Sunbury American. [volume] (Sunbury, Pa.) 1848-1879, 1863-06-06
SATURDAY MORNING, JUNE G, 1868,

ful unoarthly rear deepenea the Feelings of
solitude which orept on as darkness closed
around us. Soon after the tretlies in great
diversity Of species came forth and Rtted
about the trees. As night StiSSacca, All
became silent in the forest, save the occA-
sional hooting Of tree frogs, or the faonoto-
nous chipping OF wood-clickets and grass
THE MONKEYS OF TaE AMAZON.
Mr.. Bates has a special chapter On mon.
keys, as well as frequent mention Of these
animals throughout the book. The most
singular of the Simian family in Brazil aGe
the scarlet faced monkeys, called by the In
diaus UakaIi, of which there are two VAife-
ties, the white and the lcd-haifeA MI.
Bates first met with the white haired variety
under the following circumstances:
Early one sunny morning, in the wear
1858, saw in the streets of Ega a number
of Indians carrying on the shoulders down
to the port, to be embarked on the Upper
Amazons steamer a large cage made Of
strong lianas, some twelve feet in length
and five in height, containing dozen mon
keys of the most gTotcsqUe appearance
Their bodies (about eighteen inches in
height exclusive of hmbs) were clothed
from neck to tail with Very long, straight
and shining whitsh hairs their heads were
nearly bald, owing to the very short crop oi
thin grey hairs, and their faces gloweA Vita
the most vivid scarlet hue. As fihisA to
their striking physiogpomy, they had bGShS
whiskers of a sandy color, meeting Ss4l,eeS
the chin, and reddish Sellew eyes. They
sat gravely and silently in a group, and al
together presented strange spectacle"
Another Interesting creature is the owl.
faced night ape. These monkeys aie not
only owl faced, but their habits are those oi
the mopmg bird
They sleep all day long in hollo~ trees,
and come forth to prey on insects and eat
fruits only in the night They are OF small
size, the body being aSout a foot hong and
the tail fifteen inches, and are thic&ly clotA.
ed with soft gray and brown fur, similar in
substance to that Of the rabbit. Their ply.
siognomy reminds one Of an owl, or Nst4
cat. Their face is round and cTrciNlcA nv 4
ruff whitish fur; the muzzle is not at All
prominent; the mouth and chin are sIAal4 ;
the ears are very short, scarcely appearing
above the hair Of the head and the eyes
are large and ycllowish in color, iHpaf1iha
the staring expression Of nocturnal ANIMALS
of prey. The forehead is whitisA, AhA he
comtcd with three black stripes, which in
one of the species continue to The crown,
and in the other meet on the top Of the
forehead
"These monkeys, although sleeping by
day, are aroused by the least noiSe, 80 that,
when a person passes by tree in which a
number of them are concealed, ne IS startled
by the sudden apparition Of a group al
little stripped faces crowding a hole in the
trunk"
This approach to an owl is as much, Ne
should think, as any monkey woalA like Ia
accomplish. Mr.. Bates had one ct The
Nyctipithcci for pct, which WAS caatasVA
after the usual manner This pet WAS &tAFt
in box containing broadmoHtheA glass
jar, into which il would dive head Foremost,
when any one entered the room, turning
round inside, and thrUsting Forth its M.
quisitive face an instant atterwaT3 10 StAiS
at the intruder. The Nyctibithcct1s when
tanned renders one very essential service h
its owncr-it clears the house Of bats aS
well as of insect Vcrmin.
The most diminUtiVe Of the BrSzillRAR
monkeys is the "llapale pygnSedS" F" Only
seven inches long in the body, with its iittlt
face adorned with long brown ~AiSNt4S
which are naturally brushed back NNer SAt
cars The general color OF the animal y
brownish tawny, bat the tail is elegantly
barred with black.
Mr.. Bates closes his account ny stating
that the total number Of species Of monkeys
which he found inhabiting she margins u
the Upper an& Lower Amazon MAS tAtftS
eight, belonging to twelve different, gtheI&i
forming two distinct families