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.
CHAPTER XIX
ZOOLOGISCHER GARTEN, BERLIN: DIRECTOR, DR. HECK