284 Wild Beasts 



strong sense of personal identity ; filled with innate ten- 

 dencies, through the medium of which he interpreted 

 external impressions ; prone to contemplations that, as his 

 eye and changing attitudes indicated, were not vague, apa- 

 thetic dreams, no one can know that he did not revive 

 mental states and meditate on centrically initiated ideas. 



Personally, and so far as mere individual opinion unsup- 

 ported by proof goes, the conviction in his friend's mind 

 is that he did. Often, as with all cats, his brain was torpid. 

 Unconscious cerebration, no doubt, went on, but only dim, 

 transient images floated into the field of consciousness, 

 and fragmentary, isolated, shadow-like pictures of outward 

 things were presented to the "mind's eye." It was plain 

 enough when he was in this semi-somnolent condition, and 

 the difference between it and the active exercise of faculty 

 upon something within himself, was unmistakable. He 

 thought, but how, and about what ? In his realm of that 

 ideal world so little of which has been explored by man, 

 subjective processes transpired such as we have no clue 

 to and no measure for. The contents of mind, however, 

 must be derivations from experience in a wild beast as much 

 as in a human being. What he had observed, seen, felt, and 

 remembered in that form which his own organization con- 

 ferred, were manifested characteristically : that is to say, 

 when vivid imaginations excited, or external sense-notices 

 aroused him, the beast of prey awoke at once. The same 

 most likely, or rather, most certainly, must have been true 

 of all mental conditions, but while the animal remained 

 impassive, the fact was indiscernible. When this savage 

 warrior lay before his companion's arm-chair, and looked 



