CHAPTER VII.THE DOG-SHAPED MONKEYS (continued).THE MACAQUES.[49]
Their Description and Anatomy, and its reference to that of the Semnopitheci and Guenons—THECOMMONMACAQUE—Its Character—Appropriateness of the Name—Occasionally an Albino—THEROUND-FACEDMACAQUE—Found in China—Ideas of the Chinese about them—THETOQUE,ORBONNETMONKEY—THEBHUNDER—Described by Cuvier—Their Thieving Propensities—Hindoo Tales of their Sagacity—THEMOORMONKEY—BELANGER’SMONKEY—THEPIG-TAILEDMACAQUE—THEMAGOT—One of the Commonest Monkeys—Described by Galen—Early Notices of—Predatory Habits—Abundant at Gibraltar—Probably came over from Africa—Similarity to the Baboons—THEWANDEROO—Account of one in the Zoological Society’s Collection—Geographical Range of the Macaques
Their Description and Anatomy, and its reference to that of the Semnopitheci and Guenons—THECOMMONMACAQUE—Its Character—Appropriateness of the Name—Occasionally an Albino—THEROUND-FACEDMACAQUE—Found in China—Ideas of the Chinese about them—THETOQUE,ORBONNETMONKEY—THEBHUNDER—Described by Cuvier—Their Thieving Propensities—Hindoo Tales of their Sagacity—THEMOORMONKEY—BELANGER’SMONKEY—THEPIG-TAILEDMACAQUE—THEMAGOT—One of the Commonest Monkeys—Described by Galen—Early Notices of—Predatory Habits—Abundant at Gibraltar—Probably came over from Africa—Similarity to the Baboons—THEWANDEROO—Account of one in the Zoological Society’s Collection—Geographical Range of the Macaques
THEnext group of Monkeys differs much from the lively dwellers amongst the woods and trees, which have been described, and the kinds contained in it are evidently suited for running quickly on all-fours, and more on the ground than amongst the branches. They are not so much like the Dog in shape as are the Baboons, which will be described next, but still they are, as it were, between these and the Guenons in their habits and construction. They have longer muzzles than the Guenons, but not so long as the Baboons, and the nostrils open high up and obliquely. Their eyes are overshadowed by a prominent brow-ridge, which gives an air of cunning not seen in the playful Guenons, and also a look of fierceness and of mistrust; and, in fact, the old ones look anything but amiable. Their limbs are stout and compactly made, and they display great strength and width in the shoulders. The hind limbs are, however, longer than the front ones, and the hands and feet are well made, the latter being long and having a large heel. But what strikes the observer, when he sees drawings or stuffed specimens of the whole group before him, is the difference in the length of the tail in different species. Some have long tails, others have very small ones, and one in particular has not one at all. Those with tails used to be placed in one genus, and those without them in another; and the first were called Macaques (Macacus), the others being Inui[50](Inuus). But the close agreement of the other parts of the body, notwithstanding the length or absence of the tail, coupled with the fact that it is not used in climbing or in balancing, determined naturalists to rely but little upon that member in this group, and to join those with tails and without tails in one genus, calledMacacus.
Those with long tails, theMacacus cynomolgus, for instance, cause the group to resemble the Guenons; or, in other words, link and ally the two genera, it being difficult in the case of this Monkey to say to which one it should belong. On the other hand, the Barbary Ape, which managed to get to Gibraltar and live there in some numbers, and which has but the very stump of a tail, connects the whole group, or genus, with the Baboons without tails. Then there is one with a fine head of hair, and a long snout (Macacus Silenus), which lives in Malabar, and which has a longish tufted tail; and it links some Baboons with long tails to the group now being described.
The Macaques live in India, Tibet, North and South China, Japan, and southwards, and in some of the great islands of the Archipelago, Formosa, in Africa, in Barbary, but not south of the Atlas range, and in Europe, on the Rock of Gibraltar.
They all have cheek-pouches and callous pads, or callosities, on their seat, and thus resemble theGuenons; moreover, most of them have throat or laryngeal sacs, which open into the membrane above the vocal organ and below the base of the tongue (in the thyroid membrane).
On examining their jaws it will be noticed that there is the same number of teeth as in the other Monkeys already described, and that the upper eye or canine tooth on each side is very strong and long. Now, these teeth are not for killing or stopping living prey, although their possessors do not hesitate to snap up a good-sized Beetle, a small Lizard, or even a Frog, but they make, with the first false grinder of the lower jaw, a capital nut-opener. The canine, when the mouth is shut, fits just in front of this tooth, which is usually called the first pre-molar, and which is pressed back and made to slant in the jaw by the constant pressure and movements of the canine. The back of the canine is sharp, and comes in contact with the equally sharp edge of the slanted pre-molar below, so that when a nut comes between the two it is cut and crushed at the same time. The canine does not thus fit into a diastema, or vacant space, but is of great use to the animal. This arrangement is interesting, because it produces a distortion of the front back teeth of the lower jaw for a definite and useful purpose: it is noticed in some of the Guenons, and is particularly seen in mouths of the great Baboons, which will be noticed further on.
