248 MENTAL FACULTIES SEC. 



drank from it with perfect success in the well-known fashion 

 of adult fowls. 



Now for the first time it dropped its excrement. A little 

 later passing by this it pecked at it, but spat away what it 

 took up with disgust. Considering its previous behaviour 

 one might wonder that the chick had not an innate aversion 

 to its excrement. But it must be remarked that the first 

 excrement has not the same nature as the subsequent, but is 

 surrounded with a gelatinous covering, and consists chiefly of 

 the remains of the embryonic nutriment. 



Both chicks were at once attracted by a fly which crawled 

 on the board, and pecked at it repeatedly, without being 

 able to catch it. It is very curious that after their first 

 attempt at catching flies failed, both afterwards took no notice 

 of them. Indeed they acted upon every first experience in a 

 really wonderful way. 



The white chick now also ate millet. 



I laid before them boiled egg, finely minced. They pecked 

 at it at once and swallowed it, both yolk and albumen in 

 equal quantities, although one at first preferred the yolk. 



I offered them some earth-worms of moderate size. When 

 those began to crawl the chicks looked at them with all the 

 signs of fear, and withdrew from them. 1 On the other hand, 

 they began to peck determinedly at one another's toes. They 

 pecked immediately at some chopped salad put before them, 

 then at first left it, but afterwards pecked at it again and ate 

 of it. 



On the third day the white one went by chance near a 

 drop of water again placed on the board, and drank from it 

 at once, without having watched how the brown one drank 



1 I may remark here that even the old fowls in my enclosed fowl-run are always 

 uneasy at first when earth-worms are thrown to them ; they show unmistakable 

 signs of shrinking and even of fear, and it is often some time before any of them 

 overcome their repugnance and devour the worms, while others never touch them 

 at all. 



