1873.] COMMUNICATION FROM CAPT. R. BEAVAN. 685 



away and die, and by habituating it to such food as is generally to 

 be found on shipboard, I thought that the chance of its surviving 

 the voyage to England would be greatly increased, and was anxiously 

 looking out for the arrival of the ' Helen,' by which vessel I intended 

 sending it to Liverpool, when it disappeared in the most mysterious 

 manner on the morning of the 1st inst., the 'Helen' being then 

 actually in sight, which caused its loss to be felt all the more keenly. 

 On the previous evening the Gorilla came into the dining cabin as 

 we sat down to dinner, remaining under the table during that repast 

 in company with its canine friend, both of them eating such scraps 

 as were given to them. There it went to sleep and was left about 

 9 p.m., after which it was seen by no one, excepting the mate, who 

 saw it in the same place at daylight ; soon after which it must have 

 clambered up and fallen over the taff-rail into the sea unseen, which 

 is the more strange, as with the exception of occasionally getting 

 into the mate's berth and covering itself with its bedding, it was not 

 addicted to climbing. Thus again (for the present) are destroyed 

 my hopes of being the first to send so interesting an animal alive to 

 England ; but 1 shall not relax my endeavours. 



"The present instance may be added to my previous testimony as 

 to the facility of taming the young Gorilla. On this point my 

 experience is totally at variance with what has been advanced by 

 M. Du Chaillu, who never had any thing like the same opportu- 

 nities as myself of forming a correct opinion on the subject. In fact, 

 in this respect, I think I have the advantage of all visitors to this 

 part of Africa, having resided here upwards of twenty years, during 

 which period I have had no less than six living Gorillas in my pos- 

 session, keeping them from three weeks to four months each. Besides 

 this I have seen at least as many more in the possession of others, 

 all of which were quickly tamed, with the exception of one male 

 about seven or eight years old." 



Mr. J. B. Perrin read a paper on the myology of Opisthocomus 

 cristatus, his dissections having been based on two specimens trans- 

 mitted to Mr. Sclater by Hr. Kappler of the Maroni river, Surinam, 

 and deposited in the Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons. 

 Many of the muscles are described ; and there are notes respecting 

 the enormous crop, which rests in a kind of shallow basin formed on 

 the anterior superior portion of the pectoral region, causing a modi- 

 fication of the great pectoral muscle, and thinning those fibres which 

 take origin above the superior point of the peculiarly modified carina 

 sterni. The second pectoral (subclavius) is attached to the head of 

 the humerus, running as usual through the pulley in the head of the 

 coracoid bone. The coraco-brachialis longus and brevis are present. 



This paper will be published entire in the Society's/ Transactions.' 



A communication was read from Capt. R. Beavan, Bengal Staff 

 Corps, C.M.Z.S., containing a list of fishes met with in the river 

 Nerbudda, Minar district of India. 



