FED OD 0 0 SSS nh Sh dh dh Sh 3p) Anno 1778° E x RRS OG UK OH OH OH Oh OH 2 LlD Peewee S oO Ore < ‘ 3 anoacaaegn0e* 0% % OM x OLIVER-WENDELL:’HOIMES “«* o% ® ® Pale baie Aston yd ‘R ® é oS rs & J x > = ox) 2 0 i oi Te eee He oh oh 9K) oa : ut rar \ , > | . i rk a a A ' i Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2019 with funding from Kahle/Austin Foundation https://archive.org/details/almosthuman0000yerk ALMOST HUMAN a = a ~ = - * =a = whe = Yaa ae ee oe 7 = ~’ = } Than oe pee i Ye we Pa i CONTENTED CHIMPANZEE CHILDREN WITH SENOR JUAN LESCANO, SUPERINTENDENT, QUINTA PALATINO ALMOST HUMAN BY ROBERT M. YERKES Proressor oF Psycnoxocy, InsriruTE or PsycHoLocy Yate UNIVERSITY ILLUSTRATED THE CENTURY CO. New York &£ London (ra 1 mK Copyright, 1925, by THE CENTURY Co. PRINTED IN U. §. A. To ALL WHO LOVE TRUTH AND SEEK IT DILIGENTLY IRRESPECTIVE OF PERSONAL COST oa st hel Li a ee : Sy pen ae eee Sy eee ee ren ene Atay Ble ST a Ay a colle ou ean ik ~ pe ch ee %. 7 Lick: pate eels Sale a PREFACE This book is the product of codperative effort; to inscribe it with a single name is on many ac- counts misleading. For years the writer has, metaphorically speaking, followed the trail of the anthropoid apes. The more he learns about them, the more helpful lessons for mankind he discovers in their relations to their world and to one another. Truly, as knowledge grows, wis- dom, insight, and foresight increase. Yet the idea that the humble primates may be helpful to us may seem novel and surprising. Certainly such result can come about only if they are studied dili- gently, open-mindedly, and thoughtfully. Then indeed they may help to rid us of certain ill- founded and unprofitable prejudices and super- stitions. For loyal, efficient, and self-effacing aid in gathering information in Cuba, I am deeply obli- gated to Dr. Harold C. Bingham. To Miss Josephine M. Ball also hearty thanks are due. Our work at Quinta Palatino was signally ad- vanced by Miss Irene Corey, who acted as inter- preter as well as secretary. My obligation to vil Vill PREFACE these co-workers is especially great because our investigations were carried on during the sum- mer, when physical discomforts were at the maxi- mum. For generous permission to reproduce enlight- ening photographs of primates I am indebted to many friends. I make grateful acknowledgment to Dr. Bingham, who worked hard and persist- ently for satisfactory photographic effects; to Madam Rosalia Abreu, who kindly permitted me to select from a collection of photographs of her animals and her estate; to Mrs. Ladygin-Kohts, who has published in Russian a book on the intel- ligence of the chimpanzee which contains some of the best pictorial and verbal descriptions of the animal ever presented; to Professor Wolf- gang Koehler, from whose accounts of his impor- tant experimental studies of the mental life of the chimpanzee many facts and several highly useful pictures have been borrowed; to Dr. William T. Hornaday, Director of the New York Zoological Park, for the privilege of selecting some excellent and appropriate pictures from the collection of the New York Zoological Society, and to the Bibliographisches Institut, publishers of Brehm’s ‘“‘Tierleben,’’ and the Williams and Wilkins Com- pany, publishers of ‘‘Chimpanzee intelligence and PREFACE 1x its vocal expressions,’’ for similar kind codpera- tion. . In the preparation of this manuscript and the handling of the several proofs I have been invalu- ably assisted by my wife, Ada Watterson Yerkes, and my secretary, Mrs. Helen S. Morford. Ex- cellent suggestions and criticisms making for intelligibility and interest have been provided, also, by Miss Margaret S. Child, Dr. H. C. Bing- ham, and Miss Irene Corey. I deeply appreciate and take satisfaction in acknowledging the generous codperation of the editors and publishers. It has made my task agreeable. Rosert M. YERKEs. New Haven, Connecticut May 5, 1925. INTRODUCTION In the following pages are recorded the unique achievements of an exceptionally able, independ- ent, and courageous woman who fortunately has had both the will and the means to go forward with her work as she desired. Because of the human value of her experiences in keeping pri- mates as pets and as subjects for serious sympa- thetic study, this simple record has been prepared. It has been my aim to acquaint the alert and hospitably minded reader with essentially inter- esting facts about the monkeys and anthropoid apes and to point out, without prejudice or argument, their similarities to man and ways in which they significantly differ. In the back- ground has been the hope that the book may help to clear away certain misunderstandings and prejudices and exhibit possible values of these creatures, our nearest of kin among living things, as objects of study and especially as means of deepening and making more highly serviceable our insight into the happenings and principles of mental life, social relations, and educational effort. xl Xil INTRODUCTION By friendly critics, who have seen this manu- script in the making, I am told that I have attempted the impossible. It is not the first time, nor, I hope, the last! Familiarity is said to breed contempt; it often breeds respect instead. This has been true of Madam Abreu’s experience in studying monkeys and apes, and of my own also. There is intense and well-nigh universal curiosity about these ani- mals, but it is often coupled with strong dislike or repulsion. Perhaps as our ignorance disap- pears we shall lose also the prejudice and un- reasonable dislike which makes many feel that genetic relationship with the monkeys or apes is belittling. I first heard of Madam Rosalia Abreu when in 1915 a chimpanzee was born on her estate in Havana. The event was notable because there is no previous record of the conception and birth of one of the great apes in captivity anywhere in the Western Hemisphere. Naturally, Cuban scien- tists and Madam Abreu heralded the infant chim- panzee enthusiastically. Through the scientific press the news came to me. Madam Abreu was good enough, in response to my request, to send me photographs of the mother and baby and to write me about her interesting work with the pri- mates, and of her plans. INTRODUCTION xiii The World War interrupted our correspondence and for several years I heard only indirectly and rarely about the Cuban chimpanzee. Then in 1923 I received from Madam Abreu a most gener- ous and urgent invitation to visit her estate and study her large collection of animals. Through the cooperation of the Carnegie Institution of Washington I was enabled in January, 1924, to spend several days in Havana. This gave me opportunity to learn more about Madam Abreu’s interest and to see her general provision and facilities for keeping the primates on her beauti- ful estate, Quinta Palatino. The eagerness of Madam Abreu to have her pets used for the advancement of knowledge, and through it of human welfare, encouraged me to recommend to the Carnegie Institution that pro- vision be made for study of the Abreu collection. The recommendation was approved and I was able with three assistants to spend several weeks in Havana during the summer of 1924, in order to observe the conditions of life and the behavior of the captive primates, and to study somewhat more intensively several aspects of social behav- ior and important expressions of emotional and intellectual life. Also, most of all important, I conducted a sustained interview with Madam Abreu, to obtain fairly detailed record of her long XIV INTRODUCTION experience with the animals and to gain insight into the relation of her traits of personality to her exceptional success in keeping and breeding her pets. It was during this interview, which continued as opportunity was afforded through nearly two months, that the idea first came to me of trying to write a book which should make the useful experience of Madam Abreu widely available, and combine with it much general information about the primates and the possibility of greatly increas- ing their values to man. I discussed the plan with Madam Abreu, overcame her objections to publicity, and gained her approval. Somewhat later, as I was working on the manuscript, it occurred to me that the value of the story might be enhanced by a brief résumé of the results of scientific studies of the behavior and mental life of monkeys and apes. This it was finally decided to attempt under the three headings: intelligence, emotional life and its expressions, speech and other forms of anthropoid language. It has been impossible to do justice to the wealth of informa- tion. When words failed me or verbal descrip- tion threatened to be wearisomely long, I have used illustrations. The story is the a-b-c of anthropoid life and behavior. It lacks detail, finish, completeness. If it lacks also reasonable INTRODUCTION XV accuracy, orientational power, and natural inter- est, it will deservedly fail to command attention. For this contribution to anthropoid literature, based almost wholly on general naturalistic ob- servations as contrasted with those of the care- fully, critically controlled laboratory sort, I have no apologies to offer. Many years of experience in the study of animal behavior have taught me that naturalistic observations and laboratory ex- periments have each their peculiar values. Nei- ther alone is sufficient to our needs. Anecdotal descriptions are crude and not infrequently mis- leading; experimental studies often are over- refined and artificial. The descriptions in this volume are not perfect. They demand verifica- tion, refinement, supplementation. But the per- son, whether layman or scientist, who depends wholly on rigidly controlled laboratory studies for his knowledge of the anthropoid apes or of man is naive indeed, and to be pitied rather than abused. I cannot adequately thank Madam Abreu for her generosity in affording opportunity for our work, her hospitality during our many hours of labor at Quinta Palatino, and her continuous kind- ness and thoughtfulness for our comfort. To these any success we may have achieved is chiefly due. Her devotion to our aims and interests XV1 INTRODUCTION almost equaled her sympathetic concern for the welfare of the animals and her desire to justify their existence in so luxurious a setting by making them useful. Although I have never sought formal approval for the statement, I am confident that she believes with us that scientific study of the primates is extraordinarily important as a means of increasing insight into the problems of life and correspondingly extending our control over it. CONTENTS OHAPTER PAGE I A PERSONALITY AND AN ACHIEVEMENT. . 3 Hie Weosig s Riwaren to Pee 6) 18 III A Unique CoLuLectTIoN or Primates. . . 30 IV A Moprew CHIMPANZEE COLONY . .. . 49') V Primate InTewIceENcE . .... . 15 Vi Accioen’ ob Instant? .o.« . . + (93) VII Arrection, SYMPATHY, AND RELATED SOCIAL SISPERIENCES) .- 5. c 4) eh) 3 2) Gwe VIII Fear, Race, RESENTMENT, AND HATRED. . 142 IX ANTHROPOID SPEECH AND Its SIGNIFICANCE . 165 X From GENERATION TO GENERATION. . . 181 XI Tue Care or Captive Primates. . . . 203 XII Tue Secret or Success in KEEPING AND BREEDING THE Great APES. . . . . 221 XIII Tse Light THat Famep: A TRIBUTE TO Prince CHIM er oh ne ands ee ws, One XIV Kwnow.epce ConpiTions PowprR. . . . 206 See ka ihlea 445 pa f. —_ x oe cae" "we oa ; ans FY ; = J Ate . ag ene rele - o Pe Nia ae i te Ts ILLUSTRATIONS Contented Chimpanzee Children with Sefor Juan Lescano, Superintendent, Quinta Palatino Frontispiece PAGE Glimpse of Primate Cages at Quinta Palatino. . 4 Abreu Residence, Quinta Palatino, Havana, Cuba. 5 Looking Toward Cerro enn) from Suk Palatino Tower. . 12 Formal Garden of Quinta PAlREne Park fe nlle A Lemur, Near Relative of the Monkeys. . . . 24 Portrait of a Rhesus (Macacus Rhesus) Monkey . 24 Orang-Utan (Left) and Chimpanzee ... . 25 A White-Throated Sapajou Monkey. . . . . 36 An ied siowler Monkey ey a) tics fot be Oe PPV OOLly Monkey @. bene Oo eb ie wens) ot en ae Gelada Baboon and Young . + .-. . . . 4d Wau-Wau, the Lone Female Gibbon. . . . . 52 A Siamang Gipnon eG ate es Ve kee 08 A White-Handed Gibbon. . . Pate 6 Cachesita, an Adult Male One Ua at Petter ik A Young Orang-Utan in Characteristic Attitude . 60 Anumé, the Cuban Chimpanzee. . .. . . 61 Jackito, Posing Obediently . . . 72 Miss Alyse Cunningham with Her Young Gorilla, Sultan, or John Daniel Second. . . 73 xix an ILLUSTRATIONS FACING PAGE Lu Lu (Left) and Jackito with Andres. . . . 84 Posing an Active Chimpanzee. . . 85 Young Chimpanzees Be Le in New ‘Hamp. shire ; Julius the Orang- Vian, in Montenite Valley, Cali fornial 27%: 92 Chim Quenching His Thirst at a ie ho ane Making One Stick Out of Two . . ode toe Chimpanzee Using a Pole to Obtain Food . eel Chimpanzee Building a Tower of Boxes in Order to Secure Suspended Fruit. . . . 108 Stick and Boxes Being Used by Chimpanzee to Help It to Geta Banana. . 109 Ioni and Mrs. Kohts in Their Laboratory, Moscow, Russia ; velo Mrs. Kohts and Her Chiupansee Toni Hie Ee Ses Lond Nlatchine.:Colora. 2, «2.2 carts y ts te eee Toe LO Ioni Matching a Sample Object . . . mel, Curves of Learning for Multiple Choice Pere oy Portrait of Julius the Orang-Utan . . . ... 120 Yerkes Multiple-Choice Apparatus, as Used for Primates in Montecito, California. . . . 121 Chimpanzee. Wmotons: 25. mas aes ee ee cee Hriendly Indeed jiecsdecgy eee ae eee ore ero perioustess inithe Corillawo-a) sat. dale pollo Chimpanzee Preoccupation . . . . . . . 129 Aping His Human Companions. . .. . . 140 Nothing but Leaves! . . yess km yenmee ta aaee oe eT Jackito Objects to Being Be eon a steen Menten Lad ILLUSTRATIONS Ioni Registers Anger Blanquita Expresses Resentment Angry as a Chimpanzee! The Chimpanzee Who Did Not oe to “Talk : The Youthful Gorilla, Sultan . Cucusa and Anumaé z 3 Anuma To-day, Aged Ten Yon é A Young Chimpanzee on the Way . Monona with the Infant Lita . Pickaback—Monona and Lita A Youthful Orang-Utan, at Home in Haeeha ; An Aged Orang-Utan . Keeping Close to Mother . A Quinta Palatino Cage Vista Typical Chimpanzee Cages at Quinta Palatino , Xx1 FACING PAGH . 145 . 160 eon SeliG me . 184 ap1d0 awe . 193 Ads . 200 . 200 . 201 . 208 . 208 Chimpanzee Cage with Concrete Nest Box in Corner 209 A Beautiful Monkey Cage in a Beautiful Setting . Getting Dinner at Quinta Palatino . Our Laboratory at Quinta Palatino . Typical Attitudes of Orang-Utan and Gibbon . The Life of the Chimpanzee . Attitudes of a Young Gorilla . Cachesita in Action Chim and Panzee with a Friendly Scientist 209 . 212 . 213 . 220 . 221 . 228 eA) . 244 Panzee, Drawn by David Yerkes, Aged Eleven Years 245 A Portrait of Prince Chim Chim in the Nation’s Capital . . 252 . 203 ALMOST HUMAN ae 7 Hh Se ile ai | Aide sa ane dng ene te ear ee ta wy JING sb pd Neb iper 1a eo fh ltteer nee Pais iit ae gy aly Ear a Se eee litre, eet eer ts bowl ae an ae ; ' vr wa Z nee a i? ; ones, 5 ; . sy us iQ = wu z So Sg et | roy 7 4 Coad ‘i be fae AY sat all re eee 7 tot Miele se ions ie rar *\ der pi re ut ou kes oe y - $2 - ae As aes : ay p+ = 7 oe toy, a Hi ~ 7 ¢ ~ e ALMOST HUMAN CHAPTER 1 A PERSONALITY AND AN ACHIEVEMENT EMARKABLE human achievements gain in- terest and meaning through intimate asso- ciation with personality. Often they can be un- derstood only in the light of the traits of the essential person. As I undertake to set down the facts which suggested the title ‘‘ Almost Human,”’ I am overtaken by the conviction that they will be colorless and for many readers almost valueless save against the background of the personality of Madam Rosalia Abreu. Therefore I have begged her permission to make this story an ac- count of the achievements of a personality. Both she and the writer are interested primarily in the achievements, and we earnestly hope that the use of personality may in various ways enhance the value of our observations and in no manner belittle or detract from them. The task of a bi- ographer is peculiarly difficult, and the more so when the subject is alive and extremely alert and 3 4 ALMOST HUMAN critical. For this reason, if there were none bet- ter, I should earnestly disavow the intention of writing a biography and plead for autobiographic assistance. Notable achievement is usually the expression of a rare combination of personal traits. As a rule it appears in connection with vocational ca- reers, but now and then the expressions of avoca- tional activity command attention and admiration because of their exceptional human significance. Fortunate is he whose skill in living permits him the joy of an avocation, and extraordinarily for- tunate is he whose avocation proves serviceable to himself and to others. The woman whose per- sonality provides the materials for this story has wrought for herself an avocation which promises to be rarely valuable to mankind. Briefly told, Madam Abreu, through her intense devotion to pets, has assembled during the last two decades a unique collection of monkeys and apes both small and great, the while discovering ways of keeping them in health and comfort, and of establishing conditions favorable to the re- production of their kind and to their healthy growth and development. She was the first to demonstrate the possibility and practicability of breeding and rearing that great ape the chimpan- zee in confinement elsewhere than in his tropical habitat. GLIMPSE OF PRIMATE CAGES AT QUINTA PALATINO This picture was taken from one of the towers of the residence. In the fore- ground appear some small monkey cages and beyond them a large ape cage sa3eo opeutid jo opoirormes oy} si ‘ainzord sty} UT a[qISIA you ynq *soUepIseL ay} yNOGY Vdno ‘VNVAVH ‘ONILVIVd VINIONO ‘AONACGISUY NAAdV PERSONALITY AND ACHIEVEMENT 5 When Anuma, an infant chimpanzee, was born on the Abreu estate in Havana, he was eagerly received by scientists of the Cuban metropolis, who promptly devoted themselves to observing and describing this unexpected bit of good for- tune. Anuma is now adult, a splendid specimen of hiskind. Even at the age of ten years he seems gentle and affectionate, and has seriously harmed no one. His life history and genetic relations will constitute some of the most interesting and important materials of this story. But before presenting them or attempting to describe the unique collection of pets which to-day so fully oc- cupies the time and interest of Madam Abreu, we would beg to offer the reader such facts concern- ing herself and her life history as are essential to the achievement of our purpose. Rosalia Abreu and her parents are native Cu- bans. Her father, one of a family of seventeen children, was a man of strong personality, with exceptional business ability and devotion to his family and his vocation. He died when his daugh- ter Rosalia was thirteen, but before that time she had learned to love and prize him, and he remains an object of her admiration and veneration to this day. His character and desires molded the child, and in important respects her life has brought to expression the admirable traits of her father. With her mother she was on somewhat 6 ALMOST HUMAN less sympathetic and intimate terms, for reasons which the following childhood incidents will serve to suggest: “My first pet was a cat, a poor stray creature who was very unhappy. I think I was about five years old. I began by feeding and taking care of the little thing. This, I think, was the awakening of my affection for animals. My mother did not eare at all for pets. She would do them no harm, but she did not like them. My father was just the opposite. During his absence on business my little cat got a fish bone in its throat. I did not know what to do and my father was not there to help, but I took the little animal and worked with its throat until I got the bone out. This was my first trying experience in caring for a pet, and I trembled with fear that I might not be able to do the work well.’’ Thus Madam Abreu, with few words but vividly, describes her earliest memory of caring for animals. ‘‘My second pet was a pigeon. That was a little later. I think I must have been about seven years old. It was a young domestic pigeon that had fallen from the nest. My father told me to take care of it and not to let it die. It was very young and I fed it by putting crushed corn and rice into its mouth with my fingers. Gradually as it grew it became able to hop about. It knew me and would hop toward me when it saw me PERSONALITY AND ACHIEVEMENT 7 coming. I kept it in the house and always fed it myself, so it never learned to take care of itself. In the excitement of a Cuban holiday, the sixth of January, my little pet was accidentally crushed under foot, and when I came to feed it I found it dead. I cried and cried and my father, who tried to console me, said that I would have to bury the little bird. I said I would not bury it because the worms would eat it and it would smell bad. My father asked, ‘What are you going to do with it?’ And I said, ‘Papa, if I eat it I will have it always next to my heart.’ So he said, ‘Very weil,’ and took me to the kitchen, where I saw it dressed and cooked. Then on my father’s lap, erying and crying, I ate my pet. I even wanted to swallow the bones. My mother did not inter- fere, for she saw that it was strong inside me.”’ The quality of her adored father’s sympathy is indicated also by this incident which Madam Abreu reports: “Kind people in Philadelphia, with whom father had business relations, sent him some sheep as a present. One day he happened to be passing through the keeper’s house just at the mo- ment when one of the animals was being slaugh- tered. He came up to the house all white and when my mother asked him what was the matter, he told her what he had seen and said that the look in the eyes of the poor animal haunted him. 8 ALMOST HUMAN Further, he said that we would have no more mutton. The rest of the sheep were sent away. He could not bear to see suffering.’’ Throughout her childhood Rosalia spent much of her affection on pets. Following the little dove came a Mexican dog, a humming-bird, and doubt- less other charges which she either has forgotten or left unmentioned. From birth she was strong of body and mind, active, energetic, determined. Her love for her father was a powerful influence in shaping her character and in directing her education. She went first to a day-school in Havana. Each day her father took her to school. To one of the teachers she became much attached, and when this teacher left for a better position the little girl was suspected of having arranged for her under- handedly. The principal of the school sent for the child’s mother, who, after learning what had happened, reproached her. Rosalia protested that she was innocent, but nevertheless she was made to do penance for many days. Finally, she went to her father, crying and insisting that she was innocent. He then went to the school with her and told the principal that she should not be punished, because when she spoke she always told the truth. ‘“‘T will tell you how I learned English. My mother was very strict and I was mischievous. PERSONALITY AND ACHIEVEMENT 9 When I had done something wrong she would call to my father and say, ‘What shall be done with this naughty child?’ Then my father would place me on the window-sill and give me a letter from his bankers, written in English, to translate into Spanish as a penance. But when I was with him nothing was a penance.’’ The child’s education was continued later at the Sacred Heart Convent in Havana where she studied for between one and two years. Then came the death of her father. Her mother de- cided to go to New York after this, and Rosalia, who again wished to go to a Sacred Heart School, was sent to ‘‘Edenhall’’ at Torresdale, Pennsyl- vania. Here she came to love devotedly Mother Aiken. So strong was this bond of affection that when her mother decided to leave the United States for France, the child refused to go until forced by Mother Aiken to obey. “So,’’ reports Madam Abreu, ‘‘I went to France and, when I was supposed to be riding in the park, T stole away to the Sacred Heart School there and engaged a room. When I returned and my mother asked me about the ride, I told her what I had done and that I wanted to stay at school and study. I must have been about fifteen years old at the time. My mother let me stay for about a year. Then we went to Spain for a trip, and my school education ended.’’ 10 ALMOST HUMAN All of the institutions which shared in the train- ing of the child were religious. Spanish was her native tongue, but French and English she learned at her father’s knee and while in the United States. Later, in France, she mastered the French language. This incident, indicative alike of the religious character of her formal education and of the strength of her personal bonds, Madam Abreu tells reverently: ‘‘After I had children of my own, I wished to send my girls also to be with my dear Mother Aiken. She had then gone to St. Louis and there I sent one of my children. Later when I went to visit my child, I learned that Mother Aiken had died, so I asked the nuns where I could find her grave, and they directed me to the cemetery where the nuns of the Sacred Heart are buried. I went to the gate, but could find no one to guide me, so with a companion I walked in and began a search for the grave, on which I wanted to place a bouquet of lilies. We could not find where the Sacred Heart nuns were buried. Finally my friend said, ‘It is six o’clock and we shall be closed in the cemetery all night. You must leave the flowers and come.’ But I could not bear to give up the search, so I went running up a little hill where there were rows and rows of crosses. Be- fore the first cross on the top of the hill I knelt PERSONALITY AND ACHIEVEMENT 11 down, saying, ‘Here is a cross; I will leave my flowers.’ I raised my eyes and read ‘Roberta A. Aiken,’ and I said, ‘God has guided me.’ ”’ Material resources entail responsibilities. The life of Madam Abreu has been filled with them and with adventures which have tested her cour- age, determination, resourcefulness, and devotion. Extremely fortunate in many respects, she also has suffered misfortunes which would have crushed a less vigorous or a less determined per- sonality. The mother of five children, she was fully occupied for some years in rearing them to relative independence. As their demands on her physical and mental resources gradually dimin- ished, she very naturally turned increasingly to animal pets for intellectual and emotional satis- faction and for the joys of service. Always de- fenseless creatures had commanded her lively sympathy. Now she gradually came to devote herself to their shelter, protection, and comfort. In her early thirties while sojourning in south- ern France, she chanced to see a little monkey which appealed to her and which she promptly bought. It was a female macaque, fully grown and healthy. Madam Abreu named it Minguita. This little primate accompanied the family on its travels and was a constant and affectionate com- panion to its owner. To other persons, and even to the Abreu children, she was disagreeable be- 12 ALMOST HUMAN cause jealous of the attention paid them. In com- menting on this, her first adventure with a primate as pet, Madam remarks: ‘‘I bought Minguita because I loved all animals.’’ Thus with a monkey began the story to which chapters are daily being added, for now Madam Abreu’s primate pets, including monkeys small and large, and apes, number more than seventy- five. While visiting in Philadelphia in 1902, Madam Abreu purchased a chimpanzee of whom she re- ports: ‘“‘He was about five or six years old, and the brightest I have ever had. When he first saw my daughter she was wearing a little red sweater. Immediately he went to her and stayed with her.’’ Shortly Madam Abreu, with her daughter and two sons, embarked for Cuba. When the chim- panzee was taken into their state-room, he jumped from his box to one of the berths and his owner had her first test in the management of a type of pet large enough to be dangerous and with which she was entirely unfamiliar. It was characteristic of her that instead of calling for assistance, she stood her ground and by the sim- ple and ingenious expedient of placing food in its box induced the chimpanzee to exchange free- dom for an apple. After one is thoroughly ac- LOOKING TOWARD CERRO (HAVANA) FROM QUINTA PALATINO TOWER In the foreground is the Abreu garden, with its magnificent tropical vegetation, and beyond appears the double row of royal palms which line Palatino Road YiIeg ayy ur sjods [nyrynveq Aueur ay} Jo suo AjuO st sty, MaVd ONILVIVd VINIOO dO NAGUVD TVN UO PERSONALITY AND ACHIEVEMENT 13 customed to half-grown chimpanzees, it does not require much courage to handle them, but it is amazingly difficult when one for the first time faces such an animal at large. This little male, always gentle and affectionate and never known to bite any one maliciously, was named Chimpita. He was kept at Quinta Palatino for nearly ten years. With Chimpita began a long line of great apes, including gibbons, orang-utans, and chimpanzees, to which during the last twenty years Madam Abreu has devoted herself sympathetically, untir- ingly, and with unique success. Enabled by her father’s eminent business suc- cess to gratify her longing for pets and her desire to improve the condition of the animals she loves, she has at various times kept at her estate many of the smaller birds and mammals, and, of larger animals, the elephant and the bear; but of all the creatures which have commanded her interest and attention the chimpanzee is her favorite. She says this is because it is the most intelligent of all the animals she has known, and is at the same time disinterestedly grateful for kindnesses shown it, sympathetic and affectionate. Many of the failings which contribute most largely to human unhappiness, misery, and destruction of life are lacking in the chimpanzee. No wonder, then, that from close association with the animals one ac- 14 ALMOST HUMAN quires sympathetic understanding and a sense of kinship which can be appreciated only as actually experienced. Madam Abreu’s life has been such as to de- velop and strengthen the naturally strong will, which causes her on occasion to dominate any situation. Gifted with a fine sense of humor and a keen intellect, she thoroughly appreciates the behavior of her unusual pets and the attitude of others toward her hobby. Only a person with rare independence of judgment, courage, and free- dom from conventional restraints, could have fol- lowed the course which she has taken in devoting herself generously and increasingly to the care of her unique collection of primates. For, whether or not one likes the monkey kind, it is manifest that most persons are strongly prejudiced against these caricatures of human beings and would not accept them willingly as pets. The prejudice is natural enough, but happily, hke many other hu- man limitations and failings, it shortly gives place to sympathetic interest when circumstances fur- nish opportunity for acquaintance and familiarity with the creatures. Although never insensible to the manifest sur- prise or amazement, the open or implied criti- cisms, and even the ridicule of her fellow country- men, acquaintances, and friends, Madam Abreu has held to her avocation or hobby with such cour- PERSONALITY AND ACHIEVEMENT 15 age and tenacity that it bids fair to become more important to her, and perhaps also to mankind, than are the primary vocations of most persons. This is not a minor expression of her personality but one of its most important products. One scarcely could respect a person, however gifted or charming, who befriended dumb animals while ignoring the claims of humanity. To give the impression that Madam Abreu is thoughtless or neglectful of human welfare, or of the respon- sibility for service which her opportunities impose on her, would be grossly misleading and unjust. Persuaded of the incomparable value of educa- tional advantages, and at the same time of the in- adequacy of those now offered by the public schools of her country, Madam Abreu supports primary and manual-training schools in which many boys and girls are being instructed. In one of these educational establishments she takes pe- culiar pride and satisfaction. It was founded by her father and is continued by her in memory of him. But if strength of will and independence were necessary in choosing Madam Abreu’s unusual hobby, courage, ceaseless vigilance and resource- fulness have been no less necessary in dealing with the animals themselves. Most pets are neither dangerous nor fear-provoking under ordi- nary circumstances. This is not true of the pri- 16 ALMOST HUMAN mates. Evena small monkey is capable of inflict- ing serious wounds on its attendant. It may do so seemingly without cause, but as a rule there must be provocation. When it comes to intimate association with the great apes, the risks are pro- portionately greater, for a full-grown male chim- panzee with its powerful jaws and great strength of limb is capable of inflicting desperate injury on even the strongest man. Knowing these facts well from sad experience and from wide knowledge of man’s relations with the primates, Madam Abreu nevertheless day by day, and now habitually, faces situations which would daunt most men. The secret of her escape thus far from dangerous injury and her ability to handle her animals effectively is her fearless- ness, which in turn is due to her forgetfulness of self. In any situation which touches the welfare or comfort of one of her pets, she is wholly intent upon her humane objective and utterly careless of personal discomfort or risk. Like men, the lower primates have respect for courage, and the person who acts fearlessly or courageously com- mands obedience, if not also affection. Even with the combination of superb will power and indomitable courage Madam Abreu’s work with the primates could not have succeeded had there not been present in preéminent degree sympathetic understanding of the animals them- PERSONALITY AND ACHIEVEMENT 17 selves and disinterested affection for them. With human shortcomings she has little patience, but for the puzzling, annoying, or perverse behavior of her pets she has inexhaustible patience. Im- pulsive in all things, she yet deals considerately, thoughtfully, and skilfully with the problems which her animals present. Clearly the secret of friendship and intimacy of understanding is the same as between man and man or man and ape. There must always be confidence, sympathy, and affection. CHAPTER 2 WHO IS A PRIMATE? HE layman, although familiar with the word ‘‘primate,’? may appreciate a working defi- nition of the term which is so framed as to iden- tify the primates and to distinguish them from other mammals. By the naturalist Linneus the ‘‘order’’ primate was established as the highest group of mammals, or animals which suckle their young. It originally included men, apes, monkeys, lemurs, and bats. Later it was decided that the bats should be con- sidered a distinct order; and still later certain authorities decided that the lemurs and closely related forms also should be classed as a separate order, the Prosimie or Lemuroidea. Still the question ‘‘Who is a primate?’’ remains to be answered. Although primates cannot be distinguished solely on the basis of external ap- pearance and habits, such characteristics are at least as important as inner structures. The primates vary in size, from the tiny tarsiers and marmosets to the gorilla and man. With the exception of certain galagos, lemurs, and mar- 18 WHO IS A PRIMATE? 19 mosets which produce twins or triplets, they ordi- narily bring into existence only one young at a time and it in a condition of utter helplessness, so that for days, weeks, or months it requires par- ental attention. In general they are adapted to a warm climate and are either vegetarian or live on a mixed diet of berries, fruits, plants, insects, and other small animals. No exclusively meat- eating primate is known. With the possible ex- ception of man, all primates have a conspicuous coating of hair or fur which varies greatly with the type or species and is adaptable to climatic conditions. The extremities are described as arms and legs, hands and feet, instead of as legs and feet. The anterior extremities differ more or less markedly from those of other animals and even of other mammals in structural adaptation to other uses than those of locomotion. Primates walk with their feet flat on the ground, usually with the heel touching. Some of them habitually walk erect, standing on the feet, but the great majority travel with the aid of hands and feet. Generally the creatures have five fingers and five toes, but the thumb is sometimes small or lacking. When present it is more or less op- posable to the other fingers, thus rendering the hand highly serviceable in seizing, holding, and manipulating objects. Except in the case of man, 20 ALMOST HUMAN the great toe is opposable to the other toes and the foot therefore may be used also as a hand. The digits, whether toes or fingers, usually have flat nails like those of man, but in a few types of pri- mate one or more of the digits end in a claw or a claw-like nail. The lemurs, for example, have on the second toe a long pointed claw. The tail, which many persons think of as char- acteristic of monkeys, is not a mark of the pri- mate. It may be entirely absent as in the case of the manlike apes and man himself, or it may be two or three times the length of the body as in some spider monkeys. Functionally it may be strictly ornamental, a balancing organ, or it may serve as a fifth extremity, being used habitually to grasp objects and thus to supplement the hands and feet. Some monkeys with partially naked prehensile tails use them, it is said, even in han- dling their food. Most of the primates are tree-climbing and tree-living, or, as the naturalists say, arboreal in their habits. But here again the exceptions are conspicuous, for gorillas and men usually have other habits. Doubtless the presence and char- acteristics of the tail and the grasping power of hands and feet determine the degree of arboreal tendency. All of the primates have teeth which differ in type and are therefore known as heterodont. Dur- WHO IS A PRIMATE? 21 ing life there are two sets, the milk teeth and later the permanent teeth. The condition of the teeth is perhaps the best single criterion of a primate’s age. The clavicle, a bone extending from the neck to the shoulder, is complete and well devel- oped in primates; and the radius and ulna, the two long bones in the forearm, are always sepa- rate. The eyes always are well developed and surrounded by a bony orbit. In general it is safe for the layman to assume that a monkey-like ani- mal is a primate. Since the days of Linnzus the classification of the primates has been modified from time to time, and even now there are serious differences of opinion and no one scheme of classification is generally accepted. The following from Sonntag (1),1 although rejected by many biologists, will as well as any serve our purposes: ORDER PRIMATE Suborder I Lemuroidea Lemurs, lorises, galagos, aye-ayes, etc. Suborder IT Tarsudea Tarsiers Suborder IIT Anthropoidea 1 At the end of the book, page 275, will be found the list of publications to which reference is made. Thus, Sonntag is number (1) in this list. 22 ALMOST HUMAN Section A Platyrrhini (New World) Family I Hapalide Marmosets Family IT Cebide Capuchins, howlers, squirrel, spider, and woolly monkeys, ete. Section B Catarrhini Family I Cercopithecide (Old World) Macaques, baboons, langurs, mangabeys, guenons, black apes, etc. Family IT Simude Gibbons, orang-utans, chimpanzees, goril- las. Family IIT Pithecanthropidé (?) Pithecanthropus (ex- tinct ) Family IV Hominide Man Surprising and interesting differences between the New-World and the Old-World monkeys have been pointed out. They are most useful to the layman, or indeed to the biologist who is not an expert in matters of classification, in distinguish- WHO IS A PRIMATE? 23 ing and identifying the different types. In the New-World monkeys the nose usually has a broad septum so that the nostrils are separated by a considerable space. The tail is prehensile and is used to grasp with, the thumb is not opposable, there are no cheek pouches, and no ischial cal- losities (bare patches on the rumps). By con- trast the Old-World monkeys have as a rule a nose with narrow septum and closely approxi- mated nostrils, a tail which ranges from a mere rudiment to a degree of conspicuousness ap- proaching that of the New-World types, thumbs which may or may not be opposable, cheek pouches generally, but sometimes lacking, and ischial cal- losities. Familiar to almost every reader are examples of the New-World monkeys, Platyrrhini, and of the Old-World monkeys, Cercopithecide, as well as of the anthropoid apes or Simiide. Although popularly the words monkey and ape are used interchangeably, it is usual for scientists to re- strict the term monkey to anthropoids other than the lemurs and tarsiers on the one hand, and the great apes and man on the other. In harmony with this usage, the scientist reserves the term ape or anthropoid ape for the Simiide—gibbon, orang-utan, chimpanzee, and gorilla. Aside from man, the distribution of living pri- mates is limited to tropical and subtropical areas 24 ALMOST HUMAN of South and Central America, Africa, Asia, Aus- tralia, and climatically similar islands. It is commonly stated that the monkeys and apes are adapted to warm climates, yet it is well known that certain of them are found at high altitudes, occasionally living in the region of snow. In such cases adaptation to low temperatures has oc- curred, in that the animal’s coat is fur-like. The gorilla, which is usually associated with exces- sively hot and damp tropical regions, is found also on certain of the mountains of East Central Africa. The Anthropoidea occur in great numbers and also in a great variety of types, including many families, genera, and species, in South and Cen- tral America, in Africa below the Sahara, in In- dia, Southern China, and adjacent islands. The distribution of the anthropoid apes, on the contrary, is definite and relatively very restricted. The various types of gibbon are found only in the Indian region, which includes portions of the Malay peninsula and certain of the islands be- tween it and Australia. The orang-utan is found only in Borneo and Sumatra; the chimpanzee principally in equatorial Africa from the west coast to the eastern borders of the Belgian Congo. The gorilla is found only in certain restricted areas of western and central tropical Africa. By contrast with the manlike apes, the distribu- WHO IS A PRIMATE? 25 tion of human races is well-nigh universal. This doubtless is due chiefly to the measure of man’s control of his environment, for whereas the go- rilla or other ape adapts to climatic conditions chiefly by change in physical characters, man de- pends quite as much on modification or control of the environment itself. He alone of the primates uses fire for protection against the cold and for the preparation of foods. Some of the anthro- poid apes build themselves crude shelters, but only man constructs an enduring shelter which is permanently located and may be used from gen- eration to generation. Still other significant differences between man and other primates are suggested by the facts of distribution. Human intelligence seems to have favored the conquering of the earth and have made possible existence in frigid, temperate, and torrid zones. Nevertheless, distribution does not vary directly with intelligence, for the monkeys, which in many respects are far inferior to the great apes in mental ability, are at once more numerous and more widely distributed; and the gorilla, which bears closest resemblance to man structurally and in many of its functions, is nar- rowly limited inits distribution. These facts sug- gest that there may be essential differences in the nature of the mental ability of different types of primate. Of them all, man alone has developed 26 ALMOST HUMAN to a highly useful degree spoken and written lan- guage. Must it then be supposed that language so favors the appearance of ideas and their use in the subjugation of environment that it has enabled man to advance, while his strong, versatile, but relatively speechless kindred have gradually lost in the struggle for existence? Like man, the other primates can live in any part of the world if temperature, moisture, and food supply are suitably controlled. It is a well- founded assumption, however, that they may be kept most economically and safely in warm cli- mates, where the risk of respiratory disorders is slight and there is a continuous and varied supply of fruits, vegetables, and insects. . In physique, many of the more lowly primates are caricatures of man. The resemblances are too striking to be ignored and they seem to be recognized even by certain of the monkeys and apes, which on occasion also resent them! It is an odd fact that Africa, a continent rich in rela- tively primitive varieties of the human species, is also the home of the highest types of anthropoid ape and of endless varieties of monkeys. Negro and chimpanzee seem to recognize in each other similarities which attract and differences which repel. The feelings of the negro are pretty gen- erally shared by mankind, for the appearance and behavior of monkeys and apes offend while they WHO IS A PRIMATE? 27 fascinate most of us. It is vain, however, to deny that among the primates are some of the most beautiful, graceful, intelligent, and affec- tionate of animals. The gibbon, when walking or moving through the trees, exhibits a perfection of poise and a delicacy of muscular codrdination which are difficult to match. Almost noiselessly, with ease, it passes from branch to branch or from tree to tree, gauging distances and regulat- ing its movements with exceeding skill. The marmosets and squirrel monkeys, perhaps because of their diminutive size, appeal more readily to human sympathy and affection than do most of the larger monkeys or the anthropoid apes. Possibly this is due also, in part, to their seeming remoteness from the human kind. At any rate, the young of the larger forms of primate make similar appeal to our sympathies, and in them we feel less keenly the similarities which either attract or shock us. The physical charac- ters of the monkeys which most commonly attract attention are the facial features and the struc- ture of the extremities. To see an animal with arms and legs, hands and feet, fingers and toes even to the nails very like our own, and to note further that these parts of the body are used much as we use them and with no less skill, com- mands attention and causes the thoughtful ob- server to wonder about possible genetic relations 28 ALMOST HUMAN and the reasons for the appearance on the earth of animal types at once so similar in important respects and so widely sundered in habits of life and culture. The ears, the mouth, lips, teeth, the nose and eyes, even the chin and forehead, of this or that type of monkey may be almost human in structure, expressive value or use, and when an animal with such physical characters walks erect and in va- rious other ways approaches human modes of be- havior, it is not surprising that the unprejudiced layman, as well as the scientific investigator, should suspect relationship in descent. Of the mental traits and modes of action of in- frahuman primates much will be said later. They are just enough like the human to make one feel uncomfortable. Under certain conditions we nat- urally abhor either resemblance or difference. Some persons, oddly enough, dislike the monkeys because of their intelligent behavior; others for the same reason prefer them to all other pets. But whatever the human attitude of liking or dis- like, the fact remains that many of the monkeys, and all of the great apes, are very highly endowed mentally in comparison with other animals or even other mammals. For one who reflects on what he sees, the social relations of the primates and their types of social organization have valuable lessons. Despite WHO IS A PRIMATE? 