ORAN OTAN* 7 
Mr. Vosmaer's account of the manners of an 
Oran Otan brought into Holland in the year 1776, 
and presented to the Prince of Orange's mena- 
gerie, is so curious and satisfactory, that I sliall 
extract it from his accurate publication on that 
subject ; and shall also accompany it by tw^o excel- 
lent figures of the animal, with which he has illus- 
trated his work ; and these, together with an ac- 
curate copy of the young Pongo, described and 
figured by Dr. Tyson under the name of the pyg- 
my ; and of that preserved in the British Museum, 
figured by Edwards ; and, lastly, the elegant and 
expressive representation of ^I. Allamand, in his 
edition of BufFon, will, it is presumed, give the 
clearest and most satisfactory ideas of these extra- 
ordinary animals, which the present state of our 
knowledge on the subject will permit us to ob- 
tain. 
This animal, says M. Vosmaer, was a female : 
its height was about two Rhenish feet and a half. 
It shewed no symptoms of fierceness or malignity, 
and was even of a somewhat melancholy appear- 
ance. It was fond of being in company, and 
shewed a preference to those who took daily care 
of it, of which it seemed to be sensible. Often 
when they retired it would throw itself on the 
ground, as if in despair, uttering lamentable cries, 
and tearing in pieces the linen within its reach. 
Its keeper having sometimes been accustomed to 
sit near it on the ground, it took the hay of its 
bed, and laid it by its side, and seemed, by every 
demonstration, to invite him to be seated near. 
