Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1892-07-22
VENGEANCE OF APES.
NUMBERING A MAN WHO ABB
QUOTED ONE OF THEM.
A Story vouched For by an English
Ohicer-Orang-Outang Can Talk and
Think and Plan just as We'll as
Humans.

"Lool1 at that, will you now?" said
an old Indian soldier, calling my atten-
ton to IA recent widely discussed article
debating the question whether or not
monkeys and apes have a language of
their own. "Now, if they want to
argue point like that why do not they
ask those that know instead of hastily
compiled reports of the observations of
some traveller who thinks himself a
martyr to the cause of science if he
gives twenty four hours study to the
matter.
"To my mind the thing won't bear
disputing over. for if there is anything
certain it is that apes at least not only
have n language, but that it is Ian
guage having WIDE range. This l
know from actual experience.
elm 1872 was n suhaltern in a regi-
ment stationed at Delhi, and early in
the summer got n furlough of three
months. At that time l had no home
ties, being an orphan and n childless
widower, and when n fellow officer,
Lieutenant H., proposed our spending
our leave in sightseeing | was agree
able. III. had fancy to visit Sumatra
and Borneo, so we took ship for the
latter place.
ave had got about enough of it,
when, on our way to the coast, we
reached little stream, the name of
which | do not remember. Here we
halted for the night, and as all of the
party were pretty well worn out, we
contented ourselves with cold supper,
and fell asleep at once. l was awak-
ened by one Of the natives sitting up
with n sudden exclamation of surprise.
"'What is it, Muti?' | said.
1.-THE fellow listened a momen
longer before he replied, and in that
| space i heard a sound that find hard
to describe. 1t was sort of subdued
moaning, and yet had nothing of grief
or pain in it, but was accompanied by
a note of determination, if | may call
+ it so. 1t came nearer every second,
and in few minutes every man was
! awake
"The natives held brief consultation
! among themselves and disagreed, but
/ at last Mutt directed III. and me to climb
/ one of the largest trees and proce eded
| to do the same himself. The others
/ seeing this, after look around soon
followed our example. All this time
/ the noise was coming nearer, and we
| could perceive that it was the voices of
a large number of animals.
"'Ihey are orang- outangs, whis-
pcred the Bornoese; keep silent every
/ body, for they mean mischief
"This last information was super
| fluous, as the moment they came within
sight it was plain to be seen that they
I did mean mischief. and murderous mis-
chief, too. They numbered not less
than fifty, and were all males, and
formidable fellows at that Each car
/ ricd an enormous club made of the
! hastily stripped bough of some tree,
and all were evidently wild with some
, unusual excitement 1t was n sight to
make anybody's blood run cold, and
arm free to confess that mine did.
mo mob of lawless men ever looked
! one-half as ferocious as did that adj
vancing company of apes, crashing
their teeth in a rage, all more alarm
ing that it was inarticulate. Their
eyes flashed, the groaning sound they
made was accompanied by horrible
display of pointed, cleaning fangs, and
! that we would be as infants in the
grasp of those powerful arms one had
only to look at them to know.
They were led by gigantic fellow
six feet in height, and looking more
human than many an Ethiopian / have
seen. They came straight on, though
from a different direction from ours,
and soon perceived us in the branches
of the tree. H. raised his gun to fire,
when l warned him not to
shoot, for we were gone men If we di-
rected their rage to us. The mass of
the apes made break for us as it was,
but the leader paused as if puzzled.
Seeing the others rush upon us he
started forward and throwing up one
arm as n man might do. gave hoarse
call. The others gathered aboat him
IN an instant, grunting and evidently
demonstrating, but obedient. At last
the leader dropped to all-fours and ex-
amined the ground with great care, the