FOREST AND STREAM. 



63 



imnl Jjistarg. 



'TAMING ZEBRAS. 



IN the taet Bulletin of the Pbris Society of AcrUiihilalion, 

 there is to be found a most interesting article, from 

 the pen of M. Saint-Yves Menard, on the successful taming 

 of a number of zebras. The specimens thus broken lo 

 harness were BurcheU's Zebras, known in Africa under Hie 

 name of Dauws and PceohiS. Before the Prussian war, 

 several zebras hud been partially handled, but during the 

 siege were probably eaten. In 1872 seven young dauws 

 were bought by lite Society. At first, these animals were 

 exceedingly wicked, biting, kicking, and allowing no 

 familiarity. When put together in a large stall, it was 

 dangerous to enter, as they used their heels, and were ter- 

 rible biters. In order to halter them, the beasts Were las- 

 soed. After a great deal of trouble, all the animals were 

 haltered to the same manger, only divided from one 

 another by hanging partitions. It was au ugly business to 

 go near them even then. On the approach of a groom, they 

 would all commence kicking and plunging together. 'The 

 introduction of horses among them was l he first step which 

 brought a good result. After a while the zebras could be 

 utlered and fed. To groom them gave a great deal of 

 trouble, but in time this was satisfactorily accomplished. 

 Kindness and gentleness to the beasts were the only 

 methods employe''. In about six months, the first attempt 

 to put the dauws in harness was tried. Just then a cele- 

 brated French horse turner offered his services to break 

 three of the zebras to draw a wagon. Basing his theory of 

 zebra taming on the severe method employed with horses, 

 the man used a certain amount of severity, and signally 

 failed. The dauws were returned to the Society, cowed, 

 but not broken, and in wretched condition, The work bad 

 to be recommenced. In time the animals became obedient, 

 and at present are found to be most serviceable beasts. 

 Their gait is not rapid, but sustained. At present the 

 duaws are found to be quite useful. They are not only 

 quite steady under a heavy load, but work smartly, and 

 stand considerable fatigue, doing all the ordinary hauling 

 for the garden. One serious drawback, however, still 

 exists, and that is that the zebras have to be caged and lied 

 up whenever shoeiug them is necessary. JM. Saint- Yees 

 Menard draws from these attempts to bring the zebras into 

 use, the following conclusions : 



1st. That the dauws can be domesticated. 2d. That the 

 only method to be employed is to treat him kindly. 3d. 

 Tbat they nan bo usefully employed as draft animals. 4th. 

 That the animals have a" certain merit for endurance and 

 vigor; although not fast, they seem to occupy a, position 

 between the ass and the horse, as to temper and character. 

 5th. That in placing Burchell's zebra among domestic 

 animals, his usefulness would be about the same as that of 

 the ass. 



-».«- 



THE BIRDS OF NEWFOUNDLAND. 



