The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1891-06-09
r. L. Garner Puts Forth the
Theory That They Do,
AND SOME FACTS TO SUSTAIN 1T
A Photograph Used In the Experiments
Sounds Used by One Champanzee Under
stood by Another.

selves in words, says: 'ln coming before
the world with a new theory l am aware
that it may have 10 undergo many repair;
and be modified by many new ideas, and
am aware it is heresy to doubt the dogma:
of science as well as of some religious sects
but sustained by proofs too strong to be ig
nored, l am willing TO incur the ridicule OF
the wise and the sneer CT bigots, and assert
that 'articulate speech prevails among the
/ lower primates, and that their speech con
tains the rudiments from which the tongues
of mankind could easily develop, and to me
it seems quite possible 10 lind proofs tC
show that such is the origin of human
speech. Animals soon learn to interpret
certain words of man and to obey them
bus never try to repeat them. When they
reply to man it is always in their own pc
culiar speech. 1 have often watched the
conduct Of dog as he would speak, until
l could interpret meaning to his com
bined act and speech. I observed the same
thing in other species with the same
results.
"Some seven years ago in the Gin
cinnati Geological garden, / was deeply
impressed by the conduct of monkeys
| Gagged with savage ribnosed mar
drll which they seemed 10 fear very
much. The cage was divided by wall
through which was small doorway lead
ing from the inner to an outer compart-
ment, in which was tall upright, support
ing platform at its top. Every movement
of this mandril seemed to be closely
watched by the monkeys that could see him
and instantly reported TO those in the other
compartment. l went to Washington and
ca ~ niraernr n
the National Geological garden and pro-
posed the novel experiment Of acting as in
terpreter between two monkeys. We
separated two monkeys which lad been
Gagged together and placed them IN separate
rooms. l arranged a photograph near the
cage of the female and caused her to utter
few sounds which were recorded on the
cylinder. The machine was then placed
near the cage containing the male and the
record repeated to him and his conducr
closely studied. The surprise and perplex-
ity of the male were evident. He traced
the sounds to the morn from whence they
came and failing TO find his mate he thrust
his hand and arm into the horn quite up to
his shoulder, withdrew it and peeped
into the horn again and again.
He would then retreat and again
cautiously approach the horn which ne
examined with evident interest The ex-
pressions of mis- face were indeed study.
Having satisfied myself that he recognized
the sounds as those OF MS mate, next pro
ceeded 10 record some OF his efforts, but my
success was not fully up TO nay hopes, get
secured from him enough to win the atten-
ton of his mate aud elicit from her some
signs of recognition, and thus for the first
time in the history OF philology the simian
tongue was reduced TO record. | noted
some of the defects in my experiment and
provi led against them for the future.
'.Some weeks later in the Chicago Zoo
logical garden l made some splendid phono-
graphic records and thence went to the
Cincinnati garden where l secured, among
others, a fine distinct record OF two Chin
panzees, all of which brought home with
me for study. l placed them on a machine
and repeated them over and over again I'm =
til | became quite familiar with the sounds
and improved myself very much in my eff
forts 10 utter them. / returned from Gin
cinnati TO Chicago some weeks later and
tried my skill as a linguist. | stood for a
while with my side turned to the cage
containing the capuchin money ce0us
capucinus). l uttered q word or sound
which i had translated milk My first
effort caught his ear and caused him to
turn and look at me. On repeating IL some
three or four times. he answered me very
distinctly with the same word / had used,
and then turned to q small pan kept In the
cage for him TO drink from. | repeated the
word again, and he placed the pan near the
| front of the cage, and came quite up to the
bars and uttered the word again. / had not
shown him any milk or anything of the
kind, but the man in charge then brought
me some milk which l gave to him, and he
drank il with great zest. Then he looked
at me, held up the pan, and repeated the
sound some three or four times. / gave
him more milk, and this continued until
was quite sure he used the same sound each
time when he wanted milk. L now held a
| banana in front of the cage, and he at once
gave a word i had described Repeated
| tests showed to me that he used the same
word for apple, carrot, bread and ba-
mana hence / concluded it must
mean food or hunger as also to eat.
After this began on a word which / had
interpreted pain or sick and with such
result as made me quite sure l was right.
My next word was weather or storm, and
while the idea may seem far fetched, L felt
well sustained in my tests. For many
other words had vague idea of meaning
and still believe l can verify them in the
end.
AZ went next to the Cincinnati garden.
approached the cage of the capuchin mon
kew. and found him crcuched III the rear
end OF the cage. / spoke TO him IN his own
tongue using a word which | mad called
| milk He rose, answered me with the
some word and came at once TO the front OF
the cage. He looked at me as If in doubt,
and repeated the word. He did the same,
and turned at once 10 small pan and picked
IL up and placed it near tue door at the side
and returned to me and uttered the same
| word again. / asked the keeper Tor milk,
which he did not have, however, but
| he brought me some water. the effrrts oil
my little simian friend TO secure glass
were very earnest and his pleading man
ner and tone assured me OF his extreme
thirst / allowed him TO dip his hand into
the glass and ne would suck his fingers and
reach again. / kept the glass from reach
| of his hand and he would repeat the sound
and beg for more. i was thus convinced
that the word had translated milk must
also mean water and from this and other
tests at last determined that it meant also
drink and probably thirst
II have never seen capuchin monkey
that did not use these two words Tue
sounds are very soft and not unlike flute,
very difficult TO initiate. and quite impossi-
/ BILE TO write. They are purely vocal except
| faint traces of ~ or WIN as in the word
who a very feeble 'w,' and here and
there a slight gutterai 'eh.' To initiate the
word which interpret food, fix the mouth
as il to whistle, draw the tongue far back
into the mouth and try to utter the word
who by blowing. The pitch of sound is a
trifie higher than the cooling Of pigeon,
and not wholly unlike it. Another sound
suspected was a menace or cry of alarm.
| "During February l had access to spec
| imam Of the capuchin in Charleston, s. C.
| On my first visit to him we became friends
The next day while feeding him / uttered
the peculiar sound of ALARM whereupor
he sprang at once to the perch in the top OF
his cage, and a. continued the sound hs