264 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
[April 2, 1898. 
cause of their fears, and sometimes individuals wiU stand 
for a considerable time, giving the hunter a good-oppor- 
tunitj^ to shoot at them. Although large for a gazelle, 
the body presents but a small mark, and the bullet must 
be placed in some vital part or else the animal will es- 
cape, as it possesses great vitality, and a broken leg 
does not seem to incommode it in the least, nor prevent 
it from running at full speed on the three that are unhurt. 
Both sexes carry horns, and these vary greatly in 
length and shape. Sometimes the horns of a male will 
measure 2oin. and even more along the curve, but the 
average length is much less, something like I4in; The 
smaller pairs, hoM'ever, are much more shapely than 
those of the extreme lengths, the latter losing much of 
the characteristic graceful curve. 
Aoul seem to be generally distributed south of the 
Golis Range, and we met with them, almost everywhere, 
being very plentiful in parts of Ogaden. On the Haud 
they seem to restrict themselves mostly to the plains, 
where they are seen in large herds. 
Ci.arkk's Gazeli.e {Ammodorcas dark&i). Native Namk, 
Dibaiag. 
This rare species is only met with in the country south 
of Toyo Plain, and then eastward to the land of the Dol- 
bahanta. It does not seem to be very numerous even 
in the localities it frequents, at least that was our experi- 
ence, and we found it to be the most wary and difficult 
of approach of all the animals we hunted. It is not easily 
seen among tli® bushes, and it has the habit of concealing 
its body behind some bush and looking at you over the 
top. which its long neck readily enables it to do. The 
neck is so slender and the head so small and pointed, and 
its peculiar purplish graj'^ glossy coat matches the high 
grass so well, that the animals are almost invisible, and 
it taSes one quite a little while at times to distinguish 
them. Then they know at once Avhen you discover them, 
and are off, and present so small a mark that they arc 
very difficult to hit. At a distance, when they stand facing 
one, the neck does not look wider than a twig, and one 
has to shoot very straight indeed to secure a specimen of 
this wary, active species. Although very different in ap- 
pearance fi-om Waller's gazelles (Lithocratiius zvalleri) 
when brought close to each other, yet at a distance it 
is not always easy to. distinguish them if not in motion. 
But the moment a dibatag starts to run there is no mis- 
taking the species to which it belongs, its movements 
being so entireh' different. Instead of the low, slouch- 
ing gait of Waller's gazelle, the dibatag bounds away 
with head and tail well up, the former inclining slightly 
towards the latter, clearing the bu.slies at every jump 
in the manner of the lesser koodoo (S. imberbis). I have 
never seen it carry its head and tail when running so that 
they nearl}'- touched each other, as some writers have 
described., but on the contrary the tail is carried straight 
up in the air, and this alone, from its length, would at 
once distinguish the dibatag from the geremik at any 
distance. It has the long neck and peculiar physiog- 
nomy of the gerenuk. both considerably giraffe-like, and 
the two specie,"! inhabit the same kind of country: but 
I have never seen them associated together. As men- 
tioned by Swayne, it frequents the jungle of the um- 
brella mimosa, and glades of durr grass, often taking ref- 
uge in dense high patches of this last, especially when 
wounded. The horns of the male are peculiar, and 
shaped more like those of a reed buck, and measure 
from 8 to iiin. along the curve. The female is without 
horns. The dibatag is a gracefully formed, beautifully 
colored animal, and possesses more sporting qualities 
than any antelope we met with, unless it might be the 
two species of koodoo, particularly the lesser koodoo, 
Wat.i.kr's GazK/I.lk {Lithocraniw: -imlleri^. Nativk Namk, 
Gerenuk . 
This is the most frequently seen of all the antelopes in- 
habiting Soraali-land, save perhaps the various species 
of Dik-Dik. It is also the most peculiar in appearance, 
the exceedingly long neck, large eyes, lengthened muzzle 
and general shape of the face being very like a giraffe. 
It is not a graceful animal in its movements, but walks 
along in a slouching sort of way, and when startled 
drops its head on a level with the body and sneaks off 
among the bushes, in a very different manner from the 
gallant way in which the dibatagf removes himself from 
the object of his fears. 
