HAMLYN'S MENAGERIE MAGAZINE. 
75 
IS THE ZOO A PLACE OF 
CRUELTY. 
Mr. John Galsworthy : — 
One of the World's Saddest Sights." 
Dr. Chalmers Mitchell : — 
"Mr. Galsworthy's Attack is Rubbish." 
"One of the saddest and most disgusting 
sights in the world." Such is the opinion ex- 
pressed by Mr. John Galsworthy, the distinguished 
novelist and playright, in an attack on certain fea- 
tures of the Zoological Gardens, which forms part 
of the preface to the second edition of a book 
shortly to be published by Messrs. Jarrold. _ The 
story, "Aberdeen Mac," by C. R. Johns, is an 
eloquent plea against the exhibition and training 
of performing animals, and is written by one 
thoroughly conversant with animalls trainers and 
their methods. From beginning to end it is a 
record of the fervent feelings of a humanitarian. 
A point emphasised by Mr. Gallsworthy is 
that children, to whom the Zoo is one of the 
chief delights during a visit to the capital, should 
be taught to rebel lagainst the exhibition of caged 
wild animals, instead of enjoying the sight. He 
says : — 
"A kind and understanding treatment of ani- 
mals depends enormously on what we bring our 
children up to feell. . . . We of our generation 
were brought up to accept zoos as pure delight. 
" I would like to see our children brought up 
to see them as they are — places where many-in- 
teresting creatures, such as some of the ruminants 
{elephants, camells, buffaloes, etc.), and some rep- 
tiles, the seals, and some few birds, can be kept 
under conditions which are not torturing, or even 
irksome, but also where numerous creatures, such 
as the big and little cats, the wollves and bears, 
the monkeys, especiallly the big apes, and most 
birds — above all the eagle tribe — ought never to 
be kept at all. 
"To see these free-roaming beasts going up 
and down in their wretched little cages, to look 
at the big apes sitting dejected, to watch the eagles 
and condors, to whom a mile of air is as nothing, 
perched up moping and motionless hour after hour 
— very statues of winged grief — has become to me 
one of the saddest and most disgusting sights in 
the world. 
"Isn't there enough confinement and utter 
boredom on this earth w-ithot adding to it in this 
lighthearted way, for our enjoyment, save the 
mark ! I should like our children brought up to 
feel and understand that beasts have lives of their 
own and natural instincts which demand satisfac- 
tion, brought up to rebel, instead of just gaping 
and saying 'Oh, look at the tiger' . . . when they 
•see untamable creatures of jungle and air en- 
closed withon a few square yards of wire. 
',We shall never get conditions changed, and 
a different way of regarding the brute creation 
into the world's head till we teach our children to 
think about these things and to treat animals as 
thev themselves would be treated." 
When asked to express an opinion on Mr. 
Galsworthy's attack on the Zoological Gardens, 
Dr. Chalmers Mitchell, the Secretary of the Zoo- 
logical Society, declined to discuss the matter fur- 
ther than to say : — 
" Mr. Galsworthy knows nothing about the 
subject. His attack is rubbish, pure rubbish." 
Mr. Ernest Bell, Editor of the "Animal's 
Friend," asked for his opinion on the subject, 
said : — 
"The only lesson one learns from captive ani- 
mals is one not of natural but of unnatural history. 
"I object to the ,Zoo' on all grounds. It is, 
first of all, a gross infringement of the rights of 
animals — if the word 'rights' has any meaning at 
all— to shut them up under wholly unnatural con- 
ditions and to deprive them of all that makes their 
lives worth living-. 
"Most people are so accustomed from youth 
to seeing caged animals that they od not regard 
them as life-long prisoners under unhealthy con- 
ditions. Ho wunhealthy the conditions are is 
proved by the reports of the 'Zoo's,' which show 
that about one-third of the animals die every 
year. They devellop all kinds of diseases of which 
they know nothing in their natural condition. 
"We must aliso consider the unavoidable 
cruelty of their capture and transport. The whole 
story is a ghastly comment on man's misuse of 
his power over sub-human creatures. 
" Consider also the demoralising effect of such 
ekhibitions. Spectators are strengthened in the 
idea — which is at the root of most cruelty — that 
we are justified in doing anything we please with 
animals so long as it administers to our pleasure 
or profit. 
" 'Zoos' are, in fact, advertisement of disre- 
gard of the feelings of animals, and as such should 
be abolished among civilised people." 
A recent issue of the "Humanitarian" con- 
tained a review of " From Jungle to Zoo," by Ellen 
Yelvin, F.Z.S., in which the critic said : — 