29 their great activity, dexterity, and relatively high docility, no one of the primates, except members of his own species, has been enslaved by man. Monkeys and apes have been tamed and kept as pets, and upon occasion trained to certain useful service, as in the gathering of fruits or cocoanuts, but no primate has been truly domesticated. Doubtless this is due to their childlike instability of purpose, and the necessity for agreeable affec- tive relations for existence in captivity. They quickly tire of either useful or useless activity and, always curious, imitative, and restless, seek new experiences. In certain parts of the world types of monkey are to-day regarded as sacred; in others all of the infrahuman primates are abhorred and stand as the innocent objects of religious controversy. It seems strange indeed that with his varied struc- tural and mental resources the monkey should have found almost no use in connection with hu- man life save as a specimen in zoological parks, _on the stage, or in the museum, to satisfy human curiosity and to provide certain bits of unrelated information. But there is now a growing interest in biological problems which the primates may help to solve. Consequently, in the future we may come to regard them rather as valuable ob- jects of scientific study than as pets, curiosities, or inventions of the devil. CHAPTER 3 A UNIQUE COLLECTION OF PRIMATES ROM its modest beginning with an attractive macaque monkey, a chimpanzee, and pair of baboons, more than a score of years ago, the col- lection of primate pets at Quinta Palatino has in- creased rapidly during the last decade until it now numbers nearly four score animals. All the while Madam Abreu’s sympathy and affection for the animals has increased with her knowledge of them, and she has become more intent on securing typical and intelligent specimens and on making their lives comfortable and happy. What was originally merely the satisfaction of a liking for pets, gradually has assumed more serious import and purpose, for as her knowledge of the mental and physical traits of these almost human crea- tures grew, she came to see many values which that knowledge might have for human guidance and enlightenment in connection with education, medicine, and the biological sciences. To-day her collection, in its altogether favorable and very beautiful setting, is unique in what it has yielded, 30 A COLLECTION OF PRIMATES 31 and is yielding, of information valuable to man- kind. Of the three principal suborders of the primates presented on page 21, the first two, the Lemuro- idea and the Tarsiidea, are without representa- tion in the Abreu collection. The third suborder, the Anthropoidea, is represented by more than a score of species of monkeys and by three of the four kinds of anthropoid ape. In the following brief description of the mon- keys at Quinta Palatino, Madam Abreuw’s observa- tions and conclusions have been freely used since they are the principal excuse for the writing of this anthropoid story. Perhaps in the fact that the lemurs and tarsiers are the least human of all the primates, one dis- covers the reason for their absence from the Abreu collection. They are diminutive creatures, more like four-footed beasts than like handed and footed creatures, usually nocturnal in their habits and therefore showing off badly in their reluc- tance to appear in the light of day. Of the smallest types of monkey, the marmosets, the collection contains several specimens. Their owner is very fond of these tiny creatures and ~ describes them as delicate, gentle, timid, and alert, 1 The reader will find in Forbes’s “Handbook of the Primates” (2) interesting descriptions of monkeys and their ways, The writer gratefully acknowledges his debt to this author. 32 ALMOST HUMAN but not very intelligent; affectionate especially among themselves and in their family relations, and occasionally showing attachment to persons who befriend them. She reports having been told by an animal-collector that when one member of a pair of marmosets dies the other, whether male or female, dies shortly afterward. ‘«This,’’ she says, ‘‘is very true. I have lost at least eight females, mostly because of difficulty in bearing young. In every case the male died within a few hours after his mate.’’ This observation is worthy of verification or correction; and if verified, of further study and explanation. The marmosets are exclusively New-World monkeys. Because of their physical traits they are classed as the lowest of the suborder Anthro- poidea. The little creatures abound in the for- ests of equatorial South America. They are squirrel-like in appearance and behavior, with flattened nose, nostrils separated by a wide parti- tion, bushy non-prehensile tail, face and ears usually almost hairless,—although in some spe- cies beautifully fringed with hair,—bright eyes, quick movements, and a chirping voice. Natur- ally, they make a strong appeal to lovers of pets, and except for their delicacy of constitution and difficulties in breeding in captivity they undoubt- edly would be kept much more commonly. A COLLECTION OF PRIMATES 33 Next in order of size to the true marmosets and the tamarins come the creatures which are popu- larly called night-monkeys. They also are small and dainty, with long hair, bushy tails, and attrac- tive faces. At Quinta Palatino I found three types of night-monkeys: the squirrel monkey, the titi monkey, and the owl monkey or douroucolis. Madam Abreu says of squirrel monkeys: ‘‘Those from Panama are very bright. Those from Bra- zil are very stupid.’’ She considers the Panama squirrel monkeys the most intelligent of the monkeys she has known. They are as bright, she says, as the chimpanzee ‘‘but they do not think, they do not reason.’’ Here, evidently, is a distinction in kind of intelli- gence. Animals may be bright, alert, in a variety of ways intelligent, yet incapable of using ideas in solving their problems. The inference sug- gested by Madam Abreu’s characterization of the Panama monkey is that, although in some respects as intelligent as the chimpanzee, it lacks certain intellectual abilities which the great ape pos- sesses. To the question ‘‘ Have you ever seen any of the small monkeys use objects as tools?’’ Ma- dam Abreu promptly answered, ‘‘No.’’ These suggestions as to mental characteristics of the Panama squirrel monkey may prove valu- able to science as indicating a species which is especially worthy of study. In general the 34 ALMOST HUMAN squirrel monkeys are characterized as remark- ably beautiful, active little animals, with soft thick fur, large eyes close set in the little face, large ears, and nose with nostrils widely sepa- rated. The tail, unlike that of the marmosets, has short hairs and ends in a tuft. They are almost exclusively arboreal and occur commonly in the American forests from Costa Rica to Brazil. Diurnal in their habits, they are said to feed largely on insects and other small animals. Of peculiar interest in the light of Madam Abreu’s observations concerning monkey intelli- gence is the fact that the primates’ cerebral hemi- spheres—the portion of the brain thought to be primarily responsible for intellectual functions— project farther beyond the cerebellum than in other mammals. And whereas in the marmosets and tamarins the surface of the cerebral hemi- spheres is almost smooth, the inner faces of the hemispheres of the squirrel monkey exhibit marked foldings or wrinkles. Intermediate in many respects between the squirrel monkeys as already described and the true night-monkeys, such as the douroucolis, is the titi monkey. It also is diminutive, with small head, soft fur, long bushy tail, small eyes, widely separated nostrils, and large ears. This little creature, like the squirrel monkeys, is diurnal and arboreal. It is exceedingly alert, lively, and A COLLECTION OF PRIMATES 30 noisy. The titi monkeys are said to range over the forest regions of South America from Pan- ama southward, living on fruits, insects, eggs, and small birds. Madam Abreu’s general char- acterization of the squirrel monkey applies also to these creatures. They are attractive because of their appearance and alertness, but of a rel- atively low order of intelligence. The last of the three types of night-monkey ap- pearing in the collection is the little owl- or tiger- eat monkey, the douroucolis. Also of small size, it attracts attention chiefly because of its facial peculiarities. The head is rather large, the face round and encircled by a ruff of whitish fur. The mouth and chin are small, the ears very short, and the eyes enormous and of yellowish color. The name owl-monkey is eminently ap- propriate. One sees little of the owl-monkeys ordinarily, as they are both nocturnal and arboreal, hiding during the day and seeking food at night. It is said that as they prowl about at night they utter eat-like cries. By the Indians of Central and South America they are called devil monkeys. They are very delicate and not likely to survive long in captivity. All of the monkeys thus far described as in the Abreu collection are small New-World types which are found in Central or South America. 36 ALMOST HUMAN Of the larger types of New-World primate, howl- ers, capuchins, woolly monkeys, and spider mon- keys are found in the collection. The howlers are among the largest of the South American monkeys. They are heavily set, with pyramidal head, small facial angle, and a somewhat dog-like muzzle. Certain peculiarities in the vocal mechanism of the males enable them to make sounds which ean be heard for long dis- tances. The tail of this somewhat unprepossess- ing variety of monkey is strong, naked toward the tip, and prehensile. The thumb is opposable, the face naked, and the chin bearded. It is said that the howlers are of a low order of intelligence. Their characteristic roar appears to be produced with little effort and to serve to intimidate en- emies. Madam Abreu characterizes her howling mon- keys as ‘‘very melancholy and delicate, but good- tempered.’’ With the capuchins we come upon the variety of New-World monkey which is most commonly seen in captivity. Being cheap and easy to ob- tain they are the customary attendants of the organ-grinder. There are scores of species and varieties, all belonging to the genus Cebus. They have a well-proportioned body, with woolly fur, round head, and a face which is more man- like than doglike, for there is no protruding muz- New York Zodlogical Society WHITE-THROATED SAPAJOU MONKEY 2 all familiar Ue{N-BUPIO IO dazULAUIIYD 9Y JO VY} WOT} BSOU JY} SI JUSIOYIp MOFT AGMNOW YWATIMOH Cau V 4191905 109180]007 ys K Man fo woIssimsagd KG A COLLECTION OF PRIMATES 37 zle. The tail usually is long and completely covered with hair. Nevertheless it is prehensile and extremely useful. The brain is relatively large, and the surface of the cerebral hemispheres is much folded as in the Old-World monkeys. The capuchins range from Costa Rica to Para- guay. They differ greatly from species to spe- cies and even within a species in the lightness or darkness of the coat. Generally speaking, the capuchin is gentle and makes a good pet. Of some of the species it is said that they are very intelligent, but Madam Abreu ranks them as ordinary by comparison with the squirrel monkey of Panama and the macaques. It is natural that any considerable collection of primates should include several rep- resentatives of the capuchin, for it is hardy and easy to keep as well as to secure in the market. No type of New-World monkey has been so much used for scientific purposes as this, yet our knowl- edge of its behavior and its life history remains incomplete and unreliable. It is difficult to un- derstand why no naturalist should have set him- self the task of observing continuously and at- tentively the social relations and individual be- havior of some species of capuchin. At the time of observation there were four ca- puchins at Quinta Palatino. All were interesting to visitors because of odd habits or mannerisms 38 ALMOST HUMAN which had been acquired in captivity, perhaps chiefly to attract attention, for no animal is more eager for attention than the monkey. One of the specimens was called the ‘‘washerwoman’’ be- cause of her fondness for using a wet cloth to wash objects or to rub the floor. It is perhaps because of the facility with which these animals acquire certain manlike attitudes or reactions that they are so much used for exhibition pur- poses and by persons who, like the organ-grinder, need a hardy, good-tempered, and docile creature to attract attention and entertain. The woolly monkey, belonging to the genus Lagothrix, is characterized first of all by the woolliness of its heavy coat. It has a somewhat heavier body than the capuchins and a flattened nose with nearly circular nostrils which are widely separated. In addition to being larger than the capuchin, it is slower in motion, and be- cause of its gentle disposition and fondness for petting it is commonly found in captivity and is usually a favorite with visitors. The specimens in the Cuban collection were no exception in this respect, for they claimed their full share of the attention of both scientific observers and casual visitors. Closely resembling, in some ways, the woolly monkey is the spider monkey, so called because of its long slender arms, relatively slender body, A COLLECTION OF PRIMATES 39 somewhat projecting muzzle, and very long tail. Instead of the woolly under-fur, which charac- terizes the other type, it has coarse hair which is usually black. The spider monkeys were not sub- jects of special attention or comment in Havana and so may be supposed to rank with the other representatives of the Cebide as reasonably well adapted to captivity, but not of exceptional in- terest aside from their peculiarities of appear- ance. Conspicuous for their number as well as their greater size are the Old-World monkeys of the Abreu collection. Among them are to be noted several macaques, mangabeys, baboons, man- drills, and black apes. The macaques are notable for their intelli- gence, hardiness, their thick-set body and short limbs. Just as the capuchins are the commonest of the New-World monkeys, so the macaques are the commonest of monkeys in India and the East Indian Islands. There are many differ- ent kinds, with considerable variety in form and habits. At Quinta Palatino there are three which are particularly striking—the pig-tailed macaque, the lion-tailed macaque, and Macacus rhesus. The pig-tail is a large monkey with broad chest, short body, flattened head, a face prolonged like that of the baboon, heavy ridges above the eyes, long and powerful limbs. The 40 ALMOST HUMAN rather slender tail, which is only about one third the length of the body, is pointed, and carried in a peculiarly characteristic curved position. As in all of the Old-World monkeys, the ischial patches are bare; so, also, are the face and ears. The hair color usually is olive-brown, though it ranges from gray to blackish, Madam Abreu says the pig-tail’s eyes and skin color strongly suggest those of the mongolian race. This peculiar-looking monkey is usually timid when young, but the mature male is likely to be savage. It is also extraordinarily courageous and on provocation may attack either man or beast. It occurs chiefly in Southern Burmah, the Malay peninsula, Sumatra, Java, and Borneo. The lion-tailed macaque, Macacus silenus, is truly a miniature imitation of the king of beasts. It has a long, slim body with well-proportioned limbs, a slender tail which may be nearly half as long as the body and which ends in a conspicuous tuft of hair. About the face is a ruff of long hairs which conceals the ears. It is this fringe of hair and the tufted tail which, in combination with the proportions of the animal and the way it holds itself, suggest the lion or, more precisely, a caricature of the lion such as might be expected in a primate. The lion-tailed monkeys are found in small herds in the dense forests near the Malabar A COLLECTION OF PRIMATES 41 Coast. They are shy and wary and in captivity inclined to be somewhat sulky, morose, and not readily taught. It is said that the voice of the male resembles that of man. In the Abreu collection there are three speci- mens of the lion-tailed monkey. All seem shy and distrustful of human visitors. They are not at all aggressive, and give the impression of stupidity rather than eager alertness and docility. This impression their owner’s experience con- firms. The animals are interesting in a collec- tion primarily because of their peculiarities of form. They are not actors, and where the ca- puchins succeed most notably the lion monkey ignominiously fails. Of the macaques as a group Madam Abreu says: ‘“‘They are sometimes bad, but they also are very affectionate, most of them more so than the rhesus, and they make better pets than the rhesus. They are very easy to keep and they either like or dislike you.’’ At this time a young Macacus rhesus, which is still small enough to slip between the bars of its mother’s cage, roams about the grounds at will. The father of this infant is reported as a savage and disagreeable animal who, when critically ill with cancer, became very tame, docile, and ap- parently grateful for human attention. The 42 ALMOST HUMAN rhesus monkey, Madam Abreu thinks, deceives one as to its intelligence by its liveliness and gen- eral evidences of alertness. She admits that in some ways it is more intelligent than the South- American monkeys and also that it is of a better disposition, but she still has reservations when she compares it with other species of macaque. Macacus rhesus is known by the Hindus as the Bandar. This Bengal macaque lives in troops of considerable size. It takes to water and swims well. The species is very quarrelsome, being much given to both fighting and screaming. Al- though it is not regarded as sacred, the Hindus rarely disturb the animal. When Macacus rhe- sus becomes angry, its face, which is ordinarily dark flesh-colored, becomes red. Bengal ma- caques are hardy, breed well in captivity, and except for their somewhat unfriendly disposi- tions make excellent exhibition specimens. The monkeys which are called mangabeys, genus Cercocebus, are exclusively West African. On the one hand they are related to the macaques and on the other to the guenons. Their most notable physical peculiarity, from which they de- rive the common name white eyelid monkeys, is the white upper eyelid. The tail is as long as the body. Like their relations the macaques and guenons, the mangabeys are arboreal, living chiefly on fruit. Speaking of them, Madam A COLLECTION OF PRIMATES 43 Abreu remarked that they are brighter than the gibbons. They are also more common and can be kept more readily. Of the guenons, the green monkey, Cercopi- thecus callitrichus, was much in evidence in the Abreu collection, since there were seven individ- uals. The green monkey also is a native of West Africa, where it lives either alone or in small bands. It is extremely quiet, remaining silent even when attacked. It stands northern climates well and therefore is common in northern Hu- rope, having been bred in the Zoélogical Gardens in London. During early life it is active, intelli- gent, gentle, and of good disposition, but like most of the primates, as it matures it becomes less tractable and it may grow savage, treacher- ous, and malicious. The animal is attractive in appearance as well as manners. Its face is rather long, the ears large, naked, and somewhat pointed; the hair at the side of the head is long, thick, and frill-like; the face, ears, palms, and soles are black, the head, back, shoulders, arms, and upper part of the forearms, thighs, legs, and tail rich golden green. Yet another interesting type represented is the mona monkey, Cercopithecus mona. Decidedly interesting as a form intermediate between the Old-World monkeys which have just 44 ALMOST HUMAN been described and the baboons and mandrills is the black ape, Cynopithecus niger. It is also known as the celebian black baboon. The crea- ture is rather more ape- than monkey-like. The head is oblong, the face elongated and naked, the nose triangular with sides erect, flattened behind nearly to the eyes, not extending to the end of the muzzle but leaving a broad upper lip, nostrils with a long and broad partition between them di- rected downward and outward. The hair or fur is long and tends to be woolly over the body. It is especially long on the back of the head, where it forms a conspicuous crest which moves with emotional changes, becoming erect when the ani- mal is stirred to resentment or anger. The black ape is found in Celebes and on ad- jacent islands. It has a fairly gentle and friendly disposition, but is not good-natured un- der provocation. In fact, it is surprisingly ready to show fight and in so doing it bares its teeth and. moves the scalp so that the tuft of hair stands erect. Of the two specimens of black ape at Quinta Palatino, the one a male, the other a female, only the male exhibited the crest of hair. The animals differed greatly also in size and form, the female being much heavier and showing broader face and head. In most situations the male was aggressive, alert, and appeared more in- By permission of New York Zoological Soctety A WOOLLY MONKEY These little animais are no less interesting in behavior than in appearance as Se By permission of New York Zodlogical Society GELADA BABOON AND YOUNG The familiar attitude, often mistaken for flea-hunting, might better be called hair-dressing. It is thus the animals help to keep one another neat and clean A COLLECTION OF PRIMATES 45 telligent than the female. It seems more than likely that the individuals of this pair represent either different species or different genera, and it may be that the female has been mis-identified as a black ape. The baboons, of which a pair named Papio and Jack was purchased by Madam Abreu about twenty years ago, at first impress one as strangely unattractive primates. In facial char- acteristics they remind one of the dog; indeed, they are frequently called dog-faced apes. The tail in the baboons may be long, short, or virtu- ally absent. It is never prehensile. In all of the species there are rather conspicuous hard, fleshy patches on the buttocks which, like the naked skin of the face, may be brilliantly colored. It is said that gestation in the baboon lasts seven months and that the young are suckled for six months. The baboons are characterized as the lowest of the Old-World monkeys. Many of them are large, ferocious, gregarious animals which when disturbed or alarmed utter piercing screams, barks, or guttural murmurs. Although confessing that she has no liking for baboons, Madam Abreu has kept them in her col- lection for many years and at times has had as many as half a score. When asked why she keeps so many baboons if she does not care for them, she replied, ‘‘Because they were born here, poor 46 ALMOST HUMAN things!’? Then she went on to tell the following incident to illustrate the affection of the animals for one another. The original male which she purchased in Paris died a few months ago, aged about twenty years. He was very sick for some time and during this period of relative helpless- ness one of his children, a baby somewhat less than a year old, took care of him, making sure that he was fed, and acting, Madam Abreu says, much as a person might. ‘‘The wife and mother paid slight attention to the invalid, but the baby would not leave him. This is a very tender SLO Gyan The baboons are extremely jealous and seem- ingly brutal in their relations even to one an- other, yet their possible affective relations are well exemplified by the above incident and also by the following, which Madam Abreu recites with evident satisfaction, since it seems to exhibit certain merits in an animal which she has diff- culty in admiring. One day the baby baboon previously referred to escaped from the cage in which he and his parents were kept. This was before the father became ill. The little one was presently captured and with due precautions for the safety of the captor returned to the cage through the same hole from which he had escaped. As soon as he was dropped into the cage the father and mother A COLLECTION OF PRIMATES 47 eagerly rushed to him and inspected him care- fully, looking at the head, nose, eyes, mouth. When they found that he was unharmed, they seemed greatly relieved and contented. ‘‘They are stupid but they love their children.’’ At various times there have been in the Abreu collection chacma and gelada baboons and man- drills. At present there are two young mandrills in the collection. These animals Madam Abreu characterizes as somewhat less stupid and less re- pulsive in their behavior than the baboon, but not better-natured nor more docile. In appear- ance the mandrill is interesting chiefly because of its facial peculiarities, for the ridges of the face are bright blue, with purple in the intervening fur- rows. The bridge of the nose is red with scarlet tip, the lips a grayish-black; the general color of the fur is black, fringed with yellow. The color pattern is varied and rather gaudy, and the ef- fect unattractive. Like the baboons, mandrills may be aggressively savage when adult. These animals do not make good pets and they appear in zoological gardens and other collections only be- cause of their oddities. In size the monkeys at Havana range from the tiny marmoset to the full-grown male baboon, which is large enough to be a dangerous antago- nist for a man. Intelligence also varies widely, 48 ALMOST HUMAN for that of the marmoset is of a low order, and by contrast the macaque monkeys exhibit excep- tional initiative and docility. At the summit of the pyramid Madam Abreu doubtless would place the squirrel monkey of Panama, but whether her favorite would succeed in holding that place of distinction against the critical examination of his capacities by the student of behavior one may not safely predict. There yet remain for our attention those ani- mals which tend to monopolize the time of Madam Abreu and to fill her mind with interest- ing questions about the habits, life history, intel- lect, and emotions of the higher orders of pri- mate. These creatures are the great apes. They are worthy of a chapter to themselves. CHAPTER 4 A MODEL CHIMPANZEE COLONY F resemblance be a criterion of genetic rela- tionship, there is abundant justification for saying that the great apes are man’s nearest liv- ing relatives. The family Simiide, to which be- long the animals variously called the manlike apes, great apes, and anthropoid apes, comprises only four types. Of these the gibbon is markedly different in many respects from the orang-utan, the chimpanzee, and the gorilla. The superficial resemblance of the great apes to man was noted with their discovery, and by the earliest writers they were described as wild men or half-humans. It is now safe to say that resemblances in behav- ior and in several of the mental functions which have long been considered distinctively human are quite as marked as are the superficial struc- tural resemblances which first impress the ob- server. All of the anthropoid apes walk either in a semi-erect or erect position. The gibbon espe- cially is able to walk erect with a freedom of mo- tion and grace which are always remarked. The 49 50 ALMOST HUMAN orang-utan also can walk erect with ease, but more commonly places its hands on the ground, resting only a little of its weight on the knuckles. This is true also of the chimpanzee and the gorilla. The front limbs are always much longer than the hind limbs, thus giving a semi-erect at- titude. All have the typical catarrhine nose with nostrils closely approximated and directed down- ward. Without exception they are tailless and also lack cheek pouches which are so commonly found in the monkeys. Ischial callosities are ab- sent except among the gibbons. There is com- monly a covering of hair varying in thickness and color. Except in the gibbons the spinal column shows in the sacral region a curvature like that in the human skeleton. The brain of the manlike apes in general con- formation resembles that of man. The surface of the cerebral hemispheres is much folded and its sulci are identical in arrangement with those of the human brain. It has been said that the difference between the configuration of the brain of the chimpanzee and that of man is slight by comparison with that between the chimpanzee and the lemur. Although the anthropoid apes have long been described as arboreal animals, they are not so, strictly speaking, for they differ extremely in that the gibbons are arboreal, the gorilla a ground A MODEL CHIMPANZEE COLONY 51 form, and the orang-utan and chimpanzee inter- mediate, the orang-utan being much more at home and spending a larger part of its life in trees than the chimpanzee. With respect, also, to such other important matters as distribution, habitat, life history, habits, and mental endowment, the different types of anthropoid ape are radically different. Indeed, it almost seems as though the gibbons should be constituted a separate family,! thus leaving the orang-utan, chimpanzee, and go- rilla as the three manlike apes which may be ap- propriately described also as great apes, for whereas gibbons do not exceed the size of some of the larger monkeys, the other apes approach or even exceed the size of man. Of the three, the gorilla reaches the largest size, the adult male in some cases weighing four or five hundred pounds. But even in the case of the orang-utan and chimpanzee, large individuals may equal or exceed the weight of man. The most notable and surprising difference between these manlike creatures and man himself is the apes’ lack of a highly developed and eff- cient language. Each of the types has a well- developed voice and various ways of using it, but in no instance is there systematic and elaborate use of meaningful sounds as in the case of human speech. 1 This is done by some systematists. See Elliot (3). 02 ALMOST HUMAN At Quinta Palatino there were in July, 1924, eighteen anthropoid apes, including one Wau- Wau gibbon, Hylobates leuciscus; three orang- utans, Pongo pygmaeus; and fourteen chimpan- zees belonging probably to two or three different species. These creatures constitute the very heart of the collection, because they loom large in bulk and are ever present to one’s vision by reason of varied and interest-compelling activi- ties. All of the primates are eager for human attention when held in captivity as tamed crea- tures, and it is inevitable that the larger and more demonstrative ones should have a great advan- tage in competition with their smaller and less gifted relatives. These creatures are so highly individualized and they so quickly make a place for themselves in one’s world of social relations that it is en- tirely inadequate to describe them merely by type, or as gibbons, orangs, or chimpanzees. As a fact, and as a matter of course, each of the great apes in Madam Abreu’s collection has a name to which it responds and which rapidly gains significance for the frequent visitor. Un- der their names the animals will now be briefly described, and at the same time attempt will be made still farther to indicate some of the chief characters of the primate types which they repre- sent. WAU-WAU, THE LONE FEMALE GIBBON This silver-gray ape has a furry coat which many visitors envy her. The picture shows her just outside her cage By permission of New York Zoélogical Society A SIAMANG GIBBON Jet-black, sure enough, and much less beautiful than Wau-Wau A MODEL CHIMPANZEE COLONY 53 ‘Wau-Wau is a lone female gibbon. Being the sole representative of her group as well as of her species, she has been given the common name for the species, which seems peculiarly appropriate after one becomes familiar with her character- istic ery. She is a beautiful creature with sil- very gray hair so thick and soft that it constitutes a fur coating. About her jet-black face, the fea- tures of which have many points in common with man’s, is a circle of white hair which in its marked contrast with the black face is extraordi- narily impressive. Her eyes are bright and intelligent-looking, and whether swinging about in her cage or walking erect, she moves with amazing ease and grace. Although it is often stated that the gibbons are rather delicate and do not long survive captivity, Wau-Wau has lived in Havana for many months and at the time of ob- servation seemed perfectly healthy and, apart from her obvious lonesomeness, reasonably con- tented. Perhaps because of relatively little hu- man attention except for feeding, care of her cage, and occasional petting, she was somewhat wild and distrustful of strangers who ap- proached her. Altogether her actions belied her intelligent face. Madam Abreu is not particu- larly interested in gibbons, which she considers ‘ively but stupid.’? She likens them in intelli- gence to the sacred monkeys of India. 54 ALMOST HUMAN There are several species of gibbon, but none more attractive in appearance and behavior than the Wau-Wau or gray gibbon. Most of the other kinds have black fur and present so little contrast in body, face, and eye color that they are uninter- esting. The names of the genus comprising the gibbons is Hylobates, meaning tree-walkers. Certainly no animal structurally or in perform- _ance more perfectly qualifies for this name. The gibbons have the longest arms of the primates. When they stand erect the tips of the fingers may touch the ground. The legs are much shorter. The brain has relatively small occipital lobes. It is sometimes stated that these animals are highly intelligent, and certainly they are by com- parison with many of the monkeys. They are, on the contrary, unintelligent as compared with the other anthropoid apes. Especially when young and occasionally when adult, they are gentle and affectionate pets which excel in enter- taining value by their acrobatic skill. The voice is disagreeably penetrating and even in the open is an unwelcome intrusion if one is near by or if several of the animals ery in chorus. The orang-utans of the collection have the good fortune to be three in number and to constitute a reasonably self-satisfied group. There is an adult male called Cachesita which has been resi- dent at Quinta Palatino for about six years. He A MODEL CHIMPANZEE COLONY | 55 probably is not less than ten years old, for he apparently is mature although not necessarily fully grown. With him as cage-mates and play- mates are two half-grown females, Cachita and Misuita, which came to Madam Abreu from Borneo by way of San Francisco about two years ago. A shrewd guess at the age of these animals would be six to eight years. Neither is mature although both are much larger and heavier than Wau-Wau the gibbon. These three orang-utans usually are as solemn-appearing as owls. They seem to take life with tragic seriousness. Unlike the chimpanzee, they are sparing of action, and although they occasionally indulge in play, they are relatively slow in movement, somewhat un- gainly, and contrast almost ludicrously with the gibbon. It is not easy to become intimately acquainted with the orang-utan, for, although friendly enough, he is somewhat mongolian in his social attitude and remains unobtrusively noncommittal or distrustful. This attitude is very likely to inspire distrust in his human friends. It was expressed by Madam Abreu, who in speaking of Cachesita said that although he had never done anything to justify it, she had a lurking suspicion that he should not be trusted and that sometime when an excellent opportunity came he might act ungratefully if not maliciously. 56 ALMOST HUMAN Most persons in speaking of the manlike apes confuse the orang-utan, chimpanzee, and gorilla. This is not surprising, considering the super- ficiality of our lay knowledge, for certainly these three types of ape do not differ more obviously than do such subdivisions of mankind as the American Indian, the Caucasian, and the Negro. The hairy coat and the complexion of the orang- utan are reddish. The coat of the chimpanzee is more commonly brown, gray, or black, although the naked skin may be almost as light as that of the Caucasian. The complexion, however, ranges from black to white. In the gorilla, the coat color ranges from gray-black to jet-black and the skin color from brown to black. It is easy then to distinguish the orang-utan from the chimpanzee and gorilla by the color of hair, and the chimpanzee and gorilla may be told from each other by the difference in facial features. The chimpanzee is the center of interest and the favorite in the Abreu collection of primates. The individuals range in age from less than two years to as much, perhaps, as twenty-five years; in skin-color from specimens which are almost as white as the light-skinned Caucasian to those which are as black as the African Negro. Super- ficially the chimpanzee more closely resembles man than does any other anthropoid ape. Whether it is also closest to man in mental traits aah By permission of New York Zo6logical Society A WHITE-HANDED GIBBON This picture is reproduced to show the extraordinary length of arm in gibbons and the remarkable contrast between the gray gibbon, page 52, and the white- handed species. The one has a jet-black face surrounded by nearly white hair, the other a very light face surrounded by dark hair. CACHESITA, AN ADULT MALE ORANG-UTAN Even if not beautiful otherwise, he has the advantage of a neatly inconspicuous ear. Cachesita is thoroughly at home at Quinta Palatino, but his keeper considered it discreet to sit close by during photography so that the clever climber might not escape to the top of some royal palm, A MODEL CHIMPANZEE COLONY 57 and their expressions in behavior, social rela- tions, and structural characteristics, can be de- cided safely only in the light of much more de- tailed and accurate observation. The temperament of the chimpanzee is such that he has naturally become a favorite with animal-trainers and exhibitors, and specimens are found in zoélogical gardens, circuses, and pri- vate collections where perchance all other types of anthropoid ape are lacking. The animals are ordinarily docile and affectionate when young and lend themselves: readily to the requirements of the exhibitor. Madam Abreu tells of her pets an interesting story which will illustrate these points. The pair of chimpanzees which she first ac- quired she kept for some time with her in France. The male was called Chimpita and the female Cucusa. Both were adult. They naturally at- tracted much attention and it is not strange that their owner should! have been asked to let them perform in a ‘‘représentation gratis.’’ She de- murred, saying that they knew no tricks, except that Chimpita could ride a bicycle a little. Fi- nally she consented and Cucusa was garbed in an Empire dress and Chimpita as a sultan. ‘‘We sent the animals to the stage. Cucusa’s dress was very long and she, the little wife, was short, but without being taught she held up the 58 ALMOST HUMAN skirt with her hand. Everybody applauded. Then Chimpita and Cucusa went to a small table and took their meal and cigarettes. After that Chimpita did a little bicycling. Then he came back, gave Cucusa his arm, and they went away.”’ The secret of the chimpanzee’s success as an actor lies quite as much in his love of attention as in his docility. Childlike, the animals seek attention and, having gained it, strive to hold it by amusing antics. Madam Abreu .had acquired Chimpita first; wishing to find a suitable mate for him, she pur- chased the little female white-face, aged three or four years, which she named Cucusa. She is supposed to have been captured in Sierra Leone. Although very affectionate, this animal was by no means so intelligent as Chimpita. The two were friendly, companionable, and, after maturity, mated, but according to reports certain structural peculiarities or abnormalities of the male pre- vented reproduction. Madam Abreu believes, however, that the failure of this pair to reproduce was due to difference of species or variety. In- deed, she says that she has three times tested the matter by trying in vain to mate chimpanzees from different parts of Africa which presumably represented different species or varieties. Next, in order of addition to the collection, came Mimosa, a four-year-old female who was A MODEL CHIMPANZEE COLONY 59 like Chimpita in being a white-face and from the Congo, and Jimmy, an adult male said to be from Sierra Leone and at the time of purchase sup- posed to be about twelve years old. Mimosa lived in the collection for perhaps ten years. She is said to have been good-natured, good-tempered, and more intelligent than Cucusa, for whose first baby she served faithfully and willingly as attendant. It is recorded that Mi- mosa died of dropsy. Presumption is in favor of tuberculosis. Jimmy and Mimosa were long companions, but they had no offspring because, Madam Abreu be- lieves, they differed in type and place of origin. Jimmy was purchased from an animal-trainer who had exhibited him on the stage in Europe. His owner parted with him, though reluctantly, as he was becoming too strong and also too old for safe use on the stage. Madam Abreu says that the trainer told the animal to be bad to her. She believes that his obvious dislike for her and his persistent attempts to injure her are due to the circumstances of change of ownership and environment. This does not appear incredible, for the animal doubtless preferred his exciting stage life to the less eventful life in captivity which he has experienced since being brought to Havana. It is somewhat more than ten years since 60 ALMOST HUMAN Jimmy was purchased for the collection, and his age at present is estimated as between twenty and twenty-five years. No direct physical measure- ments are available, for he is unsafe to approach and is kept in a strong iron cage. His weight probably approximates one hundred forty pounds. Despite the best of care, including an abundance of nutritious food, he is spare. He is, however, very muscular and both his physical condition and his behavior suggest the prime of life. His coat is heavy black, with a sprinkling of white hairs on the back and about the mouth. As he lies on his back on the cage floor, with legs ele- vated and drawn close to the body and arms un- der his head, he looks short and stocky, but when he stands erect, or, as is more usual, walks about on feet and hands, his size and strength are im- pressive and the observer instinctively draws back when he makes a dash for the side of the cage. Jimmy is peculiarly interesting because, of all the chimpanzees at Quinta Palatino, he is the only one who has to be watched narrowly and con- trolled by fear or coercion instead of by command and kindness. He has never been friendly to his present owner and he is not uniformly friendly with any of his human attendants or visitors. Madam Abreu reports that in the fall of 1924 he became gentle and playful with one of his keepers. Mae Courtesy of Doctor LeSouef A YOUNG ORANG-UTAN IN CHARACTERISTIC ATTITUDE The age might be four or five years ANUMA, THE CUBAN CHIMPANZEE He was almost ten years old when the picture was taken, and nearly full grown A MODEL CHIMPANZEE COLONY 61 Every one who knows Jimmy distrusts him be- cause he has proved himself untrustworthy. The unwary visitor who approaches within reach of his long arm is virtually certain of a startling if not a dangerous experience. To attempt to seize persons who come within reach is his favorite trick. In doing this he exhibits skill and cun- ning, for he seldom makes a direct approach. In- stead he places himself in a favorable position and then tries to divert the attention of his pros- pective victim by looking in another direction. Apparently Jimmy is of ordinary, perhaps av- erage, intelligence, but he is decidedly less inter- ested in persons, less friendly and affectionate than are the other chimpanzees of the collection. Whether his temperamental characteristics are conditioned by age, sex, or species we do not know. Perhaps they are primarily individual peculiarities. It is known that some male chim- panzees tend to become morose and treacherous after reaching sexual maturity. To the age of ten years they are likely to be gentle and docile, but experienced keepers and trainers prefer not to take chances with the animals after they have attained maturity or are fully grown. Even the adult female is a dangerous antagonist when aroused to the defense of her young. April 27, 1915, was a great day at Quinta Pala- tino, for it witnessed the birth of Anumé, son of 62 ALMOST HUMAN Jimmy and Cucusa. Known as ‘‘the Cuban chimpanzee,’’ he has attracted more attention than do most persons, because among other things he is the first chimpanzee, born in captiv- ity in the New World, who has survived longer than a few weeks. Anuma not only has survived, but in the past ten years has grown into a splen- did specimen of his kind. He is tall, straight, agile, good-natured, affectionate with his friends, and alert, although Madam Abreu insists he is not so intelligent as her first chimpanzee Chim- pita. Anuma’s skin is brown, heavily freckled with black spots. His complexion is considerably lighter than that of his father, Jimmy, and as he stands erect he seems almost as large, although possibly he is not quite so heavy and muscular as the latter. Jimmy, however, looks decidedly ma- ture and is set in his ways, whereas Anuma seems very boyish and is obviously adolescent. The fa- ther is sullen, morose, and not given to useless activity except in the event of fear or anger; Anuma is playful and always ready to make ad- vances to attendants or visitors. Although rarely has he injured any one, it would be rash to trust one’s self to him, for even his play might become dangerously rough. Childlike, Anumé constantly strives to attract attention and entertain. It is only necessary to A MODEL CHIMPANZEE COLONY § 63 approach his cage to set him going. Consider- ing the meager equipment which he has at hand, his tricks and acrobatic stunts are most interest- ing. I have seen him seize with both hands a swinging bar and, having secured momentum for a full excursion on the bar, release it with one hand and with the free hand strike the sole of his foot rhythmically. This he does skilfully and with evident intent to entertain rather than to exercise himself. Usually after such a perform- ance he releases the bar, drops to the ground, and claps his hands together vigorously, as if to elicit applause. It is his delight thus to attract visitors to his cage and to induce them to run with him or perchance, if courageous, to come within reach and pet him or be petted. Anuméa’s adolescence draws to a close. It is fairly certain that in a year or two he will be mature mentally as well as sexually, and it is probable that by that time his temper will begin to change and his trustworthiness diminish. Cucusa, the first mate of Jimmy and the mother of Anuma, died in France after the birth of a baby. It is said that she took cold. The baby also shortly died. Mimosa, Jimmy’s second mate, died without offspring. Thereupon Monona, an adolescent female who had been added to the Abreu collection when about three years of age, was mated with Jimmy. Monona is a white-face 64 ALMOST HUMAN chimpanzee from Sierra Leone whom Madam Abreu considers more stupid even than Jimmy and also unaffectionate. The union of Jimmy and Monona resulted in the birth on January 22, 1923, at Quinta Palatino, of a female infant named Lita. At the age of ap- proximately two years this infant is healthy, ac- tive, bright, and good-tempered. It will be recalled that Madam Abreu considers both Jimmy and Monona stupid. She thinks that Lita is somewhat more intelligent than either parent. As it happens the parents are rather unusually unappealing, but in considering them one must not forget that our estimate of chimpanzee intel- ligence and temperament is based largely on ob- servation of young or adolescent individuals and that the relative moroseness, undemonstrative- ness, and apparent dullness of adult and old individuals may be natural to maturity. Any- way, Lita has now taken the center of the stage at Quinta Palatino, thus replacing the long fa- mous ‘‘OCuban chimpanzee,’?’ Anumaé. Notable incidents in her life will be recited in a subsequent chapter. Even her advent to the world was fraught with scientific as well as other sorts of human interest, and certainly her behavior dur- ing her short span of life has been most illumin- ating. Little Lita is a typical white-face. The skin A MODEL CHIMPANZEE COLONY 65 of face and body is very light, but about, and es- pecially under, the eyes it is decidedly brown. This species or varietal character disappears with age, for the complexion gradually darkens to match the shade beneath the eyes. Because of Monona’s watchfulness over Lita and her unwill- ingness to have her handled by persons, it has not been practicable to make physical measurements. Her weight at the age of twenty months was esti- mated as ten pounds. She is fearless of persons, uniformly friendly, aggressive, and playful. Her life history as well as that of Anumé should be followed with keen interest by anthropologists and psychologists. In Madam Abreu’s chimpanzee colony three babies have been born. First, Anuma, the Cuban chimpanzee; secondly, a baby which, born in France, succumbed with its mother shortly after birth; and finally, Lita, the second chimpanzee to be born at Quinta Palatino, and the half-sister of Anuma, for Jimmy is the father of all of these babies, Cucusa the mother of the first two, and Monona the mother of the last. Of the chimpanzees in the present collection, those which remain to be described are adoles- cents. Nothing is more impressive to the casual visitor than their individuality of appearance and of behavior. Caged together comfortably and amicably were 66 ALMOST HUMAN Malapulga and Sita, adolescent females, both said to be from Sierra Leone and at this time aged six or seven years. Malapulga, so called because of her bad disposition, has been at Quinta Palatino about three years; Sita for more than a year. The two contrast markedly. Malapulga is ob- viously the larger, possibly somewhat older, and she weighs fifty pounds, whereas Sita weighs forty-four pounds (August, 1924). Evidences well support Madam Abreu’s assertion that Mala- pulga is rather stupid as well as ill-natured, while Sita is intelligent, aggressive, and mischievous. In skin-color and facial contour, there are strik- ing contrasts. Malapulga’s skin is dark brown and Sita’s light brown. The features of Mala- pulga are relatively large and coarse, her face broad; those of Sita are distinctly smaller, and her face is narrow. One can readily imagine Sita as Lita at the age of six years. In shape of face and complexion, they much resemble each other. In both, the skin of body and face is light. Sita still shows the dark circle about the eyes, but the contrast is much less than in Lita. The hands and feet of these adolescent females seem disproportionately large. Appearances indicate that Malapulga is nearly mature sexually. Both Sita and Malapulga exhibit varied forms of play and the decorative instinct. Colored A MODEL CHIMPANZEE COLONY 67 fruits, such as oranges and mangoes, are from time to time crushed or split and then carefully placed on the shoulder or back and worn there until displaced by the activity of the animal. The decorative effort is unmistakable. Whether color plays any part has not been determined. The performance is necessarily crude because of the nature and scantiness of the materials available. It is nevertheless of psychological interest, and suggests, for the geneticists, problems which are worthy of careful attention. In an adjoining large cage are housed four half-grown animals. Jackito is the only male among them. Supposedly from Sierra Leone, he is thought to be five or six years old, having been brought to Havana in his second or third year. ‘‘Very bright, good-natured, obedient, and af- fectionate,’? Madam Abreu says of him. And she adds, ‘‘I think he is a dwarf.”’ Jackito in August, 1924, weighed only twenty- eight and a half pounds. The three female companions of Jackito are Blanquita, Fifille, and Lu Lu. They probably do not differ much in age, although size would suggest that Lu Lu is perhaps a year or more older than the others. She may safely be put down at six to seven years, having been pur- chased by Madam Abreu when she was approxi- mately five. Her weight in August, 1924, was 68 ALMOST HUMAN fifty-four pounds. She is a black-face chimpan- zee from Sierra Leone, good-tempered, motherly to little Jackito, but not exceptionally intelligent. Fifille is pretty certainly less than six years old, having been at Quinta Palatino some three years. She is a Sierra Leone white-face, weighing in August, 1924, forty pounds, and characterized by her owner as very bright and very affectionate. She is, indeed, one of Madam Abreu’s chief favor- ites. Blanquita, possibly the youngest of the three, having been secured by Madam Abreu when she was about two years old, is now esti- mated at somewhat over five years of age. She came from the Congo and, like Fifille, is both in- telligent and affectionate. Her weight in August, 1924, was thirty-eight pounds. The social life of these four adolescent chim- panzees is full of interest. The writer never tired of watching their varied play and other activities. Of them all, Jackito is the natural center of attention because of his peculiarities. Although the smallest of the four, he manages to hold his own and have a fine time. Pretty cer- tainly Madam Abreu is right in describing him as a dwarf. His physical characteristics and be- havior suggest glandular abnormality. He is a chubby little fellow with head too large for his body, and various secondary sexual characters of the female. For example, while the hair on the A MODEL CHIMPANZEE COLONY § 69 top of his head, on his back, arms, and legs is black, that on his chin, breast, and the inside of his legs and arms is chiefly white. At the end of the spine is a tuft of white hair, which is char- acteristic of the female. His male primary and secondary sex characters are poorly developed. Jackito, nevertheless, seems extremely healthy, is continuously active, and unmistakably cheerful. No other chimpanzee in the collection is so full of mischief. He introduced himself to me by sud- denly and neatly knocking my straw hat from my head as I stood beside his cage watching the play of his female companions. This prank was char- acteristic. Always Jackito seems to watch at- tendants and visitors with a view to perpetrating some trick. When there are no human victims at hand, he treats his girl companions similarly. Blanquita has a peculiarly sad expression, which is emphasized perhaps by her unusual whiteness of skin. One might infer that she was perpetually melancholy or disgruntled. She also is one of Madam Abreu’s prime favorites and she regularly takes advantage of this relationship by claiming the attention of her owner whenever she sees her approach. This half-grown white-face in many respects resembles Sita. Dark circles appear about her eyes, as in Lita and Sita. Lu Lu is characterized alike by her darkness of skin-color and her baldness. Jackito never tires 70 ALMOST HUMAN of teasing her. She is nearly twice his weight and it would seem should be able to protect herself against him, but he, spry and mischievous, always manages to keep just out of reach. Her motherly attitude toward him is touching. One day I watched for a half-hour while she tried to induce Jackito to come to her, perhaps for play or pet- ting. He, like an unruly child, refused to obey and she attempted to enforce her desire by trying to capture him. Whenever she approached, he would dash off to some other part of the cage. Frequently he let her come so near that he could seize her coat and give a vigorous pull to a hand- ful of hair, or again as she approached he would make a dash for her and as he rushed past and away punch her vigorously with one of his fists in the side or stomach. Sometimes she lost her temper, but he was invariably cheerful and ob- viously greatly delighted with the game. Finally Lu Lu tired and gave up the chase. Observation of this group of four cage com- panions would shortly convince one that social life is highly developed in the chimpanzee. In isolation they are miserable, and if deprived of the companionship of their kind they must have some substitute. If two or more individuals of companionable age are caged together and pro- vided with mechanical equipment, they can have an interesting and healthful life even in fairly A MODEL CHIMPANZEE COLONY 71 close quarters, but to cage them in isolation ap- pears to be the acme of unkindness. Yet another adolescent female is the present companion of Anuma, known as Mifiita. She is a five or six-year-old Sierra Leone specimen pur- chased by Madam Abreu at the age of two to three years, and recognized favorably for her good temper and tactfulness. It is thought that she is somewhat less intelligent than Anumé, but she certainly makes up for any such defect by her temperament and discretion. In the colony there is yet another, the youngest and smallest of all with the exception of Lita. It is Fru Fru, who early in the summer of 1924 was purchased by Madam Abreu in New York. Sheis possibly between three and four years old, a white-face from Sierra Leone, full of activity, playful, sympathetic, and affectionate, and of not less than average intelligence. Her black coat is somewhat sparse and she is surprisingly untidy. As contrasted with the neatest chimpanzees which J have known, she is decidedly careless-looking and unkempt. It occurs to one to wonder whether this personal condition is due to temperament, characteristics of her coat and skin, lack of intelli- gence or initiative, lack of parental or species training, or to a combination of these factors. Such differences as appear in persons with re- spect to care of their bodies and dress certainly 72 ALMOST HUMAN are matched by the chimpanzee. We probably are not more highly individualized than they, nor would it seem that our differences individually and racially are more significant than those found in the anthropoid apes. There are three chimpanzees which should be mentioned among those which have come and gone, for Madam Abreu has had her share of bad luck in keeping these highly complex creatures. Coco was purchased in Paris at the age of four or five years, having been captured some time pre- viously in the Congo. Although stupid, he was unusually good-tempered. He died at about ten years of age from an amebic disease thought to have been contracted from orang-utans which brought the trouble to Quinta Palatino and which themselves died of it. Betsey, a Sierra Leone female, was ten or twelve years old when purchased. She survived for only about six months. Her death also was due to an intestinal disorder which resulted in extreme diarrhea. Finally, Minina, aged about four years, died of tuberculosis July 22, 1924. She was a black-face Sierra Leone, bright and good-natured, but when first observed by the writer, was in the last stages of her dread disease. The gorilla, king of the anthropoid apes by virtue of his size and strength, is conspicuous by JACKITO, POSING OBEDIENTLY CGNOOUS TEINVG NHOf YO ‘NVI1OS ‘VITINOD ONNOA UAH HLIM NVHONINNAO ASATY SSIN UDYsUIMUND ask) p Sst fo KsajanoD “a A MODEL CHIMPANZEE COLONY 73 his absence from Quinta Palatino. Madam Abreu has not willingly suffered this absence to continue. Répeatedly and persistently she has striven to secure specimens of this extraordi- narily interesting type of primate. The young gorilla has proved exceptionally dif_i- cult to keep in confinement, and adult individuals are almost unknown in captivity. The recent ex- periences of Miss Alyse Cunningham (12), who for several years has succeeded in keeping young gorillas in healthful condition, clearly point to the necessity of intelligent feeding, hygiene, and com- panionship. Perhaps companionship should be put first, for the gorilla pet which she first had, died only a few months after she parted with it, apparently because of lonesomeness. It is en- tirely possible and even probable that the lack of success on the part of animal-keepers and train- ers and authorities in zodlogical parks and cir- cuses is due at least as largely to failure to supply suitable companionship, either animal or human, as to improper or inadequate feeding or exposure to disease. The gorilla is by no means so appealing, either structurally or in behavior, as the chimpanzee, for its features and bulk give an overwhelming impression of strength and aggressiveness, and its temperament seems unfavorable to domestica- tion. It develops attachments to persons and be- 74 ALMOST HUMAN comes affectionate, but its aggressiveness, coupled with its dangerous strength and inconvenient size, negatives its possible value as a pet or perform- ing animal. Early descriptions of the gorilla made it out an extraordinarily ferocious beast, the dread of the natives of its habitat, and one of man’s most fearful enemies. Carl Akeley (10) and Mary Bradley (11), however, paint a very different picture of the mountain gorillas of the Belgian Congo. These naturalists say the ani- mals are not aggressive, and seek only to avoid mankind. This description, however, does not affect the general conclusion that in degree of do- cility and good nature the gorilla is so far inferior to the chimpanzee that it is not likely to usurp the latter’s place in zodlogical gardens, on the stage, or in scientific laboratories. It is said that the brain of the gorilla more closely resembles man’s than does that of any other ape. Possibly on this account it has been assumed that he ranks next to man also in intelli- gence. This comparison, at any rate, has not been justified by observation. No one has ven- tured to suggest that the gorilla is the most man- like of the anthropoid apes in temperament and character. Certainly if he is, man has abundant reason to envy the chimpanzee! CHAPTER 5 PRIMATE INTELLIGENCE HE intelligence of the primates is of peren- nial human interest rather because of the im- pressive similarity of the mental traits of anthro- poid apes to those of man than because man is himself a primate. In all probability the chief intellectual functions in monkeys differ no less from similar functions in the great apes than the latter do from those in man. Since the mind of the ape seems to be midway between that of mon- key and that of man, it may be most profitable to concentrate attention on the intelligence of the chimpanzee and to use Madam Abreu’s observa- tions and the other data afforded by her chim- panzee colony to indicate some at least of the im- portant characteristics of the anthropoid mind. Certain incidents related by Madam Abreu are worthy of record and may direct the course of description. Of the birth of Lita it is reported by Madam Abreu that her negro servant Andres was at- tracted early in the morning by Monona, who rat- tled the chain which held her. He loosed the ani- 75 76 ALMOST HUMAN mal and turned to attend to other duties. Re- turning shortly he discovered that a baby chim- panzee had been born but was seemingly dead. Presently the mother began to work over it, breathing into its mouth and drawing its tongue out with her lips.t. After a period of this treat- ment the infant began to breathe. She then cleaned it thoroughly and subsequently chewed at the umbilical cord until it was shortened to about a half yard. Somewhat later she chewed it off close to the body of the infant. Was the adaptive behavior of Monona toward her new-born infant indicative of insight, intui- tion, or instinct? Its suitability is obvious. If the infant had been neglected, it probably would have succumbed. Behavior of this sort is impres- sive and not the less important or suggestive of biological problems if performed without insight. One can but wonder how many inexperienced human mothers would act as appropriately. The subject is of extraordinary interest, but it is freely granted that the behavior of Monona may not indicate a high level of intelligence. As a sequel to this story, it is related by Madam Abreu that some months ago there was born to a pair of her rhesus monkeys an infant which, like 1The critical reader may ask how much of this is verifiable observation and how much interpretation. It is the task of the investigator to find out. PRIMATE INTELLIGENCE 17 Monona’s, seemed lifeless. As the mother paid no attention to it, one of the attendants removed the baby from the cage and took it immediately to Madam Abreu who, profiting by the lesson given by Monona, practised on the monkey baby the same procedure for revival. Breath was blown into the little creature’s mouth, its tongue was drawn out, and its arms were worked rhythmi- cally to stir the action of the heart and to initiate respiration. Within an hour the animal was in good condition, and it has since grown and devel- oped normally and healthfully. Madam Abreu acted intelligently and with in- sight. The mother monkey failed to act appro- priately on any basis whatsoever. If the chim- panzee mother, Monona, acted without insight, either intuitively or instinctively, then it would appear reasonable to suppose that in similar cir- cumstances most chimpanzee mothers would act likewise. It remains for further observation to settle for us questions of fact and to convince us of the mental quality and characteristics of Mo- nona’s act. ‘“‘One day Chimpita, my first chimpanzee, and his wife Cucusa escaped from their cage. Sev- eral of us pursued them and the guard of Quinta Palatino began to shoot into the air to frighten the animals back into their cage. At the same time one of the men called to the animals, com- 78 ALMOST HUMAN manding them to return. Chimpita obediently came, and Cucusa, who was in a tree, climbed down and, going to the guard, took hold of his hand and took the revolver away from him.’’ It is not surprising that Madam Abreu should have recorded this incident as evidence of intelligence closely approaching to the human. At the mo- ment we may not stop to discuss the matter further than to note that such an act probably could not reasonably be expected of any living type of animal other than the great apes or man. ‘‘Once when we were transferring Chimpita and Cucusa from one cage to another, the female was taken first; Chimpita succeeded in escaping from his cage—as if he wished to say he would not stay alone! It was Sunday and my house was full of visitors. I ran after Chimpita, the guard ran, everybody ran! When the guard approached to put on his chain, Chimpita grasped it and threw it away, as if to proclaim ‘liberty.’ Then he climbed to the top of a mango-tree and refused to come down.’’ The conclusion of this story be- longs rather under sympathetic emotion than un- der intelligence and therefore is reserved for the next chapter. Chimpita’s behavior in this instance is obviously comparable in order of intelligence with that of Cucusa in taking away the revolver of the guard. ‘‘T was feeding grapes to Chimpita one day and PRIMATE INTELLIGENCE 79 he swallowed the seeds. I told him that he must give the seeds to me, for I was afraid they might cause appendicitis, so he gave me all the seeds he had in his mouth and then picked some up from the floor with his lips and his hands. Finally there were two left between the cage wall and the cement floor which he could not well get with either lips or fingers. I said to him, ‘Chimpita, when I have gone you will eat those seeds.’ He looked at me as if he asked why I bothered him so much. Then he went into the next cage, look- ing at me all the while, got a little stick, and with it poked the seeds out of the crack and gave them to me.’’ Such behavior demands careful scien- tific analysis. It would be difficult to match it in the lower mammals, but it is characteristic of the great apes. The extent to which Madam Abreu’s animals understand what she says to them is startling to the lay visitor who is unaccustomed to the almost human traits of the creatures. ‘Once we were driving into the city to have a little chimpanzee who was ill radiographed. As we drove along she looked at me and evidently noticed that I had a hat on my head, so she took the hat from a man in the car and placing it on her head insisted on keeping it there until we arrived at our destination.’’ Doubtless it is just such behavior as this which gave origin to the word ‘‘aping’’ and at the same time fixed its 80 ALMOST HUMAN meaning. It is impossible, with our present superficial knowledge of the facts, to determine the measure of intelligence, or indeed the kind of intelligence, involved in such behavior. The following incidents indicative of intelligent cooperation with persons also have peculiar sig- nificance: ‘Once when I was away and one of my sons was here in charge of my animals, Chimpita es- caped. He broke through a window and in doing so got pieces of glass in his arm, which he cut badly. My son thought it necessary to remove the pieces of glass and dress the arm. While he worked over it, Chimpita was quiet and patient, behaving just as a sensible person naturally would.’’ While the writer was studying Madam Abreu’s primates, a blood-transfusion operation was per- formed in an attempt to save the life of one of the chimpanzees. As a preliminary to the operation the blood of several of the adolescent chimpan- zees was examined to enable the physician to se- lect as the ‘‘donor’’ an animal whose blood was of the same type as that of the invalid. The sev- eral animals behaved quite differently in the operation. Some struggled violently when the sample of blood was taken from the arm; others seemed to understand that no harm was to be done them and codperated as might a person. PRIMATE INTELLIGENCE 81 When it came to the transfusion operation itself the sick chimpanzee was too weak and listless to struggle, but the animal whose blood was to be borrowed was a healthy, vigorous creature whom one might naturally have expected to rebel against the treatment of the surgeons. Instead she lent her aid to them and remained virtually quiet throughout the operation. The physicians them- selves were so impressed by her codperation that they expressed keen regret in not having secured a moving-picture record of the operation which should show in detail the behavior of both of the chimpanzees involved. The writer can match these instances of chim- panzee cooperation with human attendants or helpers from his own experience with a pair of young chimpanzees which needed medical atten- tion. The treatment required was for hookworm and each of two animals, a male and a female, was handled and treated in the same manner and with as little disturbance and discomfort as pos- sible. The little male, having suffered his jaws to be wedged apart and a stomach tube inserted, became quiescent and acted throughout the treat- ment as though he implicitly trusted the wisdom and good intentions of his human attendants. The female, on the contrary, resisted the treatment at every stage and continued to struggle to the end. Was hers lack of confidence or lack of understand- 82 ALMOST HUMAN ing? From the above description it might be assumed that the male was meek and lacking in initiative by comparison with the female, but as a fact the opposite was true; and apart from dif- ference in intelligence any one intimately ac- quainted with the two animals might naturally have predicted that the male would resist to the limit of his strength and the female yield co- operatively to the demands of the physician. Evidences such as have been presented might be multiplied almost indefinitely from the experience of Madam Abreu and her assistants and from the observations which the writer has himself made or has found in the records of reliable investiga- tors, but there is no point in doing so. It will serve better in extending and refining our knowl- edge of primate intelligence to consider other aspects of behavior and other relations of the ani- mals to man. Those who know the great apes only through reading or by casual observation of specimens on the stage or in zodlogical gardens cannot ap- preciate either the intelligence or the emotional traits of the animals. This would be equally true in the case of any other organism. To the casually interested layman all of the types of great ape—orang-utan, chimpanzee, and gorilla— look and act much alike, but so do all individuals of a given human type. It behooves us, therefore, PRIMATE INTELLIGENCE 83 to remain open-minded and critical in all matters of which we have scant first-hand knowledge. Particularly is this true of the characteristics of animals which at once so closely resemble and so repel us as the great apes. When one observes and reobserves, he actually sees more and more and penetrates increasingly into the maze of behavior-patterns which enter into the relation of an organism to its world. At the same time there grows up a sympathetic re- lation which comes to involve at once mutual con- fidence and understanding, so that as the observer becomes increasingly able to see understandingly, the animal through familiarity with him comes to act more naturally and freely. It is precisely this sort of relationship which has come to subsist be- tween Madam Abreu, the lover of animals and their best of friends, and the population of her primate colony. There are, to be sure, individual differences in degree of intimacy, for some types of primate she greatly prefers over others and some individuals make strong appeal to her, whereas others may command only her pity. As one lives with a type of organism, and studies it day by day, intimacy of relation and un- derstanding develop not so much on the basis of exceptional acts or adaptations as from the cumu- lative effect of seemingly trivial incidents. And so it is strictly true that when one is asked to 84 ALMOST HUMAN justify his conviction that a type of animal, or a certain individual, works ideationally and with in- sight, or with sympathy and affection, one may find it peculiarly difficult to cite convincing evi- dence or to provide a demonstration. In this chapter the attempt is made to present certain significant incidents and to achieve a cumulative effect by backing these incidents with descriptions of minor, but none the less essential and impor- tant, bits of behavior from the daily life of the chimpanzee. It has long been believed by animal psycholo- gists that the use of objects as tools indicates either a relatively high order of intelligence or a specialization of reaction-pattern which is quite as interesting and significant biologically as sheer intelligence. Now it happens that all of the pri- mates are structurally fitted, far beyond the meas- ure of most other mammals, to use objects as tools. The development of both hand and foot, with the prevalence of opposable thumb and great toe, makes possible not only expert climbing and life in the treetops, but also the extraordinarily dexterous and skilful handling of small objects. The monkeys, although structurally capable of doing so, do not habitually avail themselves of ob- jects as aids in meeting the ordinary problems of environment. Indeed, their relations to objects as possible tools are surprisingly different from LU LU (LEFT) AND JACKITO WITH ANDRES POSING AN ACTIVE CHIMPANZEE This is Chim during his sojourn in Washington, DiC: PRIMATE INTELLIGENCE 85 those of man and only slightly less so from those of the great apes. The writer has known inti- mately only one monkey which seemed to have an aptitude for the use of tools and in its case they were clearly play objects in the manipulation of which it took extreme satisfaction. Elsewhere [Yerkes (8) ] the facts have been described and this monkey, Skirrl, characterized as a mechanical genius. What one individual may do, others also may be capable of. Perhaps, after all, the pri- mates as a group are gifted with intellectual as well as manual ability to use objects and through such use to prove to us their superiority over four-footed creatures. As the evidences are more abundant as well as clearer, it may profit us most to direct our attention again to the behavior of the chimpanzee. Tn the case of this creature the use of objects as tools is so common as to be taken as a matter of course even by the lay observer. Anything which lies at hand is pretty sure to be used not merely as a plaything or something ‘‘to be monkeyed with’’ as in the case of the true monkeys, but also as something with which to attain certain desired ends. For example, the chimpanzee separated from his mate by a wire partition and unable to reach her otherwise, is seen to use a straw to caress her face. Repeatedly it has been noted that the animals will use bits of grass, sticks, 86 ALMOST HUMAN wires, or anything else available to draw in ob- jects which they desire as food. At times this use is highly skilful; again it may appear rather stupid, although through persistence it results in success. For the safety of the animals, the cages at Quinta Palatino are kept almost clear of loose objects. The furnishings for exercise and play are securely fastened and cannot be used except as intended. Consequently there is relatively little opportunity to observe in the chimpanzee colony the spontaneous and adaptive use of ob- jects. Madam Abreu’s experience, however, has offered abundant opportunity to study the use of things for utilitarian purposes and inventiveness in play. Again and again it has been demonstrated in connection with tests of intelligence that the orang-utan, the chimpanzee, and the gorilla can and do use objects effectively to attain such de- sired ends as food, freedom, or opportunity to play. The results of experiments are reserved for the next chapter. They are varied, positive, and indicative of an order of intelligence which certainly suggests the human, if it does not closely approach it. In the playfulness and inventiveness of the great apes there is additional food for thought and speculation about the quality of their intelligence. From birth onward into maturity they play not PRIMATE INTELLIGENCE 87 only persistently but with variety of performance and degree of inventiveness which approach our own. ‘The young apes, like children, are continu- ously active and always eager for play. They are equally willing to accept as playmates children, human adults, or members of their kind, but they quite obviously prefer their kind and also their size. Especially by young and adolescent apes children are preferred as playmates. Their games naturally tend toward running and chas- ing, varied with mock fighting. Whether in the wild or captive state, they chase one another a great deal, and although sometimes their play be- comes very rough, the writer has seen no record of intentional injury in play, nor has he himself observed even accidental injury. At Quinta Palatino there is no opportunity to observe play in the gibbon, because of the isola- tion and lonesomeness of the individual. The three orang-utans which are caged together play much, but with less spontaneity, versatility, and eagerness than the chimpanzees. One gets the impression in watching them—and this also is Madam Abreu’s conclusion—that they are con- siderably less intelligent in such matters than the chimpanzee. So it happens that again we natur- ally turn to the chimpanzee cages for our mate- rials of illustration. As we approach Anuma’s cage we are greeted 88 ALMOST HUMAN by an unusual evidence of playfulness, for pick- ing up a mango, the chimpanzee tosses it at us with skill and accuracy of aim which suggest the baseball player. As the mango is returned to him he catches it as deftly and with at least as much assurance as he threw it. Inquiry brings out the fact that he has had abundant opportunity to play with balls as well as with such fruits as oranges and mangoes. Doubtless he has been played with much by human companions. Skill in throwing and catching has been acquired as in the case of a person. His interest in the per- formance seems no less than ours, and his de- light in playing with any one whose attention he can command is infectious. Both Anuma and his father, Jimmy, have in some unknown way, perhaps through imitation of persons, acquired the trick of hand-clapping. They perform somewhat differently, in that Anuma swings his long arms at full length, bring- ing his palms together with a sound like a pistol- shot, whereas Jimmy is content with the more modest sort of human clap. Ordinarily he does not swing his arms, but instead brings his palms together vigorously in a less enthusiastic manner. There can be no doubt that both of these chim- panzees use hand-clapping to attract attention. When Jimmy sees an attendant approaching one of the cages with food, he frequently begins to PRIMATE INTELLIGENCE 89 clap. Anuma, on the contrary, more frequently performs this trick in connection with play. He applauds his own acrobatic performances and joins with visitors in applauding anything that receives their approbation. Undoubtedly these animals could be taught a great variety of tricks and games. Already we are familiar through the stage with several possibilities which have been actualized, and it is needless to dwell on the skill which the animals exhibit in riding a bicycle and in other acrobatic feats. In free play Jackito and Fru Fru supply end- lessly interesting variety. Mostly they indulge in games of chasing and catching, but they con- stantly vary these with sly tricks which often re- sult in what would be to us serious falls. Quite incomparable with anything else in this line ob- servable at Quinta Palatino are the acrobatic stunts of Blanquita, Fifille, Lu Lu, and Jackito. In their cage they have a strong bar suspended by chains, also an iron ring on a chain, and under the roof a half-floor to which they can climb or swing at their pleasure. On the swinging bar they perform antics which are important rather on account of their variety than the remarkable dexterity exhibited. Some notion of this variety is given by the fol- lowing transcription of notes made in a few min- utes before the cage. 90 ALMOST HUMAN Lu Lu, grasping the iron ring with both hands, swings vigorously, with legs dangling, rapidly in- creasing the amplitude of the swing. Then sud- denly she releases her grasp and seizes, as she swings to it, the trunk of a tree in the midst of the cage and some four or five feet from the ring. Swinging by one hand from the limb of a small tree at one end of the cage, she slaps the soles of her feet against the top of a concrete nest box as she passes it. This repeatedly. Grasping the swinging bar or trapeze with both feet and both hands, she swings back and forth with head hanging down. Having taken her seat on the trapeze, the bar of which is only two or three inches in diameter, she places her back against one of the side chains and vigorously swings the trapeze from side to side instead of back and forth. Seizing the ring with three of her extremities and the trapeze with the fourth, she swings herself back and forth jerkily between the two with head down. With one hand and one foot grasping the trap- peze and the others dangling below, she swings back and forth. Fifille swings rapidly on the ring, holding by both hands. Suddenly she jumps from the ring to the side of the cage and drops to a shelf near the floor, whereupon she makes the large cage PRIMATE INTELLIGENCE 91 rattle by repeatedly striking her shoulder against the side wall. Suddenly she jumps from the side of the cage to a small tree, rapidly swings around it several times, holding to it with one hand, and then with a single spring reaches the opposite side of her cage. Sitting astride the trapeze, she clings to it with both hands, then flattens out and rests with stom- ach on the trapeze, relaxed, arms and legs hang- ing limp. Jumping from the small tree, Fifille stands on her head on the nest box. Immediately Lu Lu follows and playfully tips her over. Thereupon a tussle ensues which ends in Fifille’s falling from the roof of the nest box to the cement floor of the cage head first, but without harm. Both animals climb to the half-floor in the upper part of the cage and there on a beam they swing, each grasping the beam with one hand and with arms and feet interlocked. Suddenly they jump to the iron ring which each clasps with one hand and each with an arm about the other they swing head downward. These are incidents in a busy play-day. Almost endless is the variety of attitude and antic in in- dividual and group play. It cannot fail to occur to the thoughtful ob- server that the resources of the captive apes at 92 ALMOST HUMAN Quinta Palatino are very meager. For their own protection they are deprived of movable objects with which they might injure one another, and also of small things like bits of wire, nails, or fruit stones, which they might swallow. They have virtually nothing available for use as play- things or tools except chains, trapeze, and rings. The animals are almost wild with delight when by chance they succeed in getting hold of an object outside of the cage. It matters not whether it be a hose which they can drag through the bars and amuse themselves with, or the hand or clothing of a passing person. How much more impressive their behavior might be in an entirely natural en- vironment is difficult to say, but it is easy to imag- ine that there must be a vast difference between life in the African habitat of the chimpanzee and that in the cages of a zoological park, a traveling show, or even at Quinta Palatino. Whether or not it bears on intelligence we do not know, but at any rate it would be unfair to omit from this story Madam Abreu’s description of what she calls the ‘‘vision of death.’’ There follows her report in her own words: ‘‘The first time it happened I was in Cambo les Bines. It was on the death of Cucusa. A mo- ment before she died she took my head in her two hands and kissed it, very long. She saw that YOUNG CHIMPANZEES BLACKBERRYING IN NEW HAMPSHIRE Chim and Panzee greatly enjoyed their New Hampshire pasture, and especially the blackberries, green, red and black! JULIUS, THE ORANG-UTAN, IN MONTECITO VALLEY, CALIFORNIA The pose is characteristic, the background appropriate CHIM QUENCHING HIS THIRST AT THE TAP He seemed to feel that he must continue to drink as long as the water flowed! PRIMATE INTELLIGENCE 93 death was coming and was saying good-by. Then she jumped from me to her bed and died. Jimmy, who was outside in the park, began to scream. He continued to scream, looking about as though he saw something. The next day he still kept watching, far away toward the mountains. “‘Here at Quinta Palatino when Mimosa died, he did the same thing. He screamed and screamed and screamed. And he kept looking and looking with lower lip hanging down, as if he saw something that we could not see. His scream was different from any I have heard at other times. It made my flesh creep. ‘‘On two or three other occasions, when little monkeys have died, he has screamed in the same way and watched and looked out. JI had him ob- served, to see if there were animals passing or if it was one of his cage companions that excited him, but there was nothing passing by and yet he screamed. Then later, after he had stopped, we let other animals pass his cage, but he paid no attention. So it seems that it was nothing out- side that disturbed him. It is five times, I think, that he has done this. The other day when little Minina died Jimmy did not scream, but perhaps this was because he did not know Minina.”’ The ‘‘vision of death’’ is one reason why Madam Abreu believes that the chimpanzee has 94 ALMOST HUMAN a soul. Perhaps she would not wish to deny it to her other pets, but at any rate she is firmly con- vinced that it may not be denied to the chimpan- zee. CHAPTER 6 ACCIDENT OR INSIGHT? O supplement the picture of anthropoid in- telligence drawn from Quinta Palatino, this chapter offers a general account of what psycholo- gists have discovered. ‘‘Supplement’’ is used in- tentionally, for what has been observed in Ha- vana is typical and consistent with the results of experimental inquiries. As one strives for fuller knowledge of ape be- havior and for understanding of its significance, the words ‘‘monkeying,’”’ ‘‘aping,’’ and ‘‘think- ing’? become more meaningful. ‘‘Monkeying’’ we usually think of as plain fooling with things. It is common alike in infants, children, and mon- keys. Through it the individual acquires, largely by accident, useful experience. ‘‘Aping’’ takes us a step higher, for in it the animal tries to do what another creature is doing or has done. There is more than the suggestion of effort to achieve a certain goal. Sometimes we think of it as purposeful imitation and again as relatively automatic behavior. Perhaps monkeys some- times ape, but in any event this kind of behavior 95 96 ALMOST HUMAN is characteristic of the great apes and the word therefore seems peculiarly appropriate. ‘‘Think- ing,’’ although not a satisfactory term for the kind of action we have in mind, will serve to point the contrast between behavior which is definitely directed to achieve a certain purpose and clearly exhibits insight and foresight, and that which, like monkeying or aping, is either random movement or a rather vague and uncertain striving toward a goal. Thoughtful action, or better, ideational action, is characteristic of mankind, but are we certain that it does not appear also in the anthro- poid apes and possibly in the monkeys? Certainly, as we follow through the life of the human individual we note monkeying, aping, and ideational behavior in this order and in varying relations. The infant at first does almost nothing but ‘‘monkey.’’ Later ‘‘aping’’ appears, and it is perhaps through it that the child learns to talk. Still later action becomes dominantly thoughtful, purposeful, and indicative of insight and fore- sight. It is the purpose of this chapter to throw light on the question: Do the anthropoid apes act out their lives a step higher than the monkeys and a step or two lower than man, or are they, instead, capable of acting with insight? It is the perennial question as to whether animals reason. Many observers have asked themselves, when watching a trained orang-utan, chimpanzee, or ACCIDENT OR INSIGHT? sity gorilla: Is he able to understand problems and to solve them by using ideas as do we? Has he memory images, ideas, insight, and perhaps also foresight? If so, how does it happen that he does not talk? The psychologist assures us that there are two highly important and interesting aspects of mind and its expressions, which are inseparable and equally essential to normal behavior. We may speak of them as the life of feeling and emotion and the life of thought and reflection. In our- selves we know both of these types of experience, know also that in each moment of consciousness the one or the other is dominant. Although we may commonly think of ourselves as primarily thoughtful and reflective in our behavior, most of us actually are highly emotional and more often than not act out our feelings. Whether the great apes actually ‘‘feel’’ as we do when they behave as we should, no one has yet discovered. But it must be added that not even in one another have we made this discovery. Of the life of thought and reflection, the processes of which are comprehended in the popu- lar term ‘‘intelligence,’’ much is known, thanks to the patient investigations of psychologists, and it therefore is possible to compare in interesting fashion the intelligent behavior of man with that of the great apes. Among other things it has 98 ALMOST HUMAN been discovered that the intellectual life springs mainly from the senses. Sight, hearing, touch, taste, smell, and several other less widely known modes of sense, contribute elements which go far to make up our consciousness of the world and of the self. Sense impressions are among the ma- terials from which the self and its environment, as consciously experienced, are fashioned. They are also the materials of thought. To be sure, in all cases elements of feeling also appear. If, then, the great apes, or any of them, act ideation- ally or with insight, it must be because they have sense impressions and images more or less like our own. This impels us to inquire, What is known about the senses of the anthropoid apes? Not even the more important of the special senses have been thoroughly studied in the different types of pri- mate. Nevertheless, there is certain fairly re- liable general information which may be taken as indicative, and which is valuably supplemented by more detailed and exact knowledge of a few modes of sense. Smell and taste are very poorly developed in most men, and seemingly also in the great apes. They, like us, use these senses in investigating or testing foods and drinks. So far as observations on record go, it would seem that these, the so- called chemical senses, are similar in all of the ACCIDENT OR INSIGHT? 99 higher primates. Undoubtedly, more intensive study will reveal differences from species to spe- cies, just as in man himself we find significant dif- ferences from individual to individual. The sense of hearing is keen in all of the anthro- poid apes, and the organs on which auditory im- pressions depend are similar to our own. Every- thing thus far discovered suggests that this sense plays an important role in the life of the apes. Yet, despite the fact that they have excellent voices, they apparently are less influenced by sounds and less inclined to reproduce or imitate them than are many other kinds of creatures. Our knowledge is far too meager to justify dog- matic assertion, but it warrants the surmise that this sense is capable of a high degree of cultiva- tion and functional usefulness in the anthropoid apes, as in man. Touch and the senses which have to do with bodily attitude and movement seem to be acute and important, as in us. The animals are even more skilful in many of their motor adjustments than are we, and in some instances their acrobatic achievements are truly marvelous. Their be- havior in respect to these almost certainly im- plies a sensory and central nervous mechanism of the human order of complexity and functional perfection. The ape’s sense of sight or vision has been 100 ALMOST HUMAN studied more carefully and persistently than any other of the modes of senses. Again the evidence is indicative of essential similarity to man. To see, in the visual way, is by no means a simple matter. In fact, there are many kinds of seeing, and visual impressions constitute systems of which color sensations and achromatic sensations are the chief types. Now it appears, from painstak- ing experimental inquiry, that the chimpanzee possesses color vision, as well as ability to dis- tinguish white, grays, and black [Kohts (4) and Koehler (5) J]. We may not say that its visual sensations are identical with our own, but they seem to serve like purposes in its adaptations to its world. Further, it has been shown by Koehler, that the appreciation of distance or depth is dependent in the chimpanzee, as in us, on the use of two eyes instead of one. When both eyes are used, dis- tance is more accurately gauged or estimated than when either eye is used alone. This is equally true, it seems, of man and chimpanzee. Experi- ments indicate also that the one eye, when used alone in measuring depth, is likely to be more ac- curate than the other. We humans ordinarily are either right- or left- handed. It is less generally known that most of us also are either right- or left-eyed. Koehler discovered this fact in a young chimpanzee whose ACCIDENT OR INSIGHT? 