SPONTANEOUS REPLIES 



SPONTANEOUS replies provide a special proof of 

 this ability to form independent thoughts, and is 

 found both among horses and dogs. Such a reply 

 is indeed the sudden and evident utterance of some 

 thought, and of a thought which to it transcends all 

 other thoughts at the moment : one which regardless 

 of all other questions which may at the time be put to 

 it, looms largest, and the animal will therefore utter 

 this remark, asked or unasked and quite inde- 

 pendently of any question, but more after the manner 

 of " making an observation." Such a thought may 

 have nothing to do with the subject in hand, and per- 

 sons who are participating in this conversation d 

 deux, can only arrive at the inference of ideas after 

 having carefully thought the matter over it may also 

 be that they will fail to see any association of ideas at 

 all. Now, it is indisputable that such replies belong 

 to the most important category for they may serve 

 as proofs to those who themselves have not. worked with 

 animals for any length of time, and who, therefore, 

 cannot become sincerely convinced as to the truth of 

 the matter by travelling the longer road of personal 

 test and experience. The teacher of any horse or dog 

 of good parts does not need this proof : there are 

 thousands of small instances which in their sum total 

 "3 



