194 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
|Makch 7, 1M>6 
AT THE WASHINGTON ZOO. 
Within the past few years there has come into opera- 
tion at Washington, D. C., an institution of which moat 
of us have heard, but which few of us have seen. This is 
the National Zoological Park, established by act of Con- 
gress, and supported in part by Government funds and in 
part by those of the District of Columbia. Its history is 
interesting, but more to the purpose just now is to sketch 
hastily what was seen there during a brief visit made early 
thiB month, and to remark upon the extreme interest of 
this collection of animals and its extraordinary health- 
fulness. 
The bills passed by Congress in appropriating money for 
the maintenance of the park forbid the expenditure of any 
sums for the purchase of animals, though transportation 
charges on specimens presented to the park may be paid. 
The only way, therefore, in which additions can be made 
to the collections is by gift, or, temporarily, by specimens 
loaned to the park. It can thus be understood that, so far 
as species of exotic animals are concerned, the collections 
are poor, while some of the native forms are fairly well 
represented. Many very desirable animals, however, 
offered to the park at low prices, cannot be secured 
because of the law, and the collections grow but slowly. 
However, there is enough to be seen there to please and 
interest an American, and to please him doubly if he is a 
hunter or a lover of nature and of nature's wild crea- 
tures. 
Down at the southeast corner of the park, at the bend 
of Rock Creek, are the bear pits, in one of which is a 
small brown or cinnamon bear and in another two black 
bears. The cages are built against the perpendicular face 
of a cliff, in which caves are hollowed out, which give the 
animals shelter from the weather. The floors are of 
asphalt, and in each there is a water tank for drinking and 
bathing. The cliff against which these cages are built is 
really perpendicular so far as the eye can judge, yet 
when the first bear was introduced there he promptly 
clambered up the face of the rock, escaped into the open 
fields above, and was only captured after a sharp chase. 
A repetition of this performance was prevented by the 
erection of a strong iron fence. 
Passing across the bridge which spans the creek, and 
up the gentle ascent, one comes to the large, low stone 
building where the tropical animals are kept. Here are 
two male lions, a superb tiger, a leopard, a rhinoceros, 
a hippopotamus, various monkeys, a capybara, European 
porcupines, a cougar or two and some other animals. 
Most interesting of all was a superb lioness with two little 
cubs. These are about 2 months old and are as large as 
full-grown cats, but of course much heavier and clumsier. 
They were asleep in the inner room, and the lioness was 
lying down in the outer cage when keeper Blackburn, 
shutting theslidingdoor which separated the twocompart- 
ments, opened the inner one and took out one of the 
cubs so that- it might be more closely inspected. The 
mother at once became anxious and began to spring un- 
easily about the cage, and when the little one had been 
returned to its bed and the door opened, she ran in to see 
whether her young had been harmed. Finding them safe 
she came out again and the cubs waddled along after her 
and then lay down, and looking frightfully bored, 
yawned two or three times in our faces and then went to 
sleep. 
The hippopotamus is a fine one, 12 years old, and has 
been in .the garden for a year or more. He was very 
friendly, and on request opened his huge jaws, showing 
his shapeless tongue and great teeth. He was recently 
sold by his owner for $1,500, being worth perhaps $4,000, 
and if the park could lawfully purchase animals would 
have been a great bargain and a most valuable acquisi- 
tion. Chances as good as this are constantly slipping 
through the fingers of the Washington Zoo, and for the 
same reason. It is a great pity. 
In a little room of this house we were shown the arma- 
dillos — three of them — from the Southwest. They are 
nocturnal animals, and when we entered the room they 
were buried in a pile of hay in a pit made in the floor of 
the room. Mr. Blackburn felt round in this pit and soon 
hauled one and then another out by the tail until the 
three were exposed to view. They were quicker in their 
motions than I had expected, but seemed confused by the 
strong light, in which they blinked painfully. 
Each of the principal cages of this house has a door 
leading to an outside cage for summer use. Each outside 
cage is separated from the adjoining ones by closely 
woven gratings of fine steel strips, which, while admitting 
light and air, do not permit next-door neighbors to get at 
each other. In each one of these outdoor cages is a large 
tree trunk planted in the ground, over which the animals 
may climb and play, or on which they may rest. 
Not far from this house is a large tree, standing alone 
and surrounded a.t a considerable distance from its trunk 
by a fence of strong wire netting. In the branches of 
this tree and in the hollow log which lies at its foot are a 
dozen or twenty raccoons, sleeping, climbing and play- 
ing. They are thus out of doors and have abundant 
room for exercise, yet cannot get away. Beyond this 
tree are a number of open-air cages, one of which holds 
a pair of young mountain lions which had only been in 
the garden two weeks. They were captured in New 
Mexico and are supposed to be not more than a year old. 
