ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN 



ner's possession in Africa and aboard ship, siie 

 drank great quantities of water, sometimes as 

 much as three quarts in one day. 



Dinali's liealtli remained excellent — until No- 

 vember 1 .5. Then it was noticed that in a very 

 strange manner she kept all her fingers con- 

 stantly closed. She walked upon them closed; 

 she climbed with them closed. At once we be- 

 gan a treatment of massage and liniment; which 

 seemed beneficial. 



By November 25, it had to be acknowledged 

 that Dinali's appetite was failing somewhat, 

 and that the muscles of her legs and arms were 

 not up to the mark of robust health. The fail- 

 ure of certain leg and arm muscles to jjerform 

 their functions looked like locomotor ataxia, or 

 infantile paralysis. A careful examination of 

 the case by Dr. Amoss, of the Rockefeller In- 

 stitute of Medical Research, revealed the fact 

 that the spinal chord was free from the bacteria 

 that cause infantile paralysis ; and therefore we 

 are led to hope that if Dinah's apjjetite will 

 only support her adequately, she will outgrow 

 her locomotor ataxia. 



There is not the slightest reason to hope that 

 an adult gorilla, either male or female, ever 

 will be seen living in a zoological park or gar- 

 den. Large specimens cannot be caught alive 

 in condition to long survive. The savage and 

 implacable nature of the animal is against it. 

 Only young specimens, usually under two years 

 of age, can be captured and civilized; and even 

 when a specimen has been so taken and settled 

 down, it is due to die overnight, and from no 

 understandable cause. 



The average lifetime of a gorilla in Europe 

 is about nine months, or less. In captivity go- 

 rillas are utterly lacking in stamina, and instead 

 of rivalling the orangs and chimpanzees, they 

 are as difficult and sensitive as howling monkevs. 

 There is no excuse whatever for Dinah's loco- 

 motor ataxia ; and therefore we hope that with 

 the aid of the electrical treatment and massage 

 that she is receiving she will eventually recover. 

 I think that the popular idea of the great 

 strength and ferocity of the adult male gorilla 

 on his own ground is not in the least exagger- 

 ated. Although the height of a big male is only 

 five feet six inches, its breadth of chest and 

 general muscular development are such that 

 even were its powerful teeth eliminated, it 

 would be impossible for enough strong men to 

 get around an "old man " gorilla to hold him 

 and |)ut handcuffs on him. No one ever has 

 weighed an adult male gorilla, but it would 

 seem that an estimate of tOO pounds would not 

 be far from the truth. 



One of the difficulties involved in the capture 

 of young gorillas lies in the fact that the 

 I" rench Congo Territory contains the best go- 

 rilla country, and the French government reso- 

 lutely prohibits the importation of gunpowder 

 for use by the natives. It was impossible for 

 the Zoological Society to procure permission for 

 the importation of five pounds for Mr. Garner 

 to give to the hunters whom he desired to send 

 out to capture gorillas for us. Without firearms, 

 it is only the boldest and most reckless native 

 who dares to go hunting for gorillas. 



It is unfortunate that the ape that, in some 

 respects, stands nearest to man, never can be 

 seen in adult state in zoological gardens ; but we 

 may as well accept that fact, — because we can 

 not do otherwise. 



INDI\'IDLAI. TRAITS OF ELEPHANTS. 

 Bi/ Raymond L. Ditm.ars. 



THERE are no group of wild animals 

 where individual traits are more strikingly 

 apparent than among the elephants. Five 

 elephants representing three species are on 

 exhibition in the Zoological Park and each of 

 these animals exhibits markedly different men- 

 tal characteristics. Idiosyncrasies, we might 

 say, are common among jjaclnderms; and the 

 large female Indian ek])hant Alice, is a good 

 illustration. 



In her stall Alice is a gentle and obedient 

 animal, with no bad traits. L-nder such con- 

 ditions she is calm, and not disposed to be 

 mischievous. The same demeanor prevails as 

 she wanders during the warm months, about 

 her spacious yard. Taken away from her usual 

 quarters and subjected to scenes in any way 

 foreign to her usual routine, she becomes dan- 

 gerously erratic and seems possessed with a 

 blind passion to destroy. During such exhibi- 

 tions of her erratic temper, there is no inclina- 

 tion on the part of Alice to attack any human 

 neighbor. Her energies are directed against 

 inanimate objects; and at times she is utterly 

 beyond control, and deaf to all commands. We 

 have experienced two such illustrations from 

 Alice — when we moved her from one building to 

 another — and the line of her progress was 

 marked by a trail of overturned refuse cans, 

 damaged saplings, overturned benches and bent 

 fence-posts. And yet to observe Alice in the 

 elephant house, she seems a uniformly calm and 

 docile elephant, which she is — so long as she is 

 at home. 



Alice is very fond of Congo, the round eared 

 pygmy elephant. Though Congo is a well-ma- 



