1062 



ZOOI.OCilCAF, SOCIKTV HII.I.KTIN 



The Director of the New York Zoological 

 Park has addressed to tiie Royal Zoological So- 

 ciety of Amsterdam (of wtiicli lie is an hon- 

 orary member) a lengthy memorial, urging that 

 j)o\verful Society to inaugurate a eam))aign to 

 induce the Dutch Government to at once forbid 

 hy imperial decree all exportations of wild 

 birds' jjlumage from all the islands of the 

 Dutch Kast Indies. The memorial was submit- 

 ted to the council of the Society, and a commit- 

 tee was immediately appointed to take ste]Js to 

 secure the end desired. Its first official act was 

 to cable a request for co])ies of all the litera- 

 ture of the recent struggle in .\meric;i. and of 

 the resulting law. 



If the Xetherlands (iovernment siiould decide 

 to take the action suggested, it would electrify 

 all Europe, ;ind deal a staggering blow to the 

 exterminators of the various species of birds- 

 of-paradise, crown ]Mgeon. and m.iiiy other 

 species. Stranger things than this liave lia])- 

 pened. 



Under date of Xovember 28. a letter from 

 the Baroness von Robberg. of Baden, {rermauy. 

 conveys the following highly significant infor- 

 mation regarding the effect of the new .\meri- 

 can law on the feather trade in Clermanv and 

 in France. The Baroness writes as follows: 



"Tlie fruits of the decided victory in Amer- 

 ica are beginning to show in this country. .\ii 

 article in a milliner's ])aper — not a fashion 

 journal, but a circular issued for the trade — 

 informs us that the fashion for aigrettes has 

 come to an end, due to the new .\merican laws 

 and the proposed Fnglish bill. These feathers 

 are now selling in Berlin at 20 i^er cent, dis- 

 count. The "Kolnische Zeitung" — one of the 

 princi])al newspapers — publishes an article 

 dealing with the same subject. They say the 

 Paris fashions are being altered in accordance 

 with the new laws, .md that a ))rohibition in 

 England will not throw the feather-trade- 

 eentre to the Continent, but make an end of it 

 altogether." \V. T. H. 



TWO BOOKS ABOIT OLR AXIMAT.S. 



TWO charming little books, wholly devoted 

 to our .animals, have recently appeared. 

 Both .ire books of verses. "Sonnv Bovs' 

 Days ,it the Zoo" is by Stanley C. and Ella B. 

 .\rthur. (The Century Co., 90 cents, net). It 

 is beautifully illustrated by Mr. Arthur, and 

 Mrs. Arthur's verses admirably fit the ))ictures. 

 In many of the pictures the figure of the win- 

 some little l;id looking at the wild lieasts is 



very appealing to all those who arc yet so old- 

 fashioned as to love little children. 



"U'ild .\nimal X'crses" by Mrs. A. .M. Cas- 

 tello (Bro.idway Publishing Co., $1) is a thor- 

 oughly coinmend.ible collection of very droll 

 and often mirth-jjrovoking poems about our 

 beasts and birds. It is suitably illustrated. 

 Mrs. Castello has a genuine sense of humor, 

 •md her versification is excellent. Among the 

 lest of the ])oeins are ".Vn .Vustralian .Sutfrag- 

 ette," which de.ils with .in enui and an ostrich; 

 the "Lament of the Tasmani.m Devil. " "Every 

 Doe Has Her Day." "The Chipmmik" and 

 "What the Horned Owl Thought About It." 



Making verses about wild animals is to be 

 classed .as hazardous employment. Many are 

 called, but few are chosen; and we are glad 

 that this attractive little volume makes good. 



Because of a belief that these two volumes 

 will be of interest to the members of the Zoo- 

 logical Society and to Park visitors, they will 

 be kept for sale .it the information bur.'.iu In 

 the Lion House. W. T. H. 



THE SOCIETY'S AFRICAN EXPEDITION 



MR DIT.MARS has recently received the 

 following graphic letter from Mr. R. L. 

 Ciarner. who is now in the French Con- 

 go, searching for gorillas: 



"Nomba Sanga, pres Iguela. (i.ibon. 



"Lac Xgovi. Congo fr.ancais. 



"I have word that my wire gratings are on 

 the w.iy. They will probably arrive by the next 

 periodical flat-boat, which is due here — that is. 

 in Fernan Vaz — about the 30th October — but 

 it m.iy be a month late. 



"Yes, you have to be on the s))ot to know 

 what gorilla collecting me.iiis here, but you may 

 depend upon it. even with my leg now much 

 mutilated. I will f/ct 'cm, .and when I f/ct 'em 

 I'll find some way to keep 'em. 



"I have now- one of the very best specimens 

 you ever saw. It is not the biggest, but the 

 best — because it eats bread and bananas. Bread? 

 Well at 20 cents a pound for flour you would 

 call it eating bread. This little beggar eats — 

 ;ind destroys — about a pound a day. I have 

 had to send to Xenglie Sika, about ninety kilo- 

 metres (sixty miles) for some flour, and have 

 just received twenty-five kilos (.ibout forty- 

 eight pounds) tiid.iy. 



".\t jiresent 1 have to keep my gorilla caged. 

 I have a very comfortable affair about twenty- 

 seven inches bv four and a half feet long and 