101 vision he investigated. He also demonstrated with this animal that the visual perception of size and of luminosity is, as in the case of man, af- fected by the total situation, instead of being de- termined simply by the intensity of the particular stimulus. If, for example, the animal is trained to expect to find food in the larger of two boxes, it will continue to choose directly by means of sight when the larger box is placed so much farther away than the smaller one that its image in the animal’s eye is much the smaller of the two. Or again, if as between a white and a black box, the chimpanzee has been trained to expect to find a reward in the former, it will continue to choose correctly even when the black box is so strongly illuminated that it, physically speaking, is whiter than the other. These are important facts, which suggest that further search may reveal other sur- prising psychological similarities between man and ape. Sense impressions may be received, serve their transient purpose, and disappear, or they may effect such a change in the organism that they may later be reproduced as images. In the latter case the animal has what we call memory, or, if the images are freely and unusually combined, imag- ination. Have any of the apes images and do they give evidence of remembering and imagin- ing? These questions have been much in the 102 ALMOST HUMAN minds of certain investigators. The answers are not yet clear, accurate, and altogether satisfying, but very definite progress has been made in the determined search for information. It is known that the great apes remember persons and other objects over periods of several days and, in some instances, several weeks. Certain observations of dream behavior suggest the existence of im- ages, but they do not conclusively establish the fact. Those of us who have been especially intent on finding out whether any of the apes act ideation- ally, thoughtfully, or with insight have pursued quite a different course, for we have asked simply and persistently: Do the animals in solving un- usual problems, or in adapting themselves to the demands made by their environment, act essen- tially as we do when we use ideas? There are two principal ways of getting this sort of information: Hither one may watch the animals in their free wild existence or in captiv- ity, hoping that circumstances may provide the desired opportunity; or one may try to eontrol conditions and their relation to the world so that the opportunity may be assured. The first of these methods is often spoken of as naturalistic observation, the second as _ experimentation. Hach has its peculiar advantages and, like feeling and thought, they are supplemental rather than ACCIDENT OR INSIGHT? 103 mutually exclusive. The naturalist often objects that the experimentalist is constantly in danger of making his animal act unusually or abnorm- ally, and the experimentalist retorts that the nat- uralist can never be sure that what he observed was other than accidental, or indeed, that what he thinks he saw actually occurred. The fact seems to be that, especially in studying the pri- mates, the sympathetic attitude, patience, and leisureliness of the naturalist should be combined with the critical attitude and demand for rigid checks and controls which are characteristic of the experimentalist. To illustrate these points of difference, the ob- servation described in Chapter 5, page 76, is ad- mirable. Madam Abreu, watching the behavior of the mother chimpanzee after the birth of a baby, ascribes to the mother peculiarly appropri- ate and highly adaptive action. She thinks that she saw the mother draw out the tongue of the baby, blow into its mouth, and also manipulate it in such fashion as to suggest artificial res- piration and the stimulation of heart action. Considering, as he must, all of the probable dis- advantages of the observational situation, the experimentalist, not unsympathetically but with an eye to the facts, asks whether Madam Abreu is positive that the mother did more than wash and clean the new-born infant in the characteristic 104 ALMOST HUMAN manner. When she was working about the little one’s mouth did she actually stimulate artificial respiration, or was she merely licking the infant’s face—sucking, perhaps, instead of blowing? Such questions throw the naturalistic description into a deep shadow of doubt, and only by repeti- tion of opportunity for observation under condi- tions which permit clear vision and, so nearly as possible, objective record of what happens, can legitimate suspicion of mistaken observation or misinterpretation be dissipated. It is for just this reason that the experimentalist manfully en- deavors to control the conditions of observation so that an occurrence may be repeated under like: circumstances and the facts verified, checked, cor- rected. Perhaps Madam Abreu’s description combines interpretation with what she actually saw. Un- doubtedly she was influenced by expectation and a sympathetic attitude toward her pets. The sci- entist learns to discount habitually reports of the untrained observer, even apart from truthfulness, conscientiousness, and interest. If we had noth- ing but such observations as have been recorded at Quinta Palatino, and similar naturalistic re- ports, as evidence of primate intelligence, we should be taking a great risk in stating that the anthropoid apes closely resemble man in their in- tellectual life. As a fact, however, experimental ACCIDENT OR INSIGHT? 105 methods of inquiry have been used to excellent purpose, and in the following pages it is possible, consequently, to report facts which have been well established by the independent work of sev- eral trained investigators. Louis Boutan (7), of France, has published il- luminating accounts of the mental life of the gibbon; the writer has studied intensively the ideational behavior of the young orang-utan (8) ; Wolfgang Koehler of Germany (6), Mrs. Ladygin- Kohts of Russia (4), and the writer (9) have ob- tained intimate knowledge of the behavior of the chimpanzee, and new light has been thrown on the life of the gorilla by Carl Akeley of New York (10), Mrs. Mary Bradley of Chicago (11), and Miss Alyse Cunningham of London (12). Prior to the World War our knowledge of the anthropoid apes was chiefly naturalistic. Great contributions had been made to the literature of life history, habits, behavior, and mental traits, but the information was fragmentary, of very unequal and uncertain value, and it always left one wondering about the matter of reliability. Alfred Russel Wallace, in ‘‘The Malay Archipel- ago’’ (13), most interestingly portrays the life of the orang-utan. Something similar was done for the gorilla, but with far less skill and accu- racy, by Paul Du Chaillu in ‘‘ Adventures and Hix- plorations in Equatorial Africa’ (14). The 106 ALMOST HUMAN fourth edition of Brehm’s famous ‘‘Tierleben’’ (15) contains an excellent general description of the anthropoid apes. These are a few of the con- tributions to our knowledge which are likely to appeal to the general reader. The information of these naturalistic books, like that drawn from Quinta Palatino and from the reports of animal-trainers and the officials of zodlogical gardens, prepares the way for the study of anthropoid intelligence without defin- itely settling the really important questions. Let us, then, face the critical issue: How does the psychologist try to find out whether or not the ape has ideas and works with insight? The procedure is experimental and in general surprisingly simple. The same principles seem to appear in all of the ways of testing for idea- tion which have been used by Boutan, Koehler, Kohts, and the writer. The experimental situa- tion offers the possibility of reward for the solu- tion of a definite problem, whose complexity may vary greatly but whose solution yields desired food, freedom from constraint of work, company, or opportunity to play, or a combination of these much desired conditions. The problem in every case demands adaptation of behavior to a set of conditions which may be grasped either by the senses or by memory, or by a combination of sense impressions and memory images. ACCIDENT OR INSIGHT? 107 In the main, the tests of ape intelligence sug- gest the ‘‘performance tests’’ which have come into common use in human institutions. There are no differences in principle; indeed, precisely the same tests may be used with apes, children, and human adults. Thus direct comparison of behavior becomes possible and very interesting conclusions may be drawn. Boutan, who more carefully than any one else has studied the intelligence of the gibbon, tested adaptive behavior by means of puzzle boxes in which food was placed as reward. The boxes could be opened by the manipulation of simple fasteners, which were either visible on the out- side or concealed. It is not necessary to describe either the experimental device or the behavior of the animal. Instead, Boutan’s general de- scriptions and conclusions will suffice to indicate the nature of his evidence. He says there is no indication of clear prevision of the act which opens the box. There seems to be a vague idea of the necessary movements. The animal’s at- tention is held by the food, and desire for it seems to stir the recall of the movement which has been found to be useful. Boutan believes that the gibbon’s behavior indicates prevision or anticipation of the end which can be attained by opening the box. The idea of movement seems to be entirely independent of the movement 108 ALMOST HUMAN itself. From this it appears that the investi- gator believes his experiments with the gibbon demonstrate that it has simple ideas which func- tion in the test situations. The orang-utan, chimpanzee, and gorilla are promising subjects for the experimental study of ideational action, but most favorable of all, be- cause of its agreeable temperament and its play- fulness, is the chimpanzee. Perhaps this ex- plains the fact that Koehler, Kohts, and the writer have devoted attention chiefly to it, among the great apes. The use of objects as instruments or tools is at least suggestive of ideation. It is character- istic of man, but the more other animals are stud- ied, the more varied the evidence becomes of their ability in this direction. When the chimpanzee is so placed that a desired object—such for ex- ample as a banana or an orange—cannot be ob- tained by reaching, jumping, or climbing, it may have recourse to sticks as aids. And the inter- esting thing is that the stick may be used in a variety of ways. Some individuals will strike with it, thus trying to dislodge the reward; others may use it as an aid to jumping; or again, they may stand it beneath the objective and, quickly climbing it, reach from it. So skilful are they in this manceuver that occasionally an individual may climb to a height of eight or ten feet on a a SF aes oo From Koehler, by permission Harcourt, Brace and Company CHIMPANZEE BUILDING A TOWER OF BOXES IN ORDER TO SECURE SUSPENDED FRUIT From Koehler, by permission Harcourt, Brace and Company STICK AND BOXES BEING USED BY CHIMPANZEE TO HELP IT TO GET A BANANA Question: Will the one which is using the stick also get the reward? ACCIDENT OR INSIGHT? 109 slight pole which rests on the ground or floor of the cage without other support. It takes an ac- complished acrobat to do this! Both Koehler and the writer have seen young chimpanzees use persons instead of sticks as aids in reaching the fruit. The common method is to lead or drag a person to a point nearly beneath the object and then to scramble to his shoulder and to reach from it. Koehler reports the amus- ing incident of an assistant who, when being used in this way by a chimpanzee, stooped over just as the animal was about to grasp its coveted prize. Thus thwarted, the chimpanzee, cha- grined and irritated, dropped to the ground and tried hard to push the man into an upright posi- tion. The combination of resentment, anger, eagerness, and determination to get the coveted object is described as ludicrous. The writer, in testing a young orang-utan, pre- sented another type of situation which gave op- portunity for the use of a stick. A long box, just large enough in diameter to admit the arm of the animal, was securely fastened to the floor of the cage. Remote from the box were two sticks, either of which was long enough to reach through the box. When everything was in readiness for an experiment a banana was quickly placed in the middle of the box, the lid closed and securely fastened, and the orang-utan given opportunity 110 ALMOST HUMAN to try to get the fruit by such device as it might command. Since the banana was beyond arm’s reach, the only possibilities obvious to the ob- server were either to break the box open or to use one of the available sticks to push the banana out. The orang-utan tried the first method, to its entire dissatisfaction. It then had recourse to the stick and with fair directness and definite- ness used it to get the reward. Similar tests have yielded positive results with the young chim- panzees also. Koehler tells of the use by young chimpanzees of a short stick to pull in a longer stick, which in turn was used to reach a desired bit of food. This of course is a very much more complicated procedure than the use of a single stick, and pre- sumably indicates corresponding complication of experience. But still more significant, and more surprising to the experimenter, is the use of two sticks as one. The writer has never tried this particular test, but Koehler records that one of his chimpanzees, when provided with two pieces of bamboo, the one of smaller diameter than the other and neither long enough to reach the reward which lay outside the cage, after some futile effort succeeded in fitting the smaller stick into the larger, fishing-rod fashion, thus either accidentally or intentionally constructing an adequate tool which was used promptly and ef- ‘ACCIDENT OR INSIGHT? 111 fectually. A variation of this same experiment yielded even more surprising results. In this case the smaller stick was somewhat too large to fit into the larger one. Having discovered this fact, the animal chewed off the end sufficiently to enable it to fit the two pieces together. These tests indicate some ability to construct or adapt a suitable tool. Many other interesting and important varia- tions of the stick experiment have been tried, sometimes with positive, sometimes with negative results, for there are marked individual differ- ences and an animal which succeeds in one test may fail utterly in another. Even in this they are not unlike us. Especially Koehler has used a type of test which he calls the Umweg or roundabout-course test. This involves finding something hidden which must be either remembered or otherwise represented. A simple example is the case of taking the animal into a room by a route with which it is entirely unfamiliar or only partially familiar, and allowing it to see a banana thrown from the window. Adaptive behavior necessi- tates following a path, to get the banana, which is dictated by some sort of memory or idea of its location. It is known that the dog can do this, within limits, and it has been demonstrated that the same is true of the chimpanzee. 112 ALMOST HUMAN Somewhat similar is Koehler’s test in which the object to be used as a tool is hidden from the animal. For example, a ladder or a pole, in- stead of being in the cage and within sight of the reward, was placed in the corridor through which the animal was led to the cage for its test. The point, of course, was to discover whether the animal would notice the ladder and, on discover- ing its need, recall and return for it. This ac- tually happened in some instances. Similar in many ways to the stick tests and their variations is the use of objects with which to build. Both the chimpanzee and the orang- utan will drag a box or other similar object be- neath a suspended banana in order to climb upon and reach from it. The use of two or more boxes placed one upon another is a wholly different matter, yet in this test, as well as in the simpler one, some apes succeed. Again, Koehler and the writer have observed young chimpanzees, with- out any assistance whatever from their compan- ions or from the experimenter, suddenly abandon an attempt to get the reward from one box and place a second box on the first, thus achieving sufficient elevation to get the reward. Once the box-piling idea has appeared, the animal will stack boxes indefinitely. Some of Koehler’s pictures show as many as four in series and a VISSOAU “MOOSOW ‘AYOLVUORVI UIAHL NI SLHOM ‘SUYW GNV INOI SIYOM ‘sayy fo uoisstumasag Kg By permission of Mrs. Kohts MRS. KOHTS AND HER CHIMPANZEE IONI ACCIDENT OR INSIGHT? 113 number of chimpanzees codperating in the task of building. Oddly enough, when the young chimpanzee is trying to reach a prize by this process of building, it often will use quite inappropriate objects, such as blankets or other things which will not hold their shape satisfactorily. Analogous to this be- havior is the tendency to throw things toward the reward if it cannot be reached with them. I have seen a young orang-utan seize a box from which it could not reach the suspended banana and, holding it from the floor as high as it could reach, try to climb upon it in mid-air. Mrs. Kohts trained her young chimpanzee to match sample objects. Thus by a very simple method of experimentation she was able to dem- onstrate the animal’s ability to distinguish ob- jects which differed in color or in degree of light- ness, size, shape, and other respects. These different characteristics, of course, had to be studied separately. The experimenter, when the animal had been thoroughly trained to this pro- cedure, held out a sample object and the animal, looking at it, selected from several objects on the table before it one which was identical and handed it over. In this type of experiment the animal showed a certain limited power of gen- eralization. It not only got the idea of match- 114 ALMOST HUMAN ing the sample, but it learned to concentrate on certain characteristics of the objects to the ne- glect of others. Thus if the color green were to be matched, difference in shape, size, weight, brightness, and lightness would not necessarily confuse it. When Mrs. Kohts tried to find out how long the visual impression or image of the sample could be held in mind, she discovered that up to fifteen seconds after the sample was removed from sight the chimpanzee could match it success- fully, but when the interval was much longer he usually failed. Such evidence as we have seems to indicate that the child who cannot yet talk does not succeed after a longer interval of de- lay than does the chimpanzee. As adults we are able to hold the memory of the sample indefin- itely; not so, apparently, the human infant and the anthropoid ape. Mrs. Kohts’s line of inquiry certainly will be followed eagerly by other in- vestigators, for the comparison of man and ape in delayed reactions is sure to yield exception- ally interesting and significant results. Sustained effort to study ideational behavior under rigidly controlled experimental conditions was made by the writer with a young orang-utan. Because of its complicated nature the experiment cannot be described in detail. It involved the selection of one object from among a series of ACCIDENT OR INSIGHT? 115 identical objects, the one to be chosen being dis- tinguished by the presence of a reward. The ob- ject which would yield reward was defined by the experimenter in terms of its spatial relation in the series; as for example, the middle object of the series; the first object to the left of the mid- dle; the first object to the right of the middle; the first at one end of the series; or alternately, the first at the left end and the first at the right end. Inthe experiment some one definition, such, for example, as the middle object of the series, was chosen and consistently adhered to, so that the animal time after time was given opportunity to choose from a variable group of objects, the right one of which always bore precisely the same relation to the others; for example, the middle ob- ject. The question to be decided experimentally was whether the orang-utan could discover the correct and only basis for choice, namely, the re- lation of middleness. In this experiment two monkeys, as well as the orang-utan, were used. Hach monkey succeeded in solving within a few days two such problems as have been mentioned. The orang-utan, however, worked day after day with no indication of im- provement. He exhibited extreme discourage- ment and reluctance to work. Nevertheless, for the reward which he ultimately got, often after a great many wrong choices, he persisted in his 116 ALMOST HUMAN efforts. The problem on which he worked was the selection of the first object at the left end of the series. It must be remembered that this might, in each succeeding trial, be a different ob- ject, since the total number of objects varied from trial to trial. On the twenty-third day of work in this experiment the orang-utan made more mis- takes than usual and gave no signs of approach- ing solution of the problem. The next day he chose correctly every time. In some mysterious way he had solved the problem overnight. Whereas the monkeys learned gradually, the orang-utan solved his problem suddenly. The difference in behavior and in the curves of learn- ing suggest the question: Is this a matter of contrast between learning by gradual elimina- tion of errors (trial and error) and learning idea- tionally with insight? Results of many experi- ments subsequently made by both Koehler and the writer with chimpanzees virtually confirm the conclusion that the orang-utan solved his prob- lem ideationally. Unfortunately, no one has yet tested the chimpanzee by this method, but such methods as have been used by the observers whose work this chapter presents have revealed cases of the sudden solution of problems. Success in solving a problem is not the only possible indication of insight. Indeed, it may be achieved without insight, for there are several IONI MATCHING COLORS . Kohts By permission of Mr: IONI MATCHING A SAMPLE OBJECT ACCIDENT OR INSIGHT? Li? known methods or manners of acquiring habits and adapting to situations. Years ago it was Errors 8 6 4 Sobke 2 0 8 6 ; Skirr2 2 0 8 6 Julius 4 2 0 Trials 50 100 150 200 250 300 “CURVES OF LEARNING FOR MULTIPLE CHOICE PROBLEM” shown that some mammals often, if not usually, solve novel problems by the selection of useful acts from among a multitude of random or im- perfectly directed movements. This has been called learning by trial and error. Success is apparently accidental, but where a movement yields a desired result it tends to get itself re- 118 ALMOST HUMAN peated, whereas useless movements gradually disappear. Probably this method of adaptation, or of learning to meet problems effectively, is common in all animals, but certainly it is supple- mented by ideational learning in us and probably also, as will now be indicated more pointedly, in certain of the anthropoid apes. Behavior with insight is discovered rather by its characteristics than by its results. This seems to be equally true of man and chimpanzee. The child, standing before a problem box which it does not know how to operate, examines it intently with a puzzled air, suddenly smiles, looks relieved, and immediately attacks the mechanism in so definite and direct a way that understanding is evident. Insight comes ordinarily as a flash, not slowly and with sustained labor. It remains to direct attention to significant features of the behavior of the chimpanzee as it works in such tests as have been described. First in importance is the nature of attention. When confronted by a compelling problem, the animal often, although not uniformly, directs or focuses its attention on the situation and in turn on its conspicuous features or elements. I have seen a chimpanzee sitting motionless while it carefully inspected or sized up the situation of which the problem was a part. Sometimes at- tention would be concentrated on the reward and ACCIDENT OR INSIGHT? 119 its immediate surroundings for several seconds, and often the reward itself would be kept in mind even for minutes. This degree of direction and concentration of attention is unusual in animals and it inevitably suggests thoughtful- ness. To be sure, the apes, like the monkeys, are quickly fatigued by sustained attention and soon become discouraged if they do not succeed with their problem. Sometimes when annoyed by failure, they will yawn persistently; at other times they will become angry and vent their rage on whatever happens to be within reach. In all of these attentional respects they are very much like the young child. The activity of the animal, when it strongly desires to solve a problem, may be definite and persistently followed. At times there appear series of acts, the parts of which are performed with obviously predetermined relation to the end result. The action-pattern in this case appears to be determined by the reward which the an- imal has in view, and from the outset it performs the unit acts as though they were elements in a whole which, as Koehler remarks, is greater than the sum of its parts. It has also been noted that a method of at- tempted solution of a problem which is not suc- cessful may be abandoned suddenly and utterly for another sort of activity which is seemingly 120 ALMOST HUMAN quite independent and has in common with the first only its possible relation to the goal. At times such sudden change in method indicates dis- couragement, but quite as frequently it is, instead, the trial of a new series of acts which may prove successful. Significant and impressive is the pause which at times occurs between activities. Frequently I have seen a young chimpanzee, after trying in vain to get its reward by one method, sit down and reéxamine the situation as though taking stock of its former efforts and try- ing to decide what to do next. Usually this pause, for what looks amazingly like considera- tion or reflection, is followed by an especially vigorous and determined attack on the problem. More startling by far than the quick passage from one method to another, the definiteness of acts, or the pauses between efforts, is the sudden solution of problems. All who have studied ex- perimentally the adaptive behavior of the great apes have noted this characteristic. Frequently, although not in all individuals or in all problems, correct and adequate solution is achieved without warning and almost instantly. It may have been preceded by the trial of ineffective methods or by such trial and periods of quiescence. But in the end success has been achieved with a suddenness that brings vividly to mind our own adult experi- PORTRAIT OF JULIUS THE ORANG-UTAN He probably was about five years old , AS USED OR AOS) A LO; ‘C YERKES MULTIPLE-CHOICE APPAR IA ALIF N MONTEC FOR PRIMATES I ACCIDENT OR INSIGHT? 121 ences of insight and the behavior of the child when it sees through a problem. In this case seeing is believing. It is next to impossible to describe adequately the behavior of the ape in solving some novel problem. If one judges merely by the result, one has only a frac- tion of the significant signs of insight. Those who long have studied animals which learn only by the method of trial and error can scarcely be expected to believe the statements of this chapter. Yet if one sums up as objectively as may be the results of the observations and conclusions of the several psychologists who have diligently studied the behavior of the great apes, he must inevitably say that the evidence for. the solution of problems ideationally is now both abundant and convinc- ing. The behavior of the chimpanzee speaks for degrees and kinds of insight or understanding which so illumine the test situation as to render it immediately soluble. But it must immediately be added, with emphasis, that there are gifted and stupid individuals among apes as among men; there are good and bad days; favorable and unfavorable conditions both within and without; and above all, there are natural and unnatural experimental situations. The latter may be of such character that it is wholly unreasonable to expect the animal to succeed. 122 ALMOST HUMAN Sharper contrast it would be difficult to imagine than between the relatively blind and seemingly purposeless trial and error activity, which has been described by Thorndike as typical for the cat when it faces novel problems, and the defi- nitely directed and apparently thoughtful be- havior of the chimpanzee. The answer to our principal problem has been given. The great apes exhibit ideational behavior; they act with insight. It remains for further patient, critical research to analyze this behavior more ade- quately and to compare it with our own action under identical conditions. CHAPTER 7 AFFECTION, SYMPATHY, AND RELATED SOCIAL EXPERIENCES | ae the purposes of this story it is sufficient to treat the emotions and social relations in two groups: those which are directed primarily toward other individuals or objeects—otherward feelings—properly called the tender emotions, and those which are directed selfward and might well be thought of as the tough emotions. Con- spicuous in the former group are feelings of affection, sympathy, and pity; in the latter anx- iety, fear, anger, rage, resentment, and hatred. Intermediate but more often appearing in con- nection with the tender emotions is jealousy. Now, it happens that the primates exhibit in varying forms the principal types of emotion which appear in man. From the monkeys to the great apes they become more and more strikingly like human expressions, so that with some of the types of monkey and especially with the great apes we gain an almost uncomfortable feeling of kinship. It is not at all surprising that scientists should feel that the chimpanzee is more nearly 123 124 ALMOST HUMAN human in its emotional life than in any other way. Madam Abreu’s interest and attitude indicate a similar conclusion. As in the previous chapter, observations from Quinta Palatino are in point as illustrations of the tender and related emotions in the great apes. The conclusion of the story partially related in an earlier chapter about the escape and re- capture of Chimpita and Cucusa is as follows: Chimpita, having taken from the guard the chain with which he was to be bound and thrown it away, took safe refuge in a mango-tree and re- fused to come to his keepers. ‘‘So,’’ says Madam Abreu, ‘‘I went to the tree and, speaking to him, pretended that I was injured in the arm and suffering. Immediately, on seeing that I was in trouble, he jumped from the tree, and com- ing to me held my arm and kissed it strongly. And so we were able to catch him.’’ Of similar import is this tale of the chimpanzee Mimosa who, oddly enough, acted as nursemaid for Cucusa and took care of the baby Anuma: ‘¢One day when she was left alone in the cage with the baby, she opened the door and, taking Anuma, went away. A negro servant who went to seek the animals found them eating vegetables in a garden. Instead of running to try to capture Mimosa, he talked to her, at the same time pre- tending that he was lame and could not run after TENDER EMOTIONS 125 her. The animal looked at him inquiringly, then came and permitted him to put the chain on her.’’ Madam Abreu has many and varied stories of the affection and sympathy of the animals for her and other persons whom they like. These stories, although they may not convince the skep- tic, surely are indicative of the quality of mind and social relations in these creatures. Speaking of the more lowly primates, Madam Abreu remarked: ‘‘My first monkey, a full-grown female ma- caque, was very affectionate with me, but also very jealous of me. I think jealousy in the mon- keys depends rather on the make-up of the species or the individuals than on the sex. Jealousy and vengeance are the two capital sentiments with monkeys, but this is not true with chimpanzees, for in them disinterested affection and sympathy are often seen.”’ The story has been told of the baby baboon who tended and fed his sick father. Quinta Palatino supplies many other interesting incidents from the affective life of these somewhat unprepossess- ing monkeys. In their family life, certainly, they show affection between parents and offspring; yet the male is notoriously jealous of his mate, and as their owner relates, speaking of one indi- vidual in which this behavior was particularly striking : 126 ALMOST HUMAN ‘‘The baboon always conceals his wife when any man approaches his cage. I even had a priest come to test whether he would be able to tell the difference, since the priest wears long robes like a woman’s dress, but the baboon knew the differ- ence.’’ This is merely an extreme instance of a type of behavior which may be observed almost any day among the baboons, monkeys, and, in less degree, the great apes of the Abreu collection. Caged together were a pair of baboons and their several-months-old baby. For some time it was observed that the father was unkind to the baby, treating it roughly and occasionally biting it. Presently this became so serious that the little one’s safety was in danger, so it was taken away from the parents and placed in a cage by itself. A little while later the male was one morning dis- covered to have lost an eye, apparently by having it torn with teeth or hands by his companion. No one saw the accident, but there was nothing in or about the cage except the other animal to stand as cause. Previously the male had been aggres- sive and domineering, now he was meekness itself, and the female became ruler of the cage. When the animals were fed she took all she wanted be- fore giving him a chance at any. This incident, in Madam Abreu’s opinion, ex- hibits the emotion of affection, especially as be- TENDER EMOTIONS 127 tween mother and child, of jealousy on the part of the male, and of vengeance on the part of the female, for she believes that the mother, being dis- tressed and angered by the ill treatment which her offspring received from its father, resented his behavior, and that after the baby had been taken away from them, she avenged her wrongs by tear- ing out his eye. No one can guarantee the cor- rectness of this interpretation, but the more inti- mate one is with the daily life and social relations of these creatures the better qualified he should be to understand and interpret their behavior. Other comment would seem futile. The facts are presented not merely for their immediate value to the reader but to suggest problems for further in- quiry—questions of fact and interpretation which are capable of definite and accurate determina- tion. The attachment of the female primate to her young has often been observed and recorded. Parental emotion is more impressive in the pri- mates than in any other type of animal, and in- creasingly so from the lower monkey-like ani- mals to the great apes. No monkey mother will ordinarily allow a baby, even though it be dead, to be taken from her or to be removed from the cage. The writer has himself observed this and he has verification of the essential features of behavior from other persons. There are several 128 ALMOST HUMAN experiences at Quinta Palatino which are perti- nent. One only may be related: ‘¢When Cucusa’s second baby was born, Anuma was about three years old. With the baby he was gentle and affectionate as could be, taking care of it and playing with it without interference from the mother. When the mother became ill the © baby was affected and shortly died. Cucusa would not let us take away the baby, so I con- trived to put a cord around its neck and to con- ceal it so that the mother should not notice any- thing unusual. Then I began to play with Cu- cusa, to caress her, and to divert her attention from the little one. When I saw my opportunity I signaled to my helpers and they, jerking the cord, pulled the body of the baby from Cucusa’s arms. She was not holding it very tightly, so we succeeded in this way in getting it from her. She cried and cried and I did my best to console her.”’ It is frequently related of monkeys and apes that they have good memories, especially for per- sons and objects that have injured or offended them. Many are the stories of delayed vengeance or revenge. But on the other side of the ledger are memories such as the following, which we owe to Madam Abreu: ‘‘Once when I returned to my home from France, I had been away from my monkeys for many months. When I arrived at Quinta Pala- Za By permission of New York Zoélogical Society SERIOUSNESS IN THE GORILLA The gorilla and the orang-utan appear to take life’s problems much more seriously than does the chimpanzee Courtesy of Mr. iige Russell CHIMPANZEE PREOCCUPATION This domestic scene is not intended as an advertisement of Kim! The little animals Chim and Panzee were so inordinately fond of this natural beverage that it seemed appropriate to associate a Klim-can with them, TENDER EMOTIONS 129 tino the animals screamed so that I could scarcely bear it. Cucusa, who was there, did not recog- nize me at first. For a while she looked at me in- tently. Then suddenly she jumped to me and caressed me.’’ That affection and jealousy are intimately asso- ciated in the primates is well known. Many in- stances have been reported of monkeys and apes, because of jealousy, biting their keepers or others of whom they are fond. This has been observed several times by the writer as well as by Madam Abreu, who has herself repeatedly suffered from this natural weakness in her pets. To give atten- tion to one member of a family to the exclusion of another may be quite sufficient to provoke uncon- trollable jealousy. One day at Quinta Palatino a young lady who was fond of monkeys and evi- dently well liked by them, was petting a tame, gentle, good-natured male capuchin. Suddenly a little female which was supposed to be no less gentle and friendly, bit her hand. Afterward she would not look her victim in the eye. Such be- havior is common, but often its causes and condi- tions are unobserved or misunderstood, and what is primarily an expression of jealousy is attri- buted to anger or maliciousness. The great apes, apparently, are quite as sub- ject to jealousy, at least early in life, as are the monkeys. Frequently they will strike or bite 130 ALMOST HUMAN their friends because of what must appear to them slights or neglect. I recall vividly a little boy playing with a pair of chimpanzees not more than three or four years old. Both were friendly, but the male, being more active and playful, monopo- lized the boy’s attention. Suddenly the little fe- male, who had been sitting at one side neglected but watching intently, rushed at the boy when he came within reach and bit him on the hand. When punished, she received the discipline meekly and without apparent resentment. The great apes, and indeed also the monkeys, appreciate kindness and develop varied ways of expressing themselves. We may consider espe- cially those of the chimpanzee. In these animals love and sympathy, resentment, fear, and delight and joy are registered by facial expression, atti- tude, and action. The chimpanzee smiles and also laughs, thus clearly indicating even to the casual observer his satisfaction. Expressions of joy are most common in play; yet the animal may smile or laugh when tickled, or when offered food to which it happens to be especially partial. Any day at Quinta Palatino one might register in mem- ory or on a photographic plate the facial and bod- ily expressions of several of the principal tender emotions. Impressive indeed is the thoughtfulness of the ordinarily care-free and irresponsible little chim- TENDER EMOTIONS 131 panzee for ill or injured companions. In the Abreu collection there was for a while opportunity to observe the social relations of three individuals whose age certainly was not above five years. In the same cage were a little male and two fe- males, one of the latter mortally ill. She was so ill that much of the time she lay on the floor of the cage in the sunlight, listless and pathetic. There was excellent opportunity to observe the attitude of her lively companions toward this helpless invalid. In all their boisterous play they scrupulously avoided disturbing her, and, in fact, seldom touched her as they climbed, jumped, or ran about the cage. Now and then one or the other would go to her and touch her gently or caress her; or again one of them, fatigued or worsted in some game, would obviously seek ref- uge and respite by going close to her. In this position safety from disturbance was assured. A certain solicitude, sympathy, and pity, as well as almost human expression of consideration were thus manifested by these little creatures. Perhaps in the same connection the story of Mimosa, the chimpanzee nursemaid, is significant. It will be recalled that this mature female took care of a baby not her own, and apparently treated it with affection and devotion. Many indeed are the examples of sympathetic relations among themselves that this unique col- 132 ALMOST HUMAN ony of primates has offered. More cannot be cited here. Of instances of sympathy with persons there is no lack. The following story serves at once to illustrate individuality of temperament and sym- pathetic behavior: ‘‘T was traveling on the sea. My chimpanzees Chimpita and Cucusa were with me and also my negro servant Andres and his wife. She was very seasick. JI brought the chimpanzees into her cabin. The male sat entirely quiet, without making any disturbance. He watched the sick woman and seemed to feel concern for her. But Cucusa paid no attention whatever as ae played about the cabin. ‘‘And,’’? adds Madam Abreu, ‘‘I have never seen a chimpanzee seasick.”’ Temperamental differences between individuals are everywhere noticeable. Yet too often it is impossible to know whether these differences are attributable to species, sex, or age, for it is rarely indeed that the observer knows the animal’s age in addition to its sex, and can safely characterize the species. It is fortunate that in the Abreu chimpanzee colony are three individuals about whom much, although not all, that we might wish to know is known. They are Jimmy, the old male, Anuma, his nearly mature son, and Lita, his little daughter. Ten years ago Jimmy was described TENDER EMOTIONS 133 by an unprejudiced anthropologist as ‘‘irascible and wild.’’ Anuma, then a new-born infant, might now be characterized as good-tempered and tame. Although one might naturally expect two grown males to exhibit hostility, Jimmy and Anuma seem to be on the best of terms. We are told that once when Anuma accidentally escaped from his cage, to the horror of his keepers he went immediately to the cage of Jimmy and sought an interview! Instead of attacking him viciously as had been feared, Jimmy accepted him as a long-absent child and treated him with the utmost friendliness and with such expressions of affection as are appropriate to a somewhat morose and stolid male. Jimmy in essential respects, is the wild male of the species; Anuma, the domesticated. The latter, ike some people, seems to be interested in almost everything human; but his father, if per- chance interested in man and his doings, scorns to show his concern. It is almost unbelievable that Anuma should in a score of years become a counterpart of his father. Yet no one knows what age or untoward conditions of life might do to alter his disposition and his uniformly friendly attitude toward humanity. As one observes these two specimens of great ape in their daily cage life, he inevitably falls to wondering what might happen if Anuma’s domes- 134 ALMOST HUMAN tication were continued for several generations. Would or would not this almost human type of ape become a thoroughly docile creature and a willing servant of man? Surely the contrast be- tween Anuma and Jimmy is encouraging. Anuma is not malicious. It is told of him that he once bit Andres severely, but when whipped for this offense by Madam Abreu and Andres, he took his punishment without resistance or evidence of re- sentment. How fascinating would be an accurate record of the life history of this animal! Never before, it is entirely safe to say, has a chimpanzee been brought up under conditions so favorable to physical and mental development and health- fulness. Yet Anuma does not talk, and his ac- complishments, despite his ten years of intimate association with devoted human attendants, barely equal those of the average two-year-old child. The infant ape, or at least the infant chimpan- zee, might almost be thought to have taken lessons from some of its human contemporaries. Of the baby Lita, Madam Abreu says: ‘‘When I did not put sugar in the baby’s milk she would not take it and tried to throw away the glass. Then when I put in some sugar she took it and offered to give me a kiss to thank me.”’ Such behavior instead of seeming almost human might very well be human. Certainly many per- sons unfamiliar with the great apes will doubt the TENDER EMOTIONS 135 facts. The writer, having himself observed strik- ingly similar behavior in young apes and know- ing full well that they are capable of precisely such emotional expressions as Madam Abreu de- scribes, accepts her statement with assurance of its correctness. It is entirely characteristic of the chimpanzee baby and adolescent to exhibit dis- like, disapproval, or resentment, and on the other hand approval, delight, and appreciation. Whether responding to their parents or their human friends and attendants, they act out their feelings fully and frankly. To what extent their expressions of emotion may be influenced by hu- man association we cannot at present say. But the probability is that the essential features of the expressions are characteristic of the species and that if to any considerable extent the animals ape man, it results merely in minor modification of emotional activity. Intimately related to the story of little Lita is Madam Abreu’s account of various ways in which her animals express their dissatisfaction with her or with the treatment which they receive. A common mode of expression is self-injury. The adolescent female chimpanzee Fifille, to whom her owner is exceedingly partial, seeks al- ways to take advantage of this fact by insisting on getting just what she wants to eat, and that promptly. To command attention and whatever 136 ALMOST HUMAN else she desires, she has developed the habit of beating with her side or back against the wall of her cage. Fru Fru, when provoked or disap- pointed, has been seen to strike her forehead on the wall or floor of her cage. These Abreu ob- servations can be matched not only from the ex- perience of the writer with chimpanzees and orang-utans but from records of child behavior. A young orang-utan, under systematic observa- tion for ideational behavior, when bothered by a problem or unable satisfactorily to meet the re- quirements of the situation, often would strike his head repeatedly and rather hard against the floor or wall of the room. In the same experiment a boy of some seven years who was having diffi- culty with one of the problems struck his forehead several times against the wall, at the same time re- marking somewhat apologetically that he must stir things up. Quite similarly young chimpanzees have been observed both at Quinta Palatino and elsewhere to beat the ground or floor of their cage with hands or feet or both when they were dissatisfied, anxious, or fearful. On some occasions this is seemingly done to attract attention, again to drive or frighten away disturbing objects. It may even be a preliminary to mock fighting. Yet another common method of expressing dis- satisfaction is to drop to the floor and, whirling TENDER EMOTIONS 137 about, scream loudly. This is a manifestation of dissatisfaction which, although appearing often when desired food or caresses are withheld, sug- gests rather the tough than the tender emotions. It remains to exemplify certain of the tender emotions by noting the family life and relations of Jimmy, Monona, and Lita. The three for nearly two years have lived together harmoniously in a large outdoor cage. It is divided into two parts by a sturdy partition and on occasion Jimmy has to be isolated in order to protect Monona and Lita from over-excitement and possible injury, for the old male, always self-assertive, is some- times grossly domineering. From time to time and especially when male visitors approach the family domain, he breaks into a tantrum, growl- ing, yelling, rushing about the cage, shaking things violently and threatening Monona. Putting to- gether the facts about jealousy and modes of self- assertion already mentioned, one might safely as- sume that Jimmy’s violent spells are caused partially by jealousy. He has never been seen actually to injure either Monona or Lita, but the fear which his behavior induces in them naturally more than justifies the keepers in isolating him whenever he becomes violently demonstrative. Ordinarily the family life is tranquil and, judged by human standards, uneventful. The father is the progressive member of the group, the mother 138 ALMOST HUMAN the conservative, and the baby the venturesome. Both father and mother look to the welfare of their offspring. He seems to be charged espe- cially with the duty, or privilege, of amusing and exercising the little one; she with watching over it, protecting, and supplying it with food. It is not strictly true to say that the father plays with the baby and the mother takes care of it, for both on occasion may indulge in games, yet it seems reasonably well established that Jimmy more frequently plays with Lita, and also in more varied ways than does Monona. Perhaps if Jimmy were younger he would be more active and boisterous in his games. As it is, they ordinarily involve little activity on his part, although they may entail a great deal for Lita. The baby is much more friendly with human visitors than either her father or her mother. Her attitude is frank and trusting. But as she plays with persons beside the cage, either her mother, her father, or both, watch intently, ready to rush to her assistance if she is threatened with harm. It would seem, from all that has been learned about chimpanzees by Madam Abreu and all that the literature affords, that this is a typ- ical family. If it were resident in the wilds of Africa, there probably would be other children in the group, for it is well established that family - relations are long maintained. TENDER EMOTIONS 139 Of real generosity, instances are not abundant in Madam Abreu’s colony; yet they do appear, and most frequently, it seems, in parental and family relations. Jimmy, for instance, usually does not interfere with the food of Monona and Lita. Doubtless this is in part due to experiences for which his keepers are responsible. Anuma, going still farther, has been known to give up to his female companion, Mifita, a piece of fruit of which he is very fond. The little female was seen to beg for the food and Anuma to hand it to her. Whether this is characteristic of the male of the species in relation to the female, or whether Anuma’s partial domestication has altered his chimpanzee nature, one may not say. Certainly, if such behavior is common among the great apes, it must command our admiration and justify us in speculating about the possibility of highly de- veloped and variable forms of social relations among what may be ‘‘our contemporary ances- tors.”’ As one studies primate life at Quinta Palatino, observing now the behavior of adult apes, now that of infants or adolescents, one is increasingly impressed by the remarkable contrast attribut- able to age. The older individuals are much slowed up, relatively lethargic, stolid, inactive sit-by-the-fires, whereas the younger specimens are almost incessantly active. Play appears to 140 ALMOST HUMAN be their business in life. One of the large cement- floored cages is thoroughly washed out by the keeper and forthwith its chimpanzee tenants in- dulge in skating on hands, feet, or back. With running start they slide from end to end or side to side, often bumping into one another or drag- ging one another about. It is an exciting game in which sociability has a major réle. Rarely is there any ill temper manifested. Of tricks and mischief there is no lack, but even when slight discomfort or injury results from the bois- terous activity, it is not seriously resented. These statements of course apply to happy families, which means, among other things, that the ani- mals are of somewhere nearly the same age and size, and belong to the same or closely related species or type. Friendships develop and marked preferences which sometimes interfere with the even course of social relations, since partiality inevitably fosters jealousy, and that in turn tends to gain expression in peace-disturbing ways. Inadequate though it be, this picture of the tender aspect of the emotional life of the monkeys and great apes may give the reader reason to pause and reflect. Are we humans after all so nearly unique in our flaunted altruism? Are not the fundamentals, and even the essential qualities, of our unselfish feelings and actions existent in organisms which we too long have neglected to APING HIS HUMAN COMPANIONS Little Chim, here shown sitting in Rock Creek Park, Washington, D. C., book in hand, was very much interested in the book-handling habit of his human friends. Again and again he was seen to take a book and turn the pages carefully and neatly one by one, as though trying to discover our satisfaction in the operation. NOTHING BUT LEAVES! As Chim was being posed for this photograph in Rock Creek Park, he pulled a bunch of leaves from a nearby bush. TENDER EMOTIONS 141 study, and too often regarded with abhorrence or disgust? After all is said, the truth alone is worth seeking. Our desires, prejudices, and pref- erences are negligible and indeed often negatived by it. Perhaps the Abreu adventure in the rear- ing of primates may help to lift us somewhat above ourselves and enable us to see more clearly certain facts which bear on genetic relations, on education, and on social evolution. CHAPTER 8 FEAR, RAGE, RESENTMENT AND HATRED E are now to consider emotions which are coupled with aggressive or defensive be- havior. They may have altruistic ends, but they are more likely to be associated with selfish modes of response. In animals as contrasted with man they are likely to be somewhat more conspicuous and impressive than the tender emotions and to give an unwarrantable impression that they are stronger, more frequent in occurrence, and play a more important role in the life of the animal than the latter. This impression is corrected by con- tinued observation and intimate acquaintance with the daily life of the animals. It is the nat- ural result of the circumstances which usually attract human attention to animal behavior. Nevertheless, it is too obvious for discussion that fear, anger, and related emotional responses are both common and important throughout the order primates. We shall contend merely that they are neither more nor less so in other primates than in man. 142 TOUGH EMOTIONS 143 As illustrating anger, resentment, and seeming repentance in monkeys and apes, Madam Abreu presents the following observations: The chimpanzee Chimpita, she states, became much interested in a ‘‘blonde cook”’ at Quinta Palatino whom, from his cage, he could see at work in the kitchen. As the interest became dis- turbing, it was decided that the door should be screened. The screen was put up by a man who up to that time had been one of Chimpita’s close friends. The animal saw him put it up. A few days later the man went to take Chimpita from the cage for a ride on his bicycle. As they passed the kitchen door the chimpanzee stopped and tried to look in. The man scolded him and com- manded him to go on. Chimpita obeyed. When they returned to the cage the man went in to loosen the chain which was always placed on Chimpita when he was taken out for exercise. He closed the door behind him when he entered the cage. As soon as the animal saw that he was free he jumped at the man and attacked him vici- ously. The man was very quick and adroit and succeeded in holding the animal off from him until help came and he was enabled to escape. He had a revolver with him, but refused to use it. Before this incident, as has been stated, Chimpita was fond of this man, but thereafter he would not look him in the eye. When the man would ap- 144 ALMOST HUMAN proach to pet him or try to give him food, he would neither eat the food nor look at him. This is clearly enough a case of anger and re- sentment provoked by interference with strongly affective action. Whether or not the later be- havior toward the man indicates resentment, is by no means clear. Possibly it indicates instead smoldering resentment coupled with fear. A similar story is told of a little monkey which had been brought to Madam Abreu by one of her friends to be kept for her. This lady was one day feeding the monkey and in doing so neglected to feed another monkey which was at hand and which belonged to Madam Abreu. The latter ani- mal became angry and bit the lady’s finger. She, however, being familiar with animals and fond of them, went to it as soon as her wound had been dressed and tried to make up with it saying: ‘‘Why did you bite me? You were right, I was wrong. I did not give you anything to eat. Come, I will feed you.’’ But the animal would not take food from her and refused even to look at her. Behavior similar to this may be observed fre- quently at Quinta Palatino and it can scarcely be doubted to indicate the selfward type of emotional experience. Clearly the animals resent neglect quite as bitterly as unkind treatment. Many stories are on record of lasting resentment and JACKITO OBJECTS TO BEING BOSSED We were trying to get a portrait of Jackito when this accident happened. Quite unintentionally he did us a good turn, for this picture shows an expression of anger and the tuft of white hair at the end of the little male’s spine which else- where has been described as typical of the young female chimpanzee. spofqo o[dures yozyew 0} vozuedurryo 91441] styy SBUIUII} Ul SauIT} SulyIOxe ou0s pey sAey jsnut AjoIns sjyyoy ‘sIpy UAONV SUALSIOGA INOI SIYOM ‘sayy fo uoissimaag KG TOUGH EMOTIONS 145 revenge. There are none such recorded by Madam Abreu, but there is no adequate reason to doubt the fact of memory for social relations involving the tough emotions, since it is well recognized in case of the tender emotions. In- deed, it may well be that the animals remember better those whom they consider their enemies than they do their friends. Unfortunately, we have no measure of the duration of memory. Already in a previous chapter the story has been told of unhappy relations in a baboon fam- ily. The male, undoubtedly jealous of the baby, became cruel and vindictive. The mother, an- gered by this behavior and resentful, finally avenged the wrongs of her child by attacking the father. Such, at any rate, is Madam Abreu’s in- terpretation of the behavior which was observed. The behavior itself is a matter of fact; the inter- pretation may be partially or wholly incorrect. But this and other incidents from Quinta Pala- tino well substantiate the conviction that baboons are subject to anger and resentment as well as to affection, associated jealousy, and fear. There are various indications that both the monkeys and the apes have natural and acquired dislikes. Undoubtedly these emotional attitudes would be entirely intelligible to us if the history of the animal and its experiences were fully known. We observe that some people are wel- 146 ALMOST HUMAN comed as friends and others avoided, that one’s attitude and acts toward an animal very quickly establish an emotional relation of friendliness or enmity. On this score it is peculiarly interesting to observe the quickness and the keenness of the animals in detecting courage or timidity, frank- ness or deception, liking or dislike in persons. They are guided, we surmise, by observation of one’s acts and facial expression. The tone of voice, the manner of dress, the mode of making or receiving advances doubtless count largely in the animal’s estimate of a human acquaintance. Many times it has been observed at Quinta Palatino, and elsewhere, that monkeys and apes speedily take advantage of persons who are timid, and impose on them without limit. Once a mon- key or a great ape feels that it has the mastery, whether of members of its species or of persons, it can be curbed only by fear. The animals are quite as quick to detect frankness or deceit and to respond in accordance with their interests. The same applies to liking or disliking. Childlike, they almost immediately sense the attitude of a person toward them and behave accordingly. Hixperiences related by Juan Lescano illustrate what we have in mind. Sefior Lescano is in charge of Madam Abreu’s estate. When he first came to Quinta Palatino he set about getting ac- quainted with the collection of animals and win- TOUGH EMOTIONS 147 ning their friendship. One day he entered the cage in which the half-grown chimpanzee Mala- pulga was kept. Without evident provocation she bit him on the arm. Instantly, with his fist, he struck her a blow on the side of the head which sent her spinning. Her attitude changed with al- most tragic suddenness and she came to him cry- ing and holding up her arms to be comforted. He says she has never since offered to bite him. Malapulga, it is to be remembered, has an un- usually disagreeable disposition. Her reception of Leseano doubtless contributed substantially to her bad reputation. Yet it certainly does not rest entirely upon such unhappy incidents, for even the casual observer may note that her behavior toward members of her kind and toward human visitors is markedly different from that of most of her chimpanzee companions and on the whole tends strongly to disagreeableness. One of the most interesting problems for the biologist is the discovery of the causes or con- ditions for such behavior as Malapulga’s. When traits of temperament and character are thor- oughly understood, ways of modifying or controll- ing them may speedily be discovered. Then an uncompanionable person or chimpanzee may per- haps be made over according to plan. At present it is necessary to accept Malapulga as a peculiarly unattractive and uncompanionable chimpanzee. 148 ALMOST HUMAN Oddly enough, this is the case in spite of what looks like a splendid physique. She is a perfectly healthy, well-groomed, vigorous animal, but she behaves in a most reprehensibly unsocial or antisocial manner. We are sure that Lescano no less than others who have been brought into intimate relations with the little creature will agree in these reflections. A not dissimilar experience with Monona, the mother of Lita, is reported by Lescano. He went one day into Monona’s cage to give Lita some cherries. The father, Jimmy, was in an adjoining cage. When Lescano tried to feed Lita, Monona approached and bit his hand. Immediately he pursued her with a stick and punished her so that she cried. Jimmy, seeing and hearing the dis- turbance, beat savagely on the door between the cages and with his feet stamped the ground. Un- doubtedly he would have made a vicious attack on Lescano if he could have got at him. When the whipping was finished, Lescano stood and held out his hand to Monona. She came to him and kissed it. Never since has she tried to harm him. Lescano acted not only wisely toward the ani- mals but in the only way which would make him, instead of them, master of the situation. Had either Malapulga or Monona frightened and forced him to withdraw from the cage, he surely TOUGH EMOTIONS 149 would have been attacked on his next appearance, and probably never would have been safe from their aggression. It has been observed that even small monkeys, detecting in children or adults timidity or fear of them, delight in playing upon this emotional attitude. Even if they do not bite, they will chase timid persons or other animals. This happens in the best regulated of monkey and ape families and even the most good-natured, harmless individuals will amuse themselves by assuming mastery. The experiences of Lescano, which are cited merely illustratively and can be matched by all who have had intimate dealings with monkeys and apes, are of the utmost practical significance. If one is afraid of animals, it is wise to avoid them or to master thoroughly one’s timidity, for they, like children, quickly discover one’s atti- tude toward them and act accordingly. The rela- tion of these facts to human behavior is reason- ably obvious. Neither parent nor teacher can afford to permit a child to detect timidity, deceit- fulness, or dislike; for with detection, ability to direct or control and to command respect and af- fection either wanes or wholly disappears. Of the orang-utan Cachesita, a story illustrat- ing fear and repentance is told. The animal one day escaped from his cage and Madam Abreu and her servants pursued him through the estate. 150 ALMOST HUMAN Being a skilful climber, the orang-utan gracefully swung from tree to tree. It seemed almost im- possible to recapture him until he chose to descend to the ground, but his pursuers, following closely with sticks, frightened him and he finally came from the trees and was captured. The shouting, the barking of dogs, and the flourishing of the sticks evidently terrified him and he came to his pursuers like a culprit, and after being returned to his cage refused to look at any one. His owner believes his behavior indicated shame for what he had done. Probably his emotion was less simple, consisting, perhaps, of a mixture of fear, resentment, and shame. Already much has been said about the danger- ous old male chimpanzee, Jimmy. No one for years has ventured to approach him intimately, or even to feed or pet him except through an in- tervening barrier. It is Madam Abreu’s firm con- viction that he should not be trusted. Recently, however, she permitted a professional animal- trainer to apply his method of intimidation to both Jimmy and Anuma. The method consisted essentially in cowing the animals by rough and noisy attack on their cages, and firing, either into the air or directly toward the animal, a pistol loaded with blank cartridges. Especially signifi- cant for our interest in emotional characteristics are the differences in the behavior of Anuma and TOUGH EMOTIONS 151 his father Jimmy when thus approached by a strange man. Anumaé was cowed, and persistently tried to keep away from the animal-trainer by retreating _ to distant portions of his cage; but instead of be- ing terrified he quite evidently was excited as well as somewhat intimidated. Frequently he screamed or yelled. The explosions startled him, but he seemed to have no deep-seated fear either of the revolver or the sound which it produced. The disturbance caused by the animal-trainer stirred him so that he rushed about the cage and exhibited in varied ways excitement and anxiety. Presently the trainer approached the side of the cage and called Anuma to him. The ape came somewhat reluctantly, took food, and then crowded up against the cage wall so that he could be petted and could return the trainer’s caresses. After a time, Anuma, vigorously patting the trainer’s back, opened his mouth widely, and squealed with evident delight. That he felt kindly disposed toward the man who had tried to intimidate him was entirely clear, for in addition to patting him he extended his lips and tried to kiss him. Jimmy, when similarly approached in his re- mote cage, showed fear of the revolver itself as well as of the explosions and the noisy and rough attack of the trainer on his cage. He ran about seeking a hiding-place, constantly keeping his eye 152 ALMOST HUMAN on the trainer. The only parts of the cage in which he could conceal himself were sought. Whenever the revolver was discharged he seemed stricken with terror. Evidently he would have made away at top speed if he had been in the open. He also yelled loudly in response to each explo- sion. Although this performance was twice re- peated at intervals of a few days, the animal- trainersnever ventured to offer himself to Jimmy for friendly caresses as he had to Anuma. It is probable that Jimmy would have come to him for food if hungry; but whether or not he could safely have been trusted to exhibit affection rather than resentment, is difficult to say. At any rate, the animal-trainer, although he undertook the experi- ment with the intention of so far intimidating Jimmy that he would be able to enter his cage, did not carry out his plan. Briefly, Jimmy in expression of fear and terror seemed the wild animal; Anuma, the intimidated domesticated animal. Jimmy is afraid even of a camera pointed toward him; Anuma shows no alarm. One can but wonder whether in Jimmy’s case this is the result of experience in the wilds of Africa, or whether perchance during his life as a stage performer he was intimidated by the use of the pistol. Whereas Jimmy is easily stirred to anger, if not also to rage, and expresses himself in ways which are startling to the uninitiated TOUGH EMOTIONS 153 visitor, Anuma is less readily aroused and decid- edly less extreme in his expressions of emotion. Fear and anger are closely related, and a situa- tion which induces timidity, fear, or even terror will call forth anger, resentment, or rage if the animal sees that it has the advantage or mastery. The young chimpanzee faced by an unfamiliar animal or other object whose friendliness it can- not count on, is likely first of all to show timidity by trying to retreat without attracting attention. This failing, it may stand its ground, unwillingly but with bristling hair and tense muscles, waiting nervously for developments. If the fear-evoking object continues to approach, the ape presently becomes terror-stricken, makes a wild outcry, and either attacks or dashes for liberty. If, on the contrary, the aggressor shows signs of timidity and willingness to retreat, the animal is quick to take advantage of this change by act- ing as though angry. The hair assumes its nor- mal position and the animal may beat the ground with hands, feet, or both. It may even rush for- ward aggressively. Thus we see fear almost in- stantly replaced by anger, the difference in the situations being that in the first instance the ani- mal feels that it is in danger, whereas in the sec- ond it detects the chance for mastery. Hven very small chimpanzees—and the same is true of many other animals—strive to frighten away enemies 154 ALMOST HUMAN or intruders by assuming a formidable attitude which ordinarily would be indicative of anger. Already behavior has been described which clearly indicates dissatisfaction. The baby chim- panzee dashes to the ground the proffered cup of milk because the milk has not been sweetened, or it refuses food because given something for which it has no particular liking. Anger and rage are commonly expressed in young primates by self- injury or even self-mutilation: dashing the body about, striking the head against objects, scream- ing and crying, not in a helpless, pathetic way, but aggressively and with every other manifesta- tion of extreme resentment or rage. In some cases the lips may be drawn back, the jaws opened widely, and the animal may even attempt to bite the hand that feeds it. These are tricks of the young which evidently serve the useful purpose of getting what is desired. Such behavior is confined, so far as the writer knows, to the relations of the young monkey or ape to persons. It seems doubtful that such con- duct would achieve the desired end were the young animal dealing with its parents. Cases are not on record in which the father or mother chim- panzee humors its offspring by reacting kindly to such displays of temper. On the contrary, in- stances have been observed in which the parent TOUGH EMOTIONS 155 promptly punished by a vigorous cuff or by neg- lect such show of infantile insubordination. Per- haps here again the great apes have lessons for the human parent. Dominance and subordination are evident in every group of primates. Apparently there is no such thing as equality of status and opportunity. Leadership, mastery, control are manifest. So in their relations with persons, the monkeys and apes merely exhibit their natural aptitudes and types of social behavior. Ordinarily there is ag- gressive leadership in cage, colony, or family group. Domination may be by either sex, but dominance there must be, and instead of a single leader associated with individuals of relative equality, there is likely to be serial subordination. So that each individual secures in its social group the degree of opportunity for control and self- expression to which its characteristics and stage of development entitle it. Sometimes one won- ders whether this type of social organization might not be valuable for man. Temperamental sex and age differences in sus- ceptibility to the aggressive or tough emotions are conspicuous indeed in the Abreu primate col- lection. On the whole, the males exhibit jealousy more frequently than do the females, but on the other hand the female is at least as quick as the 156 ALMOST HUMAN male to take offense at undue attention by persons to mate or cage companions; and unlike the child, the monkey, if it has courage, is more likely to ex- press its jealousy vigorously by attack on the of- fending object than to sulk and nurse its injury. Housed in the same cage are the adolescent fe- male chimpanzees Malapulga and Sita. More strikingly contrasted temperaments it would be difficult to find even among persons. The one is antisocial, the other distinctly social. Malapulga represents the type of creature which commands allegiance through fear or not at all, whereas Sita commands it rather through affection. Thus in these animals as in ourselves may be observed from day to day the ability to develop or promote social relations on the basis of entirely different types of emotional attitude and expression. Where Malapulga would strike or bite, Sita would more likely caress or fondle. So temperamental differences are not necessarily sex-coupled and except on the basis of long and patient observa- tion it is wholly rash to attribute even marked in- dividual differences to species, sex, or age. Among other things, the particular experiences, fortunate or unfortunate, of the individual may be largely responsible for its temperamental traits or for their special manifestations. Conditions of development, status of health, the inroads of a disease, may be largely responsible for the exist- TOUGH EMOTIONS 157 ence or development of a particular trait of tem- perament or for aspects of docility. Characterized also by temperamental differ- ences which are illuminating, are the cage com- panions Jackito and Lu Lu. If Jackito were some- what smaller the visitor might mistake him for Lu Lu’s son. Certainly, she takes a motherly at- titude toward him and attempts to command his respectful and affectionate attention. Jackito has the most spritely and mischievous expression of any chimpanzee in his community. Also he lives up to his looks! A better subject for portraiture could scarcely be asked. He seems to delight in having his picture taken. He actually poses and even changes expression to suit the convenience of the photographer. It is entirely unnecessary to command him to keep quiet, for he seems flattered by the opportunity to face the camera. This was so unexpected and peculiar that it especially com- manded our attention. Lu Lu, by comparison, is stupid, sluggish, and lacking in resources for self-entertainment or the amusement of others. Hers is a somewhat color- less disposition. When teased by Jackito, who frequently refuses to let her approach him, she often loses her temper and after pursuing him vainly for a time cries from disappointment or chagrin. At such times it is not Jackito’s habit to come to her gently and comfort her, but, with 158 ALMOST HUMAN the thoughtlessness and lack of feeling of a mis- chievous boy, he is more likely to try to discover new ways of tormenting her. Cage-mate of these two contrasted animals is Blanquita the melancholy. If Jackito’s face is the brightest and most mischievous of the com- munity, certainly Blanquita’s is the saddest. One might infer from her habitual expression that she had lost her last friend. If she feels as badly as she looks, hers must be a miserable affective life. Any one who doubts the existence of extremely different characteristics in individual chimpan- zees need spend only a few hours before the cage of these animals to be convinced that they are quite as highly individual and quite as different in their traits of temperament and character, in their liability to and expression of tough and tender emotions as are we. One of the most impressive things about the emotional behavior of the great apes is their abil- ity to distinguish clearly between injuries which are wantonly inflicted by man and those which are incidental to efforts on their behalf. Commonly, although not uniformly, the animals submit them- selves readily to medical or surgical treatment when injured or ill. Frequently they do this even although made to suffer serious pain. Madam Abreu and others who have long been familiar with the ways of the great apes, testify not only TOUGH EMOTIONS 159 to their intelligent codperation in such situations but to their persistent gratitude. Already in- stances have been cited of such codperation by Madam Abreu’s chimpanzees. On the other hand, it is definitely known that they long remem- ber attack and injury. A person who has struck any one of the great apes without provocation or has perpetrated some practical joke which re- sulted in bodily injury, discomfort, or the annoy- ance of the animal, must look to his safety when within reach of the creature affronted. For in- sults no less than for kindnesses the memories of the animals seem long and their readiness to ex- press their emotional attitude almost human. There can be no doubt that a great deal of the resentment of persons toward lower animals, in- cluding monkeys and apes, is the result of mis- understanding or misinterpretation of their be- havior. One mortally offends such an animal perhaps quite unintentionally, and when it re- taliates one mistakes its behavior for wanton or vicious attack. This is commonly true in case of animal jealousy, but it applies also in bodily and affective injury. We habitually underestimate the degree of intelligence and the degree of emo- tional and social similarity to us of the chimpan- zee, orang-utan, and gorilla. A few days ago the newspapers reported that the little gorilla Sultan, owned by Miss Cunning- 160 ALMOST HUMAN ham, bit one of its attendants on the hand while being posed for a photograph. The evidence seems to indicate that he was greatly disturbed by the approach of strangers and held in memory a recent unpleasant photographic experience with a flash-light. What better could he do, then, than express his emotional condition by striking or biting the person who seemed to be immediately responsible for attempts at coercion? It is only fair to the primates of the Abreu col- ony, in concluding this description of emotional life, to emphasize the dominance of tender emo- tions. Despite popular report and belief, play- ful and affectionate expressions are far more common in the daily life of these animals than are the emotions which give rise to aggressive or de- fensive response in fighting or other relatively destructive modes of action. The animals differ most of all from us in being perfectly natural, and in acting out, with little if any disguise, their feelings and ideas. We humans, by contrast, sup- press, inhibit, disguise, and conceal emotions and thoughts. If a trained observer and thoroughly familiar with the great apes, one can fairly well infer their mental condition and attitude from their actions. But in the case of man it is far different. No wonder, then, that the monkeys and apes have been given a reputation which most persons consider bad! One might well contend TOUGH EMOTIONS 161 that it attaches equally to many persons and that only our unreasonable prejudice, based upon re- ligious or other grounds, could have given origin to our prevalent opinions concerning the other primates. Already it has been suggested that the dis- crepances in descriptions of the behavior of these animals may in many cases be due to differences in age, sex, species, or experience. This cer- tainly is true, and the contradictory or conflicting statements which are made by different authori- ties are doubtless due more frequently to differ- ence in material of observation than to mis- observation or careless description. Our gross ig- norance of primate temperament, intelligence, and character can be dispelled by careful research. It is a fascinating opportunity for those who, while learning valuable things about our relatives, would gain fresh insight into human behavior. Looking beyond the Abreu colony and the in- formation which it has yielded, one discovers from an abundant literature on the monkeys and apes that their emotional life has commanded the attention of many observers. ‘This raises the ex- pectation that our knowledge is therefore reason- ably complete and secure. Diligent reading shortly indicates, however, that it is superficial, inaccurate, and fragmentary. The writer hap- 162 ALMOST HUMAN pens to be fairly well acquainted with the great apes, as well as with the literature about them, and he feels safe in saying that the picture of the emotional life of these creatures drawn from Quinta Palatino is true to life and also entirely consistent with more detailed and technical de- scriptions to be found in scientific journals and books. The reader, nevertheless, may appreciate some confirmatory evidence. Mrs. Ladygin-Kohts (4), who in her laboratory in Moscow for some years studied the mental life of a young chimpanzee, has given an excellent ac- count of his emotional expressions. Her illus- trations, several of which have been borrowed for these chapters, are the best available. Referring especially to her little chimpanzee, Toni, Mrs. Kohts writes: The chief characteristics of the chimpanzee are his de- sire for locomotion, his need of play and of social inter- course. Fear is his constant companion. He is panic- stricken by anything which threatens his physical welfare and cowardly retires before an actual danger, but in case of forced competition he becomes violently and de- structively angry. Struggle is especially fierce for the possession of property, for freedom, and in defense against attack. He has an inclination for affection but does not show overmuch desire for caresses. His ego- tism often borders on despotism and tyranny when he finds no opposition, as for example, with children who TOUGH EMOTIONS 163 are smaller and weaker than himself. In such eases his animal instincts are fully unleashed. Of the positive qualities of the chimpanzee the first to be mentioned is his constant activity. Great curiosity is his chief impulse. He has fine power of observation and imitation, but embarrassment in experimenting re- sults from lack of patience in overcoming difficulties, rapid fatigue, and strong inclination for new impres- sions. It is the conviction of this authority—a convic- tion shared by Professor Wolfgang Koehler, who has made the most important of contributions to our knowledge of the mental life of the chimpan- zee, and by the writer also—that in its emotional life this creature very closely resembles man. In- dividuality is quite as impressive as in other or- ganisms, and those who know the great apes best use even the term personality. One of Koehler’s animals is thus interestingly characterized : This little male, some three years old, is a most un- usual animal, with chubby belly, beautiful face, sym- metrical head, pointed chin, and protruding eyes which seem always to demand something. His life is spent in chronie revolt. When he has not enough to eat, when children dare to come near him, when someone near him dares to leave him, when to-day in an experiment he cannot succeed as he did yesterday, he does not complain ; 164 ALMOST HUMAN he is indignant. He expresses his resentment by pound- ing both fists on the floor, hopping up and down and ex- hibiting marks of anger even to severe cramps in the glottis. He is a gifted egotist!* Such rough sketches of temperament, although fascinating, do scant justice to the individual. Nevertheless we recognize in them some of the characteristics which distinguish us humans and render individuality and personality valuable. Whether laughter and weeping, joy and rage are essentially the same in ape and man is a tech- nical, scientific problem, or even an assemblage of problems. Doubtless the facts might be stated simply and intelligibly if we knew them definitely ; but as the matter stands we have certain import- ant general information and impressions which constitute a start toward knowledge of emotional life in the primates. There can be no doubt that as research goes forward it will help us better to understand ourselves as well as the chimpanzee and its humbler relatives. 1 This is a free translation of the original German. CHAPTER 9 ANTHROPOID SPEECH AND ITS SIGNIFICANCE HERE is no lack of communication in the Abreu primate colony. On their part, owner and keepers talk much to, and little with, the monkeys and apes; and the animals in their vari- ous ways transfer their states of mind to one another. Time would enable the patient, trained, and skilled observer to discover the essentials of primate language at Quinta Palatino. But neither Madam Abreu nor the writer has well be- gun the task, much less completed it; therefore, this chapter is to be based upon the work of sev- eral observers. It is rather a summary of what is now known on the subject than a transcript from Cuban experience. Vocalization, speech, language are terms whose meaning we should agree upon at the outset. All of the primates have a rather elaborate vocal mechanism with which they can produce varied sounds. In the apes the vocal organs are similar to the human, and they are capable of producing sounds varying widely in pitch, quality, and vol- ume. The gorilla is notorious for the volume of 165 166 ALMOST HUMAN its voice, the gibbon and chimpanzee for the carry- ing and penetrating character of some of their vocalizations. Vocal sounds, however, are not necessarily speech. They may be simple and monotonous cries significant of emotional crises. Only when they constitute definite and somewhat complex systems of special sounds having ideational or emotional value, do we ordinarily call them speech. ‘To speak, then, is to vocalize with intent to express meanings, feelings, or both. Vocaliza- tion is inclusive of speech. It ranges from simple chirps or clicks to the indefinitely extensible imi- tative chatter of the parrot and human conversa- tion. Although most animals have voices which are used more or less frequently and effectively in emotional expression, few speak in the sense which we have given the term. Language, in turn, is inclusive of speech, for there are indeed many kinds, some of which do not require vocalization. Any system of symbols used to express ideas or feelings may serve as a language. Familiar examples are the finger and hand positions and movements formerly used extensively by deaf-mutes; pictographs used by various primitive peoples; hieroglyphics, and the various systems of writing which make use of modern alphabets. The signs, then, may be atti- tudes or movements of the person who is trying ANTHROPOID SPEECH 167 to express himself or they may be environmental objects or agencies. Ingenious children com- monly invent languages for their own amusement and use. In so doing they may employ gestures, _ written signs, objects natural or artificial, mechan- ically produced signs, or their own vocalizations. Man evidently has a special gift for the inven- tion and development of language as a means of communication. His mental growth and his ma- terial and social progress are conditioned to a marked degree by this almost unique gift. No other living animal approaches him in this re- spect, but it would be rash indeed to assert that no creature other than man has developed a lan- guage. Ants, in some ways the most highly de- veloped among animals, certainly have a system of sensory signs, probably in the main odors and contacts, which serves them much as sights and sounds serve us in establishing social contacts and in communicating significant information. Although there is no indication that they talk, there is very convincing evidence that they are able to communicate. The study of ant language is peculiarly alluring, and, in view of the interest which it has commanded, it seems strange that we do not know more about it. But this is not a general discussion of animal communication. The question which we set out to answer is: Does any primate, other than man, 168 ALMOST HUMAN talk? It would be difficult to find a primate which does not use its voice to obvious advantage in making itself understood. We must therefore in- quire how much it expresses and whether or not ideas as well as feelings are definitely indicated by sounds. To consider other than casually the vocalization or the speech of monkeys would take us far afield. Instead we shall concentrate on what has been learned about the vocal expressions of anthropoid apes and their significance. Garner (16), a widely known student of primate speech who devoted the better part of his life to noting, recording, analyzing, and imitating the vocalizations of monkeys and apes, offers in his books much excellent evidence of the existence of vocal language or speech in the monkeys as well as in the great apes. For several types he de- scribes sounds which seem to stand as words. In a given individual or species they may number from ten to a score. So definite are these vocal- izations and their meaning that Garner was able to communicate with the animals. Hence, he con- tends that monkeys and apes speak, and states that their vocal language differs from ours in complexity and degree of development but not in its purpose or use. As Garner was not adequately trained for his difficult research and failed to command the scien- tific resources of his time, his results have not ANTHROPOID SPEECH 169 been accepted generally by scientific authorities. It is nevertheless true that many of his observa- tions have been substantially verified, while some have been proved incorrect. Probably his en- thusiasm led him to exaggerate the degree of in- telligence, and the power of vocal communication, of his subjects. But the writer humbly confesses that the more he learns about the great apes and the lesser primates by direct observation as con- trasted with reading, the more facts and valuable suggestions he discovers in Garner’s writings. For several years, in their native habitat and also in France, Dr. Louis Boutan (7) studied the intellectual and affective behavior of gibbons, and also their vocal expressions. Unlike Garner, he comes to the conclusion that the speech of animals is quite different from our own, and instead of be- ing a true language is, as he terms it, a pseudo- language. In man there is a primary language of emotions which during infancy and early childhood serves to express the feelings. This early rudimentary language is directed by sense impressions, images, and affective experiences. In several important respects it is like the speech of monkeys and apes. Later the child learns to express vocally ideas as well as feelings, and gradually there develops ability to communicate with one’s fellows over a wide range of experience. Such is true speech in 170 ALMOST HUMAN man. In pseudo-language, as Boutan thinks of it, the sounds or other indicative signs are spon- taneous and innate or instinctive. By contrast, the sounds or signs which constitute the elements of a true language—such, for example, as human speech—are acquired or learned. This is pos- sible because of the social tradition which carries from generation to generation certain conven- tional sounds or other signs to which definite meaning is ascribed. Boutan, then, would say that human speech is acquired by the individual through imitation and tuition. Of course he would also admit that the individual has the power of inventing new forms of language. Whether or not he is right in his conviction that man alone possesses a true as compared with an instinctive vocal language, it remains for further research to decide. The writer suspects that the distinction is by no means so simple and clear-cut as Boutan makes out, and that both inheritance and individual ac- quisition contribute to languages, whatever their medium and their degree of development. The gibbon, according to Boutan, has the best singing voice of any anthropoid ape. Its calls are sometimes agreeable, but they are often too shrill and penetrating for comfort. For the indi- vidual which he most carefully studied, four groups of sounds are described. The first are ANTHROPOID SPEECH 171 those which seem to express a state of satisfac- tion or well-being; the second similarly express a state of discomfort or fear; the third group seems to be intermediate in value between the first and second, and the fourth indicates states of excitement. In each of these four categories there appear several sounds which one might nat- urally think of as words. Although Boutan’s gibbon, in the course of his investigation, adapted very satisfactorily to con- ditions of life in captivity and acquired many new and useful habits, no new sounds or words were learned. Such ability to express herself vocally as she had, seems to have been instinctive. Nat- urally enough—indeed, inevitably—he concludes that there is a world of difference between gibbon speech and human speech. As there is no other record of investigation to which we may appeal for further light on the speech of the gibbon, we must believe, provision- ally at any rate, that it expresses feelings vocally, but not ideas, and lacks ability to learn to talk. Although the orang-utan has a good enough voice, it is known as a silent creature whose common vocalizations are whines, screams, and groans of complaint, fear, anger, or satisfaction. No such satisfactory study of the vocal expres- sions of the orang-utan, as has been made by Boutan with the gibbon, is known to the 172 ALMOST HUMAN writer. Consequently nothing further can be said. Perhaps because it is more given to sociability than the other apes, and certainly also because of its delightful disposition, the vocal expressions of the chimpanzee have commanded the attention of scientists. It always seems as though this creature had something to say, and every now and then he makes one feel that he actually is saying it. First, in order of time, Garner records of the chimpanzee that its speech consists of not more than twenty-five or thirty words, many of which seem to be ‘‘vague or ambiguous.’’ Yet in sum- ming up the results of his study he remarks: In conclusion I again assert that the sounds uttered by these apes have the characteristics of human speech. The speaker is conscious of the meaning of the sound used. The pitch and volume of the voice are regulated to suit the condition under which it is used. The ape knows the value of sound as a medium of conveying thought. These and many other facts show that their sounds are truly speech [Garney (16), p. 116]. Not one of these statements can be accepted by the psychologist without further evidence. They may be correct, but the chances are that further research will indicate their inadequacy. The chimpanzee shows a rudimentary gesture language. ‘‘No’’ is expressed by a movement of ANTHROPOID SPEECH 173 the head, as in us; similarly, definite positions and movements of the arm and hand indicate af- firmation. The vocal expressions of two young dhimpan- zees have been carefully observed by Mrs. Wil- liam S. Learned (9) and faithfully transcribed. Her results show a total of thirty-two sounds made by one or other of the animals, which she lists as words or elements of speech. These vo- calizations she found were associated mostly with situations which have to do with food or drink and with other animals or persons. As a rule the sounds seem to be part of an emotional ex- pression, and from Mrs. Learned’s descriptions it would seem that there may be as many sig- nificant ‘‘words’’ as there are varieties of emo- tion. Whether or not a chimpanzee ‘‘word’’ ever stands for a definite idea, Mrs. Learned does not inform us. Her descriptions of the vocal expres- sions of these little creatures are particularly important and interesting because she has skil- fully combined verbal picture of the situation with musical description of the vocalization. Panzee, the little female subject, is characterized as a sweet singer because of the quality and use of her voice. Chim, the little male, although also an expert vocalist, expressed himself less pleas- ingly. There is no obvious reason why the chimpanzee 174 ALMOST HUMAN and the other great apes should not talk, but it seems to be the consensus of opinion among ex- pert observers, as well as those who know the animals only casually, that they do not do so. As the writer has studied the ideational behavior of these animals, he has persistently wondered why they have not developed speech and whether they may not be taught to talk. It would seem that one of the best ways to test their ability would be the attempt to teach them to speak, for if they cannot learn to express themselves by a system of vocables they probably have no true spoken language. One might very well antici- pate success in such an experiment, for it is perfectly obvious that the animals learn to under- stand much that is said to them, and have a handy vocal mechanism. Many years ago George J. Romanes (17), a distinguished English naturalist, wrote thus of a chimpanzee in the London Zo- ological Gardens: This ape has learned from her keeper the meaning of so many words and phrases, that in this respect she re- sembles a child shortly before it begins to talk. More- over, it is not only particular words and particular phrases which she has thus learned to understand; but she also understands, to a large extent, the combination of these words and phrases in sentences, so that the keeper is able to explain to the animal what it is he re- quests her to do [(17), p. 126]. ANTHROPOID SPEECH 175 Convinced of the existence of chimpanzee ideas and suspecting that they might under favorable conditions gain expression through language, I recently tried to teach the two young chimpan- zees, Chim and Panzee, to utter words. Several methods were used to induce them to respond in this way, but none succeeded. My purpose was to give the animals incentive for imitating sounds which I was certain they could reproduce. I did not actually put them through the process of making the sound, as for example, by holding the lips, tongue, or nose in proper position. In- stead, I depended entirely on the imitative tend- ency, hoping that they might get the idea that by making a certain sound they would win a de- sired reward. Although the experiments, in different forms, were carried on for several months, they merely fatigued the animals, and a stage was finally reached when it was difficult to command attention. Although I admit surprise in this outcome of my effort at training the ani- mals to speak, I am not yet convinced of their inability. This is partly because of the measure of success achieved by other investigators, but even more because of my suspicion that my meth- ods were in various ways unsatisfactory. Garner writes that he taught a little chimpan- zee, whom he called Moses, to utter a few words. He selected the following: ‘‘mama’’; the French 176 ALMOST HUMAN word feu, fire; the German word wie, how; and the native Nkami word nkgwe, mother. He writes: Every day I took him on my lap and tried to induce him to say one or more of these words. For a long time he made no effort to learn them; but after some weeks of persistent labor and a bribe of corned beef, he began to see dimly what I wanted him to do... . In his attempt to say ‘‘mama’’ he worked his lips without mak- ing any sound, although he really tried to do so. . With feu he succeeded fairly well, except that the con- sonant element, as he uttered it, resembled ‘‘v’’ more than ‘‘f.’’. .. In his efforts to pronounce wre he al- ways gave the vowel element like German ‘‘u’’ with the umlaut, but the ‘‘w’’ element was more like the English than the German sound of that letter. Taking into consideration the fact that he was only a little more than a year old, and was in training less than three months, his progress was all that could have been desired, and vastly more than had been hoped for [(16) pp. 136, 137]. My animals were older than Garner’s Moses, but I have no reason to suppose that they were less intelligent or less capable of learning words. Perhaps it is merely a matter of long continu- ance of training, patience, persistence, and de- termination on the part of the teacher. My humiliation is still further accentuated by the success of Dr. William H. Furness (18) in Courtesy cf Mr. Lee Russell THE CHIMPANZEE WHO DID NOT LEARN TO TALK Prince Chim with one of his best friends Courtesy of Miss Alyse Cunningham THE YOUTHFUL GORILLA, SULTAN ANTHROPOID SPEECH 177 teaching a young orang-utan to say two or three words. I cannot do justice to his interesting de- scription except by quoting: In the case of the orang-utan it took at least six months of daily training to teach her to say ‘‘Papa.’’ This word was selected not only because it is a very primitive sound, but also because it combined two ele- ments of vocalization to which orang-utans and chim- panzees are, as I have said, unaccustomed, namely: the use of lips and an expired vowel sound. The training consisted of a repetition of the sounds for minutes at a time, while the ape’s lips were brought together and opened in imitation of the movements of my lips. I also went through these same manceuvers facing a mirror with her face close to mine that she might see what her lips were to do as well as feel the movement of them. At the end of about six months, one day of her own ac- cord, out of lesson time, she said, ‘‘Papa,’’ quite dis- tinctly and repeated it on command. Of course, I praised her and petted her enthusiastically ; she never forgot it after that and finally recognized it as my name. When asked, ‘‘Where is Papa?’’ she would at once point to me or pat me on the shoulder. One warm summer’s day I carried her in my arms into a swimming pool; she was alarmed at first but when the water came up to her legs she was panic-stricken ; she clung with her arms about my neck, kissed me again and again and kept saying, ‘‘Papa! Papa! Papa!’’ Of course, I went no further after that pathetic appeal. The next word I attempted to teach her to say was 178 ALMOST HUMAN “‘cup.’? (Let me say that by this time she understood almost everything that it was necessary for me to say such as ‘‘Open your mouth,’’ ‘‘Stick out your tongue,’’ ‘Do this,’’ ete., and she was perfectly gentle and occa- sionally seemed quite interested.) The first move in teaching her to say ‘‘cup’’ was to push her tongue back in her throat as if she were to make the sound ‘‘ka.”’ This was done by means of a bone spatula with which I pressed lightly on the center of her tongue. When I saw that she had taken a full breath I placed my finger over her nose to make her try to breathe through her mouth. The spatula was then quickly withdrawn and inevitably she made the sound ‘‘ka.’’ All the while facing her I held my mouth open with my tongue in the same position as hers so that her observation, curi- osity, and powers of imitation might aid her, and I said ka with her emphatically as I released her tongue. Af- ter several lessons of, perhaps, fifteen minutes of this sort of training each day she would draw back her tongue to the position even before the spatula had touched it, but she would not say ka unless I placed my finger over her nose. The next advance was that she herself placed my finger over her nose and then said ka without any use of the spatula; then she found that in default of my finger her own would answer the purpose and I could get her to make this sound any time I asked her to. It was comparatively very easy from this to teach her to say ‘‘kap’’ by means of closing her lips with my fingers the instant she said ka. At the same time I showed her the cup that she drank out of and I re- peated the word several times as I touched it to her ANTHROPOID SPEECH 179 lips. After a few lessons when I showed her the cup and asked ‘‘What is this?’’ she would say cup very plainly. Once when ill at night she leaned out of her hammock and said ‘‘eup, cup, eup,’’ which I naturally understood to mean that she was thirsty and which proved to be the case. I think this showed fairly con- clusively that there was a glimmering idea of the con- nection of the word with the object and with her de- sire. Despite his notable success in training the orang-utan and his observation that both chim- panzees and orang-utans may be able to under- stand much that is said to them, Dr. Furness says that ‘‘if these animals have a language it is restricted to a very few sounds of a general emo- tional significance. Articulate speech they have none and communication with one another is ac- complished by vocal sounds to no greater extent than it is by dogs, with a growl, a whine, or a bark.”’ There are many interesting and valuable de- scriptions of the emotional vocalizations of the great apes, but the essentials of what is known about their speech are indicated by the observa- tions which have been described. It remains merely to formulate our tentative conclusion about the subject and to answer the question: Do the apes speak? Everything seems to indicate that their vocal- 180 ALMOST HUMAN izations do not constitute true language, in the sense in which Boutan uses the term. Appar- ently the sounds are primarily innate emotional expressions. This is surprising in view of the evidence that they have ideas, and may on oc- casion act with insight. We may not safely as- sume that they have nothing but feelings to express, or even that their word-like sounds al- ways lack ideational meaning. Perhaps the chief reason for the ape’s failure to develop speech is the absence of a tendency to imitate sounds. Seeing strongly stimulates to imitation; but hear- ing seems to have no such effect. I am inclined to conclude from the various evidences that the great apes have plenty to talk about, but no gift for the use of sounds to represent individual, as contrasted with racial, feelings or ideas. Per- haps they can be taught to use their fingers, somewhat as does the deaf and dumb person, and thus helped to acquire a simple, nonvoeal, ‘‘sign language.’’ CHAPTER 10 FROM GENERATION TO GENERATION HEN in January, 1924, I first visited ¥Y Quinta Palatino by invitation of Madam Abreu, and discussed her interesting collection, observations, plans, and hopes, she showed me with evident pleasure a letter from Dr. Metchni- koff which, rendered into English, is here pre- sented. InstTITuT PAsTEUR Paris, 25, Rue Dutot August 29, 1915 Dear Mapam: I am infinitely obliged to you for your interesting letter accompanied by the splendid photographs, which I have just received. It is indeed marvelous that you have been able to obtain them, for, to my knowledge, it is the first time that attempts to photograph an anthro- poid ape in captivity have been successful. All the ad- vice that I have had from doctors in Africa—in Guinea, and in the Congo—is to the effect that they have never been able to obtain a likeness of a chimpanzee. I con- gratulate you then on your result, which presents some- thing of great importance for the future in the study of 181 182 ALMOST HUMAN the infectious diseases such as scarlet fever, measles, diphtheria, ete. All that you say about the relations between the male and the female, about gestation, about the birth and rearing of the young, is of vital interest. Since you are continuing your observations perhaps it will be possible for you to tell me still more details of the life of your chimpanzees. What is the procedure by which the male arrives at intercourse with the female? How does he behave in taking his particular position, and does she manifest any coquetry? Does she give him her love at once or does she first offer some resistance? Does copula- tion continue during pregnaney or does the female cease to accept the male? Does the latter caress the fe- male before and after the act? How many interesting observations you will be able to make on the education of the little one. Does the mother take care of the infant and does she give him some cuffs? How does the male behave face to face with his offspring ? Does he continue to live maritably with his mate, and does he not make advances to the dry nurse? (The question as to whether the anthropoids are monogamists or polygamists is particularly interesting. ) You thought, Madam, that your letter would appear to me too long. I have read and re-read it, many times, but I find it all too short, so vital is the subject of your observations. In thanking you again I pray you Madam, to accept the expression of my respectful homage. Evie MEeTcHnikorr, GENERATION TO GENERATION 183 The appreciative interest which this eminent medical authority showed in Madam Abreu’s work naturally gave her great encouragement and incentive to further effort. It is significant indeed that this letter, written ten years ago, should have been accompanied by serious consid- eration on the part of the Pasteur Institute to establish a special station and laboratory for the study of monkeys and apes and their utilization in the investigation of medical problems. As will presently be related, decision in this matter was favorable, and now after years of delay be- cause of the World War a station has actually been established in French West Africa (French Guinea), and work is in progress. It may reasonably be surmised that Madam Abreu’s achievements and her communications with Dr. Metchnikoff had no inconsiderable part in stir- ring the interest of the authorities of the Pasteur Institute and in leading them to their decision. Information about any aspect of the life of the monkey or ape is fragmentary and relatively un- reliable, yet with reference to the life history of the animals, as suggested by the title ‘‘From Generation to Generation,’’ it is peculiarly so. The happenings at Quinto Palatino during the last decade or so have added substantially and valuably to our fund of knowledge, but thus far 184 ALMOST HUMAN this knowledge has been possessed solely by Madam Abreu and her associates. It is now pro- posed to assemble it in an orderly way and to present it in supplementation of other records, and as indicative of persisting gaps in our knowledge which must be filled by scientific ef- fort. There are happy primate families in Madam Abreu’s beautiful park to-day, but among them none half so interesting to the lay observer as the chimpanzee trio, Jimmy, Monona, and Lita—fa- ther, mother, and infant daughter. But instead of plunging directly into the life history of Jimmy and the members of his family, we should first review Madam Abreu’s earlier attempts to breed chimpanzees in Cuba. It will be recalled that her first chimpanzee pet was the remarkably intelligent male Chimpita. She tried to mate him with the female Cucusa, but, as re- lated by Dr. Louis Montané (19), the eminent anthropologist, at the time resident in Havana, Chimpita ‘‘because of certain intimate abnormal- ities of his physical constitution had no succes- sion.’’ He died in 1914 and was replaced in the affections of Cucusa by the surviving male, Jimmy. The first product of the relations of Jimmy and Cucusa was Anuma, whose birth on April 27, 1915, rendered that date memorable in the calendar of Quinta Palatino and, indeed, of CUCUSA AND ANUMA This photograph was taken for Madam Abreu shortly after the birth of the Cuban chimpanzee, Anuma, in 1915 ANUMA TO-DAY, AGED TEN YEARS His delightfully characteristic attitude and his peculiar expression are sufficient excuses for the use of this imperfect negative GENERATION TO GENERATION 185 Cuba. According to Madam Abreu’s account of the situation, Cucusa refused to accept Chimpita as a mate because they were of different species. ‘‘But when Jimmy came from London she ac- cepted him. Previously she had been with Chim- pita for about six months, but nothing had hap- pened.”’ After the birth of Anuma the adolescent female Mimosa was with Cucusa and she eagerly con- stituted herself the nursemaid, often taking en- tire charge of the baby. Later, when Mimosa was mature, she was left with the male Jimmy, but he paid no attention to her although they were on the best of terms and, except for differ- ence in species and country of origin, there was no apparent reason why they should not breed. Madam Abreu cites this relation of the two ani- mals as another indication of the relative fidelity and monogamous tendency of the chimpanzee and also of the efficacy of species barriers. Jimmy and Monona accepted one another as natural mates, although it is related of the little female that she first rejected the advances of the male and it was several months before they bred. Madam Abreu’s observations in connection with the sex and family relations of Chimpita and Cucusa, Jimmy and Cucusa, Jimmy and Mimosa, Jimmy and Monona, and Anuma and Malapulga, convince her that there are marked sex prefer- 186 ALMOST HUMAN ences in which similarity, or as she puts it, ‘‘be- ing from the same country and of similar type,”’’ plays a conspicuous réle. In referring to the matter she emphatically expresses herself by say- ing: “Different species of animals and animals from different countries almost never breed. There are exceptions. One case I recollect of monkeys of different kinds which married, but the mother and baby both died. Also it is not- able that the males and females differing as to country of origin, species, or both, are less in- terested in one another than are those which are similar. ’’ As an example of this she cites the relations of her three orang-utans. The full-grown Cache- sita lives with two adolescent females, the one very similar to him in appearance, the other somewhat different. He is devoted to the former and shows little interest in the latter. Whether or not Madam Abreu has hit upon the actual ground of his partiality, we do not know, but of the preference there can be no doubt. Experience suggests the extreme desirability of bringing together slowly animals which are to be mated. This refers alike to the monkeys and the great apes, but more especially to the latter because of the greater risk of serious injury. Madam Abreu advises those who are mating an- GENERATION TO GENERATION 187 imals first to place the male and female in sep- arated adjoining cages so that they may become thoroughly acquainted without opportunity to in- jure each other. Subsequently, at the proper time, they may be placed together without unus- ual risk even in a restrieted cage environment. It is of course important to consider in such case the significance of the restricted movements of the animals. Whereas in the wild there is ex- cellent opportunity for self-protection, the cage limitations give an unfair advantage to the stronger animal which, on occasion, may prove disastrous. The courtship behavior of the great apes has been observed at Quinta Palatino both when the animals are in adjoining cages and when they are together. The male chimpanzee is frequently seen to caress the female, and Madam Abreu has even seen a straw used by the male to stroke the female through the barrier of netting between them. Kissing among these animals is, like many other acts, almost human in its essentials. Possibly this is imitative. At any rate, the writer has seen no descriptions of the behavior in animals of the wild uncontaminated by human association. The sex or mating dance of the male chimpanzee has been witnessed repeatedly at Quinta Palatino. It is known that the crea- tures possess a sense of rhythm and a fondness 188 ALMOST HUMAN for dancing. In case of the sex dance of the male the sense of rhythm is exercised and the animal also attracts attention by beating the ground with its foot and thus in a sense prepar- ing the way for its approach. We greatly hoped to obtain pictures of the sex dance of Jimmy, but his fear of the camera frustrated every attempt. Madam Abreu has had three opportunities to observe the fruitful mating of chimpanzees, be- havior during the period of gestation, and the birth and early days of the young. The first of these opportunities appeared in the relations of Jimmy and Cucusa and the resulting baby Anuma; the second in the relations of Jimmy with Cucusa and the birth in France during the war of an unnamed infant which survived for only a few weeks; and the third, the relations of Jimmy and Monona with the resulting offspring, Lita. For the first of these series of events we have the record of professional scientific observers to supplement that of Madam Abreu. Dr. Louis Montané read before the Cuban Society of Nat- ral History, in 1915, a paper on ‘‘A Cuban Chimpanzee’’ (19) in which he describes the birth and early days of Anuma. Relative to the preg- nancy of Cucusa and the period of gestation, Montané says, ‘‘Pregnancy was first suspected in GENERATION TO GENERATION 189 August, 1914, because of the appearance and be- havior of the female. Finally, nine months after the first visible symptoms Anuma was born.’’ This event established the duration of gestation in the chimpanzee. Madam Abreu confirms Montané’s statements and asserts that they are confirmed also by her later observations in con- nection with the development of the baby born in France and Lita. It seems reasonably certain, then, that in the case of the chimpanzee the period of prenatal development is virtually the same as in man. During this period the relations of the male and female continue as usual, but following the birth of the young and until the baby is weaned and the production of milk ceases, there is no relation whatever between the animals. It appears, then —and this is Madam Abreu’s conclusion—that the condition of lactation determines the relations of the sexes. Montané, referring to this matter, states that in Cucusa lactation began on the sec- ond day after the birth of Anuma and that ‘‘six- teen days after birth there was a normal return of catamenia but without external genital tur- gency.’? Seemingly in flat contradiction of this, Madam Abreu maintains that catamenia does not reappear for several months; indeed, is not re- sumed until the infant has been weaned. In the 190 ALMOST HUMAN case of Anuma this occurred after about eighteen months; in that of Lita after about twenty months. For its bearing on this conflict of statements, the writer may say that during his stay in Ha- vana in the summer of 1924, when Jimmy, Mo- nona, and Lita were caged together, Monona at no time gave evidence of catamenia or of sex in- terest or relations with Jimmy. Lita, although not entirely dependent on her mother for nourish- ment, was still treated by Monona as though nurs- ing. The evidence, then, seems entirely to sub- stantiate the common statement that the female chimpanzee nurses its baby for several months, even perhaps for a year or two, and that for sev- eral years the young animal continues with its parents, constituting a partially dependent mem- ber of the growing family group. The actual birth of the infant was not observed in case of any of Madam Abreu’s animals, but the action of Monona following the birth of Lita has already been described as an example either of remarkably intelligent behavior or of natur- ally adapted action such as is seldom if ever found in the human species. Everything indi- cates that the behavior of both male and female at such times is as appropriate as that of persons, and no less indicative of altruistic motive and de- votion to the offspring. Instances are lacking of GENERATION TO GENERATION 191 ill treatment by the male of either mother or in- fant. The young chimpanzee, having been thoroughly _ cleaned and dried by the mother, clings to her hair, and presently, under normal and favorable circumstances, begins to nurse. Cases are on record of infants born to captive animals which failed to nurse and finally died of starvation. In all probability this is caused by an abnormal con- dition of the female resulting in failure to pro- duce milk or other peculiarity inimical to the wel- fare of the young. The care of the infant chim- panzee by its mother during the early days and weeks is worthy of a high level of intelligence. There is a notable combination of firmness, ten- derness, skill, and care. The mother may be im- patient, but except under abnormal conditions she seemingly is not vindictive or neglectful. When she punishes, it is for adequate cause, and one may approve her implicit confidence in this pedagogical method even though he doubts its efficacy in his own species! Then comes the period of tuition. ‘‘Three times,’’? says Madam Abreu, ‘‘I have seen a mother chimpanzee take her baby by the arms and try to show it how to walk. The mother begins to do this when the infant is about two months old.’’ But previously, of course, the infant has been taught many things and trained in a variety 192 ALMOST HUMAN of ways by parental example and tuition. The lesson in walking is cited merely to indicate that the little one is actually put through its paces, as well as shown how to act. Speaking of the rela- tions of chimpanzee children to parents, Madam Abreu remarks, ‘‘They are much more obedient than the best of human children.’’ Perhaps she is right and perhaps this is due to sounder prin- ciples of tuition and a more rational, if not ra- tionalized, pedagogy than that which we to-day support. Actually the chimpanzee does not learn to walk for several months. The time perhaps varies widely as in the case of children, but the ability is acquired much earlier, ordinarily be- fore the sixth month in the chimpanzee, whereas the child usually requires at least a year. The milk teeth begin to appear in the first or second month and before the end of the first year all have been acquired. It is Madam Abreu’s be- lief, based on repeated observation, that the chim- panzee usually begins to lose its milk teeth in the fifth or sixth year, and that these are replaced by permanent teeth by the age of seven or eight. The change, she says, is very rapid, occupying only a few weeks or at most a few months. The tranquillity of a monkey or ape family in captivity is not uninterrupted. Instances of dis- turbance of the peace of the family by the male and father have been cited for the baboon and the —— GENERATION TO GENERATION 193 chimpanzee. During the early period of infancy, the male parent may behave very well indeed, may appear devoted to his offspring and actually prove helpful in the care of it, although undoubt- edly his main responsibility is to provide pro- tection for mother and child. But as the baby acquires greater freedom and independence, the father also becomes more independent and more eager, apparently, for freedom from the limita- tions set upon him and his mate by the responsi- bility for offspring. Then it happens that the male may act as though trying to drive the infant from the household. This was very clearly the tactic of the old male baboon who, if not as re- ward, at least as sequel to his persecution of his infant son, lost an eye at the hands of his mate. Jimmy, morose old chimpanzee as he is, has not been observed to treat Lita unkindly. Now and again, as previously stated, he has outbursts of temper, provoked perhaps by jealousy, during which he yells in a terrifying way, rushes about the cage, seizes anything within reach, and shakes it as if to tear everything to pieces. He may even rush toward Monona and the baby, as though bent on injuring or frightening them, but nothing comes of the row except that the keepers on hearing the outery immediately hasten to the cage and isolate the big male so that he may not “n his frenzy accidentally injure either baby or 194 ALMOST HUMAN mate. That Monona and Lita are afraid of Jimmy during these periods of excitement there can be no doubt, for the baby promptly runs to her mother and takes refuge on her back to which she clings tenaciously with hands and feet firmly grasping the hairy coat. Monona, on her part, takes refuge either on a raised platform under the roof of the cage or in a remote corner, getting as far as possible from Jimmy and in a sheltered position. This is discreetly precautionary, for within the narrow limits of the cage the male might do serious injury to his young if the mother did not keep it out of the way. Apropos of these periodical outbursts of Jimmy, his owner says that the adult male chim- panzee, however good his temper and disposition, eannot be trusted since he is subject to ‘‘crazy spells’’ during which he may act most unnaturally and roughly. She always objects to having any one except herself or her keepers go into the cage with Anuma or any other well-grown ape because, as she puts it, one never can tell when the animal may be seized by such a spell and either bite or rend one. Undoubtedly hers is a wise precau- tion. Anuma’s life has been observed from concep- tion through birth, infancy, childhood, and ado- lescence, to the threshold of maturity. He now is more than ten years old and is comparable GENERATION TO GENERATION 195 physically, we believe, with a boy of twelve to fourteen. There is no positive proof that he is sexually mature, but his behavior and what has been learned of other individuals suggest that the male chimpanzee attains sexual maturity at the age of ten to twelve years. The female of the species seemingly passes from adolescence into sexual maturity a year or two earlier, perhaps at the age of eight to ten years. Malapulga and Sita, for example,—individuals which seem to be about half-grown, weighing about fifty pounds, and aged seven to eight years as nearly as may be judged by size, weight, and condition of teeth,— are quite clearly on the threshold of sexual matur- ity. Malapulga is somewhat in advance, and if the two were in the wilds she almost certainly would mate earlier than Sita. It is difficult at best to estimate the age of a primate. Madam Abreu maintains that the con- dition of the teeth is the best single criterion, and she habitually judges the age of her animals by their teeth precisely as does an experienced judge of horses. The presence in the chimpanzee of the full set of milk teeth indicates an age of six months to approximately five years. The pres- ence of the permanent teeth similarly indicates an age of five years or more. The condition and amount of wear of the permanent teeth indicate ages beyond ten years with degree of accuracy 196 ALMOST HUMAN and reliability dependent upon the experience of the observer. The birth date of captive chimpanzees seldom is known and the guesses commonly made at the age of these animals are anything but reliable. Usually those who deal in monkeys and apes as- sign an age to suit the purchaser. Thus the young chimpanzee may be characterized as one year of age, if a baby is desired, or as three or four years of age if a more mature individual is in demand. Lita, seemingly a remarkably healthy, well-nourished, and altogether normal individual, at the age of two years weighs, it is estimated, not more than twelve pounds; yet the writer has seen chimpanzees weighing twenty to thirty pounds which were soberly and seriously described as about two years old. The animals at Quinta Palatino and the obser- vations of Madam Abreu clearly indicate that the chimpanzee grows slowly during the first four or five years of life, and very rapidly for one, two, or three years during the adolescent period of, say, five to ten years of age. In this it closely resembles man. Most of the chimpanzees which are imported into America from Africa are more than two years of age. The majority probably range from three to five years. The reasons for this are not difficult to imagine. Animals cap- tured during the first year of life are difficult to GENERATION TO GENERATION 197 rear. successfully. They require nursing or its equivalent in nutritional care. The majority doubtless die in Africa. Those captured during the second year of life stand a much better chance of survival, but are more than liable to succumb to the hardships of transportation over land and water for thousands of miles. So it naturally and almost inevitably comes about that the ani- mals which appear in the markets of the United States and are found in our zoological gardens, shows, and private collections are at least three years of age, and in the great majority of cases even older. How long the chimpanzee, or any other monkey or ape may live, no one really knows; nor, in- deed is it known how long the sexual life of the animal persists, or when it enters upon physical decline, becomes senile, aged, decrepit. Exact information in these matters is wholly lacking, but the shrewdest estimates, based upon such evidence as has already been mentioned, are that the duration of the chimpanzee’s life may equal that of man. It is surmised, however, that the average duration of life is very much shorter than man’s because of the relatively unprotected existence; for whereas in his declining years man is, or may be, assiduously cared for, the chimpan- zee is left more largely to its own devices and nat- urally suffers the hardships of an existence which 198 ALMOST HUMAN provides neither ordinary comforts nor luxuries, neither medical attention nor the affectionate ministrations of relatives. Jimmy, we have said, is thought to be between twenty and twenty-five years of age. Animals have been captured whose ages were estimated as high as fifty years. In this period of life—that, perhaps, of post-maturity—many gray hairs ap- pear among the black, and the coat on the ani- mal’s back may be whitish. The condition of the bones is also indicative of long life. Dr. Cal- mette of the Pasteur Institute has commented on an extraordinarily large male chimpanzee re- cently captured in Africa, whose age was sup- posed to be at least twenty-eight years; also on a captive female chimpanzee aged presumably about fifty years. Putting all the facts together, it seems probable that the chimpanzee generation is not very differ- ent in its temporal span from that of man; pos- sibly five years shorter because of the difference in environment and social relations. The period of gestation is pretty certainly nine months; the period of infantile development approximately a year, for by that time the individual is able to run about and partially support itself in inde- pendence of the mother and nurse; the period of childhood—beginning, perhaps, in the second year, and characterized by extreme activity, play- GENERATION TO GENERATION 199 fulness, mischief, and irresponsibility—runs at least into the fifth year. Then begins a period of adolescence which extends perhaps to the seventh or eighth year in the female, and the ninth or tenth year in the male, and is comparable with the human span of life of six to twelve in the girl, and eight to fourteen in the boy. Facts are too meager to justify comparison of the span of ma- turity in chimpanzee and man, but there is a high degree of probability that if individuals of the two species were kept under equally favorable conditions, they would live to a similar ripe old age. It is even possible that the less highly en- dowed animal, because of relative freedom from worry and vivid imaginings of death or hell-fire, might outlive man! Despite the varied primate materials at Quinta Palatino, this has been preéminently a chimpan- zee chapter. It is well established that the more primitive types of primate, including all the mon- keys, and the gibbon among the anthropoid apes, mature much more rapidly than do the great apes, breed therefore at an earlier date, and yield to the wear and tear of existence after a relatively short span. Even the period of gestation is much shorter than in chimpanzee and man. Evidences bearing on the duration of prenatal development, infancy, maturity, and life itself are not lacking, but they are so scattered and difficult to evaluate 200 ALMOST HUMAN that we have decided to content ourselves in this chapter with the observations which have been made at Quinta Palatino under uniquely favor- able circumstances. There, at least, one may learn with assurance the date of birth of a partic- ular individual and may measure its physical characters and its behavior against a definite pe- riod of development and experience. Never can the study of monkeys and apes be carried forward with wholly satisfactory results until the life his- tory of the individuals under observation is inti- mately and accurately known. It is absolutely essential to begin with the date of birth. It is de- sirable, as in the case of Anuma, to be able to be- gin with the mating of the parents and the con- ception of the object of scientific inquiry. Perhaps among the monkeys the shortest span from generation to generation is not far from three years, and among the anthropoid apes ap- proximately twelve years. These are guesses based upon the more or less well-established statements of hunters, directors of zodlogical parks, and naturalists. Undoubtedly, as in the case of man, the period could be somewhat re- duced by control of conditions and express effort to facilitate breeding, but it is doubtful whether on the average, in its native habitat, the genera- tion of any monkey is less than three years or that of any great ape less than twelve years, A YOUTHFUL ORANG-UTAN, AT HOME IN HAVANA It is Cachita or Misuita. The photographer is not sure which Courtesy of Doctor LeSouef AN AGED ORANG-UTAN This picture shows the remarkable skin growths which appear in the old male Dp Dp orang-utan 989 9Y} Jo JouI00 sty yovroidde 0} rsydeiZ0z0yd 9y} Jo snorordsns 004 e1eM vy] pue BuoUOW UAHLOW OL ASOTO ONIddaa GENERATION TO GENERATION 201 Like all other statements in this book, and espe- cially all in this chapter on the life history of the individual, this is subject to correction on the ba- sis of carefully controlled observations. The sex behavior and activity of the monkeys and apes clearly show the influence of close con- finement. There can be no doubt whatever that the sex activities of the individual isolated or as- sociated with other individuals and the sex re- lations of mates or associates are greatly altered by the limitations of cage life. Special restric- tions, as well as differences in nutritional and other environmental influences, must play a ma- jor role in the regulation of sex conduct. This is true of the caging of any active animal, but it is peculiarly important in the case of one so versa- tile and relatively intelligent as the monkey or ape. Close confinement restricts the opportuni- ties for amusement and employment. As a rule the cage contains scant equipment for either work or play. A livelihood is provided without effort on the part of the animal. It has nothing to work for, nothing to amuse itself with except itself, its companions, and perchance a few pieces of appa- ratus such as a chain, a swing, a trapeze, some straw, and food dishes. It is not beside the point to ask what would hap- pen to us, similarly placed and restricted sharply in freedom of movement and in environmental re- 202 ALMOST HUMAN sources. Imagine either the isolated individual or the sexes thus confined. Can there be reason- able doubt that human behavior would be essen- tially different from that which we observe under present natural conditions? Perhaps the nearest approach in human life to that of the captive monkey or chimpanzee whether at Quinta Pala- tino or elsewhere is the existence of the impris- oned criminal. Next comes that of the insane person who for his own protection or the safety of society must be confined under guard. The point of these remarks is to offer a back- ground for observations concerning self-abuse in the monkeys and apes. It does occur in both sexes, but by no means so commonly as might reasonably be expected under the circumstances. Madam Abreu cites only one instance, that of the chimpanzee Chimpita who during the latter part of his life at Quinta Palatino developed bad hab- its and ultimately died of myelitis. CHAPTER 11 THE CARE OF CAPTIVE PRIMATES T would be difficult to exaggerate the impor- tance of knowledge, on the part of those who desire or need to have captive primates, of suit- able ways of keeping them healthy and contented and of breeding them in captivity. Madam Abreu, through her experience of the last twenty years, has added invaluably to our fund of prac- tical knowledge, but it remains to make her ob- servations widely available through publication. It is the purpose of this chapter to set forth cer- tain prime essentials in the care of monkeys and apes. The Abreu estate, Quinta Palatino, is delight- fully situated on the outskirts of Havana. It has beautiful buildings and grounds, but, infinitely more important for the collection of primates, it has an abundance of fruit- and shade-trees so placed with reference to the cages that the ani- mals must almost feel as though they were in their native habitat. This physical environment appears to be very nearly ideal for many, if not the majority, of the monkeys. 