Brehm's Life of animals (Page 27) (6902381630)

Description:

THE DOG-SHAPED MONKEYS— SLENDER OR SACRED.
27
balconies are strewn from time to time with rice,
millet, dates, fruits and sugar-cane — all for the
Monkeys. These latter are so bold that they not
only pillage the gardens, but sometimes enter the
houses at meal-time and take the food out of peo-
ple's hands. A missionary declared that only by
constant watchfulness was he able to protect his
clothing and other belongings from these thieves.
It is verv probable that the sacred character
The Budeng or This group has yet other remarkable
Negro Monkey members. The Budeng or Negro
of Java. Monkey of the Javanese (Semno-
pitheais mcturus) is a beautiful animal. In mature
age he is black and glossy, his face and hands being
like velvet, his back like silk. The head is covered
by a peculiar cap of hair falling on the forehead and
encircling the cheeks. New-born Monkeys of this
are of a cream color, and only the ends of
HOONUMAN MONKEYS. The mc
sacred of all the sacred Monkeys of Ind
Here are portrayed a troop of Hoonumans
their arboreal home in the hot lowlands of the
Upper Ganges. The full-grown H
from three to four feet in length, with a tail
still longer than the body. It is a handsome
creature, the fur being cream-colored, except
parts of the head and the extremities of the
Monkeys is connected in some way with the belief in
the transmigration of souls. It seems that the Hin-
doos think that after death their souls, as well as
that of their king, enter the body of some Monkey.
Notwithstanding their impudence these animals are
attractive and handsome creatures. The missionary,
John, says that he never saw more beautiful Monk-
eys than the Hoonumans. Their friendliness towards
each other and their enormous leaps attract the atten-
tion of every observer.
limbs, which are black, while the bare portions
are of a deep violet hue. It is protected on
account of its supposed sanctity, for the na-
tives dare not molest it. It is one of the great-
est thieves in the world, robbing shops, houses
and fields and standing in no dread of Man,
whom it seems to regard as a sort of servant
to provide for its greedy wants. (Semnopithe-
cits eniellus.)
the hairs on the lower part of the back, the upper
part of the tail and its tuft take a darker tinge.
Soon the dark color begins to spread, and in a few
months the hands, the head and the tuft of the tail
are black, and then the whole coat gradually as-
sumes the color of mature age. The length of this
handsome creature is about five feet, the tail coming
in for more than half of this measurement.
" The Budeng," says Horsfield, " is found in con-
siderable numbers in the extensive forests of Java.