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ZOOLOGICAL ANECDOTES. Zoological Notes a...
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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" At A Later Period, Humboldt Also Calle...
special organs , Which are scr many different means whereby the individual may ^ ace himself in relation With the external World , may receive the most varied iinbressiorisfromit , and , so to apeak , mky taste it ~ in . all its'forms , and may act upon it , in turn ? What an immjensejaistance between the life of the polype , which is only a digestive tube , and that ; of the superior animals ; above all ; of man , endowed fth so manyexquisite senses , for whonvthe World of nature , as well as the world of ideas , is open on all , sides , awakening and drawing forth in a thousand various wavs allthe living forces with which Godhas endpwedhiinP f here of individuals is true of societies of individuflls
< JLrid Hvhat we say organic , and particularly of human societies . Is it not evident that the same law of development is applicable to them ?/ Here again , homogeneouaness , or uniformity , is the elementary state which we find in savage life . Diversity ^ a varie % of ele-Hients > which call for and multiply exchanges ; the almost infinite distinction of the functions which correspond to the various talents bestowed oil " every man by Providence , and which are . only called into action and brought to light by the thousand Wants of a society as complicated as burs , —these hive , in all times , been the sign of a social sjkate advanced to a high degree of hnprovenient , industrial
" Gould we , indeed , conceive the possibility of that multitude of talents that have their birth in the wants of luxury , and are revealed by the thousand elegant trifles-displayed iii bur drawing-rooms , existing among the Indians of the'Kdbky Mountains , sheltered by the few branches which form their wretched huts ? The commercial life , which creates the prosperity of the foremost nations of the globe;—is it possible ' .-toexistamong a people whose ambition is limited to hunting in the neighbouring wild the animal that is to furnish food for the day ? Could we hopetp seethe wonders of architecture unfolded among a people who have no public edifices buiTt ^ e bv ^ rbanging Miage of their forests ? Had Raphael been b \> rn aindrigthem , would he ever have given his admirable masterpieces to the world ? And the preeibus treasures of intelligence and of lofty thoughts contained in our Hbrarie 9 ,---where would they be , if human societies had preserved the simplicity Which a false philosophy has called the simplicity of nature , but which is in reality the most opposed to the true nature of man ?
" It is then the exchange ofproducts by the commerce of the world , which makes themateriallifeandprosperity of the nations . It is the exchange of thoughts , bythe pen and by spee € h which sets in motion the progress of intelligence . It i 6-. the interchange of thesentiments and affections which makes the moral life and secures the happinesb of . man . " Thus all life is mutual j it is all , in some way , exchange . In individuals , as well as in societiei ^ tbat which excites life , or which is its condition , is difference . The progress of development is diversity ; the end isthe harmonious unity which allows all differences , all individiialities to exist ; but which coordinates and subjects them to a superior aim . " . / : ¦ . ¦ :
It is with this view that M . Guyot has Written his beautiful and philosophic treatise on geography , which we hope no reader of ours Will grudgeito / give half-a-croWn for , snd which wiU not only serve as a luminous infa ^ uetion to the Manual' ctf ^^ oat' ^ Mci ^ Science , issued l > y Messrs . Parker , but will , in' and for itself , lie prized as a valuable little book . We have no space to followit chapter by chapter , though the subject is tempting , but will confine ourselves to two more extaracts , showing the application of Bitter ' s conception * and the illustrations of progressive life afiorded by geography . After a geological survey , he says : — <( It was thus by a process of admurable simplicity , that the Oiversity of successive elevations was- combined into a few great vaB 5 fa ;* . fto ' - * Miti &! att ^ turn were grouped , in two worlds , and formed a whole of which we have already become acquainted with-some of the features .
