The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1896-12-13


no idea OF an exchange.
2 Man IS the only cooking animal. inc
savage Comanche learns TO cook ms NOM
my and to parch his corn. Now the use
Of fire. IN the way of securing comfort IN
cold weather. is not unknown 10 the
brutcs: but the idea Of kindling a hre' or
OF keeping up fire by supplying iuci
seems never to have entered tho head OF
any brute. pointer dog - especially
sensitive to cold. Ponto loves TO lie on
the rug. close to the fire on a cold day.
But when the fire burns low and gives
less and less warmth. though he plainly
shows discomfort, he never thinks OF put
ting on fresh fuel though the wood-DoX
IS within easy reach.
In Africa, when camping party hrca Ks
camp and moves off without extlnguish-
ing the fire. the apes viii gather around
1t and greatly enjoy warming themselves;
but they viii huddle around the dyinE
cmbcrs and the hot ashes til the last
spark dies out: and not an ape OF them
will have the thought TO replenish the
fire. though the woods all around them
are full OF dry sticks, which would make
excellent fuel. Man, then, is the only
animal that can really utilize fire.
g. Man Is a tuncful creature. Birds
do something that Is called singing; but
no bird ever excogitated tune. The
octave seems TO be entirely beyond the
whole brute creation. Some individuals
among the lower animals have sometimes
manifested a sort Of sensitvenoss to GER
tain combinations Of musical sounds. !
once knew a dog-an ordinary unframed
cur-that would howl piteously under the
influence of certain notes on the violin.
But this was not evidence 10 show that
he was tuncful. / am satisfied that n
would be perfectly safe to offer Il reward
Of millions for any brute that could play
Captain Shepherds Quickstep" on the
violin and l am still more confident that
no brute could compose such a tune.
But men who have never been taught the
science of music. and who know nothing
of music as written. can and do compose
music sing IT. play it, and reproduce Il
at will.
4. The disposition TO show respect 10
the dead Is a peculiarly human feeling
and is shared by no brute. While some
brutes are evidently endowed with the
power Of thought. still man is the only
animal that shows any respect for a
corpse Of his own species. Grief at the
loss Of a companion IS one thing. and
respect shown 10 the dead body of one
Of our own species is another The for
mer is occasionally seen in some Of the
lower animals: the latter is peculiar TO
man.
This human disposition TO show respect
20 our dead Is a striking. though OBJ
secure. proof of our innate feeling of our
Immortality; we instnctvoly feel respect
for the tabernacle Of clay. because IT has
been the dwelling Of an immortal spirit.
When lIotspur had fallen in the com
bat with Prince Henry, and the noble
spirit had taken its flight Shakespeare
makes Prince Henry say:
"When that this body did contain
spirit
A kingdom for it was too small q bound.
But now two faces of the vilcst earth
Is room enough"
We cannot imagine Prince Henry utter
ing these words, without feeling deep
respect for the corpse of the noble and
chivalrous foe who had just fallen by the
Princes hand. When Prince Henry was
informed that Falstam had fallen in bat
tie he remarked. IL could have better
spared a better man" Here we see
that he had little respect for Falstaff's
character. and yet he is grleved 10 lose
him; for Sir John had amused the Prince
and amusement is very important 60
some men. The contrast between respect
and grief for the dead Is here clearly en-
phasized by the great dramatist. who was
holding the mirror up 10 nature.
A dog. when in mortal agony, will be
leaped upon by other dogs of the same
pack and torn and mangled remOrse-
lessly; and when his dcath-struggle is
over. the survivors will walk slowly away
from the body. growing angrily. as II
they regarded the death OF their com
panion as an insult offered by him to the
rest OF the pack.
B. / have observed no fact which
arouses the least suspicion that any brute
has any trace Of a conscience. The
whole brute creation seem to be utterly
destitute Of ethical perceptions. or Of
any capacity TO appreciate right and
wrong as such. Man is the only ethical
animal known 10 us. The fact that there
are various degrees Of ethical capacity
in different men, or even in the same
man at different times does not touch
the argument. If man. as man. IS an
ethical being. and the only ethical being
that lives upon the earth. this Is sufficient
for the argument.
G. Man is the only animal that seems
TO possess the capacity 10 make or 10
appreciate n witticism. lie is the only
laughing animal. Who ever knew any
brute TO make joke? The sense of the
ludicrous is peculiarly human sense.
Now. if We can fairly make ont six sep
arate and distinct powers which man. as
a race, possesses and commonly exercises
powers of which 10 brute shows any
traces It not fair 10 say that we are
justified in asking that these missing
links" shall be supplied. before we can
believe that man was developed" from
the lower animals? Such a develop
ment" would naturally be expected to
leave traces all along its course and
as these traces fail to appear. even in
Darwin's origin Of Species" we may
be excused for rejecting the hypothesis
f..f . - IL. H..
along that line. j. G. HIDDEN.