IMPRESSIONABILITY. 251 



child's brain, but we guess that an impression has 

 been produced because the child's head and eyes 

 turned towards the pillar post. We know that an 

 impression has been made when next day, on the 

 child finding a letter on the table, " he takes it and 

 posts it behind the door." 



The attribute time, of the property impression- 

 ability, is very important as a factor in this case ; the 

 series of the child's movements on the second day, 

 under the stimulus of the sight of a letter, are the 

 expression of its impressionability and of the more 

 or less permanent nature of the impression, and 

 as such are evidence of the faculty mentation. An 

 idiot would not do so. It is, then, very important 

 to appreciate the attribute time of the property 

 impressionability. In the above example the kind 

 of impression is susceptibility to the production of 

 a series of movements upon the visual stimulus of 

 a letter ; the quantity, or, as it is often termed, the 

 depth of the impression is indicated by its dura- 

 bility and the readiness with which the special 

 series of movements is excited. 



One of the great signs that an infant possesses 

 potentially the faculty mentation is, that its atten- 

 tion is easily attracted to the sight of objects, and 

 to a light. Such stimulus produces expression by 

 movement at an early age in a healthy infant. 

 The head rotates, and the eyes turn towards the 

 object or the light, and spontaneous movement is 

 stimulated or inhibited. .It is well known that a 

 moving object especially attracts the attention, if 

 the movement be not too rapid. Can we give any 



