The simian tongue. [Pt. II].

  • Garner, R. L. (Richard Lynch), 1848-1920.
Date:
[1891]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The simian tongue. [Pt. II]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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    is the supreme thought of his life, and in this manner he associates that sound with every kindness and pacific office ; but from a lack of opportunities I have not been able to ascertain to what extent these are associated ideas with him. I have described in my former paper the fright which I gave to a monkey named Jokes,in Charleston, and at the time of writing, that article I had not been able to renew friendly relations with him. After a lapse of some ten or twelve days from the time I had frightened him, I resorted to harsher means of bringing him to terms : I began to threaten him with a rod. At first he would resent it, but when he failed to frighten me by his threats and assaults, he soon yielded and came down from the perch in his cage,, although greatly frightened. He would place the side of his head on the floor, put out his tongue, and utter a very plaintive sound, having a slight interrogative inflection. At first this novel demeanour quite defied interpretation ; but during the same period I was visiting a young monkey of the same kind called Jack : we were quite good friends for comparative strangers, and he allowed me many liberties with him, which the family to whom he belonged assured me he denied to others. On one of my frequent visits he displayed his temper and made an attack upon me because I refused to let go a saucer from which I was feeding him some milk. I jerked him up by the chain and slapped him sharply for this, whereupon he instantly laid the side of his head on the floor, put out his tongue, and made just such a sound as Jokes had made several times before, under the stress of great fear. It occurred to me that must be a sign of surrender or submission. And many subsequent tests have confirmed this opinion. But my daily visits to Jokes had not Won him back after a lapse of more than two months, and on my approach he would manifest great fear and go through with this strange act of humiliation. I observed that he had a great dislike for a certain negro boy on the place, who teased and vexed him very much, so I had the boy come up near the cage, and Jokes would fairly rave with anger. So great was his dislike for this boy that he seemed to forget all other things about him in his efforts to get to him. I would feign to beat the boy with a stick, and this gave Jokes great delight. I would hold