FREE WILL AND AUTOMATISM 281 



which he has no control."^ The author here begs the 

 question, and leaves out of sight the man's consciousness 

 of the motives and the consciousness of the power to choose 

 one of two or more courses. If he would recognise the 

 fact that man can select his own reasons and motives for 

 doing one thing rather than another, he would see that 

 it is just that wherein his " freedom " comes in. 



On the other hand, no animal has this consciousness 

 of the power to reflect upon courses of action ; but simply 

 rushes blindly to the strongest motive of the moment 

 which appeals to his senses. Such is pure automatism, 

 which makes all the difference between man and animals. 

 The former alone has volition. 



To give an example of human automatism. The 

 late Prof Adam Sedgwick was apt to be very " absent- 

 minded". One day he was walking up and down his 

 room, thinking perhaps of the Silurian strata with his 

 mind in Wales. Every time he approached the fireplace 

 he rang the bell. Again and again the servant came ; 

 for he said he had not rung it ; but at last he noticed 

 that the cord was still oscillating. The fact was the 

 sight of the bell-rope automatically suggested to his 

 brain the act of pulling. His volition was in abeyance 

 during his reverie. It was a purely automatic action, 

 there being no attention, as Dr. Carpenter says, or con- 

 sciousness present. We thus see that precisely the same 

 act may be done under two totally distinct states of the 

 mind. On the occasion mentioned Sedgwick was for 

 the time a pure automaton. 



But suppose he wanted his servant at half-past one 

 o'clock. He would go to the bell to ring it, but suddenly 

 remembering that his servant might be at his dinner, he 



1 Mr. Balfour's Apologetics, p. 56. 



