Acta 1999 - vstavljene slike - Devon Karst Research Society

Transcription

ACTA CARSOLOGICA
28/1
15
229-304
LJUBLJANA 1999
COBISS: 1.01
PROTEUS FOR SALE AND FOR SCIENCE
IN THE 19TH CENTURY
MOÊRIL V 19. STOLETJU ZA PRODAJO IN ZA ZNANOST
TREVOR R. SHAW 1
1
The Old Rectory, Shoscombe, BATH BA2 8NB, UNITED KINGDOM
Prejeto / received: 19. 4. 1999
229
Acta carsologica, 28/1 (1999)
UDK: 001.8"18":597.9(497.4)
Izvle~ek
Trevor R. Shaw: Mo~eril v 19. stoletju za prodajo in za znanost
Okoli leta 1800 je bil mo~eril, jamska dvoæivka, prvi~ opisan 1768 in morda upodobljen æe v 11. stoletju,
mnogim u~enjakom æe znan. Po 1814, ko je bilo mo~ to æival najti æe marsikje, so jo prodajali na trgih, v
gostilnah v Postojni in v~asih tudi pred tamkaj{njo jamo; tudi v vodnikih je bila omenjena ta moænost. V
prispevku je vse to dokumentirano in tudi raziskano, kaj se je s temi æivalmi dogajalo. Nekatere so bile podarjene
æivalskim vrtovom, druge so obdræali naravoslovci-amaterji, podarjene so bile laboratorijem, nekaj pa so jih
celo pojedli. En primerek je bil ponujen tudi Darwinu.
Klju~ne besede: Proteus anguinus, jama, zgodovina, æivalski vrt, Slovenija.
UDC: 001.8"18":597.9(497.4)
Abstract
Trevor R. Shaw: Proteus for sale and for science in the 19th Century
The cave-dwelling amphibian Proteus, first described in 1768, and possibly pictured as early as the 11th century,
was by 1800 known to many scholars. From 1814 when the animals were more widely found, they were sold
in markets, at inns in Postojna and sometimes outside the cave there; and guidebooks drew attention to their
availability. The paper documents all this and examines what happened to the animals. Some were given to
zoos; others were kept by amateur naturalists; some went to laboratories; and a few were eaten. One was
offered to Darwin.
Key words: Proteus anguinus, cave, history, zoo, Slovenia.
230
INTRODUCTION
Quite apart from its interest from a zoological and evolutionary point of view, Proteus anguinus
has become well known for other reasons: it was the first cavernicole to be formally described (by
J.N. Laurenti1 in 1768); it is one of the symbols of the town and cave of Postojna, used for example
on the registration plates of road vehicles; and the recently discovered black variety featured on the
cover of the popular Slovene magazine Mladina containing an article 2 on the risk of cave animals
being sold commercially.
Now a heavily protected species, Proteus in the 19th century was offered for sale to travellers
and was sometimes eaten. Those bought in Postojna or at the cave were often taken home just as
curiosities, but some were reported upon by naturalists and others were presented to zoos. All these
aspects of purchased Proteus are examined in this paper.
Before its zoological description and naming by Laurenti there had been two descriptions of the
animal, both written by people who had not themselves seen it.
Fig. 1: Two supposed Proteus carved in a stone well-head of the 10th or 11th century, once near San
Nicolò church at the Lido, Venezia4A, and now in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Wien (Inv. No.
6825). Photograph reproduced by permission of the Director.
Sl. 1: Dva domnevna mo~erila, vklesana v venec vodnjaka iz 10. ali 11. stoletja, nekdaj blizu cerkve
Sv. Nikolaja na Lidu, Benetke4A in zdaj v “Kunsthistorisches Museum” na Dunaju (Inv. {t. 6825).
Fotografija ponatisnjena z dovoljenjem direktorja.
231
In 1689 Valvasor3 described what must have been a Proteus found in the intermittent karst
spring Lintvern near Vrhnika. His information came from the postmaster who told him about “a
supposed dragon a small span ∞c.20 cm≥ long.” Then Steinberg4 recorded that
In 1751, at a time of very great flow ∞from the Malni springs near Planina≥, Primus
Sicherle ∞Primoæ Ziherl≥ caught five unknown fish in the Unica river, one span ∞c. 23 cm≥ in
length, with snow-white skin and long tails. They each had four feet ... and they cried and
wailed as they were put from the net into the boat.
Such curious creatures, which can be seen at karst springs when they come to the surface in
flood conditions, would have been known to country people long before they came to the attention
of scholars such as these. Indeed confirmation of this may exist in a carving on an ancient stone
well-head from Venezia (Fig. 1) which has been thought to represent Proteus5. Dating from the 10th
or 11th century, this was formerly near the church of San Nicolò on the island of Lido and is now in
the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Wien.
The specimen seen and described by Laurenti1 in 1768 came from the springs at StiËna some
40 km south-east of Ljubljana, having been brought from there to the Idrija mine doctor G.A. Scopoli.
Laurenti’s description was short but sufficient (only 12 lines of print) and it was accompanied by
the now classic first illustration of Proteus (Fig. 2). Mistakenly, he gave Cerkni{ko jezero as its
location, perhaps confused by the fact that Ziherl’s find in 1751 was published in a book about that
lake. The Cerknica location was to be repeated several times in the 19th century but Proteus has
never been found there. The first specimens inside a cave were discovered in 1797 by Josef Jer{inoviË
von Löwengreif in the Pivka river at »rna jama (then known as Magdalena Grotte).
Their true abundance there was not realised until 1814 when Hohenwart also found them there.
It was from then on that enough Proteus could be caught to be sold commercially.
One more formal description will be mentioned here, that by George Shaw6 in 1802. It is less
important than Laurenti’s, not being the first, but it is much more detailed. Four pages are devoted
to the animal, under the name Anguine Siren as well as Proteus anguinus and it is illustrated by a
reversed and ’cleaned up’ version (Fig. 3) of Laurenti’s picture. Shaw’s description was sometimes
cited as if it were the original, e.g. by the Zoological Society of London in published lists86 of its
animals.
Fig. 2: The first picture of Proteus, published with Laurenti’s description in 17681.
Sl. 2: Prva slika mo~erila, objavljena z Laurenti-jevim opisom l. 17681 .
232
Fig. 3: Proteus in Shaw’s book of 18026, copied from the 1768 picture but reversed.
Sl. 3: Slika mo~erila iz 18026 , ponatisnjena v Shawovi knjigi, levo-desno obrnjena preslikava iz
l. 1768.
After a brief discussion of the way in which Proteus was given to scientists, museums and
others in the first few years after its discovery, this paper will examine the various ways in which it
was “used” commercially - for sale as a curiosity and as food, and for exhibition as a form of
publicity for Postojnska jama with which it rapidly became associated.
The role of guidebooks in alerting travellers to the existence of this strange animal, and telling
them where they could be bought and how they should best be transported, is also considered.
Next will come accounts written by the travellers themselves of how they saw Proteus and how
and where specimens were offered to them and sometimes purchased.
In many cases no more is heard of these particular specimens but some can be traced to the
homes of naturalists where they were closely observed and reported on. Often these reports appeared
in such improbable-sounding journals as Hardwicke’s Science-Gossip, The Medical Times & Gazette
and even The Monthly Packet of Evening Readings for members of the English Church, well outside
the mainstream zoological literature. For this reason they will be quoted extensively, the longer
accounts being reprinted as appendices so as to avoid overburdening the text and impeding its main
themes. It is not the intention to reprint material that is primarily anatomical or physiological in
content, but only to cite and perhaps summarize it if it is referred to in other quotations.
Some specimens were given by the purchasers to institutions such as universities and zoos.
These, too, are documented so far as possible, with brief notes on the donors. In one particularly
interesting case a specimen was offered to Charles Darwin who had already discussed Proteus in
The Origin of Species.
Thus this paper has two separate purposes:
a) to examine the sale and use of Proteus in the 19th century;
b) to make available the little-known reports of naturalists who kept Proteus and observed them.
The out-of-the-way nature of some of the sources has resulted in mainly English publications
coming to the attention of the author. This must mean that there is scope for historians in other
countries to make similar studies and perhaps to uncover important new evidence on Proteus
behaviour and longevity in captivity.
233
PROTEUS USED FOR . . .
For Gifts
Especially in the early days when Proteus was a newly discovered as well as a very strange
animal, many specimens were sent away from Slovenia as gifts to interested scientists and influential
people.
Scopoli, already mentioned as having supplied the specimen that Laurenti described, sent
preserved specimens to Carl Schreibers (1775-1852), Director of the Naturhistorisches Museum in
Wien, who passed some on to other similar institutions. Later, live Proteus were sent there too.
Baron Sigismund ∞Æiga≥ Zois (1747-1819), who himself studied the animal, also sent specimens to
Schreibers and elsewhere abroad, as did a 19th century director of the Ljubljana Museum, Heinrich
Freyer (1802-1866). It was Zois who supplied Archduke Johann with the ones he kept in his aquarium
in Wien7 .
Proteus has been used as a high status gift in more recent times too, as an animal specially
associated with Slovenia. Thus in the 1960s about five from Planinska jama were given by President
Tito to Emperor Hirohito of Japan, himself a biologist8.
For Sale
Proteus was offered for sale at least as early as 1816. It was in August of that year that Pietro
Configliachi and Mauro Rusconi had looked for them in »rna jama and wrote in their Italian
monograph:
... the people of Adelsberg catch Proteus, which they call “white fish”, ∞in »rna jama≥
and they keep them alive in pots to sell later to travellers who come to Carniola and are
interested in such things, or else to take to the market at Trieste where they sell quite cheaply,
for two or three lire each.10
This market was renowned for the variety of fish etc. that it sold. Thus on 2 March 1816 the
botanists D. H. Hoppe11 and C. F. Hornschuch
went ... to visit the fish-market of Trieste ... with a view of purchasing shells. It afforded
many marine animals and various kinds of fish, most of them unknown to us12.’
Sale of Proteus at Trieste was made known in English in 1820 when W. A. Cadell published his
account of visiting Postojnska jama in November 1817. Speaking of Proteus, he wrote “The country
people sometimes bring them alive to Trieste, and sell them as objects of curiosity”9. News of it was
further spread when Configliachi and Rusconi’s statement was reprinted in the several editions of
the popular book The Caves of the Earth, first published in 184713.
For Eating
Although Cadell9 had said that Proteus were sold in Trieste “as objects of curiosity”, their
availability in a fish market suggests that there at least they were sometimes sold as food.
The first documented occasion of Proteus eating was in 1834, as reported by Hohenwart14 a few
years later. In that year the people of Potiskavec in Dobrepolje (Dolenjska) were cleaning out the
cave where they obtained their drinking water (Potiskav{ka jama, from which the villagers still get
their water in times of drought 15). Along with mud and stones they found several Proteus which
234
they put aside to return afterwards. They themselves did not plan to eat the animals which were
probably regarded as poisonous like some similar creatures; but a group of gypsies fried them and
ate them without any ill effect.
Another cave-dwelling animal - the crayfish - was eaten even before 1834. The English geologist
Roderick Impey Murchison (1792-1871), describing his visit to Postojnska jama on 17 August
1829, wrote in his unpublished field notebook:
returning to the other branch we followed the course of the river for 1/4 of a Mile catching
crayfish which we have just eaten for supper - these creatures come to the lights of the guides.16
This edible crayfish would have been the surface species Ostacus ostacus which was common
also in the underground Pivka, where the limestone gravel at Tartarus in Postojnska jama provided
a good habitat. The animals died out from disease late in the 19th century but were reintroduced
from USA and were still taken in »rna jama and Pivka jama as late as the 1960s17.
Returning again to Proteus, it is said to have been eaten more recently too. There is a story that
Ljudevit Ku{Ëer (1891-1944), biologist and malacologist, ate some fried. It is said also that Egon
Pretner (1896-1982) once had the opportunity to buy Proteus at a market in Pula or Pazin, and
regretted later that he had not done so18. A guide at Postojnska jama stated that some time about
1990 an Italian visitor to the cave enquired where he could find cooked Proteus, having been told
that there was somewhere where they would be served “under the counter”. He may have been the
victim of a hoax, or it may have been true19, but in either case such tales are worth recording.
In Guidebooks
Historical facts on the sale of Proteus are interesting now but they will not have had any influence
on travellers and visitors at the time. Quite different is this statement in Murray’s Handbook for
Travellers in Southern Germany... (Fig. 4):
Specimens of the Proteus may generally be purchased at the inn at Adelsberg. The only
means of preserving it is by keeping it in water, which should be taken from a river, and
should be repeatedly changed, protecting it from the light, which is very hurtful to it, and
maintaining an equal temperature about it.
It appeared in the first edition of this guide20 in 1837 and was repeated in every edition up to and
including the 14th, published in 1881. “The inn” referred to would have been the Osteria Grande
until the 1840s. Then from 1850 it would have been the Zur Ungarische Krone (Zur Goldenen
Fig. 4: Where to buy your Proteus. The
guidebook entry from 183720 to 1881.
Sl. 4: Kje si lahko kupite svojega mo~erila.
Citat iz vodnikov od 183720 do 1881.
235
Krone from 1867) which was at one time the place where visitors registered and paid for going into
the cave.
From the second (1840) edition 21 until 1858 there was also the sentence:
Several Protei are kept in a stream, within the cavern, to show to strangers, but they are
not found in it nor do they breed here.”
In 189022 there was no longer any mention of Proteus being for sale but just:
Specimens of the Proteus may generally be seen at Adelsberg.
The even more widely read Baedeker guides, published in several languages for this region
from 1868, never referred to the animals being sold, but only:
Specimens are usually exhibited to visitors to the Adelsberg caverns. (186823, 1871)
... living specimens of which are usually shown to visitors... (187324)
living specimens may generally be seen at Adelsberg. (188825, 1891, 1895)
Somewhat similar guidance was offered in a popular book, The Subterranean World (Fig 5), in
many editions in at least three languages between 1863 and 1881:
The best method for transporting the Proteus is now perfectly understood, and living
specimens have been conveyed as far as Russia, Hungary, and Scotland. All that they need is
a frequent supply of fresh water, and a careful removal of all light. Their food need cause no
trouble, as the water contains all they require. It is recommended to lay a piece of stalactite
from their native grotto in the vase in which they are transported. When resting or sleeping,
they then coil themselves round the stone, as if tenderly embracing it. In this manner they
have already been kept above five years out of their caverns. The guides to the Grotto of
Adelsberg have always got a supply on hand, and sell them for about two florins a-piece.26
That travellers not only read but acted upon the Murray’s statements is clear from their repeated
references to using river water and changing it frequently during their journey home.
As would be expected, the constant trade in live Proteus reduced their numbers but it is unusual
to find, in a century that was far from conservation-conscious, a statement like this in the same book
as early as 1863:
... as hundreds of specimens have since found their way to the cabinets of naturalists, to
be observed, dissected, or bottled up in spirits, their number has very much decreased, and
Fig. 5: Proteus in The
Subterranean World 26 of
1871 which again says
that the animals can be
bought.
Sl. 5: Mo~eril v knjigi The
Subterranean World 26 iz
1871, ki tudi navaja, da je
æival mogo~e kupiti.
236
the time is perhaps not far distant when they will be entirely extirpated in the grotto, where
from time immemorial they had enjoyed an undisturbed security. 27
For Sale at the Annual Grottenfest
Thus Proteus were usually sold at the inn in Postojna or, as the travellers’ reports will show, by
the guides at the cave.
But in 1881 certainly, and probably in other years also, there was a stall selling them outside the
cave on the day of the annual Grottenfest (Fig. 6) held on the Monday after Pentecost (Whit Monday),
when the cave was specially illuminated and excursion trains brought extra visitors from near and
far. In 1881 the Grottenfest was on 6 June and was described in a little book written by the Friulian
poet Domenico Pancini:
On the road not far from the cave are people selling pieces of stalactite of various kinds
and also little fishes in flasks of water that look a bit like lampreys, winged at the head and
not beautiful to look at because, without any scales, they have the colour of living flesh and,
in addition, they are without eyes. They live in the water which flows through the cave.28
As Promotional Gifts by the Cave Management
All the selling of Proteus discussed so far, and to be described by individual visitors in the next
section, seems to have been a matter of private enterprise by the guides, by the inn-keepers and by
those who supplied the animals. This is implied in all the accounts and is further supported by the
absence, with one exception, of any reference in the archives of Postojnska jama to money received
from the sale of Proteus. The one exception is a list of receipts29 dated 12 September 1844, where
the sum of four florins is recorded against four “Protheus”.
The archives also show that some specimens of “Grottenolm (proteus anguineus)” were sent to
the World International Exhibition at Wien in 187329. Stalagmites were sent also, as they had been
to the Paris International Exhibition of 1867, as a form of eye-catching publicity which was to
increase later in the century, but no other records of Proteus being used in this way have been
traced.
The Wien specimens certainly aroused interest, though, for requests for others29 were made
afterwards from Braunschweig and from the Russian consulate in Trieste. Whether these requests
were met is not known.
PROTEUS PURCHASED OR SEEN BY TRAVELLERS
As will be seen, at least eleven travellers visiting Postojna between 1816 and 1900 described
how they were offered or bought or wanted to buy live Proteus, and other records show that many
more were purchased. The next section contains reports and discussions about Proteus in captivity;
and the final section of the paper deals with specimens bought and presented to zoos and other
institutions. Many of the purchases appear in only one of the sections, and in any case the emphasis
in each is different - on the sale (here), on naturalists’ observations (next) and on provision for
public or academic study (last).
237
Fig. 6: A handbill advertising the Grottenfest at Pentecost in 1853. There were stalls selling Proteus
outside Postojnska jama during the Grottenfest, at least in later years.
Sl. 6: Letak za binko{tno Jamsko veselico iz 1853. Med veselico so pred vhodom v Postojnsko jamo,
vsaj v zadnjih letih, postavili stojnice, kjer so prodajali mo~erile.
238
The visitors’ accounts are normally quoted in their own words (or in translation) for they are
source materials not readily available elsewhere. The quotations are restricted to those parts
concerning Proteus; other aspects of the same travellers’ visits will be studied in a separate
publication. Wherever possible the entry in the cave visitors’ book is reproduced in facsimile, both
as evidence of the date and in many cases to provide a specimen of the travellers’ handwriting
(though sometimes one of a party wrote all their names).
Pietro Configliachi and Mauro Rusconi in 1816
Configliachi (1777-1844) and Rusconi (1776-1849) (Fig. 6A) of the University of Pavia, already
referred to in connection with the Trieste fish market, seem to have been the first visitors to record
their attempts to obtain Proteus specimens, only two years after these had first been actively collected
in »rna jama:
On the 2d of August 1816, the authors, attended by three peasants, furnished with torches,
and with a small net in the shape of a bag, fixed to the end of a staff, prepared to enter this
cavern ∞»rna jama≥. At 5 o’clock A.M., the temperature of the external air at the mouth of
the cavern was 9°C. As they descended, they passed through spacious apartments, some of
them clothed with stalactites and calc-spar, which reflected with great brilliancy the light of
the torches, and exhibited a magnificent appearance. Others appeared like pits of mud, which
rendered the walking very inconvenient. At length they reached a stagnant pond, about 30
feet ∞10 m≥ broad, and at a depth below the surface of about 170 toises ∞137 m≥. In this pond
they saw one proteus, but did not succeed in taking him; and from the water being turbid, and
in too great quantity, in consequence of heavy rains the day before, they were obliged to
reascend, after having been two hours in the cavern, without taking a single proteus. The
temperature of the water in this pond was 12°C and that of the air of the cavern was stationary
at 121/2°C while the thermometer, left in free air at the mouth of the cavern, had risen from 9
to 14 1/2°C10
Then comes the statement, already quoted,
that the peasants “catch Proteus ... to sell later to
travellers”, suggesting that they bought their own
specimens at Postojna.
Fig. 6A: A self-portrait of Mauro Rusconi drawn
about 184829A.
Sl. 6A: Avtoportret Maura Rusconija, okrog leta
184829A.
239
William Archibald Cadell in 1817 and 1818
The next mention of Proteus by a visitor to the cave at Postojna was that by W.A. Cadell (17751855), an English mathematician and traveller and Fellow of the Royal Society30. He had visited
Postojna in November 1817 but saw none there. In the following year, 400 km from Postojna:
I saw one of these animals alive at Pavia, it was kept in a bucket of water in a dark place,
and had been brought from the Czirknitz lake.9
Being at Pavia, this specimen no doubt belonged to Configliachi and Rusconi who had probably
bought it at Postojna.
John Russell in 1822
John Russell (c. 1795-1846), a Scottish lawyer31, visited Postojnska jama on 11 March 182232
(Fig. 7):
...Some living specimens, which I saw in the possession of a peasant in Adelsberg,
where about eight inches ∞20 cm≥ long; but they have been found of twice that length. ...They
appear most frequently in certain small streams which issue from the mountain at Sittich
∞StiËna≥, in the neighbourhood of Laybach, being hurried forth from the caverns within by
the force of the stream, when the internal reservoirs have been swollen by heavy rains, or a
long continued thaw. Those which I saw had been taken in the small subterranean lake which
terminates the Magdalene grotto ∞»rna jama≥, not far from that of Adelsberg.33
Russell was a precise observer and he was well informed about where the animal occurred. His
account contains a detailed description of the behaviour of Proteus as well as its appearance; and it
is reprinted as Appendix I.
Fig. 7 : The visitors’ book32 entry for Russell’s visit to Postojnska jama on 11 March 1822.
Sl. 7: Russellov vpis v knjigi obiskovalcev32 Postojnske jame 11.marca 1822.
Charles Babbage in 1828
Charles Babbage (1792-1871) (Fig. 8), professor at Cambridge and a Fellow of the Royal Society,
is best known for inventing a mechanical computing machine30. He visited the cave on 17 July
1828 32 (Fig. 9):
Occasionally I met, in the course of my travels, with various things which, though not
connected with my own pursuits, might yet be highly interesting to others. If the cost suited
my purse, and the subject was easily carried, or the specimen of importance, I have in many
instances purchased them. Such was the case with respect to that curious creature the proteus
anguineus, a creature living only in the waters of dark caverns, which has eyes, but the eylids
cannot open.
240
When I visited the caves of Adelsburg,
in Styria, I inquired whether any of these
singular creatures could be procured. I
purchased all I could get, being six in number.
I conveyed them in large bottles full of river
water, which I changed every night. During
the greater part of their journey the bottles
were placed in large leathern bags lashed to
the barouche seat of my calash.
The first of these pets died at Vienna, and
another at Prague. After three months, two
only survived, and reached Berlin, where they
also died - I fear from my servant having
supplied them with water from a well instead
of from a river.
