The New York herald., 1922-09-17
Three Historic Tortoises
One of Them the Only Creature Now Alive That
= Looked Upon the Great Napoleon

Museum Of Natural History. In Natural
osy.
II whales continued to grow indefinitely
there would be an ininite variety of
sizes as a matter Of fact they fall into
rather few categories and there arc a
not inconsiderable number OF whales Of
moderate bulk that are. as shown by
the condition Of their bones. indubitably
old, or at least adult. How long 1t
takes to reach a length of eighty feet.
with a known weight Of sixty tons, or
the maximum of 103 feet and an esti-
mated eighty or ninety tons. we know
not. b,u the chances arc that II takes
far less time than is supposed.
Whales seem to reach their maximum
size in the South Atlantic; examples of
the blue" or sulphur bottom whale
105 and 10S feet in length respectively.
have been reported from the whaling
station at South Georgia, and tho Brit
ish Museum party measured specimens
UP to 103 feet long.
There are some animals or groups of
animals. such as fishes and reptiles. that
seem to have no fixed limits Of life and
growth and thus appear TO present
great possibilities In the matter Of age.
Unfortunately there are few records on
which to base any trustworthy conolu-
sions and the most reliable Of these
show that under favorable conditions
some reptiles grow much moro rapidly
than Is generally supposed: the big
alligator in the New York Geological
Park grew from seven feet to twelve
feet In length in twelve years, though
at least half a century to attain such
an unusual size. almost the maximum
for an alligator.
The great size Of the tortoises referred
to. which reached weight Of At least
$50 pounds. probably even more. was
supposed to indicate q proportionately
great age; In fact. specimen that
died 1t the London Zoo was stated by
the papers to be 400 years old; but
another. brought from the Galapagos
by Mr.. Edmund Heller. In seven years
increased from 20 pounds to a96 pounds
and in less than ten years reached a
weight Of $50 pounds. Had not the
career of this tortoise unluckily been
cut short by kidney trouble. induced by
living for part OF the year In a moist
climate on damp ground. 1t might by
this time have attained tho record size
for tortoises.
II reptiles grow 30 rapidly nowadays
they probably did 80 in the past, and
Brontosaurus and his kindred may not
have taken a century or two to reach
their seventy or eighty feet OF length.
AZ has so often been supposed.
Here size. then, Is not . safe ori-
tcrion of the ago Of either mammals or
reptiles. and needs to be checked by q
knowledge Of the conditions under which
the animals have lived.
Fish stories and fkhy have become
familiar In (our) mouths as household
words" SO we are not surprised to md
among the 1T Is saids' and 1T Is re-
porteds" that fishes are credited with
the greatest span Of life ascribed 70
animals. pike and carp holding the places
OF honor with reputkd ages Of from 200
to 376 years. Oddly enough. most OF
these alleged records are reported from
French ponds at Chantilly. st. 0srnain
and Fontainebleau during the German
occupation OF 1870.
Records OF birds are rather disap-
pointing. for Just as the greatest crea-
ture Is apt to shrink before the applica-
tion of two foot rule, and fish when
weighed in the balance are often found
woefully wanting In avoirdupois, so the
ages Of biyds become wonderfully less
when their claims to longevity are In
vestigated. Parrots stand well toward
the head Of the list with numerous rec
ords on good authority Of various spe-
eighty years. Geese and swans too are
long lived. and include some possible
centenarians. though just as the census
returns show a part of womankind to
be much younger than It looks, 80 there
are few reliable records Of swans moro
than seventy years old.
There have been many attempts to
estimate the ages to which various ami
mails might attain under favorable cir
based on size. time required to reach
maturity. period Of incubation Gin birds)
Is borne out by the known facts. Tho
best Of them n possibly that applied to
mammals. that their normal life IL flve
times that required to reach maturity.
this being determined by tho union of
the epiphyses with their adjacent bones.
After all. man. when compared with
other animals. does not suffer much In
the matter Of longevity, and frequently
exceeds the threescore years and ten
popularity ascribed to him. though he
does not often reach the 100 years al
lotted in Genesis. In the Times for
November 8. 1871. Mr. Buck. discussing
the span OF life. cites from recent
death notices seven instances ranging
from 102 to lis years.
In preparing this article have be-
come more than ever impressed with
the truth of the adage that there IL
no truth In history" To begin with. I
cannot ind that there Is any such adage.
the nearest approach to It being the
remark (attributed to Plutarch). 80
very difficuit a matter II Is TO trace
and md out the truth OF anything by
history" a remark TO which / most
heartily subscribe.