MENTAL FACULTIES 



because " Ami " at the daily visit to the butcher's shop 

 received a scrap of sausage. The butcher's dog after every 

 visit followed him down the street barking and yelping, and 

 running close at his side. " Ami " was quite a match for his 

 adversary, as the result of several fights showed, but it was 

 evident that the strife at last became distasteful to him, and 

 besides he saw that his master disapproved of it. He no 

 longer allowed himself to be irritated, and then he gave up 

 his visit to the butcher's shop. The provocation was, however, 

 continued when the peaceful " Ami," accompanying his 

 master in his usual walk, went past the butcher's shop. 

 From the street in which this shop stands two side streets 

 diverge some distance on one side of the shop, joining the 

 main street again farther on. One day " Ami " left his 

 master at the place where these streets diverge, ran through 

 one of them, and awaited him at the place where they unite 

 again. Afterwards he regularly made the same detour, 

 choosing sometimes one sometimes the other of the side 

 streets. He thus avoids meeting the brawler, not from fear, 

 as his own character proves, for he has never shown any fear 

 of his enemy, but because he wishes to avoid strife. 



Dr. Fickert tells me he has observed two quite similar 

 cases in another dog. 



If men behaved as "Ami" did which would be an excep- 

 tional occurrence we should say they behaved reasonably. 

 It seems in fact that the dog drew the general conclusion 

 that constant strife is useless, and it is better to avoid it ; but 

 of course it cannot be decided whether it was so, or whether he 

 simply concluded that his opponent might at last handle him 

 severely. But whether the behaviour of the dog be called 

 reasonable or intelligent, it cannot be called instinctive. 



Dr. Fickert tells me also the following story about a dog 

 which he possessed: This dog found by experience that 

 when he tried to swim across the rapid stream of the Neckar 



