402 



ANIMALS OF 



Such are the habitudes and the powers of 

 the smaller class of these extraordinary crea- 

 tures ; but we are presented with a very 

 different picture in those of a larger stature 

 and more muscular form. The little animals 

 we have been describing, which are seldom 

 found above four feet high, seem to partake of 

 the nature of dwarfs among the human species, 

 being gentle, assiduous, and playful, rather fit- 

 ted to amuse than terrify. But the gigantic races 

 of the ouran outang, seen and described by 

 travellers, are truly formidable ; and in the 

 gloomy forests, where they are only found, 

 seem to hold undisputed dominion. Many of 

 these are as tall or taller than a man ; active, 

 strong, and intrepid ; cunning, lascivious, and 

 cruel. This redoubtable rival of mankind is 

 found in many parts of Africa, in the East 

 Indies, in Madagascar, and in Borneo. 3 In 

 the last of these places, the people of quality 

 course him as we do the stag ; and this sort of 

 hunting is one of the favourite amusements of 

 the king himself. This creature is extremely 

 swift of foot, endowed with extraordinary 

 strength, and runs with prodigious celerity. 

 His skin is all hairy, his eyes sunk in his head, 

 his countenance stern, his face tanned, and 

 all his lineaments, though exactly human, 

 harsh and blackened by the sun. In Africa 

 this creature is even still more formidable. 

 Battel calls him the pongo, and assures us that 

 in all his proportions he resembles a man, ex- 

 cept that he is much larger, even to a gigantic, 

 state. His face resembles that of a man, the 

 eyes deep sunk in the head, the hair on each 

 side extremely long, the visage naked and 

 without hair, as also the ears and the hands. 

 The body is lightly covered, and scarcely dif- 

 ferring from that of a man, except that there 

 are no calves to the legs. Still, however, the 

 animal is seen to walk upon his hinder legs, 

 and in an erect posture. He sleeps under 

 trees, and builds himself a hut, which serves 

 to protect him against the sun and the rains of 

 the tropical climates, of which he is a native. 

 He lives only upon fruits, and is no way car- 

 nivorous. He cannot speak, although fur- 

 nished with greater instinct than any other 

 animal of the brute creation. When the negroes 

 make a fire in the woods, this animal comes 

 near and warms himself by the blaze. Ho\v- 



Le Compte's History of China. 



ever, he has not skill enough to keep the flame 

 alive by feeding it with fuel. They go to- 

 gether in companies, and if they happen to 

 meet one of the human species remote from 

 succour, they show him no mercy. They even 

 attack the elephant, which they beat with their 

 clubs, and oblige to leave that part of the fo- 

 rest which they claim as their own. It is im- 

 possible to take any of these dreadful creatures 

 alive, for they are so strong that ten men 

 would not be a match for but one of them. 

 None of this kind, therefore, are taken except 

 when very young, and these but rarely, when 

 the female happens to leave them behind ; for 

 in general they keep clung to the breast, and 

 adhere both with legs and arms. From the 

 same traveller we learn, that when one of 

 these animals dies, the rest cover the body 

 with a quantity of leaves and branches. They 

 sometimes also show mercy to the human 

 kind. A negro boy, that was taken by one 

 of these, and carried into the woods, continu- 

 ed there a whole year, without receiving any 

 injury. 1 " From another traveller we learn, 

 that these animals often attempt to surprise the 

 female negroes as they go into the woods, and 

 frequently keep them against their wills for 

 the pleasure of their company, feeding them 

 very plentifully all the time. He assures us, 

 that he knew a woman of Loango that had 

 lived among these animals for three years. 

 They grow from six to seven feet high, and 

 are of unequalled strength. They build sheds, 

 and make use of clubs for their defence. 

 Their faces are broad, their noses flat, their 

 ears without a tip, their skins are more bright 

 than that of a mulatto, and they are covered 

 on many parts of (he body with long and taw- 

 ny coloured hair. Their belly is large, their 

 heels flat, and yet rising behind. They some- 

 times walk upright, and sometimes upon all- 

 fours, when they are fantastically disposed. 



From this description of the ouran outang, 

 we perceive at what a distance the first ani- 

 mal of the brute creation is placed from the 

 very lowest of the human species. Even in 

 countries peopled with savages, this creature 

 is considered as a beast ; and in those very 

 places where we might suppose the smallest 

 difference between them and mankind, the in- 

 habitants hold it in the greatest contempt and 



b Le Brosse, as quoted by Buffon, vol. xxviii. p. 70. 



