Page:The naturalist on the River Amazons 1863 v2.djvu/344

 meal mixed with treacle. It became tame in a very short time, allowing itself to be caressed, but making a distinction in the degree of confidence it showed between myself and strangers. My pet was unfortunately killed by a neighbour's dog, which entered the room where it was kept. The animal is so difficult to obtain alive, its place of retreat in the day-time not being known to the natives, that I was unable to procure a second living specimen.

As I shall not have occasion again to enter on the subject of monkeys, a few general remarks will be here in place, as a summary of my observations on this important order of animals in the Amazons region. The total number of species of monkeys which I found inhabiting the margins of the Upper and Lower Amazons, was thirty-eight. They belonged to twelve different genera, forming two distinct families, the number of genera and families, here as well as in other orders of animals or plants, expressing roughly the amount of diversity existing with regard to forms. All the New World genera of apes, except one (Eriodes, closely allied to the Coaitás, but having claw-shaped nails to the fingers), are represented in the Amazons region. With these ample materials before us, let us draw a comparison between the monkeys of the new continent, and their kindred of the Old World. It seems highly probable that the larger land areas, both continents and islands, on the surface of our globe, became separated pretty nearly as they now are, soon after the first forms of this group of animals came into existence: it will