The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1905-12-07
Uncle Sans Big Boarding House
Martha L. Schneider. Washington. DC.

II you want to see Uncle Sans Star
boarders get in their work, you must
visit the Geological Park in the brow
OF the high hill in Rock Creek Park
one OF the most PICTURESQUE. and
beautiful parks in America.
Like Little Tommy Tucker who
sang for his supper, nearly all the
animals set up some kind OF a cry at
the approach OF the noon hour, and
when the men with the pals of dinner
come near there is an animal SYM
phony that only properly attuned
ear can appreciate. The cry of the
monkey is very human, and as there
are many kinds and rare specimens
OF apes, monkeys and balloons, when
they all set up dinner call, it is very
much like chorus of mixed voices of
their more highly developed relations.
One old baboon, whose cage was in
the middle of the long row of hungry,
crying simian tried to tell US all about
how he had to wait to be served, no
matter from which end of the row of
cages the keeper began to serve. He
chatted and snarled just like an angry
old man, only we had forgotten our
former knowledge of the language.
He was only consoled when the keeper
handed him big banana-for un-
like the table etiquette of the higher
animals their dessert came first.
1t is no small item to feed the
animals at the Zoo; but the tax payers
OF the district do not grumble at this
expense, for it brings too much en-
joyment to young and old, as the
daily and Sunday crowds to be found
there testify.
1t takes over $50 pounds of meat per
day tn run the Zoo. This is furnished
by contract at about four cents a
pound. 1t is good meat too, quite as
good as that which many of the
citizens eat. OF course that fed to
the lions has large portion of bone
in it, because this is better for them
than gulping down soft meat, instead
OF having to worry and snarl and chew
over it for half an hour till the bone
is picked clean.
The only animals who will eat foul
meat are the hyenas and the jackals,
but such is not provided for them.
Bread is the staple next to meat at
the Zoo table. They have quite a
bakery under one of the animal houses
where they turn out 12O pounds of
bread dap. In addition to this an
other hundred is gotten by contract
from baker at two cents pound.
The animals like their homemade
bread best-like most boarders-and
many are especially fond of corn
bread, or bread made from plain flour,
graham flour, with little bran and
mOlasses thrown in. This makes a
good, sweet bread, and the bears
think it is about the best thing that
ever happened in the bread line.
The big kitchen is full of tables and
cutting blocks where the meat and
bread and fish is cut up and portioned
out.
They use obout 100 pounds of fish
day, and most of all, this latter
must be fresh, for the water-folk are
very particular about this, and soon
die if stale fish is fed them.
There are big bins of flour, bran and
corn-meal for making mashes that
the ruminants like; boxes of canary
seed, rape seed, sunflower seeds-a
delicacy much liked by the simians.
There is corn and oats, white and
sweet potatoes, cabbages, beets,
turnips, parsnips, bananas, apples,
and when the dinner hour comes this
kitchen is very busy place.
The kangaroos are very fond of
bread, and to see kangaroo dancing
over his food is sight to make the
most melancholy forget their grief or
imagined woe.
Then comes the elk and deer, the
goats and bison, to say nothing of
Dunk, the elephant, all have to have
their hay and grass, their bran mash
and such delicacies. Dunk takes a
whole bale of hay, a dozen loaves of
bread, and as much grass and sugar
as he can get.
All the deer family have big ranges,
but they require to be fed also, and it
takes two big wagon loads of grass a
day for these animals.
The crowds at the Zoo have been
unusually large for the last few days
to see the little baby monkey, born on
the 22nd day of November. When a
week old it was about six inches long
with arms and legs apparently larger
than its body which seemed mainly
head with dear little white face.
Its mother Struggled it up very close
to her breast while she sat down
quietly to dine off her fruit and sweet
potatoes, from which she carefully
removed all skin, while at intervals
she partook of sunfower seed, also
carefully removing the shell. For
awhile the baby dined also and the
mother ate in peace, but baby was