midway between the lemur and the squirrel. It is a native of Madagascar, and, when full grown, is about eighteen inches long. The structure of its teeth, made necessary by its habits of life, is quite like that of the squirrel, or rodents. It is strictly nocturnal in its habits, and therefore in its native forest is seldom seen. During the day it sleeps in holes in the ground. Mr. Wallace says: "But its most remarkable character is found in its fore-feet, or hands, the fingers of which are all very long, and armed with sharp, curved claws; but one of them, the second, is wonderfully slender, being not half the thickness of the others. This peculiar structure adapts it to feeding upon small, wood-boring insects.

4. "Its strong feet and sharp claws enable it to cling firmly to the branches of trees, in almost any position; by means of its large, delicate ears, it listens for the sound of the insect gnawing within the branch, and is thus able to fix its exact position; with its powerful, curved, gnawing teeth, it rapidly cuts away the bark and wood, till it exposes the burrow of the insect, most probably the soft larva of some beetle, and then comes into play the extraordinary long, wire-like finger, which enters into the burrow, and, with the sharp, bent claws, brings out the grub.

5. "Here we have a most complex adaptation of different parts and organs, all converging to one special end, that end being the same as is reached by a group of birds, the woodpeckers, in a different way; and it is a most interesting fact that, although woodpeckers abound in all the great continents, they are quite absent from MadagasWe may, therefore, consider that the aye-aye really occupies the same place in nature, in the forests of this tropical island, as do the woodpeckers in other parts of the world."

car.

6. Professor Owen studied an aye-aye which he held in captivity, and, after feeding it fruits, observed its propensity to gnaw the sides of the cage.

He introduced a piece of worm-eaten wood into the cage, and, of the actions of the animal, says: "Presently he came to one of the wormeaten branches, which he began to examine most attentively, and, bending forward his ears, and applying his nose to the bark, he rapidly tapped the surface with his second finger, as a woodpecker taps a tree, from time to time inserting

the end of his finger into the hole. At length he came to a part of the branch which gave out an interesting sound, and began to tear with his strong teeth. He rapidly stripped off the bark, cut into the wood, and exposed the nest of the grub, which he daintily picked out, and conveyed the luscious morsel to his mouth."

7. The flying-cat, of the East Indian Islands, appears to cousin closely with the bat. There are no thumbs on any of its four limbs, nor are its fingers long, like those of the bat. But its long and slender limbs are connected

by a membrane, wide

ly opened by the limbs, which serves as a parachute, assisting it to spring from tree to tree. It is not able to maintain itself in the air, and hence is not a true flier. Its length is about eighteen inches, and it sleeps during the day, in low

hills, which it chooses

for its dwelling-place.

The Flying Lemur.

These lemurs feed upon fruits and young leaves, and prey upon plantations of cocoa and palm.

CHAPTER XXXIX.

1. SOUTH AMERICA may be said to be noted as the home of the monkey tribe. The great forests of the tropical regions are filled with the cries, yells, and roarings, by night and by day, of countless troops of these quadrumana, roaming through the tree-tops. Some of the families are diurnal and some nocturnal, and so the noises never cease. They embrace all sizes, from the big howler down to the tiny marmoset, not larger than a flying-squirrel. They all possess a degree of intelligence and cunning somewhat akin to that of the human species. Nearly all have prehensile tails, which give them the advantage of a

fifth hand in clinging to their frail support, and in swinging from branch to branch.

2. A very striking feature of most South American monkeys is the strong resemblance they bear to the Indians of the forest regions, just as those of Africa are said to resemble the negro, and those of the Indian Archipelago the Malay race. Some of them look so much like Indians that one can not help imagining there exists a near relationship between these tribes of forest-dwellers. Humboldt says of the howler: "The face of this singular monkey is nearly concealed by a sandy, bushy beard, ex

So striking is

tending below and projecting considerably beyond his chin, giving him a very dignified appearance. their resemblance to the human species that, once having shot one, I almost felt as though I had committed murder. When I raised the poor creature from the ground, upon which he had fallen, his large gray eyes were bathed in tears, and every feature expressed the deepest agony.

3. "Casting upon me a most eloquent look of reproach,

he endeavored to push me aside; but, too much enfeebled by his wound, lay down and calmly resigned himself to the gaze of my English companions, who discussed and disputed about the division of his still panting body-one wanting the skin for a smoking-cap, and the drum of his throat for the bowl of his pipe, while the other would be contented with nothing less than the whole carcass. For my own part, I only desired to get out of sight of the dying creature; and, shouldering my gun, departed in a mood which determined me never again to lift my hand against these innocent wild men of the woods."

4. The largest of the South American monkeys is the ursine howler, named from the loudness of his voice. Wallace gives this description of it: "Often, in the great forests of the Amazon or Orinoco, a tremendous noise is heard in the night or early morning, as if a great assemblage of wild beasts were all roaring and screaming together. The noise may be heard for miles, and it is louder and more piercing than that of any other animals; yet it is all produced by a single male howler, sitting on the branch of some lofty tree. They are able to make this noise by means of an organ possessed by no other animal.

5. "The lower jaw is unusually deep, and this makes room for a hollow, bony vessel, about the size of a large walnut, situated under the root of the tongue, and having an opening into the windpipe, by which the animal can force air into it. This increases the power of its voice, acting something like the hollow case of a violin, and producing those marvelous, rolling sounds, which caused Waterton to declare that they were such as might have had their origin in the infernal regions. The howlers are large and stout-bodied monkeys, with bearded faces, and very strong and powerfully grasping tails. They inhabit the wildest forests. They are very shy, and are seldom