The gerenuk goes in small troupes of from three to 
eight or ten individuals, and is foimd usually on rocky 
ground broken with ravines and covered more or less 
densely with bushes and trees. It is a browsing animal, 
and Is often found in localities where gi-ass is partly or 
wholly absent. It has great curiosity, which failing is 
often fatal to its safety, and when it sees an imusual ob- 
ject, a hunter for instance, will stand and gaze steadily 
for some moments without moving. If one is not near 
enough for a shot, these arc trying moments to a hunter, 
who is obliged to remain absolutely rigid wntil the 
gerenuk commences to feed or is satisfied there is no 
danger; otherwise at the slightest motion the head is 
ducked behind the bush and the animal sneaks away. 
As a rule, however, it does not go far, and I never saw 
a gerenuk that I (Sould not eventually secure, if I de- 
termined to have it. It was only a question of a little 
time and patience, and an approach to a fair shooting 
distance could be gained. I consider the gerenuk as 
rather a stupid animal; certainly it does not seem to 
possess the wariness, watchfulness and general ability 
to take care of itself which are common attributes of 
all other species of gazelle. The meat is poor, betng like 
the flesh of all other game animals in Somali-land, with- 
out a particle of fat, and consequently dry and tasteless. 
Only a few of the natives will eat it, as they consider it 
looks too much like a camel, and have certain supersti- 
tions regarding it. The males carry rather handsome 
lyrate horns, the largest measuring something over I4in. 
along the curves. The females are hornless. The gere- 
nuk 19 never seen on tlie treeless plains, such as are 
met with on the Haud; at least I have never observed 
them in such places; but I have found them on barren, 
rocky hillsides and summ.its, the valleys between which, 
however, were covered by a thorn forest. In such cases 
the animals were probably merely passing from one val- 
ley to another. The usual gait of this antelope is a 
slouching trdt, with the head and neck carried very low, 
levej with the body, and when frightened it gallops with 
considerable spcg^^ ,s.toppiag, hpwever, jntervajs to 
look back at the object of its alarm; and if at such times 
the hunter is concealed the gerenuk soon forgets its fear 
and commences to feed or walk slowly along. The male 
of this species stands about 4ft. 6in. high, a considerable 
portion of which is due to the long neck. 
Certain individuals of both sexes of this species 
have on either side of the face a whitish stripe 
between the eye and end of nose, resembling very 
much the markings of Clarke's gazelle (Antmodorcas 
clarkei). This was particularly the case with individuals 
shot to the south of Toyo Plain, where it was rare to 
obtain one without this conspicuous mark. The animals 
also were larger than their brethren in' other parts of 
the country to the north and west. I was impressed with 
this peculiarity, and should have considered it of some 
value if it had been confined to individuals from one 
section of the country, but on careful examination of 
the specimens obtained on my return to the north of 
Toyo I occasionally found one with this stripe indicated 
along the nose, but not so clearly defined as is generally 
the rule in the individuals from the- south of the plain. 
When clearly marked it gives the head of Waller's ga- 
zelle a very close resemblance to that of Clarke's ga- 
zelle, as both have similarly shaped faces, very narrow 
and pointed. Taking the extremes of the two styles, the 
strongly marked white stripe, and its almost total ab- 
sence, one would be likely to imagine that there were 
two well-defined races of Waller's gazelle. This species 
has in front of the eye, filling up the antorbital vacuity, 
a black secretion which forms a larg-e, conspicuous 
prominence on each side of the face. The only other 
animals in which I have seen this carried to an equal 
degree, allowing for their comparative size, are the Dik- 
Diks. There is a small opening in the center of this 
sac-like prominence, from which the secretion exudes 
and stains everything it comes in contact with, the 
same as ink would. Neither the skin, when removed 
from the animal, nor the skuU, give any indication of this 
prominence, and so the creature when mounted, or in 
a drawing given ,pf it, presents no resemblance, so far 
as the face is concerned, to the living animal; those 
specimens I have seen in the museums have this part laid 
flat to the skull and painted white, being more of a cari- 
cature of the live gerenuk than anything else. In life 
this gazelle is a fine creature, graceful in form if not in 
movement, and having an extraordinary structure of face 
and peculiar expression, which cause it to be a rather 
unique species among its allies in the family. 
[to be continued.] 
