LAURA BRIDGEMAN. 11 



will at times go into her closet, and shutting her door, " indulge herself in a 

 surfeit of sounds." (Page 27 of thirteenth report.) This seems to me not only 

 very interesting and instructive, but also deeply touching.* 



A missionary of my acquaintance, whose word I noways doubt, informed me 

 that one day he was travelling in the distant West of our Union with a young 

 man who was greatly pleased with something that had been said. Becoming 

 excited, the young traveller asked his friend to excuse him for a moment, where- 

 upon he uttered a tremendous yelling. This done, he declared that the indul- 

 gence had done him much good, and the thread of the conversation was 

 resumed. Nor will any one feel disposed to doubt the truth of this account, 

 who is acquainted with the shouts which the less educated of the thinly peopled 

 parts of the West and South set up on all occasions of any excitement; not 

 only at barbacues, but even when a few persons are met, and something consid- 

 ered peculiarly laughable or " smart" has been said. When poor Laura retires 

 into her closet, freely to revel in her sounds, she only does what we ourselves 

 do when we have checked our desire to laugh, but indulge in it so soon as we 

 find ourselves alone, or in presence of those persons only before whom we do 

 not feel obliged to repress the symphenomenon. Indeed, Laura does no more, 

 although in inarticulate sounds, than we do when, thoroughly impressed with 

 some feeling, we speak to ourselves where no one can hear us. And it may be 

 remarked, that the least tutored are most given to these soliloquies. There are 

 many negroes in the South upon whom it is utterly impossible to impose silence 

 when they are in a state of excitement, though they may not speak to any one, 

 and may not be actuated by any feeling of opposition. 



I ask permission to mention here a fact, which has always appeared to me 

 very remarkable, although I own it does not relate to Laura's vocal sounds. 1 

 may not have another opportunity to place it on record, and am convinced that 

 it deserves being known. Laura constantly accompanies her yes with the com- 

 mon affirmative nod, and her no with our negative shake of the head. Both are 

 with her in the strictest sense primitive symphenomena of the ideas of affirma- 

 tion and negation, and not symphenomena which have gradually become such 

 by unconscious imitation, as frequently may be the case with us. The nodding 

 forward for assent, and the shaking of the head or hand from side to side for 

 dissent, seem to be genuine symphenomena accompanying these two ideas. 

 Assent and dissent are closely allied to the ideas of favor and disfavor, which 

 are naturally accompanied by an inclination toward, or a turning from, the real 

 or ideal object. The very word aversion points to this symphenomenal fact. 

 When we signify assent or dissent with the hand, a similar sign is observed. 



The Italians move repeatedly the lifted digit from right to left, as a sign of 

 negation, while the modern Greeks throw back the head, producing at the same 

 time a clucking noise with the tongue. Laura makes at present these signs, 

 even without writing a Yes or No in the hand of the person with whom she 



*She will also, when deeply grieving, shut herself up, and seek comfort ia unrestrained weeping. 



