THE MARMOSET 69 



in the savannahs a long distance from home. Italian organ- 

 grinders prefer this monkey almost to any other. Usually it 

 is quite harmless, but its temper is unreliable. Sometimes, 

 without provocation, it will spring upon a bystander and 

 inflict a nasty bite before the victim is aware of the animal's 

 purpose. 



There yet remain various monkeys of more or less interest, 

 deserving of some extended notice did space permit. The 

 Saki, elegant in form, is clothed with long furry hair, which 

 doubtless serves a very useful purpose in saving it from the 

 stings of wild bees when the animal raids the nests in search 

 of honeycomb, which is its favourite food. One species 

 (Pithecia chiropotes) is called the Hand-drinker, because it 

 does not apply its lips to the liquid, but takes it up in the 

 hollow of its hand and thus conveys it to its mouth. 

 The Douroucouli (Nyctipithecus trivirgatus) is the owl of 

 the monkey race. It spends the hours of daylight in a 

 deep sleep, from which it cannot be roused even to avoid 

 capture. But at night it becomes filled with life and spirit, 

 and captures not only birds in the trees, but winged insects 

 as they flit by. Lastly, we come to two little animals with 

 which our inquiries into the Anthropoidea must come to 

 an end. 



MABMOSET (Hdfale Jacchus). 

 Plate IV. Fig. 2. 



One of the few monkeys that can with truthfulness be 

 termed pretty is the Marmoset. There are several species, 

 and all are beautiful, with the gentle, engaging manners 

 which have earned for them the generic name of Hdpale, 

 or sweet. Only seven or eight inches long, or about as big 

 as a full-grown rat, the thick, soft fur and the long, bushy 

 tail, a foot in length, give it the aspect of a considerably 

 larger animal. The colour of the coat is a peculiarly rich 

 brown, which appears quite ruddy when the hairs are blown 

 aside. The tail, which is not prehensile, is light grey, ringed 

 with black, and there is a prominent tuft of white hair on 

 either side of the head, standing out before the ears. The 



