498 Scientific Proceedings, Royal Dublin Society. 



Perceptions — i. e. sensations which appear to me to 

 he planted ont in space — are the tekmeria or messages 

 which I receive from sense-compelling auta, and arise within me 

 whenever and so long as a real auto is acting on my mind and my 

 synergos through my senses. But the perceptions which it creates 

 within me at any one time are but a small part of all the tekmeria 

 that it can send me. Which of all the possible tekmeria shall 

 exist at any one instant depends on the particular line of com- 

 munication which is at that time open between the sense-com- 

 pelling auto and me ; and whenever I make those changes which 

 are popularly described as " looking at the object from a different 

 side," " touching it in a different place," and so on, what I do 

 is simply to change the channel of communication without altering 

 the sense-compelling auto. But I thereby alter the perceptions, 

 the tekmeria which it sends me. Now, the phenomenal object 

 — which persons untrained in mental philosophy are apt to mistake 

 for the cause of their sensations — is simply the result of my 

 mind's effecting a synthesis of all these tekmeria. They cannot 

 actually exist except in succession, 1 but my mind has the power 

 of conceiving them as existing — 



1. Simultaneously, 



2. Persistently, and 



3. Without being any part of itself. 



In this power of conception consists its power of effecting this 

 most useful synthesis. 



While I am what is called " looking at the object," one of the 

 tekmeria, my visual perception at that time, is actual — that is, 

 is in existence ; the rest are potential — that is, they are not at 

 present in existence, but they can be brought into existence. 

 When I " turn my eyes away," none of the tekmeria are actual : 

 they are all potential. Meanwhile the originating auto continues 

 in existence during all this performance, and will, with certainty, 

 reproduce the first-mentioned tekmerion if " I turn my eyes back," 



1 That is, not more than one of each kind can exist at once. Of course a sense- 

 compelling auto or group of auta may simultaneously produce two or more perceptions 

 in my mind through different senses ; e. g., one of the innumerable visual perceptions 

 which it can produce, and one of the innumerable tactual, may coexist in my mind ; 

 but the other visual and the other tactual perceptions which that auto or group of auta 

 is competent to produce within my mind can only be in actual existence at other times. 



