SIGHT IN SAVAGES 173 



look at the sketch, even held at a distance, without 

 seeing the cat, or policeman, or whatever it hap- 

 pens to be. And after patiently studying some 

 scores or hundreds of these puzzles one gets to 

 know just how to find the thing concealed, and 

 finds it quickly almost at a glance at last. Now 

 the ingenious person that first invented this pretty 

 puzzle probably had no thought of Nature, with 

 her curious imitative and protective resemblances, 

 in his mind ; yet he might very well have taken the 

 hint from Nature, for this is what she does. The 

 animal that must be seen to be avoided, and the 

 animal that must be seen to be taken, are there 

 in her picture, sketched in with such cunning art 

 that to the uninstructed eye they form only por- 

 tions of branch and foliage and shadow and sun- 

 light above, and dull-hued or variegated earth and 

 stones and dead and withering herbage under- 

 neath. 



It is possible that slight differences may exist 

 in the seeing powers of different nations, due to 

 the effect of physical conditions: thus, the in- 

 habitants of mountainous districts and of dry ele- 

 vated tablelands may have a better sight than 

 dwellers in low, humid, and level regions, although 

 just the reverse may be the case. Among Euro- 

 pean nations the Germans are generally supposed 

 to have weak eyes, owing, some imagine, to their 

 excessive indulgence in tobacco; while others at- 

 tribute the supposed decay to the form of type 

 used in their books, which requires closer looking 



