LEARNING TO LIVE 191 



those parts of animals which are in the natural condition 

 of their life very liable to non-fatal injury. 



It is difficult to suppose that the second-day combat 

 was other than an early expression of the combative in- 

 stinct ; it could hardly be due to hunger in the case of Aleph 

 and Beth at any rate, for between their first and second 

 days they were fed at 3.30 a.m., at 6 a.m., at 9.30 a.m., 

 and so on till 6 p.m. They would only take a little at a 

 time, but that greedily enough. It is probable that in 

 natural conditions the mother gives them mouthfuls with 

 great rapidity, but it seems very difficult to observe the 

 act of feeding at the gullery. 



On the third day one of the young gulls had a bath, 

 and showed the completeness of the cleaning instinct. The 

 head was ducked sideways, shaken about, and re-ducked 

 precisely in the adult fashion, and this on a first experience 

 of water in bulk, and of course without any example. 

 After some cleaning the bird drank in the usual chick 

 fashion. Another bird, Omega, was put on its third day 

 into a deep bath : it screamed for a few seconds, then 

 settled down to paddling in a thoroughly efficient fashion, 

 but with a tendency to swim backwards. It washed its 

 head thoroughly, cleaned its bill with its foot, turning round 

 and round in the water like a top, and after the bath it 

 preened itself. Repeated experiments with different birds 

 showed perfectness of swimming powers without experience 

 or imitative stimulus, and perfect preening after the 

 bath. 



In several cases the bath seemed to be premature, for 

 it was followed by extreme weakness and inability to 

 stand upright. After various treatments warm milk, 

 a little oil, massage, and drying in a warm place, there 

 was rapid restoration to normal vigour. 



Omega on its third day was fighting with X of two 



