The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1888-05-16
They All Have their Say.

/ their goods.
They All Have their Say
/ The range Of animal language rs iar
greater than IL generally conceived Con-
cen,rated at first at the poles of the cell,
and later at the extreme ends Of the bod
les of creatures Of complex organization,
lancua yes tended more and more to the
use Of sounds. After the escape OF life
from the water the use of a voice became
almost universal from the rough eroak
OF a frog to the song of thrush. Inc
range of expression widened grlndiy IN
the quadrupeds and the birds. Necessa-
rilv incomprehensible by us. il rs certain
that every note and every modification oil
n note carries meaning between fowls
and birds. The student Of nature COM
prchends tha, the morning songs of birds
with which they greet the break OF day
4 in summer is a wholly integral affair, dii
/ fering from their evening songs as well as
( from the notes uttered during love max
/ ing, and during the work of nest build
ing. There are also distinct shower songs
welcoming the refreshings Of nature.
There are songs Of victory, songs of love,
and equally the note of queruious dissat-
/ isf.,cfion, as well as cries Of anger and
pain. These notes are evidently under
stood. not merely within The limits Of a
single species, but the robin compreheEds
his neighbors. This is certain, because
not seldom the tribes make common
cause Of joy or battle. BY common con-
sent the robin has The earliest hour OF
dawn for his roundelay-otber birds
either keeping silent or following in an
undertonc. After his song is ended the
caibird begins, and takes the hour main-
IL TO himself-whereyer he is an undis.
turbed dweller.
Nv horse find instantly comprehends
sound of caution, one of reproach, an
other for speed, and one of appreciation.
The dog is specially capable in this diree-
iion; but still greater is the power of a
cat, power seldom all WED by us to
show itself. I have no doubt that a cat
really gets the drift of what we say 10
her, and at times our full meaning. in
the way Of language" says Popular Sci
eace, monkeys manifest their passions,
fears, desires, by cries and gestures en-
phasized by significant accents. The al
phabets of some of the Melanesian races
are not much richer. Some monkeys
have n noisy and explosive laughter anal
ogous to ours" Abbott insists that birds
/ not only sing but talk, and that their
songs bears the same relation TO speech
as our own Grows have twenty seven
/ distinct cries or utterances, each readily
distinguishabie from the others. These
utterances, as in all birds, are only ex-
pressed when the bird is occupied, show
/ ing that birds sing from pleasure and
/ talk from necessity" lie adds concern
/ ing fishes: 81 have been led to believe
+ that certain sounds made by fishes are re-
ally vocal efforts, and that their utter
ance is for the parpose of expressing an
( idea"
All animals can talk if you but design
TO learn their language-not ask their
tongue to crook to yours. Tones are
speech, not artificial words that bear
your language as barrow wheels your
corn.
But We must not neglect the fact that
desire to communicate, before its vent in
vocalization, not only developed in re-
markable range of gesture-language, but
emotion expressed itself in colors and
changes of colors. We shcll make a mis-
take if we attribute the coloring Of birds
insects and animals too largely TO the sur
vival of those that best initiated or most
resembled surrounding objects. Colors
are gamut, expressing pride, love, an
ger, feai, and every possible emotion.
They arise in the first instance from de-
sire and effort at expression. and are di-
rect and immediate. As such they are
language They become in a large de-
gree hereditary and their display auto
matte Birds in love have love color;
in anger they have the anger color MINI
icry, incidental or intentional, applies
color TO purposes of safety; but there is
little probability that any color ever
arose from purpose at concealment.
1t is more and more clear TO an intel
ligent observer that language is abso-
lutely universal wherever there is sensa-
ton. All life, more or less, is iniercom-
municaiion. Animals in our company,
if dealt with as capable of development,
soon adapt their sounds TO our require
ments. I've owned horse that cou'd
cali me with distinct sounds OF caution,
and others of affection, and still others
indicating more abstruse ideas TO my ac-
customed ear. On one occasion she dis
tinctly informed me of trouble in INV
stables-calling to me when 100 rods
away, and expressing the utmost salts
faction when ! reached the yard. The
cows had broken down a door and let
loose some calves.
Are We not equally certain that some
animals, if they had the third conyoiu-
tion and the genial tubercle, would now
develop speech, and thst righ; rapidly?
! never felt so bad as when standing be-
side my noble, large-brained horse. By
all possible means he endeavors TO com
municate with me. Narvelloasly well he
succeeds too, but his language is yet one
of gestures and simple sounds. Assent.
disapproval, JOY, antipathy, desire, and
ambition, as well as personal affection,
are in the range Of the horses language.
Imagine with what speed this creature
would progress if ever the genial tuber-
Gle were possible. However, mans po-
sition was secured not by means of Ian
guage alone, but 10y means of freed
hands and an erect posture. The limits
to language correlate TO limits in the
power of tool making. The horse needs
no extended speech without hands to in.
crease his relation to things.
The Five Sisters.
There were five fair sisters. and each had
an aim
Flora would fain be fashionable dame !:
/ sI..l.. -.