At night they were usually placed in a
large wash-hand basin of water, covered over
with a napkin.
Fig. 8: Charles Babbage in 1832.
They were very excitable under the action Sl. 8: Charles Babbage 1832.
of light. On several occasions when I have
visited them at night with a candle, one or
more have jumped out of their watery home.
These rare animals were matters of great interest to many naturalists whom I visited in
my rambles, and procured for me several very agreeable acquaintances. 34
Fig. 9: The visitors’ book entry for Babbage’s visit on 17 July 1828.
Sl. 9: Babbageov vpis v knjigi obiskovalcev 17. julija 1828.
An American Priest in 1833
An unidentified “American clergyman” wrote that in 1833
One of the guides brought for sale four very extraordinary animals, in shape between a
lizard and an eel, transparently white, with a tinge of rose-colour about their heads. They
were of the species called the Proteus anguillaris, and were very active in the wide-mouthed
bottle of water in which he brought them. I saw some at Trieste, which had been kept in that
way for several months, by changing the water every day, and giving them occasionally a
few crumbs of bread. The guide said he had taken them from the water in the grotto; but I
have been since informed that they are found in another grotto, not far distant, where there is
241
also a river; and Count de Tournes, the Austrian delegate at Venice, told me that he had
found them on his estate at Carniola, in a fountain which from that circumstance is supposed
to have connexion with one of these grottoes. I understand that they are found nowhere else
in Europe.35
William John Hamilton and Hugh Edwin Strickland in 1835
Hamilton (1805-1867) (Fig. 10) and Strickland (1811-1853) Fig. 11)30 were English geologists
who visited both Postojnska jama and »rna jama on 25 August 1835 and overnight into 26 August32
(Fig. 12). The two men’s accounts complement each other, so both are printed here.
First Hamilton’s:
The habitat of this curious animal is an extensive cave called La Maddalena, three miles
from Adelsberg; we were so anxious however to endeavour at least, to obtain one of these
animals, or to see its usual abode, that although it was past nine when we came out of the
Adelsberg grotto, we determined, after obtaining some refreshments at the inn, to start in the
middle of the night to see it. ...
The entrance to it is down one of the
funnel-shaped hollows to which I have
already alluded. At the bottom of the cave
we found a slow and sluggish river, which
was said to be the same which we had left
in the other; but the continued rains had
made the water so muddy that our fishing
expectations were disappointed. It was an
hour after midnight before we returned from
the grotto...36
Fig. 10: William James Hamilton. Reproduced
with permission from the archives of the
Geological Society of London (P. 53/19).
Sl. 10: William James Hamilton. Reproducirano
z dovoljenjem arhiva Geolo{kega dru{tva v
Londonu (P. 53/19).
Fig. 11: Hugh Edwin Strickland in 183737.
Sl. 11: Hugh Edwin Strickland 183737 .
242
Fig. 12: The visitors’ book entry for the visit by Hamilton and Strickland on 25 August 1835.
Sl. 12: Hamilton in Strickland, podpisana v knjigi obiskovalcev 25. avgusta 1835.
Strickland wrote, about the same visit:
As we had a great deal to do on the morrow, we resolved on visiting the cave of Maddalena
the same night, much to the astonishment of our landlady ... This cavern is terminated by a
stream of water, said to be the same as the Pinka, ∞sic≥which is swallowed up in the other
cave. It is in the stream that the singular reptile Proteus anguinus is found; when the water is
clear they are not unfrequently seen, but the stream was so muddy that none were visible,
and after groping about with my scoop-net for some time, I was obliged to give up the pursuit.
On our return to Adelsberg I procured one from the guide, who had three or four alive. They
may be kept for a year or two, and require no food, though they will occasionally eat a worm.
The only precaution neccessary is to change the water often, and keep them from the light,
which always renders them uneasy. Had I been on my way home I would have tried to keep
my specimen alive, but situate as I was, my only alternative was to put my Proteus in spirits.
The Maddalena cave runs in the line of dip of the strata, and is entered from the top by a
funnel-shaped cavity 37
Fig. 13: Strickland’s 1835 sketch of »rna jama in which stylized Proteus are shown in the
underground river.
Sl. 13: Stricklandova skica ^rne jame iz 1835, kjer so vidni stilizirani mo~erili v podzemski reki.
243
His interest, evinced in the last sentence, in the relation between the cave and the bedding resulted
in his making the sketch reproduced here as Fig. 13. Upon a close look it will be seen that the
creatures swimming downstream in the underground river are sketched as Proteus, with the gills
visible behind the head.
Edmund Spencer in 1836
Edmund Spencer was an English captain, long resident in Germany, a historian and a traveller.
He was at Postojnska jama on 14 April 183632 (Fig. 14) and wrote as follows about Proteus. The
anatomical description is omitted but everything about their behaviour remains:
In a state of freedom it is voracious, feeding on small fish and insects, particularly the
helix therma; but, once a captive, it instantly and steadily refuses all nourishment, although
it lives to a great age if kept in partial darkness, and clear water, about eight degrees of
Reaumur; which however, must be changed every five or six days. It is not less susceptible
of cold than heat; for, if a piece of ice is thrown into the water, or the reptile is exposed to
great cold, it sickens and dies in a few hours.
It is curious to behold the mutual sympathy the little creatures exhibit for each other.
They receive a newcomer like an old friend, and express their satisfaction by a slight scream,
fainter than that uttered when irritated; for they are extremely irascible, and their degree of
anger may be known by the colour of the skin, particularly the gills, which change to a
beautiful scarlet, and being transparent, we may, with the assistance of a microscope, trace
the circulation of the blood through its numerous channels to the heart, which regularly
expands and collapses. I distinctly counted fifty of these vibrations in a minute; and one
might almost suppose, that this little creature first gave to Harvey the idea of the circulation
of the blood.
On my return through Laybach, I was introduced to a gentleman who kept several in a
large stone basin in his cellar; they had been already in confinement four or five years, and
seemed very healthy, but diminished to half their natural size. The late Emperor of Austria
∞Franz II≥ caused a grotto to be made at Schönbrun∞n≥, near Vienna, and peopled it with
them, where they may be contemplated by those travellers whose curiosity will not lead
them so far as their native streams*.
*I have been purposely explicit in my details respecting these little reptiles, having known
several gentlemen who brought them to England, but, for want of proper care, they all
perished.38
Even now, only the specimens taken home by Francis Lunn in 1832 (see later) are known from
before 1836.
Fig. 14: The visitors’ book entry for Edmund Spencer on 14 April 1836.
Sl. 14: Edmund Spencer, vpisan v knjigi obiskovalcev 14. aprila 1836.
244
John Oliver in 1837 and 1852
John Oliver (1804-1883), a priest whose English translation of Schaffenrath’s 1834 book on
Postojnska jama remains unpublished39, visited the cave on 4 June 183732 (Fig. 15) and again in
September 1852. He remarked, in a note of his own attached to the translation, that in Pisani rov,
On the right hand side, are to be found several small Pools, formed by the Water-droppings
from above, & from which, originally a larger Bason or Reservoir was formed, & stocked
with a number of Protei, brought from the Magdalena Grotto, for the inspection of scientific
& curious Visitors desirous of observing this singular reptile-fish; but at the present time,
however, not a single Specimen is to be found therein. 40
Fig. 15: The visitors’ book entry for John Oliver on 4 June 1837.
Sl. 15: John Oliver, vpisan v knjigi obiskovalcev 4. junija 1837.
The Oliver manuscript is notable also for the watercolour of two Proteus bound into it (Fig. 16).
The animals are shown crawling over some mud just above the water. The significant point is that
an almost identical drawing appears as an engraving (Fig. 17) in the 1851 edition of Sir Humphry
Davy’s Consolations in Travel41, suggesting
that such pictures were then commonly sold
at the cave, as postcards were to be later.
Oliver probably acquired his about the same
time, during his 1852 visit.
Fig. 17: The equivalent illustration printed
in the 1851 illustrated edition of Humphry
Davy’s book Consolations in Travel.
Sl. 17: Enaka slika, tiskana 1851 v ilustrirani
izdaji knjige Humphry-ja Davy-ja
Consolations in Travel.
245
Fig. 16: Watercolour of two Proteus in John Oliver’s manuscript40.
Sl. 16: Akvarel dveh mo~erilov v rokopisu40 John-a Oliverja.
Francis Galton in 1840
Sir Francis Galton (1822-1911) (Fig. 18), English scientist, African explorer and Fellow of the
Royal Society43, visited the cave on 22 September 184032 (Fig. 19).
I bought two of the curious creatures called Proteus, that live in these underground waters.
... They were the first living creatures of their kind brought to England. ... I went from Trieste
by steamer to Venice and thence by diligence to Milan, whence I travelled by diligence to
Geneva with the bottle containing the two Proteus under my thin coat, for fear of the water
freezing while crossing the Alps.44
Galton’s were not, in fact, the first living Proteus to come to England. Lunn’s of 1832 has been
mentioned already, four had been given to London Zoo and Spencer in 1836 referred to “several”
others.
246
Fig. 18: Francis Galton aged 6642.
Sl. 18: Francis Galton v starosti 66 let42 .
Fig. 19: The visitors’ book entry for Francis Galton on 22 September 1840.
Sl. 19: Francis Galton, vpisan v knjigi obiskovalcev 22. septembra 1840.
John Harrison Allan in 1841
Little is known about J. H. Allan except that according to the title page of his book, he was a
member of “the Athenian Archaeological Society” and of the “Egyptian Society of Cairo”. He was
at the cave on 22 June 184132 (Fig. 20).
Fig. 20: The visitors’ book entry for J.H. Allan on 22 June 1841.
Sl. 20: J. H. Allan, vpisan v knjigi obiskovalcev 22. junija 1841.
247
On coming back to the hotel, we were shown a specimen of the Proteus Anguinus; and
as we had not been able to see one in the grotto itself, we esteemed ourselves fortunate in
thus obtaining a sight of this curious little animal, indigenous to Adelsburg, and another
grotto not far distant.45
George Frederick Weston in 1846
G. F. Weston (1819-1887) (Fig. 21) was an English priest with three wives, in succession,46
who visited the cave on 13 May 184632 (Fig. 22). His diary was later published by his widow in a
limited edition for “relatives and friends”. The
part of his entry relating to Proteus is:
The entrance to∞the≥ grotto is by a grated
door ...; whilst ∞the≥ guides went on to prepare
the dabs of candle, ∞I≥ amused myself
examining some specimens of that curious
creature called the Proteus, kept here in a
glass bottle for the inspection of visitors,
which are found in the Magdalene grotto,
about three miles off, in a subterraneous
stream flowing through it. ... They can be kept
a long time if the water is constantly
changed.47
Fig. 21: G.F. Weston47.
Sl. 21: G. F. Weston47 .
Fig. 22: The visitors’ book entry for G.F. Weston on 13 May 1846.
Sl. 22: G. F. Weston, vpisan v knjigi obiskovalcev 13. maja 1846.
John Call Dalton about 1853
It is not clear whether John Dalton (1825-1889), an American physiologist, visited Postojna
himself but his description of Proteus published in May 1853 does provide some new information
on their capture:
The Proteus is taken in small hand-nets by the peasants, who watch for the animal as he
lies almost motionless near the bottom of the pool ∞in »rna jama≥, and capture him by a
248
sudden motion of the net. They are not very abundant, however, and as they can be taken
only when the water is perfectly clear, it is seldom that more than 15 or 20 are obtained
during the course of a year. The animals should be kept afterward in obscurity, and at a
temperature as nearly as possible resembling that of the grotto. It is necessary, also, to change
the water in which they are kept regularly every day. With these precautions it is said they
may be preserved alive for an indefinite length of time. I have myself kept one of them for
several weeks. 47A
Dalton nowhere states that he had been in the cave and his description of it could have been
derived from earlier accounts. The Proteus that he kept “for several weeks”, perhaps the same as the
“living specimen from which the drawing for the plate was made ∞which≥ came from the Magdalena
Grotto”, might have been given to him by Fitzinger whom he met in Wien.
William Henderson in 1862
William Henderson (1813-1891) (Fig. 23) is considered further in the next section, as a naturalist
who studied Proteus in captivity. He visited the cave on 14 October 186232 (Fig. 24) and the extract
here deals only with the way in which his
specimen travelled with him to England.
There have at various times been other
living specimens in this country, but I believe
that the only one at present so honoured, is
the little creature who was my fellow-traveller
home from Styria, and is now an inhabitant
of the good city of D-∞Durham≥.
His adventures, and the inconveniences
he has suffered, have not been few; and
considering that his personal comfort requires
him to be frequently out of the water, and that
his only means of transit was in a jar filled
with that element, we can only wonder that
he survived it. Heat and change of temperature
are also obnoxious to his constitution. He was
sorely tried at Venice, where the weather was
unusually sultry; and five days posting in an
Fig. 23: William Henderson in 1876 or before70.
Sl. 23: William Henderson v letu 1867 ali prej70.
Fig. 24: The visitors’ book entry for Wm. Henderson on 14 October 1862.
Sl. 24: Wm. Henderson, vpisan v knjigi obiskovalcev 14. oktobra 1862.
249
open carriage, along the shores of the Mediterranean, under a blazing sun, might have been
expected to produce a catastrophe; but he is a brave little follow, and survived it all. The
extreme heat and occasional exposure to light produced, however, a great change in his colour;
his skin became a dark cinnamon brown with blotches of bright scarlet, nor was it until after
several days of careful exclusion of light that it resumed its usual pale flesh-colour.
On leaving Adelsberg I first placed him in a soda-water bottle, and this again in a small
leathern bag hung outside my coat. During our journey to Trieste the bottle by some ill chance
was broken, and on our arrival we found poor Proteus lying on a bed of broken glass. A
catastrophe of this kind ended our far-famed Lambton worm, but very little did its tiny Styrian
cousin heed it. On being placed in a bowl of water, the creature performed so many gambols
that we were satisfied all was well.
On reaching Marseilles, however, we plainly saw that our little charge was suffering
from the inaction of his internal lungs: We therefore prepared a bath for him; placing sand
and some stalactites which we had procured from Adelsberg, at the bottom, and sloping it so
that he could enjoy walks on dry land, varied according to his fancy with occasional water
dips. This assimilation to his natural habits produced a very marked improvement in his
health; from a state of extreme debility, he soon became rampant, dashing about the bath and
hiding beneath the stones, while at the same time the external gills or lungs, which had been
blanched to an ominous whiteness, now resumed their red hue. It was now that I first observed
a circumstance which has since been repeated. On the following morning, floating in the
water, were three lengths of extremely fine brown-looking skin, answering to the shape of
his body - portions, no doubt, of a slough he had cast off during the night. Doubtless the
power to rub himself against the sand and stalactites had assisted his efforts, and I am included
to think that this change of treatment may have saved his life.48
Henry Edmund Buxton in 1863
H. E. Buxton (1844-1905) 49 also is mentioned again the section on naturalists but most of his
published account is concerned with the way in which the Proteus are caught and sold. He was a
banker, magistrate, mayor and part-time soldier. His visit to Postojnska jama was on 6 January
1863 (Fig. 25), his entry in the visitors’ book being the first of the year32.
Fig. 25: The visitors’ book entry for H.E. Buxton on 6 January 1863.
Sl. 25: H. E. Buxton, vpisan v knjigi obiskovalcev 6. januarja 1863.
250
I procured it, with another specimen, at the caves of Adelsberg, near Trieste, which I
visited about a month ago, in company with Mr Gurney, M. P., who has the other specimen.
We did not catch them ourselves, but bought them of the guides in the caves, who evidently
thought them of very little value, and were very glad to sell them for a few shillings, though
they said they had before sold several specimens to Englishmen and others. We did not visit
the cave where they are found, as it is some distance from the town and we had not enough
time to spare; but the large cave near the town is of immense extent, and quite worth a visit
from anyone passing between Vienna and Trieste. The little river Poik flows into it, and
entirely disappears in the rock, only reappearing at a distance of several miles, and supplying
(it is supposed) on its way the underground lake in which the protei are found. The guides
told us that the protei are only to be obtained after several weeks of drought, when the water
in the cave is very low. They have landing-nets on very long poles, and with these, when the
water is shallow enough for them to reach the bottom, they generally succeed in catching
one or two. From this it appears that the proteus frequents the deepest parts of the pool. The
guides also said that they had never seen one come out on to the rocks. We brought them to
England without any difficulty, only changing their water daily, and keeping them as much
as possible in the dark, as any light is said to be very injurious to them. 50
Helen Zimmern in 1874
Helen Zimmern (1846-1934), writer and journalist, was born in Germany but became English51.
Her visit to Postojnska jama took place on 7 September 187432 (Fig. 26).
After leaving the cave,
There only remained for us to see the unique animal that inhabits the underground waters
of the Poik, which, naked, blind, and adapted to its strange dwelling-place, is at once the
wonder and despair of naturalists. The guide had one in readiness. The creature was in a
glass bottle filled with water. It was struggling, because brought into the daylight, said the
guide; for like blind people, it is conscious of light.52
Fig. 26: The visitors’ book entry for Helen Zimmern on 7 September 1874.
Sl. 26: Helen Zimmern, vpisana v knjigi obiskovalcev 7. septembra 1874.
Armand Viré in 1900
Armand Viré (1869-1951) (Fig. 27), French cave explorer and biospeologist, had obtained his
doctorate in that subject and was director of the underground laboratory set up in the Paris catacombs
by the Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle53. He visited caves in Slovenia54 in the second half of
April 1900 and obtained 30 specimens of Proteus for the Museum.
251
I have the honour to present to this
meeting of naturalists ∞on 1 May 1900≥ some
specimens of the famous Proteus anguineus
..., which I was able to obtain last week in the
caves of Carniola. 55
Viré and his laboratory will be mentioned
again in the final section of this paper.
Fig. 27: Armand Viré.
Sl. 27: Armand Viré.
STUDY BY NATURALISTS
Many of the live Proteus taken home by the purchaser were never heard of again, even those
bought by people who wrote books about their travels. Sket56 suggested that “Proteus used to be a
very popular inhabitant of aquaria in bourgeois salons at the end of the XIX century” but this has
not been substantiated by contemporary accounts. Certainly the inability of Proteus to withstand
light would be a problem in displaying it.
But some were taken by naturalists who kept and studied this live animal, and their findings
then became known to other naturalists. All this becomes evident in the observations of those who
bought, borrowed, saw or were given captive Proteus.
The emphasis here is on their observations, most of which were reported in out-of-the-way
journals, rather than in obtaining the animals in the first place. That aspect has already been discussed
where known, but in other cases only their life in captivity was recorded.
Francis Lunn
A publication of May 1833 stated that “Several of these singular creatures were lately brought
to England by the Rev. F. Lunn”35. Now the Postojnska jama visitor’s book32 (Fig. 28) shows a visit
on 27 June 1832 by Francis Lunn of London and no doubt he bought them then. Lunn (1795-1839),
who was vicar of Butleigh in Somerset at that time, was a Fellow of the Royal Society and a competent
Fig. 28: The visitors’ book entry for Francis Lunn on 27 June 1832.
Sl. 28: Francis Lunn, vpisan v knjigi obiskovalcev 27. junija 1832.
252
mineralogist and chemist57. Nothing published by him on Proteus has been traced, nor were any
specimens recorded as gifts to London Zoo at that time. Perhaps the writer of the 1833 article had
heard of Lunn’s animals through personal contact, or maybe there is some published information
still to be found. In any case the way in which their presence in England was reported implies that
they were still living a year later.
Rudolph Wagner
Professor Rudolph Wagner (1805-1864), physiologist, obtained three living Proteus “at the end
of the ... summer” of 183758, but there is no record that he himself visited the cave at that time. He
gave one of them alive to Dr Martin Barry of Edinburgh, who exhibited it at a meeting of the
Zoological Society of London on 14 November 1837; and the other two, one male and one female,
he dissected58. Although anatomical and physiological studies are not within the scope of this paper,
the importance of his discovery that the “blood-globules” (corpuscles) of Proteus are so many times
larger than those of most animals justifies the reprinting of his short communication to the Society
here as Appendix II. He referred again to the large size of the corpuscles in his physiology text
book59. Gulliver’s subsequent measurements of their size are referred to later.
Andrew Smith
Dr Andrew Smith (later Sir Andrew, 1797-1872) was a surgeon, explorer and diplomat30.
He had a live specimen of Proteus in his collection of reptiles, several years before 184860, but
when and how he came by it is not known. It was this animal that provided George Gulliver with the
blood sample in which he measured the size of the corpuscles (see later).
Lionel Smith Beale
Dr L. S. Beale (1828-1906) (Fig. 29) was a distinguished physician and a Fellow of the Royal
Society61,62. He visited Postojnska jama on 24 August 185032 (Fig. 30) so it was probably then that
he obtained his Proteus.
The popular natural history writer, the Rev. John George Wood (1827-1889) wrote of them in
his Illustrated Natural History published in 1863:
I have had many opportunities of seeing some
fine specimens, brought by Dr. Lionel Beale from
the cave at Adelsberg. They could hardly be said
to have any habits, and their only custom seemed
to be the systematic avoidance of light. Dr. Beale
has kindly forwarded to me the following account
of these curious creatures:Fig. 29: Dr L.S. Beale, probably about 1857,
reproduced by permission of the President and
Council of the Royal Society.
Sl. 29: Dr. L. S. Beale, verjetno okrog 1857,
ponatisnjeno z dovoljenjem predsednika in Sveta
Kraljeve druæbe.
253
Fig. 30: The visitors’ book entry for Lionel Beale on 24 August 1850.
Sl. 30: Lionel Beale, vpisan v knjigi obiskovalcev 14. avgusta 1850.
“One of the Proteuses I brought over from Adelsberg lived for five years, and, what is
very interesting, passed four years of his life in the same water, a little fresh being added
from time to time to make up for the loss by evaporation. He lived in about a quart of water,
which was placed in a large globe, this being kept dark by an outer covering of green baize.
Perhaps half a pint of water may have been added during two years.
He was not once fed while he was in confinement, and one of his companions died soon
after taking a worm before he had been two years in this country.
The one I kept was very active, and his movements were as rapid as those of an eel. He
was thinner just before death than when he was brought from the cave, but the loss of substance
was so very slow as not to be perceptible from year to year, and to the last he retained the
power of performing very active muscular movements.
His external gills always contracted when a strong light was thrown upon them. The
circulation of the blood in the vessels of these organs was very often exhibited; the animal
being placed in a long tube with a flat extremity, provided with an arrangement for the constant
supply of water, and on several occasions some of the large blood corpuscules were removed
for the purpose of microscopical examination, so that the animal was not placed under the
most favourable circumstances for living without food.
