278 WILD BEASTS OF THE WOULD 



is pursued is no doubt due to the fact that there is nowadays so 

 little big game in Europe, and to the danger incurred in the pursuit 

 of an animal living in such inaccessible places, as it certainly does not 

 afford any imposing trophy, while the flesh is only moderately good, 

 and the so-called " Chamois " leather, though it gets its name from 

 this animal, is mostly made from the skins of Sheep, Deer, Goats, 

 and subjected to a peculiar process of preparation, consisting chiefly in 

 impregnating the skins with oil. 



The Chamois is not one of the easiest of animals to keep in 

 captivity, and so is not a very familiar exhibit in menageries ; but 

 specimens are at the time of writing thriving in the London Zoological 

 Gardens. The animal has also been introduced into the mountains 

 of New Zealand, the Emperor of Austria having presented six speci- 

 mens in 1907 to the Government of that Colony; all of these reached 

 the country safely, and were liberated under the care of Mr. A. E. L. 

 Bertling, formerly head keeper at the London Zoological Gardens, 

 and now Game Ranger to the New Zealand Government ; and, as they 

 have already bred, the species will probably be established in the 

 Southern Hemisphere, to the great edification of sportsmen. 



THE GORAL 



{Nemorhcedus goral) 



The Goral is the Himalayan representative of the European Chamois, 

 but differs rather widely in appearance, being smaller and more thick- 

 set, with much shorter horns, not hook-shaped, but evenly curved 

 backwards. The coat is brown in colour, with a white patch on the 

 throat, but there is also a grey form, lately distinguished as N. 

 bedfordidnus. The Goral frequents either grassy slopes or rocky 

 forests ; it does not range very high, not going above eight thousand 

 feet, and has but little fear of man, though cautious enough when 

 persecuted ; there is less temptation for the sportsman to molest it 

 than exists in the case of the Chamois, nobler game being available 

 in the Himalayas. In Formosa there exists a long-tailed species of 

 Goral {N. caudatus), in which the tail, which is usually short in these 

 Goat-like Antelopes, is quite long and bushy. This, as well as the 

 common species, has been exhibited at the London Zoological Gardens. 



