The evening times., 1898-10-26
THE SENSE OF SMELL
Science Has Not Treated 1t
Very Thoroughly.
THE KEEN SCENT OF DOGS
II Is Impossible for Man to Conceive
of the High Development of This
Sense in Some of the Lower AMI
maIs-A Keen Sense of Smell n
Doubtful Gain for Human Beings.

Some time ago the writers who try 10
popularize science told US the sense Of
smell in man was likely to disappear in
time. IL seems, however, that science
Itself has not paid enough attention TO
the subject. In a long article the Lon
don Times says:
THE subject Of smells in general, and of
the sense of smell in particular, has not,
it appears, as yet received adequate sci
entific treatment According 10 Prof. Ayr
ton the president Of the section of mathe-
matical and physical science al the Brit
ish Association, this branch of physics
has hitherto been much neglected, and
he has commenced an interesting series
of experiments upon the smell given out
by different kinds of metal under various
chemical tests, as well as upon the veloc-
ity and diffusion Of smells, from which he
looks for important results.
This region OF physics is, he tells US,
a vast territory waiting 10 be explored.
That 1t VIII be found to contain mines of
theoretical wealth there can be no doubt,
while it is probable that a luXuriant
growth Of technical application would
spring up later on The detection of in
ferior glass by a lady through the repug-
nance that she shows al drinking water
out of certain cheap tumblers is instanced
as kind Of first fruit Of this luxuriant
growth OF technical application, and if it
were possible to conceive that a grave
and learned professor would trine with
such body as the British Association we
might almost suppose from this and GER
tam other semi-humorous passages in
Prof. Ayrton's address that it was. as
Artemus Ward says, writ sarcastic This
however, is inconceivable. and we must
suppose that science intends TO take up
in good earnest the subject OF smells
and our own powers of detecting them
We may hope that in so doing il will keep
In view the greatest happiness of the
gratest number, and will enter upon its
researches with the benefcent purpose of
diminishing the ills that we all more or
less suffer from noXious smells This
would be not only a luXuriant but high
ly beneficial growth of technical apppIica-
tion.
1T is certainly noteworthy that OF the
three senses by which men are able to de-
tect the presence of things at a distance
seeing, hearing and smelling-the two
former should be so much more highly
cultivated in practice and so much more
scientifically studied than the latter.
WHICH 10 LldIg animals Is the most i'm
portant of the three The dog, as we all
know, recognizes friends and enemies
and distinguishes between those human
beings with whom he comes into contact.
very largely by his sense of smell. The
keen scent of hOunds-the odora canum
vis-is keener than We with our limited
exercise of the faculty of smell, can
easily conceive; and few of US would be
flattered if we could realize how strongly
we smell to the nose of our four-footed
companion.
Most animals, indeed, have this sense
more strongly developed than man. The
horse that SHES at a menagerie process
sion is frightened as much by the smell
as by the strange appearance of camels
or elephants The stag, as many a patient
deer stalker finds to his cost after long
and wearisome stalk will scent the enc
my whom he cannot see; and the same is
true in varying degrees of most animals
in n state Of nature. The sense of smell
is useful to them for protection. for pro-
curing food, and for other purposes of
life To man il IS not. or has not hitherto
been, so useful as the senses of sight and
hearing. and therefore ii has been much
less highly developed. IT would be inter-
esting to know, If experiment In that dl-