40 ANIMALS IN MENAGERIES. 



Uttered sharp and quickly repeated cries, and, but for 

 the intervention of the iron bars of the cage, would have 

 done each other serious injury. Their mutual affection 

 is expressed in an odd manner^ by scratching and clean- 

 ing each other's feet with their teeth. 



The usual size is rather less than that of a small cat. 

 The head is shaped much like that of a fox, and is en- 

 tirely covered with hair, which is black round the eyes ; 

 and this colour forms a line joining to the tip of the 

 nose, which is also black ; between the nose, however, 

 and the eyes there is a space of pure white ; the cheeks 

 and sides of the face are also whitish : ail the upper 

 parts of the body and limbs are dark brownish ash- 

 colour ; the under, white. The tail is longer than tlie 

 body, and the hair thick, woolly, and soft. 



The Ruffed Lemur, 



Lemur Macaco, Linn. Vari. Buffbn. Ruffed Lemur, 

 Pennant. 



This seems to be a species subject to much variation 

 in point of colour. Edwards describes an individual^, 

 then living in London, as entirely of a deep black colour ; 

 while we possess a beautifully preserved skin of another 

 individual, sei>t from Madagascar, which is entirely 

 patched with large black and white spots ; thus agreeing 

 with all the specimens we have yet seen. BufFon de- 

 scribes this as a fierce and almost untameable species ; 

 an assertion altogether without proof, and highly impro- 

 bable. Our own veracious Edwards, on the contrary, 

 assures his readers that it is " a very sociable, gentle, 

 harmless-natured animal, without any of the cunning 

 or mischievousness of the monkey kind."* This spe- 

 cies, however, is chiefly remarkable for the astonishing 

 power of its voice, which is said to be so loud and 

 dreadful as to strike astonishment into those who hear 

 it, resembling, in this respect, the howling monkeys of 

 South America. The French natural biographer, ever 

 prone to catch hold of a theory, no doubt concluded^ 



=* Edw. Glean. p,2l7. 