THE ornithology of Newfoundland has, as yet, re- 

 ceived scant attention from naturalists, so that it is 

 impossible to make out anything approaching ton. com- 

 plete list of its avi-fauna. It is greatly to be wished that 

 some enthusiastic ornithologist would visit this island wilh 

 the view of making a complete study of the subject. The 

 only one who has done so, to any extent, is Henry Reeks, 

 Esq.., P. L. 3., of Thruxton, Andover, England, who spent 

 the greater part of two years in Western Newfoundland, 

 engage! in the examination of its ornithology. Unfortu- 

 nately he met with an accident which kepi him in the 

 house for several mouths, so that he was unable to accomp- 

 lish, as much ai be might otherwise have done; still his 

 "notes," which appeared some years ago in the Zaolaffixt, 

 are very valuable and furnish the only information on' the 

 subject which is reliable. To these "notes" t am largely 

 indebted for the following facts regarding a few of the 

 more important of the birds found in Newfoundland:— 



Hawks.— Qi the hawk species, Mr. Keeks reckons up 

 eleven varieties, which are to be found here. The osprcy, 

 or fish hawk, is the finest of these, and is common in the 

 thinly settled districts of the island. It is a summer mi- 

 grant, coming in May, and retiring in the early part of 

 October. It builds in trees in the extensive woods, either 

 near t.lio sen-coast or some inland lake. The eggs can 

 scarcely be distinguished from Kuropeou specimens; and 

 both Wilson and Audubon reckon lire European and Ame- 

 rican osprey of Hiesame species. "Often." says Mr. Reeks, 

 "on a calm summer's evening, as I lay on the crass smok- 

 ing iny pipe, have I watched two or three pairs of these 

 birds fishing in the harbor. Suddenly the slow, ciircliug 

 flight is stopped— the quick eye discerns its si I in 

 the body assumes a n almost vertical position; the wings 

 for a moment vibrate rapidly, as if to give their owner im- 

 petus, aud then, with almost unerring aim, like an arrow 

 from a bow, the osprey drops into tile water. In a few 

 seconds he re-appears, and rising a few feet from the 

 water, the l apid vibration of wings is again observable, 

 but this time only to drive the claws mole; firmly into the 

 sides of his finny morsel, with which he slowly sails away 

 to some high tree, in the woods, where, probably, is a 

 nest — 



ItaaM a burden for the tallest tree. '' 



The Jiuld EiigU— The bald or wliltelieaded eft-gto is called 

 in the vernacular of Newfoundland "Ihe Grope. It is also 

 a summer migrant to Newfoundland, sod disappears in ihe 

 fall. Its nest is usually found near the top of a (all pino 

 tree, and generally contains but two eggs. This handsome 

 bird is gradually decreasing as settlement advances though 

 it is still tolerably common. 



The other members of ihe hawk species, enumerated by 

 Mr. Reeks, are Ihe pigeon hawk, n beautiful bird, closely 

 resembling the merlin, which feeds chiefly oil small birds; 

 the Greenland falcon, called by our settlers the "While 

 Hawk;" the American sparrow hawk and goshawk; the 

 black hawk or buzzard; the sharpshinned hawk; the. red- 

 tailed hawk and the Amoricau hen harrier. The whole, of 

 thorn are summer migrants. 



Owls. — Of owls we have a considerable variety. The 

 great horned owd visits this island for the purpose of nidifl- 

 calion, and is not very uncommon, especially late in Ihe 

 summer, when the young leave their nests. 'Our settlers 

 call this the "Oaf Owl," and its nest is said to be usually on 

 the ground, ou a tussock of grass. The American bam 

 owl is rare in Newfoundland; but the screech owl, a sum- 

 mer migrant, is I olerably common; The l'ongeared and short- 

 cared owl, the barred and sparrow owl, arc common; the 

 snowyowl or"Whiu-Owl" of our settlers, remains through- 

 out l he year. Its chief prey is the polar hare and the ptarmi- 

 gan, which retire to the 'highlands as the snow partially 

 disappears. The snowy owl is a bold, rapacious bird and 

 not easily driven from its slaughtered prey. When feast- 

 ing on an c'.tWv duck it has been sometimes knocked over 

 with stones and apparently killed before it would relinquish 

 its bold of the duck, "During my residence in Newfound- 

 land," says-Mr. Reeks, "I heard several amusing anecdotes 

 of the snowy owl, one or two of which I shall relate. 