The other back teeth resemble somewhat those of the Guenons, but the last one of the lower jaw has five cusps, or prominences, on it.
All these Monkeys going very readily on all-fours have several interesting modifications of the structures observed in the climbing Monkeys, but of course their general construction is the same. They have not, however, the pouched stomachs of the Semnopithecus, and their nearest resemblance is to the African Guenons.
Like all the Monkeys which are lower in the animal scale than the great man-shaped Apes, the Macaques have narrow wrists, long linger bones, and a short and backwardly-placed thumb. There are nine bones in the wrist. The hip-and haunch-bones are long, and the first are hollowed out, and their direction refers to the method of progression on all-fours, and their general appearance is rather that noticed in the regular four-footed beast of prey, and they differ much in breadth relatively to those of man.
The length of the tail depends upon the number of the tail-pieces, or vertebra, and upon their size. In the Gibraltar Ape there are only three of these caudal vertebræ, but in the Bhunder there are fifteen and sometimes eighteen in the tail, which measures nine inches, whilst in the Pig-tailed Inuus there are seventeen. It appears that some of the long-tailed kinds have no more vertebræ than the others, but that the diminished length is due to their shortening. The long and middle-sized tailed kinds have chevron-or Y-shaped bones under the tail, and the nature of these has been explained already.
Living upon a great variety of food, and using their jaws with rapidity, these Monkeys are furnished with a curious modification of a muscle, which exists in man and the higher Apes. There is in these a muscle on each side of the throat, which draws the chin down, or, in other words, helps to open the mouth. It is called the two-bellied, or digastricus muscle, as it has two muscular masses—one attached to the lower jaw, and the other to the lump of bone behind the ear—and they are united by a thin tendon. This tendon is attached to the side of the bone at the base of the tongue, or os hyoides, and it passes through a loop of a muscle which passes from the ear-bone (styloid process) to the os hyoides. The muscle acts as follows:—When the mouth is to be opened after swallowing, the base of the tongue-bone is pulled down by a muscle which comes from the breast-bone to it, and then the front belly, or muscle of the digastricus, pulls from the base of the tongue against the lower jaw and drags it open. But when the muscle relaxes, and the jaw is shut preparatory to swallowing, the digastricus begins to assist in this operation. In swallowing, the base of the tongue is drawn upwards towards the roof of the mouth, and the back and front bellies of the muscle now under consideration drag on their fixed tendon, and straighten, so as to assist in this.
In the Macaques, this tendon is replaced by muscular bands, and greater vigour is given to the muscle, so that the jaw is pulled at more rapidly, and the tongue is elevated with energy.
As there is a greater power given in drawing up the tongue in the first stage of swallowing, there must be something extra to pull it down again in the second stage, for in this the back of the throat, the gullet, and the back of the tongue are all brought from above to a lower level. This is arrangedby a modification of a muscle, which in man and the Chimpanzee, for instance, stretches from the top of the bladebone, across the lower part of the neck, to the bone at the base of the tongue (theomo-hyoidmuscle). It has also two bellies in man, or, in other words, the muscular fibres are attached to the bladebone and to the hyoid bone, and there is an intermediate tendon; moreover, this passes through a pulley, so that the obliquely-placed muscle in the lower part of the neck acts straight upon the tongue, and pulls it down in a right line. In the Macaques, this muscle has no central tendon, and the muscular fibres pass all the distance from the bladebone to the os hyoides at the base of the tongue.
COMMON MACAQUE.
COMMON MACAQUE.
In addition to these modifications where muscle replaces tendon, there are those of several other muscles which act on the tongue, the larynx, and on the upper and lower parts of the windpipe, their conjoined action being to approximate all these parts. These muscles, which are separate in man, are united in one in the Macaques.
The head of these Monkeys, hanging as it does when they go on all-fours, requires extra support, and one of the muscles of the back, which from its square shape is called the rhomb-shaped muscle, is especially attached to the occiput, and helps to hold the head up. Another assistant in the movement on all-fours is a muscle which pulls the bladebone forwards when the animal is walking. It springs from the outer processes of the upper bones of the neck (transverse process of the upper cervical vertebræ), and is attached to the spine of the bladebone. This muscle is seen in the great beasts of prey also, and in the Semnopitheci and Guenons. A similar “wild-beast” peculiarity exists in the arrangement of the muscles of the hand; the muscle which extends the little finger and opens it is divided, and has greater connections with the fourth finger than in man. The long muscle which extends the thumb, and the short one which draws it from the fingers, are not separate in the Macaques, but the muscle has two tendons, and thus foreshadows the arrangement which in man and the higher Apes gives such perfection of movement to the thumb.
