The Minds and Manners of Wild Animals

the founders of the science of phrenology and physiognomy, very wisely differentiated and defined four "temperaments" of mankind. The six

mals in captivity, wild-animal temperament universally is recognized and treated as a factor of great practi

ibly be corrected or improved, by education and effort. With animals this is rarely possible. The morose gorilla gives way to cheerfulness only when it is placed in

. A characteristic temperament may embrace the majority of a whole species, or be limited to a few individuals. Many species are permanently characterized by the temperament common to the majority of their individual members. Thus, among the great apes the gor

, affectionate toward his keepers, and friendly toward strangers. H

know of no wild animal that is more dangerous per pound than a male chimpanzee over eight years of age. When young they do wonders in trained performances, but when they reach maturity, grow big of arm and shoulder, and masterfully strong, they quickly become conscious of their strength. It is then that performing ch

f their natural weapons, their readiness to fight like fiends, and their combined agility and strength that the baboons have been able to live on the ground and survive and flourish in lands literally reeking with lions, leopards, hyenas and wild dogs. The awful canine teeth of an

moner groups of monkeys

India are nervous, i

rica are sanguine, but

of India are sangui

t vary from the sanguine te

ry from sangui

car are sanguine, aff

eys are sanguine, and peace-lo

versified to be treated with any approach to completeness. Howeve

OF THE LARG

urageous, confident, rep

, suspicious, treach

s are nervous and combative,

ic and peace-loving. The puma is sangu

nguine, crafty, d

rical, timid and fu

nguine, philosoph

vous or hysterical, courageou

hile to consider the leading species separately. Possibly

bears are sanguine, but in captivity they

uine, courageous, peaceful and reliable, but

s, keen, cautious, and s

rs are sanguine, optim

s are sanguine and quie

ia are nervous or hyst

re hysterical, aggres

ears are nervous, co

ears, involving much companionship in dens, it is nec

nt, as with apes, monkeys and bears, it is necessary to take into account the temperament not only of the species, but also of each animal; and there are times when this necessity bears

ises. We have seen barasingha deer penned up between shock-absorbing bales of hay seriously try to jump straight up through a roof skyli

RS OF DE

very aggressive and dangerous, and to be carefully avoided. The

ne in temperament, but in the rutting

hundred generations of park life, and it is very

rvous, flighty, and

er is hysterical

eer are lymphatic, confident,

deer" are dangerous, and should be confined all the time. Never go into the range or corral of

e know. An individual of sanguine temperament rarely is seen. Out of about forty specimens with which we have been well acquainted, I do not recall one that was as quiet and phlegmatic as the raccoon, the nearest relative of Nasua. With a disposition so rest

rations then are very necessary, and it is rare indeed that more than two adult individuals can be caged together. Even when two only are kept together, quarrels and shrill squealings are frequent. But

d state amongst its own kind, or in captivity,-no matter how considerately treated,-it is a quarrelsome and at times intractable animal. "A pair of wild guanacos can often be seen or heard engaged in desperate combat, biting and tearing, and rolling over one another on the ground, uttering their gurgling, bubbling cries of

ND TEMPER OF TH

the following highly interesting observations on a remarka

c walrus. I found him to be a real animal, of huge size, with an extremely disagreeable temper and most belligerently inclined. We hu

nt them only during the winter season on the sea ice. We found animals whose courage and belief in themselves a

animal we sought in order to secure food for our dog teams. I can conceive of no form of big game hunting so conducive to great mental excitement and physical activity as walr

s they rest in unmolested peace on pans of broken ice which drift up and down the waters of Whale Sound. It is unfortunate that no soundings were taken in the region wh

ll filled with freshly opened clams, with very few fragments of shells in evidence; the removal

time, and when within about 200 feet, a large bull would lift his head, sniff audibly in our direction and give a loud grunt which apparently struck a responsive chord in the other sleepin

n the first place the young ones were hustled to the edge of the ice-pan, and there, apparently under the protection of the mother's flipper, pushed into the water, immediately followed by th

grown animals would hover beneath our boat and from time to time come to the surface and charge. These charges were in all cases repulsed by the discharge of our rifles in the faces of the animals. The balls, however, from our .45 calibre carbines would flatten out under the skin on the massive bony structure of the animal's skull, and cause only a sort of rage

both sides, giving the appearance of three animals swimming abreast. The first time I witnessed this I did not comprehend its real meaning, but on another occasion in McCormick Bay I saw a wounded a

d this way generally sinks, leaving a trail of blood and oil to mark the place of his descent. When hunting these animals i

ne in ice at least four inches in thickness. In some instances I have seen a fractured star in the ice, a record of an unsuccessful attempt to make a breathing hole." Around these breathing holes we frequently found fragments of clam-shells, sections of crinoids a

high power rule. It is therefore to be hoped that future expeditions into the arctic seas will kill sp

iet and undemonstrative, almost to the point of dullness. They do not domineer, or hector, or quarrel, save when a rogue develops in the ranks, and sets out to make things interesting by the c

l sexual insanity, which is dangerous in direct proportion to its intensity. This causes many a "bad" show elephant to be presented to a zoological garden, where the dangers of this mental condition can at least be reduced to their lowest terms.

d their keepers without cause, but I have never known a keeper to take those lapses seriously. The average rhino is by no means a dull or a stupid animal, and they have quite enough life to make themselves inte

for a day, or missed a meal. When the idiosyncrasies of Gunda, our bad elephant, were at their worst, the contemplation of Peter the Great ponderously and serenely chewing his hay was a rest to tired nerves. Keeper Thuman tr

d easy to take care of provided they are kept scrupulously clean, and are fed as they shoul

nervous, crotchety, and full of senseless fears. Those who are responsible for them in captivity are constantly harassed by fears that they will stampede in their stalls or yards, and break their own necks and legs in most unexp