282 BEASTS AND MEN 
inserted his key in the lock, in order to open the cage. The 
keeper would often give him the keys to play about with, 
and on one occasion he took advantage of this to try them 
one-after another in the lock of the door, to find out which 
one it was that fitted it. After a time the right key was hit 
upon, and the ape succeeded after several efforts in turning 
the latch and opening the door. When I happened to come 
along and was told what had occurred, I went to see the ape 
in his cage, and asked him half jokingly, ‘how did you 
manage to do this?” He had all the appearance of under- 
standing the tenor of my question, for he smiled slyly and 
held up the key as if to say that that was what he did it with. 
The intelligence of my anthropoids is by no means con- 
fined to Moritz, for Jacob on one. occasion was equally 
successful in finding an exit from the cage. It so happened 
that one day a piece of an iron rod had accidentally been 
broken off by the creatures from one of the gymnastic appli- 
ances inserted in their cage. Jacob took this piece of iron, 
and proceeded to utilise it for bursting the lock. By insert- 
ing it into the ring of the padlock, with their united strength 
they were able to exercise so much leverage that the padlock 
gave way. The cage door was opened and all three gained 
their liberty. What further evidence could be required of 
the high intelligence which these animals possess? Rosa, 
too, was not behindhand in devising means of escape. The 
outer cage of the apes was constructed of wire, and her 
method was to loosen the wire from its fastening, and so 
break away an opening large enough for her to pass through. 
She had, often before, been taken out of the cage by the 
keeper, and led round to the main entrance into the animal 
park to be given some bananas, which used to be sold there ; 
and now when she had escaped she made rapidly for the 
main entrance of her own accord without hesitating for a 
/ moment as to the correct route, hoping no doubt to secure 
there some of her coveted bananas. 
To a lover of animals nothing can be more interesting 
