226 
SIMIA. 
Systema Naturae of Linnaeus, in which there are sixty-four 
species delineated. 
I.—Apes without Tails. 
1. Simia troglodytes, or Angola ape.— The Generic 
Character is, that the head is conic, body brawny, back and 
shoulders hairy, the rest of the body smooth. 
2. Simia satyrus, or orang-outang.—Rusty-brown, hair of 
tire fore-arms reversed, haunches covered. Besides this there 
are two varieties: 1. Without cheek-pouches, or callosities 
on the 'haunches. This variety always walks erect. Its 
trivial name is Pongo.—It inhabits Java and. Guinea, and is 
from five to six feet high. 2. The other variety resembles 
the iormer, but is above half as high : it is docile, gentle, 
and grave, and by some thought to differ from the other only 
in age. 
Of these animals, the species which has most excited the 
attention of mankind is the orang-outang, or, as it is often 
denominated, the satyr, great ape, or wild man of the woods. 
—It is a native of the warmer parts of Africa and India, and 
also of several of the Indian islands, where it resides 
principally in the woods, and is supposed to feed, like most 
other of this genus, on fruits. The orang-outang appears to 
admit of considerable variety in point of colour, size, and 
proportion ; and there is reason to believe, that in reality 
there may be two or three kinds, which, though nearly 
approximated as to general similitude, are yet specifically 
distinct. The specimens imported into Europe have rarely 
exceeded the height of two or three feet, though full-grown 
ones are said to be six feet in height. The general colour 
seems to be of a dusky brown • the face is bare; the ears, 
hands, and feet nearly similar to the human ; and the whole 
appearance is such as to exhibit the most striking approxi¬ 
mation to the human figure. The likeness, however, is only 
general, and will not bear the test of examination ; and the 
structure of the hands and the feet, when observed with 
anatomical correctness, seems to prove that the animal was 
principally designed by nature for walking on four legs, and 
not for an upright posture, which is only occasionally 
assumed, and which is thought to be the effects of instruc¬ 
tion rather than truly natural. 
The manners of the orang-outang, when in captivity, are 
gentle, and perfectly void of that disgusting ferocity which 
is often conspicuous in some of the larger baboons and 
monkies. It is mild and docile, and may be taught to 
perform a variety of actions in domestic life. But, however 
docile and gentle when taken young, and instructed in its 
behaviour, it is possessed of great ferocity in its native state, 
and is considered a very dangerous animal, capable of readily 
overpowering the strongest man. Its swiftness is equal to its 
strength; and hence it can rarely be obtained in its full- 
grown state. 
M. Vosmaer’s account of the manners of the orang-outang 
brught into Holland in 1776, and presented to the Prince 
of Orange, is nearly as follows:—It was a female, about 2f- 
Rhenish feet. It shewed no symptoms of fierceness and 
malignity, and was of rather a melancholy appearance. It 
was fond of company, and shewed a marked preference 
to those who took daily care of it, of which it seemed very 
sensible. When the company retired, it would frequently 
throw itself on the ground, as if in despair, uttering lament¬ 
able 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 off its bed and laid it by its 
side, and seemed, by every demonstration, to invite him to be 
seated near. Its usual manner of walking was on all fours, 
but it could walk on its two hinder feet only. One morn¬ 
ing it got unchained, and was seen to ascend the beams and 
rafters of the building with wonderful agility, and it was 
with the utmost difficulty retaken and secured. During 
its state of liberty it had taken out the cork from a bottle 
of Malaga wine, which it drank to the last drop. It would 
eat every thing that was offered, but was not observed to 
hunt for insects like other monkies; it was fond of eggs, 
but fish and roasted meat seemed its fayourite food. If had 
been taught to eat with a spoon and fork. Its common 
drink was water, but it would drink any kind of wine. 
