CHAPTER IX 
THE SENSES 
%)E have seen that the brain is the storehouse of 
facts and experiences, but whence come these 
and how do they gain admittance to that soft 
gray matter which is one of the wonders of the world? 
There are five channels (and sometimes there seems the 
shadow of a metaphysical sixth) which are cognizant of 
and receptive to environmental influences. These are 
the nostrils, eyes, ears and tongue, and the tactile nerves 
of the surface of the body; or in other words the bird is 
in direct connection with his surroundings on land or 
water or in the air, by means of the senses of smelling, 
seeing, hearing, tasting, and feeling. 
The Sense of Smell 
The sense of smell is dependent upon the diffusion in 
the air of minute particles of objects, and naturally is 
effective at very short distances compared to the senses 
of sight and hearing, which require only vibrations in the 
atmosphere. When we remember that the nostrils of 
birds are usually encased in horn and that there is no 
exposed moist surface, as in the nose of a dog, we shall 
see how it is that this sense is but little developed among 
feathered creatures. 
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