The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1874-09-07
Occasieaal Netcs.
fMaee for ssse Di.patch,l
rNqELLtaENcE OF BIRDS

III would be Impossible 70 ana pe..si
YsInssraaion OF The contrast between lnstlnss
and Intelligence as springs Oh action IMAM -
( sftorfisd by the comprises OF tue baoit s 2.
hsr,is II, 4 State of nature with these VICE.
fhey acquire when beught INTO fela lazy
with man. There can be no rcason S.,s
doubt that there are aFcaiteciurai CONF. 49,,
lions. Ike those OF insects, proceedlns ~ ay On.
an internal impulse, which prompts easa 10, a.
ividual Of q species TO bulia n.. s.. IVY hia
ticular pattern. TO choose q sl'ua.lon s,ah nf
80 nc rsaniren,arifs. and 10 go in search Oh
,nater,als Of a certain kind, though others
.n;aht he more easily obtained. But on the
-s.hsr hand in the working out OF tGls ue-
s;rn r. d dear that birds often pr0nt Of ex'
s ..sr;enco. and learn 10 use special means
Srhe,, snecsal ends have to be provided ior.
Tbe following case supplies very good eA.
aynnie OF this iuteligentiai modification OF
the instructive tendency: 80
ia pair OF jackdaws endeavored to con.
strI1ct their nest 10 one OF the smali Win-
dnws that lighted the spiral staircase OF an
aid chtireh.iower. Asis usual, however, 10
such windows. the sill sioped inwards. with
a considerable medication, and consequently,
there being no level base forthe nest, as soon
as few sticks bad been laid, aud it was DC.
g shining TO acquire weight, it Slid down.
This seems TO have happened two or three
times: nevertheless the birds 'clung Win
great pertinscity to the site they had sefecteo,
and at last devised most ingenious metnoo
OF overcoming the difficulty. Coiiectlng
a great number OF sticks, they Duist
np sort OF cone upon the star.
case. the summit Of which rose to Inc
level of the wiudoT-sitl and affofaed tue
requisite support to the nest. This cone was
not fewer than six feet high, ana SO large at
its base. as quite to obstruct Inc passage Up
the staircase: vet, notwithstanding the large
amount OF material it contained, it was known
ia have been constructed within four or hve
s,sys Now. Us this was device quite for
eicn TO the natural habit of the bro, and
Dnly hit upon after the repeated failure OF
its ordinary method Of neStbuilding, the Gu
rious adaptation of means to ends which it
displayed can scarcely be regarded in any
other light than as proceeding from design
in the minds Of the individuals who exc
cuted it,
The following circumstance shows how,
readily some birds will spontaneously learn
to profit by experience in matters which
arise out Of their relation to man:
ga wren having built her nest III d rather
dangerous situation in the sate-quarries at
Penrbyn, Eng, was liable to great disturb.
ance from the occasional explosions. she
soon learned, however, to take warning by
the sound OF the bell, which was rung to
give warming to the workmen when blast
was about to be made, and would then quit
her nest and diy TO little distance, remain
ing there till the shock Of the explosion bad
passed of. This was noticed by the work
men. The sagucity of the wren was made
subject OF exhibition to the visitors at The
uuarries, the bell being frequently rung for
the mere purpose of making her quit her
nest. After q time, however, it was noticed
that the bird no longer flew away upon the
ringing of the bell, but that she remained
until she SAW whether or no the workmen
began to move, Ii they drew off she would
go too, but ifothey remained in their places
She would not stir."1
Another instance in which bird, without
any direct teaching, learned to perform a
particular action altogether foreign to its
nature, has been related by @ Swiss gentle
man, who had often witnessed the occur
enee: Il:
"In the teWn in which he was brought up
was domestlcated stork, which was accus-
toned to receive its food every evening
about g O'clock along with the ordinary
poultry; and the latter being usually al
lowed to roam ut large in the streets, were
collected together at the proper time by a
man. The stork having thus learned not to
expectit&feod until the poultry had been all
: collected, spontaneously accompanied the
collector and assisted him in bringing the
fowls together: and after doing this for q
considerable time, becoming more and more
Self-relying, 1t became quite competent to
entrusted with it, so that it might be seen on
hIil0finfr 10
! town collecting its flock of poultry and driv.
ing it home Just as q shepherds dog collects
thesheep."
: SO again rocks and other birds which live
In the neighbsrbeod Of man, and are liable
to be shot at, often show in their action that
they distinguish whether man who ap-
proaekeF them,cxrSies gun or not; and are
said to be able tie distinguish gun from a
walking stick put to the shoulder after the
aanDer OF u gun. And it is further notice
able that they distinguish Sunday from other
days /; flying loWer than usual, and some
times visiting. gardens where they would not
venture on the days on which they would
beliahle 70 he .molested. Whether they dis
tiRguish the day By some Of its outward
signs, or guided by tkat remarkable power
of measuring ,tiale, which many animals Ger.
tainiy possess, cannot be stated with GER
GaintF.
The bisds of the parrot tribe are preemi-
nent fer their-educapibiGty and apparent in
telligence, but this edu2pibiiity chiefly de-
ponds upon their great tentative power, and
their ir,tslGgenee-i is really of very low or
der, consisting in an exercise in the simple
faculty of association, the manifestations OF
which are chiefly remarkable as taking the
form of.soea! utterances. The associations
which the EarEetfOrmS between certain vo-
cal sounds aud certain visual objects lead it
sften to give forth the former&nder circum-
stances of singular appropriateness (; ha it
would be quite mistake to attribute such
ntterances TO coy higher Intelligence than
that of q young child gast learning TO tab,
which repeats the phrases it has learned by
imitation. without any dstinct'Gea of their
meaning, but sometimes brings them in re-
xaarkably dps:Qpos. A very ood,iEustration
of both faculties is afforded by therS3llowing
anecdotes.
When Bristol { England .1Yas largely en-.
gagged in the. African Sslayetrade, the large
grey Parr0ss We're very numerous in the city,
ADD often created amusement. There was
one which hing outside shop in the neigh.
borhood of the Quay and had remarkable
tact ia Distinguishing sailors; and if S9loF
Happened to stop before his cage when he
was in the middle OF singing Handeps 104th
psalm (Which he performed most correctly ,
he would break of from Ny soul praise
the Lord" into oh your eyes, you
fool, what are yon looking at The sight
OF sailor obviously called forth the phrase |
Sloey which the bird had been accustomed