Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1890-01-17
BILL NYE ON ZOOLOGY.

IL Is llluttu u u'IShN w Wv
busy truck-driver and other brain
workers of New York on quiet Sab
bath afternoon, to stroll about our
great free menagerie and congress of
living wonders near the SiXty-fourth
street and Fifth avenue entrance TO
Central Park, writes Bill Nye in the
Chicago Herald Here the great waves
of civilization along the celebrated
avenue break upon the shores OF an
artificial wilderness. a few PAGES
from the wealth and refinement of
the great thoroughfare the great
gray rocks and spreading elms of the
primeval forest extend themselves,
as one may say, while the roar of the
Fifth avenue stage and the rattle OF
the silver harness and the trappings
of swollen prosperity ningle with the
sweet song of the paroket and the
low plunk of the hippopotamus.
Here the worn husbandman and
stock grower from Wall street may
be discovered on a quiet afternoon
engaged in keeping off the grass.
Here you may see the weary and ill
paid plumber, who has been engaged
all the week in stopping gas leaks
with bar soap and charging war
prices for it with freight added. Here
you will find the glad children I'M
proving their minds by studying the
works Of nature.
Last Sabbath | spent the afternoon
looking over, in cursory way, our
wealth of animals at the park, also
our plantigrades, quadrumana, mar
supials. and graminivorous mamma
liza. At first | strolled along the as
phaltum walk beneath the wide
spreading beach fagus sylrattca and
.laguS .te,ruginea), or listened to the
sough of the glorious elm (ulmus cam
peStriS, also ulmuS americana, also utniuS
Fulma), or the slippery elm of the
pharmacopGia. AS | strolled on,
watching the nimble squirrel (the
small rodent animal of the genus SCI
mus) was attracted by the distant
sound of the dracovalans calling to
the dewfiicker Cor eaticuS rulgarus), as
we say in scientific circles
Judging that the sound came from
the menagerie, moved off i'll that di-
rection. There found large NUM-
ber of people, mostly of the working
classes and trades-people, pursuing
the elephant, bOS Lucas, as we say, the
tiger being called the Dos edticuS or
Ca1nirora Tutuoso. We have the Ele-
phas AfricdnuS, both of which are
quadrupeds. This popularity they
retain even in captivity. We all
stood looking at the huge pachyderm
for some time, and l heard Baxter
street man say that if he couldn't fit
an elephant better than the man who
made his overalls for him he would
never try to sell another suit of clothes
as long as he lived. | think myself
that il the average Dos Indicus would
shorten his suspenders about four
feet and get his trousers pressed he
would call forth less adverse criti-
cisn.
When the elephant wakes up in the
morning he calls in some disinterested
person TO tell him which end to wear
in front during the day. No matter
how sober he goes 10 bed after eat
ing carload of hay, he is always
more or less confused in the morning
about which extremity TO use as a
PROV. Numerous entertaining true
anecdotes are told of the sagacity Of
the elephant, many Of which are lies
could tell few myself, but it is bad
enough, think, for school books TO
do that, without allowing such things
to creep into literature.
Next | went over to see the bear
cave or home of the Ursus Adritmus,
the white or polar bear the black
bear, or Ursus Ameicanus, and the
grizzly bear of the Rocky Mountains,
the iusus horibilis or bos bhedcus
The black bear of Central Park, in
this State, is Of darkish black color,
while the polar bear, or white bear,
is of an Opaque drab or soiled white
color, with dark trimmings. The
bear has pungent odor. which holds
its own against the sharp competi'
tion OF the entire aggregation of ami
mails now in the park, and has a good
working majority in this great con.
! gress of wild beasts. The bear is bet