Their appearance justifies this belief, for on the legs and 
flanks of one of them faint spots can still be seen. The 
lions are in superb coat and generally in the very pink of 
condition, and are still quite shy, dodging at any unex- 
pected motion, and being very restless and uneasy, One 
of them, however, would often stop its hurried pacing to 
and fro to watch, with erected ears and every appearance 
of keen interest, a little child that was playing about near 
this cage. 
One of the most interesting animals here is a huge 
grizzly bear in superb condition and splendid coat, which 
was captured two or three years ago in the Yellowstone 
National Park. It was taken in a trap cage sent out from 
Washington, and when captured weighed 7301bs. Mr. 
Blackburn estimates its present weight at 8501 bs., and no 
doubt the average hunter, who might see such a bear 
wild, would say and believe that it weighed l,5001bs. It 
is very dark in color, with white claws, is enormously 
broad between the ears and very short coupled, with a 
tremendous body. It conveys an impression of grepfc 
massiveness. The other bears do not require speoial men- 
tion. 
Not far from these cages is the inclosure in which are 
confined most of the beavers brought last year by Mr. Hof er 
from the Yellowstone Park. None of these were visible, 
but their dams, their houses and the trees that they have 
cut down are very much in evidence. The question as to 
whether they will breed this spring is one of great interest 
and should be decided now before very long. The beavers 
are very difficult to confine, and this inclosure is sur- 
rounded by two fences, the inner one being so arranged 
that it cannot be climbed over. 
Elephants, Old World antelopes and cattle, a pair of 
ostriches — California bred — some llamas and some kan- 
garoos were seen in their various houses; and we then 
passed on to two large paddocks on a steep side hill, in 
which are confined animals distinctively American — elk 
and bison. There are perhaps a dozen elk, one large, old 
and vicious bull, one large old cow, one or two younger 
cows and a number of young bulls. These are all 
in excellent condition, in good coat, fat enough, but not 
too round, and with eyes and hair showing good health. 
On account of his temper the old bull was confined in a 
pen by himself and the others were all together in the 
inclosure, which is too large to be called a paddock, yet 
hardly extensive enough to be a pasture. The situations 
of this and of the adjoining buffalo pen are admirably 
chosen. They are on a steep side hill, with a little level 
land above and below. The animals are fed at the foot 
of the hill and watered at the top, and so must necessarily 
climb up and down the hill two or three times a day. 
Thus they get exercise— something that wild animals in 
confinement seldom have much of, but which they need 
above almost anything else. When we were there the 
young bulls were fencing and fighting along the hillside, 
two or three couples being sometimes engaged at the 
same time, pushing and straining, and constantly giving 
vent to the low bird like whistle of anger so characteristic 
of the elk. 
The buffalo were in as good condition as the elk, but I 
was sorry to see among the six or seven specimens only a 
single cow. She is apparently heavy with calf. There 
was recently a contest for the supremacy of this small 
herd, and after many battles the young bull overcame 
him who till then.had been the master of the herd. The 
last fight took place near the top of the hill already 
spoken of, and at its close the young bull knocked his 
senior down and then butted him all the way down the 
hill, rolling him over and over until he reached the foot. 
Not far from the large animal house are small outdoor 
cages, in which are confined some admirable specimens 
of Esquimau and other dogs, three gray wolves, two 
coyotes, one of them^-if it is a coyote — red, like a red 
wolf, and half a dozen beautiful kit foxes. Here too is 
a great cage, built about a growing pine tree, in which 
half a dozen Clarke's crows have their home. 
Below these animals — under the hill — are the deer, 
which, like all the other animals here, seem to be in per- 
fect condition. Mr. Blackburn showed us a crippled doe, 
whose left hindleg had been broken in two places, about 
New Year's, by a vicious buck. Mr. Blackburn had put the 
leg in plaster and there seemed every prospect that the 
bone would make a good union and that the doe would 
get well. 
No one thing impressed me so much during my visit to 
the park as the admirable condition of all the animals on 
exhibition there. The site is wonderfully beautiful, much 
taste, skill and judgment has been displayed in laying out 
the grounds, and there is ample room; but in a zoological 
garden all these things count for nothing if the animals, 
on account of which the garden exists, are thin, mangy 
and unhealthy. I have seen many collections of animals, 
but never one where the specimens were so universally 
healthy as at Washington. This may be accounted for in 
part by ths season of the year at which the visit was 
made, and in part by the unusual amount of range which 
many of the herbivorous animals have, but there can be 
no doubt that the excellent health of the specimens here 
shown is due chiefly to the constant supervision and intel- 
ligent care which is given them by Mr. Blackburn, the 
head keeper. I talked a good deal with him and soon 
learned that he knows the secret of preserving the health 
of the creatures committed to his care. Such knowledge 
mav fairly be called unusual among men occupying his 
position, who, however interested they may be in their 
specimens, too often lack the experience and the common 
sense to treat them as they ought to be treated. 
