THE DAWN OF MIND 



IN the story of evolution there is no chapter more interesting 

 than the emergence of mind in the animal kingdom. But 

 it is a difficult chapter to read, partly because "mind" cannot 

 be seen or measured, only inferred from the outward behaviour 

 of the creature, and partly because it is almost impossible to avoid 

 reading ourselves into the much simpler animals. 



Two Extremes to be Avoided 



The one extreme is that of uncritical generosity which 

 credits every animal, like Brer Rabbit who, by the way, was 

 the hare with human qualities. The other extreme is that of 

 thinking of the animal as if it were an automatic machine, in the 

 working of which there is no place or use for mind. Both these 

 extremes are to be avoided. 



When Professor Whitman took the eggs of the Passenger 

 Pigeon (which became extinct not long ago with startling 

 rapidity) and placed them a few inches to one side of the nest, 

 the bird looked a little uneasy and put her beak under her body 

 as if to feel for something that was not there. But she did not try 

 to retrieve her eggs, close at hand as they were. In a short time 

 she flew away altogether. This shows that the mind of the pigeon 

 is in some respects very different from the mind of man. On the 

 other hand, when a certain clever dog, carrying a basket of eggs, 

 with the handle in his mouth, came to a stile which had to be nego- 

 tiated, he laid the basket on the ground, pushed it gently through 

 a low gap to the other side, and then took a running leap over. 

 We dare not talk of this dog as an automatic machine. 



207 



