180 GORILLAS AND CHIMPANZEES 



drew it out as far as it would come. She sat for a 

 while holding it in one hand, and with the other 

 moved each strand of the knot. She was in a deep 

 study, and did not even deign a glance at those who 

 were watching her. At length she took the loop in 

 both hands, deliberately put it over her head and 

 crawled through it. The line thus released dropped 

 to the deck ; she quickly descended, took hold of it 

 near her neck, and found that it was untied ; she 

 gathered it up as she advanced towards the other 

 end that was tied to the post, and at once began to 

 loosen the knots about it,. In a minute more the 

 last knot was released, when she gathered the whole 

 line into a bundle, looked at those around her with 

 that look of contempt which we have described, and 

 departed at once in search of other mischief. The 

 air of triumph and contempt was enough to convince 

 any one of her opinion of what she had done. 



If this feat was the result of instinct, the lexicons 

 must find another definition for that word. There 

 were six white men who witnessed the act, and the 

 verdict of all was that she had solved a problem 

 which few children of her own age could have done. 

 Every movement was controlled by reason. The 

 tracing out of cause and effect was too evident for 

 any one to doubt. 



Almost any animal can be taught to perform 

 certain feats, but that does not show the innate 

 capacity. The only true measure of the faculty of 

 reason is to reduce the actor to his own resources, 

 and see how he will render himself under some new 



