98 THE MINDS AND MANNERS 



Table Manners. " His table maimers were really very good. 

 He always sat at the table, and whenever a meal was ready, would 

 pull his own chair up to his place. He did not care to eat a great 

 deal, but he espedaUy liked to drini water out of a tumbler. 

 ... He was the least greedy of all the animals I have ever 

 seen. He never would snatch anything, and always ate very 

 slowly. He always drank a lot of water, which he would 

 always get himself whenever he wanted it by turning on a tap. 

 Strange to say, he always turned off the water when he had 

 finished drinking. 



Playing to the Gallery. "John seemed to think that 

 everyone was delighted to see him, and he woidd throw up the 

 window whenever he was permitted. If he found the sash 

 locked he would unfasten it, and when a big crowd had collected 

 outside he would clap his chest and his hands.* 



Punishment and Repentance. "We made one very 

 great mistake with John. His cage was used as a punishment, 

 with the result that we never could leave him there alone, for 

 he would shriek all the time. . . . Now, a stick was the one 

 thing that our gorilla would not stand from anyone, save Major 

 Penny and myself. Presently we found out that the only way 

 to deal with him was to tell him that he was very naughty, and 

 push him away from us; when he would roll on the floor and 

 cry, and be very repentant, holding one's ankles, and putting 

 his head on our feet. 



Affection for a Child. "He was especially fond of my 

 little niece, three years old. John and she used to play together 

 for hours, and he seemed to understand what she wanted him to 

 do. If she ever cried, and her mother would not go and pick 

 her up, John would always try and nip the mother, or give her 

 a smack with the full weight of his hand, evidently thinking she 

 was the cause of the child's tears. 



A Sense of Good Order. "He loved to take everything 



*In the summer of 1920 a ^lobe-trotter just arrived from England excitedly reported to me: 

 "While driving along a street m London / saw a live gorilla in the upper window of an apart- 

 ment. It was a real gorilla; and it clapped its hands at us as we looked 1 Now what did it all 

 mean?" Fortunately I was able to explain it. 



