THE BABOON. 
63 
“ Lying down on Ms side as though perfectly prepared for the worst, he would remain 
as though dead. But as soon as the snake was taken away, the mercurial temperament 
of the creature instantly showed itself ; for he would then jump on the shoulders of any 
person who might happen to be near, and would play oh some practical joke as a retaliation. 
£ ‘ Although evidently alarmed whenever snakes were brought near him, he still appeared 
perfectly to understand that nothing more than a joke was intended. 
“His treatment of small dogs was very quaint. 
“If by chance a young pup came near him, he would seize hold of it and cuddle it in his 
arms in a most affectionate and maternal way ; not being very particular, however, whether he 
held the animal by the ear, the tail, or a leg. 
“If the pup, as sometimes happened, objected to this treatment, and endeavored to escape 
or to misbehave, Jacob would catch hold of its hind leg or tail, and would swing it round at 
arm’s length, and at last fling it from him. 
“The morning of life is decidedly the period of light-heartedness with the baboon ; when 
the weight of years has been accumulated upon the shoulders of a veteran he becomes staid 
and philosophic, and sometimes rather quarrelsome, objecting strongly to the presuming man- 
ners of his juniors, and taking every opportunity to punish them should they be caught taking 
liberties with him.” 
The Chacma is supposed to be rather a long-lived animal, and with some reason. For 
although it is not easy to follow the course of a Chacma’ s existence from birth to death, and 
there are not as yet any official registers among the quadrumanous tribe, there are certain 
registers which are written by Nature’s hand, and not subject to erasion, forgery, or alteration. 
One of these official registers, is the proportion that exists between the time which is passed 
by an animal before it attains its adult state, and the entire term of its life. It is found that 
the Chacma arrives at its full development at the age of eight or nine years ; and, therefore, 
its lease of life may be calculated at about forty years. 
The chief, and most legitimate food of this baboon, is the plant which is called from this 
circumstance, Babiana. It affords a curious example of vegetable life existing under trying 
circumstances, as it only gets rain for three months in the year ; and during the remainder of 
the twelvemonth is buried in a soil so parched, that hardly any plant except itself can exist. 
The portion that is eaten is the thick, round, subterraneous stem, which is neatly peeled by 
the more fastidious baboons, and eaten entire by the less refined and more hungry animals. 
The number of species belonging to the Dog-headed Baboons is very limited. All of them 
seem to be possessed of very similar habits and modes of action. The species which is repre- 
sented in the accompanying engraving presents characteristics that are typical of the entire 
race, and is therefore called the Baboon, par excellence. There is some difficulty about 
the precise distinctions between several of the species, — a circumstance which, although to 
be regretted, is almost inevitable from the great external changes wMch are occasioned 
by age and sex, and the impossibility of keeping a close watch on these animals in their 
wild state. 
The most interesting portion of natural history is that which relates the habits and 
manners of the creatures observed ; and in the majority of instances the narrations are given 
by persons who, although fully alive to the little traits of temper, humor, or ingenuity, are 
unacquainted with the more recondite details of systematic zoology. 
Consequently, an act performed by a baboon is considered by them in virtue of the deed 
itself, rather than in relation to the particular species of the animal who achieved it ; and the 
intellectual power displayed by the animal is thought to be of more real value than the number 
of projections upon its molar teeth. This uncertainty is very great among the baboons, and 
as long as an act of theft or cunning is performed by a baboon, the narrator seems to care little 
whether the species be the Chacma, the Baboon, the Papion, or any other member of the same 
genus. 
There are many most curious and interesting anecdotes on record which admirably illus- 
trate the baboon nature, and yet which are not to be attributed with absolute certainty to 
any one species. 
