A YEAR AT THE ZOO 
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any more than the army of mice and rats, and dozens 
of live frogs, which frolic behind the scenes in the 
Snake House. Unhonoured in their lives, their deaths 
are unrecorded, or figure darkly among “ miscellaneous 
expenses.” The fact is, that the rearing of tame mice 
and rats, and the capture and purveyance of live frogs, 
is an interesting and unexplored side-industry of 
London life. Breeding mice and white rats is an 
easy and lucrative addition to small incomes, carried 
on in back-yards and attics. The frogs, which are 
genuine wild animals, are captured by special emissaries 
employed by the “ dealers,” who go round to the 
mouse-farms and froggeries and collect the creatures, 
just as the poultry-men make their rounds to country 
farms and cottages. The Zoo is by no means the 
largest customer to the trade, which relies mainly on 
the “ biologists” for its steady demand. Fruit is 
almost as necessary as fish at all seasons in the 
Gardens, and no visitor can have failed to notice the 
daintily-arranged “ dessert ” of sliced bananas, grapes, 
dates, and apples, which is served up to the rarer 
monkeys and fruit-eating birds. Thirteen thousand 
oranges, 2000 lbs. of grapes, 1,200 lbs. of dates, and 
200 lbs. of raisins and currants, represent the fruiterer’s 
bill; the green-grocer comes last, with 2,641 bunches 
of tares, 4,500 bunches of greens, and 2,600 bundles 
of cress. Cherries, onions, melons, marrows, bananas, 
and figs vary the bill of fare, which we may close with 
the solid item of 139 cwt. of carrots, and nearly two 
tons of ground nuts. To provide for the welfare of 
