In the year 1764 a drawing and an account of the giraffe was sent to the Academy of Sciences, by which we are informed that this animal is not particular to Ethiopia, but is also found in the neighbourhood of the Cape of Good Hope.[AH] The drawing was so badly executed that no use can be made of it,[AI] but as the account contains a sort of description we have given it a place. “In an excursion from the Cape, made in 1762, we travelled about two hundred leagues up the country, and met with the camelopardalis, a drawing of which we have subjoined. Its body resembles that of an ox, and its head and neck those of the horse. All we met with were of a white colour, sprinkled with brown spots. They have two horns on the head, about a foot long, and their feet are hoofed. We killed two of these animals, and sent their skins to Europe, the several measurements of which were as follows: the length of the head one foot eight inches; the height, from the bottom of the fore foot to the withers, ten feet; and from the withers to the top of the head seven feet; in all seventeen feet in height. The length from the withers to the reins is five feet six inches, and from thence to the tail one foot six; the length, therefore, of the whole body is seven feet, and the height, from the hind feet to the reins, eight feet five inches. The great disproportion in the height and length of this animal seems to prevent its being of any service. It feeds on the leaves of trees, and when it wants to drink, or take any thing off the ground, it is obliged to kneel with its fore legs.”
[AH] Vaillant also, in his travels into the interior parts of Africa, asserts, that he met with giraffes in very great numbers.
[AI] This we have also obviated, our figure being from a drawing taken by M. Vaillant from life.
In inspecting the accounts travellers have given of the giraffe, I find they all agree that it can reach with its head to the height of sixteen or seventeen feet when standing erect, and that the fore legs are as high again as the hind ones, so that it seems as if it was seated upon its crupper. They likewise agree that it cannot run very swift, by reason of this disproportion; that it is very gentle, and that by this quality, other habits, and even by the shape of the body, it partakes more of the nature of the camel than of any other animal; that it is among the number of ruminating animals, and, like them, is deficient of the incisive teeth in its upper jaw. By the testimonies of some travellers we also find that the giraffe is to be met with in the southern parts of Africa, as well as in those of Asia.
It is very evident, from what we have mentioned, that the giraffe is a peculiar species, and totally different from every other animal. If we would refer it to any it should rather be to the camel than the stag, or the ox. It is true the giraffe has two small horns, and the camel none; but they resemble each other so much in other respects that I am not surprised at some travellers having given it the name of the Indian camel. Besides, we are ignorant of the substance of the horns of the giraffe, and, consequently, we know not if in that part he approaches nearer to the stag than to the ox; and, possibly, they may be of a substance different from either; they may be composed of united hairs like those of the rhinoceros, or of a substance and texture peculiar to themselves. The reasons which have induced nomenclators to rank the giraffe with the stag kind, seem to have arisen from the pretended passage of Belon, quoted by Gesner, which indeed would be decisive if it were true. They seem also to have misunderstood what authors have said of the hair of those horns; they have imagined that the writers have said the horns of the giraffe were covered with hair, like the fresh-sprung horns of the stag, and from thence concluded they were of the same nature; but, in fact, the giraffe’s horns are only surrounded with coarse hair, and not covered with a down, or velvet, like those of the stag. This circumstance tends to support the probability that the horns of the giraffe are composed of united hair, like those of the rhinoceros, and their bluntness at the extremities greatly favours this idea. If, again, we consider that the elk, rein-deer, stag, roe-buck, &c. have their horns always divided into branches or antlers, and that, on the contrary, the horns of the giraffe are only simple, and consist of one stem, we must be convinced that they are not of the same nature, unless analogy be entirely violated. The tubercle is in the middle of the head, which, according to travellers, seem to form a third horn, is another strong circumstance in favour of this opinion. The two horns which are not pointed, but blunt at the ends, are, perhaps, only tubercles somewhat longer than the former. All travellers also uniformly inform us that the female giraffes have horns like the males, but that they are smaller. If this animal were really of the stag kind, analogy would here also be violated, for of all animals of that genus there is only the female rein-deer that has horns, the reason of which we have before mentioned. On the other hand, as the giraffe cannot graze but with great difficulty on account of the excessive height of its fore legs; as it chiefly and almost solely feeds on the leaves and buds of trees, it may be presumed, that the horns, which are the most apparent superfluity of the organic particles derived from the food, would be analogous to the nature of the food, as well as the horns of the stag. Time will confirm the propriety of one or other of these conjectures. One word more in Hasselquist’s description would have fixed these doubts, and clearly determined the genus of this animal. But scholars, who have only the gamut of their master in their heads, or rather in their pockets, cannot avoid making blunders and essential omissions, because they entirely renounce investigation, which should guide every observer of Nature, and view her productions through the false medium of arbitrary method, which only serves to hinder them from reflecting on the objects they meet with, and to calculate the description of them on a bad and erroneous model. As, in reality, all objects differ materially from each other, so they ought all to be treated differently; one single striking character happily discovered, is sometimes decisive, and often conveys more knowledge of a subject than a thousand trifling indexes. Whenever they are numerous they consequently become equivocal and common, and then they are at least superfluous, if not prejudicial, to the real knowledge of Nature, who sports with the forms we prescribe, soars above all method, and can only be perceived by the penetrating eye of Genius.
SUPPLEMENT.
From M. Allemand we received a letter, dated October, 1766, containing a number of excellent observations respecting this animal, and from which the following is an extract: “I am in possession of a stuffed giraffe, and since you expressed a desire to know the nature of its horns I cut one of them off, and send it to you; it is, however, necessary to observe, that it belonged to a very young one. I received it from the governor of the Cape, who informed me that it was killed as it was lying by the side of its mother; it was about six feet in height, and its horns did not exceed two inches and a half. These horns were covered all over with skin and hairs; the base was more than an inch broad, forming an obtuse cone; and to be certain whether it was solid or hollow I sawed it through longitudinally with that part of the skull to which it adhered, and I found its texture to resemble that of the horns of the stag more than any other animal. If indeed I were positive that a horn which was sent me as belonging to a giraffe did really belong to that animal, I should not hesitate to say there was no difference between them, except in the figure, this being straight, and without branches. With respect to the legs I conceive their disproportion in length has been greatly magnified, for the difference between the fore and hind ones of this young animal is very slight.”