Consciousness. 97 



sation is a result of the function of an organ peculiar, personal and 

 unique. The conscious personality of every individual is simply the 

 mass of his sensations considered as an aggregate. The only explica- 

 tion or interpretation of an} r problem possible to any person is the asso- 

 ciation and comparison of such problem with his already erected stand- 

 ard internal sense organs. This is not possible until the reactions 

 from the problem stimulate sensations in his brain. If the problem as 

 a whole cannot arouse sensations that are comparable or assimilable in 

 the man's brain, it is picked to pieces, and separate sensations of the 

 different pieces are introduced. But when the problem is a sensation 

 to begin with, as, for example, green, it is already introduced and com- 

 pared with standards of green previousl}* in the brain. It neither ad- 

 mits of nor requires an} r picking to pieces, for it is alread} r comparable 

 with the standards, and is of as low terms as possible. If the sensa- 

 tion is compound, and a reduction is required, the pieces are separated, 

 and each dispatched to its own place ; but each piece, after such reduc- 

 tion, is still a sensation, and cannot be reduced to anything more simple. 

 If we compare what is said here with the conclusions reached on pp. 

 848, 849, we shall perceive that a simple sensation is of a more ele- 

 mentary nature than an axiom. An axiom is defined to be a self-evi- 

 dent truth. Truth is simply the correct reflection of the environment in 

 consciousness (page 858), and therefore is sensation. A self-evident 

 truth is a perception, which consists of the association and mutual sup- 

 port of two or more sensations. A perception is a new compound sen- 

 sation formed by the superposition, one upon another, of two or more 

 simple sensations. An axiom as defined, therefore, is a compound sen- 

 sation, and the original sensations which underlie it are more simple 

 than it is. A simple sensation is not self-evident for the reason that it 

 cannot be its own subject, as pointed out above, in considering the 

 question of self-consciousness. But a single sensation is absolute 

 truth. It neither requires to be supported by evidence, nor is it com- 

 petent to receive such support. A perception because it is often an at- 

 tempt to construct a whole picture from partial and limited materials, 

 ma} 7 be far from truth. But the sensation is the absolute mechanical 

 equivalent of the antecedent energy consumed in its production. It is 

 the ultimate fundamental element in the conscious personality, and it 

 cannot be reduced or accounted for in the personality. Any further re- 

 duction or analysis of it disintegrates the personality. Red in the per- 

 sonality is onl} 7 red, nothing more nor less. Its antecedent form of 

 energy lies outside of the person, and a further pursuit of it takes us 

 across the boundary which separates the person from his creative en- 

 vironment. It thus becomes obvious why there can be no subjective 

 simplification of sensation. It is itself the lowest term of the subject. 