The Macaques have their ears rather pointed at the tip, and not rounded, and the general shape of their bodies is not lanky like that of the active long-legged Guenons and Semnopitheci. They are less gracefully made, and the dog-like appearance, so palpable in the Baboon, is recognised in their fore parts and head. Moreover, the colours are not usually pretty and variegated, as in many of the kinds of the genera already described, but are dun and sad in tint. Their tail varies according to the species in length, and a rough method of classification may be made which divides them into those with long, those with moderate, and those with short and almost no tails.
TOQUE.
TOQUE.
The large Common Macaque (M. cynomolgus), and the Round-faced, or Formosan Monkeys (M. cyclopis), and the Bonnet Monkey, represent the long-tailed kinds; the Bhunder (M. rhesus), has a tail of middle length; and the short-tailed group about to be mentioned consists of the Moor, the Pig-tailed, and the Belanger Monkey. The tail-less one includes the Magot. Finally, the Silenus Ape, usually miscalled Wanderoo, is so baboonish that, although it has a long tail, it cannot be placed with the Common Macaque in the beginning of the chapter, but must come at the end, so as to lead to the true Dog-headed Apes, or Baboons, which will be described further on.
If the remarks inpage 106about the fourth division of the Cercopitheci are now read carefully, it will be understood how these Monkeys, the Macaques and the Baboons, form a group of creatures which is only really separable into kinds or species, but that the genera are very artificial.
The so-called Common Macaque, orMacacus cynomolgus, represents the long-tailed section of the genus, and grows to be a powerful animal amongst the other small Monkeys, over a very wide extent of country. It lives in Java, Sumatra, Borneo, Celebes, Batchian, in the islands from Lombok toTimor, and in the Philippines. It is a quiet and tolerably amiable Monkey when young, but with years, it becomes a wild, savage, and very brutal creature. Even in menageries it is often nasty in its habits, and savage. So bad a character has it, that when the proper name to give it came under the criticism of Fred. Cuvier, he sought out those of all the wickedest and naughtiest men in Lempriere’s Classical Dictionary, and finally considering thatIrus, who disturbed the domestic peace of the sublimely virtuous, industrious, and persevering Penelope, was the worst of the worst, he fixed his name to that of this Monkey. But Buffon had, not from his bad qualities, or from any resemblance to the Monkey in disposition, his name attached to it long before; so it was called Buffon’s Monkey, as well as the Hare-lipped, although one fails to recognise this condition in its face. To complicate matters, an English zoologist, who knew little of Penelope’s feelings or trials, mistook the word Irus, and wrote it Iris! The word Cynomolgus may be translated “a pilfering or a lewd dog,” so that it and Irus are very appropriate.
The huge shoulders of the full-grown adult strike one, and its general clumsiness also. There is a large body, and the limbs are short for it, although the tail is long. The fur is rather short, and is of an olive-brown, spotted with black on the head and body, but it is grey on the limbs, and blackish on the tail. There is no “hare-lip” in this Monkey, but there is no hollow going from the nose to the upper lip as in man, and only a raised line.
This Monkey is sometimes found perfectly white, with red eyes, or as an albino; its skin is then of a pinkish colour, and the long tail looks very curious, as there is not much hair on it. A male and female of this kind are very interesting in the Zoological Gardens; they dislike the glare of day, and are very lively and full of fun and malice. The female has the whiskers and all the beauty of hair, and the male is a quieter animal, but a great grimace-maker. He tries to look fierce when the sun is on his face, and looks most odd. He draws back his ears, so that they cling to the back of his head, and wobbles his eyes about in a most laughable manner. The female does not like to be disturbed in her nap after breakfast, and comes out to see what is the matter. If anything noisy is going by, she scolds violently, and if she can catch hold of her drinking-tin, she will bang it about in a very amusing manner. Sitting in her wooden house, she bangs the outside with the tin, and then dropping it, rushes out and fixes her teeth on the wooden branches in the cage. The deficiency of colouring matter in the iris of the eye allows so much light to enter that organ, that there is the same scowling or shading eye look in them as there is in human albinos.
The second example of a long-tailed genus is
These are very interesting Monkeys, with a human-like expression, which suffer considerably at the hands of the Chinese, for should one be captured, its tail is immediately cut off, the Chinese having a fanciful idea that the tail of the Monkey is a caricature of the Tartar pendant into which they twist their long back hair. They therefore cut off the tail of every Macaque that comes into their possession.
