New-York tribune., 1905-08-22
PAIN AMONG ANIMALS.
Less than 4mong Men, Writer Re
iterates-PIea for Poultry.

To the Editor Of The Tribune.
Sir: I should have TO hunt for long time Tor
better illustration OF the tendency OF tender hea'
ed persons lose their sense OF proportion tna'h
that afforded by the second Of your correspondents
Of August 1s She wishes TO know what kind OF
an animal am to bat with hoe handle. n poor
old boar who wasn't doing thing except traUnpIe
on a lot Of miserable little pigs worth only coupe
of doiiars apiece.
Why is one human monster" for trying to Sc
cure the least damage to the smallest NUMBER
To what extremes Is driven when once he
commits himself to the sentimental attitude COLO
mel Wilson'S camel. presumably. at first suffered
severe pain on being shot. but having had such
treatment all It's Hfe'' became so wonted to bullet
wounds that It ceased to notice them at all! OR
course. Is always at liberty to imagine any
thing he likes. All we really know about the mat
is that when this caravan crosses the pages OF
history the camels do not show the least sign OF
distress when hit. IL horse scratches hyoite
hard to break a small tree down II proves
how sensitive he is / should say that only a
very thick skin would require such heroic treat
ment That "he will go in harness with the blood
trieklng down his side from an apparently un-
noticed bite" may prove his conscientious devotion
to duty. it may prove that the wound really does
not pain him especially.
My critic has heard of little children rompins
and playing with such wrinkle in the stocking
that II caused a blister. Does it follow that
blister or a wrinkle in the stocking does not hurt?
Certainly not. But it does follow, If this is gener-
ally that blisers and wrinkles hurt boys ana
girls less than they hurt me.
Indeed ii is maintained that. as rule. helpless
young creatures have somewhat less deVeioped
pain than they later acquire
In short mere random observations like these,
which can be interpreted in half dozen different
ways though they were multiplied into the hun
dreds. would leave the question precisely where 1t
was before.
The case is altogether different with arguments
of another group of my critics, of whom your
correspondent, Mr.. C1eghorn. is excellent ex-
ample. These while they take issue with me on
this that and the other point, agree with me that
there Is a real problem involved, problem that Is
TO be settled only by the critical discussion or
evidence which really points somewhere. To these
/ owe many interesting facts and not a few acute
Determinations.
1 take this opportunity TO withdraw my case of
the rabbit torn to pieces by the ferret, an officer
OF the Humanitarian League of London having
knocked the legs from under all examples OF this
type by pointing in effect that had not con-
sldered the possible influence of instructive fear
rhs is however. the only which thus far has
been unequvocalIY knocked SHY high.
Turning to Mr.. Cleghorn's arguments in detail
1t probably true that he could instance many
examples Of caIlousness to pain in human beings
this article does of callousness. or lack OF sut
fering. in animals The question must. neverthe-
s turn upon bre nete o more cases
of striking insensbility among animals than OF
men usually fnd the things they are looking for.
On this point every one must make 1ns 5est guess @
he can from his own experience; BESIDES, IN an
did not include IN its quotation, l set forth some
evidence that the gently reared and somewhat
highStrung type of human being whtch most or us
know best Is characterized bv an exceptional de-
velopment of the pain sense. The case Of the
with the felOn suggests local anseSthesls-
Many of the other instances at which my critlc
hints would. suspect but bear out my cOntenCon
that we civilized men-and still more especially
women-of the more intelligent classes are some
thing Of an exception even among human beings
The case of the Jew who "holeTed when ne
wasn't hurt and the Teuton. who kept still when
he was is certainly (as 1 understand Mr. Cleghorn
to regard it, a striking commentary on our tsh-
dency to confuse pain with its expression ,
My comparison between vlv1Sectlon ana the
happy. Between being cut TO pieces with a good
sharp knife and having my fingers blown on oy a
cannon cracker and dying of blood poisoning or
lockfaw aftervard I should hate TO nave 70 choose
I am not now called upon TO defend viv1sectloh
though do believe that the good IN II out"els4S
the evii) . -, ..
mentioned by Drs. Lefingwell and Austin Flnt
hurt their victims apprecably less than they would
have hurt Mr.. Cleghorn or me -, -
Really the whole point OF my case lS tnat We
of pain In this not very kindly world. because we
take as our standard of comparison q peculiarly
sensitive organism with a pecG!tHr PFeJudlce
against crying out when hurt one OF tne. most
uHcompromisf1g of American artt-vivtsectonlsts IS
a woman who unites the senstive temperament OF
an artist in words with the terrible power OF self
repression of u New-EnglandeT. Would not inns
woman, whom the common NOISES OF n uWeiHIiS
and the lullaby of the used to drive inland
every night to sleep in an isolated hut-woui9 not
she have had a tuster view or the matter II she
tbicE skiuneJ hard rnusced Frenchman or ItaHan
who cannot talk with his hands tied? s,-r,r
Andover. Mass. Aus. 1S 1905