Horse Stories, and Stories of Other Animals

by Thomas Wallace Knox

“Are there many of them?”

“No, not a great number, and they are supposed to be descended from some that were brought there from Africa and escaped from captivity. The naturalists class them as Magots or Barbary Apes, and say they are identical with the monkeys or apes of Northern Africa. Before we go further let me explain that an ape is a monkey without a tail, a baboon is a monkey with a short tail, and a monkey is an animal of the same great family with a long tail.”

“We thank you for the explanation,” said Harry, and his words were, echoed by George.

“Some interesting stories are told about these Gibraltar monkeys,” said Mr. Graham, resuming the topic of conversation.

“What are they, please?” exclaimed the youths in a breath.

“It is said,” remarked Mr. Graham, “that a few weeks before the famous siege of Gibraltar, the Spaniards attempted to surprise one of the British outposts, and they would have succeeded if it had not been for the monkeys. The party which was attempting the surprise had to pass a group of monkeys; the animals set up such a chattering as to alarm the outpost and put it on its guard. As a reward for their services in saving Gibraltar, the English garrison has ever since allowed the monkeys to live unmolested.

“Another story,” the gentleman continued, “relates to the imitative powers of the monkey. When Lord Howe went to the relief of the garrison during the siege, he had among the reinforcements the Twenty-fifth Regiment of infantry. After peace had been declared, several officers of this regiment went to a spot at the back of the rock to amuse themselves by catching fish. They found a good place for their purpose, and were busily engaged in catching whiting, when they were pelted by some one concealed on the steep rock above them. They shifted their ground two or three times, and finally found a place where they were no longer disturbed.

“The fish were biting at a goodly rate when suddenly the drums sounded to arms. The officers rowed their boat ashore, left it high and dry on the beach, and then hurried away to report for duty.

“When they came back they were greatly surprised to find that the position of the boat had been changed, and some of the hooks which had been left bare were baited. The lines were a good deal tangled, and it was evident that whoever used the boat had not been at all particular about other people's property.