Connecticut western news., 1897-02-04
ISLAND PYGMlES.
A Familiar Talk About Some Very Litti
 Animals.

Familiar Talk About Some Very Little
 Animals.
 It is curious that almost all of the animal pygmies, whether of the present age or of the past, seem to come from islands, usually the islands of the south ern seas, although the Shetland and the Orkney isles, where the dwarf ponies scramble over the rugged rocks, are ex- captions.
 In the island of Ceylon, with its giant spiders, with their nets spun with yellow silk twisted as thick as a rope in comparison with our f1lmy, gossamer threads, and giant butterflies with emer- aid wings, are also wonderful pygmy creatures. There are little bulls, the Brahman, or sacred oxen, not more than 80 inches in height at their largest growth, and generally only 22. They are very pretty, with their silky hides and their legs like those of the deer. though they have deep dewlaps and bumped necks, like the zebu bXeed.
 These bulls are swift, keeping up long, swinging trot or run, and they go for great distances without food or wa ter, if necessary. Reins are fastened to . ring in the cartilage of the nose, and most of the freight of the island is car ried by these little creatures in their small two wheeled carts.
 Another pretty pygmy found in the Ceylon forests is the graceful musk deer, not more than 10 inches in height and 12 or IA inches in length. It is exqui- sitely formed, like the antelope, and is gray, dappled with white spots. In the Sunday islands is another species of deer, not much larger than cat.
 The pygmy marmoset does not come from an island, but from Brazil, whose great river. however, gives it's bordering forests many of the conditions of island life. These dwarf monkeys are only 4 inches tall when standing up. and Mrs Olive Thorne Miller tells of two that could wrestle and tumble in la- dy's open palm, sit on the edge of a tea cup, hide in all kinds of small places and perch together on @ lead pencil. They are full of fun and mischief and are necessarily scolding, ohattering and ] leaping from one tall object to another. Their color is a pretty gray, and they have very long tails, ringed with black kfa1s nisO Auuuy oafA JULIE of hair, like whiskers, on each side of the face.
 One of the oldest dwarfs is a dwarf elephant. Several are in this coun- try. They are wonderfully sagacious and quick of intelligence. In the island of Malta the fossil remains are found of a race of pygmy elephants no bigger than a sheep, and the babies of this spe- oies might no doubt have been easily ! held on the palm of mans hand. An other fossil pygmy is that of horse. said to be no larger than fox. We rarely hear of ocean pygmies, but ! Q pygmy whale, perfectly formed, with | all the characteristics of its immense kindred, the sperm whales, the largest living animals known. has recently been discovered. The large whale is 80 feet in length, while the pygmy one is i only 8.
 The human pygmies-at least, the | pygmy races, such as the little folk of the banana forests in Africa and the undersized Rock Veddalis of Ceylon- are not at all intelligent and seem like children arrested in their earliest stages. but individual dwarfs have been very quick witted and of fiery spirit, like the valiant little Godfrey Hudson. who was knighted by King Charles. Ella | F. Mosby in Philadelphia Times.