 William Youngs, of Uod i oy, having continually had the 

 bait stolen from one of his' fox-traps, determined to watch 

 the trap and shoot the robber. For this purpose he selected 

 a fine moonlight night, with snow on thegrouud, and with 

 a gun in bis baud, a white swanskin frock on, anda while 

 handkerchief lied ronud his cap, bo secreted himself in a 

 small bush, about twenty yards from bis trap, fully deter- 

 mined to shnol Ihe first' comer; but his .determination 

 proved fruitless; for a largo, white owl — probably the thief 

 —seeing something white sticking up through the centre of 

 the bush, aud evidently mistaking it tor a fine, plump, wil- 

 low-grouse, instantly made a 'stoop,' and at the same time 

 sending its claws almost to ihe man's brains, suddenly dis- 

 appeared with the cap and white handkerchief, 'tin- man 

 was so sIhi tied for the moment that he was unable to shoot 

 at Ihe bird. The snowy owl is a frequent attendant— 

 although generally unnoticed— of the sportsman, and gen- 

 erally succeeds in carrying ofE a grouse or duck before the 

 retriever gels lo it. On one occasion some men were wait- 

 ing in ice 'gazes' Eel ihe purpose of shooting wild geese, 

 when one of them, named James Carter, left his 'gaze' to 

 eo and have a chat wilh his neighbor, incautiously leaving 

 his new white swan-skin cuffs and gun behind him. He 

 had scarcely Icii bis 'gic/.o' when an unseen enemy, in the 

 shape of a fine snowy owl, pounced in and succeeded in 

 gelling cleared' again with both of the white cuffs. A fine 

 adult bird of this species entered my host's house, via the 

 chimney, anil fought so valiantly for its life that the man 

 had to kill it with a 'pew' — a piece of pointed iron fastened 

 to a wooden handle about four feet long, and used for 

 throwing codfish from the boats. A good many snowy 

 owls aie aunually caught in the fox-traps of the settlers; 

 and when very fat, which they frequently arc, are con- 

 sidered good caliug by many." 



Hawk Owl.— The only other species of owl here is the hawk 

 owl, which is very common, and is generally found in the 

 neighborhood of houses,preying ou chickens, tame pigeons, 

 Ac, remaining throughout "the year, but not so abundant 

 in the depth of winter as at other seasons. It is in the 

 habit of perching on the bare and dead top of high rir trees, 

 from which it commands a good view "of the immediate 

 neighborhood, and suddenly drops upon any unfortunate 

 object in the shape of food "that may happen to pass within 

 a convenient distance. 



Woodpeckers. — Six species of woodpeckers are found in 

 Newfoundland. Of these the finest is the black-backed 

 three-toed woodpecker, which is tolerably common through- 

 out the year; aud often when the snow-Hakes darken the 

 air, no other sign of animal life is noticeable than the 

 "woodpecker tapping" in search of the larvae of several 

 fine species of sirex, which abound in the dense forests. 

 The banded three-toed woodpecker is also resident through- 

 out the year; but the black woodcock, or "great black 

 woodpecker" of our settlers, is only a summer migrant. 

 The flicker, called here the "English Woodpecker," is 

 pretty common, and has a peculiar note which bears a 

 fancied resemblance to that of the green woodpecker — 

 hence the name bestowed on it by our settlers. 



Swifts. — Mr. Reeks enumerates two species of swifts — 

 the American chimney swallow and the American nigfct 

 hawk— both summer migrants. The belled kin-fisher, he 

 says, is tolerably common during (he summer months, and 

 like the British species of kingfisher, builds in banks, often 

 at a considerable depth, and lays five or six white eggs. 

 Six species of Ihe tyrant By-catchers visit Newfoundland in 

 summer, and disappear when the first snow falls. The 

 bee martin, the pewee, wood pewee, green-crested fly- 

 catcher and yellow-bellied fly-catcher belong to ibiscla,'s. 

 aud are all summer migrants. 



J'lovcr and Curlew. — These birds are peculiarly fine in 

 Newfoundland; especially the latter, which is pronounced 

 by epicures to be the most delicate table bird anywhere to 

 he found. The history of our curlews is rather curious. 

 They are bred on the bleak eoasls of storm-beaten Labrador, 

 where they feed mostly on shrimps, and are so fishy as to 

 be almost "uneatable. 'During August, when Ihe wild Mer- 

 ries begin to ripen, they arrive in countless Hocks on the 

 barrens of Newfoundland, aud feed solely on fruit. Their 

 droppings arc then a rich purple, while their feathers are 

 often stained wilh berry -juice; and they become so fat, sweet 

 and tonderthat they sometimes burst whentliey fall. When 

 in this condition the curlew are delicious. When the winter 

 approaches these birds fly to South America, where thev 

 winter— Chiefly, it is said, in Brazil— the longest flight o'f 

 any migratory birds known. A few of them rest for a 

 short time at the Bermudas, and some visit the West India 

 Islands; aud Ihey have been seen, it is said, perching on 

 the huge rafts of tangled sea-weed (hat are found after a 

 storm in the BaragOSSa Sea, There can bo no doubt that 

 these were the docks of laud birds seen by Columbus dur- 

 ing his first memorable voyage in these latitudes. In the 

 spring they do not approach Newfoundland, but make 

 their way up to Labrador through the Slates, probably fol- 

 lowing the spring as the snow line gradually retreats north- 

 ward. 