They live in Formosa about the declivities and caverns which overhang the sea, miles away from any woods. It seems to be quite a rock-loving animal, seeking the shelter of the caves during the greater part of the day, and assembling in parties in the twilight and feeding on berries, the tender shoots of plants and grasshoppers, &c. In the summer it collects in bands during the night, and commits depredations among the fields of sugar-cane and fruit-trees. They nurse their solitary young ones up in the hills, and betray much uneasiness—no wonder—at the approach of man. They seem, however, to possess abundance of self conceit.
The Chinese have some very curious notions about them, and about some other Monkeys which are either identical or are found with them. They say that in the Yaoukwang hills are animals whose exterior appearance is like a Mehow with human face and Hogs’ bristles. During the summer they dwell in caves. They are called Hwatso, their cry is like cut water (noise of a mill), and when seen they are “ominous of a conscription” (i.e., of being forced to work). The Yew are like the Mehow and of a deep black colour; their tails are long like the others, but have no tufts. Whenthey scent the dew ascending to form rain, they then suspend themselves by means of their tails to fill their nostrils with it, or else by both feet. The Gaou are said to inhabit the Lunseen hills, to be like an Ape with long arms, and to be good for killing. When their arms are cut through at the thick part, they can be made into flutes rounder than reeds. They are of the Monkey tribe, having long legs, and are good whistlers, and given to drag things about. The Yew are like the common Monkey, with green body and dark paws; they have black whiskers and black paws. They are naturally very fond of their whiskers, and doat on their species, living and dying together; on which account, if one can be got at, a hundred will be killed. Men shoot them with poisoned arrows; the shot animal’s companions draw out the arrow in order to wound themselves and die with one another.
These round-faced Monkeys have, of course, callosities on the buttocks, and these at certain times become gorged with blood, so as to swell out and become greatly distended, being horrible to look at.
They resemble the common Rhesus Monkey, about to be described, in many points, and indeed the skulls present so many things in common that no satisfactory distinction can be made; but the bones of the pelvis, which are much curved, and the shorter limb-bones of the round-faced species, are distinctive.
The fur of this Monkey is thick and woolly, and is very slate-coloured. The tail is about a foot in length, is hairy, and has a black line along the top. The head is round, the ears are small and feathered, and the face is flat. The forehead is naked and the cheeks are dark-whiskered, and there is a strong ruffle-like beard.
This is a very common Monkey in menageries and zoological gardens, and is always an object of attention, as it is amusing, very active, full of tricks and malice, and a great stower away of nuts in its cheek-pouches. It is known amongst the other Macaques by its cap of long hair radiating from the crown, on which it rests flat, but it is often parted down the middle. It has a long tail, rather a long muzzle, and prominent ridges over the eyes, and the forehead is flat. Its fur is olive-grey, and sometimes greenish or brown in tint, whilst the under surface is ashy-white. It has large and often flesh-coloured ears.
The young often have their head of hair parted down the middle, and, as their face and forehead are pale and not hairy, they have a very human appearance.
Very good-tempered when pleased, this Macaque enjoys a bit of mischief, and if it can steal anything from a visitor it is intensely delighted. But when food is offered and then not given, the Bonnet Monkey shows that it considers itself wronged, and scolds and screams in a great rage. It has much capacity for accepting and stowing away food, and there are often fierce fights if one intrudes upon the store of another. Very fond of hugging and nursing others, it is equally delighted in searching the bodies of its companions for insect life; but, although thus amiable, it resents unkindness very decidedly and at once.
Another common Macaque is called the Toque, but it only differs from the Bonnet in the parting of its hair.
This is a Monkey with a medium-sized tail, which is well known to those Europeans who have lived in out-of-the-way places in British India.
It is a strong-looking creature when full grown, and has powerful shoulders and limbs; the tail is about one-third of the length of the body, which often attains the length of from one foot-and a-half to two feet. The prevailing colour of the hair is olive-green and brown on the back, and the naked face is of a pale flesh-colour. There is no ruff of hair around the neck, and the ears are very visible, and there is a singular looseness or folding of the skin of the throat and belly. The callosities are often very red, and the insides of the legs also.
BHUNDER AND BONNET MONKEY.
BHUNDER AND BONNET MONKEY.
