ment, owing to the
war. This lady taught her dog on independent methods of her own,
devoting much loving and conscientious care to the work and, in a
general way, the results have been much the same as those obtained from
Rolf, although, in the matter of detail, there is much that is new;
indeed, many of the observations set down by this investigator raise
questions of fascinating interest. Here, again, the author has been
able to improve on the method as previously applied by others; teaching
the dog to rap tens and units with different paws, as had been done by
Krall's horses, and also introducing a better method of spelling by
teaching the proper value of the consonants.[28] Fraeulein Kindermann
further applied her tests systematically in order to solve certain
problems, proving the animal's ability to the full extent in one
particular subject at a time. It is indeed the experience thus gained
which gives to this book its special value, even though all the
problems submitted may not have been fully solved. I would here draw
attention to the fact that the author's dog invariably replies in "High
German," whereas Rolf of Mannheim employs the dialect of the Pfalz--and
the Stuttgart dog, Sepp, expresses his views in Suabian; indeed, each
dog naturally learns the "form of speech" he hears in his own locality.
The results that have come under notice seem at times so extraordinary
that doubts may arise as to the authenticity of what has here been set
down; yet should we be careful not to reject new evidence because it
happens to exceed all we have hitherto known or experienced. For this
is a case of exploring new ground, ingress to which has now become
possible owing to an entirely new method, and none should take upon
themselves to decide in advance what may, or may not be, found possible
within this new domain. Careful examination of all evidence put forward
is desirable, yet can this be undertaken only by such persons as are
themselves in the possession of an intelligent dog, one to which they
can apply the test of similar instruction. It should be needless to say
that the experimenter must abstain from anything in the nature of a
sign given to the animal. It is a far easier matter to train an animal
in _that_ way than to bring out the latent possibilities attaching
to its understanding by training it so as to state its own thoughts.
The proof of the genuineness of such "utterances" on the part of the
dog lies in the fact