(To be continued.) 



CENTRAL. PARK MENAGERIE. 



Department oy 1'ubuc l\inue, i 

 New Yokk, Aug. 30, 1874, f 



Aiilauils rcceivud ut Control Park Muuagcne for tlio week eudiug 

 AtiSUBtSflth, ISM: 



Oik- Rhinoeurns, SMuaxros mthdanri/. Sab. India. Height, 5feoM 

 tuoh.es; IciigtU. 11 fuet; girth, 11 tuut iinshMI wolglit, uboui S.OUOllrtt. 



Two BaciTtau Oumols, Oarndm baetftbus . Hub, Central Asia. 



One tiea Lion. Aw,, .,..,. Sat). Pai illc Ocuaa. 



Onu Crow, Vervw Ameiiamw. 



Two Curusaoua, O'/ra fUeator. \V. A. Conkun. 



Sffoodlxnd, $uvn mid (§nrden. 



ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



Aoapamucs, (natural 

 ts one of the most valual 

 ihe most graceful foliage will: 

 soms. In flower beds or mos 

 magnificent. This variety is 

 Johnson, of Wesffield, makes 

 rare African bulb, planted ii 

 the very choicest of blossoms, and w 

 very fine and pleasing effect in tin 

 gladiolus of either the Ramosus or 

 Try this style of planting for next y 

 that for the centre compartment of y 



■cler Hmnero etdlimeea\— This 



of the African lilies, combining 



dlli large, handsome bead bins- 



losses (he blue variety is I inly 



is the one our correspondent 



ubject of inquiry. This 



ill, loamy soil, produces 



we have planted ii, wilh 



the centre Of a circle of 



Qandarewm variety. 



ir, and you will find 



garden you have 



a splendid and beautiful finish. In "the pot culture of these 

 bulbs use a large pot or large pail for each plant, Use 

 good, strong, rich loam and clung. During the summer 

 mouths, when in pots, give abundance of water and liquid 

 cow manure twice each week. In the winter protect from 

 severe frost, and give water very sparingly. If you follow 

 the above directions wc will guarantee" you a splendid 

 bloom. O, Q, 



M. Thomas, Wisconsin. — We are in receipt of your box 

 and inquiry of the 8th nil., as lo "what is the enclosed in- 

 sect?" 'I his curious little insect is called I'/it/malo croto, 

 and is one of the few friends to the gardener tliat, like cer- 

 tain kinds of birds, should ever find a welcome about the. 

 gardens of the fruit grower. The Phymata is a great [over 

 of the insect called the Aphides, which infests in swarms 

 our best shade trees, aud is very destructive. They have a 

 great love for the linden tree, and I have seen them many 

 limes upon my own lindens, and made a ca-eful study of 

 them, The Phymatu e/vssaverv peiseveriugly pursues the 

 Aphides, and greedily devours them. I carefully placed a 

 leaf containing a number of both the Aphides iw<\ Phvmafa 

 under a microscope for examination. The latter insect 

 would grasp the former in ils embrace, bold it fast, and 

 then extend a Utile laucc-shaped tube, wdth which, after 

 piercing the Aphides, it sucked all the life out of it, leaving 

 only a skin. They feed upon the rose insect, and also upon 

 some others. I regard it as the friend and not Ihe enemy 

 of the gardener. As yet I have found no satisfactory solu- 

 tion of your other question; as soon as found will commu- 

 nicate. We have before us three letters making similar 

 inquiries. O. Q. 



