THE SENSE OF DIRECTION IN SAVAGES. 5 



often singularly helpless and stupid in this respect. 

 When alone, and thrown upon their own resources, 

 they simply lose their heads. Mr. Parker Gilmore 

 relates a notable instance of this in the person of one 

 of his companions, a highly educated gentleman, and 

 one who had moreover distinguished himself at his 

 University: such cases are by no means uncommon. 



" Of all the hunting companions I have ever had (he says), 

 and they have been numerous enough I never was associ- 

 ated with one who had a poorer idea of direction. It has 

 puzzled me, times beyond count, how any man could be 

 so stupid in this respect, and it sometimes quite used to 

 make me lose my temper to see with what persistency he 

 would adopt a wrong course, and worse still, stick to it, 

 in spite of all argument and persuasion." Mr. Parker Gil- 

 more then goes on to observe that he "has invariably 

 found that the higher the type of man, in breeding and 

 educational acquirements, the more certain he is to be 

 an adept at wandering, when left to his own resources" 

 Whereas "The lowest organizations to be found in the 

 human family, such as the Digger Indian, and the Bush- 

 man, never get lost. However similar the landscape, they 

 will retrace their steps to their starting point without hesita- 

 tion or doubt." * 



Now to what are we to attribute this strange 

 incapacity? Is it some inherited defect, bred in the 

 organization of the higher type of humanity or is it 

 simply due to want of training in the practical habits 

 of every-day observation? 



We are decidedly disposed to adopt the latter view. 

 Intelligence, we believe, is sure to tell in the long 

 run, provided it is properly trained and directed. The 



* The Hunters' Arcadia, by Parker Gilmore, 1886, pp. IOO, 101. 



