446 THE CHEMECK. 



THE CHEMECK. 



The chemeck appears to have a wider range. It possesses 

 a thumb, slightly projecting, and furnished with a nail 

 though the thumb cannot be used like that of a human being, 

 as it is incapable of being opposed to the fingers. It is a gentle 

 creature, and capable of considerable cultivation. Although 

 playfully inclined, it is seldom spiteful ; while its disposition is 

 very different from that exhibited by the capricious temper of 

 the Old World monkeys. It soon learns to distinguish its 

 friends ; and will playfully pretend to attack them, but never 

 does any real harm. It is covered with a long fur, which falls 

 densely over the body ; as is its tail, which at once distinguishes 

 it from its relatives. The ear is somewhat similar to that of 

 man, but has no lower lobe. The nostrils open at the sides, 

 and are separated by a wide piece of cartilage. The habits, 

 however, of the ateles, are so similar, that they require no 

 separate description. 



Wandering through the forest with an Indian guide, we 

 reach an igarape or stream, where the lofty branches of the 

 trees do not completely meet overhead, but where the opening 

 is as yet of no great width. Lying concealed, we hear a 

 strange chattering and rustling among the foliage in the dis- 

 tance. Pieces of rotten wood, husks, and nuts come dropping 

 down, and we may see the boughs alive with numberless dark- 

 haired little creatures, their long lithe tails twisting and twirl- 

 ing, their active limbs stretched out in all directions, as they 

 make their way through the forest. We recognize them as a 

 troop of ateles, migrating to some other district, or on some 

 expedition in search of food. 



On reaching the boughs above the banks of the stream, 



