West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1879-03-22
The APE OF SIAM.
His sLtu in DctecttoE HAD coins. and Ills
rropensitS for Robbina Orchards.
tIondon Transcript !

tIondon Transcript
Monkeys,' SAYS an Arabic proverb,
can talk perfectly well If they choose
50 10 do; but they are far too clever Ia
let Us into their secret. Well they know
that, were they TO speak, they would be
made TO work; so they wisely hold their
tongues IL certain strange stories that
have recently reached our hemisphere
from the distant realm of Siam bc
founded upon fact. the incomplete
man. As some German psychologists
describe our respected ancestor, whose
iondness for apples is considered to have
exercised considerable influence upon
the destinies Cf humanity, is made to
work IN many several ways, despite his
affected ignorance Of artiCuate lam
guage. His prudent silence ava,ls him
naught in the domain of the white Gle
phant; and there are--at least we are
80 assured by an old Austi ian resident
at the Siamesc COurt-few professions
which hc may not be taught TO practice
with amazing skill and admirable pre-
cision lie s trained TO fish for crabs
with his tail, a. comical pursuit as can
well be imagined, except, perhaps, for
tho worthy and intelligent ape engaged
i'm 10. who sometimes gets bite from
"a monster crab that he is totally unable
. land, and falls a victim to the supc
rior weight of his Cancer FeroN, who
drags him into the water, browns and
finally devours him The Siamese ape
is also stated To toe i'm great request
among the native merchants As a cashier
in their counting houses. Vast quaint.
ties Of base Coiu obtain circulation in
Siam, and the faculty OF discrimination
between good money and bad would ap-
pear 90 be possessed 10y these gifted mon
keys TO such an extraordinary degree of
development that no mere human being,
however carefully trained, can compete
with them. The cashier ape mcdita-
lively puts into his mouth each coin pre-
sented To him in business payments, and
tests 10 with great delibeTatiOn. II IL be
genuine he hands IL over 10 his master.
II 10 be counterfeit he sets il down ON
the counter before him with a solemn
grimace Of displcasure His method
Of testing b. regarded i'm commercial cir
Cles a. infallible and, a. matter OF
fact, his decision is uniformly accepted
boy all parties Interested i'm the transac-
ton. But though a true and invalu-
able servant % his own particular mas
ter, 30 seem. that bis moral character is
not altogether irreproachable His de-
plOrable passion for fruit renders HIM
the terror Of Siamesc market gardeners,
who find brute force inadequate 10 re-
strain him from visiting their orchards
and therefore have recourse 20 divers
and sundry ,tratagcm-, one of which is
reported 90 Ice az successful as it is Ger
tainly ingenious. A specially active
and enterpTising ape is captured and
carefully sewcd up in the skin Cf tiger
cat lie Is then turned loose in the or
chard Of bis prediction, and straight
way clambcr-, n- well as hc may, incum-
bercd by au unfamiliar garment, into
the branches of fruit tree, among his
unclothed fellows. Scarcely DO these
latter set eyes upon him, with all his
feline terrors thick upon him. when a
dreadful panic strikes them, aud they
scramble away with piercing screeclos
and agOuiLed gatherings. Never more
do they return 90 an orchard which they
believe to be infested by the dcadlicst
enemy Of their race. The startling intel
ligcnCe is rapidly disseminated through
out the monkey society of the nciphbor.
hood, and the willy gardener enjoys an
absolute immunity from depreciation
forever alterward, for the very thought
Of tiger cat appalls the simian soul,
and doubtless the tale Of the awful
appariiion in Tingsc's orchard is
handed quadramanOus families from
generation to generation.