F. Cuvier observed the early days of one born in France, and noticed that immediately after birth it clung fast to its mother’s stomach, holding on with its fore hands stuck in her fur, and that it did not quit the breast, even during its sleep, for fifteen days. In the first day of its existence it appeared to distinguish things, and to look at them carefully, and the mother was devoted to it, giving it thetenderest attention of a constant and patient nurse. Not a movement or noise on its part escaped her, and her maternal solicitude was quite astonishing. The weight of the little thing did not interfere with her moving about, and all her exertions were managed with a view of not incommoding her young charge. She never shook it, or struck it accidentally against the edges and corners of her house. At the end of a fortnight the little one began to detach itself, and from the beginning of its moving by itself it showed a great amount of vigour, power, and ability to run and jump, which human children of a year or two might well envy. It held on to the wires of its cage and crawled up and down at will, but the careful mother never took her eyes off it, and followed it wherever it went, and even held out her hands to prevent it tumbling when it became too venturesome. Indeed, she admonished the little one by a gentle touch that it had been away long enough, and must come in. At other times it walked on all-fours over the straw, and often let itself drop down from the top of its cage on to the soft bottom, so as to accustom itself to fall on all-fours; then it would jump up the net-work and lay hold and scramble with great precision. After a while, the mother began to teach the young one not to be so troublesome to her, and to manage without her, but still she took care of it, following it if it was doing anything out of the way and in danger. With strength the agility of the creature increased, and its jumps and bounds were wonderful, and it never miscalculated its distance, or made a false step. After six weeks a more substantial nourishment than milk was required, and then a very curiousspectacle was seen. This attentive mother would not let the little one have a bit of all the nice things, but drove it away and scolded it, although it was hungry. The old one took possession of the fruit and bread which were for both, and boxed the little one’s ears if it came close and hid up the food. She had hardly any more milk, and the young one was in daily want of food, but the old one did not appear to act from cruelty or gluttony, but wished to train up the youth, like the young Cyrus, to feats of daring and of skill. As hunger pressed, the young one became bold, and stole by art what he could not get otherwise. If he was very adroit, all the better, and he was commended by being allowed to carry off his own. He used to get to the further end of the cage, and turning his back on his mother would begin to gormandise. But even the maternal solicitude was not wanting, for she often used to go up to him and snatch a nice titbit out of his jaws. Perhaps this was a mistaken idea, for after a while a larger quantity of food was placed in the cage, and the little one had its quantity without any stealing.
MOOR MACAQUE.
MOOR MACAQUE.
The Bhunders are sacred in some parts of India, and are left very much to themselves; so they assemble in troops, and steal from among the natives in a very troublesome manner.
As they are very bold, their habits in the wild state are often observable, their slyness and thieving propensities being most amusing. They gather on the roofs of the low houses in the bazaars, and look out for occasion to steal. One was observed on a roof fronting a sweetmeat shop, and feigning to be asleep; but every now and then he looked wistfully at the luscious prizes below. It was, however, of no use, for sitting beside his stores was the seller, smoking his pipe, and looking decidedly wide awake. This went on for half an hour, when the Monkey got up, yawned, and stretched himself artfully, as if he had only just awoke. He began to play with his tail, and even made believe he was tying knots in it, as if he were wholly intent on it; but ever and anon he gave a sharp, sly look over his shoulder at the sweetmeats, but only to see the seller still theresmoking away to his heart’s content, and ruminating concerning prospective customers and profits. The Monkey still had patience, and amused himself with his fleas, and had a good and general scratch; and he was rewarded, for suddenly the confectioner arose from his seat, took his pipe, and turned towards the back door for a fresh supply of tobacco. Instantly the Bhunder was on all-fours, and the sweetmeats were before him and behind their owner. In another moment he had jumped off the roof, cleared the street, and was on the board which was crowded with sugar-plums. He of course began to cram as many as possible into his cheek-pouches. But, alas for the spoiler, there were other pilferers there in the shape of hornets; his sudden descent frightened them, and they flew off, but returned on the instant, and to take vengeance. Before he could regain his roof they were all round him, stinging here and stinging there with great zeal and passion. His efforts at getting away from them were frantic, and he scrambled over the rotten roof, displacing the tiles, which came down with a crash; and at last, when he jumped clear of the enraged insects, he came on to a sharp, thorny bush, from which he could not extricate himself. He had to spit all the nice things out of his pouches, and, screaming with pain—for the thorns were more like fish-hooks than anything else—he sat a picture of misery, barking hoarsely now and then. The fall of the tiles brought out a crowd of natives, and they were speedily joined by the confectioner, full of revenge. But the culprit was a Monkey, and, therefore, an object of veneration; so a couple of Hindoos managed to rescue him, and he limped off as well as he could to a neighbouring grove.
