THE GRKAT ANT-KATKI!. :J17 



until it found the right scent again. Of the dimness of its eight ue I,,,,! nrioot prft* : it l,.,ri 

 frequently aga.nst objects that stood in its way, not obaerving them till it came i,, ,,,..,,. 

 Us power of spelling was exquwite, .in.l it ,.,,1,1,1 ducover its nurse, or ,my ,, 



h:.d taken a liking at a considerable disianee. Up,,,, theft BOOM it would OOD1 



mence the whining sound so peculiar to this animal. It was an expert climber. It, happened il,:,l 

 I was one of its favourites, and, whilst writing on i,,y table, it us,.,l to come softly behind me, tl 

 SOOT as it was sure it had found me out, it climbed up my legs with great dexterity. Out, pf amusement 

 we frequently held up its blanket, and it climbed up its whole length. 



"When the Indian woman was not present, or otherwise occupied, and did not pet the you,,.' 

 ant-eater, she used to throw some of the clotlies she had worn or her own blanket before; it, in which ft 

 wrapped itself, and was pacified. This effect could not bo produced by any ,,tl,.-r person's clothes, 

 [t showed its attachment by licking; and was very gentle and even sportive J we all pri/ed it highly. 

 It slept a great deal. We had it for nearly two months, and, as it began to fe, ,1 itself, we had great 

 hopes of rearing it ; unfortunately, we were unable to procure milk, and whether in consecpience of 



Till-: l-AMlill.l.V. 



the change of food, or some other cause, it gradually declined. I found it sometimes as cold an ice, 

 and stiff; and, though I re-covered it repeatedly, it died one day during my absence." 



The flesh of the ant-eater is esteemed as a delicacy by the Indians and negro slaves, and though 

 black, and of a musky flavour, may sometimes be met with at the tables of Europeans. Another 

 animal of this genus is the Tamandua, much inferior in size ; and one still smaller, the Little, or Two- 

 toed Ant- Eater.* 



The American ant-eaters are represented in India and Africa by the Pangolins, or Sraly Ant- 

 Eaters, which constitute the genus Ufanis of Linnaeus. They may be known by the armour of den>e 

 horny scales, or triangular plates, overlapping each other, by which every part of the body, except the 

 middle line of the under surface, is completely invested. The body is depressed, rounded above, long, 

 and low ; the head is small and conical, the eyes are minute, there are no external ears, the month is 

 small, and the tongue long and extensible ; the tail is long and broad, and covered ab,,ve and below 

 with hard, imbricated scales ; the limbs are very short and thick, and mailed like the iv*t of the body ; 

 no distinct toes are apparent beyond the claws, which, on the fore feet, are ti\e in number. Tin- large 

 claws fold down on a thick, coarse pad, as in the ant-eater, and the mode of progression is the same in 

 both instances. The food of the manis consists of white ants. It dwells in holes which it. burrows in 



the ground. 



* Myrmecoplmga iliihictyla: UnnffilU, 



