HAMLYN'S MENAGERIE MAGAZINE. 
13 
Hamlin's ffimapvu ^taga^itu. 
Published on the 15th of each month. 
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The Editor will be glad to receive for publication articles 
and all interesting photos, the imports and exports of all 
stock, and foreign adventures with all wild stock. 
Regents Park, London, nor the Jardin de Paris — 
can compare with it in this respect. In early sum- 
mer the loveliness of its majestic forestry cannot 
be excelled. Sycamores and chestnut trees abound. 
The grandeur of the latter, with their waxen can- 
delabra tipped with scarlet flame, and the lustrous 
green foliage of the sycamores fill us with ecstasy. 
From the moment we enter the turnstiles till we 
pass through the old-time revolving iron gates, 
its floral and arboreal beauty, its shining lakes, 
and undulating green, lawns hold us in thrall. The 
proposal to form a Zoological Society originated 
with Dr. Whitley Stokes, Professor of Natural 
History in Dublin University. The first house we 
meet in the gardens with the date May 10, 1830, 
was erected to commemorate the foundation meet- 
ing' of the "Zoological, Society of Dublin." This 
historic, gatheriing was held in the Rotunda with 
the Duke of Leinster in the chair. The Surgeon- 
General, afterwards Sir Philip Crampton, delivered 
an eloquent plea for its founding, which was fol- 
lowed with a brilliant speech by Richard Lalor 
Sheil, the great Irish orator. The Catholic Eman- 
cipation Act had just become law. He said : — 
" Now the cause for animosity had passed away, 
and the obstacle which stood in the way of national 
improvement had been removed." He viewed as 
a hopeful sign, this union of citizens of all creeds 
and politics in support of the Zoological Society. 
The Duke of Northumberland, their Viceroy, 
offered the site near the picturesque Deputy- 
keeper's lodge, now included in its buildings. 
D'Alton describes the site "as a romantic piece 
of ground, and no home appropriate or beautiful 
situation could have been selected." There were 
difficulties, however, in securing the sanction of 
the Government. 
PUBLIC MENAGERIE. 
Objections were raised to the establishment 
of a public menagerie in a Royal Park. Thanks 
to the energy and influence of Sir Philip Cramp- 
ton, the grounds were granted. Most of the ani- 
mals were presented by William IV., who was 
scattering the Royal Zoological collections of 
Windsor Castle and the Tower of London;. The 
Gardens were opened lo the public on September 
1, 183.1. The grounds were bounded by the lake 
waters, without fence or boundary wall's, and re- 
mained so or many years. How it came to be 
fenced is rather an interesting story. It was found 
that at night the deer swam acrossi the lake and 
fed on carnations and other succulent but expen- 
sive plants. They had aesthetic tastes, and dis- 
covered that a thing of beauty might also provide 
a satisfying and sweet-smelling banquet. But 
worse followed. These fat, prowling stags ex- 
cited the blood-thirsty carnivora. The savage ani- 
mals turned night into pandemonium yith hideous 
howlings, and dashed against the iron bars of 
their cages in frenzied 1 efforts to lynch and devour 
the carnation eaters. Another circumstance finally 
decided the Council to fence the lake boundary. 
One severe winter skaters took possession of the 
frozen waters, and it was found that hundreds of 
visitors wandered across the ice and viewed the 
animals, neglectful of the customary fee. The 
fence was put up but the available: funds were not 
sufficient to pay the cost. Dr. Haughton, then the 
energetic president of the Society, found a way 
out o this financial difficulty. 
THE SPECIMENS. 
Sir Philip Crampton, a founder and past presi- 
dent, was the recipient of one of the most extra- 
ordinary gifts ever offered to a physician by a 
grateful patient. He was presented with a magni- 
ficent skeleton of a gigantic pre-histbric animal, 
and as a compliment to his healer it was named 
Plesiosaurus Cramptcni. This huge-boned reptile 
about 20 feet long, which had been dug out of a 
pit near Whitby, was offered by Sir Philip to the 
Zoological Gardens and accepted. It was housed 
in a tent-shaped building, and was for many years 
an object of interest to visitors. Dr. Haughton 
persuaded the Science and Art Dept. to purchase 
this exceedingly rare specimen for the National 
Museum, and so the bones of an antideluvian beast 
provided funds for the enclosure of a, modern col- 
lection of animals. Dr. Haughton had great per- 
suasive powers, for he extracted from the Trea- 
sury the large sum of .£4,000 for the use of the 
Gardens. He was also responsible for the Herbi- 
vore House, which he erected with a sum of money 
which he got transferred from the extinct Natural 
History Society to the Zoological. He took great 
interest in the study of Irish Elk, and tin's house 
was built as o memorial. Dr. Haughton took a 
kindly practical interest in the animals. He per- 
formed a highly dangerous operation on an infuria- 
ted tigress, which was suffering exquisite agonies 
from an ingrowing nail. On another occasion a 
notable Dublin citizen had been bitten by a mon- 
key, probably a result of tormenting- it. The story 
is told that when Dr. Haughton heard of the inci- 
dent he drove out to' the Gardens to inquire for the 
monkey. The Haughton House, which was erected 
to his memory, in 1899, was well deserved. The 
hereditary services of the famous Ball family to 
the institution can never be fully estimated or too 
highly extolled. 
