58 



ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN 



people may differ on all other subjects, all 

 agree that there is small pleasure in behold- 

 ing a fine, large animal imprisoned in narrow, 

 mean quarters, not half large enough to ren- 

 der it reasonably satisfied with life. 



In addition to considerations for the ani- 

 mals themselves, the public requires, for its 

 own comfort and convenience, a spacious and 

 well-lighted hall ; and the health of the ani- 

 mals and safety of the keepers require that 

 the service arrangements should be of the 

 best. Spacious outside cages are now re- 

 garded as an absolute necessity to any mod- 

 ern house for the large Carnivora. 



The lion houses of Europe afford a very 

 interesting series of illustrations of the man- 

 ner in which different minds have striven to 

 attain the same end. No two of them are 

 exactly alike, and the majority of them serve 

 their purposes excellently. For all practical 

 purposes, several of them come quite near to 

 perfection; but, thus far, the shadow of the 

 iron bar is over them all. 



The Lion House in the New York Zoolog- 

 ical Park represents the greatest effort of the 

 New York Zoological Society thus far, and 

 constitutes what will undoubtedly stand, for 

 many years at least, as its finest building. It 

 contains many features which are entirely 

 original, and no effort has been spared to 

 render it of the highest possible value to the 

 public. It is situated in a commanding posi- 

 tion on the southeast corner of the level 

 plateau known as Baird Court. Thanks to its 

 position on this five-foot terrace, its western 

 elevation does not convey an impression of 

 a very low building, as would be the case if 

 it stood upon a wide tract of level ground. 

 From whatever direction it is seen, the west- 

 ern side, which is in full view from Birds' 

 Valley, and the Motor Road which runs 

 along the western side of Baird Court, con- 

 veys the impression of a highly artistic 

 structure built of the finest materials. The 

 wealth of sculptured stone and terra cotta, 

 presenting realistic carvings of large feline 

 animals, are calculated to impress the ob- 

 server quite strongly; and this impression 

 will reach its climax in the two life-size senti- 

 nel lions, carved in stone, which sit in repose 

 on each side of each main entrance to the 

 building. 



GROUND PLAN. 



The essential features of the Lion House 

 consist of a main hall, 192 feet long and 28 

 feet wide; a series of cages, 21 feet deep, 

 along its eastern side, and a series of exterior 

 cages, also extending the entire length of the 



eastern wall, and varying in depth from 24 

 feet to 42 feet 6 inches. Over all, the struct- 

 ure is 240 feet long, and its extreme width 

 at the centre is 1 10 feet. The style of archi- 

 tecture is uniform with that of the other large 

 buildings of the Park, and similar building 

 materials have also been used. The brick- 

 work seems lighter in color than the walls of 

 the Primates' House and Reptile House, be- 

 cause of the fact that the bricks have been 

 laid in yellow mortar, instead of dark red. 



This building is much more richly orna- 

 mented with animal sculptures and cut stone 

 than any of the other buildings. The roof of 

 the main hall is quite high, and the ceiling of 

 very light yellow pine harmonizes perfectly 

 with the color of the masonry. The long 

 western wall of the building is pierced by 

 spacious windows, opening upon the line of 

 trees which shade the building on the west. 

 In the centre, the western wall is broken by 

 a large alcove, semi-hexagonal in shape, the 

 side-walls of which are unbroken by win- 

 dows. This alcove is to be used for the 

 exhibition of collections of drawings and 

 paintings of carnivorous animals, and other 

 animals also, if the Society so elects. It is 

 provided with spacious skylights, and it will 

 admirably serve its very unique purpose. 

 Primarily, it is intended to exhibit in this 

 alcove instructive pictures of carnivorous 

 animals which, by reason of their rarity, are 

 seldom found in zoological gardens. 



Along the western wall of the building a 

 raised platform has been constructed, two 

 steps high, with oak settees against the wall. 

 This platform is intended to enable a large 

 number of visitors to overlook the heads of 

 those standing upon the floor, and who 

 otherwise might entirely cut off the view of 

 the animals in the cages. 



THE INTERIOR CAGES. 



The interior cages are twelve in number. 

 Six of them are extra large, 18x22 feet. 

 These are intended for the finest lions and 

 tigers, and for families of cubs. Six smaller 

 cages, the dimensions of which are 12 x 22 

 feet, will accommodate the leopards, pumas, 

 and cheetahs. The floors of the cages are 

 raised three feet above the visitors' floor, and 

 have been constructed of strips of maple, set 

 on edge. Each cage is provided with two 

 sleeping dens, which can, when necessary, be 

 cut off entirely from the other portions of the 

 enclosure. The top of the sleeping dens has 

 been finished as a sort of balcony, running 

 back to the outer wall of the building, to 



