ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN 



16 n 



ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN 



Mammals 

 W. T. Hornad, 



S. Cuj 



Departments 



Published bi-monthly at the Office of the Society, 

 111 Broadway, New York City. 



Yearly by Mail, $1.00. 



MAILED FREE TO MEMBERS. 



Copyright, 191S, by the New York Zoological Society. 



Each author is responsible for the scientific accuracy 



and the proof reading of his contribution. 



Elwin R. Sanborn, 



Editor and Official Photographer 



Vol. XXI, No. i 



JULY. 1915 



THE EMBARGO ON WILD ANIMAL 

 IMPORTS 



The New York Zoological Society now is feel- 

 ing acutely the pressure of conditions that hour- 

 ly remind us of the universal expression of all 

 France, "C'est la guerre!" (It is the war). We 

 have endured with resignation the loss of our 

 young men, the increased cost of food and ma- 

 terials, and the scarcity of steel. We bowed to 

 the inevitable stoppage of the inflow of wild 

 animals from Africa and Asia, and by way of 

 consolation helped ourselves bountifully to mam- 

 mals and birds from Australasia. 



Practically nothing is coming to us across the 

 Atlantic. Very little has been coming from 

 South America, but to us that little meant much. 

 South America is not a continent teeming with 

 important wild life. There is too much jungle 

 around each bird and mammal. Even in the 

 best of times the receipts from South America 

 are small, and few in a hill ; but we always were, 

 and are. thankful according to the length of the 

 list. 



Now, alas ! a new blow has fallen, like the 

 final straw to which the camel's back succumbed. 



On May 20 we applied to the War Trade 

 Board for permission to import from British 

 Guiana - small capybaras, 6 agoutis, 3 monkeys, 

 I porcupine, 1 young jaguar, 5 macaws, 1 curas- 

 sow and 1 scarlet ibis. 



The request was promptly denied, on the 

 ground that cargo space on ships could not be 

 spared for wild animals "not for breeding pur- 

 poses." We wrote again, asking for a hearing, 

 and at the same time stating our reasons against 

 being put out of business. We went so far, in 

 our effort to ameliorate war imposts, as to set 

 forth the activities of the Zoological Society and 

 Park in promoting the war. 



Our case was presented to the Bureau of Im- 

 ports of the War Trade Board, by the Director 

 of the Bureau of Imports, and on June 20 we 

 had the misfortune to receive the following 

 blow : 



June IT, 1918. 

 W. '1'. Hornaday, Esq., 



New York Zoological Park, 



185th Street & Southern Boulevard. 

 New York City. 



Dear Sir: 



Careful consideration has been given to all the 

 points so forcefully presented in your letters of May 

 JO, May 27 and June .5 in the hope that we might 

 find a way whereby the Bureau of Imports could 

 make an exception to its import restrictions and 

 grant you a license to import the wild animals and 

 birds you desire from British Guiana for exhibition 

 purposes. 



It is a matter of keen regret to me personally 

 and, I believe, to the War Trade Board as a whole, 

 that its previous refusal must stand. You may be 

 sure that this decision has not been reached without 

 the most thoughtful and thorough examination of 

 every phase of the matter. 



There is no question that the purpose of this im- 

 portation is highly important. But importance is a 

 relative term, and in a world crisis such as this things 



ordinarily important become minor. There is r i 



only for the essentials. The reason is that with ship- 

 ping space and tonnage so precious as they are today, 

 every square inch and every pound must be con- 

 served for the importation of essentials to the mili- 

 tary requirements and to the physical well-being of 

 the civil population. Everything else must wait until 

 these have been taken care of. 



It is unfortunate that a valuable collection such 

 as yours cannot be added to as it deserves. It is to 

 be hoped that you can maintain it at something like 

 its present degree of completeness until the return of 

 better conditions makes it possihle for you to develop 

 it as you desire. You doubtless recall that in 1870 

 the French were obliged to eat the animals in their 

 zoo. While this is not urged as parallel to the pres- 

 ent conditions in any way, it may suggest to you the 

 kind of sacrifices which war makes necessary. 



We appreciate all that you have told of the splen- 

 did work done by your organization in the various 

 movements that have had for their object the win- 

 ning of the war. We regret that it is necessary to 

 require of you an additional service of sacrifice and 

 self-denial. 



Since it is necessary — and we assure you that other- 

 wise it would not be asked — we trust that you will 

 bear as patiently and cheerfully as you may the hard- 

 ship of this import restriction until such time as it 

 becomes possihle to remove it. 



Yours very truly, 



FRED B. PETERSON, 

 Director, Bureau of Imports. 



This reminds us of old Shylock's last shot at 

 Judge Portia: "You take my LIFE when you 

 do take the means whereby I live." 



Ever since the British government stopped 

 all importations of wild birds into England be- 

 cause birds consumed seeds and other foods, we 



