THE BAJJERKEI T. 
627 
of the Manis, but as it always takes care to hide its head within the curve of the body, it has 
little fears on that score. 
The fore-claws of the Phatagin are very large, and are employed for the purpose of tearing 
down the nests of the termite, or white-ant, as it is more popularly called, so as to enable it 
to feed upon the inmates, as they run about in confusion at the destruction of their premises. 
Ants, termites, and various insects are the favorite food of the Phatagin, which sweeps them 
up by means of its long and extensile tongue, caring nothing for their formidable jaws, which 
are powerful enough to drive a human being almost distracted with pain. The claws are not 
only employed in destroying the nest of the termite, but in digging burrows for its own resi- 
dence, a task for which they are well adapted by reason of their great size and strength, and 
the vigor of the limbs to which they are attached. As the limbs are short, and the claws very 
long, the pace of the Phatagin is very slow, and its tardiness is increased by the fact that the 
claws of the fore-feet are folded upon a thick, fleshy pad, and are therefore not at all adapted 
for locomotion. 
PHATAGIN.— Manis longicaudata. 
The Phatagin is a native of Western Africa, and is of considerable dimensions, reaching 
five feet in average length, of which the tail occupies three feet. From the great length of 
the tail, it is sometimes called the Long-tailed Manis. 
The Bajjebkeit, or Sliobt-tailed Manis, is a native of various parts of India, and is 
also found in Ceylon. Of this species Sir Emerson Tennent gives the following short 
account. u Of the Edentates, the only example in Ceylon is the scaly ant-eater, called by 
the Singalese, Caballaya, but usually known by its Malay name of Pengolin, a word indica- 
tive of its faculty of £ rolling itself up ’ into a compact ball, by bending its head towards its 
stomach, arching its back into a circle, and securing all by a powerful hold of its mail-covered 
tail. When at liberty, they burrow in the dry ground to a depth of seven or eight feet, where 
they reside in pairs, and produce annually two or three young. 
“ Of two specimens which I kept alive at different times, one from the vicinity of Kandy, 
about two feet in length, was a gentle and affectionate creature, which, after wandering over 
the house in search of ants, would attract attention to its wants by climbing up my knee, lay- 
ing hold of my leg by its prehensile tail. The other, more than double that length, was 
caught in the jungle near Chilaw, and brought to me in Colombo. I had always understood 
that the Pengolin was unable to climb trees, but the one last mentioned frequently ascended a 
tree in my garden in search of ants, and this it effected by means of its hooked feet, aided 
by an oblique grasp of the tail. The ants it seized by extending its round and glutinous 
tongue along their tracks. Generally speaking, they were quiet during the day, and grew 
restless as evening and night approached,” 
