The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1915-12-31
'ANIMAL. DISCIPLINE
Wild Beasts Obey a Sort Of Code
of Military Tactics.
BA500MS AS REAL SOLDIERS.
They Post Sentries at Night and When
Feeding and Have Front and Rear
Guards Whom on the Mareh--A Wild
Horse Company In Battle Array.


Guards Whom on the Mareh--A Wild
Horse Company In Battle Array.
i In these days of general interest In
Fittings military 1t Is interesting to
yknow that certain animals are gov.
Termed by what appear to be almost
military regulations. Among animals
fonly the gregarious. of course, show
Iqualities Of leadership and discipline.
Wild horses obey their leader more
Implicitly than any soldiers, however
well disciplined. Mustangs are wary.
gdifIicult to approach and almost i'm.
xposslble to capture, owing to the devo.
ton with which they follow their lead
Ter and to code Of signals that they
snever disregard.
4 A short. shrill neigh is a command to
4 flee; long drawn. far carrying neigh
I is the rallying call when the herd is
tscattered; a squeal orders the stations
!, to stand ready to fight Off dangerous
Ebeasts. and q wild snort indicates the
fsight or scent of man. The snort Of a
4 mustang can be heard half a mile or
more.
Certain movements are also impor-
Ftant as signals. At the first hint Of
!, danger the horse that detects it throws
bis head and tail high in the air. stands
4 motionless and gazes fixedly In the di-
i rection from which he anticipates trou.
/ BILE. Usually that is enough to put the
4 entire herd OH the alert Should the
enemy prove to be bears. wolves or
Sany foe against which the drove can
defend itself the "signal horse" dashes
forward. prancing from side to side.
rearing and striking the ground. Should
\ their most dreaded enemy. man. be APP
preaching the horse will circle far in
! toward the main body. and as he turns
Z for one last look he will snort out a
Etrumpet-like blast. Then with q rush
a roar and CHATTER Of hoofs the entire
herd is gone-the leader In front, the
stations In the rear. the colts in the
E middle.
Even old. well trained work horses
when turned out to pasture will gener-
ally select leader and be governed by
I him. The herd commander may be an
\ old and gentle mare or the widest and
4 wariest horse Of the drove. In the lat.
! ter case the herd often becomes almost
rs difficult to handle as 50 many wild
!; horses, whereas the old mare will keep
her drove In the most tractable condi.
ton.
n The peccaries OF Mexico have a bat
tie cry that Is never disobeyed-a short
I vicious squeal. quickly repeated and
kept up without ceaslng. That noise
drives the little beasts frantic. all with.
4 in hearing rush to get into the fray.
and nothing short Of death stops their
charge. II the hunter does not shoot
\ his peccary SO dead that 1t cannot emit
a single dying squeal his only safety
lies in instant flight
r The peccary has also a note that
4 sounds the retreat. II is grunt some
Z thing like the "Woof. wool. woofr' Of
bear as he dashes away from danger.
An American guide who lives in So
nora, in Mexico, can initiate that note
and says. that he can stampede gang
Of the brutes at will with 1t.
The balloons Of Africa probably
have the best military regulations of
any Of the animals. While they are
feeding In a dangerous place they set
sentries on every side-big, wise, vet
eran balloons that sit perfectly quiet
4 ana keep a vigilant watch. At a sharp
bark Of warning from one of these
outposts every ape ceases his occu-
patton, even the babies hush their cries
4 on the instant. At another bark all
may resume work or play, or again.
4 the second note may carry a different
|. message; then the leader gives an or.
der, and all retreat rapidly to the
denser parts of the forest.
I When travelling these creatures have
both a front and rear guard. A half
dozen powerful apes scout well in
! front Of the main body. now inspecting
4 the woods from the ground, now climb
ing to the tops Of the tallest trees. II
4 the traveller comes on a tribe Of ba.
boons he usually sees only one Of the
scouts. which bares his teeth savagely.
banks once and is gone. Farther away
\ the hunter may observe the whipping
Of branches. as the rest of the tribe
retreat so rapidly that no man can
overtake them. Should the observer
happen upon the rear guard. he win
observe that they behave differently
from the scouts. Not silent or cautious.
they constantly give quick, sharp com
mands. now angrfly chiding some lag
ging youngster or giving another slap
and bite.
As far as we know the balloons are
the only apes or other animals that
post a sentry at night. Commonly
they sleep In caves among the cliffs.
and when all have retired to rest you
may be sure that one Of their number
will be wide awake. sitting on some
lexposed rock or other point of vantage.
from which he can see In every direc-
tion. Not even the leopard, the most
determined foe OF the baboon, dares to|
attack them at night unless he can
surprise and kill the sentry. When at
tackled they will fight In defense of
their families until the last 'man" Is