CHAPTER XVIII
ZOOLOGISCHER GARTEN, HAMBURG: DIRECTOR, DR. BOLAU
On January 28, 1860, Baron Ernst von Merck, Herr H. Meyer, Consul Schiller, General Consul de Craecket, and others met together and formed a provisional company for the founding of a Zoological Society, the main end and aim of which should be to settle the site of a Zoological Garden in Hamburg. Baron Ernst von Merck was elected President and Herr H. Meyer Vice-president, whilst Consul Schiller was made Treasurer.
On July 10, 1860, the first general meeting of the shareholders took place to consider the construction of the society and the making of regulations. The directors approached the Municipal Council with a view to obtaining a suitable site for a Zoological Garden, and the Council gave a plot of land to the society free of ground-rent for fifty years. The buildings were at once taken in hand by Herr Meuron and Herr Haller, and the landscape-gardening by Herr Jürgens. The capital was taken up by 800 shareholders.
The preparing of the land, which consisted of a large sand-desert, occasioned endless trouble and waste of time and money, especially at the beginning. The Directors, however, were not discouraged, as they were helped not only by large presents of animals, but also of building materials, etc. An otter basin was paid for by Baron von Merck, who, with other gentlemen, gave an important contribution to the bear pit. The main entrance-gate, the wapiti house, the seal enclosure, the tapir house, the antelope house, and the drainage system of the grounds were all given by various individuals. The ladies of Hamburg and Altona opened a subscription, which resulted in the building of an ostrich house.
In November, 1862, the greater part of the buildings were finished. The Directors, however, were obliged to issue more shares in order to enable them to make other buildings, and especially an aquarium. This new issue of capital was authorized on November 20, and within twenty-four hours the new shares were all taken up.
On May 26, 1863, the company presented the Garden, brightly decorated for the occasion, to the shareholders, and on the following day it was opened to the public. On July 6, 1863, the Garden suffered an irreparable loss in the sudden death of its President, Baron von Merck, who was greatly regretted by the whole of Hamburg. A bust was placed in the concert-hall to commemorate him.
In 1864 the Direction was authorized to build a Winter Garden and a large restaurant. The aquarium, a rectangular building 26 by 11 metres in size, was opened April 26, 1864. The floor is laid deep under the surface of the earth to insure an even temperature all the year round. Spring and autumn are the best times to transport fish to the aquarium, as in the extreme heat of summer many die.
Presents flowed in from all parts of the world every year. Herr Meyer presented the Garden with the owl tower. A second small-cats’ house was presented by General Consul Gustav Mutzenbecher.
In the spring of 1885 the society had to bewail the loss of another President, Dr. Schwartze, who had acted as chairman of the society for many years. Dr. Heinrich Bolau is now Director of the Garden.
In December, 1899, there were 468 animals, 1,749 birds, and 187 reptiles in the Garden; 46 animals and 162 birds were bred in it.
In 1900 the income was £16,109 16s., exceeding that of the year before by £651.
Not only does the Liverpool of Germany possess one of the largest Zoological Gardens, but also the fifth most valuable collection of animals in Europe.
THE MONKEY HOUSE, HAMBURG.
On paying one mark entrance fee, one is confronted first by two large deer enclosures with thatched shelter-houses in the centre. Close by is a lofty bird-of-prey aviary. Beyond an Australian wombat and some pens of kangaroos is a pretty pen of doves, wading birds, and ducks, in which are planted some little Christmas-trees. We next come to the monkey house, which, however, is small in comparison with ours in London. In the centre of the Garden is a huge duck lake, with a very large concert-hall and café opposite. Keeping to the left of the lake, a four-horned sheep from Morocco is to be seen. This animal greatly resembles the four-horned sheep found in the Outer Hebrides off the coast of Scotland. At the bottom of an imitation ruined tower are some bear pits and owl pens. It is a stiff climb to the top of the tower, but from it one gets a good view of the Garden and the surrounding city. We next come to three very large cages containing bears of three species, and then we pass through what appears to be an overflow house, which contains leopards, jaguars, and a host of guinea-pigs. Rather tantalizing it must be for the leopards to smell the luscious porkers and not be able to get at them; but perhaps, by-the-by, the guinea-pigs were given to the panthers as food.
STORK AND CRANE ENCLOSURES, HAMBURG.
Close by the ostrich and rhea pens is a charming Egyptian house, with a pond in front of it, in which waded several storks, cranes, and sacred ibises. This was followed by a second duck-pond, backed by a large rockery. We now come to a very realistic scene in the shape of a rockery and pond containing seals and cormorants. This is followed by yet another duck lake. Passing on, we come to the elephant house. This house, built in 1880, contains elephants, a hippopotamus, buffaloes, and wild asses. There is an Indian elephant here which possesses the longest pair of tusks I have ever seen in a captive animal. (The largest African elephant, however, is in the Jardin des Plantes, Paris.) He is a remarkably fine-looking creature. In the centre of the hall is exhibited a pair of tusks which are very even, but not nearly so fine. The hippopotamus was roaring in fine style, turning back somersaults, and plunging about in a manner quite unusual in a captive specimen. In the same house were a smaller Indian elephant and quite a young African elephant. Next in order was a small-birds’ house containing German birds, with the eggs of each displayed in glass cases.
In the antelope house were a pair of the Southern form of giraffe, Arabian gazelle, black buck, zebus, West African inyala, with four young ones born October 21, 1901, some nylgai, a young roan antelope, an Oryx leucoryx, and a pair of water-buck.
In an outdoor shed and paddock was a magnificent American bison, shedding its winter coat. The lion house, built in a crescent shape, with indoor and outdoor cages, contains some remarkably fine animals. There are a number of lions and tigers in a cage together, a Cape hunting-dog, leopards, and hyænas. One lioness had the most brilliant yellow coat I have ever seen. Opposite the inside cages are glass cases containing some large crocodiles, lizards, tortoises, snakes, and salamanders. Close by is an extremely well-built and well-kept small-rodents’ house, full of rare little mammals. There are red river-hogs and the capybara, or great tailless rat of South America, as big as a small pig.
During my rambles I lost a part of my camera, and spent a long time in looking for it. But, luckily, one of the keepers picked it up and very kindly found and gave it me, much to my relief. It was a most miserable day when I visited this Garden, and, of course, it did not look its best; still, it could not, I feel convinced, compare in beauty with many other smaller Gardens, though it is undoubtedly very wealthy in animals.