CHAP. XVIII.] POWERS OF HIGHER BRUTES. 329 



was sufficient to keep it in awe. I have seen it give its hand to show 

 the company to the door, that came to see it, and it would walk 

 gravely with them as if one of the society. I have seen it sit at 

 table, unfold its napkin, wipe its lips, make use of the spoon and 

 fork to carry the victuals to its mouth, pour out its drink into a 

 glass, touch glasses when invited, take a cup and saucer and lay 

 them on the table, put in sugar, pour out its tea, leave it to cool 

 before drinking, and all this without any other instigation than the 

 signs or command of its master, and often of its own accord. It 

 was gentle and inoffensive : it even approached strangers with 

 respect, and came rather to receive caresses than to offer injuries : 

 it ate of almost everything that was offered to it, but it preferred 

 dry and ripe fruit to all other aliments. It would drink wine, but 

 in small quantities, and willingly left it for milk, or any other sweet 

 liquor." 



Again in regard to the high degree of Intelligence of 

 the Orang, we have the following, on the best of testi- 

 mony, from Leuret, who says*: 



"One of the Orangs, which recently died at the Menagerie 

 of the Musee, was accustomed, when the dinner-hour had come, 

 to open the door of the room where he took his meals in 

 company with several persons. As he was not sufficiently tall to 

 reach as far as the key of the door, he hung on to a rope, balanced 

 himself, and after a few oscillations very quickly reached the key. 

 His keeper, who was rather worried by so much exactitude, one day 

 took occasion to make three knots in the rope, which, having thus 

 been made too short, no longer permitted the Orang-outan to seize 

 the key. The animal, after an ineffectual attempt, recognizing the 

 nature of the obstacle which opposed his desire, climbed up the 

 rope, placed himself above the knots, and untied all three, in the 

 presence of M. Geoffroy Saint- Hilaire, who related the fact to me. 

 The same ape wishing to open a door, his keeper gave him a bunch 

 of fifteen keys; the ape tried them in turn till he had found the one 

 which he wanted. Another time a bar of iron was put into his 

 hands, and he made use of it as a lever." 



Unfortunately nothing is said as to the age of this 

 animal, whose power of realizing the nature of unfamiliar 

 * " Anat. Comp. du Syst. Nerv." t i. p. 540. 



