Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1891-03-09
MUST Sor np KILLED.
now the Sacred Monkeys of India Are
Protected.

low the Sacred Monkeys of India Are
Protected.
An English gentleman who has lived
many years in India tells some queer
stories about the sacred monkeys that
are a great nuisance in some parts of the
country. No one is allowed to modest
them. They run about the streets, help
themselves to whatever they please at
the shops, rob orchards and gardens,
and play havoc generally. To thrash
them is regarded as misdenleanor, and
to shoot monkey might cause a second
nutiny.
The gentleman had garden where
grew delicious fruits. The sacred mon
keys easily scaled the walls and helped
themselves. They were not content
with simply eating, but amused them
selves with throwing half munched
fruit at each other To shoot these pests
was-oat of the question, and to hit them
with stones vas impossible, as they
easily dodged any missile that might be
thrown at them An idea struck the
Engiishman one day, and he at onc2
proceeded to carry it into eff CT With
great success. He got large basket of
the largest potatoes that were to be
found and had them boiled. Wien
they were scalding hot he had basket
aEd potatoes placed under one of the
trees
The monkeys were watching these
movements from the trees. Presently
every monkey seizsd hot potato. and
then followed the most uneurthly
screeches and gatherings. A monkey
will never let go an article of food that
he once gets hold of, even if he las to
die, and these monkeys, true to their
nature, would not drop the hot potatoes.
They held. them in one hand an then
in the other, and then they would take
bite and scald their mouths, aud roll
in the dust, writhing with pain, but
never letting the potatoes once out of
their grasp They ate up the potatoes
and then disappeared over the walls and
never returned.
The Englishman once witnessed very
pathetic as we'll as heroic scene in one
of the city squares, in which the sacred
monkeys were the actors He saw a
number of monkeys seated and standing
in large circle. aud female monkey
hugging and wailing over the dead body
OF her baby that had just been killed by
a cobra's bite. The other females were
trying to console her by caresses, while
the males appeared to be in earnest con-
sultation among themselves. In the
center of the circle,was the large cobra
that had inflicted the fatal bite, coile6
l,no1 vwvafCI.ssN,r hn
mics by whom he was surrounded.
Suddenly young and athletic male
monkey sprang il to the arena. He
carefully approached the cobra, which
prepared itself to strike. The monkey
made few passes, and just as the snake
was about to dart its head he sprang to
one side and then over the cobra This
was repeated so often and with such as
tonishing rapidity that the cobra be-
came bewildered, when the monkey
seized the snake by the necS and pro.
ceeded to crush its head to jelly by
rubbing it on the ground with all his
might The snake tried to free itself by
coiling around the monkeys neck. but
in vain; its struggles became weaker
and weaker until life was extinct
When the snakes head had been re-.
duced to a shapeless mass the young
simian hero dropped the cobra ard ex-
ecuted series of hops and somersaults
Up to that moment the other mon
keys had maintained the most anxious
silence, watching every movement Of
the combatants with eager interest The
snakes death, however, was the sig al
for the most joyous chattsrings and
gambols They took hold of the con-
queror of the snake, patted him on the
head, scratched his back. danced round
him, and gave every manifestation of
their great appreciation of his valorous
achievement The poor mother carried
about her dead babe for two days lon
ger.