There are probably very few more striking examples of very slow death from starvation
than this, and it is probable that the ultimately fatal results were as much caused by
confinement, change of air and temperature, and occasional exposure to light for some hours,
as from mere starvation. It is well-known for example, that, as a general rule, the Batrachia
endure starvation most remarkably.”63
Wood himself then continued:
The gills of the Proteus are very apparent, and of a reddish colour, on account of the
blood that circulates through them. I have often witnessed this phenomena by means of the
ingenious arrangement invented by Dr. Beale, by which the creature was held firmly in its
place while a stream of water was kept constantly flowing through the tube in which it was
confined. The blood discs of this animal are of extraordinary size; so large, indeed, that they
can be distinguished with a common pocket magnifier, even while passing through the vessels.
Some of the blood corpuscules of the specimen described above are now in my possession,
and, together with those of the lepidosiren, form a singular contrast to the blood corpuscules
of man, the former exceeding the latter in dimensions as an ostrich egg exceeds that of a
pigeon.63
The engraving of Proteus reproduced here as Fig. 31 comes from Wood’s book and is likely to
have been drawn from one of Beale’s specimens.
No printed work by Beale on Proteus has been traced, and that it was unpublished information
that Wood quoted is suggested by his phrase: “Dr. Beale has kindly forwarded to me the following
account ...”. Part of the same quotation was used later by Henderson48 in 1866 (see Appendix V).
254
Trevor R. Shaw : Proteus for sale and for science in the 19th Century
Fig. 31: The illustration
of Proteus in Wood’s
Natural History,63
probably drawn from one
of Beale’s specimens.
Sl. 31: Slika mo~erila v
Woodovi knjigi Natural
History63 , verjetno
narisana po enem od
Bealeovih primerkov.
John Call Dalton
Dalton, already mentioned for his account of Proteus being “taken in small hand-nets by the
peasants” at »rna jama, states also:
I have myself kept one of them for several weeks without giving it any food, and at the
end of that time it was as active, and nearly as well-conditioned as ever; only the branchi had
become somewhat smaller. I am told by Mr. Fitzinger, the Superintendent of the Department
of Reptiles in the Vienna Zoological Museum, that they have been kept at the Museum for
over six years, without any other food than the organic matters usually existing in fresh
water.47A
No doubt his own specimen was the one he dissected at the end of its “several weeks” in captivity.
Henry Edmund Buxton
Buxton’s account of his visit to Postojnska jama in 1863 and his description of the guides’
method of catching Proteus in »rna jama has already been quoted at length.This was the body of a
letter sent to the editor of a magazine called The Field, to whom he sent a specimen of Proteus. The
letter begins:
Sir, - I take the liberty of sending you with this a specimen of the proteus, thinking you
may like to examine it.
and ends:
If you have not before had an opportunity of examining a specimen, I hope you will
make any use you like of the accompanying one, and excuse my taking the liberty of sending
it. 50
The use the editor made of it was to show it to Francis Buckland, a naturalist on his staff, whose
published reply is described next.
Francis Trevelyan Buckland
Francis Buckland (1826-1880), naturalist and writer30, was the son of William Buckland of
bone cave fame. His response64 to Buxton’s letter is printed here as Appendix III. It ends with a
short paragraph illustrating the informal way in which natural history questions were sometimes
approached in the 1860s.
255
Mr. Buxton has kindly lent me the proteus for a few days; and I have placed it in THE
FIELD office (covered, however, with a cloth, as it must be always in the dark). I shall be
pleased to show this curious fellow to those who would like to examine it. - F.T.
BUCKLAND.64
William Webb Spicer
The Rev. W. W. Spicer (c. 1820-1879) was a parish priest in England who also travelled to
Tasmania and was known for his plant collections and publications there.65 In 1867 and 1868 he
was a member of the Bristol Naturalists’ Society, where he came to know Adolph Leipner.
In the issue of Hardwicke’s Science-Gossip for June 186966 he wrote that he had possessed a
living specimen of Proteus “for the last thirteen months”. He had also had two others which he gave
to Adolph Leipner (see below). Spicer’s name does not appear in the cave visitors’ book so he may
have bought the animals at the inn in Postojna or been given them by a fellow naturalist; or he may
indeed have visited the cave in a party without himself signing the book.
Most of the quite lengthy article is more suitable for reproduction as Appendix IV than in the
text, but the last paragraph raises the interesting question of food and water, so it appears here as
well:
What it may live on in a wild state I know not (Professor Lennis says on mollusks), but it
is well known that in captivity it rarely, if ever, touches anything. My Proteus has consumed
two tadpoles since it came into my possession - it was brought me straight from Vienna. At
least I placed them in the fish-bowl last May, and never were they seen again. They could not
possibly have got out, and no remains were ever found, so I presume they were consumed by
their near relative. He has never had the chance of eating any since, but his body looks as
plump as so greyhound like a barrel well can.
The water, I may observe, has not been changed since last October; the less it is changed
the better; it is perfectly sweet and clear.66
The Professor Lennis referred to was Johann Lennis but the reference has not been traced 67.
Adolph Leipner
Two living Proteus had been given by Spicer
to Adolph Leipner in the previous year (1868) or
before, for they were exhibited by him at a
meeting of the Bristol Naturalists’Society on 5
March 186868. Leipner (Fig. 32) (1827?-1894),
of German origin, was a schoolteacher in Bristol
and an active member of local scientific societies.
He referred at the meeting to Beale’s having kept
several Proteus for five years, and says that he
himself had two for a few months, lent to him by
Mr. Joshua Saunders (fl. 1866-1899), a fellow
Fig. 32: Adolph Leipner69.
Sl. 32: Adolph Leipner69 .
256
member of the Bristol Naturalists’ Society. He notes that these two “would never eat, and yet when
I returned them they were in just as good condition as when first received”.
William Henderson
William Henderson
(1813-1891) (Fig. 23) of
Durham is mainly known for
his writings about folklore
and fishing71 . His visit to
Postojnska jama in 1862 and
the adventures of his Proteus
on the journey home have
been described already.
It was in a privately
printed first edition of his
book of fishing reminiscences published in 1876
(Fig. 33) that an extra
appendix, omitted from the
subsequent commercial
editions of 187970 and 1880,
was printed48 - “The Grottoes
of Adelsberg, and the Proteus
anguinus. A few pages from
the journal of a continental
tour”. The material in this
appendix had first appeared
ten years earlier in an obscure
magazine called The Monthly
Packet of Evening Readings
for members of the English
Church48.
Altogether Henderson’s
account is very difficult
to find, so all of it that is
relevant to Proteus is reprinted here, complete, as
Appendix V. It will be seen
that it draws attention to the
Buxton/Buckland
correspondence in The Field
and contains some quotations
from Lionel Beale.
Fig. 33: The title page of the privately printed first edition of
Henderson’s book (1876), the only edition in which the Appendix
on “The Grottoes of Adelsberg, and the Proteus anguinus”
appeared.
Sl. 33: Naslovnica prve izdaje zasebno tiskane Hendersonove knjige
(1876), edine, kjer je v dodatku “Postojnska jama in mo~eril”.
257
It refers also to the findings of Wagner (Appendix II) and of Gulliver on the extraordinarily
large size of the blood corpuscles in Proteus:
Another singular characteristic of the Proteus is the quality of its blood. Gulliver, who is
now the highest authority on the blood of vertebrates, says in a lecture, published last October:
’The largest corpuscles occur in the naked amphibia, especially in the perenni-bronchiate
sections, as discovered by Wagner; and the smallest in lizards, tortoises, and serpents. Such
is their magnitude in the Proteus, that they may be distinctly seen by the aid of a common
hand lens.’72
The Gulliver referred to was Prof. George Gulliver (1804-1882), anatomist, physiologist and
Fellow of the Royal Society30. The lecture quoted was given in 1862 and it is cited here73, together
with other papers on the same subject by him60,74,75. Gulliver had measured the red corpuscles of
Proteus as 1/400 inch by 1/727 inch (63.5 µm × 34 µm) compared with 1/3200 (8 µm) for those of
man. (cf. Wagner’s figures of 1/30 or 1/40 of a line (70.5 or 53 µm)).
Of more than ordinary interest are two passages towards the end of Henderson’s text. The first
of these deals with the noise he heard made by Proteus. This sound has not been mentioned in any of
the other reports and is quite different to the “crying and wailing”described by Ziherl in 1751.
The Proteus appears to have a kind of voice, which was on one occasion exercised to my
annoyance. At Lyons he was located as usual in my bed-room, and where, after a long day’s
journey, I was enjoying a sound sleep, when a loud hissing noise startled me, followed by
what I can compare to nothing but the smacking of the human tongue and lips, or the clapping
of hands. The noise was so loud and unexpected, that I was not a little startled, fancying a
burglar must be in the room. It was repeated several times during the night, and I have heard
it since; but, with one exception, only in the quiet and darkness of the night. It usually occurs
about an hour after midnight, when the household are in bed and all is still, as in the little
creature’s early native home.72
The second extract describes the death of his Proteus:
I much regret to add that our little favourite died on Wednesday, December 14th, 1864,
exactly two years and two months from the time when we took him from the dark caves of
Adelsberg. He appeared in his usual health till within a few days of his death, so that though
we had seen him growing thinner and whiter, still his activity and playfulness were so great
that there seemed to be no cause for alarm. About a week before his death we noticed a
heaviness in his movements, and a difficulty in using his feet, very different from his usual
agility. Soon after, his body assumed a dull leaden hue, and was very slimy and disagreeable
to the touch; and on the morning of the 14th he was found lying on his back; we put him right
again, and he then seemed so pleased with the fresh water given him, that we hoped all was
well. In two hours he was floating at the top of the water, quite dead. His body was immediately
sent to Mr. T. P. Teale, of Leeds; but upon its arrival at Leeds Mr. Teale found it impossible
to do more than reduce it to a skeleton72
Fig. 34: The visitors’ book entry for T. Pridgin Teale on 14 July 1856.
Sl. 34: T. Pridgin Teale, vpisan v knjigi obiskovalcev 14. julija 1856.
258
The Mr T. P. Teale of Leeds to whom Henderson refers was the surgeon and anatomist Thomas
Pridgin Teale (1801-1867), Fellow of the Royal Society76, who had himself visited Postojnska jama
on 14 July 185632 (Fig. 34) but without, so far as is known, bringing home any Proteus.
GIFTS TO LEARNED INSTITUTIONS AND ZOOS
From the very nature of any living animal, the majority of Proteus gifts have been to
zoological societies or to museums associated with or possessing a zoo. Some however went to
universities where they could usually be kept alive in the zoology department.
Universities
Charles Babbage’s visit to Postojnska jama in 1828 resulted in his buying six live Proteus as
already described. They all died en route to England, though, and their fate was:
When their gloomy lives terminated I preserved them in spirits, and sent the specimens
to the collections of our own universities, to India, and some of our colonies.34
Francis Galton bought two specimens in 1840 and successfully brought them back to England:
I gave them to King’s College;
one died, the other lived and was
yearly lectured on, as I heard, until
fate in the form of a cat ended him44.
The King’s College in question
would have been King’s College,
London, at whose medical school he had
studied, whereas in Cambridge he was not
at King’s College but at Trinity. The
medical school did keep live animals in
its museum and ten years later the curator
there presented two Proteus to London
Zoo (see below). These cannot have been
those brought back by Galton unless his
memory was seriously at fault when he
wrote more than 60 years afterwards.
Reginald Smithson Julian Hawes
(1911?-1963)77 (Fig. 35) studied cave
fauna in parts of former Yugoslavia in
193778 and in 1938 or 193979 he returned
to Slovenia and took several Proteus back
to England80. He was at King’s College,
London at that time78 but he collaborated81
with Leonard Harrison Matthews (19011986) who was at the University of
Bristol until 1940 and subsequently
Fig. 35: Dr R.S.J. Hawes in Pridhamsleigh Cavern,
Devon (photo T.R. Shaw, 9 October 1948).
Sl. 35: Dr. R.S.J. Hawes v Pridhamsleigh Cavern, Devon
(foto T.R. Shaw, 9. oktobra 1948).
259
became a Fellow of the Royal Society82. It is probably these Proteus that were in the zoology
department at Bristol around that time83. Some of them were released about 1940 in Read’s Cavern
on the Mendip Hills by two medical students, Francis Goddard (The “G” in the name of the nearby
G. B. Cavern) and ∞K. L.?≥ Brown. The manuscript log book of the University of Bristol Speleological
Society does not record this, but it is remembered by Rodney Pearce, then the secretary of the
Society. He says that the animals were put into a pool on the cave floor and not into the rapidflowing stream84. Others of the Bristol specimens were preserved: two of them remained at Bristol
until 1998 when they went to the Natural History Museum in London84A. Those now at the University
of Exeter81, where Hawes later worked, are probably also some of those he collected in the 1930s.
Zoological Society of London
The Society was founded in 1826 and its Zoological Gardens (the “Zoo”) were opened two
years later.
As already mentioned, Rudolph Wagner had sent one live Proteus to be exhibited at a meeting
of the Society on 14 November 1837 but there is no trace of it being given to the zoo itself. The first
Proteus recorded there was presented in 1839.
Gifts of animals were recorded in manuscript on daily sheets headed “Occurrences at the Garden”,
bound up into annual volumes85. From 1862 onwards gifts were also printed in published books
titled List of Vertebrated Animals living in the Gardens of the Zoological Society of London 86. It
seems, from enquiry as well as from searching the catalogues of major libraries, that London’s was
the only zoo that published such lists. London’s was also the only zoo where the author had the
opportunity to examine the archives.
A total of 31 Proteus are recorded as having been received there between 1839 and 1887. Records
of only a very few deaths have been traced, namely three on either 7 or 11 July 1852. In any case it
would not be possible to calculate even approximate ages at death because until about 1906 the
individual animals were not separately identified and their ages on arrival were not known.
The information on Proteus arrivals derived from the published86 and unpublished85 sources
described above are summarized in Table I. This is supplemented in the text by brief biographical
information on the donor and the date on which he or she is known to have visited Postojna, if
available. In nearly half the cases, though, no associated cave visit was traced. In part this could be
because not every individual of a party would write their names in the visitors’ book32; and, probably
more important, Proteus were normally sold at the inn in Postojna so there was no need to visit the
cave to get one. Travellers who just chanced to stop for the night at Postojna could buy them without
difficulty, and people who had read their Murray’s guidebook could plan their journey so as to stop
or at least call there.
Fig. 36: The visitors’ book entry for Mrs. Slater on 6 July 1839.
Sl. 36: Gospa Slater, vpisana v knjigi obiskovalcev 6. julija 1839.
260
Fig. 37: The visitors’ book entry for M. Drummond on 25 April 1840.
Sl. 37: M. Drummond, vpisan v knjigi obiskovalcev 25. aprila 1840.
Fig. 38: The visitors’ book entry for R.B. Mansfield on 8 April 1857.
Sl. 38: R.B. Mansfield, vpisan v knjigi obiskovalcev 8. aprila 1857.
More information is available about 13 of those who presented Proteus to London Zoo:
•
Mrs. Slater of 20 August 1839 had visited Postojnska jama on 6 July32 (Fig. 36).
•
M. Drummond of 6 July 1840 had been to the cave on 25 April32 (Fig. 37).
•
Mr. Thompson of 24 May 1850 was William Thompson, curator of the museums of
King’s College, London, Medical Department93.
•
Robert Blachford Mansfield (18241908)30 of 1 May 1857 had visited the
cave on 8 April32 (Fig. 38).
•
Lady Cust, of 17 May 1858, was Lady
Mary Anne Cust (1800-1882) (Fig. 39)
who had a special interest in drawing
plants and fishes95. She was the aunt96 of
William Purey Cust (1821-1865)97, the
W.P. Cust who signed the cave visitors’
book on 22 April 185832 (Fig. 40), so
dating the purchase of her Proteus.
Fig. 39: Lady Mary Anne Cust some time before
183994.
Sl. 39: Lady Mary Anne Cust nekaj pred 183994 .
Fig. 40: The visitors’ book entry for W.P. Cust who accompanied his aunt, Lady Cust, on 22 April
1858.
Sl. 40: W.P. Cust, ki je spremljal svojo teto Lady Cust, vpisan v knjigi obiskovalcev 22. aprila 1858.
261
•
Dr Hugh Falconer (1808-1865) (Fig. 49),
of 27 June 1861, was the geologist and
Fellow of the Royal Society who
excavated Pleistocene deposits from
caves in Malta 98 . He had been at
Postojnska jama on 5 June32. His offer of
a Proteus to Charles Darwin is treated
separately in the next section.
•
Dr Edward Perceval Wright (1834-1910)
(Fig. 41) who presented a Proteus
between 1861 and 1863 was then lecturer
in zoology and botany in Dublin99 and had
visited the cave on 25 February 186132
(Fig. 42).
•
Frederick Merryweather Burton (18291912) (Fig. 43) of 17 November 1863 was
a lawyer and amateur geologist, and
Fellow of the Linnean and Geological
Societies of London100.
Fig. 42: The visitors’ book entry for Dr E.
Perceval Wright on 25 February 1861.
Sl. 42: Dr. E. Perceval Wright, vpisan v knjigi
obiskovalcev 25. februarja 1861.
Fig. 43: Frederick Merryweather Burton.
Reproduced with permission from the archives
of the Geological Society of London (P. 43/p. 12).
Sl. 43: Frederick Merryweather Burton.
Ponatisnjeno z dovoljenjem arhiva Geolo{kega
dru{tva v Londonu (P. 43/p. 12)
262
Fig. 41: Dr Edward Perceval Wright99.
Sl. 41: Dr. Edward Perceval Wright99 .
•
Major Robert Herbert Heath Jary (1830?-1920) (Fig. 44) of 17 April 1867 was a soldier
and a Fellow of the Zoological Society102 . He was at the cave on 22 March 186732
(Fig. 45).
•
Sir Henry Bartle Edward Frere (1815-1884) (Fig. 46) of 26 April 1876 was a senior
colonial administrator30. He saw the cave on 10 April 187632 (Fig. 47).
Fig. 45: The visitors’ book entry for Major Jary on 22 March 1867.
Sl. 45. Major Jary, vpisan v knjigi obiskovalcev 22. marca 1867.
Fig. 44: Major Robert Herbert Heath Jary101.
Sl. 44: Major Robert Herbert Heath Jary101.
Fig. 46: Sir Henry Bartle Edward Frere.
Sl. 46: Sir Henry Bartle Edward Frere.
Fig. 47: The visitors’ book entry for Sir Bartle Frere on 10 April 1876.
Sl. 47: Sir Bartle Frere, vpisan v knjigi obiskovalcev 10. aprila 1876.
263
•
John Mason Cook (1834-1899) (Fig. 48) of 29 July 1885 was the son of Thomas Cook,
the man who founded the first world-wide travel agency, and he himself continued to
develop the company30.
•
Prof. William Henry Corfield (1843-1903) (Fig. 49) of 11 October 1887, was Professor
of Hygiene and Public Health in London 103.
•
Dr Edwin Rickards (1841-1908) also of 11 October 1887, was a medical doctor104 .
Fig. 49: Prof. William Henry Corfield103.
Sl. 49: Profesor William Henry Corfield103.
Fig. 48: John Mason Cook in 1886, from a
painting by J.C. Horsley.
Sl. 48: John Mason Cook v letu 1886, posneto
po sliki J.C.Horsleyja.
Fig. 51: The visitors’ book entry for Hugh Falconer on 5 June 1861. The Proteus he obtained then
was offered to Darwin and then presented to London zoo.
Sl. 51: Hugh Falconer, vpisan v knjigi obiskovalcev 5. junija 1861. Mo~erila, ki ga je takrat dobil,
je najprej ponudil Darwinu in nato poklonil londonskemu æivalskemu vrtu.
264
Fig. 52: Charles Robert Darwin, probably in
the early 1860s. Reproduced with permission
from a photograph in the archives of the
Geological Society of London (P.56/box PE4).
Sl. 52: Charles Robert Darwin, verjetno v
za~etku 1860. Ponatisnjeno z dovoljenjem s
fotografije v arhivu Geolo{kega dru{tva v
Londonu (P. 56/box PE4).
Fig. 50: Hugh Falconer about 1865.
Sl. 50: Hugh Falconer okrog 1865.
The Offer to Darwin
Hugh Falconer (Fig. 50) visited Postojnska jama on 5 June 186132 (Fig. 51) when he purchased
the Proteus which on 27 June he presented to the London Zoo. Between these two events there had
been an exchange of letters between him and Charles Darwin (1809-1882) (Fig. 52). Falconer had
arrived back in England late on 22 June and on the next day he wrote to Darwin as follows (Fig. 53),
offering him the animal:
31 Sackville St. W
23 June, 1861
My Dear Darwin
I have been to Adelsberg Cave - and brought back with me a live Proteus anguinus,
designed for you from the moment I got it - i.e., if you have got an aquarium, and would care
to have it. I only returned last night from the Continent and hearing from your brother, that
you are about to go to Torquay, I lose no time in making you the offer. The poor dear animal
is still alive - although it has had no appreciable means of sustenance for a month - and I am
most anxious to get rid of the responsibility of starving it longer. In your hands it will thrive
- and have a fair chance of being developed without delay, into some type of the Columbid say a Pouter or a Tumbler.
265
My Dear Darwin, I have been rambling through the north of Italy, and Germany lately.
Every where have I heard your views, and your admirable essay canvassed - the views of
course often dissented from, according to the special bias of the speaker - but the work - its
honesty of purpose - grandeur of conception - felicity of illustration - and courageous
exposition - always referred to in terms of the highest admiration. And among your warmest
friends, no one rejoiced more heartily in the just appreciation of Charles Darwin than did,
Yours very truly
H. Falconer105
This offer was not just evidence of a close friendship; it was particularly apt as Darwin had
referred to Proteus in The Origin of Species in 1859, remarking that it had been able to survive in
caves “owing to the less severe competition to which the inhabitants of these dark abodes will
probably have been exposed.”106
Darwin, replying the next day, felt that he could not provide a good home for the animal and
suggest that London Zoo would be a better place for it, where it would be more widely appreciated.
Fig. 53: The first page of Falconer’s
letter to Darwin, offering him the
Proteus he had brought back from
Postojna. Reproduced by permission
of the Syndics of Cambridge
University Library from DAR 99:
3-4.
