TWENTY-FIRST ANNUAL REPORT 63 



on a partnership basis, in sending an agent to South Africa after 

 as many menagerie animals as he could procure. The invitation 

 was promptly accepted, and the idea was carried into effect. 

 Mr. J. Alden Loring, of Owego, was chosen as the active agent, 

 and in spite of all drawbacks he sailed on July 21, direct for 

 Cape Town. In view of the fact that it had been quite impos- 

 sible to ascertain in advance what animals could be bought or 

 caught in South Africa on short notice, the whole venture was 

 nothing less than a leap in the dark. 



The U. S. Department of Agriculture relaxed its rigid em- 

 bargo on imports of ruminant animals from Africa sufficiently 

 to devise a special set of regulations for gathering, feeding on 

 American food, shipment and quarantine, by which our under- 

 taking was brought within the bounds of possibilities. But for 

 this kind co-operation on the part of Dr. Melvin and Dr. Pope, 

 absolutely nothing could have been done. We shipped to Africa 

 (at a cost of over $400) , 40 bales of hay and 4,628 pounds of 

 grain ; the latter sealed in air-tight cases. 



At Port Elizabeth, Mr. Loring was heartily encouraged and 

 assisted by American Consul E. A. Wakefield, who did everything 

 in his power to promote the success of the enterprise. But in 

 eastern Cape Colony there were practically no wild animals avail- 

 able and our agent was forced to look further north. 



In Pretoria, the Director of the National Zoological Gar- 

 dens, situated there. Dr. A. Haagner, at once became interested 

 in our undertaking, and began to work for its success. Largely 

 through his good will and active assistance, a collection finally 

 was brought together, and shipped to Boston on November 27, 

 on the steamship Cluny Castle. 



The Cluny Castle reached Boston on January 2, 1917, with 

 practically no losses to report. In view of the fact that the 

 animals had been in their crates for 47 days, the low death rate 

 was remarkable. The landing of the shipment in Boston at first 

 looked like a calamity, but its difficulties and dangers were all 

 smoothed out by the Department of Agriculture and the Customs 

 authorities in Boston. The former permitted us to ship the col- 

 lection to the Zoological Park by rail, for quarantine, and the 

 latter permitted it to depart without even one hour of delay on 

 account of formalities. We are greatly indebted to Drs. Melvin 

 and Pope at Washington, to Dr. Ryder in Boston, and to the 

 Collector of the Port of Boston. 



