San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1894-08-08
A CURIOUS COMBINE.
Dealers in Wild Animals Form a
Trust.
BY the New Arrangement All Competition
Among Circus SuppIiers VIII BE
Avolded-ReGUlar Prices
on Stock.


Old but, as it includes every importer
of international reputation. it will not
have any opposition to overcome, and
practically starts ont on its career with
all the stability and assurance of a vet
eran. In order to control the market
and establish values it was only neces-
sary to secure the cooperation of five
firms two in Germany, two in England
and one in New York. The four first
named-Hagenbeck, of Hamburg;
Reiche, of Olfeld; Jamrach, of London,
and Cross, of Liverpool-have enjoyed
the benefits of a species of "modus
vivendi" for years, though this has not
| prevented considerable competition for
| the American trade. which has varied
to a remarkable extent during the last
| quarter of a century. When Barnum
was in his prime he ignored these old
fashioned houses, and when he heard
of anything out of the ordinary sent
his own representative after it, and
| bought it regardless of price. Such en-
| terprise, gratifying as it often was to
adventures and pioneers, was a stand
ing menace to the maintenance of
prices, or rather profits. and more than
| once, according to the st. Louis Globe
Democrat, the action of the prince of
humbugs disturbed the wild animal
market very seriously. Since the great
showman's death, and indeed, for some
years prior to it, Conkling, of New
York, has practic ally controlled the
heavy American trade, and the friendly
relations just esta bills he'd between him
and his four European competitors,
make the circle complete, and corner
the wild animal market. The firms
named are older than the hills, the
business havi ng descended from father
to son. Formerly rival expeditions
were sent out by the different houses,
and when anyone had a great prize to
offer he wired or wrote to all four
houses, relying on the competition to
keep upprices. Now all this is changed,
and there is no more bidding, one
against the other.
An additional economy has been eff
feeted whereby the expeditions will
not clash, and the saving of expense
will be very great. There are now
three animal hunting parties out in
Africa, but their territory is well de-
fined and will not overlap in any par
ticular. One party, under the leader
ship of Herr MenZes, a veteran lion
| hunter, has been in the southern Sec
ton of the Soudan all spring, and is ex-
pected back at Hamburg in the near
future. The men have travelled over
| one thousand miles, and. although
there is no regular mail service in the
section they are covering. word has
been received that nearly 100000
worth of forest kings will be brought
back by them. Very little has been
paid for the lions and other animals.
ammunition, cast-away arms, clothing
| and jewelry forming the principal sub
stitutes for currency. But the eXpedi-
ton has involved the cost Of about SEQ,
600, and unless times brighten the
| profit on the venture VIII not be enUr-
| nous. The animals will be distributed
| among the members of the trust. An
other expedition is expected back al
most at once from South Africa. 1t
was fitted out by Reichc and is to re-
?
| zebras, monkeys and Ostriches. The
| salable value of the consignment is also
estimated at 100000, and the diStribu-
| ton will be made in similar manner.
According to the new plan adopted
| by the trust, all competition will be
| avoided. All negotiations by a buyer
must be conducted with one house, and
if anything wanted is not on hand the
fact will be telegraphed to the other
members of the trust and profits duly
adjusted. The only difficulty in the
way of keeping up prices beyond fig
ures established by the law of supply
and demand is the cost of help. A lion
| or an elephant cannot be kept in con-
| dition, in Europe at any rate, on less
| than one dollar day, SO that if one is
| kept in stock for six months the pros
pective profit has been eaten up, using
| the expression in its most literal sense.
| The prices at which the European end
| of the syndicate are said to propose
| holding their stock are about as fol-
lows: Elephants, 81, 600 to 5000, ac-
| cording to the size and condition of
tusls; hippopotami, rhinoceri and gil
RATES., about the latter figure; lions of
| full growth about the same; leOpards
| and panthers. $3.50 to $500; bears, graded
from $50 to $500; snakes. from $40 to
$500, and tapirs at about s., 600 The
highest price paid for a captive of the
wild order last year was SIP, 500, which
was given for a white ounce, captured
in the Ural mountains. 1t proved
poor investment, as its keepers could not
provide sufficiently low temperature,
and it died within a few weeks. An
equally large sum is said to be forth
coming for another Russian or Siberian
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