michael crichton.congo-第37章

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own　a　tuxedo；　and　he　found　himself　preoccupied　with　matters　of　nomenclature；　he　imagined　in　the　future　three　species　of　African　apes：
　Pan　troglodytes；　the　chimpanzee。
　Gorilla　gorilla；　the　gorilla。
　Gorilla　elliotensis；　a　new　species　of　gray　gorilla。
　
　
　
　
　Even　if　the　species　category　and　name　were　ultimately　rejected；　he　would　have　acplished　far　more　than　most　scientists　studying　primates　could　ever　hope　to　achieve。
　Elliot　was　dazzled　by　his　own　prospects。
　
　In　retrospect；　no　one　was　thinking　clearly　that　morning。　When　Elliot　said　he　wanted　to　transmit　the　recorded　breathing　sounds　to　Houston；　Ross　replied　it　was　a　trivial　detail　that　could　wait。　Elliot　did　not　press　her；　they　both　later　regretted　their　decision。
　And　when　they　heard　booming　explosions　like　distant　artillery　fire　that　morning；　they　paid　no　attention。　Ross　assumed　it　was　General　Muguru's　men　fighting　the　Kigani。　Munro　told　her　that　the　fighting　was　at　least　fifty　miles　away；　too　far　for　the　sound　to　carry；　but　offered　no　alternative　explanation　for　the　noise。
　And　because　Ross　skipped　the　morning　transmission　to　Houston；　she　was　not　informed　of　new　geological　changes　that　might　have　given　new　significance　to　the　explosive　detonations。
　They　were　seduced　by　the　technology　employed　the　night　before；　secure　in　their　sense　of　indomitable　power。　Only　Munro　remained　immune。　He　had　checked　their　ammunition　supplies　with　discouraging　results。　〃That　laser　system　is　splendid　but　it　uses　up　bullets　like　there's　no　tomorrow；〃　Munro　said。　〃Last　night　consumed　half　of　our　total　ammunition。''
　〃What　can　we　do？〃　Elliot　asked。
　〃I　was　hoping　you'd　have　an　answer　for　that；〃　Munro　said。　〃You　examined　the　bodies。〃
　Elliot　stated　his　belief　that　they　were　confronted　with　a　new　species　of　primate。　He　summarized　the　anatomical　findings；　which　supported　his　beliefs。
　〃That's　all　well　and　good；〃　Munro　said。　〃But　I'm　interested　in　how　they　act；　not　how　they　look。　You　said　it　yourself…gorillas　are　usually　diurnal　animals；　and　these　are　nocturnal。　Gorillas　are　usually　shy　and　avoid　men；　while　these　are　aggressive　and　attack　men　fearlessly。　Why？〃
　Elliot　had　to　admit　that　he　didn't　know。
　〃Considering　our　ammunition　supplies；　I　think　we'd　better　find　out；〃　Munro　said。
　
　2。The　Temple
　
　THE　LOGICAL　PLACE　TO　BEGIN　WAS　THE　TEMPLE；　with　its　enormous；　menacing　gorilla　statue。　They　returned　that　afternoon；　and　found　behind　the　statue　a　succession　of　small　cubicle…like　rooms。　Ross　thought　that　priests　who　worshiped　the　cult　of　the　gorilla　lived　here。
　She　had　an　elaborate　explanation：　〃The　gorillas　in　the　surrounding　jungle　terrorized　the　people　of　Zinj；　who　offered　sacrifices　to　appease　the　gorillas。　The　priests　were　a　separate　class；　secluded　from　society。　Look　here；　at　the　entrance　to　the　line　of　cubicles；　there　is　this　little　room。　A　guard　stayed　here　to　keep　people　away　from　the　priests。　It　was　a　whole　system　of　belief。〃
　Elliot　was　not　convinced；　and　neither　was　Munro。　〃Even　religion　is　practical；〃　Munro　said。　〃It's　supposed　to　benefit　you。'；
　〃People　worship　what　they　fear；〃　Ross　said；　〃hoping　to　control　it。''
　〃But　how　could　they　control　the　gorillas？〃　Munro　asked。　〃What　could　they　do？〃
　When　the　answer　finally　came　it　was　startling；　for　they　had　it　all　backward。
　They　moved　past　the　cubicles　to　a　series　of　long　corridors；　decorated　with　bas…reliefs。　Using　their　infrared　puter　system；　they　were　able　to　see　the　reliefs；　which　were　scenes　arranged　in　a　careful　order　like　a　picture　textbook。
　The　first　scene　showed　a　series　of　caged　gorillas。　A　black　man　stood　near　the　cages　holding　a　stick　in　his　hand。
　The　second　picture　showed　an　African　standing　with　two　gorillas；　holding　ropes　around　their　necks。
