CREATION BY EVOLUTION
animals, but our fundamental interests in life are much the same.
In order to gain a clearer appreciation of this general fact let us consider briefly some of the mental and emotional characteristics of our next of kin in the animal world. As to keenness and vision, acuteness of hearing, and other modes of sense perception, man cannot claim any superiority over his ape-like relatives. Turning next to beings of a somewhat higher mental level, such as the apes and monkeys, we find in them a facility for making judgments in difficult situations which is often surprising. For some months I studied the behavior of a small bonnet monkey, Pithicus sinicus, whose intellectual capacities I attempted to gauge by a series of experiments. Lizzie’s level of intelligence was considerably below that of the chimpanzee. Although curious and given to examining all sorts of objects and, whenever possible, pulling them to pieces, her attention could be focussed on any one subject for only a very short time. After she had become quite tame and would perch contentedly on my shoulder, she manifested an unconquerable dread of being seized or taken unawares. Any unusual occurrence would inspire her with instant alarm. Always watchful, she was remarkably resourceful in devising means of escape. She frequently surprised me by getting out through a half-open door which I thought was adequately guarded, and she skilfully obtained many peanuts and apples that I had not intended to give her until she had solved a particular problem. In forming good, practical judgments about means of escape, in stealthily getting food, and in making manoeuvers that involved a rapid analysis of a situation and an appropriate course of action Lizzie showed aptitude of no mean order.
Nothing in Lizzie’s behaviour, however, indicated a close
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