THE NEW EVOLUTION 



This concept greatly interferes with a true appre- 

 ciation of the various types of animals. We uncon- 

 sciously regard blind creatures as unintelligent and 

 stupid — as deficient in an undefinable essential — even 

 though they may be quite as capable in meeting com- 

 petition as animals with eyes. 



The blind dolphins of the upper Ganges and the 

 blind cave and deep sea fishes and crustaceans are able 

 to make their way in life against strenuous competi- 

 tion quite as effectively as their relatives with eyes. 

 They are therefore quite as intelligent in spite of the 

 fact that their intelligence is a response to stimuli 

 which we ourselves find incapable of adequate inter- 

 pretation and analysis. Just the same is true of 

 oysters, starfishes and earthworms. In their own way 

 and so far as concerns their special needs they are as 

 intelligent as any other creatures, and as they need 

 to be. 



But all creatures with eyes do not look the same to 

 us. For instance an octopus in a tank fascinates us 

 with its large unblinking eyes which to us seem bale- 

 ful and uncanny. The reason is that the octopus is so 

 strange a creature we have no notion of what he is 

 going to do. Hence an element of fascination based 

 on fear colors our concept of an octopus. 



To us, depending as we do chiefly on our eyes, 

 bodily control through hearing as in the case of bats 

 seems incomprehensible and mysterious, and hence 

 uncanny. Besides, bats chiefly fly by night when 

 because of the imperfect functioning of our eyes we 

 are more or less fearful and suspicious. We regard 