　A　third　showed　an　African　instructing　the　gorillas　in　a　courtyard。　The　gorillas　were　tethered　to　vertical　poles；　each　with　a　ring　at　the　top。
　The　final　picture　showed　the　gorillas　attacking　a　line　of　straw　dummies；　which　hung　from　an　overhead　stone　support。　They　now　knew　the　meaning　of　what　they　had　found　in　the　courtyard　of　the　gymnasium；　and　the　jail。
　〃My　God；〃　Elliot　said。　〃They　trained　them。〃
　Munro　nodded。　〃Trained　them　as　guards　to　watch　over　the　mines。　An　animal　elite；　ruthless　and　incorruptible。　Not　a　bad　idea　when　you　think　about　it。〃
　Ross　looked　at　the　building　around　her　again；　realizing　it　wasn't　a　temple　but　a　school。　An　objection　occurred　to　her　these　pictures　were　hundreds　of　years　old；　the　trainers　long　gone。　Yet　the　gorillas　were　still　here。　〃Who　teaches　them　now？〃
　〃They　do；〃　Elliot　said。　〃They　teach　each　other。〃
　〃Is　that　possible？〃
　〃Perfectly　possible。　Conspecific　teaching　occurs　among　Primates。〃
　This　had　been　a　longstanding　question　among　researchers。　But　Washoe；　the　first　primate　in　history　to　learn　sign　language；　taught　ASL　to　her　offspring。　Language…skilled　primates　freely　taught　other　animals　in　captivity；　for　that　matter；　they　would　teach　people；　signing　slowly　and　repeatedly　until　the　stupid　uneducated　human　person　got　the　point。
　So　it　was　possible　for　a　primate　tradition　of　language　and　behavior　to　be　carried　on　for　generations。　〃You　mean；〃　Ross　said；　〃that　the　people　in　this　city　have　been　gone　for　centuries；　but　the　gorillas　they　trained　are　still　here？〃
　〃That's　the　way　it　looks；〃　Elliot　said。
　〃And　they　use　stone　tools？〃　she　asked。　〃Stone　paddles。〃
　〃Yes；〃　Elliot　said。　The　idea　of　tool　use　was　not　as　farfetched　as　it　first　seemed。　Chimpanzees　were　capable　of　elaborate　tool　use；　of　which　the　most　striking　example　was　〃termite　fishing。〃　Chimps　would　make　a　twig；　carefully　bending　it　to　their　specifications；　and　then　spend　hours　over　a　termite　mound；　fishing　with　the　stick　to　catch　succulent　grubs。
　Human　observers　labeled　this　activity　〃primitive　tool　use〃　until　they　tried　it　themselves。　It　turned　out　that　making　a　satisfactory　twig　and　catching　termites　was　not　primitive　at　all；　at　least　it　proved　to　be　beyond　the　ability　of　people　who　tried　to　duplicate　it。　Human　fishermen　quit；　with　a　new　respect　for　the　chimpanzees；　and　a　new　observation…they　now　noticed　that　younger　chimps　spent　days　watching　their　elders　make　sticks　and　twirl　them　in　the　mound。　Young　chimps　literally　learned　how　to　do　it；　and　the　learning　process　extended　over　a　period　of　years。
　This　began　to　look　suspiciously　like　culture；　the　apprenticeship　of　young　Ben　Franklin；　printer；　was　not　so　different　from　the　apprenticeship　of　young　Chimpanzee；　termite　fisher。　Both　learned　their　skills　over　a　period　of　years　by　observing　their　elders；　both　made　mistakes　on　the　way　to　ultimate　success。
　Yet　manufactured　stone　tools　implied　a　quantum　jump　beyond　twigs　and　termites。　The　privileged　position　of　stone　tools　as　the　special　province　of　mankind　might　have　remained　sacrosanct　were　it　not　for　a　single　iconoclastic　researcher。　In　1971；　the　British　scientist　R。　V。　S。　Wright　decided　to　teach　an　ape　to　make　stone　tools。　His　pupil　was　a　five…year…old　orangutan　named　Abang　in　the　Bristol　zoo。　Wright　presented　Abang　with　a　box　containing　food；　bound　with　a　rope；　he　showed　Abang　how　to　cut　the　rope　with　a　flint　chip　to　get　the　food。　Abang　got　the　point　in　an　hour。
　Wright　then　showed　Abang　how　to　make　a　stone　chip　by　striking　a　pebble　against　a　flint　core。　This　was　a　more　difficult　lesson；　over　a　period　of　weeks；　Abang　required　a　total　of　three　hours　to　learn　to　grasp　the　flint　core　between　his　toes；　strike　a　sharp　chip；　cut　the　rope；　and　get　the　food。
