456 APPENDIX 



(2) That Dr. Haenel writes as an enthusiast. 



(3) That it may not be so easy as he takes it to be to secure 

 complete ignorance of the figures placed on the board. In one 

 instance, as a fact, he mentions the half glance, and it must 

 be borne in mind that the horse, on the face of the record, itself 

 frequently makes a number of uncertain efforts before he gets to 

 the right one, a process which still suggests that he is in some way 

 waiting for a sign. It is at least reasonable to suspend judgment 

 until further experiments of the type of this record by Dr. Haenel 

 have been made under careful observation, by two or more experi- 

 mentalists in co-operation. 



Let us now for a moment discuss the apparent results, seeking 

 to dismiss all preconceived opinions as to the capacity or incapacity 

 of horses. Let us suppose that we have merely the results before 

 us, without knowing whether they were produced by a civilised 

 man, a savage, a little boy, or an animal, and that we were therefore 

 free to enquire what sort of intelligence, if any, they presuppose. 

 We should, to begin with, find in them some strong reasons against 

 the supposition that they rest upon a genuine understanding of 

 arithmetical operations. This reason is to be found in the nature 

 of the mistakes made by the horses, and of the method by which 

 they approach solution. Quite easy problems are missed by these 

 advanced students ; for instance, Zarif gives 4 2 = 15, and corrects it 

 to 24. 1 Now, any horse as familiar with squares as Zarif was 

 supposed to be by this time ought to know that a square number 

 cannot be odd. The talented Muhamed, at quite a late date, fails, 

 in the presence of Dr. Sarasin, to add 4 + 6, and also to multiply 

 6x6. This in the same seance wherein he succeeds in find- 

 ing -72313441. Berto can divide 21 by 3, and gives 7, but 

 immediately afterwards he supposes that 5 -f 6 = 41, and corrects 

 it to 14. 



These are not casual mistakes. They are written all over the 

 record, and though they are imputed to obstinacy or wilfulness on 

 the part of the horse, it must be pointed out that they are often 

 punished with a hearty smack. It is indeed doubtful whether years 

 of practice make the horses really more competent in dealing with 

 very simple than with very difficult questions. On this point there 

 is some conflict of evidence. Dr. Plate put together a number of 

 results of successes and failures, classified in accordance with the 

 difficulty of the problem. The gist of these is given in the 

 appended table. Column I. includes additions and subtractions 

 involving not more than two figures, enumeration, reading the date 

 of the month, and so on. Column II., additions and subtractions 

 of more than two figures, division and multiplication, or in Berto's 

 case the counting of figures written on the back. Also spelling, 

 1 Clapare'de, Archives de Psychologic, XII p. 273. 