203 204 ALMOST HUMAN The climate of Havana is sufficiently mild throughout the year to keep the animals in com- fort. There are cool nights even in summer, and during the winter the temperature may fall so low that nest boxes or rooms where the animals may seek refuge from storm or from cold are en- tirely essential. But these are desirable in any climate, for sudden changes of temperature are inevitable in the tropics as elsewhere, and against them the animals must have opportunity to pro- tect themselves. In nature they are able to do this by crowding together closely, by seeking the shelter of thick vegetation, or by making nests in the trees of the dense forest or on the ground. But in captivity these resources are lacking, and a nest box, the size of which naturally varies with the type of primate, should be provided. There is nothing to indicate that a uniform temperature is even desirable, much less necessary, for any of the primates. Probably, as in the case of man, their continued health and normal existence are conditioned by variety. This certainly applies to food supply, and probably in most instances also to temperature and moisture. About her splendid house in the Quinta Pala- tino park, and at a distance of fifty to one hundred feet from it, Madam Abreu has had constructed in a semicircle some fifty cages. They range in size from the small cages for marmosets, three or four CARE OF CAPTIVE PRIMATES = 205 feet in diameter, three feet from the ground, and four to five feet in height, to the strong and spa- cious cage of Jimmy and his family, which is nearly sixty feet long, thirty feet wide, and twenty feet high. Cage design and construction vary widely in this primate paradise. The small types of cage usually consist of a wooden frame covered with wire and with a roof suitable to protect the interior from the rains and the direct sunlight. Doors are arranged for easy access by the keeper, to facilitate cleaning of the cage and handling and transfer of its inmates. The floors usually are made of cement or metal to protect them from the animals, to assure relative permanence, and to render cleanliness more easily attainable. Some of the Abreu cages are very beautiful; others are notable rather for their utilitarian character. In several the steel framework which carries the roof and the walls of wire netting or steel rods is covered with a decorative coating of concrete in imitation of the trunks and branches of trees. This rustic effect is exceedingly attrac- tive and appropriate to the setting of the cages as well as to their use. In general the cages used for the larger monkeys and the anthropoid apes are built with concrete floor resting on the ground, in which is set strong wooden or metal framework with sides and doors of heavy woven or link wire or of well-braced steel bars suitable to the size and 206 ALMOST HUMAN strength of the animal to be confined. The per- manent roofs of these cages are made in some in- stances of metal, in others of wood protected by waterproofing materials. In all cases the interiors are free from con- structional features which can injure the animals. Much attention is given to permanence and inde- structibility, because even the monkeys can with hands and teeth tear or shake to pieces a heavy cage if it is not especially adapted to withstand their modes of attack. Ordinarily, wooden cages are inappropriate, since the animals take great delight in gnawing the wood and in pulling or shaking the frame or its walls until the whole falls to pieces. For the sake of convenience in cleaning, the cages are kept as clear as possible of obstructions. The cement floor is provided with a gutter on the edge and is so sloped that it drains into a pipe at one corner. This makes it possible for the care- takers whenever necessary to wash thoroughly the entire cage from the outside, with hose- directed stream of water. On the floor of the larger cages is a built-in concrete tub which can be used as a source of drinking-water, and on occa- sion also as a bath-tub. Ordinarily these tubs are not filled with water, since the animals play in it and thus render it unfit for drinking. Cleanliness CARE OF CAPTIVE PRIMATES 207 being one of the prime requisites for the mainte- nance of health in a primate community, it is pro- vided for not only through foresight in planning and construction but also and quite assiduously by attention to the condition of the cages and the frequent and free application of water, with dis- infecting and cleaning solutions. The illustrations accompanying this chapter show several types of cage—some of them in suffi- cient detail to indicate with reasonable clearness the principal features of construction. Madam Abreu has one unique advantage in Havana. Metal grills, such as are commonly used to safe- guard doorways and windows in tropical lands, are readily available second hand. She conse- quently has been able to buy cheaply from the wreckers of buildings large metal grills which if specially constructed for her would cost ten times as much. By selecting appropriate sizes of unit and weights of material, it has been possible for her to construct cages suitable not only for the larger monkeys but for all except the full-grown anthropoid apes. The sections can easily be bolted or wired together about a specially con- structed wooden or metal framework. Thus with small expenditure, aside from labor, one can build in Havana a cage approximately twenty feet long by twelve feet wide by ten feet high, with suit- 208 ALMOST HUMAN able sloping roof, cement floor and nest or sleep- ing chamber, to house two, three, or four young chimpanzees. A great point is made at Quinta Palatino of the proper combination of sunlight and shade. Cuba has an abundance of both, but sometimes they are difficult to regulate. It has required foresight and careful planning properly to design, locate, and construct the ape cages. They must be placed in proper relation to the trees which in the several seasons are expected to provide natural shade, but at the same time they should be so lo- eated that the chill winds of winter, or of late afternoon and night, of cloudy weather and of sudden storms, shall be tempered by natural or artificial barriers. There must be free circula- tion of air throughout the cage and the sleeping- room, and for a portion at least of each day the greater part of the cage should be sunlit. Yet at any hour of the day the animals must be able to retreat into the shade, for to be compelled to lie or sit in the direct sunlight is undesirable and may be dangerous. The cages therefore are provided with roofs which turn both water and sun. One gets the impression in observing the life of the apes at Quinta Palatino that three features of domestic architecture are essential. Assum- ing that the animals cannot have their freedom during the day and play about at will, there must A QUINTA PALATINO CAGE VISTA The vista of chimpanzee cages directly in front of the entrance to the Abreu residence TYPICAL CHIMPANZEE CAGES AT QUINTA PALATINO In the middle of the picture is seen the concrete nest box or living room of one of the cages CHIMPANZEE CAGE WITH CONCRETE NEST BOX IN CORNER Despite its imperfections, the picture shows many features of cage construction. The cage which occupies the center was built about a good sized tree A BEAUTIFUL-MONKEY CAGE IN A BEAUTIFUL SETTING The visitor is sure to linger at this spot, for the skillfully wrought cage houses young military monkeys CARE OF CAPTIVE PRIMATES — 209 be, as Madam Abreu has found necessary in order to protect her house and gardens, a spacious and secure inclosure. Hither within or attached to this there must be a more protected and relatively small ventilated room to which the animals can re- treat when cold and where they may spend the night in comfort. It is entirely possible to train them to use hammock or mattress in their sleeping- quarters, and to cover themselves. The latter they sometimes do in their natural state, using leaves, branches, or ground vegetation. Finally, there should be a dining-room to which the animals may be admitted for their meals and where they should behave like well-trained chil- dren, eating what is provided and returning to the outdoor cage when the meal is finished. Of course this arrangement for the regulation of daily life, and especially for sleeping and eating, requires not only the regular attention of com- petent keepers or attendants but intensive train- ing and discipline of the animals themselves. Thus far Madam Abreu has not taken this step in the domestication of her pets, for instead of having them eat in a special room or cage she has each individual or group fed in its living-cage. In so doing she misses an important opportunity to vary the routine of the animals’ existence and to afford them a chance for new adaptations and new adventures. At the same time, the humaniz- 210 ALMOST HUMAN ing of eating would have the very real advantage of assuring to each individual, be it weak or strong, its own proper portions of food. Cage feeding means that each individual scrambles for what it desires and that some get more, even if none gets less, than they need. If we were reconstructing or supplementing the ape cages at Quinta Palatino, we should suggest a special dining-room or dining-cage within easy reach of the other cages, with a long table and chairs and with facilities for use as a playroom or school-room as well as a dining-room. In these directions Madam Abreu has experimented, but, as she puts it, she has never been able to find any one both able and willing to supplement her time and sympathetic interest sufficiently to train the animals to good feeding habits and to play and other performance which should yield systematic exercise. She says it can be done readily with one or two animals, but when one has a large fam- ily it is a serious undertaking. Undoubtedly she is right, and certainly she has gone far beyond the efforts or even the ambitions of most keepers in zoological gardens. A provision in the distribution of the cages which must not be overlooked is such relation to one another that the animals can readily see clearly what is going on in near-by cages and thus share in the play and other activities of CARE OF CAPTIVE PRIMATES 211 their kind, even though separated from them by cage walls. This is peculiarly important for the great apes. But the best of cages even in an ideal climate and with all possible advantages of natural sur- roundings would avail little without wise and ap- propriate feeding. It is therefore entirely perti- nent to describe the daily routine in the case of the collection at Quinta Palatino and to set down Madam Abreu’s advice, based upon her long and intimate experience, which has been successful at once in the maintenance of the animals in health and comfort and in promoting breeding and the normal development of young. The routine varies somewhat as to hours, with the season of year, but the following is applicable to spring, summer, and early fall. At seven in the morning the animals are given bread or cooked cereal and milk. At nine o’clock, if mangoes or other native fruits are available, the keepers give some to all members of the colony. About eleven, Madam Abreu makes a round of the cages, giving to each individual or cage group portions of cooked food from her table or any extra delicacy which she has available. In this social visitation friendly greeting and petting are quite as obviously appreciated by the animals as the bits of food which their owner distributes ac- cording to her knowledge of preferences. 212 ALMOST HUMAN About three in the afternoon comes the last regular feeding for the day by the keepers. The meal consists commonly of cooked food, including such vegetables as white or sweet potatoes, squash, and corn. Milk is often given at the eve- ning meal. In season corn is sometimes fed green on the cob. Again, the meal may consist of baked plantain. The food supply varies with the season and at any one feeding variety is not sought. What we know about the need or desirability of a balanced ration, of variety of food, of the neces- sity for vitamin-containing foods, as well as oth- ers, applies in the life of the apes as in that of man. Presumably the nutritional requirements are not identical from species to species, but they are so far similar that it is entirely safe to assume that a baby ape may be fed much like a child. In any case individual differences are conspicu- ous. Both cooked and raw foods are desirable and acceptable. Madam Abreu’s experience indicates that the infrahuman primates have likes and dislikes, pref- erences and prejudices, which affect foods as well as other aspects of environment. If convenient, there is no obvious reason why these preferences should not be considered. Otherwise the animals more or less readily and eagerly eat what is placed GETTING DINNER AT QUINTA PALATINO A10}eIOGE] & SB [esodstp ino 4e paoejd A[pury noiqy wepeyy ‘ouljeyeg BejyUMG }e JUSpUSzUTIedns 9Y} JO 9DUapIseI 9UTT}-9UO SIY YL, ONILV1IVd VINIOO LV AUOLVUOAVT Ano CARE OF CAPTIVE PRIMATES 213 before them. The problem in successful feeding of the monkeys and apes is rather to provide the proper variety, proportions, and total quantity of food than to find things which the individuals will readily and eagerly devour. A good general rule to follow is: Depend chiefly on fruits and vegetables. Occasionally an ape will take raw or cooked egg or bits of meat. Of certain individuals it has even been reported that they were very fond of a meat diet and could live on it. Some authori- ties contend that they must have a certain amount of meat in order to thrive. This assumption, gains no support from the experience of Madam Abreu, for she gives no meat to her gibbons, orang-utans, or chimpanzees. Milk, however, they receive in considerable quantity and most of them eagerly. There can be little doubt that many apes will occasionally eat, as do the mon- keys, insects, birds and their eggs, and small mammals. But it is one thing to assert that the animals eat certain things and another to hold that they require them. The evidence suggests that a vegetarian diet is entirely adequate not only to keep the anthropoid apes in perfect health but also to enable them to breed and to rear their young successfully. Certain food preferences exhibited by the chim- 214 ALMOST HUMAN panzees are amusingly interesting. After all, the apes, and to a less extent the monkeys, are very much like us in their attitude toward foods. Jimmy, the lord of the chimpanzee colony, pre- fers pineapple above everything in his ordinary dietary. It must be admitted that the Cuban pineapple at its best is a wonderfully delicious fruit. His mate, Monona, prefers the banana. Of course there are bananas and bananas in Cuba, ranging all the way from the tiny fruit two or three inches long to the immense varieties, and in flavor from those we tolerate to those we ‘‘cry for.’’ Doubtless if given opportunity Monona would discriminate among them. Fifille and Lu Lu also are said to prefer the banana, but they, as well as Jackito and Blanquita, are extremely fond of oranges and mamey. Anuméa, it is said, especially prefers mamey, although banana ranks second. The monkeys are fond of most fruits, but many of them seem to prefer oranges. Vir- tually all of the animals in the collection like corn, either green or cooked, but the baboons are pecu- liar in that they have a preference for hard corn, palm-nuts, and sunflower seeds. All are eager for cocoanuts, taking both the milk and the pulp. Madam Abreu does not give the chimpanzees or the orang-utans any kind of hard grain, as she is afraid that it may cause digestive disturbances CARE OF CAPTIVE PRIMATES — 215 because of improper chewing. She says that chicken fed to the gray gibbon caused serious bowel trouble. To pregnant females and such as are nursing their young, Madam Abreu gives an extra quan- tity of milk. The baby chimpanzee is given milk and fruit also in addition to nourishment sup- plied by its mother, as soon as it will take such extra food. Water is kept in most of the cages almost con- tinuously so that the animals may drink whenever they wish, but when the water supply is of uncer- tain purity, or the animals habitually get it dirty, they are supplied with spring water about three times a day, each animal being given opportunity to drink from a cup in the hands of the keeper. It is possible to discover by scientific means the proper dietary for a given type of primate or even for a given individual, but the amount of food to be given also must be determined. Over-feeding captive animals is a serious mistake. At best they have less opportunity for strenuous exercise, and therefore need less food than in freedom. It is a good rule to give them only as much as they will eat with eagerness. To have food lying about the cage between meals is bad. All things con- sidered, it is better to have pets slightly underfed than obviously overfed. Madam Abreu, however, 216 ALMOST HUMAN insists upon an abundance of food and by feeding the animals frequently rather than much, avoids having it lie neglected in the cages. Undoubtedly the ideal method is to feed the ani- mals individually, supplying to each just what it can eat readily and to advantage, precisely as in the case of a person. The animals can be trained to eat neatly from food-containers and even to use a spoon in feeding themselves. The food can be offered then by courses or in such other way as is appropriate and the whole procedure conducted in an entirely orderly manner. Madam Abreu has the habit of taking some of the animals, including the orang-utans and the majority of her chimpanzees, into her house for the night. They are caged securely. Her idea is that they are in this way protected from risk of taking cold or contracting pneumonia from ex- posure during the cold nights which come not only in winter but occasionally at other seasons. To such animals as happen to be in the house, she regularly gives milk at eight o’clock or when she returns home if she has been away for the eve- ning. Those animals which are not left in their cages overnight are taken into the house from four to seven in the evening, in accordance with the sea- son and the condition of the weather. After their evening feeding they usually go to sleep at CARE OF CAPTIVE PRIMATES 217 once. In the morning between six and seven o’clock they are returned to their outside cages. Jimmy alone, of the chimpanzees, is never removed from his outdoor cage. At night he is fastened in his sleeping-chamber and early in the morning given access to his large cage and fed. Even Anuma and Monona, although very large and strong, are each day transferred from house to outdoor cage in the morning, and from the latter to their smaller house cages in the evening. The gray gibbon, although recognized as one of the more delicate and difficult of the anthropoid apes to keep, remains in her outdoor cage both night and day. She is provided with a small nest box and there is no evidence that she is less healthy or contented because of the slight which is implied by Madam Abreu’s failure to take her in with the orang-utans and chimpanzees. She goes to sleep shortly after sundown but, we are teld, ‘‘is always awake to salute the rising sun.”’ Most of the monkeys also retire at sundown and awake to resume their activity as soon as it is light. The great ape colony at Quinta Palatino has many points of interest. A finer collection of chimpanzees probably does not exist in captivity, nor can more generally favorable conditions be found, for the climate of Cuba seems to suit them admirably. But it is doubtful whether it is at all 218 ALMOST HUMAN necessary to take the animals into the house at night as is habitually done, for the great male, Jimmy, lives a perfectly healthful life, though he remains in his outdoor cage the year round. We are inclined to believe that their owner humors the animals somewhat unnecessarily, at the same time indulging her own sympathetic interest in them and her eagerness to be good to them. AI- most certainly they could be kept in splendid phys- ical condition if in connection with each of the outdoor cages there was provided a well-ven- tilated and otherwise-comfortable and hygienic nest or sleeping-chamber. Most of the cages al- ready have such a compartment, but for the reas- sons which she has indicated, and we have added to, Madam Abreu prefers that the chimpanzees and orang-utans sleep in special cages which are set up in her house. Although this chapter necessarily deals in gen- eralities, it cannot be too strongly emphasized that the different types and species of primate make quite different demands on their physical and social environment. With reference to celi- mate, it is to be remembered that some are adapted to cold climates and live even in the snow, whereas the majority apparently prefer high tem- peratures and are found in tropical or subtropical regions. Similarly, some are strictly vegetarian, a few nearly carnivorous, and the majority, like CARE OF CAPTIVE PRIMATES — 219 man, have adopted a mixed dietary. In the sphere of social relations the majority are distinctly eager for companionship, while by a few isolation seems to be preferred. When one is selecting a pet and trying to learn how to keep it successfully or to encourage the breeding of a pair, such things must be taken into account and conditions accom- modated to the facts. It is one thing to keep captive animals, and es- pecially captive primates, healthful and contented ; it is quite another to induce them to breed and to rear their young successfully. On this subject Madam Abreu says: ‘The animals, to be healthy and to breed, must have fresh air and trees; they need many trees. It is the environment that counts and this is the same with all animals. All must be happy and contented before they will reproduce. They seem to know that if their surroundings are not right, their children will not be happy in captivity, so they have none.”’ And again, in reply to the question: ‘‘Why is it that monkeys and apes when kept in zoological gardens and circuses so seldom breed?”’ she re- plied, ‘‘Because they need the atmosphere, the air, oxygen, and liberty. You cannot keep them closed up. They need air and trees more even than food.”’ There can be no doubt that the lady is correct 220 ALMOST HUMAN in her emphasis on the extreme desirability of fresh air, sunshine, and a natural-appearing en- vironment such as is furnished by abundant vege- tation and especially by shade- or fruit-trees. Nevertheless, the writer’s experience strongly suggests that other environmental factors are equally important, and he. differs with Madam Abreu in believing that the dietary is of supreme importance for health, growth, and reproduction. From what he has observed at Quinta Palatino and what its mistress has reported, he believes also that breeding is markedly influenced by both species and human companionship, and that in the anthropoid apes especially the social environment has much to do with reproduction and the care of the young. There are several records of chimpanzees being born in captivity, but usually the story quickly ends with the death of the infant. It is my sus- picion that the trouble usually is nutritional. Only at Quinta Palatino has complete success been attained and there, thanks to Madam Abreuw’s wis- dom and devotion, the story has been continued uninterruptedly from the mating of apparently normal chimpanzees to the maturing of the Cuban- born animal Anuma. CHAPTER 12 THE SECRET OF SUCCESS IN KEEPING AND BREED- ING THE GREAT APES HE more highly developed an animal is men- tally, the more difficult it is to keep it satis- factorily in captivity. Perhaps this is chiefly be- cause mentally complex creatures require, in ad- dition to the ordinary physical environment, cer- tain psychological and social conditions. In the preceding chapter attention has been directed to those aspects or factors of physical environment which seem to be essential to primate health, de- velopment, longevity, and reproduction. The ac- count might have been entitled ‘‘Rooms and Board for Primates.’’ For this chapter has been reserved consideration of those factors which we think of as social or mental. They are especially significant for the great apes. It is in no wise surprising that the great apes should have fared ill in captivity. Their needs and desires were little understood; they were placed in wholly unusual, unnatural, and often unhygienic surroundings, were often separated from their kind and kept in social isolation, and 221 222 ALMOST HUMAN were given wholly inadequate resources for exer- cise and amusement. Small wonder, then, that the history of the gibbon, the orang-utan, the chimpanzee, and the gorilla in traveling shows and in private collections of pets has been a series of tragedies! Most of the types of anthro- poid ape have acquired the reputation of being delicate, highly sensitive to certain diseases, or for other reasons peculiarly difficult to keep in captivity, and virtually impossible to breed and rear. The gibbon at Quinta Palatino is considered the least hardy of all. Elsewhere it has been discov- ered that the species of gibbon differ markedly. With these animals practical experience ranges all the way from utter failure to remarkable suc- cess. Sometimes an individual lives for many years in captivity. The orang-utan and the chimpanzee have proved easiest of all the anthropoid apes to main- tain in confinement; the orang-utan perhaps be- cause of its native vigor and resistance to dis- eases, and the chimpanzee because of its relative hardiness and cheerfully adaptable temperament. Nevertheless the history of both of these types in exhibition places was until recently very discour- aging. The majority of individuals captured during infancy or early childhood live from a few days to a few months. Few indeed, perhaps not SUCCESS WITH GREAT APES — 223 more than ten per cent., survive to reach maturity. Hspecially in zoological parks, where conditions are supposed to be on the whole very good for the life of captive animals, the life span of the orang- utan and chimpanzee has been measured in months instead of in years as of course it should be. The only en:ouraging thing about the situation is that the directors of zodlogical gardens, and others who have to do with the great apes, have learned many important lessons, and are so far profiting by them that to-day the orang-utan and the chim- panzee are living much more healthfully, con- tentedly, and continuously in captivity. Not a few of the world’s leading zoological parks and several circuses and animal-trainers have suc- ceeded in keeping individuals for several years. Most tragic of all is the history of the gorilla’s relations to man. He, perhaps because of his temperamental resistance to subjugation and his inability to become reconciled to lonesomeness, has perished where the orang-utan and the chim- panzee flourish. Where the captive life of the latter has been measured in months, that of the gorilla has been measured in days. Until within a few years there was no record of a gorilla hav- ing been kept in captivity, outside of Africa, in a reasonably healthy and contented condition for more than a few weeks, and in these cases the in- dividuals were immature. 224 ALMOST HUMAN Miss Alyse Cunningham has written an entirely new record, for she, by wise care and sympathetic devotion to her pets, has succeeded in keeping three young gorillas at various times for periods of from a few months to several years. The first of her gorilla friends, John Daniel, she kept until he was so large that it was no longer practicable to have him as a member of the household; the second, having been injured when he was cap- tured, after a few weeks in her possession died of concussion of the brain; and the third, Sultan or John Daniel Second, already a captive for two years, is flourishing mightily and gives every ap- pearance of being as healthful, contented, and happy in his human environment as a gorilla could well be in nature. Perhaps, then, we are on the threshold of a re- versal of human experience in relation to the great apes. The lesson may have been learned that from the gorilla to the gibbon they must be treated much as persons would be under similar circumstances. There can be no doubt from the lessons which Madam Abreu’s experience teaches, and from the daily demonstrations at Quinta Pala- tino, that this is precisely what is required for the successful breeding of the primates. They may be kept alive under other and relatively unsatis- factory conditions. This is attested by cases of great apes which, although badly deformed be- SUCCESS WITH GREAT APES — 225 cause of early injury or unhealthful conditions in captivity, survive year after year. There is a great and, to the uninitiated, surprising difference between the physical and social requirements or demands of the anthropoid apes and those of the more lowly types of primate, even including the monkeys. Undoubtedly the outstanding feature of this difference is social or psychological. Al- most all of the primates like companionship, but there is good reason to believe that the gorilla eannot live normally without it. He becomes sulky, despondent, and—like chimpanzees or orang-utans captured when adult—he may refuse to eat, and thus end his life. Perhaps the primates are increasingly tempera- mental from the monkeys to man, or perhaps it is more nearly correct and more illuminating to say that, being more highly endowed mentally, they have needs which correspond to their experiences, and demand of environment not merely the phys- ical factors of shelter and nourishment but also social conditions such as are fulfilled through com- panionship or group association. Although in- telligent care—covering sanitary conditions, feed- ing, and regulation of exercise—is absolutely es- sential, these alone are inadequate to maintain a great ape in the best of spirits. Both zodlogical parks and circuses have the great advantage of supplementing physical en- 226 ALMOST HUMAN vironment by affording abundant opportunities for companionship and display. The great apes, with the possible exception of the gibbon, have an innate love of acting. They delight in attracting attention and with visitors before them they are at their best. These factors of their environment may in large measure take the place of social rela- tions with mate, offspring, or other members of the family group. So a trained orang-utan or chimpanzee may live very contentedly under what might seem rather trying physical conditions. For many months recently the little gorilla Sultan has been on exhibition in a great American circus. Not only has he survived this experience, unique though that fact is, but he also has grown, and ends the ‘‘season’’ in the pink of condition. But all the while he has been treated with quite as much intelligent and sympathetic care and con- sideration as a child. With few exceptions, the primates are social creatures. They may not be socially minded in the latest sense of that phrase, but they seem as eager as humans for the company of their kind and as dependent upon it for contentment and happiness. Companionship and play are not a whit less important to their health, comfort, and contentment than such factors of physical en- vironment as temperature, moisture, food, and drink. SUCCESS WITH GREAT APES — 227 No primate, if it can reasonably be avoided, should be kept in isolation. At Quinta Palatino there are few instances of lone animals. Wau- Wau the gibbon is forlorn, and her lonesomeness gives her owner much concern. Jimmy is con- tented largely because of the companionship of wife and daughter, but if he were isolated he might still have visual access to his fellows and thus share in the community life. Madam Abreu has grasped and effectively utilized the important principle of sensory contiguity and association in establishing her primate colony, for the cages are so placed that, while protected from sudden storms and the intense sunlight of the tropics, they en- able the animals to enjoy companionship even be- yond their cages. In fact, it is seldom that one animal can do anything by way of amusement or exercise without attracting the attention of others in distant cages and having the activity shared through suggestion or imitation. Species companionship, eminently desirable and obviously natural though it be, may to a cer- tain extent be replaced by human association. Thus it appears possible for a person to maintain a captive primate in good condition and content- edly through intimate friendliness. This fact has been demonstrated not only in countless instances with various types of monkey, both small and large, but also with the great apes, among which 228 ALMOST HUMAN the gibbon, notable for its desire for companion- ship, is known to become very much attached to people and, to accept human friendship cheerfully in lieu of association with members of its kind. For all of the animals at Quinta Palatino there is abundant human companionship, which in some cases materially and in others incidentally supplements or replaces species companionship. This is important because most of the primates come to regard with interest and more or less manifest affection persons who control their means of subsistence and are friendly. Presently a monkey or an ape may come to behave toward a person much as it would toward one of its kind, acting to attract attention, seeking in various ways to share in activities, and above all using various tricks to encourage play relations. This brings us to another aspect of environ- ment which, in part physical and in part mental or social, is of the utmost importance; namely, op- portunity for work and play. In the young of all primates, random and varied play is much in evi- dence. Monkeying and aping seem to be always in order. As the animals become mature, this excess of activity gradually disappears, to be re- placed by more leisurely and definitely directed acts which look very much like work. There are amazing individual as well as species differences in attitude toward self-expression through play ” “ Tierleben ATTITUDES OF A YOUNG Ss Reproduced from Brehm GORILLA CACHESITA ACTION IN SUCCESS WITH GREAT APES = 229 or work and in both amount and variety of such expressions. Undoubtedly, kindness to captive primates de- mands ample provision for amusement and enter- tainment as well as for exercise. If the captive cannot be given opportunity to work for its liv- ing, it should at least have abundant chance to exercise its reactive ingenuity and love of playing with things. The writer well remembers a mon- key among his scientific subjects who would ac- tually use a hammer to drive nails and a saw to make a noise on wood or metal. Provided with a few objects which he could manipulate, this mon- key would amuse himself for hours at a time. The greatest possibility of improvement in our provision for captive primates lies in the inven- tion and installation of apparatus which can be used for play or work. This demands ingenuity, for the objects must be virtually indestructible and in the case of animals which are caged to- gether, of such nature that they cannot be used by one individual to injure another. During the several important periods of ape life the requirements of physical and social en- vironment differ more or less radically. Begin- ning with infancy, the individual is relatively help- less for several months and, in the case of the three great apes, remains in the care of its par- ents for from one to three years, barring acci- 230 ALMOST HUMAN dental separation. Throughout the period of in- fancy the mother nurses her offspring. For sev- eral months she is virtually the sole source of nourishment. Then the infant, having acquired, with the help of parental tuition, ability to walk and run about, begins to supplement the diet of milk by gathering and testing fruits, berries, roots, insects, and other living things. There is much experimenting in this, and the ape baby, like the human infant, learns daily through its con- tacts with environment. It seems that the infant is regularly carried, guarded, and protected by the mother. In the early days it clings to her tenaciously. Later, having acquired partial independence with its ability to walk, it rushes to her and securely es- tablishes itself on her back whenever anything alarms it or when it is called by her. A most common sight in Jimmy’s family was Monona quietly walking about the cage with little Lita firmly ensconced on her back. If everything was quiet and the animals entirely undisturbed, the baby might be sitting upright, holding to her mother’s coat only with her feet, but if the ani- mals were alarmed or nervous, Lita would be seen pressed close against her mother’s back, holding on for dear life by both hands and feet. In this position she could cling securely even though her mother rushed about, climbing the SUCCESS WITH GREAT APES 281 walls of the cage excitedly or otherwise disturbing the natural equilibrium of her burden. So far as we could learn, Jimmy has never been seen to carry the baby in this way, although he frequently plays with it and even chases it about the cage. In these family arrangements are seen sugges- tions of essential factors in social environment. If we take our cues for the care of the infant ape from what we know of domesticated mammals, such as the cat, dog, horse, pig, or cattle, we shall either fail completely or succeed imperfectly in rearing and training our subjects. For whether or not we like the fact, apes are so nearly human that what meets our needs in physical and social environment tends also to meet theirs, whereas what adequately meets the needs of the four- footed animal, intelligent though it be, may be un- satisfactory for the ape. The childhood of the ape is imperfectly known. Madam Abreu observed the development of Anum, but, apart from playfulness and certain incidents indicative of individual peculiarities of temperament and intelligence, there is little to record. In this period it is definitely known that the individual emerges from the parental depend- ence of infancy to a degree of independence which enables it to shift for itself in captivity and to get on, in case of necessity, in the wild, either by ad- hering to another family group or by associating 232 ALMOST HUMAN with brothers and sisters instead of with parents. With captive apes, the utilization of the first five years of life for training in seemly and healthful personal and social habits, is most important. This, although it may be time-consuming, assures convenience in the later management and care of the animal. To educate, re-educate, or reform a mature anthropoid ape is next to impossible, and even among the immature ones there are many in- dividuals which are not worth the time of train- ing. When the adolescent period begins, the re- sponsibilities of the parent rapidly wane and the young ape associates more and more with indi- viduals of its own age. Quinta Palatino supplies in its chimpanzee col- ony abundant opportunity to observe the daily life of adolescent males and females. Anuma is at the end of adolescence and about to emerge into mature chimpanzeehood. Jackito, much younger and immature for his age, is in the very midst of adolescence. In the natural behavior of these caged young things, sex play frequently appears, perhaps more frequently than normally because of the limitations of caged existence, and, in the females, also the tendency to personal adornment. This we have repeatedly observed in females of adolescent age but never in males. Beyond the age of adolescence the maintenance of an ape in health, comfort, and contentment is SUCCESS WITH GREAT APES — 233 relatively easy apart from the difficulties of sex life with its disturbing demands. The adult is more hardy and seemingly more resistant to prevalent diseases than is the immature indi- vidual, and also less dependent upon varied ac- tivity and opportunities for social and especially for sympathetic relations. Although Madam Abreu very strongly insists on the importance of certain factors in physical environment and doubts the significance of others, it is our opinion from conferences with her in which we have tried to enter fully into her prac- tical experience, and from observation of what ac- tually happens day by day at Quinta Palatino, that physical environment is insufficient to assure success in what she is doing, and inadequate to account for the behavior of her pets. We believe, and in this we hope that she may agree with us, that there are certain subtle benefits from the social relations of the animals among themselves and from their association with persons, espe- cially with their deeply sympathetic and under- standing owner and with her carefully chosen and experienced helpers. She has repeatedly told us that captive animals will not breed unless they feel that their young will be ‘‘happy.’’ We sus- pect that in this statement she really implies the benefits of social environment. Only relatively unintelligent animals can maintain themselves 234 ALMOST HUMAN successfully on the basis of physical environment alone. Injuries and diseases must be faced by any one who undertakes to keep monkeys or apes. Al- though many of them bear close resemblance to our own physical difficulties, there are significant differences which it is useful to know about. To begin with injuries, it is rarely indeed that they are self-inflicted, or that by untoward acci- dent, in handling or playing with objects or in running about or climbing, the animals come to harm. Occasionally they cut themselves in im- properly constructed cages, but more often they are hurt either in play or in serious attack by companions or other animals. Such injuries usu- ally are trivial and readily treated. The only precautions exercised at Quinta Palatino, and they are wholly approved by the experience of the writer, are cleanliness and the application of some bad-tasting or ill-smelling antiseptic prep- aration which is at once useful to keep the wound free from dirt and to prevent the animal or its companions from disturbing it. Broken bones, Madam Abreu says, are rare in her experience and are almost always the result of fighting. Except in the case of dire necessity, bandaging is undesirable, first because unnecessary, and second because the animal, unless constantly watched, may do more harm in its attempts to remove the SUCCESS WITH GREAT APES — 235 bandage than would result from leaving the wound open. Severe cuts and broken bones should be treated with the technique of human surgery. The use of local anesthetics Madam Abreu approves, but she strongly advises against chloroform and ether as general anesthetics. Among the several physical agencies which are likely to give trouble in captive primates, are external and internal parasites. The former seldom appear in a serious way, for the animals are naturally careful of their bodies and if given half a chance will keep themselves entirely free of, organisms which otherwise would infest the hair or skin. Madam reports one case of a chimpan- zee which when purchased was covered with lice. The state of the animal reflects most unfavorably on its human care, for there can be no doubt that with ordinary opportunity the chimpanzee would have rid itself of this external parasite. Occa- sionally, however, some parasite may appear in a primate colony, and in that case prompt attention is essential. Usually the discreet application of such solutions as bichloride of mercury or car- bolic acid will prove effective. Internal parasites are almost certain to give trouble sooner or later. A great variety of worms infest the digestive tract of both monkeys and apes. The roundworm, tapeworm, hookworm, and various others are known to occur more or 236 ALMOST HUMAN less commonly, and each requires specific treat- ment. It is not possible to give sufficiently de- tailed suggestion or advice in this connection safely to direct one who faces such an emergency. From her experience Madam Abreu recommends the use of Fahnestock’s Vermifuge. Purgatives also are frequently necessary, and those used for children and adults are effective. Especially in the case of the anthropoid apes, it usually is easy to get the animal to take the medicine if given in the form of candy or in sweetened water, fruit juice, or milk. It is almost a superstition that monkeys and apes die of tuberculosis. There can be no doubt that certain types of primate are peculiarly liable to tuberculosis, but on the other ‘hand certain other types are either peculiarly resistant or seldom seriously troubled by it. Nevertheless, it is eminently wise for the keeper of primates to guard them against exposure to this disease. Newly acquired animals should be given thorough physical examination and the tuberculin test. Both Madam Abreu and the writer have used this test intracutaneously, in the skin of the ape’s ear or arm. Although it may not be perfectly re- liable, it certainly is well worth the trouble of trial, for in case of positive result it gives warn-. ing, and in case of negative result, reasonable as- surance of freedom from infection. SUCCESS WITH GREAT APES — 237 Dr. Herbert Fox (20), in a book on the diseases of captive animals, offers valuable information and advice. Certain respiratory diseases are fre- quent and many primates are highly sensitive to pneumonia. It seems to be a prevalent impres- sion among those who are fairly familiar with monkeys and apes that the majority of captive primates die from tuberculosis or pneumonia. It is obviously desirable on this account to guard against the communication of these diseases by attendants or visitors. Although in nature the animals may be fairly free from such troubles, in captivity they are at a serious disadvantage and the least the human caretaker can do is minimize the risks of infection. For both tuberculosis and pneumonia the treatment, so far as knowledge goes at present, follows the course of human ex- perience. Madam Abreu has had several sad experiences with these diseases aud has lost both monkeys and apes from tuberculosis and pneumonia. It is worth while to suggest that tuberculosis not uncommonly in the primates affects the abdominal organs and completely upsets the digestive sys- tem, although it may also attack the lungs. When the condition is primarily abdominal, the abdomen becomes distended and the inexperienced person may be misled into suspecting a digestive disease or a dropsical condition. 238 ALMOST HUMAN Despite familiarity with the susceptibility of the great apes to tuberculosis and the danger of infection spreading in their colony or throughout the primate community, the mistress of Quinta Palatino has not established isolation quarters for diseased animals or for those recently ac- quired who may carry disease. She has told of several experiences which indicate that diseased animals brought to her place have infected other members of their species or other types of pri- mate, thus causing serious inconvenience and some fatalities in the collection. Two chimpan- zees and some monkeys have been lost by this sort of unfortunate accident. Evidently, and in this we are sure Madam Abreu would heartily agree with us, the part of wisdom is to keep newly acquired individuals in an isolated cage until their freedom from communicable diseases and their healthy condition is virtually assured, and to isolate any member of the community who be- comes ill. There are various tropical diseases affecting the blood and digestive system which appear in one or another type of primate. All of them re- quire the employment of medical experience and skill, and especially that of the physician who is familiar with tropical diseases. Practical experience at Quinta Palatino indi- cates that it is always essential to watch the con- SUCCESS WITH GREAT APES = 239 dition of the bowels and to regulate food supply and feeding in accordance therewith. The con- dition of the mouth also is highly important and serves as a good indicator of the state of health. Temperature and pulse, if relied upon, must be used in relation to the norms for the individual and the species. It is known that there are very marked differences in different types of primate and that the diurnal temperature range is re- markably great in some of the monkeys and apes. All of these matters have the utmost signifi- cance for those who would keep primates captive as pets, as performing animals, or as subjects of scientific inquiry. Madam Abreu’s experience with primate diseases, to sum it up, suggests the extreme de- sirability of guarding against tuberculosis, pneu- monia, infectious diseases of the digestive system, —such for example as ameebic dysentery,—and internal and external parasites. If initially free from such physical menaces, an individual or group of apes may, with proper attention to phys- ical environment, protection, care, and compan- ionship, be kept in good health, barring such accidents as are inevitable even in a human group. There are apparently individual as well as species differences in immunity or sensitiveness to disease-producing organisms or enzymes. 240 ALMOST HUMAN This appears from the history of the animals at Quinta Palatino and from the writer’s observa- tion of a pair of chimpanzees, one of which died of tuberculosis, whereas the other, although in- timately associated with the victim of the disease for several months, presented no signs of in- fection. Speaking of some of the peculiarities of her pets, Madam Abreu remarks that perspiration appears in the apes, but is seemingly difficult to induce; there are marked individual differences. Tears she has never seen in any primate except man. It is known that the tear glands are pres- ent in some of the other primates and certainly some of them give other evidences of weeping; yet the writer even by the use of tear gas in small quantities has never elicited tears in a chim- panzee. Diseases and defects in the sense organs have rarely been noticed at Quinta Palatino. Deaf- ness has never been observed. One case of near- sightedness in a monkey was commented on by Madam Abreu. Growths in the nature of tumors or cancers have seldom been observed in the colony. One case is reported of an old rhesus monkey which developed a growth on his tongue. Finally this became so serious that he was put out of his SUCCESS WITH GREAT APES 241 misery. Madam Abreu reported two or three other instances. Although many persons dread the bite of mon- keys and apes, fearing that it may be poisonous, no bad results have ever followed such accidents at Quinta Palatino. Madam Abreu has several times been bitten, as also have her attendants, but in no case has serious poisoning followed. It is her opinion that there is almost no risk ex- cept from a diseased animal or one whose teeth are dirty. The monkeys and apes are to be congratulated on one thing. They seem to be naturally free from such diseases of childhood as mumps, mea- sles, and whooping-cough, and there is no indica- tion of any corresponding diseases peculiar to them, so far as experience with Anuma and Lita goes. In speaking of essentials of sanitation and pri- mate care, Madam Abreu says they are very simple: ‘‘fresh air, sunshine, pure water, and protection from draughts when the animal sleeps.”’ If, then, we were asked to sum up for the mis- tress of Quinta Palatino, as well as ourselves, the essentials of success in keeping and breeding the higher primates, we should emphasize the follow- ing points: freedom, or reasonably spacious quar- 242 ALMOST HUMAN ters; fresh air and sunshine, preferably coupled with marked variations in temperature; cleanli- ness of surroundings as well as of the body; clean and carefully prepared food in proper variety and quantity; a sufficient and regular supply of pure water; congenial species companionship and intelligent and sympathetic human companion- ship, which, transcending the routine care of the animal, provides for the development of interest if not friendliness; and, finally, adequate re- sources and opportunity both in company and in isolation for work and play. Given these condi- tions of captive existence, primates originally healthful and normal should without difficulty be kept in good condition of body and mind and should naturally reproduce and successfully rear their young. Whether or not the secret of Madam Abreu’s success in keeping the great apes contented and in getting them to breed, has been discovered and adequately described we cannot tell, but at any rate serious effort has been made to get at the facts, and what seems most important has been presented in these pages. Possibly in this chap- ter the significance of social environment, and especially of the human aspects of it, has been over-emphasized. Certainly Madam Abreu would say so. But the writer is of the opinion that it SUCCESS WITH GREAT APES — 248 is safer to err in this direction than in the op- posite. The story of Madam Abreu’s persistent, intel- ligent, and determined efforts to establish natural and attractive conditions of life for her chim- panzees has been very inadequately told, but the fragments which have been presented will serve to indicate the numerous difficulties encountered, the exacting obligations of one who assumes such responsibility, the immense amount of painstak- ing labor, and the very considerable monetary cost of success. Certainly, in the pains which she has taken, in the exhibition of patience, sym- pathy, and willingness to do her utmost to under- stand the life of the animals, as well as in her ultimate success, the lady is unique. Her achieve- ment in a difficult undertaking will inspire others to try, and her experience will guide them. CHAPTER 13 THE LIGHT THAT FAILED: A TRIBUTE TO PRINCE CHIM T is only by accident that this chapter belongs in the story of Madam Abreu’s work with primates. It is written because in all my experi- ence as student of animal behavior I have never met an animal the equal of Prince Chim in ap- proach to physical perfection, alertness, adapt- ability, and agreeableness of disposition. He was a little chimpanzee who came to me by way of England, from somewhere on the eastern border of the Belgian Congo. By all who saw him he was recognized as an unusual type which rarely is seen in America. When I received him in August, 1923, he was said to be under two years of age, but it is reasonably certain, in view of the condition of his teeth and his degree of phys- ical development otherwise, that he was consider- ably older, perhaps even as much as four years of age. I first saw him in the New York Zo- ological Park, where, with a little female compan- ion, he was being kept until his owner could dis- pose of the pair. I purchased them and had them sent to New Hampshire, where during the re- 244 CHIM AND PANZEE WITH A FRIENDLY SCIENTIST Taken at the writer’s country home, Franklin, New Hampshire, in the summer of 1923 PANZEE, DRAWN BY DAVID YERKES, AGED ELEVEN YEARS Panzee proved a good model, but Chim wore out the artist's patience A TRIBUTE TO PRINCE CHIM 245 mainder of the summer and early fall I cultivated their acquaintance and arranged conditions to reveal their adaptability and power to solve prob- lems. It was my desire and hope to rear these two likely apes to maturity and to observe in- timately and carefully their individual character- istics of intellect, temperament, and physique, and obtain an accurate record of their life his- tory from the moment of purchase. The female was called Panzee. Too late it was discovered that she had tuberculosis. To the ex- traordinarily healthful conditions of life on a New Hampshire hill farm, where she was treated with the greatest consideration and fed discrim- inatingly and abundantly, she responded with great improvement in physical condition. It would not be easy to find two infants more markedly different in bodily traits, temperament, intelligence, and their varied expressions in ac- tion, than Chim and Panzee. Here are just a few points of contrast. His eyes were black and in his dark face lacked contrast and seemed beady, cold, expressionless. Hers were brown, soft, and full of emotional value, chiefly because of their color and the contrast with her light complexion. Chim’s ears were small, set close to his head and fringed with black hair, whereas Panzee’s stood out conspicuously, and were light in color and hairless. Their foreheads, noses, lips, and head 246 ALMOST HUMAN conformations also differed noticeably. Com- plete descriptions of the physique of the two ani- mals well might suggest the query as to whether they were both chimpanzees. In reply I must say, so I was told by those who were supposed to know. When it comes to animal temperament, we are at a loss for descriptive terms. Little Chim was notable for his bold, aggressive manner, his con- stant alertness and eagerness for new experi- ences. Seldom daunted, he treated the mysteries of life as philosophically as any man. Panzee was timid, nervous, hesitant before anything novel or new. When there was anything to learn by ‘‘trial and error,’’ he took the lead and she followed at an eminently safe distance. Chim also was even-tempered and good-natured, al- ways ready for a romp; he seldom resented by word or deed unintentional rough handling or mishap. Never was he known to exhibit jeal- ousy. If I were to tell of his altruistic and ob- viously sympathetic behavior toward Panzee I should be suspected of idealizing an ape. Panzee could not be trusted in critical situations. Her resentment and anger were readily aroused and she was quick to give them expression with hands and teeth. Although too timid to attack an adult, she was known to attempt to bite a child who, by playing with Chim, aroused her jealousy. A TRIBUTE TO PRINCE CHIM — 247 One of the temperamental differences already mentioned is illustrated amusingly by the follow- ing incident in the day’s work. Desiring to learn the weight of the animals, I took into the chim- panzee apartment a scale such as is commonly used for weighing babies, with the basket ad- justed for the comfortable reception of an infant ape. Chim permitted me to place him in the bas- ket and sat there quietly, interested but not a bit frightened, and balancing himself skilfully while I read the indicator. He was then removed from the basket, although desiring to stay in his novel position, and effort was made to repeat the performance with Panzee. When she was placed in the basket she immediately and hastily scram- bled out with every appearance of alarm and ex- treme unwillingness to risk herself on the novel and unstable support. Although I tried several times to induce her to sit quietly in the basket long enough for an accurate reading of the indica- tor, each effort failed. Finally I hit upon this simple method of gaining my end. Taking both animals in my arms, I deposited them face to face in the basket. Panzee, instead of looking further for support, naturally put her arms about Chim, and before she had time to change her mind and clamber out, the combined weight of the animals had been read. Having thus been shown the harmlessness of the scale and basket she after- 248 ALMOST HUMAN ward climbed in of her own accord, as did Chim also, and the observer’s troubles were ended. Intelligence is a much-abused word, but it is more comprehensive than alertness, and I am go- ing to risk using it. Everything seems to indicate that Chim was extremely intelligent. His sur- prising alertness and interest in things about him bore fruit in action, for he was constantly im- itating the acts of his human companions and testing all objects. He rapidly profited by his experiences. To say that he was unique among anthropoid apes, or even among chimpanzees, would be rash on a few months’ acquaintance and in the light of intimate knowledge of only a few of his kind, yet I do know with certainty that he, an infant ape, was remarkable alike for his ob- servational ability, his varied methods and quick- ness of learning, and above all for his delight in ‘‘acting.’’? Never have I seen man or beast take greater satisfaction in showing off than did little Chim. The contrast in intellectual qualities be- tween him and his female companion may briefly, if not entirely adequately, be described by the term ‘‘opposites.’’ Not only did she learn less and more slowly than he; her intelligence seemed to differ in kind. At first I thought that this was due chiefly to her physical condition, although perhaps in part to sex characteristics, or species or varietal peculiarities, A TRIBUTE TO PRINCE CHIM 249 Of one thing with respect to the temperament and intelligence of Chim and Panzee one could be virtually certain; they would do quite different things in the same situation. Present a stranger, and the chances were that Chim would welcome him cordially with outstretched hand, while Pan- zee turned her back on him. If perchance both deigned to greet the visitor, he would be amused by the contrasting hand-shakes, for Chim’s was heartiness itself. He gave his hand freely and frankly, and usually allowed it to rest an appre- ciable time in that of the recipient. Panzee of- fered hers somewhat grudgingly and, with fingers bunched as though to avoid unnecessary contact, she permitted it to touch the outstretched hand of the visitor, but almost immediately withdrew it with an air of relief and a suspicion of self- congratulation that she had safely ventured even so far. Not all visitors realized that this might be merely an indication of timidity. Panzee, when transferred from the New Hamp- shire farm to the less favorable conditions of her city apartment, failed rapidly. She died in January, 1924. Chim flourished alike in city and country surroundings. In July, 1924, he accom- panied me to Havana, furnishing throughout the trip entertainment to railroad employees and fel- low passengers. Always friendly and playful, he was on this occasion unusually energetic and 200 ALMOST HUMAN eager for games. On our arrival in Havana he was taken to Quinta Palatino and on the follow- ing day introduced to Fru Fru, a white-face female chimpanzee, possibly somewhat younger than he, but about the same size. The little apes took to one another from the first and the greater part of their time was spent in active play in their large cage. Thcir games were mostly those of chasing and pulling, pushing, or hauling each other about. If one became quiet or started to do something for its own amusement, that was the sign for the other to disturb it and initiate a lively tussle or a game of tag. Chim seemed perfectly at home and happy in his new environment. He had come from Wash- ington, D. C., where in comfortable quarters he had spent the winter without illness or disability of any sort. Each morning when I came to Quinta Palatino to resume observation of the primates, Chim, even before I came in sight, greeted me with a cry of joy. It was not a pro- longed scream but a sharp, vigorous, and impres- sive shout of welcome which I thoroughly appre- ciated. Presently we began our experimental studies of the behavior of the chimpanzee, and Chim among others was given opportunity to display his ability to solve problems. My scientific as- sociate, Professor Harold C. Bingham, in com- A TRIBUTE TO PRINCE CHIM 251 paring him with other individuals whom we were studying under similar conditions, remarked that he seemed to be interested in the causes or con- ditions of things, whereas his companions did not. Then, too, he was much more active and re- sourceful, especially in the experimental situa- tions which were used. Indeed, his behavior contrasted almost as markedly with that of his chimpanzee associates as did his appearance, for he was a little black-face with rather conspicuous nose, small ears, and a heavy coat of fine black hair, whereas most of them were white-face spec- imens with the typical chimpanzee nose, large, conspicuous ears, and much coarser and generally less thick coat of hair. One morning some ten days after our arrival in Havana my approach to the chimpanzee col- ony was not heralded by Chim. I supposed that he was occupied with other interests and had therefore failed to notice my appearance, but on the third day which lacked a welcome, a more alarming explanation appeared. That day we took Chim from his cage to make some physical measurements. He seemed rather disturbed by our treatment and while we were working with him coughed several times. It was noticed that his hands and head seemed hot, so fearing that he had contracted a cold we returned him to his cage. Madam Abreu also had noticed his indis- 252 ALMOST HUMAN position. This marked the beginning of a very bad fortnight. The following day it was clear that Chim had a serious cold. Within forty-eight hours one lung was affected and we suspected pleurisy. He had been removed before this time from his out- door cage to a comfortable cage with a bed in the house, and was there given close attention both day and night. Within another twenty-four hours his condition had become alarming and medical assistance pronounced his case pneu- monia. Our anxiety now became dread, for Madam Abreu knew from experience, and the rest of us from our reading, that pneumonia is one of the chimpanzee’s most dangerous afflictions. A negro nurse, quiet and sympathetic, was em- ployed to look after the patient at night and everything that Madam Abreu’s practical experi- ence and the advice of her physician suggested as desirable was done for Prince Chim. Food he very early began to refuse and after the first three or four days of his illness, he took nothing but small quantities of such liquids as fruit juices, milk, water, and coffee. At first it was next to impossible to keep him covered, for he would tear off anything that was wrapped about him and throw off covers which were placed over him. Always extremely healthy, energetic, and inde- pendent, he persisted now in his eagerness to be A PORTRAIT OF PRINCE CHIM S CAPITAL ’ TION < Z a rm a za = a eH q oO A TRIBUTE TO PRINCE CHIM — 253 entirely untrammeled and to move about as his strength permitted. In addition to the usual home remedies he was given hypodermically a remedy prescribed by the physician. This treat- ment he submitted to at first with fairly good grace, but as it was repeated he came to dread the pain of the needle and the discomfort of the in- jection, and it was clear that he greeted with anx- lety mixed with eagerness every one who entered the room. And so the suspense continued. For the first week we believed each day that if he lived through that day he surely would recover. But as the second week began our hope became min- gled with despair. The animal’s condition was obviously desperate. His temperature, earlier somewhat subnormal, had become virtually nor- mal, 37° to 38° centigrade. His respiration, how- ever, was extremely difficult, usually shallow, rapid, and painful. The heart action, from the first vigorous although necessarily rapid, grad- ually became weaker and we realized that even a perfect physique might not suffice to carry him through his illness. Often as I entered the sick-room, I noticed that he was watching eagerly and although he wel- comed me and sometimes even came to me from his bed, he seemed still to be expecting some one. Every footstep in the hall attracted his attention 254 ALMOST HUMAN and it was almost as though he anticipated the appearance of some one or something not pres- ent. On one occasion it seemed when I ap- proached him as though he were either mentally disturbed or failed to recognize me. As I sat by him one day, toward the end of the first week, he talked almost continuously, as though trying to tell me something. This un- usual performance was very impressive, for it made one feel that, like a person, he was trying to convey certain meaning for which his vocal expression was inadequate. He was not excited, but seemed calm and intent on his task. Finally the tragic day dawned. He seemed better in the morning, but toward noon it became © evident that he was making a losing fight. Hven then, however, and within a half-hour of his death, he was able to get up from his bed and cross the room to a cage which he climbed. He lay down on the top of the cage. Evidently he was in agony and could nowhere find relief; therefore his restless activity and the amazing show of strength even at the end. Then came the death scene, with the piercing cry, the rattle in throat, the less and less frequent gasps for breath, the open mouth, and the fixed, stony stare. We were all greatly grieved by the loss of Chim, first because he was a valuable animal who had won a place in our affection, and still further A TRIBUTE TO PRINCE CHIM — 255 because he was actually a prince of his kind. Hlsewhere his life history and characteristics have been described more fully [Yerkes and Learned (9)]. Here his untimely end is reported because his behavior even in death goes far t6 justify the title of this story, ‘‘ Almost Human.’’ Doubtless there are geniuses even among the anthropoid apes. Prince Chim seems to have been an intellectual genius. His remarkable alertness and quickness to learn were associated with a cheerful and happy disposition which made him the favorite of all, and gave him a place of distinction not only in their regard but in their memories. Many, I am sure, who read this ac- count will mourn with me the death of this little chimpanzee. CHAPTER 14 KNOWLEDGE CONDITIONS POWER HEN one tries to encompass our knowl- edge of the infrahuman primates it is im- pressive, but when one imagines what we might know, our knowledge turns into ignorance. For although the monkeys and even the anthropoid apes have been known to man for hundreds and some of them for thousands of years, few of them have been exhaustively studied from any particu- lar point of view, and least of all from that of the student of behavior, social relations, and psy- chology. Where we might reasonably expect and hope for accurate and detailed descriptions, we find only fragments, and these fragments, as has been suggested, give the casual or lay reader an exaggerated impression of extent and complete- ness. More time has been spent on the external char- acteristics of the primates, which are useful in naming, identifying, and classifying them, than on their mental life or even on their bodily fune- tions. Next in order of emphasis comes the study of their internal structure, anatomy, 256 KNOWLEDGE CONDITIONS POWER 257 histology, embryology, pathology. From these points of attack, and in certain aspects, many of the smaller primates and the anthropoid apes are fairly well known. Yet even the morphologist complains of the inadequacy of our comparative studies and persistently seeks opportunities to make new observations and to verify and correct old ones. In the realm of functions as contrasted with structures our information is hopelessly in- adequate. The reasons for the scientist’s neglect of the higher primates are important only as their dis- covery and consideration may enable us to escape them. It might naturally be supposed that we should know most about the creatures in our world which, superficially at ‘east, most closely resemble us. Why is this not true? There are several contributory causes, first among which is the relative scarcity of primates other than man in the principal areas of scientific inquiry. The monkeys and monkey-like animals as well as the anthropoid apes are, in general, denizens of the tropics or of the subtropical regions, whereas sci- ence flourishes and has developed most highly in the temperate zones. Supplementing this geo- graphical factor is the relative nuisance, diffi- culty, and expense of keeping the animals in closely restricted captivity. Unlike many other wild creatures, they do not, generally speaking, 258 ALMOST HUMAN thrive and breed readily in captivity. In this connection it must be remembered that scientific inquiry and discovery have usually been ill- supported. The determined but self-sacrificing observer, eager to extend the bounds of knowl- edge, as a practical necessity has selected the most accessible, most easily dealt with, and most economically maintained materials for the study of his problems. Consequently the frog, small rodents such as the rat and mouse, the guinea- pig and rabbit, have been much used for biolog- ical inquiries, whereas even the commoner and more readily accessible of the monkeys have been neglected. In case of the anthropoid apes there is the additional essential fact of relative scarcity and high cost of specimens as well as of main- tenance. These are some of the facts which ap- pear when one examines the history of biology. Are they to restrict research in the future? The economic status of science to-day is in- comparably better than ever in the history of mankind. Popular understanding and apprecia- tion of the significance of knowledge and of the application of scientific discoveries to daily needs constitute the basis for large public support and for private munificence which are enabling the investigator to go forward with more attention to the reasonable requirements and demands of his work and less to its material support. Under KNOWLEDGE CONDITIONS POWER 259 these circumstances it surely is worth while to ask: What should we know about the primates, and how may we most satisfactorily extend our inquiries and provide for the thorough investiga- tion of all aspects of the structure and activities of these creatures? Our question and the inference have perhaps gone beyond our evaluation of the facts, for with- out presentation of evidence and arguments we have assumed that our relative ignorance of the primates is unprofitable and should be remedied. Doubtless the layman may reasonably ask for general if not specific arguments. To him it may well seem wasteful to spend large sums on the study of creatures which, although similar to us in many respects, apparently are economically valueless. But this is not the whole story, nor yet the logical beginning of it, for when one turns to the history of science and examines the rela- tions of its progress to the development of arts, industries, and cultures, one immediately learns that the progress of civilization has been closely correlated with, and in many directions depend- ent upon, scientific inquiry and its discoveries. Indeed, it has become a tradition in several of the world’s great cultural areas to consider science the forerunner of invention and the handmaiden of social as well as material progress. Most of us readily admit that we cannot have 260 ALMOST HUMAN too accurate and detailed knowledge of our own organization and of its relations to environment. But some of us overlook the fact that many bio- logical inquiries which are pursued with the hope of improving the conditions of human life may best be conducted, in some, at least, of their stages, with other animals as subjects. In stud- ies of structure, function, and mind it often is far more difficult and expensive to use human sub- jects than other primates or other mammals. So the principal practical argument for the more extensive scientific use of the infrahuman pri- mates is such increase of our knowledge of the facts and laws of life as will enable us more wisely and effectively to regulate or control in- dividual, social, and racial existence. It is pri- marily an argument from economy. With these general introductory considerations, we may inquire somewhat more particularly about the scientific possibilities and values of the primates. To the casual observer it might at present seem as though their principal use were to supply entertainment, since in stimula- tion of curiosity the monkeys and apes are with- out rivals in zoological parks and on the stage. The psychologist inevitably wonders why the monkey cage is so conspicuously a center of in- terest, luring adults of all conditions, degrees of education and insight, as well as children. Why KNOWLEDGE CONDITIONS POWER 261 also the acts of the trained chimpanzee or orang- utan always attract an audience, though in them- selves they may be extraordinarily commonplace, and though the observers may frequently have seen like exhibitions of trained apes. Surely the likenesses amidst differences of monkey and man, their skill and dexterity in using hands and feet, their relatively high order of intelligence, and their emotional expressions are peculiarly fascinating to most persons and constitute a lure far stronger than that of other animals. But there is another factor which in many instances exceeds in importance interest in similarities. This is wonder and intellectual curiosity. Even the child cannot observe monkeys and apes in their daily life or in trick performances without wondering why the creatures are so like himself and yet so essentially different from what he thinks himself. Questions about genetic rela- tions, origins, reasons for the evolution or devel- opment of such beings, the nature of their inner life of experience, and their possible immortality, come to a large number of apparently thoughtless and casual observers about the monkey cage. It is difficult to exaggerate the attraction for most persons of the physically interesting va- rieties of monkey and ape. I am vividly re- minded, as I write, of an experience in Paris. In those times of desperate reconstruction follow- 262 ALMOST HUMAN ing the World War I was one day wandering about the Jardin des Plantes. The great institu- tion was unspeakably forlorn. Most of the ani- mals had perished or been sacrificed during the days of strenuous need, and those few that re- mained in their cages or inclosures showed the pitiable effects of hard times. As I observed and pondered, I noticed a group of people—more than I had seen at any other place in the gardens— gathered about a large cage. On approaching I discovered that the cage contained three miser- able-looking monkeys. Although a meager pri- mate exhibit, these creatures attracted more attention than anything else in the great gardens! Few persons would be likely to argue that the exhibition of primates, either trained or un- trained, is comparable in theoretical and practical values with their scientific study. Nevertheless the zodlogical parks, circuses, menageries, and variety shows of the world have in the past fifty years spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to satisfy human curiosity, whereas only paltry sums have been devoted to the disinterested study of our nearest of kin. But comparisons are odious: still worse, they are usually misleading. What is needed is not diminution of the use of these animals for educational purposes but rather in- crease of attention to the scientific problems KNOWLEDGE CONDITIONS POWER 263 which they present, and vastly greater popular support of work with them. What, then, given interested investigators and support of their work, might profitably be done in the study of primates? In answer to this question several significant types of inquiry may be listed and characterized. They by no means _ exhaust the possibilities of research, but at least they illustrate and typify the primary interests of biological investigators; neither is the order of listing related to logical demands or practical values. Naturalistic or field studies of the infrahuman primates are much needed, and this despite the fact that for many decades hunters, explorers, missionaries, and traveling biologists have gath- ered data and produced reports. There are thou- sands of pages descriptive of the life and habits of monkeys and apes, and yet for not a single spe- cies of primate is our knowledge of innate and ac- quired behavior (instincts and habits), tempera- ment and emotional expressions, social life, rela- tions to environment and life history even ap- proximately complete. Where we most need re- liable, systematic, detailed descriptions, we find observational fragments cemented together with guesses, some shrewd, some ridiculous. Cer- tainly we never shall have a profitable working knowledge of any of these creatures until we know 264 ALMOST HUMAN their natural life and habitat intimately and ac- curately. Why, then, do we not provide for ex- peditions, observational stations, the support of field naturalists, so that this work may be done well instead of more or less incidentally and as chance affords opportunity? Such naturalistic inquiries as the previous para- graph suggests would at once largely increase our knowledge of the behavior and mental life of the primates, and exhibit and define special problems whose solution might best be sought in well- equipped laboratories. As to the nature of the mental life or even the behavior patterns and educability of most of the infrahuman primates almost nothing is known. Read the thousands of pages of description which purports to deal with the monkey or the ape mind and you will be most of all impressed by the meagerness of the net re- sult. The really considerable and valuable con- tributions to the psychology of the primate, al- ways excepting man, can be counted on one’s fin- gers. Except as we view the conditions of the progress of science, the situation is surprising and difficult to understand, for we naturally should assume that next to the study of the human mind, mind in other primates would command attention. It would be grossly unfair to psychologists and psycho-biologists to say they are not interested in the mental life and behavior of the primates, In- KNOWLEDGE CONDITIONS POWER 265 stead they are fully aware that anthropoid re- search promises to supply an indirect approach to certain problems in human psychology which hitherto have proved insoluble. Many of them are deeply interested, but few have been able to command even meager and inadequate resources for work which they much desire to do. Again, it is a question of practical difficulties, of the rela- tive inaccessibility and costliness of primate ma- terials, and in some instances also of the attitude of the layman toward serious scientific work with infrahuman animals. Ali newspaper readers know the price which the psychologist or sociolo- gist is made to pay for his devotion to research with monkeys or apes. It is primarily humorous belittlement, ridicule, the exhibition of trivialities as though they were essentials. Ordinarily these things do not deter the investigator, but they do make it immeasurably more difficult for him to ob- tain the necessary opportunities and support for his work, Intimately related to inquiries into the mental life of the primates are educational experiments. Until recently we had not suspected that monkeys, apes, and man had enough in common education- ally to make it worth our haughty while carefully to investigate aspects of educability in other pri- mates. But in the past decade certain ably con- ducted inquiries have shown us that some prob- 266 ALMOST HUMAN lems in education may be attacked more directly and economically by using monkeys or apes ini- tially as subjects than by using children. The essential reasons for this are demonstrated points of similarity in the hereditary equipment and educability of the higher primates and man, and the feasibility of using the monkeys and apes in educational experiments which cannot reasonably or safely be undertaken at the outset with chil- dren. One may have no scruples about modify- ing the course of the life of a monkey, an orang- utan, or a gorilla by certain novel methods of educational treatment, where one would refuse to take the unpredictable risks with a child. If, without just censure, we are to make radical and novel experiments in education, they must be made with other animals. Presumably they can be made most profitably with other primates. There is the further important consideration that although the costs of working with monkeys and apes is relatively great, that of working with children or adults is much greater. So even if humanitarian considerations, including the wel- fare and safety of the human subject, be not ob- jections, itis obviously worth while to initiate some experiments in education with other primates; and having made certain exploratory progress, defined problems and developed methods, to con- KNOWLEDGE CONDITIONS POWER. 267 tinue, with the great advantages thus gained, by studying children or human adults. When one stops to consider that our pedagog- ical procedures are accepted and used more largely on the basis of precedent and convention than because of any reasonable certainty that they are, all things considered, the best procedures which we could command, an inspiring vista for educa- tional research with the infrahuman primates opens before us. We might very well, by taking careful thought and spending a small fraction of our material resources on primate research, im- prove greatly our educational methods and even our educational systems. Certainly the monkeys and apes would not begrudge us this gain. It is merely a matter of human foresight, insight, orig- inality, initiative, determination, and faith. Much that has been written of the possibilities of profitable educational research with the pri- mates applies similarly and with equal force to the investigation of social problems. Natural- istic studies of the primates should give us ade- quate working knowledge of their social relations and organizations, and of the chief factors of their social environment. There might appear, also, significant facts concerning social evolution and development, eugenic and euthenic practices or opportunities. And this information might en- 268 ALMOST HUMAN able us to see in a quite different light our own particular and perhaps peculiar social problems. We may not be eager to admit it, but it is none the Jess true that human social psychology and sociology are only slightly developed. May we not, perhaps, give them a great impetus by thor- oughly acquainting ourselves with the facts and principles of social life and its resulting organiza- tions in our nearest of kin, the anthropoid apes? May we not with them experiment almost without limit on the modification of social factors and forms, on the production of new types of indi- vidual or social unit, on the relations of the in- dividual to controlled factors of social environ- ment? In a word, may we not, with the solution of human social problems at heart, carry out with the aid of our primate kindred inquiries in ex- perimental sociology and social psychology whose results may be expected to point the way to direct attack on human problems and to the experi- mental study of human relations and practices which we might not otherwise venture to consider short of many generations? Our point of view is constant; our arguments cumulative. What can be said about the study of problems in hygiene, preventive medicine, cura- tive medicine, surgery, and allied practical arts, is essentially similar to what has already been re- marked relative to the study of educational and KNOWLEDGE CONDITIONS POWER 269 social problems with the infrahuman primates. As always, the degree of biological resemblance of the animal to man is a primary consideration. It happens, we already know, that from the points of view of the hygienist, physician, and surgeon the higher monkeys and anthropoid apes in essential respects stand close to man. In com- mon they are subject to many infectious diseases. Their reactions to accidental injuries and many other types of environmentally induced bodily disturbance are strikingly similar. This knowledge has not been wide-spread, so it is not so very surprising that experimental medicine has made only sporadic and relatively slight use of monkeys and apes. Generally speak- ing, human subjects are more readily commanded for medical needs because of clinical and hospital resources and facilities. But the day has now dawned when investigators in hygiene, medicine, and surgery are eagerly and actively seeking op- portunities to initiate investigations with other primates. It requires scarcely more than ordi- nary imaginative ability to see rare possibilities of economy and research progress in the exten- sive use of monkeys and the occasional use of the great apes for varied lines of medical research. Bacteriological investigations, study of the causa- tion and treatment of infectious diseases, experi- mental surgery, and problems of practical hygiene 270 ALMOST HUMAN may in many cases be attacked more directly, and without the risk of possible injustice or ill effect to human subjects, by utilizing monkeys or apes. The medical is not my field of research. I write of it with consciousness of inadequate knowledge and with reservations which did not inhibit me in thinking of the possibilities of nat- uralistic, psychological, educational, and social re- search. Perhaps I should have omitted entirely this field of inquiry had not the French medical authorities given the most substantial practical endorsement to the hopes which I have expressed, by establishing, through the Pasteur Institute, in French Guinea, laboratories for medical research with the monkeys and apes. Already our list of research opportunities is long, but it would be an inexcusable oversight or neglect to omit entirely those fields of work which have been most diligently and highly cultivated ; namely, the morphological. It was natural enough—indeed, inevitable—that the external characteristics of the primates should attract and command scientific attention and should lead, be- cause of their variety and variability, to systems of classification based upon voluminous descrip- tions of the distinguishing characters of families, genera, species, and varieties. Close on the heels of the taxonomist, as the classifier of animals is called, or even in his person, comes the student KNOWLEDGE CONDITIONS POWER 271 of bodily structure—anatomist, histologist, em- bryologist, pathologist. By all of these investi- gators the remains of the primate, once psycho- logically and sociologically interesting, have been utilized. As a result there has grown up a body of information about the anatomy and develop- ment of various types of monkey and ape which is precious and the value of which will increase as observations are verified, supplemented, and com- parisons extended. It is upon just such studies of primate structure and the resulting informa- tion that we base to-day our most important no- tions about organic development and evolution. It has been said that our knowledge of primate morphology is more ample and more nearly com- plete than that of primate physiology, psychol- ogy, sociology. But even the structural sciences are rather at the beginning than at the end of their long quest. Consequently, if and when pro- visions are made for the more nearly adequate utilization of primates to extend our knowledge of life and its conditions, they should include in- stead of ignoring morphological work. They should also provide along with opportunities for the study of the animals in their natural habitat, or under equally good conditions of life in con- finement, for the utilization of the animals whose lives have been spent and whose remains may thereupon further advance anthropology, anat- 272 ALMOST HUMAN omy, and the various other divisions of mor- phological inquiry. Thus, without neglecting the more backward fields of biological research, we might make the primates contribute increasingly to those subjects in which we to-day feel confident of the relative adequacy of our knowledge and on which we have possibly too largely rested our hypotheses, theories, or doctrines of development and evolution. Increasing control of our environment and selves depends chiefly on the application of the methods of science to the study of ourselves and of the phenomena which condition our existence. Strange to say, we know relatively much more about our environment than about ourselves, and are able in far larger measure to control the con- ditions of life than life’s processes and experi- ences. Although it is good to have knowledge of the physical world, and large ability to control it, it is correspondingly bad to be relatively ignorant of vital phenomena including behavior, social re- lations, and mental life. There is a lack of bal- ance in our present knowledge which in certain di- rections threatens serious disaster. When we stop to ask, why we seek ever increasing knowl- edge and understanding of physical phenomena, why ever larger measure of control of the world in which we live, we readily admit that it is for the improvement of life itself. KNOWLEDGE CONDITIONS POWER 273 Yet, as we ponder our situation, we discover that our ignorance of life makes it impossible for us to formulate objectives or ideals or to decide whither we should drive. It is possible, if not probable, that our astounding progress in the physical sciences, with its profound changes in the conditions of human life, may totally wreck our present more progressive civilizations or even destroy the race. Not a few organic types have appeared on this earth, prospered for an xon or two, and succumbed to environmental conditions for the existence of which their own activities may have been largely responsible. Possibly man- kind is now headed toward such shaping of his en- vironment as will prove destructive. But even though disaster be not imminent, it is clearly the part of wisdom to foster the development of the biclogical sciences as energetically and effectively as of the physical sciences. To know the condi- tions of life without knowing life itself must in- evitably prove unsatisfactory. Perhaps the most essential of all knowledge for the defining of human objectives and the wise con- duct of life has to do with consciousness and ex- perience. Of them we have only a certain remote superficial descriptive knowledge. We stand, as it were, before a locked door, trying persistently, thus far without success, to discover how to open it. With all our speculation about the nature of 274 ALMOST HUMAN consciousness, the laws of mental life, the rela- tions of experience to bodily processes and to en- vironmental events, we have come forward to- ward effective working knowledge but slightly dur- ing the period of human history. The purpose of this comparison of the status of physical and biological sciences is to point the strategic value of the primates for psychological inquiry. Of all living creatures they are the most promising material for the psychologist, aside from his fellow beings. And where the fel- low beings refuse to lead or follow, where experi- mentation is unjust or otherwise impracticable, the infrahuman primate is supreme. It is far worse than careless to ignore or neglect our op- portunities; it is wholly inexcusable. REFERENCE AND READING LIST 1 Sonntag, C. F. ‘‘The morphology and evolution of the apes and man.’’ London, 1924, vi + 356 pp. A summary account of the structure of apes as com- pared with that of man. 2 Forbes, H. O. ‘‘A handbook of the primates.’’ London, 1894, two volumes. For the layman this is a very convenient and readable description of the monkeys and apes. 3 Elliott, D. G. ‘‘A review of the primates.’? New York, 1913 (Monograph 1 of the American Museum of Natural History), three volumes. An authoritative work on the classification of the primates. 4 Kohts, Nadie. ‘‘Untersuchungen tiber die Erkennt- nisfahigkeiten des Schimpansen.’’ (In Russian.) Moscow, 1923, 453 pp. Accompanied by a German translation of the summary, 38 pp. “‘Report of the Zodpsychological Laboratory of the Darwinian Museum.’’ (In Russian.) Moscow, 1921, 15 pp. For those who read Russian, these are interesting reports of experiments with the chimpanzee. 5 Koehler, W. ‘‘Aus der Anthropoidenstation auf Teneriffa. II. Optische Untersuchungen am Schimpansen und am MHaushuhn.’’ (70 pp.) 275 276 ALMOST HUMAN Abh. d. Preuss. Akad., 1915, Phys.-Math. Kl. Nr. 3. ‘*Aus der Anthropoidenstation auf Teneriffa. IV. Nachweis einfacher Strukturfunktionen beim Schimpansen und beim Haushuhn iiber eine neue Methode zur Untersuchung des Bunten Farben- systems.’’ (101 pp.) Abh. d. Preuss. Akad., 1918, Phys.-Math. Kl. Nr. 2. Important reports of experimental studies of vision and perception in the chimpanzee and hen. 6 Koehler, W. ‘‘The mentality of apes.’? Translated from the German by E. Winter. New York, 1925, 342 pp. One of the most. important books on the intelligence of the chimpanzee. 7 Boutan, L. ‘‘Le_ pseudo-language. Observations effectuées sur un anthropoide: le gibbon (Hylobates Leucogenys-Ogilby).’? Actes de la Soc. Linné- enne de Bordeaux, 1913, 67, 5-80. ‘‘Les deux méthodes de l’enfant.’’ Actes de la Soc. Linnéenne de Bordeaux, 1914, 68, 146 pp. Valuable studies of intelligence and vocal expression in the gibbon. 8 Yerkes, R. M. ‘‘The mental life of monkeys and apes: a study of ideational behavior.’’ Behavior Monographs, 1916, 3, 156 pp. An account of experiments on monkeys and an orang- utan to discover whether they act ideationally. 9 Yerkes, R. M. and Learned, B. W. ‘‘ Chimpanzee in- telligence and its vocal expressions.’’ Baltimore, 1925, 157 pp. REFERENCE AND READING LIST 277 Observations on two young chimpanzees, Chim and Panzee. ; 10 Akeley, C. E. ‘‘In brightest Africa.’’ New York, 1923, xii + 267 pp. This contains some new information about the moun- tain gorilla. 11 Bradley, Mary H. ‘‘On the gorilla trail.’’ New York, 1922, 266 pp. It is a highly interesting book which importantly supplements Mr. Akeley’s description of the gorilla. 12 Cunningham, A. ‘‘A gorilla’s life in civilization.’’ Bull. Zoél. Soc. N. Y., 1921, 24, 118-124. The story of the little gorilla John Daniel. 13 Wallace, A. R. ‘‘The Malay Archipelago.’’ Lon- don, 1869 (1st ed. two volumes) ; 1922 (17th ed.), xii + 493 pp. An excellent description of the orang-utan in its native land. Readable and reliable. 14 Du Chaillu, P. B. ‘‘Explorations and adventures in equatorial Africa.’’ London, 1861, xviii + 479 pp. Interesting, among other reasons, for its description of the gorilla in its native haunts, but by many considered unreliable. 15 Brehm, A. E. ‘‘Tierleben.’’ Leipzig, 1911-22 (4th ed.), thirteen volumes. The primates are described in the 13th volume. Possibly the best popular description of the primates, including the anthropoid apes, which is available in any language. The third edition of this famous natural history is translated into English. 278 ALMOST HUMAN 16 Garner, R. L. ‘‘Apes and monkeys: their life and _ language.’’ Boston, 1900, xiii + 284 pp. ‘‘Gorillas and chimpanzees.’’ London, 1896, 271 pp. Readable, and especially interesting as studies of speech in monkeys and apes. Not highly esteemed by professional students of animal behavior. 17 Romanes, G. J. ‘‘Mental evolution in man.’’ New York, 1889, viii + 439 pp. ‘‘Mental evolution in animals.’’ London, 1883, 411 pp. Although old, these are still useful books for the general as well as the professional reader. 18 Furness, W. H. ‘‘Observations on the mentality of chimpanzees and orang-utans.’’ Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc. 1916, 55, 281-290. Cited chiefly because of its account of the learning of human words by great apes. 19 Montané, L. ‘‘Un chimpancé Cubano.’’ El Siglo, 1915, 20, 1-17. ‘‘A Cuban chimpanzee.’’ Translated from the Spanish by C.S. Rossy. Jour. Amm. Behav., 1916, 6, 330-333. An account of the birth of the Cuban chimpanzee Anuma. 20 Fox, H. ‘‘Disease in captive wild mammals and birds.’’ Philadelphia, 1923, 659 pp. An exceptionally useful work for those who need to know about the diseases of captive animals. 22490 599.8 Y4 Yerkes Almost human DATE DUE APR 2 3 1980 WV 25 “85 M36 "9 my 7'92 PHILLIPS ACADEMY me ea ee aoe StS eee