FIELD AND STUDY 



ables" from the old ones of the same band by driv- 

 ing the herd through a wooden chute or runway, 

 with two valveHke doors, a small one and a large 

 one, at the end. The small door would open for the 

 small seals, and the large door for the large ones. 

 But the seals persisted in following one another. 

 The most experienced males would beat their noses 

 against a closed door through which they had seen 

 the seal before them just pass. That the door had 

 been shut, and a<nother, larger, one opened beside it 

 made no difference. 



Some friends of mine caught a fish called a sea- 

 robin and kept it confined in a large pan of water 

 for a day and a night. The fish continually swam 

 round and round in a circle in the pan, seeking an 

 outlet, so that when they finally carried it out in the 

 bay and let it go, it continued to swim around in a 

 circle. They carried it farther out, but it was still 

 confined in the pan to all intents and purposes, and 

 they left it. 



§ 



Sometimes in confinement an animal, if left 

 alone, will give us a glimpse of its real mental make- 

 up. I am thinking of Mr. Beebe's account of the 

 wood ibis at the Bronx. The bird would "stand in 

 a cement-lined pool and for hours patiently tap the 

 bottom with its foot, trembling with eagerness the 

 while, as he watches for impossible worms to come 



294 



