MEMORY. 



sessea about tlie history and habits of that one 

 great Asiatic and African animal. 



Once more, not only do we know the names of 

 80 many distinct objects or creatures, z the 

 attributes or qualities at once summoned up in 

 our minds by the names themselves, but we also 

 know and remember endless groups and colloca- 

 tions of words, current phrases, or stock sayings, 

 all of which we can employ in conversation when- 

 ever they are needed, with the same ease and cer- 

 tainty as we employ the separate words them- 

 selves of which they are compounded. Yet each 

 of these common formulas of speech has had to be 

 unconsciously learnt and remembered quite as 

 truly, though not with so much difficulty, as the 

 multiplication-table or the names and dates of the 

 kings of England. We do not merely mean such 

 invariable and frequent phrases as " How do you 

 do ? " or " If you please," but rather those more 

 subtle proverbial elements of conversation of 

 which each one of us possesses, without even 

 knowing it, an immense assortment. P^or in- 

 stance, we say "as black as a crow," or " as black 

 as ink," or " black as my hat," or " as black as a 

 negro." "As white as snow," "as green as 

 grass," " as blue as the sky," " as red as a rose," 

 are all real compound elements of everybody's 

 every-day vocabulary. "As old as the hills" 

 comes naturally to our lips in speaking of age ; 