　The　point　of　the　experiment　was　not　that　apes　used　stone　tools；　but　that　the　ability　to　make　stone　tools　was　literally　within　their　grasp。　Wright's　experiment　was　one　more　reason　to　think　that　human　beings　were　not　as　unique　as　they　had　previously　imagined　themselves　to　be。
　
　〃But　why　would　Amy　say　they　weren't　gorillas？〃
　〃Because　they're　not；〃　Elliot　said。　〃These　animals　don't　look　like　gorillas　and　they　don't　act　like　gorillas。　They　are　physically　and　behaviorally　different。〃　He　went　on　to　voice　his　suspicion　that　not　only　had　these　animals　been　trained；　they　had　been　bred…perhaps　interbred　with　chimpanzees　or；　more　strangely　still；　with　men。
　They　thought　he　was　joking。　But　the　facts　were　disturbing。　In　1960；　the　first　blood　protein　studies　quantified　the　kinship　between　man　and　ape。　Biochemically　man's　nearest　relative　was　the　chimpanzee；　much　closer　than　the　gorilla。　In　1964；　chimpanzee　kidneys　were　successfully　transplanted　into　men；　blood　transfusions　were　also　possible。
　But　the　degree　of　similarity　was　not　fully　known　until　1975；　when　biochemists　pared　the　DNA　of　chimps　and　men。　It　was　discovered　that　chimps　differed　from　men　by　only　1　percent　of　their　DNA　strands。　And　almost　no　one　wanted　to　acknowledge　one　consequence：　with　modern　DNA　hybridization　techniques　and　embryonic　implantation；　ape…ape　crosses　were　certain；　and　man…ape　crosses　were　possible。
　Of　course；　the　fourteenth…century　inhabitants　of　Zinj　had　no　way　to　mate　DNA　strands。　But　Elliot　pointed　out　that　they　had　consistently　underestimated　the　skills　of　the　Zinj　people；　who　at　the　very　least　had　managed；　five　hundred　years　ago；　to　carry　out　sophisticated　animal…training　procedures　only　duplicated　by　Western　scientists　within　the　last　ten　years。
　And　as　Elliot　saw　it；　the　animals　the　Zinjians　had　trained　presented　an　awesome　problem。
　〃We　have　to　face　the　realities；〃　he　said。　〃When　Amy　was　given　a　human　IQ　test；　she　scored　ninety…two。　For　all　practical　purposes；　Amy　is　as　smart　as　a　human　being；　and　in　many　ways　she　is　smarter…more　perceptive　and　sensitive。　She　can　manipulate　us　at　least　as　skillfully　as　we　can　manipulate　her。
　〃These　gray　gorillas　possess　that　same　intelligence；　yet　they　have　been　single…mindedly　bred　to　be　the　primate　equivalent　of　Doberman　pinschers…guard　animals；　attack　animals；　trained　for　cunning　and　viciousness。　But　they　are　much　brighter　and　more　resourceful　than　dogs。　And　they　will　continue　their　attacks　until　they　succeed　in　killing　us　all；　as　they　have　killed　everyone　who　has　e　here　before。〃
　
　3。Looking　Through　the　Bars
　
　IN　1975；　THE　MATHEMATICIAN　S。　L。　BERENSKY　reviewed　the　literature　on　primate　language　and　reached　a　startling　conclusion。　〃There　is　no　doubt；〃　he　announced；　〃that　primates　are　far　superior　in　intelligence　to　man。〃
　In　Berensky's　mind；　〃The　salient　question…which　every　human　visitor　to　the　zoo　intuitively　asks…is；　who　is　behind　the　bars？　Who　is　caged；　and　who　is　free？。　。　。　On　both　sides　of　the　bars　primates　can　be　observed　making　faces　at　each　other。　It　is　too　facile　to　say　that　man　is　superior　because　he　has　made　the　zoo。　We　impose　our　special　horror　of　barred　captivity…a　form　of　punishment　among　our　species…and　assume　that　other　primates　feel　as　we　do。〃
　Berensky　likened　primates　to　foreign　ambassadors。　〃Apes　have　for　centuries　managed　to　get　along　with　human　beings；　as　ambassadors　from　their　species。　In　recent　years；　they　have　even　learned　to　municate　with　human　beings　using　sign　language。　But　it　is　a　one…sided　diplomatic　exchange；　no　human　being　has　attempted　to　live　in　ape　society；　to　master　their　language　and　customs；　to　eat　their　food；　to　live　as　they　do。　The　apes　have　learned　to　talk　to　us；　but　we　have　never　learned　to　talk　to　them。　Who；　then；　should　be　judged　the　greater　intellect？〃
　Berensky　added　a　prediction。　〃Th