Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1894-07-06
WILD ANIMALS TO RENT.
A NOVEL INDUSTRY WHICH HAS
ITS CENTRE IN NEW YORK
henageries at Summer Resorts sup
plied-Animals, Keepers and Pro-
visions Furnished.


the first thing about nItlrAl
history to direct geological garden.
lie can rent his Wild beasts an their
keepers IN New York at 81 much head
per month as IL they Were farm hands,
baseball players or actors. This Is the
great amman centre an now Is the
distributing season. More than 800
beasts, birds snl creeping things have
been shipped or are waiting to be
sent away to various small summer
resorts where they will be kept on
exhibition until fall when their own
ers will send for them and rent them
over again.
The dealers in small animals, birds
and snakes, rent some Of their stock,
but as rule they sell outright because
it hardly pays to rent beasts that are
only worth from s. to $50 piece aud
which cannot be told one from another
without tagging them like express
parcels. Ii costs almost as much to
rent menagerie complete as 1t does
to buy one outright, but the subse-
quent outlay is less, aud there is no
risk connected with the venture. The
owner of the animals as rule sup
plies the keepers and buys the pro-
vender for the animals. For this he
gets a lump sum that in the mslority
of cases would be sufficient to almost
purchase the animals. In other cases
the lessee furnishes the stten lants
aud food. But when the season is
over the expense to the amusement
man ceases. He informs the animal
man that he is through with the beasts,
and the latter sends for them
The renting system was not invented
by q menagerie man, but by some one
who supplied menageries with their
exhibits. Upon him the troubles OF
the duh season fell with particular
heaviness. He depends wholly upon
his sales for his profits, AMI does not
keep an animal any longer than is
positively necessary. When DR. Conk-
lin was in charge Of the Central Park
collection he frequently received con
siguments of wild animals from their
o"uoio hlSh ho Ol
the city paying only for their fool.
At the present time a large number
OF cages In the park are filled with
loaned animals. When the Doctor
started in business for himself he III lie
an arrangement with the Philadelphia
Zoo by which many Of his most eX.
penslve left over animals were wlntered
at the City of Brotherly Love. This
gave him an idea. If large cities were
willing to board wild animals for the
privilege of exhibiting them, why
shouldn't he find some one willing to
exhibit them at profit aud share that
profit with him? From this sug8es-
ton grew the Norfolk, (Va) scheme,
the parent of this winter rented SD VS.
in this country. He made su arrange
ment with the owner OF n park III that
city to exhibit number of cages OF
animals through the winter, the pro.
fits OF which were to be shared by
them. The venture was su ,cess, an
the exhibition grew IN slzs until
now it is one Of the most creditable OF
Ito hluu III tue Country,
The prices paid for animals and at.
teudsuts where the Doctor supplies
everything, including food, is from
from $500 to $500 for the summer
For this amount he furnishes from ten
to twenty cages Here Is an average
assortment
An elephant, two ocelots, panther,
two lions, tiger. camel, two bears,
monkeys, prairie dogs, sllgators.
snakes, an ostrich and cage or two
OF rare birds.
lu addition to these he mas also
sent out this year several sea lions,
llamas and armsdillos One great al
vantage OF the renting system Is that
If the animals die, their places are
supplied by the owner and the lessee
loses nothing by the bereaveme nt ex
cept the wear aud tear on his feelings,
supposlng him to be II kIni-heartel
man, fond of dumb creatures.
1t costs rather more to feed men.
agerle than most persons would sup
pose. The Doctor gave the following
figures the other day. Cost of food
per day; Ocelot. Six cents; panther,
thlrtyfve cents; lion, seventy five
cents tiger, seventy five cents; camel,
fifty cents; bears, twenty i've cents
each; wolves, thirty cents each; ele-
plants, two dollars sea lion, seventy
five cents; seal, twenty cents; mon.
keys aud apes, from ten to twenty
cents each snakes, twenty-five cants
a week, and birds, five cents day.
The deer are feed on grass cut i'll the
parks and their feed does not general
ly cost the owner anything.
AS to prices the Doctor gives the
following up-to-date list Elephant,
$500, tiger, $1,000; leopard, 500;
panther, $500; lion, $500 to $1,000;
bear, $25 to 800; wolves, $40; seal,
Sl5 tn So sea lion, S7j to 500; mon
keys, $40 to $500, apes, $50 to $3.50.
In the common varieties, deer, So to
800; llama, $500; alligators, 81
foot; ostrich, $500; prairie dogs, 81;
armadillo, Sl5; snakes, SIS to $3.50,
and parrots, 81 to so. No price is
quoted for camels, because at the pres
ent time there are no camels in the
market. Not loug ago the Mystic
Shriners of Providence, r. l., wanted
to give camel to the public park de-
partment of that city, and they sent
to DR.. Coknlin for specimen ship Of
the desert. He was unable to sen |
one. He cabled to Europe and fouul
that there were none to be had in the
open market, either in England or on
the continent, and as the presentation
WAS set down for last Friday there was
not time enough to send to Africa for