54 STUDIES IN LIFE AND SENSE. 



in order that I might be presented with an opportunity of com- 

 paring their habits. These two first additions to my family circle 

 consisted of a clever little Bonnet Macaque (Macacus radiatus\ who 

 was duly named " Jenny," and a Brown Capuchin ( Cebus fatuelhis), 

 who was christened " Paddy," from certain facial characteristics 

 which suggested the appropriateness of an Hibernian cognomen. I 

 soon added to these two monkeys, a third a somewhat aged 

 common Macaque (Macacus cynomologns), which I obtained from 

 the keeper of a public-house in the North of England, and whose 

 deteriorated habits in the way of a fondness for becoming intoxicated 

 on beer would have merited the reprobation of a temperance re- 

 former. A visit to Jamrach's resulted in the purchase of a very 

 fine Sooty Mangabey ( Cercopithecus fuliginosus], which was named 

 "Cetchy," from a decided resemblance borne by this monkey to 

 the Zulu Chief. At varying intervals, when death had thinned the 

 ranks of my monkey-family, I bought other two common Macaques, 

 respectively named " Rosy" and "Polly" ; another Bonnet Monkey, 

 " Salaam " (so named from his habit of salutation), and a second 

 beautiful Brown Capuchin ( Cebus fatuelhts\ known as "Sammy." 



The careful observation of these monkeys convinced me that 

 the opinion I had before formed of the varying mental powers to be 

 found amongst the individuals even of one and the same species was 

 a thoroughly correct one. Thus, to select the two bonnet monkeys, 

 " Jenny " and " Salaam," I found that, whilst the former exhibited 

 (and I ought to say still exhibits) a high intelligence and acute 

 perception, the latter was dull and even stupid, and could with 

 difficulty be made to perform such simple acts as the other monkeys 

 readily understood. After noticing how varied were the mental 

 powers of my monkeys, I could the better realise the force of the 

 illustration which Mr. Darwin cites in his " Descent of Man " 

 regarding the variability of the faculty of attention in monkeys. Mr. 

 Bartlett, of the Zoological Gardens, informed Mr. Darwin that 

 "a man who trains monkeys to act in plays used to purchase 

 common kinds from the Zoological Society at the price of five 

 pounds for each ; but he offered to give double the price if he might 

 keep three or four of them for a few days in order to select one. 

 When asked how he could possibly learn so soon whether a parti- 

 cular monkey would turn out a good actor, he answered that it all 

 depended on their power of attention. If, when he was talking and 

 explaining anything to a monkey, its attention was easily distracted, 

 as by a fly on the wall or other trifling object, the case was hopeless. 

 If he tried by punishment to make an inattentive monkey act, it 

 turned sulky. On the other hand, a monkey which carefully attended 

 to him could always be trained." Mr. Darwin, remarking on the 

 diversity of the mental faculties in men of the same race, says, " So- 



