262 



SCIENCE. 



[Vol. XII. No. 304 



Englishmen of science ; notably, Darwin, Francis Gallon, E. B. 

 Tylor, G. J. Romanes, and others. This reputation is sufficient to 

 secure for any production of his pen wide and careful attention, 

 and to make a notice of its contents a serviceable task. The pres- 

 ent volume has more about it of the spirit of the compiler of scien- 

 tific memoirs than of the ingenious experimenter and the popular 

 writer. A very large share of the work is given over to an ana- 

 tomical description of the sense-organs of the lower forms of life, 

 and to a discussion of their probable mode of functioning. A bib- 

 liographical reference-list of 215 numbers shows how diligently the 

 details have been compiled ; and yet the general impression with 

 which one comes away from this portion of the work is, that, in 

 spite of all the work and study, our information is extremely vague 

 and defective. Strange as it may seem, in studying the lower forms 

 of sense-organs it becomes difficult to distinguish between an eye 

 and an ear, an organ of taste, smell, and touch. Our own experi- 

 ence with sense-organs so entirely disposes us to think of the sen- 

 sations of other animals as essentially similar to our own, that it is 

 difficult for us to realize how different they may be. Not alone are 

 there " animals which have eyes on their backs, ears in tfieir legs, 

 and sing through their sides," but the very sensations thus denoted 

 may really be quite other than in ourselves. Between the highest 

 vibration that we can hear as sound and the lowest that we can see 

 as color, there is an immense gap, which may be only partially 

 present to the senses of other animals. 



It would be impossible to indicate here the contents of the richly 

 illustrated descriptions of sense-organs, the enormous variety of 

 their nature and development, their peculiar adaptations to the re- 

 quirements of the environment. Nature has more than one solu- 

 tion for many of her problems ; and the different forms of sense- 

 organs form her answers to the problem of adaptation of physiology 

 to physics. The eye, especially, seems to be a very cheap product ; 

 the re-action to light being well established in plants, and the 

 forms of optic organs obtaining an enormously complicated variety 

 in insects. Anatomists have discovered much, but physiologists 

 have done little to give meaning to these discoveries. The method 

 promising best results is the comparison of normal individuals with 

 individuals deprived of a presumable sense-organ. Forel, for ex- 

 ample, finds, that, while normal ants will always avoid ultra-violet 

 rays, ants with their eyes varnished are no longer able to distin- 

 guish between this and other colors. 



Following the chapters upon the anatomy of sense-organs and a 

 chapter upon 'Problematical Organs of Sense,' come chapters upon 

 ' Bees and Colors,' upon ' The Limits of Vision in Animals,' upon 

 ' Recognition among Ants,' upon ' The Instincts of Solitary 

 Wasps and Bees,' upon ' The Supposed Sense of Direction,' and 

 upon ' The Intelligence of the Dog.' Much of the matter here 

 treated has already been published in other shape. It is a 

 risnmi of points upon which experiments have been made rather 

 than a systematic compilation. The accurate distinction of colors 

 by bees, the connection of this color-sense with the fertilization of 

 flowers, are quite familiar. The limits of vision in animals is a 

 point still deeply in dispute. In answer to the question whether 

 the thousands of ants in one nest, always recognizing one of their 

 own number, but remorselessly attacking all strangers, do so by a 

 smell peculiar to the community, or by a password, the observa- 

 tions seem to say that neither explanation gives complete satisfac- 

 tion, but further experimentation may clear up its mysteries. The 

 peculiar instincts of wasps and bees, now paralyzing an enemy with 

 all the skill that knowledge of its anatomy could give, again providing 

 for the nutrition of its offspring with a foresight apparently mathe- 

 matical in its exactness, make us marvel and reflect. Nor is our 

 contemplation made clearer when we observe that this same wise 

 bee has not sense enough to fill up a hole made in her honey-cell, 

 but for an entire afternoon, and more, pours in honey at the top, 

 only to have it flow out of the bottom like the vessel of the Dana- 

 ides. The wonderful sense of direction ascribed to insects proves, 

 upon careful inquiry, to resolve itself into a moderately successful 

 hut by no means infallible or direct appreciation of environment. 

 The final topic, the intelligence of the dog, deserves a further word. 