Congress and the Birds, 
On March 24 the Senate passed Seaiator Hoar's bill 
to protect song birds, which reads as follows: 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Represent- 
atives of the United States of America in Congress as- 
sembled, That the importation into the United States 
of birds, feathers, or parts of birds for ornamental pur- 
poses be and the same is hereby prohibited; provided, 
however, that nothing herein contained shall be con- 
strued as prohibiting the importation tif birds for mu- 
seums, zoological gardens, or scientific collections, or 
the importation of living birds or of feathers taken from 
living birds without injury to the bird. The Secretary 
of the Treasury is hereby authorized to make regulations 
for carrying into effect the provisions of this section. 
Sec. 2. That the transportation of birds, feathers, or 
parts of birds, to be used or sold, from any State or 
Territory of the United States to or through any other 
State or Territory of the United States is hereby pro- 
hibited. Whoever shall violate the provisions of this 
section shall, upon conviction in the district where the 
oft'ense shall have been committed, be punished for each 
such offense by a fine of $50. 
Sec. 3. That the sale, keeping, or offering for sale, 
within any territory of the United States, or within the 
District of Columbia, of birds, feathers, or parts of birds, 
for ornamental purposes, except such as are excepted in 
the first section of this act, be and the same is hereby 
prohibited. Whoever shall violate the provisions of this 
section shall, upon conviction, be punished fpr each such 
offense by a fine of $50. 
Dr. Bean and the Aquarium* 
J'reii Maiker in Forest .vno Stream, Nov. 20, tS97. 
I AM freely giving expression to personal views on 
the management of the present New York Aquarium, be- 
cause I believe that great improvements can be made 
in it if it is taken from the control of an ever-changing 
Board of Commissioners of Public Parks, appointed by 
a Mayor who is in office for four years, and placed under 
a more permanent board of trustees, wlio may be selected 
by reason of their interest in. and knowledge of, matters 
directly or indirectly connected with fishes, and who have 
some idea of the difficulty in the way of managing an 
aquarium, and do not expect miracles of a superintend- 
ent, as some newspaper writers seem to do. To super- 
intend an aquarium is a trying position and requires 
an education in that particular line. A man who is only 
a fishculturist knows how to keep the few fish he has 
transported in cans alive, but that does not fit him to 
care for the food and temperature of migratory and trop- 
ical fishes. The ichthyologist and the closet naturalist, 
who can tell you every variation in the anatomy of fishes, 
is the surest man to blunder when he enters the field qf 
aquaria, and if I had to choose between these two I 
would take the first, but would want to put some old net 
fisremnan with him to tell him some things he might 
not know. The ideal man for a superintendent is one 
who is both fishculturist, naturalist and old fisherman, 
with added experience in aquaria; and such a man is 
Dr. Bean, and you may count over the fingers of one 
hand without finding one who possesses all these quali- 
fications, even if you've lost a few fingers in a saw mill. 
St. Louis Bird Noties. 
M.A.RCH 14.— Seen to-day in Forest Park robins in 
flocks, bluebirds, meadowlafks, a phoebe bird, sapsucker, 
red-headed woodpecker, yellow hammer, and small flocks 
of blackbirds, besides peep frogs^ fli^s, white, m.illers and 
a yellow jacket C. H, 
Season in Central New York. 
Ithaca, N. Y., March i8. — Editor Forest and Streaw: 
The oldest inhabitant stands amazed. The fine old, man 
has put his recollection into a great turmoil, but so 
far we can call to mind no recent year that has fathered 
such a mild and quieting March as the one from whose 
back steps we are now about to make our adieu. Rob- 
ins, bluebirds, song sparrows, purple grackles, etc,, have 
made their appearance, and the 12th inst. the writer ob- 
served plenty of toads abroad and heard the choir in- 
visible peeping vociferously from the Ithaca marsh. ,The 
peepers have been heard repeatedly since. Elm trees 
are putting forth tiny leaves, lawms are rapidly greening, 
and all nature seems freshening and springing into new 
life under the magic of the March sunshine and show- 
ers. Game birds have no doubt wintered nicely, and 
under favorable nesting conditions the grouse supplj^ 
should be satisfactorily replenished. A few ducks have 
put in an appearance upon the marsh waters, but no 
shooting of consequence has thus far, happily, been in- 
dulged in. ^ M. ChilTv. 
