LETTER TO THE DUCHESS OF BEDFORD MOOSE 195 



to strike ; a few cuttings would be priceless in 

 this country ! . . . Kennedy is sending me two 

 of the vast Galapagos l from Aldabra. . . .' 



To the Duchess of Bedford. 



1 Lilford : May 6, 1895. 



' I congratulate you sincerely on the 

 addition to your herd of reindeer, and trust 

 that the new arrival will thrive. I envy you 

 the Moose, but I have no proper range for 

 them. I do not know if you have had any 

 experience with these beasts, but I believe that 

 they cannot get on well without water deep 

 enough to cover their bodies in the summer 

 time. I know that they specially love water lilies 

 as food, and are very fond of browsing upon 

 young birch, alders, and other swamp-growing 

 trees and bushes. I shall be intensely interested 

 in hearing how yours of this species get on. If 

 you can establish a herd, you will deserve the 

 gold medal of the Zoological Society. I have 

 long tried in vain to get some of the European 

 Elks, but had I been successful I intended to 

 have given them to a friend who had a wide 

 range of moss and swampy woods in Ireland.' 



1 Spanish for Tortoise. 



o 2 



