444 WILD BEASTS AND THEIR WAYS CUAP. 



streets, no doubt moralising upon the stupidity of human nature, 

 which is forced to labour, whereas the wise monkey lives by the 

 pilfering of its hands. 



In Ahmedabad it is a common trick upon an unpleasant neigh- 

 bour, to throw a few handfuls of gram (a sort of pea) upon his 

 roof. The tiles being always loose, the gram sticks between them, 

 and some finds its way beneath. The monkeys in their wanderings 

 are certain to discover the much-loved food, and with the greatest 

 diligence they lift up the tiles, and turn them over to discover the 

 grains that are concealed below. The first heavy shower informs 

 the owner that the monkeys have been gleaning upon his roof, and 

 improving the arrangement of his tiles. 



These wretched animals entirely destroy the fruit. I have seen 

 large tamarind trees left completely bare. It is astonishing how 

 they can eat the unripe tamarind pod, as the acid is intense ; but 

 they munch this with avidity. They also eat the leaves. 



When the mangoes change their foliage in March, the various 

 tints of colouring are most beautiful. Some varieties burst forth 

 in a vivid green, others dark ; some will be a bright copper colour, 

 and a few deep purple. The monkeys then delight to eat the 

 young foliage, and in some cases nearly strip the tree. When the 

 mango fruit is swelling in late April, but still unripe, it is dreadful 

 to see the utter destruction entailed by a large troop of monkeys. 

 It is not what they actually consume, but the immense quantity 

 which they spoil, by recklessly biting hundreds and thousands of 

 unripe fruit, and throwing them, discarded, upon the ground. 



The flying fox (Pteropus) is also a great enemy of the fruit trees. 

 This large bat is frugivorous, but also an insect-eater. Although 

 its habits are nocturnal, it exposes itself during the day by roosting 

 in many thousands together upon certain large trees. 



I have seen tamarind trees the size of our largest oaks so com- 

 pletely covered with many thousands of these creatures suspended 

 head downwards by the hook at the extremity of the wing, that 

 the entire tree looked as though covered with old leather bags. 

 The ordure of these bats poisons and destroys the foliage of the 

 tree which they monopolise as their meeting-place. They vary in 

 size from 3 feet to 4 feet 2 inches, which is the largest I have 

 measured from tip to tip of out-stretched wings. They have only 

 two young ones, which cling to the breasts and sides of the mother 

 during her flight. The head of this species resembles that of a 

 very small fox ; hence its name. The teeth are differently shaped 

 from those of ordinary bats (Vespertitio, Lin.), as the grinders 

 denote the quality of their food, which is chiefly vegetable. There 



