INSTINCT AND REASON 



to time and when the finger of my watch was on 

 the very second of noon I would watch the 

 horse's ears and listen at the same time ; and there 

 seemed to me no doubt whatever that the horse 

 took alarm before I knew that I had heard the 

 sound. 



What was even more interesting was my dis- 

 covery as it seemed that I myself started 

 slightly, before I knew that I had heard the sound 

 at the same time, in fact, that the horse laid 

 back its ears. If this was so for it was very 

 difficult to make quite sure of the succession of 

 events which collectively occupied only an instant 

 of time the unconscious start would be a relic 

 of the old instinctive habit of men, as animals, 

 to take instantaneous, unthinking action when 

 danger threatened. 



In cases where such instantaneous action has 

 remained useful as in the case of blinking when 

 danger threatens the eye human nature has re- 

 tained the instinctive habit, because our conscious 

 reason would in such cases operate too late by 

 a fraction of an instant. Also the sudden tauten- 

 ing of the muscles, and the grip of the hands 

 upon whatever you may be holding, when some- 

 thing makes you " start," have been retained by 

 human nature, because these are more often use- 

 ful than otherwise. 



[25] 



