ANIMAL AND RATIONAL INTELLIGENCE 223 



and experiments in training, all seem to fail in 

 supplying the kind of evidence required. Training 

 falls short of educating. Its limits seem fixed by 

 the measure of the animal s allurement by food and 

 by caressing, or by the measure of its nerve endurance. 

 If the animal were not so quiescent afterwards ; if we 

 saw it engaged in practice subsequently, as if to 

 advance its own education, apart from inducements of 

 appetite; if some glearn of the spirit of inquiry ap 

 peared, we should have more evidence to go upon. 

 Observation of animals, whether in a state of nature, 

 or under domestication, has not supplied data of a 

 helpful kind. A cloud of uncertainty is thus thrown 

 over all theorising as to animal ideas/ conceptions/ 

 and reasonings. If we suppose that we can convey an 

 idea to the rnind of a dog, whatever difficulty there may 

 be in describing the process, let us enumerate a few ex 

 amples of the ideas so transferred. We communicate 

 ideas to human intelligence by use of language,by direc 

 tion of personal observation, backed up by concentra 

 tion of attention on the part of the recipient mind, and 

 by conversation allowing for questioning and answering. 

 How many of these can be employed in our com 

 munications with the animals ? We doubt if any of 

 them are available. The sheep-dog, the Scotch 

 Collie/ the faithful attendant of the shepherd in 

 the management of his flock, presents the surest and 

 best test. The action of the animal in collecting and 

 driving the sheep, when he is under direction of the 

 shepherd, is a marvel. But what ideas can we 

 convey to a Collie ? Can we convey to him an idea 

 of porridge, or of Dog Biscuit ; of whiteness or of 

 hardness; or of anything more than can be appre- 



