30 Lemurs. 



and prominent eyes, has lived in its present 

 quarters since the year 1878, and is still fat and 

 well-liking. " Billy/' as it is called, is perfectly 

 tame ; but from its strictly nocturnal habits is 

 by no means lively in the daytime, though it never 

 seems to resent being taken out of its snug nest 

 of hay for purposes of exhibition ; but, in the even- 

 ing, after the Gardens are closed, it wakes up, and 

 takes both food and exercise. Like the dormouse, 

 tihs species hibernates during the cold season. 



To lovers of pets, lemurs must always be of 

 interest, as no other animals combine so many 

 attractive qualities ; in fact, in our opinion, the 

 only drawback they possess is their excessive 

 delicacy, which renders them extremely difficult to 

 keep in a house ; so difficult, indeed, are most 

 of the species, and notably the most beauti- 

 ful of all, the ring-tailed lemur, that even at 

 the Zoo, where they live in an even temperature 

 and carefully guarded from their greatest enemy, 

 draught, they are by no means long lived. Were it 

 not for this most unfortunate drawback they would, 

 no doubt, be far more often kept than they are. 

 They have all the amusing ways of the smaller 

 monkeys without their treachery and cunning, and, 

 though they can bite shrewdly- on occasion, they 

 are, especially if they have been captured young, 

 usually gentle in their manners and capable 

 of great affection ; in fact, to quote an old 

 author, they are " very sociable, gentle, harmless 

 creatures." Their activity is most extraordinary, 