Sl. 53: Prva stran Falconerjevega
pisma Darwinu, v katerem mu ponuja mo~erila, ki ga je prinesel iz Postojne. Ponatisnjeno z dovoljenjem
predstavnika knjiænice Univerze v
Cambridgeu z DAR 99:3-4.
266
∞24 June 1861≥
Down ∞House≥
My dear Falconer.I have just received your note, and by good luck a day earlier than properly, and I lose
not a moment in answering you, and thanking you heartily for your offer of the valuable
specimen; but I have no aquarium and shall soon start for Torquay, so that it would be a
thousand pities that I should have it. Yet I should certainly much like to see it, but I fear it is
impossible. Would not the Zoological Society be the best place? And then the interest which
many would take in this extraordinary animal would repay you for your trouble.
Kind as you have been in taking this trouble and offering me this specimen, to tell the
truth I value your note more than the specimen. I shall keep your note amongst a very few
precious letters. Your kindness has quite touched me.
Yours affectionately and gratefully,
Ch. Darwin107
And so, three days later, it was presented to the Zoo (Fig. 54).
Fig. 54: Falconer’s gift of one Proteus to London Zoo recorded on the daily Occurrence sheet for
27 June 1861. This was the specimen he had offered to Darwin.
Sl. 54: Falconerjevo darilo enega mo~erila londonskemu æivalskemu vrtu, kakor je zabeleæeno v
listih dnevnih dogodkov 27. junija 1861. To je isti primerek, kot oni, ki ga je najprej ponudil Darwinu.
267
Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris
Viré’s gift of 30 Proteus to the Muséum in 1900 has been noticed already. The speech with
which he presented them described the animal briefly and reviewed the history of its discovery, not
altogether accurately. Then in the final two paragraphs he says:
We intend to study their habits in the laboratory in the Catacombs and no doubt we shall
have several reports to present here.
Besides this, visitors to the Jardin des Plantes ∞the Paris Zoo, which was part of the
Muséum≥ will be able to see several specimens in the Reptile Gallery and to examine this
curious animal at leisure.108
No further reports on these specimens have been traced. The laboratory in the Catacombs was
largely destroyed ten years later by the Seine flood of 1910.
Zoologischer Garten, Basel
Even during World War II, Proteus were being given to suitable institutions. A letter in the
archives of Postojnska jama29, sent from the zoo at Basel on 29 December 1942, acknowledges the
safe arrival of five Proteus in good condition. They were exhibited in the new aquarium where they
had been given a “special place near the entrance, among the most interesting animals”.
New York Zoological Society
Eight Proteus were received in New York Zoological Park in November 1961, in exchange for
some young alligators and caymans sent to the Maribor aquarium eight years before. The last of
these eight died early in 1967. Another exchange was arranged in 1965 and four more Proteus were
taken to USA; they were all dead within a year due to an accident where they were kept in Yale
University 109.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
As must be apparent, this study has depended heavily on the use of major libraries and archives.
I am particularly grateful to the staff of The British Library, The Royal Society, The Linnean Society
of London, The Geological Society of London, The Zoological Society of London and the library
of the Karst Research Institute in Postojna. Special thanks must go to the librarian of the latter,
Maja Kranjc, for her swift response to numerous queries during the final stages of writing when I
was no longer working in the Institute building. Dr Brigitta Mader kindly obtained the photograph
reproduced as Fig. 1 from the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Wien. The Director of the Museum, Dr
Manfred Leithe-Jasper, agreed to its being printed here and gave further information about the
carving. Dr Carlo Violani of the Università di Pavia provided the portrait of Mauro Rusconi
(Fig. 6A) and supplied biographical information about him and about Pietro Configliachi. Slavko
Polak of the Notranjski Muzej in Postojna, Ian Linn of the University of Exeter, Dr Roger Avery of
the University of Bristol and Marko AljanËiË of the Tular laboratory at Kranj supplied information
on other matters.
268
Table 1 - List of Proteus anguinus received by the Zoological Society of London, 1828-1895. The
information in the table, including the spelling, is printed exactly as in the source; the donors are
further identified in the text
Tabela 1 - Seznam mo~erilov, ki jih je dobilo Zoolo{ko dru{tvo v Londonu med leti 1828 in 1895.
Podatki v tabeli, kakor tudi na~in pisave, so natisnjeni to~no tako, kot v viru; podatki o darovalcih
so v besedilu.
Date
Datum
Number of Donor
Proteus
©tevilo
Darovalec
moËerilov
Source
Vir
20 Aug. 1839
6 July 1840
1
3
Mrs. Slater 5 Hall place Grove end road St John Wood ∞London≥
Malcome Drummond Esq Clarendon Hotel Bond Street ∞London≥
16 June 1847
24 May 1850
2
2
J. Nickols Esqr. 33 Seething Lane Tower Street ∞London≥
Mr. Thompson Kings College - ∞London≥
85
85
1 May 1857
17 May 1858
1
1
R. B. Mansfield Esq. 63 G t Marylebone St ∞London≥
Lady Cust
85
85
27 June 1861
1861-1863
1
1
Dr. H. Falconer
Dr. Percival Wright
11 July 1863
17 Nov. 1863
2
1
T. H. Chambers Esq
F. M. Burton Esqre Gainsboro Yorkshire
85, 89
85, 88
17 Apr. 1867
2
85, 88
9 Apr. 1869
1
Major R.H.H. Jary, F.Z.S. Brunswick Hotel;
Hanover Square ∞London≥
Francis Halsey Esq,
17 Nov. 1870
26 Apr. 1876
1
2
T. Threlfall, Esq
Sir H. Bartle Frere, Bart., K.G., G.C.S.I.
90
91
17 May 1883
3 Apr. 1884
1
2
Miss Maud Howard. From Adelsberg
Purchased
92
92
23 Oct. 1884
29 July 1885
1
4
W.J. Milles, Esq.
J. M. Cook. From Adelsberg
92
92
11 Oct. 1887
11 Oct. 1887
1
1
Prof. W.H. Corfield, M.A., F.Z.S. From Adelsberg
Dr. E. Rickards. From Adelsberg
92
92
269
Note 85
85
85, 86, 87
88
90
APPENDIX I
OBSERVATIONS ON PROTEUS BY JOHN RUSSELL33 11 MARCH 1822
DODATEK I
OPAZOVANJA MO»ERILA, JOHN RUSSEL33, 11. MAREC 1822
270
APPENDIX II
PROF. RUDOLF WAGNER ON PROTEUS AND ITS VERY LARGE BLOOD
CORPUSCLES, AS READ TO THE ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF LONDON ON
14 NOVEMBER 1837
DODATEK II
PROF. RUDOLF WAGNER O MO»ERILU IN NJEGOVIH VELIKIH KRVNI»KAH;
PREDAVANJE ZOOLO©KEMU DRU©TVU V LONDONU 14. NOVEMBRA 1837
271
APPENDIX III
FRANCIS BUCKLAND ON PROTEUS IN 186364
Wherever we look with the eye of intelligence, and whatever corner of the earth we examine be it the mountain top, the mud pond, the rapid torrent, or the dark mysterious caves of the earth there most assuredly we shall discover life in some form or other. Who would have thought that in
the curious and almost unearthly cave described by Mr. Buxton any living thing would have been
found to exist? Yet even these Stygian waters we find to form the abode of a creature curious in its
external appearance, and more than curious in its anatomy. At first sight it reminds one of an enormous
white earth-worm, or, as other have it, of a “grig” eel. It swims with a rapid serpentine motion, but
yet it has four legs - not good, stout, sturdy legs, but a sort of half-finished legs, as though nature,
when she designed the beast, had not made up her mind whether she should make them into fins or
legs, and had forgotten to complete her work. Then again, two red tufts are seen near the back of the
head. These are true breathing gills, projecting externally. A lucky fellow is this proteus: he has a
double set of breathing apparatus, one inside and the other out; for, if we open his body, we find
lungs there also. This is a state of things we find to exist for a time in the tadpole; but the external,
after a time, are exchanged for internal lungs; whereas in the proteus the external ones are never
dropped. So curious, indeed, is the form of this creature - we know nothing of its habits - that it has
been maintained that it is only the larva of some other beast. This theory will not, however, do
because ova or eggs have been found in specimens, proving that the proteus, or “Bela riba,” as the
folks near Adelsberg call it, is a distinct animal, and never “turns” into anything else.
Mr. Buxton has kindly lent me the proteus for a few days; and I have placed it in THE FIELD
office (covered, however, with a cloth, as it must be always in the dark). I shall be pleased to show
this curious fellow to those who would like to examine it.? F.T. BUCKLAND
272
DODATEK III
FRANCIS BUCKLAND O MO»ERILU LETA 186364
Kjerkoli gledamo s pozornim o~esom in katerikoli koti~ek zemlje raziskujemo, naj bo to vrh
gore, blatna luæa, hitri hudournik ali temne skrivnostne jame, brez dvoma bomo na{li æivljenje v tej
ali oni obliki. Kdo bi bil verjel, da v ~udni, skoraj nadnaravni jami, ki jo je opisal g. Buxton, obstoja
kakr{nokoli æivo bitje. Toda tudi v teh voda Stiksa najdemo domovanje bitja, ki ima ~udno ne samo
zunanjost, ampak {e bolj ~udno anatomijo. Na prvi pogled spominja na ogromnega belega
zemeljskega ~rva, ali, kakor so rekli drugi “na mladi~ka” jegulje. Plava s hitrimi ka~astimi gibi,
toda ima {tiri noge - ne zelo dobre, niti krepke niti ~vrste, ampak nekak{ne napol kon~ane noge,
kakor da bi se bila narava ne mogla odlo~iti, ko je snovala æival, ali naj ji naredi plavuti ali noge,
nato pa je pozabila dokon~ati svoje delo. Na zadnjem delu glave sta vidni dve rde~i resici (~opka).
To sta dve pravi zunanji dihalni {krgi. Sre~na pojava, ta mo~eril: ima dvojni dihalni aparat, enega v
telesu in drugega zunaj njega; kajti, ~e odpremo njegovo telo, odkrijemo plju~a. To je stanje, ki ga
poznamo pri æabjih paglavcih, kjer pa zunanje {krge ~ez ~as zamenjajo plju~a; pri mo~erilu pa
zunanje {krge nikoli ne zakrnijo. Zares ~udne oblike ima ta stvor, ni~esar ne vemo o njegovih navadah
zato so dolgo mislili, da je le li~inka neke druge æivali. Toda ta teorija ne vzdræi, kajti v nekaterih
primerkih so na{li jajca, ki dokazujejo, da je mo~eril ali “bela riba” kot ga imenujejo ljudje okoli
Postojne, samostojna æival, ki se nikoli ne spremeni v ni~ drugega.
G. Buxton mi je prijazno posodil mo~erila za nekaj dni; nastanil sem ga v pisarni ~asopisa The
Field (pokritega z odejo, kajti vedno mora biti v temi). Z veseljem ga bom pokazal tistim
radovedneæem, ki bi si ga radi ogledali. F.T. Buckland
273
APPENDIX IV
W.W. SPICER ON PROTEUS IN 186966
DODATEK IV
W.W. SPICER O MO»ERILU LETA 186966
274
APPENDIX V
THE GROTTOES OF ADELSBERG, AND THE PROTEUS ANGUINUS
BY WILLIAM HENDERSON
(THE PARTS CONCERNING PROTEUS REPRODUCED
FROM THE ORIGINAL OF 1866110)
DODATEK V
POSTOJNSKA JAMA IN PROTEUS ANGUINUS, WILLIAM HENDERSON
(DELI, KI SE TI»EJO MO»ERILA, SO REPRODUKCIJA
ORIGINALA IZ LETA 1866110)
Note: On p.318 “D-” is Henderson’s home town of Durham in northern England
275
276
277
NOTES AND REFERENCES
OPOMBE IN OBJAVE
1.
2.
3.
4.
4A
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
Laurenti, J.N. 1768 Specimen medicum, exhibens synopsin reptilium .... Wien, 214 pp.
(P. 37 & Tab. IV)
Elikan, J. 1997. Æivali naprodaj. Mladina, Ljubljana (16), 22 April: 28-32.
Valvasor, J.W. 1689. Die Ehre dess Herzogthums Crain ... Laybach & Nürnberg, W.M. Endter,
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Steinberg, F.A. von. 1758. Gründliche Nachricht von dem in dem Inner=Krain gelagenen
Czirknitzer=See. Laybach, A.E. Reichardtin, ∞xii≥, 235, ∞i≥ pp. (p. 197).
A photograph of the well-head in situ at the Lido is published as plate 124∞b≥ in F. Ongania.
Raccolta delle vere da pozzo in Venezia, Venezia, 1889
Slika vodnjaka in situ na Lidu, objavljena kot tabla 124∞b≥ v F. Ongania. Raccolta delle vere
da pozzo in Venezia, Venezia, 1889
Vornatscher, J. 1972. Seit wann ist der Grottenholm bekannt? Die Höhle, Wien, 23 (2):41-44.
Shaw, G. 1802. General zoology, or systematic natural history. London, G. Kearsley. Vol.
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The information in this paragraph comes from M. AljanËiË (ed.). 1993. Proteus the mysterious
ruler of darkness. Ljubljana, Vitrum, 75 pp. (pp. 23-27)
Informacija v tem odstavku prihaja od M. Aljan~i~a (Ured.) 1993. Proteus the mysterious
ruler of darkness. Ljubljana, Vitrum, 75 pp. (pp. 23-27)
Information from M. AljanËiË, 22 Sept. 1998
Informacija M. Aljan~i~a, 22. september 1998
Cadell, W.A. 1820. A journey in Carniola, Italy, and France, in the years 1817, 1818....
Edinburgh, A. Constable, 2 vols. (vol. 1, pp. 21-23)
Configliachi, P. and M. Rusconi. 1819. Del Proteo anguino di Laurenti monografia. Pavia,
∞vii≥, 119pp. (pp.13-18). An edited text was translated into English and published with some
of the illustrations as “Observations on the natural history and structure of the Proteus Anguinus”
in The Edinburgh Philosophical Journal 4 (8) April 1821 : 398-405: and 5 (9) July 1821 : 84112. The longer quotation printed here is taken from this version, with the temperatures
converted to Celsius from the Réaumur scale of the original Italian.
Configliachi, P. in M. Rusconi. 1819. Del Proteo anguino di Laurenti monografia, Pavia,
∞vii≥, 119 pp. (pp. 13-18). Pregledano besedilo je bilo prevedeno v angle{~ino in objavljeno z
nekaterimi ilustracijami kot “Observations on the natural history and structure of the Proteus
Anguinus” v The Edinburgh Philosophical Journal 4 (8) april 1821 : 398-405: in 5 (9) julij
1821 : 84-112. Dalj{i citat, ki je tu objavljen, je vzet iz te verzije, s temperaturami, prevedenimi
v stopinje celzija iz Réaumur-jeve lestvice v originalnem italijanskem besedilu.
For portait of Hoppe, see Acta Carsologica, 27 (2) 1998:238
Za Hoppovo sliko glej Acta carsologica 27/2, 1998:238
Hoppe, D.H,. and H. ∞=F≥. Hornschuch. 1823. Journal of a tour to the coast of the Adriatic
Sea, and to the mountains of Carniola ... Edinburgh Philosophical Journal, 8 (16):311-326 (p.
314). (one of a series of articles, 1823-1824, containing a shortened English translation of the
278
authors’ Tagebuch einer Reise nach den Küsten des adriatischen Meers .... Regensburg, 1818)
Hoppe, D.H,. and H. ∞=F≥. Hornschuch. 1823. Journal of a tour to the coast of the Adriatic
Sea, and to the mountains of Carniola ... Edinburgh Philosophical Journal, 8 (16):311-326 (p.
314). (eden iz serije ~lankov, 1823-1824, ki vsebuje skraj{an angle{ki prevod avtorjevega
Tagebuch einer Reise nach den Küsten des adriatischen Meers .... Regensburg, 1818)
13. Anon. ∞1847≥. The caves of the earth ... London, Religious Tract Society. vi, 192 pp. (p.80)
14. Hohenwart, F. ∞J.H.≥. 1840. Die Proteen. Carniolia, Laibach, 3 (11):41-42. The story has been
retold, without giving the precise location, by M. AljanËiË. 1994. Ali je Ëlove{ka ribica - uæitna?
Proteus, Ljubljana. 56(9):345
Hohenwart, F. ∞J.H.≥. 1840. Die Proteen. Carniolia, Laibach, 3 (11):41-42. Zgodbo je ponovno
povedal M. Aljan~i~, ne da bi dal to~no lokacijo. 1994. Ali je Ëlove{ka ribica - uæitna? Proteus,
Ljubljana. 56(9):345
15. Kranjc, A. 1990. Dolenjski kra{ki svet. Novo Mesto, Dolenjska zaloæba, 240pp. (p.106)
16. Murchison, R.I. 1829. Field notebook (3):33. Geological Society of London MS. M/N 48
17. Information from S. Polak 18 Sept. 1998 and M. AljanËiË 22 Sept. 1998
Informacija S. Polaka, 18.9.1998 in M. Aljan~i~a, 22.9.1998
18. Information from A. and M. Kranjc 1998
Informacija A. in M. Kranjc, 1998
19. Information from S. Polak 18 Sept 1998
Informacija S. Polak, 18.9.1998
20. Murray, J. 1837. A handbook for travellers in Southern Germany.... London, J. Murray, vii,
407pp. (p.290)
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22. Murray, J. 1890. A handbook for travellers in South Germany and Austria. Part I. ... London,
J. Murray, xiii ∞1≥-373, 567-626 (p.216)
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6th edn. Leipsic, K. Baedeker etc. xxii, 492pp (p.412)
26. Hartwig, G. 1871. The subterranean world. London, Longmans, Green. xix, 522pp. (p.167)
27. As note 26 but p. 165. These passages were reprinted as late as 1888 in G. Hartwig’s Marvels
under our feet, London, Longmans, Green, 144pp. (pp.50,51)
Enako kot opomba 26, toda na strani 165. Ti deli so bili ponatisnjeni {ele 1888 v G. Hartwig’s
Marvels under our feet, London, Longmans, Green, 144pp. (pp.50,51)
28. Pancini, D. 1881. Impressioni d’una gita alla Grotta di Adelsberg. Udine. 62pp. (p.29)
29. Archives of Postojnska jama, held at the Karst Research Institute, Postojna.
Arhiv Postojnske jame, ki ga hrani In{titut za raziskovanje krasa ZRC SAZU v Postojni.
29A. Reproduced from M. Vialli, ’Mauro Rusconi (1776-1849)’, pp. 283-290 in Discipline e maestri
dell’ Ateneo Pavese 1361 - Università de Pavia 1961, Verona, A. Mondatori, 1961, 384 pp.
(p.∞289≥)
279
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.
41.
42.
43.
44.
45.
46.
47.
Reproducirano po M. Vialli, ’Mauro Rusconi (1776-1849)’, pp. 283-290 in Discipline e maestri
dell’ Ateneo Pavese 1361 - Università de Pavia 1961, Verona, A. Mondatori, 1961, 384 pp.
(p.∞289≥)
Dictionary of national biography. London
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Likar (eds.) HistoriËni seminar II. Ljubljana, Zaloæba ZRC, 250pp. (p.188)
Stammbuch der Adelsberger Grotte. From Sept. 1819, many vols., MS. Vol. 9 (July 1892June 1897) is missing
Stammbuch der Adelsberger Grotte. Od septembra 1819, veË delov, rokopis. Knjiga 9 (julij
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Russell, J. 1825. A tour in Germany and some of the southern provinces of the Austrian Empire,
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Babbage, C. 1864. Passages from the life of a philosopher. London, Longmans, Green, etc.,
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Anon. 1833. The grotto of Adelsberg. The Saturday Magazine, London, 2 (55):183
Hamilton, W.J. 1842. Researches in Asia Minor, Pontus, and Armenia .... London, J. Murray.
2 vols. (vol. 1, p.5)
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∞Spencer, E≥ 1836. Sketches of Germany and the Germans, with a glance at Poland, Hungary,
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unpublished manuscript of John Oliver. Na{e jame, Ljubljana, (22) for 1980:119-129
Oliver, J. ∞1856≥. A description of the caverns of Adelsberg... together with ... supplementary
notes. Manuscript in library of Karst Research Institute, Postojna, 49+∞56≥pp. (p.∞28≥ of the
Supplementary Notes and Proteus picture opp. p.29 of the main text)
Oliver, J. ∞1856≥. Opis Postojnske jame ... skupaj z ... dodatnimi opombami. Rokopis v knjiænici
In{tituta za raziskovanje krasa ZRC SAZU v Postojni, 49+∞56≥pp. (p.∞28≥ Supplementary Notes
and Proteus picture opp. p.29 glavnega besedila)
Davy, H. 1851. Consolations in travel, or, the last days of a philosopher. 5 th edn., London, J.
Murray, iv ∞v≥, 297pp. (p.197)
Galton, F. 1891. Narrative of an explorer in tropical South Africa... in 1851. London, Ward,
Lock, xviii, ∞ii≥, 320 pp. (frontis.)
Gillispie, C.C. (ed.). 1972. Dictionary of scientific biography, New York, Scribner, 5:265267
Galton, F. 1908. Memories of my life. London, Methuen, viii, 339pp (p.56)
Allan, J.H. 1843. A pictorial tour in the Mediterranean.... London, Longman etc. ∞viii≥, 96p.
(p.8)
Venn, J.A. 1954. Alumni Cantabrigienses ... Part II 1752 to 1900, Cambridge University
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280
47A Dalton, J.C. 1853. Some account of the Proteus anguinus. The American Journal of Science
and Arts ser. 2, 15 (45):387-393, plate III; also reprinted in The Edinburgh New Philosophical
Journal 55 (110), 1853:332-340
48. H∞enderson≥, W∞illiam≥. 1866. The grottoes of Adelsberg, and the Proteus anguinus. A few
pages from the journal of a continental tour. The Monthly Packet of evening readings for
members of the English Church, London, N.S. 1 (5):459-469. (pp.465-466)
Also printed, under the same title, as Appendix III (pp.309-324) of : Henderson, W. 1876.
Notes and reminiscences of my life as an angler. Printed by Spottiswoode & Co., London, for
private circulation only, xiii, ∞i≥, 324 pp (pp.318-319)
H∞enderson≥, W∞illiam≥. 1866. The grottoes of Adelsberg, and the Proteus anguinus. Nekaj
strani iz dnevnika potovanja po celini. The Monthly Packet of evening readings for members
of the English Church, London, N.S. 1 (5):459-469. (pp.465-466)
Tudi tiskano, pod istim naslovom kot Appendix III (pp.309-324) of : Henderson, W. 1876.
