1 72 NOTES AND COMMENTS [sept. 1899 



in University College. Onr point, however, was that to realise 

 Ichthyosaurus, to see it disporting itself with its flukes, to verify its 

 dorsal fins, to inquire into the contents of its stomach, to peer even 

 into its oviduct, one must go to Stuttgart and sit at the feet of Fraas. 



A Note on Zoos. 



Again and again it has been remarked that zoological gardens flourish 

 on the continent in towns whose population is less than that of British 

 centres in which the institution of a " Zoo " would be regarded as fore- 

 doomed to failure. The reasons for this are doubtless manifold : — the 

 treacherous British climate is largely to blame ; we are given to take 

 our pleasure sadly ; there is the little item of delectable uninjurious 

 beer with which British brewers still leave us unprovided, and so on. 



The pros and cons have been often discussed, and we have had 

 some opportunity of considering them. Our verdict is that a " Zoo " 

 would flourish and pay in Edinburgh, for instance (where the project 

 has been recently discussed with more or less vague enthusiasm), just 

 as well as in Stuttgart, if only a company would select a scientific 

 person with brains to run it. 



After visiting the garden in Frankfurt, which is in some ways 

 almost luxurious in its wealth of exhibits, we were glad for our 

 country's sake to see the little aSTil-Garten at Stuttgart. For Edin- 

 burgh all at once to start a zoological garden on the scale of the 

 Frankfurt one is as unlikely as that there should be an independent 

 Edinburgh Antarctic Expedition ; but that a company of enthusiastic 

 Edinburgh naturalists and business men should not be able to run 

 as good a garden as there is in Stuttgart is absurd. 



So far as we could gather, it seems to be " run " by one man, and 

 there were few irrelevant attractions. Yet the garden was an interest- 

 ing one, with its Echidna, a very fine Myrmecojphaga jubata, a sloth, an 

 orang, a chimpanzee, the usual galaxy of monkeys, a fair sample of 

 carnivores and ungulates, a lot of quite happy birds, a great somnolent 

 giant salamander and silurus, and so on. 



There was not perhaps anything new to the expert naturalist, but 

 there was enough for even his observation for an hour or two. 

 The collection seems to have started with monkeys, but it has 

 broadened out, and it is at once a credit to the town and an example 

 to others who might go farther for suggestion and fare worse ! One 

 thing, however, a visitor to the Stuttgart garden must feel, that 

 without a good water-supply a thoroughly successful and beautiful Zoo 

 is impossible. 