" The sjime progress is indicated and confirmed by palaeontology , through all the successive ages of nature . The variety and the perfection of the types and species keep pace with the increasing diversity of the lands and the seas > and all the physical circumstances which serve as the basis and the condition for the life of plants and animals . In the insular or . oceanic epoch , that of the palaeozoic strata , we have seen animals entirely marine prevailing , and forming tho inferior and embryonic types of the four divisions of the animal kingdom ; it is the reign of tho fishes , if we take the vertebrates as the type of development . During the formation of the secondary strata , which I would call the maritime epoch , on account ' of the great land-locked seas which ' characterize it , the huge reptiles , the monstrous Saurians , are the prevailing types , and by their amphibious habits mark at once their more elevated position in the animal scale , and the increasing force of the land element . The numbers of living genera and species nre much greater than at the palaeozoic epoch , but the same types are still spread uniformly over vast spaces .
" The tertiary epoch , which I would call the continental epoch , is distinguished by the appearance of the superior animals , the mammifers , the life of which is almost exclusively attached to the firm land . The continental element triumphs ; all the faunas become localized ; each country of the globe has its Appropriate animals ; tho variety of animal and vegetable species increases almost to infinity . But the unity reappears with the creation of man , who combines in his physical nature all the perfections of tho animal , and who is the end of all this long progression of organized beings . " / And , recurring to Bitter's view of the varieties of indentations of tho coast , let us remember that" 1 . The law of development is applicable to tho land , and to tho forms of the continents .
' 2 . In this order of . facts , as in all nature , the condition of a " more active life is a greater variety of forms , and of relative situations . " 3 . It follows , other things lx ) ing equal , that we may consider those centinonts « s the best endowed , tho best organized , the best prepared for tho development of human societies , which present the" most 'varied contours , the * most " diversified **' lnfl » * moat numerous contrasts , and the best characterized natural regions . lliere is here the same relation as between the inferior animal without special organs , and the superior animal richly Jurnished with special organs . "
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Zoological Anecdotes. Zoological Notes A...
ZOOLOGICAL ANECDOTES . Zoological Notes and Anecdotes . Boniloy . CuBiotrs it is , and interesting , to notice the gradual substitution of intellectual gratification for the appetites of instinctr—the substitution of Science for Savage curiosity—in regard to wild animals . In early days wo animals that did not immediately subserve to the necessities of man ,
Were only viewed as obfects of pomp or of cruel sport ; in pmr days , tne bear is no longer baited for the amusement of a brutal crowd , the tiger is aio longer Butchered to make a Roman holiday . ¦ •'• ¦» .. The wild animal is studied , takes his place in our science , furnishes the philosopher with endless topics , furnishes the vulgar with straiige glimpses into the beauty and the wonder of creation . Not only to the comparative anatomistis the , wild animal an object of deep interest ; up * Wards of six thousand visitors to the Zoological Gardens during last year
show that the general public is attracted . And since bci £ nce nas tajcen animals under its eare , the poor creatures have felt the benefit in increased -ventilation and exercise , and , duringsickness , of medical and surgical aid ! Those fond of bringing past and present times into juxtaposition , may imaginetheir forefathers , while witnessing a bear bait , being suddenly asked this question- —'" What say you , my masters , to our calling in the surgeon , and bidding him operate upon Bruin for cataract in the left eye ?" The guffaw , loud , inextinguishable * Homeric , that would salute such a proposition ! Nevertheless , the operation has been performed * Read the account given in the volume before us : —
« On the 5 th of-November , 1850 , the first operation of the sort was performed on one of these grizzly bears , which was blind in both eyes . As this detracted materially from his value , it was decided to endeavour to restore him to sight ; and l £ r . White Cooper having consented to operate , the proceedings were as follow : —• A strong leathern collar , to which a chain was attached , was firmly buckled around the patient ' s neck , and the chain having been passed round one of the bars in front of the cage , two powerful men endeavoured to pvdl him up , in order that a sponge containing chloroform should be applied to his muzzle by Dr . Show . The resistance offered by the bear was as surprising as unexpected . The utmost efforts of these men were unavailing ; and , after a struggle often minutes , two others were called to their aid , By their united efforts , Master Bruin was at length brought
tip , and the sponge fairly tied round his muzzle . Meanwhile the cries and roarings of the patient were echoed in full chorus by his two brothers , who had been confined to the sleeping den , and who scratched and tore at the door to get to the assistance of their distressed relative . In a den on one side was the cheetah , whose leg was amputated under chloroform some months before , and who was greatly excited by the smell of the fluid and uproar . The large sloth bear in a cage . on the other side , joined heartily in the chorus , and the Isabella bear just beyond wrung her paws in an agony of woe . Leopards snarled in sympathy , and laughing hysenas swelled the ichorus with their hysterical sobs . The octobasso grownng of the polar bears , and roaring of the lions on the other side of the budding , completed as remarkable a diapason as could well be heard .
