Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1914-07-24
WORLDS WILD ANIMAL SUPPLY
More Jungle Beasts are Shipped from
Singapore Than Elsewhere.


Singapore Than Elsewhere.
More animals-wild ones, that is
are shipped from Singapore than from
any other port of the world.
Singapore is the collecting place fol
half Asia, and there are steamships
which actually specialize in this trade
and cater to it.
Elephants, panthers, leopards, deer
and monkeys, of many kinds. croco-
diles, snakes, in huge variety-al
these are shipped at Singapore. The
collectors buy wholesale from the Chi
nese agents, who are particularly good
about getting the creatures they want
Wild animals won't stand confine-
ment in the hold of ship. They are
all, or almost all, carried as deck car
go. This means lot Of extra risk, fol
a bad storm or sudden change OF
temperature may play havoc with
valuable consignment.
The most precious of all four-legged
passengers is a giraffe. A giraffe is
most difficult creature to catch alive
and, when caught, too often dies before
it reaches the coast. For 20 years-from
1880 to 1900-only three giraffes were
brought to Europe. During the present
century the supply has been larger ow-
ing to the opening up of East Africa
particularly of the Soudan.
A young giraffe, even before ship
ment, is worth at least G20O, and needs
two men to look after it, One that was
sent from Delagoa Bay to the London
Zoo was IL feet high, and was packed
in a huge box ten feet high, with ar
opening in the top for the lengthy crea-
ture to put it's head out. Something
like $50 worth of fodder was shipped
for it's consumption on the voyage, anC
when it was landed the box was found
to be too big to go through the railway
tunnels.
Every bridge and tunnel was meas
ured, then the box was reduced to eigh,
feet, telescoping Mr. Giraffe, but he ar
rived safely in London none the worse
Tor MS craHpeu Journey.
big elephant is an awkward ami
NAL to handle, especially to get aboard
ship. Elephants, as a rule, hate ships
When Barnum bought the famous
Jumbo for 1000 it took about week
to persuade him to enter the box in
which he was eventually shipped. jun
bo weighed seven tons, so when he ar
rived at Liverpool to be shipped tC
America he had to be fioated down the
river in a barge and hoisted aboard
ship with a derrick. The pontoons
would not stand his colossal weight
Another big zoo elephant Jingo, was
sold to an American in the year 1903
He suffered from both home and sea
sickness. All he would eat on ship
board was biscuits soaked in whisky.
On the sixth day out the poor crea-
ply broken-hearted.
Mandarin, one Of Barnum & Bailey s
finest elephants, went mad in mid
ocean aboard the Minneapolis and tried
to kill his keepers. 1t was decided that
he must be executed. A great hawser
was run around his neck and attached
to the donkey engine, and in this way
he was strangled. His body was drop
ped into the sea.
1t occasionally happens that animals
break loose aboard ship, and then
there is serious trouble. In March,
1905, the steamer Neidenfels, with a
storm in the middle of the Indian
ocean. A partition separating three
leopards from an elephant and her cali
was broken down, and one of the leop-
ards put out paw and seized carrot
which the elephant calf was eating.
Instantly the mother elephant struck
the leopard with her trunk, knocking
it several feet away. Keepers heard the
scream of the leopard, and rushed ur
to find all three leopards attacking the
elephant. Two were at last beaten off;
one was killed outright, the poor moth
er elephant was so shockingly mauled
that she died two days later. Fortu-
nately the calf was unhurt.
Pythons are packed in sacks-three
in each sack Four sacks go into box
and the lid is nailed down. The snakes
travel without water or food and with
very little air. An early autumn frost
cost the late Carl Hagenbeck more
than $4,000. 1t killed a whole consign-
ment of valuable eastern snakes when
they were within two days Of their
destination-New York Press.