THE CREATURE GOD FORGOT 167 



longing for the wild plains on which it had first seen 

 the light of day. Most giraffes that are captured 

 die of a broken heart before they become used to 

 captivity. On the other hand giraffes in confinement 

 give very little idea of those we see in the wild state. 

 I suppose only those that are semi-morons can endure 

 living without their freedom ; as a result almost none 

 of the wild animal's personality survives. 



Despite this the giraffe is one of the most sought 

 after animals for menagerie or zoo. Justly so, too; 

 for it is one of the strangest creatures that survives 

 from prehistoric times. It is the tallest animal man 

 knows. Its curious spots vary from beast to beast; 

 once I saw one with distinct leaf markings down 

 in Tanganyika; and a native killed an albino in the 

 Lorian swamp some years ago. Some have nearly 

 black markings, others with their pattern so dim as 

 to be nearly invisible. In a herd it is interesting to 

 note that few have the same shade of coloring, all 

 ranging from dark roan to light yellow. 



Classed by color and markings there are two kinds 

 of giraffes in East Africa. On the lower edge of British 

 East they are blotched with dark markings on a light 

 ground. But when we get towards Abyssinia we find 

 their designs " retictdated " ; that is to say, they are 

 mostly dark with a network or reticulation of white 

 lines placed in a large pattern thereupon. 



In this connection it is interesting to note that the 



