Besides the master of the house, which we formerly observed, we have
since been informed that the Surikat bit a number of other persons and
to which it seemed induced by some particular smell; for when laid
hold of, it always curled up its nose to smell the person, and an
observation was made that it never failed to bite those whom it had bit
before, however often they came near it, and this experiment was made
by several people; to some persons it seemed to have such an aversion
that it would use various stratagems to get at them, and if it could
not bite their legs, it would lay hold of their shoes or petticoats.
M. Vosmaër says, in his work, "it is probable M. de Buffon was deceived
both in respect to the name and native country of the Surikat, which
was last summer sent by M. Tulbagh to the Prince of Orange; for
it belongs to Africa and not to America. This small animal is not
mentioned by Kolbe, and possibly was not known to him, for with a male
and female transmitted to me I received the following note from the
governor: _I send by the captain two small animals, a male and female
of which I neither know their names nor the species to which they
belong; they were brought from the remote desarts and stony mountains
of this country, and were the first we had seen. They are very gentle
and feed upon fresh meat either dressed or raw, eggs and ants._"
I certainly do not mean to contend against the evidence of M. Tulbagh,
or deny the justness of M. de Vosmaër's remark, for I had no other
authority for the name and country of this animal, although I kept him
a considerable time alive, than that of the man from whom I bought it,
who said he purchased it in Holland by the name of Surikat, and that it
came from Surinam. But we are now certain it does not belong to South
America, but to the mountains of Africa above the Cape of Good Hope; as
to its name we are still uninformed, but which can easily be changed
whenever that in its native country can be procured.