The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1913-08-23
THOSE THINKING
HORSES UTTERLY
BAFFLE EXPERTS
Society For Physical Research
Doesn't Know What to
Make of Them
THREE HYPOTHESIS, BUT
NONE OF THEM FITS
Multiply, Add, Extract Square
Root of Numbers Up to
l44 and Spell


committee from that organization, Ed
ward Bullough, fellow OF Gouyille and
Caius college, oxford, and V. j. Wooi-
ley, NJ. d.. have gone back 10 London
more perplexed than when they came.
Scientists OF Germany, France and
Italy are equally puzzled. No solu-
ton seems TO lit.
The question these two investiga-
tors came TO Germany to solve was.
Have the thinking horses human un-
derstanding?" The two English
scientists say they don't know what
TO think about the thinking horses.
In report made TO the society, DR..
Woolley asserts that there are four
possibilities in regard to these
horses:
/. They may really possess the in
tellectual abilities ascribed TO them
by their owner.
q They may simply have learned
by heart the answers to all the prob
lens presented to them.
g. They may respond to signals
given consciously or unconsciously
by some person present
T. They may respond to some SUI
pernormal influence exerted by some
such person.
There are difficulties in the way Of
any OF these hypothesis, the commit
tee says
Two Arab Stations. i.
There are two OF these horses-two
Arab stations, Mohammed and Zarif.
They belong to X. KraN, wealthy
jeweler OF Elberfeld. He bought them
in 1908 in order 20 pursue on his own
account experiments which since 1905
he had assisted Herr Won Osten, re-
tired Berlin schoolmaster in carrying
out in the education of two horses,
both known as Hans. Herr Won Osten
began his experiments in 1890 with
horse he had been used 10 ride and
drive. He taught II TO go without
reins and 10 respond to such COM
mands as stop" walk, turn" etc.
This horse died and the schoolmaster,
who had made a small fortune as an
expert In mathematics. bought a five
year-old Russian stallion and chris
tened it Hans. II acquired apparent
proficiency in arithmetic and spelling.
A commission OF German scientists
investigated the second Hans and re-
ported that Won Osten, while believ-
ing himself TO be teaching the horse
the rudiments OF arithmetic, reading
and spelling, had actually merely
taught the animal. with astonishing
precision, to respond TO certain uncon-
scious and very small movements on
his own part.
Taught Like Children.
Herr krall, who had never had any
experience with horses until he met
the schoolmaster. proceeded to give
his two Arab stations an elementary
school course, just as ii they were
children" He put them through a
course in adding and subtracting;
taught them, IL Is claimed, to multi
ply up TO u times II, and even in
structed them. ii is asserted. In reck-
oning dates and In square and cube
root and then in spelling and reading
A kindergarten course in picture read
ing was next taken up.
Acting on the theory that prof.
cheney in mathematics is no test of
general ntelligence--some human
idiots having got fame as lightning
calculators Krall taught his
horses arithmetic only as an avenue
to mutual understanding" and as an
Introduction to spelling, reading and
spontaneous utterances Of the horses
part. Thus he aimed at proving that
horse has real intelligence such as
men have.
According to Herr Krall. the most
difficult OF his tasks was teaching the
horses to control their movements so
as TO adapt them to responsive ex-
preston. The difficulty OF this was
illustrated In the case OF third
horse named Amasis, which was put
under instruction. 1t stampe we'll
and appeared attentive, but 1t could
not or would not stop at the right
number, counting by stamping six or
seven instead OF five, eight or nine
instead or seven, unless the teacher
counted aloud with the horse.
Conception Of Numbers.
One OF the conclusions OF the two
investigators OF the society is that
Herr Krall's two Arab stations actu-
ally have conception OF numbers;
from which IL Is TO be inferred that
horses I'm general have a conception
OF numbers. Crows have been known
that could couNt up to six This con-
ception OF numbers, the English in
yestigators say, Is developed in the
form of movement-ima ges.
Herr Krall explained TO his horses,
just as he would to a child the rudi
mentary procedure I'm addition, etc.
He says he does not understand how
they extract square roots beyond that
or IA, which was the highest square
ne taught them. With the aid of a
simplifed spelling table the horses
learned to srell. each letter being
represented by number The con
nection between each letter and a
certain number being once formed.
the spelling of words written on the
blackboard became simply a matter
OF memory. Horses. according to Herr
krail. have truly wonderful mem.
cries.
Failed With Other Animals.
something far more complicated
and interesting, but at present iner-
pncable. was achieved" say the in
vestigators. when the horses began
u spell ont spontaneous statements"
After many attempts 10 teach the
horses German, Herr Krall finally left
them to their own resources, where.
NJ on they reverted to phonetic spell
ing-"sn" for essen ito eat). "gn"
for "gehen' ito RO). etc