54 THE MAGOT. 



To drive away the monkeys is almost an impossible act on the part of the native 

 proprietor ; for the monkeys consider themselves as quite on an equality with any 

 dark-skinned human being, and decline to move an inch. So the only resource is to 

 beg a European to undertake the task ; and the monkeys, knowing that a white man is 

 not so scrupulous as a black one, take the hint, and move off. 



One ready-witted Englishman succeeded in keeping the monkeys away from his 

 plantation for more than two years, and that without using any violence, or offending 

 the prejudices of the natives. 



He had planted a patch of sugar-canes, and had seen his growing crops eaten by 

 elephants, swine, deer, monkeys, and other animals, without being able to guard the 

 ground from the robbers. The heavier animals he excluded by means of a deep trench 

 surrounding the cane-patch, and a strong palisading of bamboos just within the 

 ditch. But the monkeys cared nothing for moat or wall, and carried off whole canes 

 in their hands, eating them complacently as they proceeded to the shelter of the 

 trees. 



For a long time this state of things continued, and the planter was doomed to see 

 the ripening canes devoured in his very presence, and the chewed fragments spit in 

 his face by the robbers. This last insult proved too great a strain for his patience to 

 endure, and after some thought, he hit upon a stratagem which answered even beyond 

 his expectation. 



He chased a flock of the monkeys into a tree, which he then felled ; and by the 

 help of his assistants, captured a number of the young, which he conveyed home. 



He then mixed some treacle with as much tartar-emetic as could be spared from the 

 store, and after painting all the young monkeys with this treacherous mixture set them 

 free. Their anxious parents had been watching for their offspring, and carried them 

 away out of danger. The liberated captives were then surrounded by the whole 

 troop, who commenced licking the treacle from their fur. Before very long the ex- 

 pected effects made their appearance, and the poor monkeys presented a most pitiful 

 appearance. 



The result of the affair was, that the monkeys were so terrified at the internal anguish 

 which their depredations had caused them to suffer, that they fled the place, and not a 

 monkey was seen in that locality until long afterwards. 



In captivity they are most mischievous, and are always on the watch for an oppor- 

 tunity of exhibiting a little malice. 



They tear pieces out of the dress of anybody who may happen to approach near 

 their cage ; they snatch at any ornament that strikes their quick eyes ; they grin and 

 chatter with exultation when they succeed in their mischief, and scream with rage 

 when they are foiled. They prefer to exercise these abilities on human sufferers ; but 

 in default of man, whom they consider their legitimate game, they are not above 

 playing practical jokes upon each other, and, better still, upon the inhabitants of 

 neighboring cages. 



Some are of so jealous a disposition that the sight of another monkey eating a nut 

 will throw them into a state of angry irritation, which is not always pacified even by 

 the gift of a similar or even a better article. 



The skin of this monkey is very loose about the throat and abdomen, and generally 

 hangs in folds. 



The animal which is shown in the following engraving is one of the best known of 

 the monkey tribe ; as it is tolerably hardy, it endures the changeable and chilly 

 European climates better than most of its race. 



As its name implies, it is a native of Barbary, where it is found in great numbers, 

 but has also been naturalized upon the rock of Gibraltar. The Gibraltar MAGOTS are 

 frequently mentioned in books of travel, and display great ingenuity in avoiding pur- 

 suit and discovering food. They keep to the most inaccessible portions of the rock, 

 and scamper away hurriedly on the slightest alarm. But with the aid of a moderately 

 good telescope, their movements may be watched, and are very amusing. 



When in their native wilds, the Magots live in large flocks, each band seeming to be 

 under the orders of some chosen leader. They are very intelligent, and possessed 