The Hindoos tell many tales of the sagacity of this Monkey; and there is one which may be taken as a specimen, although it has been filtered through Mahomedan pages. A fakir had a Monkey which he had brought up from birth. He loved it, and travelled here and there, taking much care of it. In return the Monkey behaved like a watch-dog, and was most faithful and watchful. It amused the fakir by its endless tricks and mimicry. One day, the fakir placed his carpet in a square before the palace of some great shah who had nothing to do, and who looked at the fakir and the Monkey with great delight. The fakir had made a pie; there were some pieces of birds’ flesh in it, and it was placed on some lighted charcoal to be cooked. The Monkey sat watching, and the fakir thought he would like a stroll until dinner was ready, knowing that his faithful follower would look after the cooking. But the shah saw more than the fakir; for, after a while, the smell of the meat came strongly into the Monkey’s nostrils, and he began to feel hungry. Soon he was very hungry, and then he just lifted up the edge of the crust, and could not refrain from taking a tiny bit—just a little leg. This was so nice that he took a little more, and finally eat all. The crust was left on the grass, and then the sinner suddenly remembered his master. The shah was in ecstasies, wondering what would come next. After due consideration, the Monkey remembered that he usually sat on a very beautiful flesh-coloured “callosity,” and he had noticed that several Crows and other birds had been hovering about whilst he consumed his master’s dinner. He instantly feigned to be dead, and hiding his head, gave the birds the benefit of the scarlet appearance. One came down instantly with a swoop; but the Monkey was too quick, and the bird was seized and strangled in an instant. Rapidly plucking off the feathers, the Monkey pulled it to pieces, and put it in the pie, and sat looking happy, contented, and extremely virtuous. The shah was struck with this wonderful display of instinct, and the story goes on to say that he promoted the fakir to an important post under government.
There is a Macaque which, instead of having the quiet brown and olive tints of the others, with short tails, is of a dark oily black colour. It is called
It lives in Borneo, and is about eighteen inches in length. It has a flat nose, with nostrils opening well outwards, and the eyes are hazel, the pupils being very large. The length of the bones of the tail is not enough to carry it beyond the callosities, which are of a roseate hue.
When young the skull is short, and there is no great projection over the eye; but with age the upper part of the face becomes very square, and the eyebrow ridges grow. Now; this gloomy-looking Monkey offers some points of interest, for there is another one, called the Booted Monkey (Macacus ocreatus), which cannot be distinguished from it when both are young. With age, however, the last-named one becomes oily black, has a longer tail, and the hair on the head has a bushier appearance. But can these distinctions be accepted as showing a difference in the species? Probably not; and it will be for the student to consider that Monkeys may have races and varieties which really pertain but to one species, and yet are separated by the naturalist.
There are other short-tailed species of the Macaques, of which one, called the Handsome Monkey (Macacus speciosus), has a red face. It is from Japan, and is educated by the showmen there to do tricks like the Rhesus Monkey of India.
Another kind is interesting, because it gives a hint how a tail may be gradually lost from being in the way.
This is found in Cochin-China, Singapore, Burmah, and up in the hills of Upper Burmah, Cochin, and Assam.
Its tail is more than a stump, yet is not half a middle-sized one, as it does not come lower than the haunch-bones. The Monkey is much troubled with it. Sometimes it is stuck up erect, but usually it is curled inwards, as if the animal were ashamed of it, and had done something wrong. When this is the case, the end quarter of it is doubled up, and thus the space between the haunch-bones is filled, as it were. The animal then sits on its tail and on its callosities, which are on the haunch-bones, and the consequence is that the surface of the tail, thus compressed, becomes hard and callous. Here, writes Dr. Anderson, the Indian zoologist, is an instance of a Monkey sitting on its tail; and the habit appears to be peculiar to the species. The tail is very degenerated, so far as its bones are concerned, and the curvature of it appears to be caused by the animal desiring to curve it out of the way of pressure. Perhaps, according to Lord Monboddo, this is the first symptom of the loss of tail. With regard to the other peculiarities of this species, it may be mentioned that it has pretty eyes, and is exceedingly easily domesticated.
This is a short, thin-tailed kind, comes from Sumatra, Borneo, and the Malay Peninsula, and is called by the natives the Bruh—climber of the palms. It is said to be used by the natives to collect cocoa-nuts, and is domesticated by them, being often found in their houses.
This is a very celebrated kind, and it has made its mark in the history of science and of the world. It was dissected by Galen; it took part in the great siege of Gibraltar, and is one of the most popular of the companions of the organ-grinder. Moreover, as will be noticed further on, it is an animal which may be classified with theCynocephali, or true Baboons, to be described in the next chapter, without doing much violence to science.
