The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-12-09
TRADE IN WILD ANIMALS
CIR. BARTELs IS THE HAGENBACK OF
THE UNITED STATES.
re Imports Many Animals and Has
temporary Quarters for Them
on n New Jersey Farm.
A E. McFarlane. IN New York CONNER

name OF their American brother, whose
receiving Office is in one OF the busiest
quarters Of downtown New York, and
whose beast farm is just outside of Jer-
sey City. is strangely unfamiliar In his
own land. One reads Of the arrival from
the East Indian seas of ''tramps' below
ing and asqueal from rudder chains to
b~owsprit-whose crews tell tales much
after the manner OF Kipllng's Bimi. Oc-
casionally. too. one meets a Noah's ark
procession vending it's suspicious way TO
an uptown geological park: but as to the
agency which links such incidents to-
gether there seems to be no great curios-
I.v. One almost never hears of Mr.. Bar
tells. whether it be that the nature of his
business gives him so much local publicity
that he desires no further noising abroad,
or that. being n very modest man as well
as the only representative OF his profess
sion in America. he can very well do with
out advertisement.
But the children in the neighborhood of
No. 1O Greenwich street know Of him.
They can tell within a thousand how
many monkeys there are in the upper
stories Of the New York offices, why the
captain of the last wild beast boat"
wasn't eaten. and whether the managers
valiso contains baby boa constructors or
merely rattlesnakes when he takes the
Il" for Bronx Park. And when, a week
or two ago, a box ank full of alligators
arrived just before 9 in the morning. an
unparalleled number of little boys were
unexampledly late for school.
And over by the New Jersey salt marshes
the small plank readers know a few
things, too. If they were to tell you the
whole truth about those zinc-rOofed build
inss inside the high board fence you'd
pretty near be scared to DEATH" m
Der the chicken thieves from Newark what
Qidn't know il was Bartels's and what
heard the peacocks cluckin' an climbed
over the fence Didn't Mr.. Thiele or Mr..
Hegfmann themselves tell about how the
tagEsrs scrapped near to KILN each other
for which was 10 have the first chanst at
them An l guess they'd ought to know.
Gee, there amt no one got over that fence
since! But jus supposin' you should some
time git walkin' in yer sleep an climb over
without knOwin'i F-f-fi'
ON THE JERSEY FARM.
IT is evident that the untrammeled mind
pictures the fOur-footed inhabitants Of the
New Jersey farm" as rowing loose together
in one terribly happy family The real
iy is not so a~larmingly idyllic, though as
winter quarters are still in process of
preparation the majority of the animals
oAC living 41AL Jul VI 0OOIS Il
wolves in very open crates by the fence,
bears are led to the majority of the trees.
and ia a clear space with a southern ex-
posture pessimistic dromedaries are stomp
ing about in hfgh-noSed loathing of this
wholly contemplate country.
Both Mr. Thieie and Mr.. Hegemann were
on hand, and they talked of their work
very courts Dusty and enlighteningly. 1t
Is rather a dull time in the business now.
Spring is the busy season. Then there are
- = - "a -
beast ships come in, and circuses and
zoos take stock again. Winter is always
more or less fatal to wild animals in cap
tivity. naturally those from the tropics in
particular; the most careful precautions
can do no more than lower the percentage
Of deaths And the park managers and
showmen will not replace their losses until
the mild weather comes. Even those cir
cuses which depend on their trained ami
mails as their greatest attraction prefer TO
begin their season with new and untried
beasts TO risking their money I'm replenish-
ing while the temperature is low. But if
autumn and winter are quiet seasons at the
receiving depots they are the times of the
greatest activity among the collecting
agents. They gather their old shikarris
and bearers and strike into the interior
OF Asia. Africa and the large East Indian
Islands, from Macao, Kurachi, Zanzibar,
Cape Coast Castle, Pretoria or Sarawak
They first visit those posts or stations
where they have picked up captures be-
fore; but for the most part have to maxi
sp tneir MINDS 10 months or tramping
through the wilderness. And their great
est difficulty is TO keep a transport organ-
lied for their return journey. The trouble
OF procuring beasts is nothing to that
OF getting them out of the country.
EFFECTS OF THE WAR.
But, for another reason, this is a very
dun time. explained Mr.. Thiele. The South
African war has cur of half the years
supply. The English army has been the
greatest dragnet ever drawn through a
good beast country The officers have
shot for trophies and the men for the pot,
ard between them they nave reduced this
years shipments from Durham and Cape
Town almost to nothing; m~enageries will
for a long time 10 come have TO pay double
The regular prices for gnus, zebras. spring
0ok. nylShau and other veldt animals.
ana speaking of the war in the Trans
Vaal.' continued Mr.. Bartels'S lieutenant,
come here and I'll show you something"
He led the way 70 a sunny corner where
a big red babOOn was bOredly pOking its
nose between the bars. ''This fellows one
O. the same tribe that gave a mighty bad
night TO two English officers who Were es-
Gaping from Pretoria. 1 saw the picture
or IL IN the London News or Graphic back
IN the spring. The poor Britishers were
up 10 their necks in the middle of a chilly
rver. and a lot of these boys were lined
up grinning at them from the shore. The
reading under the picture explained that
on toward morning. when the moon had
gone down. the officers manage TO dodge
them and escape, The poor wretchesi If
they'd let one good how out of them in
I've minutes they couldn't have seen a
cog face within u mile! And the news
paper people didn't seem 10 know that any
more than they did"
We walked into the low shed where the
dig eats were housed. I'VE hayen't many
on hand just now said NJ. Thiele. .'or
many OF anything for that matter. But
Nnat we have are about as ugly a lot as
you could get together. You see. the show
Elen don't like TO get beasts they can't
Worn the trained-animal game with, and
zoo managers like the quiet sort. too So
TIE fierce ones are left for US TO work with.
LOOK at that" lie made a haIf-menacing
gesture at a big Bengal tiger. and 1t fiuns
Itself against the bars with a snarling
MO the ring twice with him. And this
oiack panther Is almost as bad" 1t re-
treated 10 the darkest corner OF it's cage,
anu as II drew itself together its eyes
tufhed from red 10 two steady flames of
wonderful living opal. with him it's the
seen lamps are the danger signals. Wait
~ ne thinks I'm near enough. oh, you
Sah never do anything with these fellows.
never never.-What!" The panther's paw
Spehed up into talons a foot outside the
1srs and was sullenly withdrawn. Mr..
thieie' having proved his point. was no
.ohser interested. He strolied down to the
eHa OF the barracks. Beds In here?' Yes.