\Ve are far from subscribing to this fanciful opinion, which ascribes the origin of the arts to the imitation of blind instincts ; but we must admit, that mankind, in the ruder states of society, have in general attended with great respect to the operations of the brute creation, and have imagined that they were indebted to them for many essential advantages. It appears to have been from a conviction of the superior sagacity of some of these creatures, that the art of augury took its rise ; and many of the examples of brutal intelligence recorded by Cicero, in his 2d Book De .Vat. Deorum, Ste., appeared to have been noted chiefly as arguments for the practice of divination. Hence, too, as was remarked by one of the ancients, " Bellue a Barbaris propter beneficiani consecrate." Hence the absurdities of the Egyptian superstition, in deifying bulls and cats, crocodiles and serpents : Crocodilon adoratPars lime, illy paver saturam serpentibus 'bin ; Effigies sacri lue nitet aurea Cercopitheci, Dimzdio magicx resonant ubi Memnone chordm. Illic cxruleos, Inc piscem liuminis, illic Oppida Iota canem venerantur, Demo Dianam.
- — - We may remark, farther, concerning the instincts of the inferior animals, that one of the leading distinctions between man and them, consists in his capacity of learn ing lessons, not only from the experience of his own species, but from attending to the economy of other tribes ; whereas these creatures appear to gain no ad vantages from their observation of the labours of man, or from considering the ways of any other creature.
It would appear, also, that though the generality of animals are capable of being taught several things in addition to those which instinct prompts them to per form, none of them ever improves upon the native in stincts peculiar to the species ; and whatever diversity of ability they may exhibit in other respects, none of them is more accomplished than the rest, in the practi ces which Nature has taught his race. It is manifest, likewise, that the proficiency which any individual of a species may have attained by instruction is of no avail to his posterity. He has no means of recording his expe rience, or of transmitting any of his acquisitions to future generations. The only signs which he knows how to apply, are such as express emotions universally intelli gible, and being incapable of forming and interpreting arbitrary signs, he can convey no ideas except those which are already familiar to his associates.
From these premises, it is not to be concluded, as Des Cartes and Malebranche have done, that brutes are neither more nor less than machines, gui mangent sans plaisir, crient sans douleur, ne desirent rien, et ne craignent rien. Nor, on the other hand, can we admit the doctrine of Helvetius, that the superiority of man must be refer red entirely to corporeal organisation, and to the opera tion of certain adventitious circumstances in his outward condition. Both these opinions have a tendency to de grade the human nature ; for if, on the former supposi tion, the actions of brutes are explicable by principles of mere mechanism, it will not be easy to chew, that hu man beings are not also machines, seeing we must as cribe similar effects to similar causes ; and if the whole difference between the mental faculties of man and the capacities of beasts, be the result of peculiarities in organic structure, and accidental advantages, here, too, we are reduced to the necessity of adopting a system of materialism. Both these doctrines, indeed, are purely hypothetical, and unsupported even by the evidence of probability. We may grant, however, that the confor mation of the human body is peculiarly adapted for the exertions of intelligence and will, and in particular, that the distributions of the nerves and muscle's of the hand, the eye, the ear, and the vocal organs, confer advantages on man, which raise him greatly above the rank of the (Abet-animals. It must also he allowed, that some acci dental discoveries have contributed greatly to advance the arts, and to confirm the supremacy of man ;—and among the physical advantages to which he is indebted, it is not the least conspicuous, that, from his power of subsisting on various kinds of food, and sustaining the extremes of heat and cold, he can accommodate himself to every climate on the face of the earth. But these
circumstances are not, of themselves, sufficient to esta blish his claim to superiority, or to qualify him for the dignified place which he occupies in the scale of exist ence.—He is informed by a nobler spirit, " which teach eth him more than the beasts of the earth, and maketh him wiser than the fowls of heaven." Hitherto we have taken notice only of those particu lars in the constitution of brutes, which remind us of the operations of intelligence, and the rabours of ingenuity. It might perhaps be thought that they approach nearer to man in affection than in understanding ; but the symp toms of their attachment to one another are generally of a very different character from the indications of hu man kindness. The G-T0r/4 of the dam for her brood operates only so long as they require her assistance and protection,—and from the moment when they become in dependent, we see the creature which fostered her young so tenderly, and sheltered them so vigilantly under the covert of her wings, " hardening herself against them as though they were not hers." How different from that maternal fondness in the human species, which no lapse of time can ever detach from those who were once caressed as babes and sucklings ! The most permanent at tachments of other animals appear,to be those which are acquired. Some of them are highly susceptible of grati tude; and we would not easily give credit to an account of a dog deserting a master by whom he had been affection ately treated, however great the extremity of danger by which he might be threatened. A sense of shame, and a spirit of emulation, are likewise deeply rooted in some of them; and that they are subject to jealousy, has been affirmed by many authors. ".inimalia (says Lud. Vives.) queedam zeloty/zia tanguntur, ut olores, columbe, galli, tauri, ob 'flaunt communionis." Every one who attends to the domestic animals must have observed proofs of resentment and envy when there is any appearance of too liberal a share of partiality being bestowed on a new favourite. With the exception of beasts of prey in their natural state, all animals are eminently social ; and some of them are capable of combining in great bodies for the accomplishment of ends which could not he attained in a state of separation. The beaver and the bee are the most remarkable instances of such a union ; but, in addition to these instinctive associations, we observe attachments taking place occasionally among creatures of very dissimilar characters and habits. There appears, however, to be no evidence that brutes are actuated by any moral impressions, or that they can discern be tween what is good and evil in conduct. They may be incited by hope, or deterred by the apprehension of punishment—they may be depressed by disappointment and sorrow, or elevated by gladness, as in the case of recognising an acquaintance after a considerable period of absence. They express these feelings by sounds which are intelligible, but only to their own species ; and they seem to understand the various notes of sadness, threatening, displeasure, commiseration, and endear ment, uttered by man and by other creatures. They seem frequently to he moved with sympathy ; and though there is perhaps more fancy than nature in Virgil's de ocription, it is certain that some animals are capable of mourning the death of men: Post bellator equus, positis insignibus, .iEtlion, It lacrymans, guttisque humectat grandibus ora.
Upon the whole, however, we may conclude, that the difference between the human and the brutal con stitution, is a difference of kind as well as of degree. See Arista/. ; .Eliani Hist. Animal. C. Plin. De Animal, Cc. (A)