It is called Magot by the French, and it is the Pithecus of that great old physician, Galen, who, when he could not learn anatomy by dissecting the human body, which was not allowed, investigated that of the Tail-less Ape. Born at Pergamo, about the yearA.D.131, Galen studied literature and then anatomy when young; and visiting Alexandria, was greatly delighted with being permitted to examine a human skeleton there, and subsequently to dissect a robber, who had remained without burial. Seeing that anatomy and physiology were the very foundations of medical practice, and noticing the resemblances of man and the Ape, he set to work and wrote largely on anatomy, but made the Ape his model. He was far before his age, and, therefore, abominable in the eyes of the antiquated practitioners; so his career as a physician in Rome was short. Nevertheless, his voluminous works lasted longer than his critics, and influenced the rise of medical science and the comfort and lives of mankind for many centuries. His anatomy was wrong, because it was that of the Ape and not of man; but, nevertheless, so strongly were the medical anatomists—who never dissected but only read—impressed with the correctness of his so-called human anatomy, that when Vesalius did dissect men and describe them,he was pooh-poohed by the faculty as of no authority whatever. Just as Oxford opposed the learning of Greek, so the first physician of Henry IV. of France decided against human anatomy and Vesalius; but Greek and Vesalius triumphed after a while.
Nevertheless, humanity for many centuries was under a deep obligation to the Magot, inasmuch as surgery, as applied to man, was founded upon observations on the construction of the Ape.
Strabo knew that North Africa was peopled by the Tail-less Ape, or Pithecus; and he asserts that Posidonius, on going from Cadiz to Italy by sea, stopped in Lybia (the present Barbary), and saw large numbers of these Apes in the forests, which came down close to the water side.
PIG-TAILED MACAQUE.
PIG-TAILED MACAQUE.
The Magot is about the size of a middle-sized Dog, and measures from two to two and a half feet in length. The upper parts of the body and outsides of the limbs are of a light yellowish-brown colour, which is deeper on the head and round the cheeks; the under parts are whitish; and the face, ears, and other naked and hairless parts are flesh-coloured. The bald face, rather pale in tint, is long and wrinkled, and it is this which gives an old look to them, even when they are young. It is a robust animal when full grown, and has then deeply-set eyes, which are rather close together, and a projecting brow. The erect posture can be maintained for a short time, but it is not natural to it; on the contrary, it moves on all-fours quickly, jumps and climbs with great agility, scampering over broken ground or getting into the trees equally well. It squats on its haunches, and often sleeps with the head hanging down over the chest. Always alert and full of mischief, they assemble in troops, especially on the flanks of the Atlas range, place their scouts on trees, like so many Crows, and despoil the fruit plantations and gardens. In this they resemble the Baboons, whose marauding expeditions will be noticed further on.
This is the Monkey which is tolerably common on the Rock of Gibraltar; and they were there before the sea wore away the land and formed the Strait. They are essentially Rock Apes, and liketrees near rocks, and, therefore, they are not found in desert tracts or in deep woods. Formerly the Rock of Gibraltar was no doubt continuous with the range of hills far over the sea to the south, and there the Magot plundered (or, rather, took what Nature let him take; for man had not then come to disturb him) the fruit of Kabylia, Algiers, and Morocco. People have invented many methods by which the Magots could come from Barbary on to the Rock of Gibraltar: some believe in a subterranean passage, which is said still to enable the occasional visits of African relations to their European kindred; and others, more practically inclined, believe that the Apes came over on board ship by stealth. Certain it is that the strong current through the Straits prevents anything from drifting from one side of them to the other. Some years since, some caves were opened and carefully examined in the Rock of Gibraltar, and bones were found of kinds of Hyænas, of Rhinoceros, and of Elephants, all comparable with those still living on the African Continent. Now, such animals could not at the present time live on the Rock, but they might have done so when it was part of a country extending right away to Africa. Their bones were washed into valleys amongst the hills, and then they fell into deep fissures and became preserved; and this could only have taken place when there was much water in the neighbourhood; and for there to be much water, the whole aspect of the country would have to be changed—to be extended far and wide where the sea now is.
MAGOT.
MAGOT.
No Monkey bones were found; but this is to be explained by noticing what occurs in India. There a dead Monkey is rarer than a dead Donkey in England—so rare, indeed, that the natives believe that their fellow Monkeys bury them; but the fact is there are plenty of beasts of prey ready to devour them, sick or dead, and therefore Monkey bones are very seldom found.
It is probable, then, that the Magot, and many African and some European animals, lived in the south of Spain when the Peninsula was united to North Africa. It has lasted longer than its great fellow-beasts, and still lingers there, but in greatly diminishing numbers.
WRIST-BONES OF THE MAGOT.
WRIST-BONES OF THE MAGOT.