Ellen Mart, Mi, Clair, N. J.— The leaves you send are 

 from a plant called the "honey flower" (Meliaitihu*), a na- 

 tive of the Cape of Good Hope. It is profusely cultivated 

 in England, but is not considered so valuable here. It may 

 be grown in the open air, but requires protection from 

 frost. It produces abundantly large spikes of a brownish 

 red color. The soil should be light, Q. 



♦•♦> 



LOAFERS IN THE GARDEN— DO NOT 

 SCARE THE BIRDS. 



Casting my eyes out upon my garden at this willing, I 

 can see three pairs of industrious, happy-winged work- 

 ers, all busy protecting my tine large cherries, which are just 

 beginning to show their scarlet sides to the morning sun. 

 Are not my feathered servants busy this fine day ? Says 

 one at my side, "you will have no cherries if you thus 

 allow the birds to depredate at will upon them ; see that 

 old fellow of a robin; he picks out the choicest of fruit 

 aud bears it away." Truly, he does that, and I am pleased 

 to let him carry away his wages. Thosa three pairs of 

 birds, 'tis true, eat quite a quantity of cherries, but what 

 then; I planted many more trees than I wished, in order 

 that the birds should have their dues. You would be sur- 

 prised to know how great a work of destruction these six 

 robins alone perform in a single morning. Make these 

 winged co-laborers your friends, do not drive the birds 

 away from your gardens; rather encourage and protect 

 them. Drive away long-legged loafers, who arc knocking 

 down your walls, breaking Into your enclosures, under the 

 pretext of hunting, yes, hunting it is, with a vengeance, 

 every little unfortunate bird that falls in their way. Turn 

 about and hunt them out of your grounds ; there is too 

 much of this garden loafing permitted, for it is a uuisanco 

 that breaks in not only upon our week day occupations, 

 but destroys even our Sunday's quiet, If any class of men 

 deserve the special attention of our gentlemanly shooiing- 

 clubs it is Ihese fellows, who prowl around gardens just 

 in the times when the birds are making their nest's and 

 hatching out their young. We are very happy to know 

 that such fellows fare pretty roughly at the hands of our 

 game-protecting associations, and in the vicinity of Boston, 

 Boxbury aud Arlington they are most severely dealt with. 

 We feel it to be our duty to protect the birds from Ihese 

 " hunters," and to become in our turn the "hunters" of 

 Ihese garden loafers. Ollip$d Quill. 

 «*•■ 



Procession op the Peaks. — From the Divide, between 

 this city and Gold Hill, is to be had a magnificent pan- 

 oramic view 7 of the mountain scenery, lying far to the 

 southward. At the distance of from forty to sixty miles 

 in that direction rise the grand, massive peaks of the Sier- 

 ras, standing stately and clearly denned against the blue 

 sky beyond. These peaks are particularly striking at the 

 present time because of their being robed from head to 

 foot in white aud glittering snow. Viewed from our stand- 

 point on the Divide, they look like an army of giants march- 

 ing up from the desert wilds of Arizona, in meandering 

 array. Far away the tail of Ihe procession is seen to sweep 

 miles on miles to the eastward, while again, above the hoods 

 of the giants forming this curve, is dimly seen through the 

 haze a hint of beads instill more distant rear swinging back 

 to the west, and falling, as it were, into the general line of 

 march to the northward. All above, beyond, and about 

 tho giant army looks so settled, calm aud silent, that one is, 

 even at this distance, awed into all tuauner of weird day- 

 dreams in regard to its motionless march. These mighiy 

 peaks are impressive at any time, but when they pome up 

 before us in procession, robed in their shrouds, they set us 

 to thinking ponderous, solemn thoughts which wo don't 

 more than half like. — Virginia, Nm., Knhiprise. 

 ■«■»■ 



— Australia is commencing to grow tho willow in large 

 quantities, an active demand for osier twigs having arisen 

 m England. Groat Britain imports every year as much as 

 5,000 tons of willow, worth $200,000. Basford, in Not- 

 tinghamshire, is the centra of the trade, and uo less than 

 300 various kiuds of osier avo used. 



