LORIS. 231 



extract the juice. I have, upon such an occasion, seen him lie all his length upon 

 his back, in the bottom of the cage, and, firmly grasping the piece of orange in 

 both ham Is, squeeze the juice into his mouth. He generally sits upon his hind 

 part (the hair of which is much worn by long sitting), close to the bars of his cage, 

 grasping them firmly with his hind paws ; he then rolls himself up like a ball, with 

 his head in his breast, his thighs closely placed over his belly, and his arms over 

 his head, generally grasping the bars of the cage with his hands also. In this 

 position, and also without moving, he remains the whole day. Upon coming into 

 the Channel, the cold weather affected him very much ; he was seized with cramp, 

 and I at that time placed him in a small box, which was filled with very soft down. 

 This he felt so agreeable that, when cold, he never left it during the whole day, 

 unless disturbed, and slept in it rolled up in the shape of a ball. He is extra- 

 ordinarily slow in his motions, and his trivial name, tardigradus, well marks his 

 habit in that particular . . . When he climbs he first lays hold of the branch with 

 one of his hands, and then with the other. When he has obtained a firm hold with 

 both hands, he moves one of his hind paws, and, after firmly grasping the branch 

 with it, he moves the other. He never quits his hold with his hind paws until he 

 has obtained a secure grasp with his hands. When he walks, he moves his limbs in 

 the same methodical manner as when he climbs. 



" His temper, in cold weather especially, is very quick ; but, in general, he is 

 rather timid, and never offers any injury unless incautiously touched, teased, or 

 provoked; he then makes a shrill, plaintive cry, evidently expressive of much 

 annoyance, and bites very sharply." He was obtained from the island of Penang, 

 lying off the Malay Peninsula, and belonged to that variety in which the brown 

 stripe of the back expands into a large triangular patch on the crown of the head. 



The Javan loris (N. javanicus), said to be confined to the island from which it 

 derives its name, is distinguished by having four brown bands running down the 

 head and face from the crown, one band going to each eye, and one to each ear ; 

 the interspaces being pale, and the space between the eyes white. As Mr. Blanford 

 remarks, this coloration is only one step in advance on that obtaining in the 

 third variety of the slow loris mentioned on p. 229, and it is therefore extremely 

 doubtful whether the Javan loris really has any right to rank as a separate species. 



THE SLENDER LORIS (Loris gracilis). 



The slender loris, of which we give an illustration on p. 230, represent- 

 ing it asleep, and another on p. 232, is the sole species of the genus to which it 

 belongs. It is distinguished from the slow loris by its lighter build of body and 

 longer and more slender limbs, as well as by the greater size of the eyes, which are 

 separated merely by a narrow space. The ears are also somewhat larger than in 

 the slow loris. 



The slender loris is a much smaller animal than the preceding species, the 

 length of the head and body being about 8 inches. In colour it is a dark earthy 

 grey, with a more or less marked ruddy tinge on the back and outer sides of the 

 limbs, and showing a faint silvery wash; the under -parts being much paler. 

 Between the eyes there is the usual narrow white stripe, which spreads out on the 



