THE BIRDS' COMPASS 



sense. This has been called the sense of direc- 

 tion. The sense of sight we know exists in the 

 eye, and the sense of hearing in the ear, and in 

 the nerves leading from these organs to the brain. 

 But no one knows where the sense of direction is 

 situated. Indeed, it is only within the last few 

 years that naturalists have ventured to speak of 

 a sense of direction as something which actually 

 exists. 



Sometimes this sense is designated as the 

 "homing instinct." So we speak of the homing 

 instinct of Carrier or Homing Pigeons. But the 

 homing instinct and the sense of direction are 

 really two different things. The first impels the 

 bird to start; the second guides it on its way. 

 Everyone knows in a general way that when 

 Carrier Pigeons are taken from their homes and 

 released, they at once start on the homeward 

 journey. 



But, generally speaking, Pigeons are at first 

 taken for only a short distance, and they gradu- 

 ally learn to make long flights only after they 

 have made shorter ones. The owner of the 

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