Notes and reminiscences of my life as an angler. Printed by Spottiswoode & Co., London, for
private circulation only, xiii, ∞i≥, 324 pp (pp.318-319)
49. Venn, J.A. 1940. Alumni Cantabrienses ... part II 1752 to 1900. Cambridge University Press,
1 : 482
50. Buxton, H.E. 1863. Living specimen of the Proteus. The Field..., 21 (530) : 179
51. Who was who vol. III. 1929-1940. London, A & C. Black, 1941, 1500 pp. (p.1500)
52. Zimmern, H. ∞1875≥. A visit to the caves of Adelsberg. Pp.41-51 in E. Hodder (ed.) All the
world over ∞vol. 1≥. London, T. Cook, viii, 484 pp. (p.50)
53. Joly, R. de. 1951. Armand Viré (1869-1951). Bull. Comité National de Spéléologie, Paris 1
(2-3) : 44-45
54. Viré, A. 1900. Recherches dans les cavernes d’Autriche, en avril 1900. Bull. Muséum d’Histoire
Naturelle, Paris, 6 (5) : 233-236
55. Viré, A. 1900. Sur trente exemplaires de Protées récemment rapportés au Muséum. Bull.
Muséum d’Histoire Naturelle, 6 (4) : 174-175. (p. 174)
56. Sket, B. 1996. Biotic diversity of hypogean habitats in Slovenia and its cultural importance.
Pp. 59-74 in Biodiversity International Biodiversity Seminar Ecco XIV Meeting June 30 - July
4, 1995 ∞at≥ Gozd Martuljek, Slovenia. Ljubljana. (p. 69)
57. Venn, J.A. 1951. Alumni Cantabrienses ... part II 1752 to 1900. Cambridge University Press,
4: 235
58. Wagner, R. 1837. ∞On Proteus anguinus≥. Proc. Zoological Society of London, 5:107-108
59. Wagner, R. 1844. Elements of physiology ..., trans. R. Willis. London, 700 pp. (pp.235-235)
60. Gulliver, G. 1848. Additional measurements of the red corpuscles of the blood of vertebrata.
No.4. Proc. Zoological Society of London for 1848, 16:36-38 (pp.37-38)
61. Wolstenholme, G. (ed.). The Royal College of Physicians of London portraits. London, J & A
Churchill, 468pp. (pp.56-57)
62. Brown, G.H. (comp.) 1955. Lives of the fellows of the Royal College of Physicians of London
∞Munk’s roll≥ vol. 4. 1826-1925. London, the College, ix, ∞i≥, 637pp. (p. 100)
63. Wood, J.G. 1863. The illustrated natural history ∞vol. 3≥ Reptiles, fishes, molluscs, & c. London,
Routledge etc., ∞iv≥, 810 pp (pp. 193, 194)
64. Buckland, F. ∞T≥. 1863. Living specimen of the Proteus. The Field ... 21 (530):179
281
65. Desmond, R. 1977. Dictionary of British and Irish botanists ... London, Taylor & Francis,
xxvi, 747 pp. (p.577)
66. Spicer, W.W. 1869. Proteus anguinus. Hardwicke’s Science- Gossip, London (54):135
67. He makes no mention of food in the Proteus section (p.78) of his Analytischer
Leitfaden...Hannover. 1869
V delu Analytischer Leitfaden..., kjer govori o mo~erilu (str. 78), ne omenja hrane. Hannover.
1869
68. Leipner, A. 1868. Proteus anguinus. Proc. Bristol Naturalists’ Society, 3 (3):25-26
69. Phillips, F.C. 1962. The first hundred years a centenary history of the Bristol Naturalists’
Society 1862-1962. Proc. Bristol Naturalists’ Society 30 (3A) : 181-214 (opp. p. 184)
70. Henderson, W. 1879. My life as an angler. London, Satchell, Peyton, xvi, 312 p.
71. Boase, F. 1912. Modern English biography 5 : 631
72. As note 48, but quoted from p. 468 of the 1866 publication (pp. 323-324 of that of 1876)
Enako kot opomba 48, toda citirano s strani 468 publikacije iz leta 1866 (pp. 323-324 iz 1876)
73. Gulliver, G. 1862. Blood-corpuscles of birds, ... reptiles ... and of fishes. Medical Times and
Gazette, London 2 (643):429-431 (Proteus p. 430)
74. Gulliver, G. 1862. On the red corpuscles of the blood of vertebrata ... Proc. Zoological Society
of London for 1862 : 91-103 (Proteus pp. 98, 101, 103)
75. Gulliver, G. 1873. Measurements of the red blood-corpuscles of batrachians. Proc. Zoological
Society of London for 1873 : 162-165 (Proteus pp. 163-165)
76. Plarr. 1930. Plarr’s lives of the fellows of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, London,
the College, 2 : 392-393
77. Neal, R.A. 1964. Dr. R.S.J. Hawes ∞obituary≥. Nature, London 202 (4932) May 9:542
78. Hawes, R.S. ∞J≥. 1938. Effect on organisms of summer drought in caves Nature, London, 141,
April 2 : 607
79. This second visit was after 193777,78 and must have been before World War II started late in
1939.
Drugi obisk je bil po letu 193777, 78 in pred za~etkom 2. svetovne vojne, ki se je zaËela kasno v
l.1939.
80. Hawes told the author in 1948 that he had kept them “in his bath”. His only publication on
Proteus (Animal life in caves. New Biology, London, 3, 1947:82-103) does not refer to his
own specimens.
Hawes je leta 1948 povedal avtorju, da jih je hranil “v kopalni kadi”. Njegova edina publikacija
o mo~erilu (Animal life in caves. New Biology, London, 3, 1947:82-103) ne omenja njegovih
lastnih primerkov.
81. Information from Ian J. Linn, formerly of the University of Exeter, 27 November 1998
Informacija Iana J. Linna, nekdaj na Univerzi v Exetru, 27. novembra 1998.
82. Who was who vol VIII 1881-1990. London, A & C Black, 1991, 46, 845 pp. (p.510)
83. Chapman, P. ∞R.J.≥. 1993. Caves and cave life. London HarperCollins, 219, ∞v≥ pp. (p.140).
The source of this information is unknown.
Vir podatka je neznan.
84. Information from R.A.J. Pearce, 8 November 1998
Informacija R. A. J. Pearcea, 8.11.1998.
282
84A. Information from Dr Roger Avery of the University of Bristol, 12 January 1999
Informacija dr. Rogerja Averyja, Univerza v Bristolu, 12.1.1999.
85. Zoological Society of London. Occurrences at the garden. Single sheets so headed and bound
into annual volumes. Sometimes called the “Daily Occurrence Books”. From 1828. The volume
for 1832 has been lost.
Zoolo{ko dru{tvo, London. Pojavi v vrtu. Posamezni listi s takim naslovom so vezani v letne
zvezke. V~asih jih imenujejo “Knjige dnevnih opaæanj”. Iz 1828. Zvezek za l.1832 je izgubljen.
86. List of vertebrated animals living in the gardens of the Zoological Society of London. 1862.
London, 1862, iv, ∞i≥, 100pp (p.96) (also other editions including those listed in notes 88, 9092 below.
87. Zoological Society of London. 1861. Additions to the menagerie. Proc. Zoological Society of
London for 1861 : 365. Only one Proteus was given by Falconer as stated in this reference and
in the MS. Occurrences sheet75. The 1862 publication86 lists two in error.
Zoological Society of London. 1861. Additions to the menagerie. Proc. Zoological Society of
London for 1861 : 365, po tej referenci in po “MS. Occurrences sheet” 75 je Falconer dal samo
enega mo~erila. Publikacija86 iz 1862 po pomoti navaja dva.
88. List of vertebrated animals living in the gardens of the Zoological Society of London. 1865. 3rd
edn. London, 1865, iv, ∞iii≥, 148pp. (p.140)
89. The date of Chambers’s gift is given wrongly as 17 July in the printed list of 1865 88. It appears
on the Occurrence sheet85 of 11 July
Datum Chamberjevega darila je v tiskanem seznamu iz 1865 88 napa~no napisan kot 17. julij.
Na “Occurrence sheet” 85 je datum 11. julij.
90. List of the vertebrated animals now or lately living in the gardens of the Zoological Society of
London. 1877. 6th edn. London 1877, iv, ∞v≥, 519 pp. (p.480)
91. List of the vertebrated animals now or lately living in the gardens of the Zoological society of
London. 1879. 7th edn. London, 1879 iv, ∞vii≥ 579pp. (p.538)
92. List of the vertebrated animals now or lately living in the gardens of the Zoological Society of
London. 1896/9th edn. London 1896, xvi, 724pp (p.664)
93. The calendar of Kings’ College, London for 1849-50. London, J.W. Parker, 1849, 344pp.
(pp.123-124)
94. Churton, E. 1839. Churton’s portrait and landscape gallery ..., vol. 2. London, E. Churton
95. As note 65, but p. 168
Kot opomba 65, toda na str. 168.
96. Burke, B. 1856. A genealogical and heraldic dictionary of the peerage and baronetage of the
British Empire. 18th edn. London, Hurst & Blackett, xxxii, ∞i≥, 1187, ∞i≥ pp. (p.127)
97. Venn, J.A. 1944. Alumni Cantabrienses .. part II 1752 to 1900. Cambridge University Press,
2 : 208
98. Maempel, G.Z. 1989. Pioneers of Maltese geology. Malta, Mid-Med Bank, 302 pp. (pp.6570)
99. Dixon, H.H. 1910. Edward Perceval Wright. The Irish Naturalist 19 (4) : 61-63
100. J., B.D. 1913. Frederick Merryweather Burton. Proc. Linnean Society of London, 125th session,
1912-1913 :53
101. De Trafford, H.F. ∞1907≥ The horses of the British Empire, vol. 2. London, W. Southwood
283
102. A lists of the fellows ... of the Zoological Society of London. Corrected to ... 1920 : 72. Also
certified copy of an entry of death given at the General Register Office ∞London≥
103. Wilson, W.L. (ed.) 1902. The imperial gallery of portaiture and biographical encyclopeadia.
London, Iliffe, ∞xvi≥, 344pp (pp.333-334)
104. As note 62, but p.317
105. The correspondence of Charles Darwin vol. 9 1861. Cambridge University Press, 1994,
(pp.187-188)
106. Darwin, C. 1859. On the origin of species by means of natural section, or the preservation of
favoured races in the struggle for life. London, J. Murray, ix. 502pp. (p.139)
107. As note 105, but pp. 188-189
Kot opomba 105, toda na str.188-189.
108. As note 55., but p. 175
Kot opomba 55, toda na str. 175.
109. ∞Sullivan≥, G. Nicholas. 1967. Olms ... Animal kingdom, New York, 70 (3):84-87
110. As note 48 but reprinted from pp. 317-324 of the 1867 publication.
Kot opomba 48, toda ponatisnjeno s str. 317-324 iz 1867.
284
MOÊRIL V 19. STOLETJU ZA PRODAJO IN ZA ZNANOST
UVOD
Proteus anguinus ni zanimiv le z zoolo{kega in razvojnega vidika, ampak je postal znan tudi iz
drugih razlogov: je prva formalno opisana jamska æival (J.N. Laurenti1 1768); je eden od simbolov
mesta Postojne in Postojnske jame, upodobljen npr. tudi na registrskih tablicah; in nedavno odkrita
~rna razli~ica je bila objavljena na naslovnici znanega slovenskega tednika Mladine v zvezi s
~lankom2 o nevarnosti prodajanja jamskega æivalstva.
Mo~erila, danes strogo za{~iteno vrsto, so v 19. stol. ponujali na prodaj popotnikom, v~asih pa
so ga tudi jedli. Tiste primerke, kupljene v Postojni ali pred jamo, so popotniki ~esto vzeli s seboj
domov le kot redkost, o nekaterih primerkih so poro~ali naravoslovci, nekatere so pa podarili
æivalskim vrtovom. O vseh teh vidikih govori pri~ujo~i prispevek.
[e preden je Laurenti zoolo{ko popisal in poimenoval Proteja, sta bila o tej æivali objavljena æe
dva opisa, oba sta napisala ~loveka, ki æivali same nista videla.
1689 je Valvasor3 opisal æival, ki je bila gotovo mo~eril, najdeno v zaganjalki Lintvern pri
Vrhniki. Novico je izvedel od po{tarja, ki mu je tudi povedal, da je bil “domnevni zmaj komaj ped
∞okoli 20 cm≥ dolg”.
Steinberg4 je zapisal, da je
1751 Primus Sicherle ∞Primoæ Ziherl≥ ob zelo visoki vodi ∞ki priteka iz izvirov Malni pri
Planini≥ ujel v reki Unici pet neznanih rib, ped ∞okoli 23 cm≥ dolgih, s sneænobelo koæo in
dolgim repom. Vsaka je imela po {tiri noge ... ki so cvilile in jokale, ko jih je predjal iz mreæe
v ~oln.
Ta nenavadna bitja, ki jih v~asih lahko vidimo v kra{kih izvirih, ko jih visoka voda prinese na
povr{je, so morala biti doma~inom znana æe veliko prej, preden so se zanje pri~eli zanimati u~enjaki.
Morda to potrjuje relief na kamnitem vencu vodnjaka v Benetkah (Sl. 1), za katerega mislijo, da
predstavlja mo~erila5 . Ta vodnjak iz 10. ali 11. stoletja je bil neko~ blizu cerkve San Nicolò na
otoku Lidu, danes pa je v “Kunsthistorisches Museum” na Dunaju.
Primerek, ki ga je videl in opisal Laurenti1 1768, je bil iz izvirov pri Sti~ni, okoli 40 km
jugovzhodno od Ljubljane, ki so ga prinesli idrijskemu rudni{kemu zdravniku G.A. Scopoliju.
Laurentijev opis je kratek, a zadovoljiv (samo 12 tiskanih vrstic), opremljen z danes æe klasi~no
ilustracijo mo~erila (Sl. 2). Pomotoma pa je kot nahajali{~e navedel Cerkni{ko jezero, morda zaradi
dejstva, da je bila Ziherlova najdba iz 1751 objavljena v knjigi o tem jezeru. Cerknica je bila v 19.
stoletju {e ve~krat navedena kot nahajali{~e, ~eprav tam mo~eril ni bil nikoli najden. Prve “jamske”
primerke mo~erila je odkril Joæef Jer{inove~ von Löwengreif v Pivki in ^rni jami (takrat znani pod
imenom “Magdalena Grotte”) 1797. Da je mo~erilov v resnici veliko, ni bilo znano do 1814, ko jih
je v ^rni jami ponovno na{el tudi Hohenwart. Od takrat dalje je bilo mo~erilov dovolj, tako da so
jih lahko lovili tudi za prodajo.
Naj omenim {e en formalni opis, izpod peresa Georga Shawa iz 1802. Ta je manj pomemben od
Laurentijevega, tudi ni bil prvi opis, pa~ pa je veliko bolj podroben. Kar {tiri strani je posve~enih tej
æivali z imenom Anguine Siren ali Proteus anguinus. Dodana je tudi zrcalna in “o~i{~ena” ina~ica
Laurentijeve ilustracije. Shawov opis v~asih navajajo kot prvega, npr. v objavljenih seznamih86
æivali londonskega Zoolo{kega dru{tva.
285
Po kratki razlagi, kako je mo~eril pri{el v roke znanstvenikom, muzejem in drugim v prvih letih
po odkritju, so v prispevku omenjene poti, po katerih je mo~eril pri{el tudi v “komercialno” uporabo
- za prodajo kot redka posebnost in za hrano ter za razne razstave kot ena od oblik “ogla{evanja”
Postojnske jame, s katero je postal v zavesti ljudi kmalu tesno povezan. Upo{tevana je tudi vloga
tiskanih vodnikov pri seznanjanju popotnikov z obstojem te nenavadne æivali in s tem, kje jo lahko
kupijo ter kako jo najlaæe prena{ajo.
Slede pisana poro~ila samih popotnikov o tem, kako so videli mo~erila ter kako in kje so jim ga
podarili oziroma so ga morebiti kupili.
V {tevilnih primerih o teh æivalih ni ve~ sli{ati, nekaterim pa lahko sledimo prav na domove
naravoslovcev, kjer so jih pozorno opazovali in o njih tudi poro~ali. êsto se ta poro~ila pojavljajo
v ~asopisih z neverjetnimi imeni, kot npr. Hardwickov znanstveni klepet, Zdravni{ki Times & Gazette
in celo Mese~ni sveæenj ve~ernega branja za ~lane Anglikanske cerkve, od katerih nobenega ne
moremo {teti med vodilno zoolo{ko literaturo. Zaradi tega bodo iz njih ponatisnjeni dalj{i odlomki,
a v prilogi, da ne bi obremenjevali besedila in ovirali glavne snovi. Nimam namena ponatisniti
gradiva, ki je predvsem anatomske ali fiziolo{ke vsebine, ga kve~jemu navajam ali morebiti zgo{~eno
povzamem, v kolikor se nana{a na druge navedbe.
Nekaj primerkov mo~erilov so lastniki podarili ustreznim organizacijam, univerzam in æivalskim
vrtovom. Tudi to sku{am podrobno dokumentirati, kolikor je le mogo~e, vklju~no z zaznamki
darovateljev. Posebej se mi zdi zanimivo, da je bil primerek podarjen tudi Charlesu Darwinu, ki je
razpravljal o mo~erilu æe v Nastanku vrst.
Prispevek ima dva namena:
a) preu~iti prodajo in uporabo mo~erila v 19. stoletju;
b) omogo~iti dostop do malo znanih poro~il naravoslovcev, ki so mo~erile obdræali pri sebi in jih
opazovali.
Nenavadni viri so predvsem angle{ke objave, ki so pritegnile avtorjevo pozornost. To pomeni,
da bi lahko zgodovinarji tudi v drugih deæelah pristopili k podobnim preu~evanjem in morda odkrili
nove podatke o mo~erilovem obna{anju in æivljenju v ujetni{tvu.
MO»ERIL ...
... kot darilo
Posebno zgodaj, ko je bil mo~eril {ele odkrit in bil zelo nenavadna æival, je bilo veliko primerkov
poslanih kot darilo iz Slovenije raznim znanstvenikom in vplivnim moæem.
Scopoli, kot je bilo æe omenjeno, je priskrbel primerek, ki ga je opisal Laurenti, poslal je pa tudi
dobro ohranjene primerke Carlu Schreibersu (1775-1852), direktorju Naravoslovnega muzeja na
Dunaju, ki jih je nekaj poslal dalje sorodnim in{titucijam. Kasneje so mu poslali tudi æive primerke.
Baron @iga Zois (1747-1819), ki je tudi sam preu~eval to æival, je poslal nekaj primerkov Schreibersu
in tudi drugam v tujino, tako kot tudi v 19. stoletju direktor ljubljanskega muzeja, Henrik Freyer
(1802-1866). Zois je bil tisti, ki je priskrbel nadvojvodi Janezu mo~erila za njegov akvarij na Dunaju 7.
Tudi v novej{em ~asu je bil mo~eril statusno darilo, kot æival, tesno povezana s Slovenijo. Tako
je predsednik Tito v 60-tih letih podaril japonskemu cesarju Hirohitu, sicer biologu, pet mo~erilov
iz Planinske jame.
286
... za prodajo
Mo~eril je bil naprodaj æe vsaj leta 1816. Avgusta tega leta sta ga v ^rni jami iskala Pietro
Configliachi in Mauro Rusconi in o tem zapisala v svoji italijanski monografiji:
... prebivalci Postojne lovijo proteje, ki jih imenujejo “bele ribe” ∞v ^rni jami≥ in jih
~uvajo æive v posodah, da jih lahko prodajajo popotnikom, ki pridejo na Kranjsko in jih take
stvari zanimajo, ali pa jih nosijo na trg v Trst, kjer jih razmeroma poceni prodajajo, po dve
ali tri lire za enega 10.
Ta trg je bil znan po raznovrstnih ribah in drugem, kar so tam prodajali. Tako sta 2. marca 1816
botanika D.H. Hoppe11 in C.F. Hornschuch
...{la ... da obi{~eva ribji trg v Trstu ... da bi dobila {koljke. Naprodaj je bilo mnogo
morskih æivali in razli~nih vrst rib, ki jih ve~inoma nisva poznala.12
Vest o prodaji mo~erilov je v angle{~ini objavil W.A. Cadell 1820, v opisu svojega obiska
Postojnske jame novembra 1817. O mo~erilu je zapisal: “Doma~ini jih v~asih prineso æive v Trst in
jih prodajajo kot posebno zanimivost.”9 Novica se je raz{irila s ponatisom Configliachijevih in
Rusconijevih navedb v ve~ izdajah priljubljene knjige “Jame sveta”, prvi~ izdane 184713.
... kot hrana
êprav pravi Cadell9, da je bil mo~eril v Trstu naprodaj “kot zanimivost”, pa dejstvo, da ga je
bilo mogo~e dobiti na ribjem trgu govori za to, da je bil vsaj kdaj naprodaj kot prehrambeni artikel.
Prvi zapisani primer uæivanja mo~erila je iz 1834, kot poro~a Hohenwart14 nekaj let kasneje.
Tega leta so prebivalci vasi Potiskavec v Dobrepolju (Dolenjska) ~istili jamo, iz katere so dobivali
pitno vodo (to je Potiskav{ko jamo, v kateri doma~ini {e vedno zajemajo vodo ob su{i15). Med
blatom in kamenjem so na{li ve~ mo~erilov in jih dali na stran, da bi pozneje pri{li ponje. @ivali
niso nameravali pojesti, saj so jih najbræ imeli za strupene, kot podobna bitja; toda skupina Ciganov
jih je spekla in pojedla brez {kodljivih posledic.
Drugo jamsko æival - raka, so jedli celo pred 1834. Angle{ki geolog Roderick Impey Murchison
(1792-1871), je v svojem neobjavljenem terenskem dnevniku ob opisu obiska Postojnske jame 17.
avgusta 1829 tudi zapisal:
ko smo se vrnili v drugi rokav, smo sledili re~nemu teku kake 1/4 milje dale~ in lovili
rake, ki smo jih pojedli za ve~erjo - ta bitja je privla~evala svetloba lu~i vodnikov16.
Ti uæitni raki so morali biti povr{inska vrsta Ostacus ostacus, pogosta tudi v podzemeljski Pivki,
kjer ji apnen~ev prod v Tartarju v Postojnski jami nudi dobro bivali{~e. @ivali so v 19. stoletju
izginile iz jame zaradi bolezni, a so jih ponovno naselili s primerki iz ZDA, ki so jih nato lovili v
^rni in Pivki jami tja do 60-tih let tega stoletja17.
