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ENGLAND

[[underline]] London [[/underline]] - Sept. 3, 1939, Vevers took 3 riding elephants to Whipsn, killing 1 African to make room. On way home heard over wireless war declared.
400 incendiaries}
40 - 50 high explosives} in 33 acres
18 V-1's}                10 more buzz bombs on outskirts

Autumn of 1940 direct hit on zebra house; wild ass blown up into air, fell unhurt in a stokehole; Grevy zebra escaped ran into Camden town, herded back by Vevers in car. Story of Huxley next morning. Restaurant roof afire, water main broken, firemen took water from sea lion pool.

Craters - water fowl ponds; roofs replaced, sometimes with wood or canvas; tropical bird house remodeled; camel house and raven cage. Young giraffe frightened at Whipsn. Visitor and incendiary.

Food - vegetables instead of fruit; baby chicks, sparrows, rats and mice for meat.

[[strikethrough]] [[Small mammal collection - kusimanse]]  [[/strikethrough]]

Reptile house open; aquarium closed - store newsprint. 30 - 40 snakes killed. Rare things kept in wooden tubs. Explain glass shattering.

Rarities today - tiny galagoes breeding, kusimanse (rel to civets), green squirrels, aardvaarks, herd of camels (obtained from Russia before war, now selling at [[pound sign]] 1000 each), amethyst starling (white below, purple above), tinker bird (black and yellow, thumb-size, voice like a gong).

Ezra - Foxwarren

Parrakeets, Alexandrine, green-winged kings, golden ringnecks (his own selection). Wallabies, muntjacs and blackbuck among oak, birch, beech, copper beech, rhododendrons. Vickers plant making Wellington bombers; workers ordered to shelters, [[strikethrough]] ma [[/strikethrough]] played football instead. 150 incendiaries fell among cows, no damage; high explosive near house, no damage, underground shelter for evacuees. Aviators landed in field in fog, couldn't get out because of fence. Rolls-Royces, no gas. Food plentiful from own garden.

Whipsnade -

400 acres of park, 150 of farmland. Zebra paddock - whole Regent's Park, 33 acres. Antelopes, llamas, birds, wolf forest.

Woburn Abbey - 

15,000 acres, finest oak forest in England. 200 Pere David deer. 18 wisent, 2000 deer including sika, water, fallow, axis.

Part of house dates to Henry Viii; Robt. Hobbs, lawt abbot hanged in 1538. 

^ [[Main house Fr. Renaissance -]]

[[margin]] ^ [[Ext in China [[?]] Royal Palace - Boxer - ]]



































Transcription Notes:
Fixed minor typos, still not sure what the handwritten note is supposed to say. -blondeofthedead