THE ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 117 



been adopted towards many indigenous animals ; the wolf and buzzard* 

 have quite disappeared. . . Noxious animals have been replaced by the 

 acclimatisation of many of the foreign fauna, which are either distinguished 

 for their beauty or valuable for their flesh. This transfer, which adds so 

 much to the richness of the country, can be vastly accelerated through 

 the agency of these Gardens, which are a kind of "tryal ground" for 

 beasts, as the fields of some of our rich agriculturists are for foreign roots 

 and grasses, in which those likely to be of service can be discovered, and 

 afterwards distributed throughout the land. 



The Society sustained a serious loss this year by the death 

 of the fine Indian elephant, which was a great favourite with 

 visitors, especially with children, for it was employed for 

 riding. On many occasions it had manifested extreme terror 

 during thunderstorms, and in 'the tempest of July the 

 fright of the animal was so great that death ensued. The 

 remains were entrusted for preservation to A. D. Bartlett, 

 then naturalist at the Crystal Palace. From figures furnished 

 by him it appears that the weight of the dead elephant was a 

 little over 2 tons 6 cwt. 



In 1856 the brindled gnu was added to the Menagerie, as 

 was the pretty Arabian oryx, the smallest of the genus. This 

 antelope was also new to science; and Gray, who described 

 it, named it in honour of the Princess Beatrice, born in that 

 year. The Queen presented a pair of Honduras turkeys, long 

 desired in European collections, and two Manchurian cranes, 

 obtained for Her Majesty by Sir John Bowring, and kept for 

 some years in the gardens of Buckingham Palace. The herd 

 of wapiti increased beyond the means of accommodation ; con- 

 sequently a stag and two hinds were sold to the Marquess of 

 Hastings. 



In response to an appeal from Prince Albert, Lord Canning, 

 Governor-General of India, with the assistance of influential 



the general opinion is. We make a number of kinds of serpents, worms, flies, 

 fishes, of putrefaction; whereof some are advanced (in effect) to he perfect 

 creatures, like heasts or birds, and have sexes, and do propagate. Neither do we 

 this hy chance, but we know beforehand of what matter and commixture what 

 kind of those creatures will arise. 



" We have also particular pools, where we make trials upon fishes, as we have 

 said before of beasts and birds." 



* This is an error ; the buzzard is, as Yarrell said, " the least rare of the larger 

 hawks." 