Naj se vrnem nazaj k mo~erilu in omenim govorice, da so mo~erila jedli tudi v novej{em ~asu.
Kroæi zgodba, da je Ljudevit Ku{~er (1891-1944), biolog in malakolog, jedel pe~ene mo~erile.
Re~eno je bilo tudi, da je imel Egon Pretner (1896-1982) neko~ priliko kupiti mo~erile na trgu v
Puli ali Pazinu in je kasneje obæaloval, da tega ni storil18. Postojnski jamski vodnik je povedal, da se
je tam okoli 1990 neki italijanski obiskovalec zanimal, kje bi lahko dobil kuhane mo~erile, ~e{ da
mu je bilo re~eno, da jih nekje streæejo “pod pultom”. Lahko da je bil ærtev {ale, lahko da je bilo res,
toda v vsakem primeru zgodba zasluæi, da se jo zapi{e.
287
... v vodnikih
Zgodovinski podatki o prodaji mo~erilov so zanimivi danes, toda v preteklosti niso imeli
nobenega vpliva na potnike in obiskovalce. îsto druga~no pa je to stali{~e v Murrayjevi knjigi
Handbook for Travellers in Southern Germany ... (Sl. 4):
Primerke mo~erila lahko obi~ajno kupimo v gostilni v Postojni. Edini na~in, da ostanejo
æivi je, da jih hranimo v vodi, zajeti iz reke, ki jo redno menjamo in jih za{~itimo pred svetlobo,
ki jim je zelo nadleæna; vzdræevati moramo tudi stalno temperaturo.
To navodilo je iz{lo v prvi izdaji njegovega vodnika 20 leta 1837 in se je pojavljalo v vsaki izdaji
do {tirinajste, ki je iz{la 1881. “Gostilna”, o kateri je govora, je bila do 1840. leta Osteria Grande.
Po 1850 je bila Zur ungarische Krone (od 1867 Zur goldenen Krone) in nekaj ~asa tudi kraj, kjer so
se obiskovalci prijavili in pla~ali vstopnino za jamo.
Od druge izdaje 21 (1840) do te iz 1858 je v knjigi tudi stavek:
Ve~ mo~erilov hranijo v potoku v jami, da jih kaæejo tujcem, vendar tam ne æivijo, niti
se ne razmnoæujejo.”
Leta 1890 22 ni ve~ omembe mo~erila za prodajo, ampak:
Primerke mo~erila lahko obi~ajno vidimo v Postojni.
[e bolj raz{irjeni so bili Baedeker-jevi vodniki, ki so iz{li za to podro~je v mnogih jezikih od
1868 dalje, vendar nikjer ne omenjajo prodaje æivali, ampak samo:
Obi~ajno so primerki razstavljeni za obiskovalce v Postojnski jami (186823 , 1871)
... æivi primerki, ki jih obi~ajno pokaæejo obiskovalcem ... (187324)
... obi~ajno lahko vidimo æive primerke v Postojni (188825, 1891, 1895)
Podobne napotke najdemo v mnogih izdajah priljubljene knjige The Subterranean World
(Sl. 5), ki je iz{la v vsaj treh jezikih med 1863 in 1881:
Najbolj{i na~in za prevoz mo~erilov je zdaj popolnoma znan in æive primerke so prepeljali
celo v Rusijo, na Madæarsko in na [kotsko. Vse kar potrebujemo, je pogosto menjavanje
sveæe vode in skrbno varovanje pred svetlobo. Za hrano ni treba skrbeti, kajti voda vsebuje
vse, kar potrebujejo. Priporo~ljivo je poloæiti kos kapnika iz njihove rojstne jame v posodo,
v kateri jih prena{amo. Ko po~ivajo ali spijo, se zvijejo okrog kamna, kot da bi ga neæno
objemali. Na ta na~in so preæiveli izven jame ve~ kot pet let. Vodniki v Postojnski jami
imajo mo~erile vedno na zalogi in jih prodajajo po dva forinta 26.
Da potniki niso samo brali, ampak se tudi dræali Murtrayjevih navodil, je jasno iz ponavljajo~ih
se navodil, naj uporabljajo re~no vodo in jo pogosto menjajo na poti domov.
Kot bi bilo pri~akovati, je redna trgovina z æivimi mo~erili zmanj{ala njihovo {tevilo, nenavadno
pa je, da v stoletju, ki je bilo dale~ od naravovarstvene zavesti, najdemo æe 1863 leta naslednje
besede:
... ker so se æe stotine primerkov zna{le v sobah naravoslovcev, da bi jih opazovali,
secirali ali hranili v alkoholu, je njihovo {tevilo zelo upadlo in mogo~e ni dale~ ~as, ko bodo
popolnoma izginili iz jame, kjer so od nekdaj uæivali nemoteno varnost 27.
288
... naprodaj ob vsakoletni Jamski veselici (Grottenfest)
Torej, mo~erili so bili obi~ajno naprodaj v gostilni v Postojni, ali pa so jih prodajali vodniki pri
jami, kot kaæejo poro~ila potnikov.
Toda nedvomno leta 1881, verjetno pa tudi v naslednjih letih, je bila v ~asu letne Jamske veselice
(Sl. 6), ki je bila na binko{tni ponedeljek, ko je bila tudi jama sve~ano osvetljena in so izletni{ki
vlaki pripeljali obiskovalce od blizu in dale~, pred vhodom v jamo postavljena stojnica za prodajo
mo~erilov. Leta 1881 je bila Jamska veselica 6. junija, kar je opisano v knjiæici furlanskega pesnika
Domenica Pancinija:
Na cesti, nedale~ od jame, ljudje prodajajo kose kapnikov razli~nih oblik in v stekleni~kah
vode nekaj podobnega pi{kurju, s perutni~kami na glavi in ne preve~ ljubkega videza, kajti
æivali so brez lusk in imajo barvo gole koæe, poleg tega pa so {e brez o~i. @ivijo v vodi, ki
te~e skozi jamo 28.
... kot reklamna darila Jamske uprave
Zdi se, da vsa prodaja mo~erilov, ki smo jo opisali do zdaj in o njej poro~ajo obiskovalci v
naslednjih poglavjih, izvira iz zasebne pobude vodnikov, gostilni~arjev in onih, ki so æivali dobavljali.
To nakazujejo vsa poro~ila in dodatno potrjuje odsotnost, z eno samo izjemo, kakr{nega koli podatka
v arhivu Postojnske jame, da bi prejeli denar za prodajo mo~erilov. Ta izjema je potrdilo o prejemu29
{tirih forintov za {tiri mo~erile z 12. septembra 1844.
Arhivi tudi kaæejo, da je bilo nekaj primerkov ~love{ke ribice poslanih na Mednarodno svetovno
razstavo na Dunaju leta 187329. Poslali so tudi stalagmite, kakor æe prej na Svetovno razstavo v
Parizu leta 1867, zaradi zelo opazne reklame, ki se je kasneje v stoletju {e pove~ala; vendar pa ni
nobenega drugega sledu, da bi mo~erile uporabljali v reklamne namene.
Primerki na Dunaju so brez dvoma izzvali zanimanje, saj so kasneje pri{le 29 pro{nje tudi iz
Braunschweiga in z ruskega konzulata v Trstu. Ni znano, ali so tem æeljam ugodili.
MOÊRILI, KI SO JIH POPOTNIKI KUPILI ALI VIDELI
Kakor bomo videli, je vsaj enajst potnikov, ki so obiskali Postojno med 1816 in 1900 opisalo,
kako so jim ponudili, ali kako so kupili oziroma æeleli kupiti æivega mo~erila. Drugi podatki pa
kaæejo, da je bilo kupljenih mnogo ve~ primerkov. Naslednje poglavje vsebuje poro~ila in razlage o
æivljenju mo~erila v ujetni{tvu, zadnje poglavje prispevka pa govori o primerkih, prodanih ali
podarjenih æivalskim vrtovom ali ustanovam. Mnogo kupcev se pojavi le v enem delu in poudarek
je v vsakem primeru druga~en: naprodaj (tukaj), za naravoslovna opazovanja (naslednji), za zbirko
za zasebni ali akademski {tudij (zadnji).
Poro~ila obiskovalcev so obi~ajno podana z njihovimi besedami (ali v prevodu), kajti to so
izvirni materiali, ki so nedostopni drugod. Citiranje je omejeno na dele, ki se ti~ejo mo~erilov;
ostale vidike istih potnikov bomo preu~ili v posebni publikaciji. Kjerkoli je bilo to mogo~e, so
podpisi predstavljeni v kopiji iz knjige obiskovalcev, tako zaradi potrditve datuma in v mnogih
primerih tudi zato, da vidimo potnikov rokopis (~eprav je v~asih en ~lan skupine napisal imena
vseh).
289
Pietro Configliachi in Mauro Rusconi leta 1861
Configliachi (1777-1844) in Rusconi (1776-1849) (Sl. 6A) z Univerze v Pavii, o katerih smo æe
govorili v zvezi z ribjim trgom v Trstu, sta verjetno prva obiskovalca, ki sta zabeleæila svoje napore,
da dobita primerek mo~erila samo dve leti po tem, ko so jih prvi~ za~eli aktivno loviti v ^rni jami:
Avtorja, ki so ju spremljali trije kmetje, opremljeni z baklami in majhno mreæo v obliki
torbe, pritrjeno na konec palice sta bila pripravljena 2. avgusta 1816, da vstopita v jamo
∞^rna jama≥. Ob petih popoldan je bila temperatura zunanjega zraka pri vhodu v jamo 9°C.
Ko so se spu{~ali, so hodili skozi prostrane dvorane, nekatere pokrite s stalaktiti in kristali,
ki so ble{~e~e odsevali svetlobo bakel in pri~arali ~udovit pogled. Drugi so bili videti kot
kotanje blata, kar je bilo zelo neprijetno za hojo. Kon~no so pri{li do stoje~e vode, ki je bila
pribliæno 30 ~evljev ∞10 m≥ {iroka in pribliæno 137 m globoko pod povr{jem. V tem jezercu
so videli enega mo~erila, a ga niso uspeli ujeti; ker je bila voda kalna in previsoka zaradi
hudega deæja prej{njega dne, so se bili prisiljeni vrniti, potem ko so bili v jami dve uri, ne da
bi ujeli vsaj enega mo~erila. Temperatura vode v tem jezercu je bila 12°C, jamski zrak pa je
imel stalno temperaturo 12,5°C, medtem ko je termometer, ki je ostal na zraku pri vhodu,
zrasel od 9 na 14,5°C.
Nato sledi æe omenjena izjava, da so kmetje “lovili mo~erile... da so jih kasneje prodajali
potnikom”, ki nakazuje, da sta kupila svoje lastne primerke v Postojni.
William Archibald Cadell v letih 1817 in 1818
Naslednji obiskovalec Postojnske jame, ki je omenil mo~erila je bil W.A. Cadell (1775-1855),
angle{ki matematik in potnik, ~lan Kraljeve druæbe30. Postojno je obiskal novembra 1817, vendar
ni videl nobenega mo~erila. Naslednje leto je napisal 400 km od Postojne:
Videl sem eno teh æivali æivo v Pavii, ki so jo hranili v vedru vode v temnem prostoru,
prinesli pa so jo s Cerkni{kega jezera9.
Glede na to, da je bil ta primerek v Pavii, je brez dvoma pripadal Configliachiju in Rusconiju, ki
sta ga verjetno kupila v Postojni.
John Russell leta 1822
John Russell (c. 1795-1846), {kotski odvetnik31, je obiskal Postojnsko jamo 11. marca 182232
(Sl. 7):
... Nekaj æivih primerkov, ki sem jih videl pri kmetu v Postojni, je bilo pribliæno 8 in~
∞20 cm≥ dolgih; toda na{li so celo dvakrat tako dolge... Najpogosteje se pojavljajo v dolo~enih
majhnih potokih, ki izvirajo iz hriba pri Sittichu ∞Sti~ni≥ blizu Ljubljane, ker jih je mo~ vodnega
toka odnesla dale~ od jam, kadar je podzemlje poplavljeno zaradi mo~nega deæja ali zaradi
taljenja snega. Te, ki sem jih jaz videl, so ujeli v majhnem podzemnem jezeru na koncu
Magdalene jame ∞^rna jama≥, nedale~ od Postojne 33.
Russell je bil pozoren opazovalec in dobro pou~en, kje se æivali pojavljajo. Njegovo poro~ilo
vsebuje natan~en opis obna{anja in videza mo~erila in je ponatisnjeno v Dodatku I.
Charles Babbage leta 1828
Charles Babbage (1792-1871) (Sl. 8), profesor v Cambridgu in ~lan Kraljeve druæbe, je najbolj
znan zaradi izuma mehani~nega ra~unalnika30 . Jamo je obiskal 17. julija 182832 (Sl. 9):
290
Med svojimi potovanji sem se ob~asno sre~al z razli~nimi stvarmi, ki so bile, ~eprav ne
povezane z mojimi posli, zelo zanimive za druge. ê je bila cena primerna moji denarnici in
prena{anje ni povzro~alo teæav, ali ~e je {lo za pomemben primerek, sem v mnogih primerih
zadevo kupil. Tak je tudi primer tega ~udnega bitja Proteus anguinus, ki æivi samo v vodah
temnih jam, ki ima o~i, vendar ne more odpreti vek.
Ko sem obiskal Postojnsko jamo na [tajerskem sem povpra{al, ~e bi lahko nabavil kak{no
teh ~udnih bitij. Kupil sem vse, ki sem jih lahko dobil, vsega skupaj {est. Prena{al sem jih v
velikih steklenicah, polnih re~ne vode, ki sem jo zamenjal vsak ve~er. Ve~ino ~asa med
potovanjem so bile steklenice v velikih usnjenih torbah, privezanih na ko~ijaæev sedeæ moje
ko~ije.
Prva æivalica je poginila na Dunaju in druga v Pragi. Po treh mesecih, ko sem pri{el v
Berlin, sta preæiveli samo dve, ki sta tam poginili. Bojim se, da jima je moj sluæabnik nalil
vodo iz vodnjaka, namesto iz reke.
Pono~i so bili obi~ajno v velikem umivalniku, pokriti s prtom.
Svetloba jih je zelo razburila. Pogosto se je zgodilo, da sta ena ali dve sko~ili iz svojega
vodnega doma, ~e sem jih pono~i obiskal s sve~o.
Te redke æivali so zbujale veliko zanimanje mnogih naravoslovcev, ki sem jih obiskal
med svojim potepanjem in so mi tudi omogo~ile mnoga, zelo prijetna znanstva34.
Ameri{ki duhovnik leta 1833
Neidentificirani “ameri{ki duhovnik” je pisal leta 1833
Eden od vodnikov je prinesel na prodaj {tiri zelo nenavadne æivali, po obliki med
ku{~arjem in jeguljo, prozorno bele, z roænatim odtenkom na glavi. To so bili primerki,
imenovani Proteus anguillaris, zelo æivahni v steklenici vode s {irokim vratom, v kateri jih
je prinesel. Nekaj sem jih videl tudi v Trstu, kjer so se na podoben na~in ohranile ve~ mesecev,
saj so jim vodo menjali vsak dan in jim ob~asno dali drobtine kruha. Vodnik je rekel, da jih
je vzel iz vode v jami; toda kasneje so mi povedali, da so bile najdene v drugi jami, ne dale~
pro~, kjer tudi te~e reka; grof Tournes, avstrijski odposlanec v Benetkah mi je povedal, da
jih je na{el na svojem posestvu na Kranjskem v vodnjaku, za katerega zdaj sklepajo, da ima
povezavo z eno od teh jam. Razumel sem, da ne æivijo nikjer drugje v Evropi.35
William John Hamilton in Hugh Edwin Strickland leta 1835
Hamilton (1805-1867) (Sl. 10) in Strickland (1811-1853) (Sl. 11)30 sta bila angle{ka geologa, ki
sta obiskala tako Postojnsko kot ^rno jamo 25. avgusta 1853 in preno~ila na 26. avgust32 (Sl. 12).
Poro~ili obeh moæ se dopolnjujeta, zato sta tu natisnjeni. Najprej Hamiltonovo:
@ivljenjski prostor te ~udne æivali je velika jama, imenovana La Maddalena, tri milje od
Postojne; tako zelo smo si prizadevali, da bi uspeli dobiti eno teh æivali ali vsaj videti njeno
bivali{~e, da smo se odlo~ili, ~eprav je bila ura æe devet, ko smo pri{li iz Postojnske jame, da
po osveæitvi v gostilni, nadaljujemo z iskanjem sredi no~i ...
Vhod vanjo je na dnu lijakaste kotline, o kateri sem æe govoril. Na dnu jame smo na{li
po~asno, leno teko~o teko, za katero so rekli, da je ista, kot smo jo zapustili v oni drugi jami;
toda deæevje je vodo tako skalilo, da so bila na{a ribi{ka prizadevanja neuspe{na. Bilo je uro
po polno~i, ko smo se kon~no vrnili iz jame... 36
291
Strickland pi{e o istem obisku:
Ker smo imeli predvidenega veliko dela za naslednji dan, smo se odlo~ili, na veliko
presene~enje na{e gospodinje, da obi{~emo Magdaleno jamo {e iste no~i... Ta jama se kon~a
z vodnim tokom, za katerega pravijo, da je ista Pinka ∞sic!≥, ki ponika v drugi jami. To je tok,
v katerem je najden edinstveni plazilec Proteus anguinus; ~e je voda bistra, se ga pogosto
vidi, toda tokrat je bil tok tako kalen, da nismo videli nobenega in po nekaj ~asa trajajo~em
posku{anju z ro~no mreæo, sem bil prisiljen lov opustiti. Po povratku v Postojno sem enega
kupil od vodnika, ki je imel tri ali {tiri æive. Ohranijo se leto ali dve in ne zahtevajo nobene
hrane, ~eprav ob~asno pojedo kak{nega ~rva. Edini varnostni ukrep je pogosto menjavanje
vode in pa za{~ita pred svetlobo, ki nanje vpliva neprijetno. Na poti domov sem posku{al
ohraniti svoj primerek pri æivljenju, toda glede na pogoje je bila moja edina moænost, da sem
dal svojega mo~erila v alkohol. Magdalena jama poteka globoko pod plastmi, vhod pa leæi
na vrhu lijakaste votline37 .
Njegovo zanimanje, izkazano v zadnjem stavku, glede odnosa jame in plasti, se je odrazilo tudi
v skici, ki jo predstavlja Sl. 13. ê pogledamo natanko, vidimo plavati v podzemni reki skicirane
mo~erile s {krgami na zadnji strani glave.
Edmund Spencer leta 1836
Edmund Spencer je bil angle{ki stotnik, ki je dolgo æivel v Nem~iji, zgodovinar in potnik. V
Postojnski jami je bil 14. aprila 183632 (Sl. 14) in napisal o mo~erilu naslednje. Anatomski opis je
izpu{~en, vse ostalo pa se ti~e vedenja æivali:
Na svobodi je poære{na, jé vse od majhnih rib do insektov, zlasti polæke; toda v ujetni{tvu
nenadoma vztrajno zavra~a vsako hrano, ~eprav doæivi visoko starost v delni temi in ~isti
vodi, pribliæno osem stopinj Réaumur-ja, ki jo je treba menjati vsak peti ali {esti dan. Enako
je dovzetna za mraz kot za vro~ino; ~e ji vræete v vodo kos ledu, ali ~e je plazilec izpostavljen
hudemu mrazu, zboli in pogine v nekaj urah.
Zanimivo je opazovati, kak{no naklonjenost si te male æivali izkazujejo. Novodo{lo æival
sprejmejo kot starega prijatelja in izraæajo svoje zadovoljstvo s tankimi kriki, neænej{imi kot
so tisti, kadar so razdraæene; kajti izredno so razdraæljive in stopnjo jeze lahko prepoznamo
po barvi koæe in zlasti {krg, ki se postanejo ~udovito {krlatne, in ker so prozorne, lahko z
mikroskopom sledimo krvni cirkulaciji prav do srca, ki redno utripa. Razlo~no sem pre{tel
50 utripov na minuto; lahko bi predpostavili, da je to majhno bitje dalo Harvey-ju idejo o
kroæenju krvi.
Na povratku skozi Ljubljano sem bil predstavljen gospodu, ki hrani v veliki kamniti
posodi v svoji kleti ve~ primerkov; zaprte jih ima æe {tiri ali pet let, in videti so zelo zdrave,
le za polovico so se zmanj{ale od svoje naravne velikosti. Pokojni avstrijski cesar ∞Franz II≥
je dal narediti jamo v Schönbrun∞n≥ u blizu Dunaja in jo je naselil z njimi, da jih lahko
opazujejo tisti potniki, ki ne potujejo tako dale~, kot so njihovi izvirni tokovi*
Namenoma sem bil tako natan~en glede teh malih plazilcev, ker poznam ve~ gospodov,
ki so jih prinesli v Anglijo, kjer pa so poginili zaradi nepravilne oskrbe38.
Celo danes so izpred 1836 poznani samo primerki, ki jih je prinesel domov Francis Lunn leta
1832 (glej v nadaljevanju).
292
John Oliver v letih 1837 in 1852
John Oliver (1804-1883), duhovnik, ~igar angle{ki prevod Schaffenrathove knjige iz leta
1834 o Postojnski jami je ostal neobjavljen39, je obiskal jamo 4. junija 183732 (Sl. 15) in ponovno
septembra 1852. V opombi, ki jo je priloæil prevodu pravi, da je v Pisanem rovu
na desni strani na{el ve~ manj{ih bazen~kov, napolnjenih z vodo, kapljajo~o s stropa, iz
katerih so naredili ve~ji bazen, v katerem je bilo mnogo mo~erilov, ki so jih prinesli iz
Magdalene jame, za ogled znanstvenikom in radovednim obiskovalcem, ki so si æeleli videti
te edinstvene plazilce-ribe; vendar zdaj ni niti enega primerka najti tu notri40.
Oliverjev rokopis je pomemben tudi zaradi uvezanega akvarela dveh mo~erilov (Sl. 16). @ivali
sta prikazani, kako lezeta preko blata tik nad vodo. Zanimivo je, da se skoraj identi~na slika pojavi
na grafiki (Sl. 17) v knjigi Sir-a Humphry-ja Davy-ja Consolations in Travel iz 1851, kar kaæe, da
so take slike prodajali pri jami, tako kot so kasneje prodajali razglednice. Oliver je svojo nabavil
verjetno ob istem ~asu, med obiskom leta 1852.
