THE MONKEY KIND. 



401 



its napkin, wipe its lips, make use of the spoon 

 and the 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 the command of its master, and often 

 of its own accord. It was gentle and inoffen- 

 sive ; it even approached strangers with re- 

 spect, and came rather to receive caresses 

 than to offer injuries. It was particularly fond 

 of sugared comfits, which every body was 

 ready to give it ; and, as it had a defluxion 

 upon the breast, so much sugar contributed to 

 increase the disorder, and shorten its life. It 

 continued at Paris but one summer, and died 

 in London. It ate indiscriminately of all 

 things, but it preferred dry and ripe fruits to 

 all other aliments. It would drink wine, but 

 in small quantities, and gladly left it for milk, 

 tea, or any other sweet liquor. 



Such these animals appeared when brought 

 into Europe. However, many of their ex- 

 traordinary habits were probably the result of 

 education, and we are not told how long the in- 

 structions they received for this purpose were 

 continued. But we learn from another ac- 

 count, that they take but a very short time to 

 come to a great degree of imitative perfection. 

 Mr. L. Brosse bought two young ones, that 

 were but a year old, from a negro ; and these 

 at that early age discovered an astonishing 

 power of imitation. 8 They even then sat at 

 the table like men, ate of every thing without 

 distinction, made use of their knife, spoon, and 

 fork, both to eat their meat and help them- 

 selves. They drank wine and other liquors. 

 When carried on ship-board they had signs for 

 the cabin boys expressive of their wants ; and 

 whenever these neglected attending upon them 

 as they desired, they instantly flew into a 

 passion, seized them by the arm, bit them, and 

 kept them down. The male was sea-sick, and 

 required attendance like a human creature ; 

 he was even twice bled in the arm, and every 

 time afterwards, when he found himself out of 

 order, he showed his arm, as desirous of being 

 relieved by bleeding. 



Pyrard relates, that in the province of Sierra 

 Leona, in Africa, there are a kind of apes, 



As quoted by Buflbn, vol. xxviii. p. T7- 



called Baris, which are strong and muscular, 

 and which, if properly instructed when young, 

 serve as very useful domestics. They usually 

 walk upright; they pound at a mortar; they 

 go to the river to fetch water, thfis they carry 

 back in a little pitcher on their heads ; but if 

 care be not taken to receive the pitcher at their 

 return, they let it fall to the ground, and then, 

 seeing it broken, they begin to lament and cry 

 for their loss. Le Compte's account is much 

 to the same purpose of an ape, which he saw 

 in the Straits of Molucca. " It walked upon 

 its two hind feet, which it bent a little, like a 

 dog that had been taught to dance. It made 

 use of its hands and arms as we do. Its visage 

 was not much more disagreeable than that of 

 a Hottentot ; but the body was all over cover- 

 ed with a woolly hair of different colours. As 

 to the rest, it cried like a child ; all its outward 

 actions \\ere so like the human, and the pas- 

 sions so lively and significant, that dumb men 

 could scarcely better express their conceptions 

 and desires. It had also that expression of 

 passion or joy which we often see in children, 

 stamping with its feet, and striking them 

 against the ground, to show its spite, or when 

 refused any thing it passionately longed for. 

 Although these animals (continues he) are 

 very big, for that I saw was four feet high, 

 their nimbleness is incredible. It is a pleasure 

 beyond expression to see them run up the 

 tackling of a ship, where they sometimes play 

 as if they had a knack of vaulting peculiar to 

 themselves, or as if they had been paid, like 

 our rope-dancers, to divert the company. 

 Sometimes, suspended by one arm, they poise 

 themselves, and then turn all of a sudden 

 round about a rope, with as much quickness 

 as a wheel, or a sling put into motion. Some- 

 times holding the rope successively with their 

 long fingers, and, letting their whole body fall 

 into the air, they run full speed from one end 

 to the other, and come back again with the 

 same swiftness. There is no posture but they 

 imitate, nor motion but they perform, bending 

 themselves like a bow, rolling like a bowl, 

 hanging by the hands, feet, and teeth, accord- 

 ing to the different fancies with which their 

 capricious imagination supplies them. But 

 what is still more amazing than all, is their 

 agility to fling themselves from one rope to 

 another, though at thirty, forty, and fifty feet 

 distance." 



