POSSIBLE PETS 
283 
make hay for the winter, and the viscachas make their 
“ collections ” of curiosities, either species would, 
no doubt, add to the interest of an English country 
house. But as both the marmot and the viscacha 
hibernate in winter, their owner must be prepared 
for their disappearance underground from Christmas 
until March. 
There is only one monkey which we can thoroughly 
recommend as an indoor pet, the beautiful and intel- 
ligent little Capuchin. The marmosets, even more 
beautiful and equally pleasing, are too delicate for our 
climate, and die of colds and coughs after the first fogs 
of winter. But the lively little Capuchins may be kept 
for years in an English house ; and no monkey 
approaches their good temper and pretty winning 
ways. They all have good round heads, with black 
fur on the top and light-brown on the cheeks. Some 
have pinkish faces, and others dark-brown skins, with 
eyes like brown jewels. Their faces are most expressive, 
and seldom still, for they take deep and abiding interest 
in everything in or about their cages. One kept in a 
large house in Leicestershire had learnt to put out 
burning-paper, which it did most adroitly by beating 
it with its hands or knocking it against the floor. 
Another, which was kept at the Zoo, would, if it got a 
match, collect a heap of straw, strike the match, light 
its bonfire, and dance round it. This dangerous 
accomplishment led to its removal from the cages on 
Saturdays and Bank-holidays, when the crowd makes 
it difficult to keep a watch on its movements. The 
