208 THE PHYSIOLOGY OF LAUGHTEK. 



tolerably obvious answer. Tlie re^^etition of a lesson, or 

 set speech jDreviously thought out, implies the flow of a 

 very moderate amount of nervous excitement through a 

 comparatively narrow channel. The thing to be done is 

 simjDly to caU up in succession certain previously-arranged 

 ideas — a process in which no great amount of mental 

 energy is expended. Hence, when there is a large quantity 

 of emotion, which must be discharged in some direction or 

 other ; and when, as usually happens, the restricted series 

 of intellectual actions to be gone through, does not suffice 

 to carry it off; there result discharges along other channels 

 besides the one prescribed : there are aroused various 

 ideas foreign to the train of thought to be pursued ; and 

 these tend to exclude from consciousness those which 

 should occupy it. 



And now observe the meaning of those bodily actions 

 si:)ontaneou8ly set up under these circumstances. The 

 school-boy saying his lesson, commonly has his fingers 

 actively engaged — perhaps in twisting about a broken pen, 

 or perhaps squeezing the angle of his jacket ; and if told to' 

 keep his hands still, he soon again falls into the same or a 

 similar trick. Many anecdotes are current of public speak- 

 ers having incurable automatic actions of this class : barris- 

 ters who perpetually wound and unwound pieces of tape ; 

 members of parliament ever jDutting on and taking off their 

 spectacles. So long as such movements are unconscious, 

 they facilitate the mental actions. At least this seems a 

 fair inference from the fact that confusion fi*equently re- 

 sults from putting a stop to them : witness the case nar- 

 rated by Sir Walter Scott of his school-fellow, who became 

 unable to say his lesson after the removal of the waistcoat- 

 button that he habitually fingered while in class. But 

 why do they facilitate the mental actions ? Clearly be- 

 cause they draw off a portion of the surplus nervous 

 ^^xcitement. If, as above exjjlained, the quantity of raen* 



