SCHNEIDER'S "TIERPSYCHOLOGISCHES PRAKTIKUM 



IN DIALOGFORM" 1 



MADISON BENTLEY, 



The University of Illinois 



Four years ago Professor Schneider published a volume of 

 Lectures on Animal Psychology. The lectures were directed 

 against mechanism in physiology and against the "nurphysio- 

 logische" psychologists. The writer argued for a panpsychic 

 reservoir, for telic ideas, and for a psychic regulation of the 

 organic functions (cf. Psych. Bull., VII, 1910, 264). The reader 

 who expects to make serious use of the speculations of the 

 Praktikum should be familiar with the earlier work. 



The plan of the present book is a discussion, dialogue -wise, by 

 representatives from the different biological schools, of the prob- 

 lems of animal psychology and of general biology. A dramatic 

 element is introduced into the dialogues by experimental dem- 

 onstrations, and it is sustained by sharp repartee, clever thrust 

 and riposte, and even personal censure and professional spite. 

 A bit of characterization also is attempted. Psychologe is wise, 

 judicial, impressive; Biologe is voluble and assured, but ulti- 

 mately docile; while Physiologe, who represents der Geist der 

 stets verneint, comes to his knees, in the end, confesses his sins, 

 and swears allegiance to the rankest form of teleology. On one 

 occasion, the Lamarckist (a vitalist, a monist and a Darwinian 

 also figure in the discussions) accuses the physiologist of measur- 

 ing the exactness of scientific research by the number of rabbits 

 consumed in the laboratories. When he proposes to sacrifice, 

 instead, a limited number of thoughts, the physiologist retorts: 

 " Gedanken sind billiger als Kaninchen. "to which the Lamarckist 

 curtly rejoins: "Dann wundert's mich, dass man so wenig von 

 Gedanken spurt." 



The new work is echt deutsch gedacht, and the range of its 

 discussion and of its knowledge is, moreover, limited, for the 

 greater part, to German themes and to German studies. There 



l Veit, Leipzig, 1912, pp. 719. 



472 



