20 MAMMALIA ORDER I. PRIMATES. 



chiefly on young shoots or leaves ; and it is in adaptation to this diet that 

 their stomach is specially modified and cheek-pouches are wanting. The 

 constitution of all the tribe is very delicate, so that these monkeys are ill- 

 adapted to stand captivity. 



The peculiar structure of the nose is sufficient to differentiate the proboscis- 

 monkey from all its allies ; but to this may be added the circumstance that 

 the tail is shorter than the head and body. 



The numerous species of langurs, which are nearly thirty in number, are 

 confined to the Oriental countries, where one species ranges as far north as 

 Kashmir, while a second is peculiar to the highlands of 

 Langnrs Eastern Tibet. All these monkeys have thin and slender 

 (Semnopithecus). bodies, elongated limbs, and a very long and whip-like tail ; 

 the head being rounded, and the muzzle short and thick. 

 The thumb is rather short, but the great-toe well developed; and the cal- 

 losities on the buttocks are relatively small. The hair is abundant, and 

 generally long, soft, and frequently glossy ; while there is usually a fringe of 

 long, stiff hairs projecting over the eyes. Grey is the predominant hue in 

 the pellage ; but the face, hands, and feet are perfectly black. 



The best known of all the group is the Hanuman, or sacred langur 

 (Ssmnopitheciis entellus) of India, which ranges from the Deccan northwards 

 to the south bank of the Ganges, and is held sacred by the Hindus. Of this 

 monkey a writer in the Graphic gives the following interesting account : 



'Among the thousand or more temples and shrines with which the holy 

 Hindu city of Benares is endowed, visitors generally find the great temple 

 dedicated to the worship of the goddess Durga one of the most interesting. 

 It is known to Europeans as the monkey-temple, because in and around its 

 precincts many hundreds of sacred monkeys roam about without interference. 

 The temple was erected during the last century by the Rani Bhawani of 

 Natre in honour of Shiva's wife, the goddess who is supposed to delight hi 

 death and slaughter, and of whom the believers in the various attributes of 

 the deities, comprising the Hindu Pantheon, stand in the greatest dread. 

 The Durga Kund is conspicuous in this city of temples for the grace and 

 simplicity of its architecture. It adjoins a tank which is the finest in Benares, 

 and occupies the central portion of a quadrangle, the walls being stained red 

 with ochre. The sacred portion of the temple consists of twelve finely-carved 

 pillars standing on a marble platform, and supporting a heavy roof. This 

 platform is about 4 ft. from the ground, and is ascended by a flight of low 

 steps "*on each side of the square. The temple is well provided with the 

 necessary instruments for creating the frightful noises which emanate from 

 these abodes of idolatry all over India. Drums of huge dimensions, gongs, 

 bells, and tom-toms are all at the service of the priests in performing the 

 rites required of them. But the antics of the monkeys which make this 

 temple their home are, next to its architecture, the most attractive feature 

 of the place. The goat's blood with which the walls are sprinkled, and the 

 sacrifices that are known to take place here to appease the wrath of Shiva 

 and his terrifying spouse, are rather revolting to a Christian ; but the grotesque 

 play of the monkeys, their importunate begging, the pranks they enact 

 on one another, and the graceful agility they are constantly displaying, supply 

 a perpetual source of amusement which one is apt to think must prove rather 

 distracting to the devout Hindus who come here to worship. A few years 

 ago, as no one dared molest these animals, they not only increased rapidly in 

 numbers, but, growing to be extraordinarily bold, developed alarming thiev 



