Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1879-11-07

Male oarsags ore much given to
hGhtsnG. eoosinDed Mr.. Hoenadsy. q
nsneroas scan % some Of our spsci.
nees plaialy shos. Being purely
fruii-estiag animals their huge canine
tssth sssa 10 have bsen given them
solely - Vsapoes Of defense and offenae.
oarAag No IL carried the sears Of
many . lard foaght battle 10 the tree
tops- Large pieces bad been bitten
out Of both lips md his middle anesrs
had been bitten Of. He hsd also Lost
tvo Of his toss in this vsy. Whsasver
ny baby ourAag becomes angYy with
ne he would seize ne BY the wrist and
dns my hand up 10 his mouth. .
In Bornso the ourang outang inhabits
that vide belt Of Low. forest-coversd
swamp which lies between the sea
coast and the mountain ranges Of the
interior, extending entirely around the
western half Of the island. Last year
while on . collie citing expedition for
Professor II. A. Ward, / made ample
opportunities 70 study the habits Of the
ourang -outang in its native forests.
visited Borneo in August, 1878, for the
sole purpose of obtaining specimens Of
the Bornean simis and to study the
different species. I visited the territory
OF Sarawak, and for two and . half
months devoted my entire time to
hunting the ourang along the river
Sadong and its tributary, the Simujsn.
This whole region is one vast swamp,
covered everywhere with . dense
growth Of lofty virgin forest. During
the fruit season, from the middle Of
January to May LIST, the food Of the
ourang is the durion, mopgasteen and
rambuton, During the hot months OF
May, June and July they retire far into
the depths Of the forest and are exceed
ingly difficult to find. But during the
season Of the heaviest rains, from Au.
gust to November, when the forests
are flooded. the ourangs are found in
the vicinity OF the rivers. I soon
found that the only way to reach them
would be to paddle up and down the
rivers and watch for them in the tree
tops. Near the source of the Simujan
river and far beyond tho last Dyak vii.
lage we found great numbers of old
ourang nests and some which were
quite new. The nest consists Of guam
tity Of leafy branches broken of and
piled loosely into the fork Of . tree.
The ourapg usually selects q sapling
and builds his nest in its top, even
though his weight causes it to sway
alarmingly. He often builds his nest
within twenty feet of the ground and
seldom higher than forty feet. Some
times it is fully three feet in diameter,
but usually not more than two, and
quite fiat on the top. There is no
weaving together of branches. In
short, the ourang builds nest precisely
o. . man would build one for himself,
were he obliged to pass q night in q
tree-top and have nothing to cut
branches with. I have seen one or two
such nests Of men in the forest, where
the builder had only his bare hands to
work with, and they were just as rude
~ constructed, of just such materials
and in about the same position as the
average ourang nest. Upon this leafy
platform the ourang lies prone upon
his back, with his long arms and short
thick legs thrust outward and upward,
firmly grasping while he sleeps the
nearest large branches within his reach.
On several occasions I surprised these
animals upon their nests, and once ]
had an opportunity to watch an Qurang
while it constructed its restingsplace.
He never uses nest after the leaves be.
come withered and dry, no doubt be-
cause the bare branches are not com.
Portable to lie upon. I never saw OF
heard Of any BODYBUILDING by ourang'
outangs.
We found the animals most nuner.
GUS along the Simujan river. near its
source. Our manner of hunting wal
to make trips up and down the river in
our boat padding slowly and silently
along, keeping . careful lookout.
Sometimes in rounding Q bend in the
river we would come full upon huge,
black faced, red-hairsd animal, reposine
quietly or feeding. I aimed to shoot
them through the chest, and thus
either kill them at once or disable them
so that they would be unable to gel
away. On several occasions I succeeded
in killing q large specimen with 9
single bullet. It would at all times
have been an easy matter 10 have shot
them through the head, but this would
have ruined the skulls. As soon 40 AZ
ourang was fred at, if not killed a
once, he would begin climbing away
with all haste.
l think we may fairly consider tn,
ourangs the most helpless of all quad
rumana. Owing to the great weight o
their bodies and the peculiar structure
Of thier hands they cannot run nimbly
along even the largest branches, ant
never dare to spring from one tree K
the next. The weight Of the adult male
ranges from 100 to 160 pounds
Owing to the disproportionate short
ness Of his legs, his progress depends
mainly upon his long, sinewy arms
and very often he goes swinging through
q tree-top by their aid alone. UpoI
the ground ourangs are picture of thu
most abject helplessness, and in theil
native forest they are very seldom
known to descend to the earth. They
are utterly incapable of standing fully
erect without touching the ground will
their hands, and for them to be repre-
sented in drawings and museums n
standin0 arect in CONTRARY to nature