CHAP. XXIX.] SPEECH AND THOUGHT. 623 



of ideas are associated together, the visible idea, being 

 .more glaring and distinct than the rest, performs the 

 office of a symbol to all the rest, suggests them and 

 connects them together. In this it somewhat resembles 

 the first letter of a word, or first word of a sentence, 

 which are often made use of to bring all the rest to 

 mind/' The fact, moreover, that in these cases when 

 we cannot ' get out ' a particular word we often seem to 

 know something of its length, and can say that it consists 

 of about so many letters, also seems to testify to an 

 abortive or incipient revival of the Word in the Visual 

 Centre. 



The fact that this partial Visual revival is not asso- 

 ciated with full consciousness of the word and does not 

 enable it to be Written, is one of considerable significance, 

 because it seems to show how all-important, in the majority 

 of cases, is the primary revival in the Auditory Centres, not 

 only for the accomplishment of Speech but also for that of 

 Writing ; and, further, that the more special Intellectual 

 or Emotional Mechanisms, often cannot immediately rouse 

 the Visual Word-Centres for the execution of Writing 

 Movements, these being probably called into play, in 

 Writing spontaneously as well as in Writing from dicta- 

 tion, for the most part through the intermediation of the 

 Auditory Word-Centres. 



A remarkable kind of defect, of an exceptional order 

 and very difficult of explanation, has been recorded by 

 Dr. Hertz, who says (" Psycholog. Mag.," vol. viii.) : 



" In August, 1785, I was called to an officer of artillery, a man 

 about forty years old, who, as I was informed, was seized with a 

 palsy I found him so much recovered as to have the com- 

 plete use of his feet; his hands also were stronger, but in regard to 

 his speech the following very remarkable circumstance was to be 

 observed: he was able to articulate distinctly any words which 



