Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1892-11-10
The MONKEY TRIBE.
Some Interesting Facts Coacerning These
Famous TrtckSters.


Some Interesting Facts Concerning These
Famous Tricksters.
A French priest and dignitary of the
church. Father Carhasson, owned an
orang -outang which was very fond of
him. On one occasion the animal, es-
Gaping from the holse, followed his
master to the church He mounted the
sounding board above the pulpit and
lay perfectly quiet until the sermon
commenced Then the creature crept
to the edge OF the sounding board, a nd,
overlooking the preacher, initiated every
gesture made by the priest until the
congregation could not restrain their
laughter. The good father rebuked his
flock with very significant gestures
These gestures were so grotesquely
caricatured by the animal that the peo-
pie burst into roars of laughter, and
one of their number, stepping forward,
informed the priestof the cause of their
merriment
In the geological gardens in London
monkey was taught to eat with knif
and fork, and in the geological gardens
of Paris monkey arranged his food on
the table, using his napkin and knife
and fork as well as child.
In Africa and India, and in South
America, monkeys are often employed
to gather the fruit, which grows too
high to be reached by the natives
A cook on board ship taught his
monkey to hand the wood and in other
ways to assist him in doing the kitchen
work. African apes, when they go in a
body to plumber gardens and planta-
tons, are adroit enough to place SEN
tinel in a tree, who informs the plum
derers of the approach of any person by
uttering shrek.
The author of the History of Brazil
tells of a species of monkey called
preachers. Every morning and even
ing these monkeys assemble in the
woods. One takes higher position
than the rest and makes signal with
his fore paw. At this signal the others
sit round him and listen. When they
are all seated he begins to utter a series
of sounds. When he stops these cries
he makes another signal with his paw,
/ and the others cry out until he makes a
! third signal, upon which they becom me
silent again. This author, Mr.. Mare
| grove, asserts that he was witness to
| these preachings, but no other traveller
has confirmed the statement.
The incident of the monkey using the
| cats paw to take chestnuts OFT of the
! fire is said to have taken place in the
hall Of Pope julius IL
Monkeys are not very brave, although
the gorilla will sometimes attack ar
elephant when he is sure of his advan
| tage. The male gorilla often carries
huge stick and knows how tc
use it. As the elephant is fond of the
same fruit that attracts the gorilla, al
encounter frequently takes place. The
| gorilla, seated in the tree, sees the ele
plant approach, cautiously drops dowr
to bough, and availing himself of the
opportunity, brings his club sharply
| down on the sensitive trunk of hi.
enemy, who rushes away trumpetins
with anger and pain
| Apes and gorillas are usually vicious
and resentful, and less addicted to play
full tricks than the common monkey
| Indeed, the monkey. as we all know, i
trickster both in his wild and his do
nestle state. In their native forest
! they spend hours in swinging from tn
branches of the trees, suspended b.
| their tails, and chattering and grimac
ing with evident signs of delight. Hum
boldt mentions seeing over a hundred
| so employed in South American forest
how many varieties of monkey exist
We hear of a monkey in the Indies wit
reddish brown bodies, black heads. am
| faces of sky blue. There are monkey
with white eyelids, and green monkey
are to be found on the African con
tinent and Cape de Verde islands
| The howlers, which inhabit Soutl
America, are large and fierce, and trav
elers describe their yells as absolutel.
| appalling. So dreadful is the sound o
their growlings and roarings that on
| would imagine that all the beasts of tn
| forests had gathered together for a Dat
tie. These creatures are so fierce tina
even the most skillful and adven turou
trainer is unwilling to teach then
tricks One OF the most singular an
most unsightly of all creatures is tn
proboscis monkey. A traveller who say
a troop of them in Borneo says it is i'm
possible to imagine such hideousness
| One must see it to believe it. This Pre-
boscis is cartilaginous, and can be in
f1ated by the animal to prodigiou
size, and suddenly to encounter such
visage from behind a tree in Borne'
Wilderness is to be Mortified as yo1
never were before. Not boy in tn
world would be willing to take such
creature as pet They are very active
and in bounding from tree to tree vii
clear a space of fifteen or twenty fee
In noble qualities possessed by tn
dog and the horse, and even othe
animals, the monkey is lacking. AT hi
highest estate he is a mere trickster.-