DISTRIBUTION, HABITS, AND NATIVE NAMES. 251 



(Cynocejohalus Oelada), the Hamadryas (Cynocephalus 

 Hamadryas), and other baboons are, in the habit of 

 hurling branches, stones, and hardened clods of 

 earth with great adroitness at those who attack 

 them. In a hand-to-hand fight, the orang seizes the 

 arm of his opponent, biting and scratching it when- 

 ever he can get at it. Wallace says that no wild 

 animal venljires to fight with these powerful crea- 

 tures, and that they can even obtain the mastery 

 over crocodiles and gigantic snakes. 



The name orang-utan is derived from the words 

 orang, man, and utan (belonging to woods), and is 

 therefore merely wood-man. It is an error to write 

 orang-utang, which, according to Von Martens, 

 signifies an indehted man.* The Malay name, meias, 

 is often used, and they are distinguished as meias- 

 pappan or zino, meias-kassu, and meias-rambi. Ac- 

 cording to Rosenberg, the orang is called mawas 

 in Sumatra, and Bock says that the Dyaks of Dusun 

 call it keu. 



The gibbon in all its movements, and especially 

 in those of its long arms, has a very singular 

 appearance. In the second chapter of this work I 

 have already described the geographical distribution 

 and grouping of the species of these remarkable 

 animals. Although they occasionally come down 

 upon the ground, they are for the most part arboreal 

 in their habits. They prefer the tropical forests of 

 high and even of mountainous districts to any others. 

 Many find shelter in the bamboo thickets, especially 



* Die Preussiche Expedition nach Ostasien. Zoologische Abfheilwng, 

 (Tol. i. p. 249 : Berlin, 1876. 