Francis Galton leta 1840
Sir Francis Galton (1822-1911) (Sl. 18), angle{ki znanstvenik, raziskovalec Afrike in ~lan
Kraljeve druæbe43, je obiskal jamo 22. septembra 184032 (Sl. 19).
Kupil sem dva primerka ~udnega bitja, ki se imenuje mo~eril in æivi v teh podzemnih
vodah... To sta prvi æivali te vrste, ki sta pri{li æivi do Anglije. Iz Trsta sem {el s parnikom do
Benetk in od tam s po{tnim vozom do Milana, od koder sem potoval spet s po{tnim vozom v
Genevo s steklenico z dvema mo~eriloma pod svojim tankim pla{~em zaradi strahu, da ne bi
voda zmrznila pri prehodu Alp44.
V resnici Galtonova primerka nista bila edina æiva, ki sta pri{la v Anglijo. Lunn-ova iz 1832 sta
bila æe omenjena, {tiri primerke je dobil v dar londonski æivalski vrt, Spencer pa v letu 1836 omenja
“{e mnoge” druge.
John Harrison Allan leta 1841
Malo je znanega of J.H. Allanu; na naslovni strani njegove knjige pi{e, da je bil ~lan atenskega
arheolo{kega dru{tva in egip~anskega dru{tva v Kairu. V jami je bil 22. junija 184132 (Sl. 20).
Ko sem pri{el nazaj v hotel, so mi pokazali primerek Proteusa anguinusa; ker nismo
imeli te sre~e, da bi æival videli v jami, smo bili zadovoljni, da smo vsaj tako uspeli videti to
~udno majhno æival, ki æivi samo v Postojni in v jamah nedale~ od nje. 45
George Frederick Weston leta 1846
G.F. Weston (1819-1887) (Sl. 21) je bil angle{ki duhovnik, ki je imel zaporedoma46 tri æene;
jamo je obiskal 13. maja 184632 (Sl. 22). Njegova vdova je kasneje izdala njegov dnevnik v omejeni
nakladi za “sorodnike in prijatelje”. Del, ki se nana{a na mo~erila:
Vhod v jamo je skozi zamreæena vrata ...; medtem ko so {li vodniki naprej, da pripravijo
sve~e, sem se zabaval z ogledovanjem nekaj primerkov te ~udne æivali, ki ji pravijo Proteus,
in ki jih imajo v steklenici, da jih obiskovalci gledajo. @ivali najdejo v kak{ne tri milje oddaljeni
Magdalena jami v podzemnem toku, ki te~e skoznjo... Dolgo jih lahko ohranimo, ~e vodo
menjamo redno. 47
293
John Call Dalton okoli leta 1853
Ni jasno, ali je John Dalton (1825-1889), ameri{ki psiholog, osebno obiskal jamo, toda njegov
opis mo~erila maja 1853 ponuja nove podatke, kako so jih lovili:
Mo~erile lovijo v majhne ro~ne mreæe kmetje, ki opazujejo skoraj negibno leæe~e æivali
na dnu jezerca ∞v ^rni jami≥ in jih ujamejo z nenadnim potegom mreæe. Ni jih zelo veliko in
ker mora biti voda ob lovu popolnoma bistra, jih redko ujamejo ve~ kot 15 ali 20 v enem letu.
Kasneje hranijo æivali na temnem in pri temperaturi, ki je ~imbolj podobna tisti v jami. Vaæno
je, da vodo menjajo redno vsak dan. Pravijo, da v takih pogojih lahko preæivijo neomejeno
dolgo. Tudi sam sem imel enega ve~ tednov47A .
Dalton nikjer ne pravi, da je bil v jami in njegov opis bi lahko izviral iz zgodnej{ih poro~il.
Mo~eril, ki ga je “imel ve~ tednov” je mogo~e isti “æivi primerek, po katerem je bila narejena slika,
in ki je prihajal iz Magdalene jame” in moæno je, da mu ga je dal Fitzinger, ko sta se sre~ala na
Dunaju.
William Henderson leta 1862
William Henderson (1813-1891) (Sl. 23) je obravnavan v nadaljevanju kot naravoslovec, ki je
preu~eval mo~erila v ujetni{tvu. Jamo je obiskal 14.oktobra 186232 (Sl. 24), tukaj predstavljeni
izvle~ek govori le o tem, kako so primerki potovali v Anglijo.
V tej deæeli so bili v prej{njih ~asih tudi drugi æivi primerki, toda mislim, da je trenutno
edini tako po~a{~eni primerek mala æivalica, ki je bila moj sopotnik na poti domov s [tajerske
in zdaj prebiva v dobrem mestu D∞urhamu≥.
Dogodiv{~in in neprijetnosti, ki jih je pretrpel, ni bilo malo; ~e upo{tevamo, da njegovo
osebno ugodje zahteva, da je pogosto izven vode, edini na~in potovanja pa je bila posoda
napolnjena s tem elementom, se lahko samo ~udimo, da je preæivel. Tudi vro~ina in spremembe
temperature so {kodljive za njegov organizem. Hudo preizku{njo je preæivel v Benetkah,
kjer je bilo nenavadno soparno; pet dni potovanja v odprti ko~iji ob mediteranski obali pod
peko~im soncem bi bilo lahko povzro~ilo katastrofo; toda pogumni mali druæabnik je vse
preæivel. Vendar sta izredna vro~ina in ob~asna izpostavljenost svetlobi povzro~ili velike
spremembe v barvi; njegova koæa je potemnela do cimetovo rjave s {krlatno rde~imi packami
in {ele po ve~ dneh skrbnega izogibanja svetlobi se je njegova bleda mesena barva povrnila.
Ko smo zapu{~ali Postojno, sem ga najprej dal v sifonsko steklenico in to v majhno
usnjeno torbo, ki je visela na zunanji strani mojega pla{~a. Med potovanjem proti Trstu se je
steklenica po nesre~i razbila in ko smo prispeli, sem na{el ubogega mo~erila leæati na postelji
~repinj. Nesre~a te vrste je pokon~ala znamenitega “Lambtonskega ~rva”, toda njegov drobni
{tajerski bratranec se za to ni zmenil. Ko smo ga spet dali v posodo z vodo, je tako poskakoval,
da smo bili zadovoljni, ker se je vse sre~no kon~alo.
Ko smo prispeli v Marseille, smo jasno videli, da na{e malo breme trpi zaradi nedejavnosti
notranjih plju~. Zato smo mu pripravili kopel; na dno smo dali pesek in nekaj stalaktitov, ki
smo jih prinesli iz Postojne, tako da so tvorili blago strmino in je lahko uæival v sprehodu po
suhem ali pa se je potopil v vodo, kot mu je pa~ prijalo. To posnemanje njegovega naravnega
okolja je zelo koristilo njegovemu zdravju; iz stanja popolne iz~rpanosti je kmalu postal
razposajen in je {vigal po vodi in se skrival pod kamni, njegove zunanje {krge ali plju~a, ki
so pobledele do popolne beline, pa so spet privzele rde~ odtenek. Tokrat sem prvi~ opazil
dogodek, ki pa se je kasneje ponavljal. Naslednje jutro, ko je plaval po vodi, so bili v vodi
tudi trije kosi izredno tanke, rjavo obarvane koæe, ki so po obliki ustrezali delom njegovega
294
telesa; brez dvoma, lev, ki ga je odvrgel pono~i. Nedvomno je sila, s katero se je drgnil ob
pesek in stalaktite pomagala njegovim naporom in nagibam se k mnenju, da mu je sprememba
ravnanja re{ila æivljenje48.
Henry Edmund Buxton leta 1863
H. E. Buxton (1844-1905)49 je ponovno omenjen v poglavju o naravoslovcih, toda ve~ina
njegovega objavljenega poro~ila se ti~e na~ina, kako so mo~erile lovili in prodajali. Bil je bankir,
sodnik, æupan in ob~asno vojak. Postojnsko jamo je obiskal 6. januarja 1863 (Sl. 25) in njegov vpis
v knjigi obiskovalcev je prvi tega leta32 .
Drugi primerek sem si nabavil v Postojnski jami blizu Trsta, ki sem jo obiskal pred
kak{nim mesecem skupaj z gospodom Gurneyem, ~lanom parlamenta, ki je eno æival æe
imel. Nisva ju ujela sama, pa~ pa sva ju kupila od vodnikov pri jami, ki so jih o~itno zelo
malo cenili, saj so bili veseli, da ju prodajo za nekaj {ilingov, povedali pa so tudi, da so jih æe
ve~ prodali Angleæem, pa tudi drugim. Nismo obiskali jame, kjer jih lovijo, ker je oddaljena
od mesta in nismo imeli dovolj prostega ~asa; toda velika jama blizu mesta je ogromna in
vredna, da jo obi{~e vsak, ki potuje med Dunajem in Trstom. V njej te~e majhna reka Pivka,
ki popolnoma izgine v skali, ponovno pa se pojavi {ele ~ez ve~ milj in na svoji podzemni poti
(predvidoma) polni jezero, v katerem æive mo~erili. Vodnik nam je povedal, da lahko mo~erile
najdejo samo po ve~ tednov trajajo~i su{i, ko je voda v jami zelo nizka. Uporabljajo mreæe
na zelo dolgih palicah, in kadar je voda dovolj plitva, da seæejo do dna, obi~ajno uspejo ujeti
enega ali dva mo~erila. To kaæe, da imajo mo~erili radi najgloblje dele jezera. Vodniki so
tudi povedali, da niso nikoli videli æivali, ki bi prilezla na skale. V Anglijo smo jih prepeljali
brez teæav, vodo smo jim menjali vsak dan in jih imeli kolikor je bilo mogo~e na temnem,
kajti pravijo, da jim vsaka svetloba zelo {kodi50.
Helen Zimmern leta 1874
Helen Zimmern (1846-1934), pisateljica in novinarka, je bila rojena v Nem~iji, toda postala je
Angleæinja51. Postojnsko jamo je obiskala 7. septembra 187432 (Sl. 26).
Ko smo zapustili jamo, nam je preostalo samo {e to, da vidimo edinstveno æival, ki
prebiva v podzemnih vodah Pivke, ki je gola, slepa in prilagojena svojemu ~udnemu
domovanju in vzbuja v naravoslovcih obenem za~udenost in obup. Vodnik je imel eno
pripravljeno. Bitje je bilo v steklenici, napolnjeni z vodo. Upirala se je, vodnik je rekel, da
zato, ker jo je prinesel na svetlobo; kajti, kakor slepi ljudje, je ob~utljiva za svetlobo.52
Armand Viré leta 1900
Armand Viré (1869-1951) (Sl. 27), francoski raziskovalec jam in biospeleolog, je doktoriral s
tega podro~ja in bil direktor podzemnega laboratorija, ki ga je osnoval Narodni naravoslovni muzej53
v pari{kih katakombah. Jame v Sloveniji54 je obiskal v drugi polovici aprila 1900 in dobil 30
primerkov mo~erila za muzej.
Imel sem ~ast predstaviti na tem sre~anju ∞1. maja 1900≥ naravoslovcev nekaj primerkov
znamenitega Proteusa anguineusa ..., ki sem jih dobil prej{nji teden v jamah na Kranjskem 55.
Viré in njegov laboratorij sta ponovno omenjena v zadnjem delu tega prispevka.
295
[TUDIJE NARAVOSLOVCEV
O mnogih mo~erilih, ki so jih odnesli kupci domov ni bilo nikoli ve~ sli{ati, celo ne o tistih, ki
so jih kupili ljudje, ki so pisali knjige o svojih potovanjih. Sket56 je domneval, da je bil “mo~eril zelo
priljubljen prebivalec akvarijev v me{~anskih salonih 19. stoletja”, toda v takratnih poro~ilih o tem
ni nobenih dokazov. Brez dvoma bi mo~erilova nesposobnost prena{ati svetlobo povzro~ala teæavo
pri razkazovanju.
Toda nekatere so dobili naravoslovci, jih obdræali ter preu~evali in njihova odkritja so postala
znana drugim naravoslovcem. Vse to je postalo znano s pomo~jo opazovanj vseh teh, ki so ujete
mo~erile kupovali, si jih sposojali, jih videli ali celo dobili v dar.
Prispevek poudarja bolj ta opazovanja, ki so bila ve~inoma objavljena v manj znanih ~asopisih,
kakor pa to, kje in kako so bile æivali pridobljene. Ta vidik je bil æe obravnavan, kjer je bilo to pa~
znano, v drugih primerih pa je opisano le njihovo æivljenje v ujetni{tvu.
Francis Lunn
Objava maja 1833 pravi, da “je v zadnjem ~asu ve~ teh nenavadnih bitij prinesel v Anglijo Rev.
F. Lunn”35 . Knjiga obiskovalcev Postojnske jame32 (Sl. 28) potrjuje obisk Francisa Lunna iz Londona
27. junija 1832 in brez dvoma jih je prinesel takrat. Lunn (1795-1839) je bil v tistem ~asu vikar v
Butleighu v Somersetu, ~lan Kraljeve druæbe in sposoben mineralog in kemik57 . Odkrili nismo ni~esar,
kar naj bi objavil o mo~erilu in tudi ni zaznamka, da bi bil dal takrat kak{en primerek londonskemu
æivalskemu vrtu kot darilo. Mogo~e je pisec ~lanka leta 1833 le sli{al o Lunnovih æivalih, mogo~e
pa je treba pismeno informacijo {e odkriti. V vsakem primeru na~in poro~ila o njihovi prisotnosti v
Angliji nakazuje, da so bili po enem letu {e æivi.
Rudolph Wagner
Professor Rudolph Wagner (1805-1864), fiziolog, je dobil tri æive mo~erile “na koncu ... poletja”
1837 58, vendar pa ni zapiska, da bi bil takrat sam tudi obiskal jamo. Enega æivega je dal dr. Martinu
Barryu iz Edinburgha, ki ga je pokazal na sre~anju Zoolo{kega dru{tva iz Londona 14. novembra
1837; druga dva, mo{ki in æenski osebek, je raztelesil58 . êprav anatomske in fiziolo{ke {tudije
niso namen tega prispevka, pomembnost njegovega odkritja, da so krvni~ke mo~erila mnogokrat
ve~je od ve~ine drugih æivali upravi~uje ponatis njegovega kratkega poro~ila v Dodatku II. Ponovno
omenja velikost krvni~k v svoji knjigi o fiziologiji59 . Kasnej{a Gulliverjeva merjenja velikosti so
opisana kasneje.
Andrew Smith
Dr. Andrew Smith (kasneje Sir Andrew, 1797-1872) je bil zdravnik, raziskovalec in diplomat30.
@ivi primerek mo~erila je imel v svoji zbirki plazilcev mnogo let pred 184860 , toda ni znano, kdaj in
kje ga je dobil. To je bila æival, iz katere je George Gulliver dobil krvne vzorce, da je meril velikost
krvni~k (glej kasneje).
Lionel Smith Beale
Dr. L. S. Beale (1828-1906) (Sl. 29) je bil priznan zdravnik in ~lan Kraljeve druæbe61,62 . Postojnsko
jamo je obiskal 24. avgusta 185032 (Sl. 30) in verjetno je mo~erila dobil takrat.
296
Rev. John George Wood (1827-1889), priljubljeni naravoslovni pisec je pisal o njih v Illustrated
Natural History, ki je iz{la 1863:
Imel sem mnogo priloænosti videti nekatere imenitne primerke, ki jih je prinesel dr. Lionel
Smith Beale iz Postojnske jame. Teæko bi kaj rekli o njihovem na~inu æivljenja, in zdelo se je, da je
njihova edina navada, da se sistemati~no izogibajo svetlobi. Dr. Beale mi je prijazno posredoval
naslednje poro~ilo o teh ~udnih bitjih:
“Eden od mo~erilov, ki sem jih prinesel iz Postojne, je æivel pet let, in kar je zlasti
zanimivo, zadnja {tiri leta æivljenja je prebil v isti vodi, ki sem ji dodajal le malo sveæe vode,
da sem nadomestil tisto, ki je izhlapela. @ivel je v ~etrt galone ∞1,106 l≥ vode, ki je bila v
veliki okrogli posodi, pokriti z zelenim suknom. Mogo~e sem dodal pol pinte ∞0.56 l≥ vode v
dveh letih.
Niti enkrat ga med ujetni{tvom nisem nahranil; eden od njegovih tovari{ev je poginil
kmalu zatem, ko je pojedel ~rva, po dveh letih æivljenja v tej deæeli.
Ta, ki sem ga ohranil, je bil zelo æivahen in njegovi gibi so bili tako hitri kot pri jegulji.
Tik pred smrtjo je bil bolj droben kot takrat, ko je pri{el iz jame, toda izguba teæe je bila tako
po~asna, da ni bila opazna iz leta v leto in do zadnjega je ohranil mo~ za æivahne gibe.
Njegove zunanje {krge so se vedno skr~ile, kadar je nanje padla mo~na svetloba. Kroæenje
krvi v æilah teh organov je bilo pogosto dobro vidno; æival je bila v dolgi cevi s ploskim
koncem, v kateri je bila priprava za stalno dovajanje vode in pogosto smo ji odvzeli nekaj
velikih krvni~k za mikroskopske preglede; vse to kaæe, da æival brez hrane ni bivala v najbolj
ugodnih pogojih.
Verjetno je malo tako osupljivih primerov zelo po~asne smrti zaradi stradanja, kot je ta
in moæno je, da je smrt nastopila zaradi ujetni{tva, spremembe zraka ali temperature in ob~asne
osvetljenosti za nekaj ur, ne pa zaradi stradanja. Dobro je znano, da npr. Batrachia izredno
prena{a stradanje.”63
Nato nadaljuje Wood:
Mo~erilove {krge so zelo opazne rde~e barve zaradi pretakanja krvi skoznje. Pogosto
sem opazoval ta pojav s pomo~jo bistroumne naprave, ki jo je izumil dr. Beale, ki je dræala
bitje na mestu, medtem ko je vodni tok tekel skozi cev, v kateri je bila zaprta. Krvna telesca
te æivali so izredno velika; tako velika, da jih lahko razlo~imo s preprostim æepnim
pove~evalom celo takrat, ko te~ejo skozi æile. Zdaj imam v lasti nekaj krvnih telesc primerka
opisanega zgoraj in skupaj s krvni~kami lepidosirena so popolno nasprotje krvnim telescem
~loveka, kakor npr. nojevo jajce presega golobje.63
Grafika mo~erila, ponatisnjena kot Sl. 31 prihaja iz Woodove knjige in je bila verjetno narisana
po enem od Bealovih primerkov.
Odkrito ni bilo nobeno tiskano Bealevo delo o mo~erilu in na misel, da je informacija, ki jo
navaja Wood iz neobjavljenega poro~ila, napeljuje tudi njegov stavek: “Dr. Beale mi je prijazno
posredoval naslednje poro~ilo ...”. Del istega navedka je kasneje uporabil Henderson48 leta 1866
(glej Dodatek V).
John Call Dalton
Daltona smo æe omenili v zvezi s poro~ilom, da mo~erile “lovijo kmetje z majhnimi ro~nimi
mreæami” v ^rni jami. Pravi tudi:
297
Sam sem imel enega nekaj tednov, ne da bi mu dal hrano in po tem ~asu je bil æivahen in
skoraj v tako dobrem stanju kot vedno; samo njegove {krge so se nekako zmanj{ale. Gospod
Fitzinger, upravnik oddelka za plazilce pri dunajskem zoolo{kem muzeju, mi je povedal, da
so jih imeli v muzeju ve~ kot {est let, ne da bi jim dajali drugo hrano kot so organske snovi,
obi~ajno prisotne v sladki vodi.47A
Brez dvoma je bil njegov primerek tisti, ki ga je raztelesil po koncu “nekaj tednov” v ujetni{tvu.
Henry Edmund Buxton
Buxtonovo poro~ilo o obisku Postojnske jame leta 1863 in njegov opis na~ina lovljenja mo~erilov
v ^rni jami je bil æe opisan. To je bistvo pisma, ki ga je poslal uredniku ~asopisa The Field skupaj s
primerkom mo~erila. Pismo za~enja:
Gospod, dovoljujem si vam poslati ta primerek mo~erila v upanju, da ga boste æeleli
preiskati.
in kon~uje:
ê prej {e niste imeli priloænosti preiskati primerka, upam, da boste uporabili priloæenega
in oprostite mi, da sem si ga dovolil poslati.50
Urednik ga je pokazal Francisu Bucklandu, naravoslovcu iz njegovega osebja, ~igar objavljeni
odgovor sledi.
Francis Trevelyan Buckland
Francis Buckland (1826-1880), naravoslovec in pisatelj30 je bil sin Williama Bucklanda iz slavne
jame s kostmi. Njegov odgovor64 na Buxtonovo pismo je tukaj objavljen v Dodatku III. Kon~uje se
s kratkim odstavkom, ki kaæe neformalne poti, po katerih so v {estdestih letih prej{njega stoletja
re{evali naravoslovna vpra{anja.
Gospod Buxton mi je prijazno posodil mo~erila za nekaj dni: postavil sem ga v pisarno
~asopisa The Field (seveda pokritega s tkanino, kajti vedno mora biti v temi). Z veseljem ga
pokaæem vsem radovednim tovari{em, ki bi si ga radi ogledali. - F.T. BUCKLAND64
William Webb Spicer
âstiti W. W. Spicer (pribl. 1820-1879) je bil æupni duhovnik v Angliji, ki je potoval tudi v
Tasmanijo in je bil znan po svoji zbirki rastlin in objavah tam65 . V letih 1867 in 1868 je bil ~lan
naravoslovnega dru{tva v Bristolu, kjer je spoznal Adolpha Leipnerja.
V junijski {tevilki 1869 Hardwicke’s Science-Gossip pi{e, da je imel “zadnjih trinajst mesecev”
v lasti æiv primerek mo~erila. Imel je tudi dva druga, ki ju je dal Adolphu Leipnerju (glej spodaj).
Spicerjevo ime se ne pojavi v Knjigi obiskovalcev jame, zato je mogo~e kupil te æivali v gostilni v
Postojni ali pa mu jih je podaril naravoslovni kolega; moæno pa je tudi, da je jamo obiskal v skupini
in se sam ni podpisal v knjigo.
