70 APES AND MONKEYS 



even at midday, it is almost like a twilight. Here and 

 there are found places more open, and from these can be 

 had better views of its grandeur. Standing alone in the 

 midst of this great wilderness, one cannot fail to be im- 

 pressed with its sublime and awful beauty. From certain 

 points of view the banks of leaves rise like terraces, one 

 above another, giving almost the appearance of artificial 

 work. From other points are seen groups of flowering 

 trees, rising in huge mounds almost to the top of the forest. 

 So many and so beautiful are the views from various points 

 that one becomes almost lost in a perfect maze of colors, 

 lights, and shadows. At times not a sound of any living: 

 thing is heard, and the unspeakable silence only makes the 

 scene the more impressive. While it is true that this great 

 forest teems with life, there are times when it appears to be 

 an endless, voiceless solitude. But, remaining for a time 

 within its dreary shades, one will behold its many denizens 

 creeping through the tangled meshes in quest of food. 



Within this vast empire of shadows the fierce wild beasts 

 contend for mastery. Among its dark green bowers soar 

 man\- birds of brilliant plumage, and through its silvan 

 naves shriek the wild winds of the tornado. Within its 

 deep shadows crouches the leopard awaiting his victim, and 

 through its dismal labyrinth the stealthy serpent wends his 

 tortuous way. Every breeze is laden with the effluvia of 

 decaying plants, and every leaf exhales the odors of death. 



In the depths and the gloom of such a forest the gorilla 

 dwells in safety and seclusion. In the same wilderness 

 the chimpanzee makes his abode. But he is less timid and 



