CLASS I. MAMMALIA: ORDER 2. QUADRUMANA. 67 



patted his head and encouraged him. He then came forth, and went about the room, looking 

 carefully, as if to satisfy himself that the snake was gone ; advanced to the chair more boldly ; 

 looked under it, and took the apple, and ate it with great appetite, dancing about, and resuming 

 all his former gayety. 



" We know that there are large constricting serpents in Africa ; and, as the animal must have 

 been very young when separated from its parents, I made this experiment in particular to try his 

 instinct : it succeeded, to the entire satisfaction of the witnesses who were present. 



"He manifested aversion to a small living tortoise, but nothing like the horror which he bc- 

 traved at sight of the snake. 



"Tommv, among other exercises, is very fond of swinging. He places himself on the swing, 

 generally in a sitting posture, holding on each side with his hands. He not [infrequently puts up 

 his feet, and grasps the cord on either side with them too, apparently more at home on his slack- 

 rope than II Diavolo Antonio himself. 



"James Hunt, one of the keepers, has observed him frequently sitting and leaning his head on 

 his hand, attentively looking at the keepers when at their supper, and watching, to use Hunt's 

 expression, ' every bit they put into their mouths.' Fuller, the head-keeper, informs me that our 

 chimpanzee generally takes his rest in a sitting posture, leaning rather forward, with folded arms, 

 and sometimes with his face in his hands. Sometimes he sleeps prone, with his legs rather drawn 

 up, and his head resting on his arms. 



"Of the black orangs or chimpanzees which I have seen, Tommy is by far the most lively. He 

 is in the best health and spirits, and is a very different animal from the drooping, sickly ones that 

 I have hitherto seen. A good deal of observation made on the Asiatic orangs which have been 

 exhibited in this country, satisfies me that the intelligence of the" African orang is superior to that 

 of the Asiatic. This intelligence is entirely different from that of a well-educated dog, or a mere 

 mimic, and gives me the idea of an intellect more resembling that of a human being than of any 

 other animal, though still infinitely below it 



"Tommy does not like confinement; and when he is shut into his cage, the violence with which 

 he pulls at and shakes the door is very great, and shows considerable strength ; but I have never 

 seen him use this exertion against any other part of the cage, though his keeper has endeavored 

 to induce him to do so, in order to see whether he would make the distinction. When at liberty, 

 he is extremely playful ; and in his high jinks I saw him toddle into a corner where an unlucky 

 bitch was lying with a litter of very young pups, and lay hold of one of them, till the snarling of 

 the mother, and the voice of his keeper, to which he pays instant respect, made him put the pup 

 down. He then climbed up to the top of the ca<*e where the marmosets were, and jumped furi- 

 ously upon it, evidently to astonish the inmates ; who were astonished accordingly, and huddled 

 together, looking up in consternation at this ' dreadful pother o'er their heads. 7 Then he went to 

 a window, opened it, and looked out. I was afraid that he might make his escape ; but the words 

 'Tommy, no!' pronounced by his keeper in a mild but firm tone, caused him to shut the window 

 and come away. He is, in truth, a most docile and affectionate animal, and it is impossible no* 

 to be taken by the expressive gestures and looks with which he courts your good opinion, and 

 throws himself upon you for protection against annoyance." 



The Gorilla, Troglodytes gorilla, is also found on the western coast of Africa, especially in the 

 vicinity of the Gaboon. Though larger and fiercer than the chimpanzee, it appears in other respects 

 to resemble it. The recent discovery and description of this animal has revived one of the curious 

 legends of ancient history, which is as follows : At an era of some five hundred years before Christ, 

 Ilanno, a Carthaginian admiral, sailed out of the Mediterranean by way of the Pillars of Hercules, 

 or Straits of Gibraltar, and founded cities on the Libyan coast. After a great variety of adven- 

 tures, having proceeded as far south as the Gulf of Guinea, he came to an island in this quarter in 

 which there was a lake, and in this lake another island, filled with savages all covered over with 

 hair. There were a great many more females than males. The Carthaginians pursued these 

 strange people, but they fled with precipitation, and the males, climbing up the steep rocks 

 with astonishing -agility, all escaped. Three of the females, however, fell into the hands of the 

 invaders. These were very furious, biting and scratching, and refusing to follow their captors. 



