128 APES AND MONKEYS 



the outside of my cage. I lay for a few seconds, and then 

 I felt another strong pull. In an instant some cold, damp, 

 rough thing touched my face. I found it was his hand 

 poked through the meshes and groping about for some- 

 thing. I spoke to him, and he replied with a series of 

 plaintive sounds which assured me that something must 

 be wrong. I rose and lighted a candle. His little brown 

 face was pressed up against the wires, and wore a sad, 

 weary look. He could not tell me in words what troubled 

 him, but every sign, look, and gesture bespoke trouble. 

 Taking the candle in one hand and mv revolver in the 

 other, I stepped out of the cage and went to his domicile. 

 There I discovered that a colony of ants had invaded his 

 quarters. These ants are a great pest when they attack 

 anything, and when they make a raid on a house the only 

 thing to be done is to leave it until they have devoured 

 everything about it that they can eat. When they leave 

 a house there is not a roach, rat, bug, or insect left in it. 

 As the house of Moses was so small, it was not difficult to 

 dispossess the ants by saturating it with kerosene. This was 

 quickly done, and the little occupant was allowed to return 

 and go to bed. He watched the procedure with evident 

 interest, and seemed perfectly aware that I could rid him 

 of his savasre assailants. In a wild state he would doubt- 

 less have abandoned his claim and fled to some other 

 place, without an attempt to drive the ants away ; but 

 in this instance he had acquired the idea of the rights of 

 possession. 



Moses was especially fond of corned beef and sardines, 

 and would recognize a can of either as far awav as he could 



