THE CHICAGO EXPERIMENTS WITH RACCOONS 161 



are perhaps so rare in animal experience that the most refined 

 experiments will be required to discover and identify them; 

 experiments beside which Hunter's experiments, and mine, will 

 pale into insignificance, because of their simplicity. 



There is still another reason for hoping that the study of 

 animal intelligence may sometime get beyond the stage of dispute 

 and denial. Dispute and denial are poor material to occupy 

 the time of college students. Long ago I had to give up that 

 kind of teaching ,and occupy myself with the more solid infor- 

 mation which we possess, of animal sense organs, because dialectic 

 should be taught in philosophy and not in science. Note the 

 extensive work of Kafka 3 , the first volume of which has just 

 appeared. 



Dr. Hunter's agreement with me does not end with the facts 

 noted above. He is almost persuaded to credit my experiments 

 in putting the animals through the act to be learned, because 

 he has observed the same sort of behavior in rats. At least 

 he admits my apparent credibility relative to my four raccoons. 

 It would be unfair to him, however, not to state his qualifications. 

 On page fourteen he says: "Now with reference to that type 

 of experiment in which the problem learned is that of working 

 latches rather than climbing into boxes, I believe the data 

 presented by Cole are conclusive, as far as the facts are concerned. 

 Some raccoons at least appear to learn by being "put through." 

 Whether all raccoons would do so is, of course, quite another 

 matter/' (Italics mine.) 



The reader may reply, "You can surely get but cold comfort 

 from this admission." It gives you the merest semblance or 

 'appearance' of credibility with regard to your report on your 

 four animals alone. I at least have not charged you with having 

 invented your records." True enough, but the admission means 

 that Hunter's rats, if they have not made a breach, have at 

 least made a weak place in the blank wall of opposition and denial. 

 The latter is definitely given up. How wonderful is the rat at 

 undermining ! 



The cold comfort comes from the facts that those experiments 



of mine have not been repeated at Chicago University. I fear, 



because their raccoons would not permit it (Hunter p. 86). 



Now should the Chicago laboratory secure a toothless raccoon 



3 Kafka, Gustav. Einfuhrung in die Tierpsychologie. Leipzig, 1914. 



