Page:Mind (New Series) Volume 8.djvu/474

 460 GUSTAV SPILLER : extent of the stability of an established line of action. The following illustrates one extreme. A man is required to do something which he has not attempted before. A similar cycle of actions has to be attended to about every three minutes. An instrument which he needs he puts in an awkward place. During the first quarter of an hour the mistake is pointed out to him. He agrees that he is wrong. He appears anxious not to repeat the blunder. Though only three minutes intervene between the time he is corrected and the time he is to correct himself, he yet persistently errs. Often he declares he will put the instrument in the right place, and perhaps a second or two afterwards he becomes completely unaware of his declared intent. Though his eyes sweep across the object lying in the. wrong place, he does not notice it. Many like instances might be cited proving the fact that mere repetition, or extent of time, are not essentials in the evolution of particular organic trends. The argument grows self-evident when we reflect that present activities are based on preceding activities, and that all action is more or less organised. While the slightest exercise, as we have just noted, may firmly establish an activity, sometimes years of constant exercise will not accomplish that object. I recollect per- forming for years, and day after day, a certain action in a certain manner. Then I observed some one proceeding more intelligently. I resolved to imitate and found no difficulty in breaking with a settled custom. The next day a new era was inaugurated. No effort was requisite. No relapse ensued. The ease with which an organic trend can or cannot be removed is not in proportion to the number of times the action has been repeated. For scientific purposes this must he borne in mind. For practical purposes it is nevertheless well not to forget that routine reactions require normally a certain time to evolve, and that a vast aggregate of activities, once they become fixed, are simplified, require little effort, and are hard to remove. Though no rigorous and compre- hensive statement can be drawn up, it is advisable to bear in mind the general drift of the conclusions here arrived at. 17. All Thought is Organic. We analysed a particular rou- tine case. We attempted, by a general survey, to arrive at a conclusion as to its essential nature. Now that organic reactions cover an enormous area in the province of physio- logical action must be evident. But what position, if any, do they occupy in the more exclusively mental realm ? We have reserved the answer to this question. The examples chosen were, generally speaking, purposely such as implied