ZOOI.OCiKAI. SOCIKTY 15L"I.I.1:TI N 



FOOT OF THE GORILLA 

 Upper and lower surfaces. 



The objectionable features of the gorilla art 

 its much too savage habits, and its aversion to 

 food and life in captivity. It is not an animal of 

 l>hilosophic mind, nor is it given to intelligent 

 reasoning from cause to effect. It reminds one 

 of children who refuse to taste a new kind of 

 food because they know in advance that they 

 won't like it ! And w-hat can we do with a wild 

 animal that is not amenable to the pangs of 

 hunger, and would rather die than yield ? The 

 first gorilla that came to us, in 1912, was on 

 arrival in a low state physically, from food- 

 refusal, and its food ))references and aversions 

 were at once the rage and the despair of its 

 keepers. 



Of the score of good things offered that go- 

 rilla, and of which it should liave eaten, it par- 

 took of not one. It refused the finest bananas, 

 but it did attempt to eat microscojiic portions of 

 the inner lining of banana skins. It desired 

 either plantains, or the succulent centers of 

 banana ])lants ; these, and nothing more. The 

 New York Botanical Gardens loyally sacrificed 

 to science, as represented by the emaciated 

 l)ody of a food-sick gorilla, two iierfectly good 

 banana ))lants. and their hearts were duly con- 

 sumed. I5y tlie time we had secured a small 

 lot of S])oiled ))lantains from New Orleans, and 

 two dozen good ones from Cuba, the gorilla was 



dead; which, as a purely logical proposition, 

 it deserved to be, for its obstinac}'. 



It took us nine months to recover from the 

 shock of our first gorilla. Then we formulated 

 a plan of campaign by which we hoped to se- 

 cure at least one gorilla that should reach us 

 not only alive but in good health. We believed 

 that if we could secure a specimen in that state 

 we could make it live for at least two or three 

 years. Having failed three times to secure 

 gorillas by ordinary jiurciiase from Hamburg 

 .ind London, because in each case the animal 

 died before shii)mcnt. or before reaching our 

 shore, wc .•ii)andoned all liojie of winning in that 

 way. 



We decided that we could win a good gorilla 

 by sending Mr. Garner to the gorilla country, 

 with a two years' contract to collect gorillas, 

 keep them there in their home country in com- 

 fortable captivity, teach them to eat civilized 

 food and become personally attached to him. 

 Then, whenever one or more specimens had be- 

 come well grounded in captivity, he should 

 bring them to New York, on the most sanitary 

 .md sumptuous basis that steamer accommoda- 

 tions could offer. 



This plan was carried out. in every detail. 

 Mr. Garner secured two gorillas, Dinah and an 

 understudv named Don. The latter died at the 



HAM) OK rilK COIUI.I.A 



