THE STORY OF THE LEMUR. 



257 



obtain water, or for the purpose of crossing from one plantation or coppice 

 to another, th'^ey but rarely leave the trees. Their diet is extremely mixed, 

 scarcely anything coming amiss to them, as will be inferred when we men- 

 tion that leaves, fruits, insects, reptiles, birds' eggs, and birds themselves are 

 eagerly consumed by most of these animals. 



By the natives of Madagascar the lemurs are looked upon with suspicious 

 awe, and are consequently but seldom molested. This is doubtless due to 



syy- 





\2w 





THE RUFFED LEMUR. 



their nocturnal habits and ghost-like movements; while the large eyes essen- 

 tial to these and all other nocturnal creatures have perhaps contributed to 

 this feeling. In Ceylon and India the large glaring eyes of one of the 

 prettiest of the lemurs used to lead to the unfortunate creatures being put to 

 a cruel death. None of the lemurs attain any very large size, and all of 

 them, when unmolested, are perfectly harmless and inoffensive animals, ex- 

 cept to the birds, reptiles, and insects -upon which they prey. 



