process beyond the mere automation of ancestral inheritance. In other words; in every-day language: this was an act of intelligence. August 14th. (This record made at 11 A.M., temp. outside in shade: 68 deg. C/c for Dr. Grinnell, since the observations answer some questions that arose on his last visit and some that did not). Rhody rests. About 9 A.M. Rhody was seen to climb to his present favorite day-time resting place in the acacia, 6 feet from the ground. I went there and talked to him, and, as happens often, he closed his eyes and dozed--a perfect picture of physical comfort and well-being. He had already eaten one of the three pieces of Hamburger in the cage. During the hour and a half that he remained there--the last half hour or so preening (feathers from his back and breast being removed in the process) I visited him frequently and, between visits set up the motion picture camera under the pine where I keep the gopher snake and got the little yellow-bellied racer in his bottle ready to put in front of the camera when Rhody should turn his attention to more mundane affairs. Meanwhile I climbed the ladder to nest 5-36 to see if Rhody would exhibit any remaining sense of proprietorship in the nest by going up and sitting in it while I was there, as he did on the only previous occasion that I had visited the nest thus, but during the nest-building period. He showed no reaction whatever, but remained quietly in his perch 30 feet away. I now discovered that the gopher snake had his nose dipped into his water dish and that his "gills" were moving rhythmically--expanding and contracting--and his neck was making swallowing movements. Proof that gopher snake drinks. The top of this dish is covered by a half-inch mesh wire netting. This cover is "bumped" down into the water intentionally. Where the fabric enters the water a capillary meniscus is formed. Any change in the level of the water of the order of a thousandth of an inch can be easily detected qualitatively, without instruments, by watching these capillary films. They were stretching. The water was lowering. The snake was drinking and apparently with closed mouth--but when his mouth is "closed" there is still a little depression at the tip of his lower jaw (possibly also the upper as well) through which he can and does thrust his tongue; however, he was not lapping up the water; he kept his tongue inside his mouth. He drank for several minutes. Ownership test repeated. Rhody was now down from his perch, preening on the ground 25 feet from the base of the ladder. The ownership test was repeated as before, but under more favorable conditions due to R's having a better view and being in a more active state of mind. The result was negative as before. R again demonstrates ability to omit non-essential element of an acquired pattern. Rhody was now thought to be in a receptive mood in respect to the contemplated snake trial. This was tested by my leading off to the scene of operations 100 feet away, following the route which Rhody knows leads to the shop-yard and a mouse, and which would cause him to pass by the camera while I got the racer in advance of his arrival. This worked beautifully, but Rhody, impatient for the mouse, went right on past me and headed for the yard knowing (or, rather expecting) that, as happened yesterday, I would follow and perform my share of the implied bargain. However, I halted him by exhibiting the snake, and he came back.