E.

When one sees a harmless snake,
Lying torpid, scarce awake,
On a chilly morning,
Is it well his life to take
Without leave or warning?

Pretty brown and yellow snake,
Whom the sun doth gently wake
In the lap of nature,
Here is room for weed and brake--
Room for every creature.

Teach us, Nature, how to love,
Not the flower and bird alone,
Gracious man and woman--
Not the beautiful alone,
Whether brute or human.

Teach us, that we may not wound
Even a striped snake on the ground,
Sunshine all around him!
We will go without a sound--
Leave him as we found him.

MARY R. WHITTLESEY.

MONKEYS.

Before the advent of man, and with him civilization, monkeys were
spread over a much larger portion of the earth than at present. They
lived in the south of Europe, in England, and in France. Except a few
of the Paviane, those of the present time are found only in warm
climates, and are very sensitive to cold.

Monkeys belong to the liveliest and most active of the mammalia. As
everything eatable is acceptable to them, there is always something to
catch, to dig, to gather--insects, fruits, roots, nuts, succulent
herbs, buds, leaves, eggs, &c.

Many stories are told about the orang-outang, or pongo, an inhabitant
of the islands of Borneo and Sumatra. It is the largest of the apes,
being, in some cases, seven feet high.

Vosmarin, a Hollander, kept a tamed pongo for a long time. He says,
"My pongo had rather a sad and downcast look, but was gentle and
affectionate, and very fond of society, preferring those persons who
busied themselves about it. Once it seized a bottle of Malaga,
uncorked it, brought the wine to a secure place, recorked the bottle,
and set it back again. This monkey was very fond of roasted and boiled
meats, and sucked eggs with great delight; however it preferred fruits
to all other food. After drinking, it was in the habit of wiping its
mouth with the back of the hand, as men sometimes do, and it generally
used a toothpick. It made great preparations before going to sleep,
shaking the hay for its bed, and making a bundle for a pillow; it
covered itself with any cloth or garment it could find.

"Seeing me unlock a door, it observed very attentively, then put a
piece of wood in the keyhole, and tried to turn it round. Having been
scra