146 UNSOLVED PROBLEMS. 



by pet dogs of their masters' bodies among the slain after or 

 during battle as at Sedan or Waterloo ('Animal World'). 



It must be obvious that all the forms of way-finding above 

 mentioned are not precisely of the same class or character. 

 In certain cases the route may have been, or certainly had 

 been, previously travelled, as in the case of the Eskimo dog 

 leader, that finds its way in blinding snow only when it has 

 formerly traversed the same route ; or the animal may, and 

 obviously does, make use of its senses, such as scent, as well 

 as of its intelligence, observation, and memory ; but in other 

 cases of previously untraversed land and sea, and of great 

 distances, the numerous discussions that have been recorded 

 in * Nature ' and elsewhere as to the parts respectively played 

 by a sixth sense, or by smell and vision, show that it cannot 

 be said that any satisfactory solution of the problem has yet 

 been offered and accepted. 



In studying the interesting subject of way -finding in 

 other animals it is important to enquire how far such a 

 power occurs in man, and what is its nature if and when it 

 is displayed by him. In the first place, then, many savage 

 races are known to possess a power not enjoyed by the civi- 

 lised white man of way-finding over trackless prairies and 

 through pathless woods. The red men of North America 

 are good instances of such prairie trackers, and the Austra- 

 lian blacks of bush way-finders. In both cases, just as it 

 is also among the lower animals, the faculty*in question 

 has been popularly regarded as an instinct (Watson). As 

 regards the North American Indians and their path-finding 

 through the forests of Canada and New Brunswick, Dr. 

 Adams points out that they are guided by observation for 

 instance, of 



1. The direction of the bent or fall of trees. 



2. The position of their lichen-coating both of which 

 show the prevalent winds. 



3. The course of streams. 



4. A certain amount of star knowledge. 



In other words, according to him, their faculty, know- 

 ledge, or skill is simply the result of observation and experience. 

 Unfortunately, it is said that so useful a faculty is usually 