" The first evidence of the action of the chloroform on the bear , was a diminu .-tion in bis struggles ; first one paw dropped , tlien the other . The sponge was now removed from his face , the door of the den opened , and his head laid upon a plank outside . The cataracts , were speedily broken up , and the bear was drawn into the cage again . For nearly five minutes he remained , as was remarked by a keeper , without knowledge , sense , or understanding , till at length one leg gave a Jdck , then another , and presently he attempted to stand . The essay was a failure , but he soon tried to make his way to his cage , It was Gan-ick , if we remember
right , who affirmed that Talma was an indifferent representative of inebriation , for he was not drunk in his legs . > The bear , however , acted the part to perfection , and thie * way in which ( like Commodore Trunnion on his way to church ) he tacked , during his route to his den , Was ludicrous in the extreme . At length he blundered into it , and was left quiet for a time . He soon revived , and in the afternoon ate heartily . The following morning , on the door being opened , he came out , staringabout him , caring nothing for the light , and began humming , as he licked his paws , with much the air of a musical amateur sitting down to a sonata on his
violoncello . "A group might have been dimly seen through the fog which covered the garden on the morning of the 15 th of the same month , standing on the spot where the proceedings above narrated took place ten days previously . ' This group comprised Professor Owen , Mr . Yarrell , Count Nesselrode , Mr . Waterhouse , Mr . Pickersgill , R . A ., Captain Stanley , K . N ., and two or three other gentlemen . They were assembled to witness a similar operation on another of tho grizzly bears . Tho bear this time was brought out of the den , and his chain passed round the rail in front of it . ' Diluted chloroform was used , and the operation was rendered more
difficult by the animal not being perfectly under its influence . He recovered immediately after the couching needle had been withdrawn from the second eye , and walked pretty steadily to his sleeping apartment , where lie received the condolences of his brethren , rather ungraciously it must bo confessed , but his head was far from clear , and his temper ruffled . " The writer adds , in a note , — " Wo regret to say that two of the three bears hav & died since the above was written , the survivor being one of those operated on . It is a singular fact that those which had befcn chloroformed subsequently grow with much greater rapidity than their brother , so that there was n marked difference ^ in size between them . The deaths took place respectively on 17 th Aug . and 30 th Sept . 1851 . " The crowing interest in Zoology to which we have alluded , will secure
a large public for the extremely entertaining volume of Zoological Notes and Anecdotes now before us . Although anecdotes have a tendency to weary tho reader by their want of continuity , tho author of this work has , in a great measure , avoided that danger by a skilful weaving together of his notes Under separate heads . Thus , in the first chapter , wo hear of nothin " but lions , their varieties and habits ; in the second , of bears ; in tho third , of panthers , tigers , leopards , and jaguars ; in the fourth , of wolves ; in tho fifth , of horses ; in the sixth , of giraffes ; in tho sovontli , of eagles ; in the eighth , 'of birds ; in tho last , of crocodiles . The book is strictly what it profosscs to be—a collection of Notes and Anecdotes ; and it is b & full of interesting pages that we shall from time to timo call largely on its stores , and for tho pi-CHent content ourselves with this brief indication of its worth ; and as a whot to the appetite wo will quoto tho history of Mr . Buckland ' s pefc boar .
" On a certain memorable day , in 1847 , a largo hamper reached Oxford , per Grout Western Railway , and was in due time delivered according to its direction at Ghrintchurch , consigned to Francis Buckland , Enq ( , a gentleman well known in tho University for his fondness for natural history . Ho opened tho hamper , and
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), March 27, 1852, page 19, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_27031852/page/19/
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