THIRTY-FIFTH ANNUAL CONVENTION. 97 



This teaches us that we should try to keep the protective 

 forces of the body at the highest possible degree of physiological 

 efficiency. » It is necessary for the lower animal to live and feed 

 according to the laws of nature, and if these are violated any 

 kind of a disease may develop. With just what kind of disease 

 they would become afflicted would depend on the manner in 

 which the principles of life had been violated. 



A few years ago, when I was the chief surgeon for the Lin- 

 coln Park Zoo, I had an opportunity to observe the peculiar man- 

 ner in which wild animals would become diseased. For exam- 

 ple: In some of the cages we had a few mountain lions which 

 w r ere kept in good warm cages and given all they wished to eat 

 and drink, but they could not exercise very much on account of 

 lack of space. All of this was unnatural and the result was that 

 their young would all die with rickets before they were many 

 months old, notwithstanding that they were given the best treat- 

 ment known to medical science. I came to the conclusion that 

 if we could hope to be successful in raising these young animals, 

 it would be necessary to return to nature, as near as it would be 

 possible to do so. Therefore, I gave orders that two of the 

 litter of six young lions, about three months of age, should be 

 taken from their mates and placed in a cage separate from the 

 rest. They were not given food until they would grow frantic 

 with hunger, when they were given a freshly killed chicken or 

 rabbit. This method was to be continued until further orders 

 were issued. A little over one year after the time at which 

 separation was made, I insisted that two better specimens could 

 not be found anywhere. 



We had monkeys there also, and monkeys, you know, are 

 natives of very warm climates. Knowing this, we attempted 

 to keep them in glass houses, and in the same temperature as 

 the climate from which they came. They were given plenty of 

 good food and water in line with all the knowledge at our com- 

 mand to make and keep the place sterile, yet we never succeeded 

 in keeping one of them alive for a period of eighteen months. 

 A great majority of them died in a much shorter time, and we 



