96 THE HORSE OF MR. VON OSTEN 



the proper response was " up " and " down " I would 

 think of those directions in space, and likewise with 

 " left " and " right " in which case also I would put my- 

 self in the horse's place. 



While I was still ignorant of the nature of the neces- 

 sary movements, the tests were successful only when I 

 had put the question aloud or in a whisper, but never 

 when I failed to enunciate, i. e., when I merely had the 

 question in mind ("in idea"). But this also became 

 possible after a little practice, although I could not then 

 give an explanation for my success. Except in one in- 

 stance, we could discern no difference between problems 

 spoken and those merely conceived by Mr. von Osten 

 who had had the advantage of long practice. But the one 

 exception deserves mention. The old gentleman com- 

 missioned Hans, presumably without uttering a word, to 

 step backward to the left. Hans thereupon responded by 

 giving his entire repertoire, as follows: He moved his 

 head to the right, then to the left. Then he leaped for- 

 ward and repeated the same movement of the head. Here- 

 upon he stepped backward and signified a " yes " by a 

 movement of the head. He then lowered his head and 

 made two leaps forward. After this performance Mr. 

 von Osten repeated the same command aloud, and in every 

 case Hans responded properly. Again the silent com- 

 mand was given and again the horse responded with the 

 series of reactions described above, lowering his head 



auditory and motor always occur together,' but still it is possible to make 

 the one or the other predominate. 



It appears that the imagery of most persons is a mixture of auditory- 

 motor and visual elements, with a predominance of one or the other 

 kind. Individuals who utilize almost exclusively the visual (as does the 

 author, as a rule), are rare. But rarer still is the pronounced motor type. 



