The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-03-02
The Language of The Cont.

Prof. Garner has been working for two
or three years to gather indubitable proofs
that monkeys have a spoken language
and to a degree a literature also. He has
made excursions into the jungles of Africa
for the purpose of ascertaining as nearly
as possible the extent of the simian. vo-
cabulary returning with the assertion
that he has discovered and classified sew
eral hundred words made use of by mon
keys to communicate their ideas and de-
sires one with another. Another student
of the languages of the lower animals
has informed us with regard to the COM
prehensive and mellifuous voice of the
hen, as she scratches the earth and calls
her chicks to get the upturned worm, to
her imperative and swiftly obeyed COM
mand to the brood to get under her wing
at the appearance of danger, and to the
deceitful and mendacious language of the
rooster when he calls the hen to get a
grain of corn which he has found, and
then gobbling it himself just as she is
about to pick it up. Still another student
assures us that cats have a language Of
their own, with a vocabulary of more
than GOO words. This statement will not
be doubted by any person who has lived
within earshot of a back fence; but the
students assertion that the cat language
is musical and pleasing to the senses
will be denied strenuously. The only peo-
pie who could possibly admire the car
language are the Chinese, whose tongue
to the average English-speaking person.
sounds much like the language employed
by the cat in those Silly hours of the
ton and argument induce the hurting OF
maledictions and missiles through the air.
What has been said of the language Of
the monkey, the hen and the cat may be
all as true as it is reasonable and interest
ing. 1t is desired, however, to direct at
tention to an UNEMPLOYED but promising
field of animal language for investiga-
ton. The language of the goat is re-
ferred to. While the monkey and the cat
are able to do no more than talS-with
a wide range of meditation of voice. how
ever-it is a well known fact that the
billy goat is capable of singing. His strong
point in vocalization is a plaintive melody
iltoned when there is danger to life or
limb. There is not a farmer in the state
of Georgia but has had his heart touched
by the chanted prayer for pity of the goat
in the tolls. Nothing more plaintive and
sorrowful ever came from the throat and
tongue of man or animal than the goats
ed to tears by it
Unlike the cat and the puglists, the
goat does not fight principally with his
voice The goat is noble Roman when
it comes to fighting. He doesn't say a
word, but just goes ahead to hammer the
life out of his antagonist. When he has
achieved victory he may give voice to
his emotions. but it is rather the voice
of regret than of triumph. When he
feels frisky the goat can tell all about it
in expressions more concise than the pur-
est Addisonian English. His contempt is
set forth in a manner that admits of no
doubt whatever; for what could be more
contemptuous than his "ba-a-ah, pffistr-
accompanied by a sneering curl of the
upper lip which every farmer has seen and
laughed at?
The goat has been the joker's butt mo
pun intended) from time immemorial. 1t
is time that he was being given more
serious consideration. He has a language
of his own. as much so as the monkey.
the hen and the cat. 1t isn't fair that
he should be given less attention than
they. 1t is to be hoped that somebody
will take this matter up and vindicate
the language and literature of the goat
There can be no doubt that both are
rich. The goats history runs away back
into the time of the Pharaohs. 1t NAV
be that the goats have had handed down
to them by their forefathers the mystery
of the sphynx, or of Bernhardt's age.
Not a word has been heard with regard
to the Sibley presidential boom since the