The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1885-07-29
HUNTING AFTER MONKEYS
ACcIDfHTS AND INCIDENTS IN
The SEARCH.
DR.. Ward's Researches In Many COun'
tries to Secure q full Collcctlon 1oI
tho Metropolitan Museum.

tho Metropolitan Muscum'
At the American Museum of Natural
History in New York there has arrived
almost the last installment of the two
hundred species Of quadrumana, or mon
keys, spes, balloons, ETC., which MIR.
Morris X. Jcssup, wealthy resident OF
the metropolis, at his own expense, ALL
thorized DIR. II. A. Ward, of Rochester,
to collect from every quarter of the globe.
DR.. Ward told Times reporter of his
efforts on both hemispheres in collecting
the quadrumana:
"Therc are two hundred and twenty
four species of quadrumana in all, and
was instructed by Mr.. Jessup not to stop
until every one was secured. 1have now
delivered something over 'one hundred
species, and have little hope of obtain
ing the rest, on account of the difficulty
of reaching them. The family of le-
murs, for instance, comprise flfty-onc
species, thirty. three of which alone come
from Madagascar. Now that island is at
war with France, and French fleet has
it in state of siege. The consequence
is that all foreigners are taken for French
men, and on my recent trip there could
do nothing whatever. l even took the
trouble to 60 to France and have
both the United States minister
and the foreign department of that
country certify that l was an
American and wished to visit Madagas-
car for purely scientific purposes. The
scheme did no. work, and was assured
on arrival that if 1 attempted exploration
on the island my life couldn't be insured
for cent. However, l set trader there
at work, and he may do something for
us. By various means have managed
to secure thirty species of the lemurs.
The remaining twenty.onc nre divided
among Madagascar, the interior of Africa,
Siam, and Ccylon."
ut is said that some incident in your
career caused you to give up shooting
animals"
"Weil, that is perhaps true. When
arrived at that state of mind was in
Nicaragua. Here is species of monkeys
called the howlers, which have trumpet
apparatus in the throat by which they
make q terrible noise that can be heard
for miles. One day observed ono of
these howlers up in tree which seemed
TO have a strange swelling on the neck.
Having a great curiosity to learn what
this seeming lusus nature meant, | shot
the animal Down it catne with heavy
bump. As it fell a little one was released
and dropped to the ground. 1t had been
clinging to the mothers neck, and had
appeared in the distance like freak of
nature. When the mother touched the
ground she just reached over to
the little one, clasped it to her
breast and died. This act was
30 human and touching that it Of
fected me more than can tell, and for
life. In British Guiana these ho~lcrs
arc used for food. The natives broil
their arms, which are about as long as
and very much resemble. human. arms.
The taste is very good. To see lines OF
these arms hanging up in a native vii.
lage causes strange sensations to the
traveller in British Guiana.
"Any one who will examine old spec
linens of the gorilla in museums will find
on inspection that their hands and feet
are made OF plaster. For long time it
was almost impossible to find gorillas in
the wild state in possession of these
limbs. It seems that the natives of
Gaboon, Africa, recognized them as
their natural enemies. So, instead of
killing them of, they caught the young
and cut off their hands and feet. We
had to teach the natives the difference
in the value between whole and frag.
mentary animal. When they learned
the lesson we began to get specimens
that were whole and the natives more
value in return.
"New- Yorkers seem to have much fun
with Mr.. Crowley, this chimpanzcc in
Central park, and we'll they may. These
animals come from West Africa and are
hard to secure. Much less is known
about them than the gorillas. They are
smaller and more intelligent. Mr.. Crow
ley's hands arc pink on the inside, but
they will turn dark when he gets older.
In Sumatra secured the slender gibbon.
They are peculiar anthropoid ape and
are great fellows to swing. Ihavc often
seen them swing on limb like gymnasts
on trapeze until they had secured
sufficient momentum, when they would
lump to another limb and 90 back and
forth from limb to limb in that way.
"Pernaps the only attempts which have
been made to civilize the monkey is IN
Malabar, India. A fine species indi-
geneous in this quarter is the Ncllighcr.
ry langur. The natives here have fan.
ming machines called tho punka. In
other days the punka, which consists of
movable frame, covered with canvass
and suspended from the ceiling, was
kept in motion by slave pulling cord.
An English officer conceived the idea Of
teaching the langur to work. lie took
one of the species and tied its hands to
the cord, while by means of another
ord the machine was kept in motion.
The movement of the cord is up and
down, and, of course, the monkeys
hands being tied to it: went up and
down, and the animal saw the machine
move. Its master pattcd its head and
fed it with candy, and the langur soon
learned to think it fun to work the ma
chine. When was in Malabar securing
specimens of this species, l saw thous-
ands of them working the punka, the In
dians having Immediately put the ami,
mails in captivity when they saw their
utility.
"In Gaboon, Africa found the most
peculiar babopn of all, the mandrill
| 1Mormon mai,non) In Abyssinia thew