The sun had set while we were standing looking at the 
buffalo, and I suppose that I had fallen into a reverie, 
when suddenly the air was full of an old sound heard 
often enough in a buffalo country, the yelps and barks of 
the coyotes swelled after a little by the deeper bowlings of 
the big wolves. For a moment I forgot where I was and 
looked across the flat to the bluffs beyond the stream, 
balf expecting to see stringing down the hill a line of men 
and women and pack horses laden with meat returning 
from the buffalo hunt. Then one of my companions 
spoke — and I realized that it is twenty years later and 
that the buffalo is extinct. 
THE AMERICAN BOX-TORTOISE. 
BY K. W. SHUFELDT, M. D., C. M. Z. S. 
From Maine to Florida our common box-tortoise {Gis- 
tttilo Carolina) is so well known to those living in the 
country districts that any description of this CJielonian 
would seem to be quite unnecessary. They are very 
abundant in the fields and woodlands lying about Wash- 
ington, D, C, and the writer has had ample opportunities 
to study them upon many occasions. I have never been 
lucky enough to find one of their egg deposits here, but I 
did many years ago in Stamford, Conn., when I caught 
the female laying her eggs in the mire near a marsh, she 
having the hinder half of her body in the water and mud 
while she did so. These eggs were not numerous, over an 
inch long each and pure white. In form they were ellip- j 
soidal. Old box-tortoises vary greatly in both form and j 
color; occasionally the vault of the carapace is quite] 
hemispherical in contour, while again it is much flattened!! 
behind. The shield beneath, or plastron, is usually quite;] 
flat, with the transverse hinge forward of the middle ofj 
the body. This tortoise also varies much in its coloration, I 
sometimes the plastron is black, often light clay color, or 
various shades of brown and mottled. Some of them 
have the blacks, orange and browns of the carapace or! 
dome, often upper part of the shell, very bright and variel 
gated, while in others they are dingy and poorly marked,! 
Last summer I photographed some of these box-tortoises! 
and found it by no means an easy thing to do. One oil 
these pictures of mine is shown in the accompanying en-j 
graving. It was a beautifully 'marked specimen, about] 
two-thirds grown, yet the yellow and black of the shell 
could not be made to show in the photograph. He would! 
move his head as quick as a flash, and draw in his fee*! 
and tail on the slightest provocation. On the trial here! 
shown, however, I got these all out in nice shape. 
About the end of April or the beginning of May we! 
sometimes begin to meet with the young of this speciesj 
They occur in the wood paths, under the leaves by the] 
fences, or in the damp hollows in the timber lands. They! 
are cunning little fellows, very gentle and vary greatly! 
in size and color. Like their parents they will readily! 
feed upon any of the garden berries, angling worms, bit* 
of meat, insects or mushrooms. On warm days they enjoy! 
a dip in cool water and doubtless take the opportunity! 
to drink a little, though turtles and tortoises can go a lon§! 
time both without food or water. A very foolish notion! 
is still widely prevelant in the country about this tortoist! 
and it is to the effect that one of them will drive out the 
rats if kept in the cellar of a house infested by them, 
Even so well known a naturalist as Dr. DeKay musn 
have had a lurking notion that there might be some truth 
in this myth and he tried the experiment, with the result 
that in a few days he found the poor box-tortoise in hia 
cellar partly devoured by the merciless rats. One of these! 
Chelonians can be drowned by being kept under water f oj* 
half an hour or so, but there is no truth in the story that 
they avoid water altogether. Indeed, I have found therd 
wading in shallow streams, and I once tried one by placing 
him on a small island in a pond. As soon as he found! 
out his predicament, the reptile took boldly to the water I 
which was several feet deep, and with great dispatch, bull 
by very awkward swimming withal, soon swam the diB-l 
tance of several feet to reach the mainland. The full 
account of these experiments will be found in a brief con j 
tribution to Nature (Oct. 31, 1889), that I published a fewl 
years ago. As a rule the box-tortoise is a gentle animal,! 
out then again specimens will be met with that are am 
cross and as vicious as tbey can possibly be; likewise,! 
some of them make good subjects for the photographer oil 
living animals, while others completely wear his patienctl 
out by their perversity. 
All the land species of these reptiles are called tortoises I 
while those that inhabit either fresh or salt water artjl 
known as turtles. Some of the former are called terra-1 
pine. The word tortoise evidently arose from the old, I 
French, tortis } meaning twisted, referring to the form oj- 
THE AMERICAN BOX-TORTOISE. 
Prom a photo by Dr. Smifeldt. 
