THUMBLESS MONKEYS. 87 



the group last mentioned, it is not easy to see why they should have lost their 

 thumbs, unless, indeed, the small thumbs of their Indian cousins are practically 

 useless. 



In addition to being strictly African, all the thumbless monkeys, with one 

 exception, appear to be confined to the west coast, where they must be very 

 abundantly represented. Most of them are remarkable for the length and beauty 

 of the silky hairs with which their bodies are clothed ; their fur being largely 

 imported into Europe for use as trimming for other furs and various kinds of 

 apparel. 



Our imperfect acquaintance with this group in their native haunts must be 

 largely attributed to the neglect with which travellers and sportsmen treat 

 monkeys and baboons. In every book of travel or sport we are sure to find 

 chapter after chapter devoted to the hoofed mammals and the carnivores, but very 

 seldom is there a word about monkeys. We have no desire to place any check on 

 the continuous flow of information relating to any of the animals, but we venture 

 to put in a plea that at least some attention may be devoted to these when 

 opportunity offers. 



Before noticing some of the species of this group it may be mentioned that the 

 hair of all the thumbless monkeys is coloured uniformly, and by this character 

 even a small piece of their fur may be distinguished from that of all other African 

 monkeys, in which each individual hair is ringed with different hues. 



THE GUEREZA (Colobus guereza). 



We commence our account of the thumbless monkeys with this strikingly 

 handsome animal, which differs so much in external appearance from the other 

 members of the group that it was referred by Dr. Gray to a distinct genus. 



It is commonly reported to inhabit Abyssinia, but Mr. Blanford, who accom- 

 panied the Abyssinian Expedition under Lord Napier of Magdala, states that he 

 never heard of the animal in the part of the country traversed by the army, 

 and that the skins which are often offered for sale to travellers at Aden are really 

 brought from the mountains in the interior of Somaliland. As, however, Somali- 

 land and Abyssinia are continuous, it is highly probable that it may be found on 

 the eastern borders of the former ; and that it is found in Central Abyssinia in 

 the neighbourhood of Samen, we have the evidence of several of the earlier 

 travellers to prove. In Southern Abyssinia it appears to be of comparatively 

 common occurrence in the district of Gojam, and thence it extends further to the 

 southward into the Galla country. From the Galla country and Somaliland the 

 guereza appears to range to the south-west into the Niam-Niam district, lying to 

 the north-west of Lake Albert Nyanza, and to the southward as far as Kilima- 

 Njaro on the east coast. 



The head, body, and limbs of the guereza are covered with jet black hair of 

 moderate length ; but on either side of the back there arises a line of long hair, 

 hanging down below the flanks, and forming a kind of mantle of a pure white 

 colour. The dark face is also surrounded with a fringe of the same white hair, 

 which forms long whiskers lying flat on the cheeks, and directed backwards. The 



