We are indebted for the knowledge of this animal (_fig. 219._) to M. de
la Condamine, and shall therefore give his account of it in his Voyage
up the river Amazon. "The monkey, of which the governor of Para made
me a present, was the only one of its kind that had been seen in the
country. The hair on its body was of the most beautiful silvery white
colour: and that on its tail was of a glossy chesnut approaching to
black. Its ears, cheeks, and muzzle, were tinctured with so bright a
vermilion, as to have the appearance of being the work of art. I kept
it a year, and it was alive at the time I was writing this account,
almost within sight of the French coast; but, notwithstanding the
continual precautions that I took to preserve it from the cold, yet the
rigour of the season killed it before my arrival. I preserved it in
aqua vitæ, which will prove my description is not exaggerated." By this
recital of M. de la Condamine, it is obvious that his description will
apply to no other animal than the mico; and that it is a different,
and probably, scarce species, since no author or traveller before him
has made any mention of it, though it is remarkable for the bright red
which animates its face, and for the beauty of its hair.
_Distinctive Characters of this Species._
The mico has neither pouches on the side of his cheeks, nor callosities
on his posteriors. He has a flaccid tail, which is about half as long
again as the head and body. The partition of the nostrils is not so
thick as in other sagoins, but their apertures are at their sides. His
face and ears are naked, and of a vermilion colour. The muzzle is
short, the eyes are distant from each other; the ears are large; his
hair is of a beautiful silver white colour, and of a glossy brown on
the tail. He walks on all fours, and is about seven or eight inches
long. The females are not subject to the periodical emanation.