LORDLY MAN. 



293 



father baboon will whack a youngster who has 

 been indiscreet enough to take his tail for a bell- 

 pull, or his majestic gait for a piece of assumption. 



But an idea arises in my mind : supposing human 

 beings were suddenly gifted with tails, they would at 

 first be naturally repulsive to look upon, because an in- 

 novation upon our present structure, but, once the eye 

 became accustomed to them, they would be thought an 

 adornment, or scarcely attract attention, and then how 

 useful they could be made if well developed. Thus the 

 agricultural population, by having a metal addition at- 

 tached to their tails, could with them hoe the ground, 

 the man of fashion lead his St. Bernard by it, and 

 those treasures, the jewels of our sex's eyes, "the 

 ladies," wear their bracelets, bangles, and rings upon 

 them. 



Baboons are monogamous, and if fate or accident 

 should deprive them of their helpmate, the Bechuanas 

 tell me that they never marry again. Thus, when 

 a baboon becomes a widower, he retires from the 

 coterie, composed of happy spouses, and devotes 

 himself to the service of the commonwealth by be- 

 coming a permanent sentry. This is self-sacrificing, 

 all will acknowledge, and few human beings would 



