182 THE BIRD WATCHER 
the family, which in so@Mf™l matters is generally taken as 
aunit. Numbers of animals living and breeding to- 
gether may be said to be social by virtue of their 
contiguity, and, no doubt, are so, to a greater or less 
extent, in their feelings. But until they help and 
support one another in some way, true social labour 
has not begun amongst them. When it does begin it 
will become distributed through the whole community, 
and it is only after this early point in social advance 
has been reached, that the other and greater advance, 
which consists in the limitation to a certain number 
of the labour which was before shared by all, can take 
place. 
To this first stage these guillemots have, perhaps, 
not yet attained, but if some of them are interested 
in, and show kindness towards, the young of the 
community generally, as distinct from their own, then, 
as it appears to me, they are on the way towards it, and 
when they have reached it they will probably begin to 
advance socially along the general lines by which both 
man and social insects have advanced. This is why 
such a little incident as that I have just recorded is to 
me a matter of so much interest, so that I get quite 
excited in trying to be sure about it. It may be little 
or nothing now, but what does that matter if, in no 
more, perhaps, than another million of years, it has 
led to most important developments, if not in guille- 
mots, yet in some other species of bird, possibly in 
a very great many ’—supposing, that is, that we 
do not exterminate all of them—which is likely, 
