Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-07-07
OUR DOGS AND CATS
Watching Their Effect Upon
Minds of Children.
A CARNEGI F U N d
UTILIZED FOR STUDY OF PSYCHIC
TRAITS.
Conclusion Reached That Puss Is the
Most Loved and Hated
Of Animals.

of Animals.
Copyright 1894 by John Eifreth watkins)
The psychic traits OF pet animals and
their effect upon the child mind form the
theme of the most unique investigation to
which the Carnegie millions have contribut-
ed. 1t is being conducted by DIR. G. Stanley
Hall. president of Clark University assisted
by several psychologists connected with the
busy child-experiment station Of DIR. Hairs
institution.
Dog Most Popular Pet.
The investigation has proven that the dog
is the most popular OF all pets dear to the
childish heart. Ranking next in order OF
popularity are the cat. canary. rabbit
horse. parrot. chicken and pony. The In
vestigation Is being based upon the written
reports of nearly $500 children. ranging in
age from six to seventeen years. These
data are being weighed with others collect
ed from the best known scientific investiga-
tors throughout the world.
Dogs and cats are far in the lead of all
other pet animals. so far as popularity
among children is concerned Whereas for
ty-three out of every hundred pet owners
prefer the dog, twenty-eight like the cat
best six are most partial to the rabbit, and
so on down the list. Although with both
boys and girls a steady increase Of favor
toward the dog occurs with age. that ami
NAL. the horse and the rabbit are more pop
ular with boys than with girls. The cat.
canary and parrot lead in feminine favor
at every age Of childhood.
Collie is Child's Favorite
The investigation of the dog has been
turned over to Dr. w. Fowler Buckle, fellow
in Clark University. He ranks children's
pet dogs in the following order of popular
ity: Collie. fox terrier. Newfoundland. BULL
pug, water spaniel, setter. bird dog. pointer,
greyhound. skye and rat terrier. The first
three and the water spaniel are about as
popular with one sex as with the other.
OF the remaining dog varieties, the st. Ber-
nard. poodle, pug. wolf hound and grey
hound are especially high in feminine favor.
Toward bull dogs. bird dogs. rat terriers
and pointers there is noticeable masculine
preference
Children form a fondness for dogs as
early as the age Of SIX months, and they
rarely form an antfpathy for that most
faithful of mans friends. A morbid fear
of dogs. known as "cynophobia," has been
studied by DIR. Fere. the celebrated French
scientist. who found 1t to be more rare
than the kindred nervous affections char
acterized by pronounced dread of insects
and of small animals. DIR. Buckle has COM
piled from the chfldren's reports a list of
the foods fed to their dogs. This includes
Ice cream. coffee. peanuts pie. apples, chew
ing gum ana pretzelS
Dog Next to Man
In intelligence Of learning through per-
suasion the dog ranks next to man. DR..
Buckle quotes the two French PSYCHOLOGISTS
Hachet and Souplet in support of this state
ment. 1t Is generally believed by scientists
that the dogs mind reacts In response to a
signal more quickly than does mans: that
its hearing is more acute and its scent ia
n hoa
for persons. as is evidenced by many cases,
notably the great Darwins surly savage
house dog which threatened every stranger
but welcomed him after his voyage of five
years REGULATIONS Of the popular belief
that dogs remember only by scent are in
DIR. Buckles opinion. three authenticated
cases where pet dogs have recognized life
size portraits of their dead masters Sir
Edwin Landseer, 1.-The Shakespeare of
dogs" owned pet Of this species. which.
when begging of his masters deaf father,
would always bark louder than ordinarily
other evidences that dog can reason
has been collected by DIR. Buckle One dog
whose master had three possible ways OF
travel from the point where he had missed
him smelled for the trail on two of the
paths. then followed the third without scent
ing This animals natural inference was
that II the other two trails had not been
taken. the remaining one must have been
That dogs locate water by the natural
slope OF the ground Is also known. A Steele
ton. Pa. dog which had visited friends in
Trenton. N. J.. went one day to the Steele
ton station. boarded the Trenton train and
went alone on visit to his former hosts
One experfmenter drugged dogs and car
ried them sixty miles into strange country
In short time they returned home "Ouida.'
owned a dog. quite blind and deaf, which
followed her about with unerring accuracy
Another blind dog could avoid every bit OF
familiar furniture in a room, but coiiided
with new objects. Still another blind dog
carried sixty miles found its home in San
Diego. Indeed. some investigators believe
the dog to be gifted with q special senss
not fntruSted to man and distinct from
smell.
Canine Language and Emotions.
The dog understands voice, facial ex-
preston and gesture, according to Dr.
Buckle. English dogs are stupid In France
because they do not know the accent. The
canine not only understands the language
of the human eyes and face. but that OF
different animals. His bark is an imitation
OF human speech. Before dogs were do
mesticated they did not bark The Esoui-
maux dog does not even to this day In
aeeo: IN Dr. Bucke's opinion. our dogs un-
derstand US better than We understand
them.
Dogs have inaginations That they dream
Is regarded by Darwin and others as proof
play with imaginary objects.
The emotions OF dogs have well-defined
physical expressions. according to the in
up and down. running about. a curling up
and wagging OF the tail. a curling OF the
upper lip and quick. sharp banks; sadness
by limp tall: affection by a lowering of
the head and entire body. extended tail
wa.ggtng from side to side lips loose. hair
sr:.ooth.
Dog jealousy is illustrated by the story Of
bachelor to whom a golden collie was
much attached. After the man married the
dog evidenced pronounced antipathy for
his new mistress. He finally forced her
into canal and during the desperate
struggle which ensued she was forced to
drown the animal In self-defense,
The highest level OF sympathy of the
order OF the carnivora is found In the
dog" said DR.. Buckle. Yet canine antipa-
thies are very pronounced. Many dogs of
white men have strong prejudices against
negroes. Oriental dogs have an aversion
for western travellers. Many dogs snow
ahttpathies for cripples and ragged beg
gars. Through several generations of one
dog family there antipafhV IN