FROM THE "SPECTATOR? 75 



I believe that it arises very much from the 

 fact that hitherto we have tried to teach 

 animals, rather than to learn from them 

 to convey our ideas to them, rather than to 

 devise any language, or code of signals, by 

 means of which they might communicate 

 theirs to us. No doubt the former process 

 is interesting and instructive, but it does not 

 carry us very far. 



Under these circumstances it has occurred 

 to me whether some such system as that 

 followed with deaf mutes, and especially by 

 Dr. Howe with Laura Bridgman, might not 

 prove very instructive if adapted to the case 

 of dogs. Accordingly I prepared some pieces 

 of stout cardboard, and printed on each in 

 legible letters a word, such as " food," 

 "bone," "out," &c. I then began training 

 a black poodle, Van by name, kindly given 

 me by my friend, Mr. Nickalls. 



I commenced by giving the dog food in a 

 saucer, over which I laid the card on which 

 was the word " food," placing also by the 

 side an empty saucer, covered by a plain 

 card. Van soon learnt to distinguish between 



