THE PREACHER MONKEY. 71 



rican Monkies, being about the size of a Fox. 

 Their fur is smooth, and of a black, glossy colour. 

 The tail is prehensile. 



They are so wild and mischievous, as neither to 

 be conquered nor tamed. They bite cruelly, and 

 excite terror by their large mouths, and irightful 

 voice and aspect. Their voice somewhat resembles 

 the noise of a drum, and it is said, may be heard to 

 the distance of a league. This proceeds from a 

 kind of bony process in the throat, in the concavity 

 of which the sounds are greatly augmented. Even 

 in a dried foetus this process was very perctiptible*. 

 They usually keep together in parties of t\s enty 

 or thirty, and ratable oyer the tops of the woods, 

 leaping from tree to tree. If they see a person alone 

 they always teaze and threaten him. Dampier says, 

 whenever he was by himself he w^as always afiaid of 

 shooting at them, lest they should descend from the 

 trees in a body and do him some injury -f-. 



We are informed by Marcgrave that they assem- 

 ble every morning and evening in the woods of 

 Brazil, and make a most dreadful howling. Some- 

 times one of them mounts on a higher branch, and 

 the rest seat themselves beneath : the first begins, 

 as it were, to harangue, and set up a howl so loud 

 and sharp as to be heard to a vast distance : viicr a 

 while he gives a signal with his hand^ when the 

 whole assembly joins in chorus ; but on another sig- 

 nal they are again silent, and the orator hnishes his 



* Buflbns Quad. viil. 177-179. t Dampicr's Voyage. 



F 4 