What they live upon on the Rock is rather a mystery, for there are no groves of fruit-trees orplantations to be robbed, but only roots and bulbs to be dug up. Perhaps it is this spare diet which restricts their numbers and causes them to be very watchful. It is notorious that they are rarely approached, but sometimes they are trapped, or seduced into mischief, which ends in captivity. All kinds of stories are told at Gibraltar, and by most of those who have resided there, of the acts and deeds of the Rock Monkeys. Once upon a time, a strong party of these Apes, headed by an old male, who had grown grey in audacity and mischief, were always stealing and ruining the belongings of a certain regiment in garrison, and at last the annoyance became so great that it was determined to catch the ringleader, if possible. The men caught him, and shaved his head and face, and then they let him go. Away he scampered to his party, who had been watching for him at a distance, eager, no doubt, to place himself at their head again and lead them to vengeance. He was received with a volley of sticks and stones by his own troops, who treated him so roughly that he had to fly for his life. In this deplorable and degraded state, he was fain to sneak back to his old enemies, the ——th regiment, and presented himself at their quarters, so woe-begone and with such a rueful visage, “all shaven and shorn,” that there was no resisting the appeal. Broderip says: “He was admitted, and remained with his new allies, whom he served with fidelity, upon the principle that secures the faith of other allies—because he couldn’t help it.” It is said in one of the stories of the great siege that the Monkeys saved Gibraltar as the Geese saved Rome, for the Spaniards attempted to surprise the place a few weeks before the regular siege commenced; but, fortunately for the British, the attacking party had to pass where a number of these Magots had collected. Both parties were startled at the noise, but the British were put on their guard, and the old fort was thoroughly ready for the enemy. General Elliot, afterwards Lord Heathfield, never suffered the Apes to be molested or taken; but one had been made prisoner previously to the time of his being made Governor of Gibraltar, and was kept chained in his yard. Another Monkey, who had apparently fallen from a rock, had been picked up by one of the General’s aides-de-camp and conducted to the same place. Nothing could be more striking than the meeting of the pair. It was evidently the recognition of two old friends or relatives. After contemplating each other for a few seconds, they rushed into each other’s arms, then pushed each other a little back, as if to make sure of the recognition, and, after a second mutual examination, again clasped each other to their breasts.
The Magots, like all other Monkeys, are playful, affectionate, and gentle, when young, to those whom they know, but they become cross and vicious with age, and are generally greatly brutalised by their masters—in fact, brought to the same level.
The absence of a tail makes the Magot look very baboonish, and this appearance is not lost when the animal is dissected, and the skull is examined. This is much less animal-looking than that of any one of the Baboons, for it has not so much face, and the front of it is not so disfigured with ridges and swellings. But the forehead is “villainous low,” and there are well-marked ridges over the orbits, the skull not rising behind them; and, as a matter of course, the brain case is flat, the brain itself being low in height. The palate is narrow and long, the face is flat, and the chin recedes. There is a capital set of teeth, and the last grinders of the lower jaw (third molars) have their fifth cusp, or tubercle, subdivided by two side-slits. In this, and in the tail, which is excessively rudimentary, and only has three bones, or vertebræ, the Magot departs from the usual form of the Macaques as a genus. The sutures of the face and skull—that is to say, the joinings between the bones—are soon obliterated in this animal; and it appears to have the nose (nasal) bones joined in one at an early age, thus resembling the Baboon and the carnivorous animals.
So many tricks are taught these clever Magots, and with such ease, that one would expect to find a fairly-developed brain; but an examination of one shows that it is hollowed beneath and narrow in front, whilst it is broad behind, and extending well back, and covering the cerebellum.
Their special muscular structures resemble those of the other Inui, and even their stump of a tail has the muscles which are common to those of all Monkeys, but which in this instance are useless.
It will be noticed in the engraving of the wrist-bones that one projects behind. This is the pea-shaped, or pisiform bone. It is small and at the side of the wrist in man, but here it acts like it frontheelbone. The length of the three middle long bones of the palm, or metacarpals, is nearly equal; and this is an interesting point, as it prevents the third finger from being so much the longest, and gives the hand more or less a foot-like appearance.
Wanderoo is the English way of spelling and pronouncing the word by which the native inhabitants of Ceylon call all Monkeys; and it is certainly misapplied in this instance, for the animal is not truly one of the Cingalese Monkeys, although it has been brought into the island. It lives in the neighbouring part of the south of the peninsula of Hindostan, especially in the country bordering the Malabar coast. It is a small animal, probably never reaching two feet in length, and the tail may be that of ten or twelve inches; but, from the stories which have been told and invented, one would conceive the Wanderoo to be a giant in wickedness as well as in physical power.