Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1859-08-21


In Dickens 81 the Year Rouad we find the
following description Of this animal, which is
said to be the most loosely allied, in structure,
to the human form, Of any OF he brute ere
alton:
The gorilla is Of the average hight OF man
i've feet SIX inches; his brain case is low and
narrow, and as the fore part Of the skull is
hlgh, and there 8 a very prominent ridge above
The ewes, the top Of The bead is perfectly fat,
and the brow, with It's ihick intezumeHt, forms
a " scowling penthouse ever the eyes, Couple
with this a deep lead-colored skin, much win
kied, a prominent Jaw with the canine teeth
On the males) Of huge size, a recediBg chin,
and we have an eNaggeration Of the lowest and
mos to-bidding type n human p~hysiognomy.
he neck is short, the head p0kss forward.
The relative proportions Of the body and limbs
are nearer those Of man, vet they are Of more
ungainly aspect than in any other Of the brute
kind. Long, shapeless arms, thick and nus
eular, with scarce any dimiuution Of size de-
serving the name Of wrist, (fOr at The smallest
they are fourteen inches round, while d strong
mans wrist is not above eight a wide, thick
hand the palm long, and the fingers short,
swollen, and souty-l0oking; capsciOls chest ;
broad shoulders; legs also thick and shapeless,
destitute OF calf, and very muscular, yet short;
a nand-hke foot, with a thumb 10 10, "of huge
dimension and portentous power Of grasp"
No wonder te lion skulks before this monster;
and even the elephant is b8fied bvhis malicious
cunning, activity and strength. Ire teeth in
dicate a vegetable diet, but the rapast is some
y varied By eggs, or brood Of Young birds.
IN chief reasons Of bis snmity 70 the ele-
plant appears 10 be, not that il ever intention
ally Injuries him, but merely, that It shares bis
taste for certain fsVorite frsits. Ard when, I
from bis watch-tower in the upper branch Of
a tree, be perceives the elephant helping him
self 70 these delicscies, be steals along the
b0ugh, and, shrinking its sensitive proboscis a
violent blow with the club with which he is
almost always armed, drives IF the startled
giant trumpeting shHlly with rage and pain.
Toward the negroes, the gorilla seems 10
cherish an implacabls hatred be attacks them
quite unprovoked. II q party OF blacks sp-
proach unconsciously within range Of a tree
haunted By one Of these Wo0d-demons-swing-
ing rapidly down 10 the lower branches, he
clutches with his thumbed foot at the nearest
part Of them, his green ewes fash with rage.
MS hair stands on end, and the skin above the
eye drawn rapidly up and down, give hin
nendlsh sc0Wl. Sometims during their eycur-
sions in quest Of ivory, in those gloomy forests,
the natives VIII FIRST discover the proximity Of
a gorilla by the sudden mysterious disappear
ance Of one Of their companions. The brute,
angling for him with his horrible foot dropped
.N- NV WINE AAn HallAE aims gasp IT D
firmly, stretches town his huge hind-hsnd,
seizes the helpless wretch BY the throat, draws
him mp into the boughs, and ss soon as bis
struggles have ceased, drops him down, a strau-
gled corps.
A tree is The g~0rilia's sleeping place by night,
his pleasant abode bydsy, and MS castle Of de-
Tense. From that coiEue Of advantage be
waits his foe, should the latter be hardy, or
foolhardy enough to pursue. No full grown
gorilla has ever been taken alive. A b6iIne
gro the leader OF an elephant hunting expedi-
ton, was offered a hundred dollars for a live
gorilla. az you gave ne the weight Of Won
der bill IN gold, ! could OF DO it, be said.
Nevertheless, he has his good quaIiies-in
a domestic poizr OF vieW-he is an amiable
and exemplary husband and father, watching
over bis young family with afectionate solicit
-ude, and exeIting in their defense his utmost
strength and ferociy- The mothers show that
devotion 70 their Young in tie time Of danger
which Is The most universal Of instincts.
The gorilla constructs himself a snug ham
mock out Of the long, tough, slender stems Of
parasitic plants, and lines il with the broad
ired frsnes Of palms, OF with long grags-a
.ort Of bed surely not 70 be despise5-wuug
q the leafy branches OF a tree. By dav. he
its on z Dough, leaning his back against The
runk, owing 20 which habit the elderly gCrfI-
az become rather bald in those regions.