19(M.J MASON' — RIPENING OF THOUGHTS IN COMMON. 149 



common. And such agreements are not exceptions but are num- 

 berless. 



Similarities and simultaneities in actions and thoughts among 

 millions of persons form an unconscious never-ending drill, the 

 activities passing imperceptibly from voluntarism into automatism. 

 The coincidences of which notice is taken are not a drop in the 

 bucket to the whole number. 



I shall speak of thoughts in common and the activities linked 

 with them under the heads of biology^ speedi^ industries^ fine a7't 

 social life, learning and lore, and religion. 



Biology. 



To begin with activities that are purely biological, thoughts in 

 common are shared with the animals. The revolution of the earth 

 on its axis, producing day and night, causes nature to awaken in 

 concert in the morning and to fall asleep in unison in the evening. 

 There is no leader to the orchestra in the former, nor authoritative 

 command or lullaby in the latter. 



With the change of seasons concerted movements of large masses 

 of insects, fishes, birds, and mammals take place, lasting many days 

 and extending over vast distances and spaces. Under other influ- 

 ences hidden from our knowledge, the whole animate creation 

 seems possessed of individual will only to work in obedience to a 

 common will. 



This fact was observed three thousand years ago, for one of the 

 Hebrew proverbs reads, '^ The locusts have no king, yet they go 

 forth all of them by bands " (Prov. xxx. 27). 



This moving in concert has a more complex kind of action still, 

 a sort of international code, existing between creatures of different 

 species, genera, orders, families and even between the kingdoms of 

 nature. It resembles a purposeful selection and is the natural fore- 

 runner of altruism in culture. It is the hotbed of suggestion for 

 the whole series of psychical mysteries. 



These maturings of thoughts in common are deep-seated in the 

 human frame. "As quick as a wink" does not mean a sudden 

 period of capricious length, but one of duration as regular as the 

 ticking of a watch. The physiologists, with their delicate appara- 

 tus, have made wonderful discoveries in this direction. All sorts 

 of clever tricks are played on crowds successfully in the domain of 

 psychology through these uniformities of action in biology. 