At the approach of night it lay down to sleep,, and pre¬ 
pared its bed by shaking well the hay on which it slept, 
and putting it in proper order, and lastly covering it with a 
coverlet. This animal lived seven months in Holland. On 
its first arrival, it had but little hair, except on its back 
and arms, but on the approach of winter it became well co¬ 
vered, and the hair on the back was full three inches long. 
The whole animal then appeared of a chesnut-colour; the 
skin of the face, &c., was of a mouse-colour, but about the 
eyes and round the mouth it was of a dull flesh-colour. 
It was imported from the island of Borneo. 
In Dr. Gmelin’s edition of the Systema Naturae, says- 
Dr. Shaw, the smaller variety, or the jocko, in ils less shaggy 
or more naked state, is given as a distinct species under the 
name of Simia troglodytes. The print published many years 
past, by the name of Chimpanzee, is of this kind. The 
animal described in the 59th volume of the Philosophical 
Transactions is by Gmelin referred to the orang-outangs 
but Mr. Pennant describes it under the title of Golok. It 
has a pointed face; long and slender limbs; arms, when 
the animal is upright, not reaching lower than the knees; 
head round, and full of hair; grows to the height of a man. 
It inhabits the forests of Mevat, in the interior parts of Ben¬ 
gal. In its manners it is gentle and modest, distinguished 
from the orang-outang by its slender form. In colour it is en¬ 
tirely black. In the Philosophical Transactions the descrip¬ 
tion is as follows:—“ The animal is said to be the height of 
a man, the teeth white as pearls; the arms in due proportion, 
and the body very genteel.” 
3. Simia lar, or long-armed ape, has its haunches naked ; 
its arms as long as its body : it is found in India, is gentle, 
slothful, impatient of cold and rain, and is four feet high. 
There are two other varieties, of which the first is about 
eighteen inches high, the face and body brown. The second 
has its body and arms covered with silvery hair; the face,, 
ears, crown, and hands, are black.—It inhabits the forests of 
Deval, in Bengal; is playful, gentle, and elegant: about 
three feet high. The lar, or, as it is sometimes denominated, 
the gibbon, is distinguished by the length of its arms, which, 
when the animal stands upright, are capable of touching the 
ground with its fingers; hence its trivial name. Notwith¬ 
standing the apparent ferocity of the lar, and the deformity 
of its figure, which is extremely well given by Dr. Shaw, it 
is of a tractable and gentle nature, and has even been cele¬ 
brated for the decorum and modesty of its behaviour. Con¬ 
sidered with respect to the rest of the genus, it ranks among 
the genuine apes, or those which have not the least vestige 
of a tail; and, says the naturalist already quoted, alarms the 
pride of mankind, by too near an approach to the real 
primates of the creation. 
4. Simia sylvanus, or pigmy.—Haunches naked; head 
roundish; arms shorter.—It inhabits Africa and the island of 
Ceylon.; is mild and easily tamed; it uses threatening 
gestures when it is angry, chatters when pleased, salutes after 
the manner of the Hottentots, and drinks from the palm of 
the hand. The face is short and flat; the forehead trans¬ 
versely projecting at the regions of the eye-brows; the skin 
is rough; the hair on the neck and fore-arms reversed: it is. 
about eighteen inches high. 
5. Simia innus, or denominated by Buffon the Magot, and 
by Pennant the Barbary Ape.—Its haunches are naked, and 
the head oblong.—Inhabits Africa, is fond of the open air, 
deformed, dirty, and melancholy. It a good deal resembles 
the Simia sylvanus, but its snout is longer, colour paler, nails 
rounded, and is about three feet and a half high. This is 
what is commonly seen in the exhibition of such kind of 
animals : it is not remarkable for docility or good temper; 
but, by force of discipline, it is made to exhibit a greater 
degree of intelligence than many others. Its colour is an 
olivaceous-brown, paler or whiter beneath; the face is of 
a swarthy flesh-colour. The hands and feet have nails re¬ 
sembling the human. It is destitute of any real tail, but 
there 
