HABIT FORMATION IN THE DOG 13 



In February, 1908, Rothmann " reported to the Physiolo- 

 gische Gesellschaft of Berlin some auditory tests which he had 

 made before and after operations on several dogs, for the pur- 

 pose of testing Kalischer's findings. It appears that about the 

 time of Kalischer's communication, Rothmann was trying to 

 ascertain the function of the posterior coipora quadrigemina. 

 He was unwilling to accept Kalischer's conclusion that the 

 center for pitch is infracortical and lies even below the pos- 

 terior corpora quadrigemina. His reasons are: (i) That such 

 an assumption does too much violence to definite localization 

 theories already fairly established; (2) that the dog's discrim- 

 ination and reactions are undoubtedly very complicated proc- 

 esses, and accordingly, to make them independent of the cere- 

 brum would be practically to abandon all the useful doctrines 

 of the relation of the cortex to "psychical" acts which prevail 

 at present in physiology and pathology. Finally he suggests 

 that in Kalischer's work secondary criteria were possibly not 

 excluded. 



He adhered to the following routine in conducting the daily 

 tests on each animal : The stimulus tones were struck on the 

 same organ used by Kalischer and ]\Iunk. The experimenter 

 sat behind it "completely concealed by the high pipes, but so 

 that he could observe the dog." "The meat was laid on a foot- 

 stool before the dog, while the animal scampered freely hither 

 and thither about the room. This had the great ad\'antage 

 that the tone could be struck while the dog was in another part 

 of the room, with his head averted from the food." A Diener 

 was posted behind the stool, to drive the dog away when he 

 attempted to take the food except at the food-tone. Rothmann 

 had suspected that Kalischer's dogs, which after the destruction 

 of both coi-pora quadrigemina and the consequent cessation of 

 all signs of attention to other noises yet continued to behave 

 correctly at tones, may have been reacting to "unconscious 

 helps," as had Dcr kliige Hans. He substituted the Diener for 

 the experimenter at the feeding-place, apparently considering 

 that the untrained Diener, who, however, must know the food- 

 tones, was less likely to give the animal "unconscious helps" 

 than would be the experimenter, who was "interested" in the 



^ Rothmann, Max. Ueber die Ergebnisse der Horprufung an dressierten 

 Hunden. Arch. 10 /. Physiol., 1908, pp. 103 ff. 



