388 SELF-SUBMISSION OF ANIMALS TO 



another chapter, abound in instances of the most careful 

 nursing from birth upwards of all manner of orphaned or 

 deserted young. And there are many other instances of 

 various forms of nursing the sick or wounded the young 

 or aged or of assisting in such nursing. In such cases there 

 is a voluntary assumption of what cannot fail to be, in some 

 respects, an irksome duty. There is a regular caste of nurses 

 among ants. Those that are a little ill, or that have been 

 slightly wounded, are carefully tended by their companions 

 within the nest: while those dangerously ill are carried out- 

 side to die (Forel and Elvard). 



Gratitude requires that we should not forget the extent 

 to which, and the singularly faithful, tender, self-sacrificing 

 manner in which certain animals especially the dog, 

 elephant and horse nurse human infants or even adult men. 

 This nursing involves a great variety of tender services in- 

 dicative of much consideration, sagacity and sympathy. 



Nursing the sick implies, of course, caution or care to 

 avoid hurting or paining them, and this is frequently ex- 

 hibited by the elephant, horse, dog, and cat. Thus a dog 

 has been seen supporting the broken leg of another (Wood). 

 A dog scalded by a kettle suddenly ( boiling over ' on a kitchen 

 fire, carried an unharmed companion kitten to a place of 

 safety (Jesse) another instance of the virtues not the vices 

 of real ' cat and dog life.' A terrier watched over a sick 

 cat, preventing disturbance by intruders. Another terrier 

 acted as nurse to kittens in their mother's absence, defend- 

 ing them in the same way against any meddlers resigning 

 his charge, however, immediately on the mother cat's reap- 

 pearance (Wood). A ferocious bull-dog carefully picked up 

 a kitten that had fallen from a height of three storeys, getting 

 thereby so much hurt and crushed ' that even its own mother 

 would not go near it : ' he took it to his kennel, licked it 

 clean, and nursed it tenderly till it died (Wood). 



On the other hand, though not so frequently and not to the 

 same extent,nor in the same useful practical way, the cat some- 

 times pays its attentions to the sick or disabled dog. Thus, 

 a turnspit having had a ' fit ' (probably epileptic) and being 

 unable to move for some hours, a companion cat 'came 



