20 MENTAL QUALITIES OF THE HORSE. 



differences of tone, although he has extremely little ability 

 to distinguish one word from another. As a rule, a loud, 

 harsh sound of the human voice frightens the horse ; but 

 a soft one calms him. 



Sense of sight. The horse is greatly affected by objects 

 which have to him a strange or suspicious appearance. It 

 is easy to understand that the survival of an instinct which 

 in former times helped to preserve him from his neigh- 

 bouring foes, makes him start with terror when he sees, 

 for instance, a bear skin in his path, or a trailing rope, the 

 serpentine motion of which might suggest the idea of a 

 snake. But I cannot fathom the motive for the fear with 

 which the approach of a camel invariably inspires him. He 

 will seldom take in good part the sight of a donkey (or 

 even a pony) with a bulky load on its back. Water and 

 white and glittering objects are generally sources of alarm 

 to him. The expression of the human face appears to have 

 no effect on the horse. " With respect to this subject I 

 have made many experiments on young and old horses, 

 and can certify that if the man moves only his eyes and 

 the muscles of his face, without stirring his body or arms 

 the horse will remain perfectly unconcerned. I have a 

 hundred times tried the effect of anger in my look, of smiles 

 on my lips, without the slightest result. You may make 

 the most horrible grimaces at your horse, or you may 

 stick your tongue out at them, but none of them will show 

 the smallest sign of being influenced by such means " 

 (Fillis). The reason for the horse being insensible to the 

 expression of the human face, however exaggerated it may 

 be, although keenly observant of the slightest movement 

 of the hand, for instance, appears to me to be that the 

 special feature which the horse looks at, as an index to the 

 mind, is the ears, which in man are too small and too little 

 gifted with mobility to afford him any clue to our thoughts. 



