MONKEYS WHO WORK. 193 



tight-rope, and turned somersets with lighted 

 candles or baskets of eggs in their hands, with- 

 out putting out a light or spilling an egg. An 

 old English writer, Evelyn, who kept a diary, 

 tells about a visit he paid to these learned ani- 

 mals. 



In our day the monkey has not escaped from 

 work, — in fact he is learning to do more every 

 day ; and the time may perhaps come when 

 he will be a common worker. In one part of 

 Africa he is taught many useful tasks about a 

 house, — such as holding the torches, which are 

 used there to light up the room for a feast. 

 Several monkeys are placed on a bench, each 

 with his light to hold. There they must sit, and 

 see others eat and drink and have merry times, 

 while they dare not stir hand or foot lest they 

 put out the lights. If they are very good, when 

 the feast is over they have a supper themselves. 

 But sometimes one gets tired and impatient, and 

 flings his torch among the guests, and that mon- 

 key gets something else instead of his supper. 



One of the most teachable of the race is the 

 chimpanzee. In their native land young chim- 

 panzees are caught when mere babies, and are 

 taught to be very useful. They are able to 

 carry pitchers of water on their heads as the 

 people do, and to keep a fire going, or to watch 

 the cooking. When they live among white peo- 