Ve~ina precej dolgega ~lanka je bolj primerna za ponatis v Dodatku IV kot v besedilu, toda
zadnji odstavek poraja vpra{anje o hrani in vodi, zato se pojavlja tudi tu:
Ne vem, od ~esa æivi v naravnem okolju (profesor Lennis pravi, da jé polæe), toda znano
je, da se v ujetni{tvu redko, ~e sploh kdaj, ~esarkoli dotakne. Odkar imam svojega mo~erila
298
je pojedel dva æabja paglavca - dobil sem ga naravnost z Dunaja. Zadnjega maja sem ga dal
v stekleno posodo za ribice in nisem jih videl nikoli ve~. Ven niso mogle, v posodi pa tudi ni
bilo nobenih ostankov, zato predvidevam, da jih je pojedel njihov bliænji sorodnik. Od tedaj
ni imel nobene moænosti, da bi jedel, toda njegovo telo je bilo tako okroglo, kot ~e bi hrt
poærl sod~ek pri vodnjaku.
Moram povedati, da vode nisem menjal od zadnjega oktobra; manj se menja, bolje je;
popolnoma je sladka in ~ista. 66
Profesor Lennis, o katerem je govora, je Johann Lennis, toda podatkov o njem nisem na{el67.
Adolph Leipner
Spicer je dal dva æiva mo~erila Adolphu Leipnerju prej{nje leto (1868) ali prej, saj jih je ta
pokazal na sre~anju naravoslovnega dru{tva v Bristolu 5. marca 186868. Leipner (Sl. 32) (1827?1894), nem{kega izvora, je bil {olski u~itelj v Bristolu in dejaven ~lan lokalnih znanstvenih dru{tev.
Na sestanku je poro~al, da je imel Beale pet let ve~ mo~erilov in povedal, da je tudi sam imel dva
nekaj mesecev, ki mu ju je posodil Joshua Saunders (1866-1899), ~lan naravoslovnega dru{tva iz
Bristola. Poro~al je, da ta dva “nista nikoli jedla in vendar sta bila, ko ju je vrnil, v tako dobrem
stanju, kot takrat, ko ju je dobil”.
William Henderson
William Henderson (1813-1891) (Sl. 23) iz Durhama je predvsem poznan po pisanju o folklori
in ribolovu71 . Opisali smo æe njegov obisk Postojnske jame leta 1862 in dogodov{~ine njegovega
mo~erila na poti domov.
V prvi, zasebno tiskani izdaji njegove knjige ribi{kih spominov, ki je iz{la 1876 (Sl. 33) je
objavljen48 tudi poseben dodatek “Postojnska jama in Proteus anguinus. Nekaj strani o potovanju
po celini”, ki je bil v nadaljnjih komercialnih izdajah leta 187970 in 1880 izpu{~en. Besedilo tega
dodatka se je prvi~ pojavilo deset let prej v nepomembni reviji, imenovani The Monthly Packet of
Evening Readings for Members of the English Church48.
Ker je Hendersonova poro~ila zelo teæko dobiti, je vse, kar se ti~e mo~erila, ponatisnjeno tukaj
v Dodatku V. Videli boste, da opozarja na dopisovanje Buxtona z Bucklandom v The Field in
vsebuje nekaj citatov Lionela Bealea.
Poro~a tudi o Wagnerjevih najdbah (Dodatek II) in o Gulliverjevem poro~ilu o izredno velikih
krvnih telescih mo~erila:
Druga nenavadna zna~ilnost mo~erila je kakovost njegove krvi. Gulliver, ki je zdaj
najve~ji strokovnjak za kri vreten~arjev, pravi v svojem predavanju, objavljenem zadnjega
oktobra: “Najve~je krvni~ke se pojavljajo pri golih dvoæivkah, zlasti v pljuËih, kot je odkril
Wagner; najmanj{e pa imajo ku{~arji, æelve in ka~e. Velikost krvniËk pri mo~erilu je tolik{na,
da jih lahko vidimo s pomo~jo æepnega pove~evalnika”. 72
Gulliver, o katerem govori, je bil prof. George Gulliver (1804-1882), anatom, fiziolog in ~lan
Kraljeve druæbe30 . Predavanje, ki ga omenja, je imel leta 1862 in je tukaj citirano73 skupaj z drugimi
razpravami o isti zadevi60,74,75. Gulliver je izmeril mo~erilove rde~e krvni~ke v velikosti 1/400 in~
krat 1/727 in~ (63.5 ųm x 34 ųm) v primerjavi s Ëlove{kimi, ki so 1/3200 (8 ųm) (cf. Wagnerjeve
slike 1/30 ali 1/40 (70.5 ali 53 ųm)).
Ve~ kot samo zanimiva sta dva odstavka proti koncu Hendersonovega besedila. Prvi govori o
299
zvoku, ki ga spu{~a mo~eril. Takega zvoka ni omenilo nobeno prej{nje poro~ilo in je ~isto druga~en
od “kri~anja in vekanja”, ki ga opisuje Ziherl leta 1751.
Zdi se, da spu{~a mo~eril neke vrste glas, ki me je ob neki priliki zelo motil. Pri Lyonsu
je bil kot obi~ajno v moji spalnici, kjer sem po dolgem dnevnem potovanju uæival v globokem
spancu, ko me je prestra{il glasen sikajo~ zvok, ki mu je sledilo nekaj, kar bi lahko opisal le
kot cmokanje ~love{kega jezika in ustnic ali kot ploskanje. Zvok je bil tako glasen in
nepri~akovan, da sem se malo prestra{il, misle~, da je v sobi vlomilec. Pono~i se je ve~krat
ponovil in od takrat ga vsaki~ sli{im; seveda, vedno samo v ti{ini in temi no~i. Obi~ajno se
pojavi kak{no uro po polno~i, ko so ljudje v postelji in je vse mirno, kakor v prej{njem domu
malega bitja.72
Drugi izvle~ek opisuje mo~erilov pogin:
Z æalostjo dodajam, da je na{ mali ljubljenec poginil v sredo, 14. decembra 1864, to~no
po dveh letih in dveh mesecih odkar je pri{el iz temne jame pri Postojni. Do nekaj dni pred
poginom je bil videti kot obi~ajno, nato pa smo opazili, da postaja vedno bolj droben in bel,
vendar je bil {e vedno tako æivahen in igriv, da nismo imeli vzroka za zaskrbljenost. Kak{en
teden pred poginom smo opazili, da se teæko premika in da ima teæave pri uporabi nog, kar je
bilo zelo druga~e od njegove sicer{nje gib~nosti. Kmalu potem je njegovo telo privzelo moten,
svin~en odtenek, postalo je sluzasto in neprijetno na dotik; in zjutraj, 14., smo ga na{li leæe~ega
na hrbtu; postavili smo ga pokonci in videti je bil tako zadovoljen s sveæo vodo, ki smo mu jo
dali, da smo upali, da bo vse dobro. êz dve uri je plaval na gladini, popolnoma mrtev.
Njegovo truplo smo takoj poslali gospodu T.P. Teale-u v Leeds; toda ko je tja pri{lo, gospod
Teale ni mogel narediti drugega, kot lo~iti koæo od kosti72.
Gospod T.P. Teale iz Leedsa, o katerem govori Henderson, je bil zdravnik in anatom Thomas
Pridgin Teale (1801-1867), ~lan Kraljeve druæbe76, ki je tudi obiskal Postojnsko jamo 14. julija
1856 32 (Sl. 34), vendar, kolikor vemo, domov ni prinesel nobenega mo~erila.
DARILA ZNANSTVENIM INSTITUCIJAM IN @IVALSKIM VRTOVOM
Glede na naravo vsake æive æivali, je bila ve~ina mo~erilov podarjena zoolo{kim dru{tvom ali
muzejem, ki so bili povezani ali so imeli svoj æivalski vrt. Nekateri so {li na univerze, kjer so jih
obi~ajno hranili na zoolo{kem oddelku.
Univerze
Ko je Charles Babbage 1828 obiskal Postojnsko jamo, je kupil {est æivih mo~erilov, kakor smo
æe povedali. Vendar so vsi poginili na poti v Anglijo, njihova usoda pa je bila:
Ko se je njihovo æalostno æivljenje kon~alo, sem jih shranil v alkohol in poslal primerke
zbirkam na{ih univerz, v Indijo in v nekatere na{e kolonije34.
Francis Galton je 1840 kupil dva primerka in ju uspe{no prepeljal v Anglijo:
Podaril sem jih King’s Collegeu: eden je poginil, drugi je æivel in vsako leto so predavali
o njem, kot sem sli{al, dokler ga ni pokon~ala usoda v obliki ma~ke44.
300
King’s College, o katerem je govora, naj bi bil King’s College v Londonu, kjer je {tudiral
medicino, kajti v Cambridgeu ni bil v King’s Collegeu ampak v Trinityju. Medicinska {ola je hranila
æive æivali v svojem muzeju in ~ez deset let je tamkaj{nji upravitelj podaril dva mo~erila londonskemu
æivalskemu vrtu (glej spodaj). To ne bi mogli biti tisti, ki jih je prinesel Galton, razen ~e ga je
spomin hudo varal, ko je o tem pisal ve~ kot 60 let kasneje.
Reginald Smitson Julian Hawes (1911?-1963) 77 (Sl. 35) je {tudiral jamsko æivalstvo v delih
prej{nje Jugoslavije in 193778, 1938 in 193979 je pri{el tudi v Slovenijo in odnesel ve~ mo~erilov v
Anglijo80. V tem ~asu78 je bil v King’s Collegeu v Londonu, sodeloval pa je z Leonardom Harrisonom
Matthewsom (1901-1986), ki je bil na Univerzi v Bristolu do leta 1940 in je nato postal ~lan
Kraljevega dru{tva82 . Verjetno so to tisti mo~erili, ki so bili na zoolo{kem oddelku v Bristolu pribliæno
v tem ~asu83. Nekatere od njih sta spustila okrog leta 1940 v jamo Read’s Cavern v Mendipih dva
{tudenta medicine, Francis Goddard (“G” v imenu bliænje jame G.B. Cavern) in ∞K.L.?≥ Brown. V
rokopisnem dnevniku Speleolo{kega dru{tva Univerze v Bristolu to ni zabeleæeno, toda tega se
spominja Rodney Pearce, ki je bil takrat tajnik dru{tva. Pravi, da so æivali poloæili v jezerce na
jamskem dnu in ne v hitro teko~i tok84. Ostali primerki iz Bristola so bili ohranjeni: dva sta ostala v
Bristolu do 1998, ko sta od{la v Prirodoslovni muzej v Londonu84A. Tisti, ki so zdaj na Univerzi v
Exeterju, kjer je Hawes kasneje delal, verjetno tudi pripadajo tem, nabranim leta 1930.
Zoolo{ko dru{tvo v Londonu
Dru{tvo je bilo ustanovljeno 1826 in njegovi “Zoolo{ki vrtovi” (æivalski vrt) so bili odprti dve
leti kasneje.
Kot je bilo æe omenjeno, je Rudolph Wagner poslal enega æivega mo~erila, da bi ga razstavili na
sestanku dru{tva 14. novembra 1837, vendar ni nobenega poro~ila, da bi ga bili podarili æivalskemu
vrtu. Prvi mo~eril, ki je zapisan, je bil podarjen leta 1839.
Darila æivali so zapisovali v rokopisne dnevne liste, naslovljene “Occurrences at the Garden”
∞Dogodki v vrtu≥, ki so jih vezali v letne zvezke85. Od 1862 dalje so seznam daril tudi tiskali v
knjigah z naslovom List of Vertebrated Animals living in the Gardens of the Zoological Society of
London86. S spra{evanjem kot tudi po pregledu katalogov pomembnej{ih knjiænic kaæe, da je bil
londonski æivalski vrt edini, ki je objavljal take sezname. To je bil tudi edini æivalski vrt, kjer je
avtor imel priloænost pregledati arhive.
Vsega skupaj je zabeleæenih 31 mo~erilov, ki so jih prejeli med 1839 in 1887. Odkrito je bilo
zelo malo podatkov o poginih, namre~ trije in sicer 7. ali 11. julija 1852. V nobenem primeru ne bi
bilo mogo~e izra~unati niti pribliæne starosti ob poginu, kajti do leta 1906 posami~ne æivali niso
bile lo~eno opisane in njihova starost ob prihodu ni bila znana.
Podatki o pridobljenih mo~erilih izvirajo iz objavljenih86 in neobjavljenih 85 virov, ki so
predstavljeni v Tabeli I. Ta je v besedilu dopolnjena s kratkimi biografskimi podatki o darovalcu in
datumu, ko je on ali ona obiskal Postojnsko jamo, ~e je to znano. Vendar v skoraj polovici primerov
nismo odkrili podatkov o obisku jame. Deloma je razlog v tem, da niso vsi posamezniki v skupini
vpisali svojih imen v Knjigo obiskovalcev32, verjetneje pa, da so mo~erile obi~ajno prodajali v
gostilni v Postojni in ni bilo potrebno obiskati jame. Potniki, ki so slu~ajno preno~ili v Postojni, so
jih kupili brez teæav in ljudje, ki so brali Murrayjev vodnik so si mogli na~rtovati pot tako, da so se
ustavili vsaj za kratek ~as.
301
Ve~ podatkov obstoja o 13 osebah, ki so podarile mo~erile londonskemu æivalskemu vrtu:
•
20. avgusta 1839 - gospa Slater, ki je obiskala Postojnsko jamo 6. julija32 (Sl. 36)
•
6. julij 1840 - M. Drummond je bil v jami 25. aprila 32 (Sl. 37).
•
24. maj 1850 Mr. Thompson, to je William Thompson, upravnik muzejev v King’s
Collegeu, London, Medicinski oddelek93..
•
1. maj 1857 Robert Blachford Mansfield (1824-1908) je obiskal jamo 8. aprila32
(Sl. 38).
•
17. maj 1858 Lady Cust, to je Lady Mary Ann Cust (1800-1882) (Sl. 39), ki se je zlasti
zanimala za risanje rastlin in rib95. Bila je teta96 Williama Pureya Custa (1821-1865)97 ,
to je W. P. Cust, ki se je podpisal v Knjigo obiskovalcev 22. aprila 185832 (Sl. 40) in tako
dolo~il datum, ko je kupil mo~erila zanjo.
•
27. junij 1861 Dr. Hugh Falconer (1808-1865) (Sl. 49) je bil geolog in ~lan Kraljeve
druæbe, ki je izkopaval pleistocenske sedimente v jamah na Malti98. V Postojnski jami je
bil 5. junija32. Njegova ponudba mo~erila Charlesu Darwinu je obdelana v naslednjem
poglavju.
•
med 1861 in 1863 Dr. Edward Perceval Wright (1834-1910) (Sl. 41) je bil takrat
predavatelj zoologije in botanike v Dublinu99, jamo pa je obiskal 25. februarja 186132
(Sl. 42).
•
17. november 1863 Frederick Merryweather Burton (1829-1920) (Sl. 43) je bil odvetnik
in amaterski geolog, ~lan Linnejevega in Geolo{kega dru{tva v Londonu100
•
17. april 1867 - Major Robert Herbert Heath Jary (1830?-1920) (Sl. 44) je bil vojak in
~lan Zoolo{kega dru{tva102. V jami je bil 22. marca 1867 32 (Sl. 45).
•
26. april 1876 Sir Henry Bartle Edward Frere (1815-1884) (Sl. 46) je bil vi{ji prekmorski
upravnik30. Jamo je videl 10. aprila 1876 32 (Sl. 47).
•
29. julij 1885 John Mason Cook (1834-1899) (Sl. 48) je bil sin Thomasa Cooka, ~loveka,
ki je osnoval prvo svetovno potovalno agencijo; tudi sam je nadaljeval z razvojem te
druæbe30.
•
11. oktober 1887 prof. William Henry Corfield (1843-1903) (Sl. 49) je bil profesor higiene
in javnega zdravja v Londonu 103.
•
11. oktober 1887 dr. Edwin Rickards (1841-1908) je bil doktor medicine104.
Ponudba Darwinu
Hugh Falconer (Sl. 50) je 5. junija 186132 (Sl. 51) obiskal Postojnsko jamo in kupil mo~erila, ki
ga je 27. junija podaril londonskemu æivalskemu vrtu. Med tema dvema dogodkoma je izmenjal
nekaj pisem z Charlesom Darwinom (1809-1882) (Sl. 52). Falconer se je v Anglijo vrnil pozno
22. junija in æe naslednji dan pisal Darwinu (Sl. 53), ponujajo~ mu æival:
302
31 Sackville St. W
23. junij 1861
Moj dragi Darwin,
bil sem v Postojnski jami in s sabo pripeljal æivega Proteusa anguinusa, ki sem ga namenil
tebi od prvega trenutka, ko sem ga dobil, to je, ~e ima{ akvarij in, ~e si ga æeli{ imeti. V~eraj
zve~er sem se vrnil s celine in tvoj brat mi je povedal, da namerava{ iti v Torquay, zato
nisem izgubljal ~asa s svojo ponudbo. Uboga draga æival je {e æiva ~eprav ni imela ves mesec
po{tenih pogojev za æivljenje in zelo si æelim znebiti se odgovornosti za njeno nadaljnje
stradanje. V tvojih rokah bo uspevala in imela po{teno moænost, da se razvija brez predaha v
kak{en tip Columbidae reciva, v goloba gol{arja ali prevra~alca.
Moj dragi Darwin, v zadnjem ~asu sem se potikal po severni Italiji in Nem~iji. Kjerkoli
sem sli{al o tvojih pogledih ali o hvaljenju tvoje ob~udovanja vredne razprave, seveda so
bila mnenja pogosto razli~na, glede na posebno nagnjenost sogovornika, toda delo, po{tenost
namena, veli~ina koncepta, ob~udovanje ilustracij, pogumno tolma~enje, povsod so se o njej
izraæali z najve~jim ob~udovanjem. In med tvojimi intimnimi prijatelji se nih~e ne veseli
bolj iz srca pravi~nega ob~udovanja Charlesa Darwina kot
tvoj zvesti
H. Falconer105
Ta ponudba ni samo dokaz tesnega prijateljstva; bila je posebno primerna, ker je Darwin poro~al
o mo~erilu v The Origin of Species ∞Izvor vrst≥ leta 1859 s pripombo, da je sposoben preæiveti v
jamah “zaradi manj ostre tekme, ki so ji verjetno izpostavljeni prebivalci temnih bivali{~”. 106
V odgovoru naslednjega dne je Darwin ~util, da ni sposoben preskrbeti dobrega domovanja
æivali in je predlagal, da bi bil londonski æivalski vrt primernej{i kraj zanjo in bi jo tam tudi bolj
cenili.
∞24. junij 1861≥
Down ∞House≥
Moj dragi Falconer.Ravnokar sem prejel tvoje obvestilo, na sre~o dan hitreje kot obi~ajno in ti takoj
odgovarjam, zahvaljujo~ se ti iz vsega srca za ponudbo dragocenega primerka; toda, nimam
akvarija in kmalu odhajam v Torquay, tako da bi bilo tiso~krat {koda, ~e bi ga sprejel. Seveda
bi ga brez dvoma zelo rad videl, toda bojim se, da bo to nemogo~e. Ali ne misli{, da bi bilo
Zoolo{ko dru{tvo najbolj{i kraj? Pa tudi zanimanje, ki bi ga mnogi pokazali za to nenavadno
æival, bi ti popla~alo trud.
Ker si bil tako prijazen in si si naloæil ta trud in mi ponudil primerek, ti moram povedati
resnico, da bolj cenim tvoje pismo, kot primerek. Tvojo ponudbo bom hranil med redkimi
dragocenimi pismi. Tvoja prijaznost me je resni~no ganila.
Tvoj vdani in hvaleæni
Ch. Darwin107
In tako ga je tri dni kasneje podaril æivalskemu vrtu (Sl. 54).
Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris
Omenili smo æe darilo 30 mo~erilov, ki jih je leta 1900 dal muzeju Viré. Besede, s katerimi je na
kratko opisal æival in podal pregled zgodovine njenega odkritja niso bile popolnoma to~ne. V zadnjih
dveh odstavkih pravi:
303
Posku{ali bomo preu~evati njihove navade v laboratoriju v katakombah in brez dvoma,
bomo predstavili {e mnoga poro~ila.
Poleg tega, bodo lahko obiskovalci Jardin des Plantes ∞pari{ki æivalski vrt, ki je del
muzeja≥ videli ve~ primerkov v oddelku za plazilce, kjer ji bodo lahko lagodno opazovali v
miru.108
Odkrili nismo nobenih nadaljnjih poro~il o teh primerkih. Laboratorij v katakombah je deset let
kasneje, 1910, popolnoma uni~ila narasla Seina.
Zoologischer Garten, Basel
Celo med drugo svetovno vojno so mo~erila podarjali primernim ustanovam. Pismo v Arhivu
Postojnske jame29, poslano iz æivalskega vrta v Baslu 29.decembra 1942 sporo~a, da je pet mo~erilov
varno prispelo v dobrem stanju. Razstavili so jih v novem akvariju, kjer so dobili “posebno mesto
blizu vhoda, med najzanimivej{imi æivalmi”.
New York Zoological Society
@ivalski vrt v New Yorku je novembra 1961 prejel osem mo~erilov v zameno za nekaj mladih
aligatorjev in kajmanov, ki so jih poslali v mariborski akvarij osem let prej. Zadnji teh osmih
mo~erilov je poginil v za~etku 1967. Naslednja izmenjava je bila pripravljena v letu 1965 in {e
{tirje mo~erili so odpotovali v ZDA; vsi so poginili v enem letu zaradi nesre~e na univerzi Yale,
kjer so jih hranili.109
ZAHVALA
Kot je jasno vidno, je bila celotna {tudija mo~no odvisna od uporabe ve~jih knjiænic in arhivov.
Zlasti sem hvaleæen osebju The British Library, The Royal Society, The Linnean Society of London,
The Geological Society of London, The Zoological Society of London in knjiænici In{tituta za
raziskovanje krasa ZRC SAZU. Posebna zahvala gre knjiæni~arki Maji Kranjc za njene hitre odgovore
na {tevilna vpra{anja v kon~nem delu pisanja, ko nisem ve~ delal v zgradbi In{tituta. Dr. Brigitta
Mader mi je iz Kunsthistorisches Museum na Dunaju prijazno posredovala fotografijo, ki je
reproducirana kot Sl. 1. Direkor muzeja, dr. Manfred Leithe-Jasper se je strinjal, da jo objavimo in
nam je dal dodatne informacije o grafiki. Dr. Carlo Violani iz univerze v Pavii nam je posredoval
portret Maura Rusconija (Sl. 6A), kakor tudi biografske podatke o njem in o Pietru Configliachiju.
Slavko Polak iz Notranjskega muzeja v Postojni, Ian Linn z univerze v Exetru, dr. Roger Avery z
univerze v Bristolu in Marko Aljan~i~ iz laboratorija Tular v Kranju so posredovali podatke o drugih
zadevah.
304

Acta 1999 - vstavljene slike - Devon Karst Research Society

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