CHAPTER XIII 



LIFE AND INSTINCT 

 I 



FROM the earliest times the activities of animals or what 

 they do has been a subject of universal interest, yet until 

 recently accurate knowledge of animal behavior has made little 

 progress, considering the richness of the field which is offered 

 to the student, its singular attractions, and ever present oppor- 

 tunities. 



It is easy, however, to understand why popular interest in 

 natural history has not advanced our knowledge of animal life 

 in a greater degree. The successful study of animal behavior 

 requires continuous and exact observation, often extending over 

 considerable periods of time, not to speak of thorough training 

 in the natural sciences. It is true that in the analysis of the 

 most elementary phenomena of life and action biology has not 

 advanced beyond the stage of description and suggestion, but 

 this should serve as an incentive to even greater care in experi- 

 ment and observation in so wide and difficult a field. In the 

 study of behavior there is certainly no danger of exaggerating 

 the importance of scientific method. If only as a balance- 

 wheel to speculation, both anatomy and physiology can do 

 good service for the student of the animal mind. 



The modern method of studying animals is to go to nature 

 direct, to experiment, and to use every means which promises 

 to yield valuable returns. 



If the observer is properly equipped, he should be able to 

 ascertain the facts and conditions of animal life with a fair de- 

 gree of accuracy, but when he attempts to analyze his facts the 



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