Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1878-09-29
The Monkey Assassin.

der of the Rue Morgue." In that most
CHASTITY yet entertaining narrative mon
key is the author of an assassination.
That simian criminal has now found
rival in real life.
Early in 1877 the leading mine owners
at the Caratal gold fields in Eastern Ven
ezuela fitted out an expedition to pros
pect for some reputed cir nabar deposits
on the Brazilian border of Guayana. The
command of the party conferred on
a German adventurer named seller.
Seller was all old resident of Venezuela,
a miner, naturalist by prediction
and was we'll known to European and
North American scientists through the
valuable collections he had made for va
,riOus museums of natural history.
The expedition was failure, the Gin
nabar existing only in the brain of the
,mendacious Indian who had reported it.
In place of specimens of the precious
quicksilver ore, Seller only brought back
a cargo of prepared skins, stuffed birds,
curious animals, skeletons, and an enor-
nous red ape of the araguato or bowling
species.
IHCSC HlOuk0y3, LII Cnc1T naCuTdl state,
are little less ferocious than their great
African brethren, the gorillas, and are
almost as untamable. The native
Venezuelans call them "Wood Devils"
and stand in holy horror of them. Sellers
specimen, which was as big as ten year
old boy, and as deep-voiced as fog horn,
was no exception to the rule, and in a
snort time it became the terror of all
Caratal
Chained to ring bolt in the wall of
his masters house, which stood at the in
tersection of the only two streets of the
little village, the red ape would squat all
day long on the peak Of the tiled house,
mounting atthe passers-by, hurting what
ever missiles he could lay hands on at
them, and crashing his great teeth like a
fend- At night he charmed the somber
hours by bowling necessarily.
Horses and mules would stampede at
sight Of him. Children fled from MIN in
terror. Pregnant women Stunned him
religlously for fear his hideousness would
scare them into giving birth to monstrosi-
ties. The drunkenest miner that ever
Providence permitted to stagger home
was careful to pass Sellers house on the
other side of the street, and with a wary
eye on the sentry on the roof.
Even the buzzards deserted to Callao.
the opposition mining center, for the ape
bad developed great fondness for cap
turing hem whenever he could, then
proceeding to pluck them aud tear them
to pieces alive.
In fine, he became such public abom-
lnatlon that the authorizes were applied
to.
Accordingly, the Alcalde waited on
Seller and laid he case before him. He
might as we'll have spoken to the ape
himself.
Though the rainy season was at hand
and his roof was almost denuded of tiles
which the araqtato had torn off to throw
at people; though the brute ate as much
as ten men, while his master, who had
taught him to eat meat till he would
touch nothing else, had to starve himself
to feed him; though he himself was a
walking mass OF scars received at the
paws OF his ungrateful pet, still Seller
chung to the worthless hide of "ElDemon-
10 Colorado the red demon, as the
people had come to call the ape, with an
untaltering devotion He swOre by the
soul or Darwin that Mungo, has he had
christened him, should remain as long as
the house held together, which consider
ing the rapldity in which it was being
converted into proiectilcs, was certainly
not an eternal prospect.
When the Alcalde insisted Seller drew
ms attention to fine example of Smith &
Weston's revolver manufacture and the
argument ended abruptly.
People now took the law into their own
hands, but with equally poor success.
The Red Demon seemed to beara charmed
lite. He lodged silver bullets with the
greatest ease, and one genius who melt
ed down two ounces of gold into slug to
make sure OF him, had the satisfaction of
seeing Seller pick the precious missile
out OF his wall and purchase rum for
himself and raw beef for Mungo with it,
just at a juncture, toe, when his credit had
collapsed and given rise to hope that
the ape would starve to death after ALL
AS for poison, the brute revelled in it.
Paris green seemed sweet morsel under
his tongue. Strychnine only improved his
digestion. lie devoured arsenic like sugar,
and swallowed enough mercury to sail
vate a regiment without starting as much
as tear. At last his enemies gave up in
despair.
"He's de mos wuffless inseck I ebber
see" said one negro miner, sadly, put
ting into his pocket the ear which Mum
60 had neatly shaved off for him with a
sharp chunk Of quartz. Ode debbil damn
him to de bilin pit! don't believe he's
human, so dey amt no use tryin' to git
de bulge on him.
Which expressed the sentiment of the
entire community.
AT the beginning of the present year
Seller was struck down by fever, CON
tracted from repeated drenching during
the rainy season, which drenchings were
solely due to Mungo's having unroofed
the house to such an extent that there
was not u dry corner in It. Unpopular