THE WORLD OF LIVING ORGANISMS 137 



THE THEORY OF INDICATIONS (iNDICES) 



The starting-point for an understanding of every theory 

 of indications is the fact that every impression an animal 

 experiences is both fundamentally like and fundamentally 

 unlike all other impressions. 



This seemingly very contradictory fact is based on the 

 following arrangement, which is a fundamental one for all 

 animals. Every stimulus meeting an animal is transformed 

 everjrwhere in the body into the same nervous excitation : 

 in thus far, all impressions received by an animal are essen- 

 tially like one another. On the other hand, all the stimuli the 

 point of entry of which is removed by so much as the diameter 

 of one cell from the next point of entry, are taken up and led 

 away by other nerve-fibrils : in so far, all the impressions that 

 an animal receives are essentially different from one another. 



By making use in various ways of these two contradictory 

 possibilities, the organisation of the animal is, in principle, . 

 at liberty to convert every conceivable combination of impres- 

 sions into indications. For instance, it may make all the 

 receptor nerves run together to form a network, and then 

 all the differences brought about by the presence of different 

 nerves are lost. In such a case, all the impressions will 

 deliver the same indication. 



On the other hand, it is open to the organisation to pre- 

 serve the individuality of the, various nerve-persons, and to 

 employ them in combination in accordance with plan ; then 

 we get numerous and complicated indications produced. 



From which we perceive that the number of indications y 

 and their composition are the business of the organisation 

 of the animal subject. 



It is important to make some sort of picture of this 

 organisation, which, though only approximate, shall suffice 

 for the chief requirements. It is characteristic of the animal's 