 In it Sir John describes his attempts at teaching his dog. Van, to 

 express his wishes by language. A large number of cards are 

 printed with such words as ' food,' ' tea,' ' water,' ' bone,' ' out,' and 



so on, upon them ; and by a system of rewards Van has learned t& 

 associate his desires with the visual shapes of the letters. When 

 he wants water, he brings not only at command, but spontaneously, 

 the placard bearing that word. This certainly is a noble achieve- 

 ment, and opens up vast possibilities. Quite discouraging, on the 

 other hand, are the attempts to teach the dog to bring a colored 

 card to match the color presented to him. This was diligently 

 taught him again and again, but Van seemed never to get a clear 

 notion of what was desired. ' Can Animals Count ? ' is the last 

 point treated in the volume, and the question largely resolves itself 

 into determining how large a number of objects can be and the 

 withdrawal of one be noticed. IVIany animals (birds, etc.) can 

 doubtlessly distinguish between four and five, but no more definite 

 statement can be hazarded. A curious observation is that given 

 by Mr. Huggins concerning his dog, which can apparently perform 

 wonderful mathematical calculations by watching the expressions 

 (all unconscious) of his master, — a valuable hint for telepathy. 



All in all, then, the present volume is a convenient and well- 

 compiled reference-book on animal psychology, but is destined to 

 be superseded, as our knowledge advances, by one with fewer gaps 

 and fewer confessions of ignorance. It treats of a fertile field the 

 true importance of which has only recently begun to be realized. 

 A rich success awaits him who has the ingenuity to devise, and the 

 patience to carry out, real successful methods for testing the men- 

 tal powers of the mute creation ; who can decipher these animal 

 hieroglyphics, or force the unwilling sphinx to yield up its enigma. 



Works of Tho7nas Hill Green. Vol. III. Miscellanies and Mem- 

 oir. Ed. by R. L. Nettleship. New York, Longmans, Green,. 

 & Co. 8°. 



This is the concluding volume of Green's works, and consists of 

 essays on a variety of topics, with a sketch of his life by the editor.. 

 The memoir is well written, and, for philosophical readers, interest- 

 ing, though the life of such a man is necessarily lacking in the out- 

 ward incident characteristic of a more stirring career. The editor^ 

 therefore, takes occasion to give an account of Green's views on 

 philosophical and practical subjects, and to indicate to a certain extent 

 the sources in his own character and in the writings of others from 

 which they were derived. Green, as is well known, was an Hegel- 

 ian ; and, though he did not accept all of Hegel's views, the famil- 

 iar catchwords of the Hegelian philosophy perpetually recur in his 

 writings. The present volume, however, is not all, nor even mainly, 

 devoted to philosophical themes, but contains papers, and some of 

 considerable value, on history, education, and other subjects in 

 which the author was interested. The principal philosophical paper 

 is on ' Popular Philosophy in its Relation to Life,' and is a vehement 

 attack on the English school of thought, especially as represented 

 by Hume. It shows an irritability that is to be regretted, and prob- 

 ably most readers will think the author's own views quite as far 

 from the truth as those that he cfiticises ; but, as illustrating a cer- 

 tain phase of current philosophical thought, the paper is of interest. 

 Several of these ' Miscellanies ' are on religious themes, and show the 

 attempts that Green made to adapt the Christian dogmas to his 

 own philosophy,— attempts, as it seems to us, but very slightly suc- 

 cessful. For instance : his theory of God is one that makes him 

 no God at all in the view of Christianity or of any other existing 

 religion. He expressly says that God is nothing but the ideal self, 

 the possible perfect man that each of us ought to become ; and there 

 is no reconciling this doctrine with the teachings of Christianity. 



But, however peculiar may have been his religious views, his in- 

 terest in moral improvement, both personal and social, was deep 

 and strong. Some of the most interesting passages in the volume 

 before us are those in which he shows his sympathy for the poor, 

 and his desire for their moral and intellectual elevation. He was 

 dissatisfied with existing English society, consisting of the educated 

 few and the uneducated many, and he warmly advocated the ex- 

 tension and improvement of the common-school system as the only 

 practicable means of removing the evils he deprecated. He re- 

 garded common education as " the true social leveller," and looked 

 for the time when " the sort of education which alone makes the 

 gentleman in any true sense will be within the reach of all." Be- 

 sides papers on the various subjects above alluded to, this volume 

 contains a series of lectures on the English Revolution of the seven- 



