562 QUADRUMANA. 



hands either very minute or entirely wanting. Exclusively arboreal 

 in their habits, the Spider Monkeys move on the ground with a 

 vacillating gait, dragging themselves along by means of their long 

 fore-arms, which they use like crutches, the fist being half closed ; 

 or they walk in a crawling position, sustaining themselves on their 

 hind feet only, and balanced by their long arms, and tail extended 

 ready to seize any object which may help progression. But among 

 the branches of the trees their agility is almost equal to that of a 

 bird ; the sensitive tip of the long tail lays hold of a bough with the 

 facility and security of a fifth Land, while its grasp is sufficiently 

 powerful to sustain the weight of the body as it swings. 



The monkeys of the eastern hemisphere differ 

 from the American monkeys in their teeth, which 

 are only thirty-two in number. Their nostrils are 

 placed close together, separated only by a narrow 

 partition, and in many species the tail is entirely 

 wanting. They may be divided in accordance with 

 the following Table : 



