The Speech of Monkeys

Another sound which these little creatures use in a somewhat similar manner, is a word which may be represented by the letters "c-h-i." The "c-h" is guttural like the final "ch" in German, and "i" short like the sound of "i" in hit. This sound is used to give warning of the approach of something which the monkey does not fear, such as approaching footsteps or the sound of voices; and this sound Nellie always used to warn my wife of my approach when I was coming up the stairway. The rooms which I occupied while I kept Nellie were located on the second floor, and the dining-room was on the ground-floor; and hence there were two flights of stairs between, both of which were carpeted. So acute was her sense of hearing, that she would detect my footsteps on the lower stairway, and warn my wife of my approach. She manifested no interest, as a rule, in the sounds made by other persons passing up and down the stairway, which indicated that she not only heard the sounds of my footsteps but recognised them. The first intimation she would give of my coming was always in a whisper. She would first make the sound "c-h-i," and then she would stop and listen. She would repeat the sound and listen again, and as I would approach the door in the hall she would lift her voice to its natural pitch, and utter this sound three or four times in quick succession; and when I turned the door-knob she would show some excitement, and when I entered the room she would always express her satisfaction with a little chuckle. This sound she did not use except to announce something of which she was not afraid, but when she apprehended danger from the cause of the sound, she would use the word "e-c-g-k," and when greatly alarmed she would use the sound which I have described in the former chapter as that of intense alarm or assault.