Apes and Monkeys: Their Life and LanguageGarner, R. L. (Richard Lynch)
Science
Apes and Monkeys: Their Life and Language
Garner, R. L. (Richard Lynch)
Apes; Monkeys; Sound production by animals; Speech
Thus ended the career of my kulu-kamba friend, the last of my
chimpanzee pets. In him were centered many cherished hopes; but they
did not perish with him, for I shall some day find another one of his
kind in whom I may realize all that I had hoped for in him. I cannot
expect to find a specimen of superior qualities, for he was certainly
one of the jolliest and one of the wisest of his race. However fine and
intelligent his successor may be, he can never supplant either Moses or
Aaron in my affections; for these two little heroes shared with me so
many of the sad vicissitudes of time and fortune that I should be an
ingrate to forget them or allow the deeds of others to dim the glory of
their memory. I have all of them preserved, and when I look at them the
past comes back to me, and I recall so vividly the scenes in which they
played the leading _rôles_; it is like the panorama of their lives.
CHAPTER XVIII
Other Chimpanzees--The Village Pet--A Chimpanzee as Diner-Out--Notable
Specimens in Captivity
Among the number of chimpanzees that I have seen are some whose actions
are worthy of record; but as many of them were the repetitions of
similar acts of other specimens which are elsewhere described, I shall
omit mention of them and relate only such other acts as may tend to
widen the circle of our knowledge, and more fully illustrate the mental
range of this interesting tribe of apes.
In passing through the country of the Esyira tribe I came to a small
village, where I halted for a rest. On entering the open space between
two rows of bamboo huts, I saw a group of native children at the
opposite end of the space, and among them was a fine big chimpanzee,
sharing in their play. When they discovered the presence of a white
man in the town, they left their sport and came to inspect me. The ape
also came, and he showed as much interest in the matter as any one else
did. I was seated in a native chair in front of the king’s hut, and the
people, as usual, stood around me at a respectful distance, looking on
as if I had been some wild beast captured in the jungle.
The ape was aware that I was not a familiar kind of thing, and he
appeared in doubt as to how he should act towards me. He sat down on
the ground among the people and stared at me in surprise, from time to
time glancing at those around him as if to ascertain what they thought
of me. As they became satisfied with looking they retired one by one
from the scene, until most of them had gone; but the ape remained.
He changed his place a few times, but only to get a better view. The
people were amused at his manner, but no one molested him.
[Illustration: Native Village, Interior of Nyanza (From a Photograph.)]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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