i8 
be captured only when young, and as they are difficult to ac¬ 
climate, they are by no means common in menageries. 
The Chimpanzee ( Troglodytes niger) inhabits the west coast 
of Africa near the Equator, in the region drained by the 
Gaboon river; its exact range, north, south, and inland, is not 
satisfactorily determined, but it is probably confined to a lim¬ 
ited region in company with its larger relative, the Gorilla. 
Divesting the Chimpanzee of the many doubtful, if not 
fabulous qualities with which it has been endowed by imagi¬ 
native travelers, it remains a huge ape, attaining in the adult 
male a height of nearly five feet, devoid of a tail, possessed of 
a very considerable degree of intelligence, and having the 
ability to walk nearly erect, supporting itself by occasionally 
touching its knuckles to the ground or some upright means of 
support. 
They live together in small bands of half a dozen and build 
platforms among the branches, out of boughs and leaves, on 
which they sleep; their diet is chiefly frugivorous, and they 
are exceedingly mild in disposition, readily becoming friendly 
and seeking the society of man when placed in confinement. 
These apes are looked on by the natives of their country 
as being degenerate members of their own tribe. The native 
name, “Engeco,” means “hold your tongue,” and evidently 
had its origin in the common belief that they refuse to speak 
purely from laziness, and in the fear that if their possession of 
the faculty should be discovered, they would be set to work 
with the more strictly bipedal inhabitants of the same region. 
The Orang-utan (Simia satyrus ) is indigenous only to 
Borneo and Sumatra. They never attain the height of the 
chimpanzee, but are of heavier build and greater in extent of 
arm. Mr. Wallace gives us the maximum height out of seven¬ 
teen specimens, four feet and two inches from crown to heel, 
with a distance across the outstretched arms of seven feet 
eight inches. 
They are of a sluggish and cautious disposition, and rarely 
come down from the trees. Several travelers have stated that 
when the weather becomes cold or rainy, the Orang wraps 
itself in large leaves, by way of protection. It is, curious to 
observe that this habit is carried into captivity, for if a blan¬ 
ket is left in the cage, the animal will at once envelop itself 
so completely that nothing can be seen of it but its bright 
eyes peering out from under the folds. 
The Dyaks of Borneo call the Orang by several names, the 
