THE FAUNA OF THE RAILROAD 17 



been killed by the new invention. Fortunately, the 

 popular interpretation of the omen was in favour of 

 the engine. They made offerings to it, and decorated 

 it with flowers, as being the stronger divinity. 



But after these early misunderstandings the animals 

 make the best of the railway, and in time find it one 

 of their best friends. Sometimes they actually take 

 toll of the railway. An amusing case of this sort was 

 recorded by Mr. Walter Scott, at one time manager of 

 the Mauritius Government Railways. " Trains of sugar- 

 canes, loaded in open-sided trucks, were worked over 

 a section of the line from the plantations to the usine 

 centrak some miles distant, and the three first miles of 

 the single-line railway passed through a forest with 

 trees quite close to the rails, up a very steep gradient, 

 and round sharp curves. When the first down passenger 

 train from Port Louis had passed the crossing station, 

 the loaded cane train was despatched towards the 

 summit. In the meantime, some monkeys in the 

 forest had timed the passage of the descending pas- 

 senger train, and had fixed sentinels who signalled 

 to their expectant comrades on trees the approach of 

 the cane train. As the train went crawling up the 

 incline a troop of monkeys sprang upon each waggon, 

 ten forming the train, and threw off quite a goodly 

 number of canes, which were gathered up as the train 

 slowly passed onwards. These depredations became 

 so serious that the planter appointed a watchman to 

 patrol this ' length ' ; but the malgaches have a super- 

 stitious dread of killing a monkey, which they term 

 di monde meme in Creole. The looting of these trains 



B 



