Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-11-29
STOKES NATURE FAKER
Works Off Hoax on Central
Park Scientists.
SENDS IN "SNOW GEESE"
Turn Out to Be Hybrid Puddle Ducks
Of Low Degree.
HOMER DAVENPORT IN IT, TOO
He Raised the "Poultry Mules"
Which Caused the Trouble in His
Backyard at Morristown.
HOMER DAVENPORT IN IT, TOO

NEW YORK. November 20-Three
strange geese have taken up their habi-
tation in the swan pond near the nth
street entrance of Central Park. and have
interested greatly the wise naturalists Of
this city. Snow geese is the park S
official name for them. In Webster 8
Dictionary snow geese are Chen hyper
borea. They are plentiful in the frozen
north and occasionally migrate to the
United States. Few have been captured,
as they are wary of traps.
The Central Park triplets are serene
birds with clipped wings. Evidently they
view their new habitat with good deal
of contentment. They have received their
official classification and the visits Of Prof
Miller of the American Museum of Natu-
raj History with hgh-bred nonchalance
and even seem to realize their own i'm
poftance. They do not affiliate with the
common teals or white swans or even the
stately black swans with their beautiful
crimson bills. The geese are squat, un-
lovely creatures, in reality. with wings
tipped with black. Nevertheless in natu-
raj history beauty is only skin deep, and
the bird specialist of Central Park, points
with pride to his snow geese
Park Proud of Them.
I'VE acquired them" says Mr.. Byrne
systematically, and then expatiates on their
rarity.
Wednesday Prof. Miller who assists
Prof Allen in the pathological depart
ment of the Museum Of Natural History.
visited the three geese. Prof Miller said !:
Those are snow geese, native to the
arctic. Sometimes they migrate as far
south as the Carolinas. They are un-
usual in captivity. and I have no idea how
they come to be in Central Park They
are not as rare as the Labrador duck
and the great aux but they are nice addi-
tioos to the Central Park collection. l
doubt If they will mate in captivity"
While the geese are engaging the seri-
Gus attention of scientists of varying de-
grees of position. W. E. D. Stokes. owner
Of the Ansonfa. is interested in the birds
snow" geese as the best hoax since
Brian G. Hughes fooled the cat show
judges with an alley cat. Mr. Stokes
AYERS that he put the Snow" geese in
the swan pond sixteen months ago. and
that. instead IF coming from the roman
from a prosaic poultry yard in New
Jersey. Mr.. Stokes slightingly refers to
the extraordinary birds as poultry
mules and says that they are the re-
goose and a wild duck from Winnipeg
They were Matched in the back yard Of
Homer Davenport. the cartoonist, in
Morristown.
Mr.. Stokes Confesses.
Mr.. Stokes said yesterday: Il put those
three crazy birds in Central Park myself
l wanted to see how much they would
interest the scientists, and so I stirred
them up by anonymous inquiries. In
the spring of 1906 1 stopped at Mr.. DAY.
exports in Morristown. 1 saw these
geese, and he told me about the mat
ing Of his Egyptian goose with a wild
duck which had been trapped in Win
nipeg and given to him. I asked him
to let me have these birds to turn loose
secretly in Central Park. And so I brought
them to New York in my motor car.
They were very troublesome, kissing and
squa viking in their gunnysacks, and every
one We passed seemed to look at my
motor car suspiciously. 1t was dark when
we reached New York. We ran the ma
chine into the nth street entrance, and
my chauffeur and l carried the hybrid
geese to the brink of the swan pond.
Then we went away l wrote a note to
Prof. Allen or to one of the other natural
lists and inquired gravely about the arctic
geese which were to be seen in Central
Park.
Il don't blame the scientists for be-
ing puzzled The union of a duck and
goose is somewhat unusual The So
called snow geese are poultry mules.
They can't breed