PROVISION FOR COMPARATIVE STUDY 13 



of the Belgian Congo has been made by Mr. Carl Akeley. 

 Miss Alyse Cunningham (3) of London has gathered 

 valuable data on the characteristics of the young gorilla, 

 three specimens of which she has kept successfully over vary- 

 ing periods. In addition to gaining unique insight into the 

 daily life of the young of this anthropoid ape, she has demon- 

 strated the possibihty of keeping the animals in perfect 

 health and rearing them in temperate climates. 



This brief and incomplete historical summary of what has 

 been done and is being undertaken or projected for increase 

 of our knowledge of the primates is offered for the encourage- 

 ment of those scientists who have come to think of the 

 anthropoid apes as practically unavailable for research. For 

 many years the writer has been deeply interested in the 

 utilization of primate material for the solution of certain 

 psycho-biological problems. During this time he has worked 

 diligently for the estabHshment of a primate station which 

 should provide for the all-around study — anthropological, 

 physiological, psychological, sociological — of infrahuman 

 primates, and more particularly of the anthropoid apes. 

 There is at least reasonable possibihty that such a station 

 may be established in Cuba. MeantimiC various investiga- 

 tions are being prosecuted, and there is far more reason for 

 encouragement and augmentation of effort than ever before. 



This report is primarily an account of observations which, 

 like most of our studies of the infrahuman primates, are 

 prehminary and preparatory to effective and determined 

 attack on important problems. One of the tragedies of our 

 scientific situation with reference to primate material is that 

 few observers succeed in getting beyond the preliminaries of 

 general acquaintance with the animals. Not until a per- 

 manent breeding and observation station for such work exists 