Mammals of New York. 
The New York State Museum has engaged Mr. Ger- 
rit S. Miller, Jr., late of the Biological Division of the 
U. S. Department of Agriculture, to make a study of the 
mammalian fauna of New York and prepare a record of 
the mammals existing there at the beginning of the his- 
torical period. 
Particular information is needed with regard the 
panther, wolf and elk, which existed in the State, and of 
which the specific identity is at present uncertain, as there 
are several animals which have been called by ^hese 
names. 
All persons possessing skulls or complete skeletons 
of these animals, which they know to have been collected 
in the State of New York or in its immediate vicinity, 
are requested to communicate the fact to Dr. F. J. H. 
ATerrill. Director, N. Y. State Museum, Albany. N. Y. 
Linnaean Society of New York. 
A PUBLIC lecture in the lecture hall of the American 
Museum of Natural History, "Protective and Directive 
Coloration of Animals," by C. Hart Merriam, M.D.. 
Chief of Biological Survey, United States Department of 
Agriculture, will be given on April 7. You are cor- 
dially invited to be present. 
Walter W. Granges, Sec'y. 
Pennsylvania Spring. 
Eddington, Bucks County, Pa., March 24.— Snipe and 
ducks are flying around here pretty lively; a few wood- 
cock are seen, and shad and herring are in the river. 
Spring has been pretty well advanced, but we may sug- 
fer some tough weather yet. 
§mt(^ §Hg md §nn. 
Ducks. 
He told me ducks — this friend of mine — and in the 
joyous ingenuousness of 3'outh I ignored his profession 
of the law, and gave heed. 
"Go down to Forked River." said he, "and the}^ are 
yours— -yours for the shooting." 
Pursuant to direction, I invested dollars of the realm 
in nameless hundreds of shotgun shells, and journeyed 
south to Barnegat. Here at Forked River an affabic 
youth — Peggy Worden by name- — ^met me at the railroad 
station, and considerately relieved me of I4lbs. of car- 
tridges, a i2-bore gun and a handbag that weighed 281bs. 
when it started and 7i81bs. isoz. when it arrived. 
"Ducks?" murmured Master Worden. "Well — oh, T 
guess so." 
In the ignorance that is bliss I gloried in his words, 
the subsequent coming of wisdom convincing me of 
my folly. For of all things that are folly, enthusiasm 
is the greatest, and whoever has shot or fished has 
met this folly face to face, and will continue in the 
meeting to the end of all time to come. 
However, to resume: 
"I'll be around at 3 A. M.," said Master Worden, 
" "cause it'll take an hour, I guess, to work down the 
creek 'gainst the tide," 
With this he departed for tlie iiight, leaving me to 
discuss ducks with him that keeps the hotel — the La- 
fayette House of fame. 
"Ducks," said my host, reminiscently, "well, I dilnno. 
Ducks are not what they used to be. My boy, he's gone 
down to Harvey Cedars shooting; he's after ducks too," 
The fact that one who was on the scene had gone else- 
where for ducks instilled a small but somewhat poteni 
suspicion in my mind that all things were not as they 
should be; but as hope springs eternal, I retired with ' 
visions of large flights of brant stooling in to their fate, 
the same fate being represented by a T2-bore gun trained 
by myself. 
It was 3 A. M,, as arranged, when Master Worden 
returned. It was 3:15 A. M. when I appeared in the 
presence of a large and entertaining breakfast. It was 
3:30 A. M. when the breakfast had disappeared into 
that bourne from which no breakfasts return; and it wa.s 
3:45 A. M.., and as dark as the depths of an African 
coal mine, when we reached the landing. 
"Will a hundred shells be enough, Peggy?" I asked, 
tentatively. 
After recovering from a short and violent convulsion 
Peggy guessed it woidd, and with that produced a ' 
.sneak-box from somewhere or other, but considering 
the nature of its size, probably from his hat or his waist- 
coat pocket. Perched upon the stern washboard of this 
microscopic craft was an array of decoys, redheads, . 
brant, broadbills and other alluring birds. . ■ ■ ' 
"Gwank! Gwank!" said Peggy, lookiiig over the; ar^ 
ray; "pan ialn>ost gnvaixk theI^seIye$, tl^osp decoys," = 
