Lexington gazette. [volume] (Lexington, Va.) 1871-1962, 1901-05-15
THE SENSE OF SMELL
cONfRASTED WITH SIGHT 1T -
SlNGULARLY UND!SCRlMINATlNG.


OF the Horse or Dog the Human Nose Il
Insignificant.
1t is very doubtful, indeed, whether
people appreciate how great is the gull
between our human thoughts and feel
ings-thoughts more than feelings-anf
those of the lower animals. One heals
eommonplaces of the possibility Of an
extra sense, and 80 on, often enough,
but the entire difference of mental basis
that must exist between US and the oats
dogs and horses which we fancy we I'M
derstand, seems hardly ever to be CON-
eeived
In one direction all animals are alike
all dread death and physical injuryl
all eagerly seek and accept suitable
food; all have, in their s1rlier years.
that tendency to release the serious
business OF after-life which we call
play.
These common needs and inclinations
furnish q mental substratum, that
roughly all may comprehend; but int.
its crude and almost formless commune
cations, what an infinite amount of our
selves we are inclined to read in, with
out further justihcationl
The human world IS world Of pic.
lures; our memories are sight-images
hat we raise from their sleep in our
brains for little while.
But since the days Of Bishop Berke.
Icy, we have come to perceive, more
and more distinctly, that the eye sees
30 clearly, not by its own virtue, but as
the result of the education afforded it
by our hands. At first the world of the
child must be fiat confusion OF shapes,
which it learns to interpret by the move.
ment of its hands over the forms it sees.
The vision is, at first, without depth.
without relief, without modelling or at
mosphere.
Those born blind, who at later age
have been restored to their sight by
medical skill, and who consequently
have not learned to connect sight ane
ouch impressions, fancied all the things
thew saw touched their eyes. Indeed,
it is one of the elementary teachings Of
psychology, that our perception Of space
in our vision of the world comes to us
through our fingers.
The lion has no fingers; neither do
.he cat, the dog and the horse possess
these necessary media to nice discrim.
nation Of shapes and position. The
horse, with It's digits imprisoned in a
horny hoof. is in a particularly bad
case. II is impossible to believe that
he painting on the eye Of these crea-
tures is interpreted by them with any.
hing like the delicacy or truth that Wa
Eau attribute to what we see. Moreover,
certain "yellow spot of distinct Wis.
ion" common to us and the apes, is alb.
sent from their eyes.
The horse frequently seems to use his
eyes Independently OF each other. I'm.
doubtedly the majority OF animals do
so. Now, then, can we imagine in
their case, for a moment, such single
picture Of q world as we, in our waking
moments, look out upona
A few simple experiments with cat
will convince any one that she can not
distinguish hand with empty fingers,
held toward her from one containing
any not too odoriferous edible. And while
the animal may not, and in all prob.
ability does not, refer its world to
spaced picture and think in visible i'm.
ages as we do, there is no doubt that in
other respects its sensations may have
definition Of mentd value quite I'm.
known to the equivalent sense in our.
selves. We may "carry faces to the
heavens" and stalk about the tempo.
rary lords of the world, but for all that
our noses are poor things.
The human nose is An apologize
pimple compared with the magnificent
organ Of the horse or dog. Oul sense
of smell is, when contrasted with our
sight and hearing, singularly undiscrim.
mating. We can arrange sounds into
series-we know E is between @ and f;
We appreciate octaves and harmonies.
Similarly we can put the colors into or.
der, decide upon the amount OF blue in
q purple, and get almost to emotion al
the sight Of white star in the blue of
summer twilight, or of the amber sun.
light glinting between the blades OF
grass.
But this serial arrangement, this sort
Ing and selective choice, is entirely be.
yond our rudimentary senses of smell.
To US the idea Of the scent of the violet
being rich harmony, or the suggestion
that the frying of onions is discord, OF
that patchouh and the new-mown hay
Ne pleasant things in different times
ind keys, sounds utter nonsense. Our
hoses are entirely too dull to effect the
analysis necessary before scents can be
as complex, and sorted
and recombined so rs to be made an @s.
thetic pleasure.
But with the ami pals we have named
all that is different. Half the head Of
q horse or adult dog is nose. 1t is
probable, therefore, that the dogs mind
Is based essentially on impressions OF
smell. He perceives the crafty Ulysses
through all DISCUSSES that hide him
from human detection, shifts him and 10
ANY one who has watched lost dog |
In the street must, or at least ought to,
perceive that the animal has only the |
vaguest idea of what its adored master
looks like. Only on that supposition |
can its movements be understood. The
,reature is looking for smell image |
With it's nose; and sense with such an |
slytical power as the dogs olfactory |
perceptions exhibit, must certainly be
,apsble Of harmonic and discordant an
and affects.