122 THE BABOON. 



here given, I faw alive. He was not perfedly 

 hideous ; and yet he excited a degree of horror. 

 Perpetually grinding his teeth, fretting and 

 chafing with rage, his owner was obliged to 

 keep him confined in an iron cage, the bars of 

 which he moved fo powerfully with his hands, 

 that he infpired the fpeftators with terror. He 

 is a fquat animal, whofe compad: body and ner- 

 vous members indicate ftrength and agility. He 

 is covered with longclofe hair, which gives him 

 the appearance of being larger than he is in re- 

 ality. His ftrength, however, is fo great, that 

 he would eafily overcome one or feveral men, 

 if not provided with arms *. Befides, he is con- 

 tinually agitated by that paffion which renders 

 the gentlell animals ierocious. He is infolently 

 falacious, affedts to I'how himfelf in this filua- 

 tion, and feems to gratify his defires, per manum 

 fuam^ before the whole world. This deteftable 

 a£lion recalls the idea of vice, and renders dif- 

 guftful the aipedl of an animal, which Nature 

 feems lo have particularly devoted to fuch an 

 uncommon fpecies of impudence ; for, in all o- 



ther 



• It is to thisfpeclcs thai the animal called trc, trc, tre, trc, 

 at Madagafcar, ought to be referred. It is as large, fays Fla- 

 court, as a calf cf two yc.irs old. It has a round head, vac. 

 the face of a man. The fore anJ hind feet are like thofe of 

 the ape. The hair is crifped, the tail fliort, and the ears re- 

 fcmble thofe of man. It is limilar to the tanach dcfcribed by 

 Ambrofe Pary. It is a folitary animal, and much dreaded 

 by the natives ; Voyage a Madagaf:.ir,p. ijr. 



