ANIMALS. 529 



roiisidorcil us a delii-acy, and tlK)U!j;lit l)y some not iiiU'rior to 



* Tlie tapir has ten fore teeth in eadi jaw, and no tnsks ; the raniiie 

 tei'tli are single in earh jaw, and are bent inwards ; tlien- are five very 

 liroadgfrindersoneacli side in botlijaws, with a vacancy between them and 

 the cnttiiig- teetli. The fore feet liave each four hoofs, and tlie liind feet 

 three ; but on the fore feet is an additional false or supplementary hoof. It 

 lias a long extensible and flexible proboscis or snout. 



The tapir inhabits the woods and rivers of the eastern coast of South 

 America, from the isthmus of Darien to the river Amazon. The tapir 

 bleeps during- the day in the thickest and most covert places of the woods, 

 adjacent to the banks of rivers and lakes, into which it plunges when dis. 

 turbed, and s«-ims or u-;dks on the bottom in the same manner with tlie 

 liippopotamus. It goes about during the night in quest of food, and feeds 

 on grass, sugar-canes, fruits, and other vegetables. It is an animal of mild 

 and gentle nature, and is very easily nuvde tame, being sometimes kept in 

 farm-yards in Guinea, and fed along with the cattle ; it is timorous, salaci- 

 ous, sluggish, and slowfooted, but swims remarkably well, and dives to the 

 bottom of the water, where it walks as well as on dry land. When domesti- 

 cated it becomes familial' ; will take any thing that is offered, and will e\'en 

 rummage with its nose in people's pockets for meat. This is the largest of 

 the animals that are peculiar to America, being about the size of asraall cow and 

 having some general resemblance to a hog; in the male the nose is elonga- 

 ted into a sort of proboscis or flexible trunk, which extends far beluw the 

 lower jaw, and is capable of being contracted and extended at pleasure . 

 the sides of the snout are furrowed lengthways, and with this the animal is 

 ■.Me to lay hold of any thing, and convey it to its mouth ; the nose of the 

 female is destitute of this elongation, and botlijaws are of equal length, 

 ending in a pointed snout. The ears are roundish and erect ; the e)es 

 are very small ; the neck is thick, short, and has a kind of bristly mane, 

 about an inch and a half long on its upper part, near tin.' head ; the body 

 i- thick and clumsy, and the back is somewhat arched ; the legs are short 

 and tliick, with small black hollow hoofs ; the tail is very short and naked ; 

 the skin is very tough, and is covered with a short dusky coloured fur, 

 which in young animals is spotted with white. The voice of this animal re- 

 sembles a kind of hiss, or whistle, which is so easily imitated that in this 

 manner it is frequently trepanned. 



The general attitude of the tapir, when at rest, is sitting on its rump, Tt 

 sleeps much by day, and when attacked by dogs, makes a vigorous resist- 

 ance. It produces but one young at ii birth, of which it is very careful, lead- 

 ing it early to the water, to instruct it in swimming. It is gregarious, feeds 

 i/y night on vegetables, and does not ruminate, as M. Bajou allirms. 



Of this genus there is only one species, which is entirely confined to Sontli 

 America, and therefore was unknown to the ancients. 



A female tapir was exhibited at several of the fairs of Holland and Ger. 

 many, the keepers usually feeding it on rye-bread, a kind of gruel, and ve- 

 getables of dilierent kinds. It was excessively fond of apples, and was able 

 to smell them at a considerable distance. If any persons happened to have 

 .ijiples in their po«kets, it would eagerly approach them, and thriusting in 

 its proboscis would take tl.em out \\ ith surprising facility. It ate of almost 



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