408 THE BORDERLAND OF SCIENCE. 



cumstances pointing to the very origin of the super- 

 stitions now so widely entertained. 



One well-marked feature of these emotions is their 

 occurrence in the hours of darkness. I am not 

 speaking here of the feeling of discomfort and fear 

 which many experience when in the dark. This feeling 

 is itself well worth inquiring into. But I now speak 

 of the circumstance that even those who have no 

 unpleasant sensations when in darkness, are neverthe- 

 less only exposed to certain emotions of superstitious 

 terror at such times. Who, for instance, thoroughly 

 enjoys a ghost story if it is told in a well-lighted 

 room ? I use the word ' enjoy, 5 because, as a matter of 

 fact, the sensation I am now considering is not by any 

 means a painful one, except in extreme cases, or with 

 persons of weak nerves. It is a mysterious, indefinable 

 thrill, with about the same proportion of pain and 

 pleasure as in the feeling of melancholy experienced on 

 certain still, bright days in spring ; and it is as difficult 

 to understand why darkness and stillness should be 

 essential to one feeling as why brightness and stillness 

 should be essential to the other. 



There is a commonplace explanation which ascribes 

 both these feelings to the unconscious recalling of the 

 emotions of childhood. To the child darkness conveys 

 the idea of discomfort. All that is enjoyable to him 

 after darkness has come on, is in the light and warmth 

 of the room where he sits or plays. Cold and gloom 

 are without in the long passages, in the unused 

 rooms, and, in a yet greater degree, outside the house. 



