146 ORANG OUTANG. 
woods. It is not in the external form alone that 
this creature resembles the human ; for such a sur- 
prising similitude is seen to prevail, when examined 
anatomically, that we shrink from the sight, and the 
mind revolts at the idea of so close a connection be- 
tween the monkey and the man. 
These animals reside in the warmer parts of 
Africa, in India, and in some of the Indian islands, 
where they roam about to the great terror of the 
Negroes, who dare not pass through the woods 
alone, lest they should be attacked by them and 
overpowered. The full grown oran outang is said 
to be six feet in height, and of great strength. The 
general colour is brown ; the face resembles that of 
a man, and is equally bare ; the eyes are deep sunk 
in the head. The ears, the hands, and the feet, 
bear a strong resemblance to the human ; and the 
body, which is lightly covered with hair, scarcely 
differs from that of a man, except that there are no 
calves to the legs. He walks erect, feeds upon 
fruits, and sleeps under trees. Warmth is so con- 
genial to his nature, that, when the Negroes leave a 
fire in the woods, this creature will sit close to it as 
long as any embers are left burning, without having- 
sense enough to renew it by the addition of fresh 
fuel. 
Although the oran outang in a wild state appears 
so formidable a creature, yet when domesticated he 
becomes gentle and obedient, and capable of being- 
taught a variety of actions. Buffon describes the 
one he saw, as a mild and docile animal ; he had 
