A BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF AN INFANT. 197 



A BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF AN INFANT*. 



By CHARLES DARWIN. 



[Child-study lias recently become a most active department of psychol- 

 ogy. It is the serious pursuit of men of science and the fad of women's 

 clubs; a late accession to the magazines devoted to it comes from Japan. 

 In spite of this wide-spread zeal, few of the followers of child-study have 

 ever heard of one of the most valuable contributions to it. And in spite 

 of the eminence of the author, Darwin's observations on the mental growth 

 of his child are practically unknown to most zoologists and psychologists. 



It is a witness to the breadth of Darwin's interests that he should have 

 been among the few men who anticipated by a generation or more what is 

 now so wide a movement in psychology. His retention of his notes for 

 thirty-seven years before publishing them is thoroughly characteristic. In 

 this respect there is a notable difference between Darwin and the present- 

 day enthusiasts for child-study.] 



MTAINE'S very interesting account of the mental development 

 • of an infant, translated in the last number of Mind (p. 252), 

 has led me to look over a diary which I kept thirty-seven years ago 

 with respect to one of my own infants. I had excellent opportunities 

 for close observation, and wrote down at once whatever was observed. 

 My chief object was expression, and my notes were used in my book on 

 this subject; but as I attended to some other points, my observations 

 may possibly possess some little interest in comparison with those by 

 M. Taine, and others which hereafter no doubt will be made. I feel 

 sure, from what I have seen with my own infants, that the period of 

 development of the several faculties will be found to differ considerably 

 in different infants. 



During the first seven days various reflex actions, namely sneezing, 

 hickuping, yawning, stretching, and, of course, sucking and scream- 

 ing, were well performed by my infant. On the seventh day, I touched 

 the naked sole of his foot with a bit of paper, and he jerked it away, 

 curling at the same time his toes, like a much older child when tickled. 

 The perfection of these reflex movements shows that the extreme im- 

 perfection of the voluntary ones is not due to the state of the muscles 

 or of the co-ordinating centers, but to that of the seat of the will. At 

 this time, though so early, it seemed clear to me that a warm, soft hand 

 applied to his face excited a wish to suck. This must be considered 

 as a reflex or an instinctive action, for it is impossible to believe that 



* Reprinted fiom Mind, July, ls77. 



