54 MAMMALIA. 



third genus that of the Ouistitis^ as it is not conveniently referable to 

 the one or the other. 



SiMiA, Lin. 



The Monkeys are all quadrumana, which have four straight incisors in 

 each jaw, and flat nails on all the extremities; two characters which ap- 

 proximate them them more nearly to Man, than the subsequent genera; 

 their molars have also blunt tubercles like ours, and their food consists 

 chiefly of fruits. Their canine teeth, however, being- longer than the rest, 

 supply them with weapons we do not possess, and which require a hollow 

 in the opposite jaw, to receive them when the mouth is closed. 



They may be divided, from the number of their molar teeth, into two 

 principal subgenera, which are again subdivided into numerous groups. 

 The 



MoNKETS, properly so called. 

 Or those of the eastern continent, have the same number of grinders as 

 Man, but otherwise differing from each other by characters, which have 

 formed the grounds of the following subdivisions. The 



SiMiA, Erxl. — ^PiTHEctrs, Geoffr. 



The Ourangs(l), are the only monkeys of the ancient continent which 

 have no callus on the seat. Their nose is not prominent, they have no 

 cheek-pouches, nor a vestige of a tail. Some of them have arms long 

 enough to reach the ground when standing — their legs, on the contrary, 

 are very short. 



S. satyrus, L. (The Ourang-Outang.) Of all animals, this Ourang is 

 considered as approaching most nearly to Man in the form of hishead, height 

 of forehead, and vohime of brain; but the exaggerated descriptions of some 

 authors respecting this resemblance, are partly to be attributed to the fact 

 of their being drawn from young individuals only; and there is every reason 

 to believe, that with age, their muzzle becomes much more prominent. 

 The body is covered witli coarse red hair, the face bluish, and the hinder 

 thumbs very short compared with the toes. His lips are susceptible of a 

 singular elongation, and possess great mobility. His history has been 

 much disfigured by mingling it with that of the other great monkeys, that 

 of the Chimpanse in particular. After a strict and critical examination, I 

 have ascertained that the Ourang-Outang inhabits the most eastern coun- 

 tries only, such as Malabar, Cochin China, and particularly the great island 

 of Borneo, whence he has been occasionally brought to Europe by the way 

 of Java. When young, and such as he appears to us in his captivity, he is 

 a mild and gentle animal, easily rendered tame and affectionate, which is 



(1) Oran^ is a Malay word signifying reasonable being, which is applied 

 to man, the ourang- ou tang, and the elephant. Outang means lytW, or of the 

 woods; hence. Wild Man of the Woods. 



