THE RELATIONS OF MINDS TO OTHER THINGS, 205 



phenomenon, which reminds one of that curious idiosyncrasy 

 of ' colored hearing ' of which a few cases have been lately 

 described with great care by foreign writers. These indi- 

 viduals, namely, sciio the impression received by the hand, 

 but could not feel it ; and the thing seen appeared by no 

 means associated with the hand, but more like an indepen- 

 dent vision, which usually interested and surprised the 

 patient. Her hand being hidden by a screen, she was 

 ordered to look at another screen and to tell of any visual 

 image which might project itself thereon. Numbers would 

 then come, corresponding to the number of times the in- 

 sensible member Avas raised, touched, etc. Colored lines 

 and figures would come, corresponding to similar ones 

 traced on the palm ; the hand itself or its fingers would 

 come when manipulated ;. and finally objects jjlaced in it 

 would come ; but on the hand itself nothing would ever be 

 felt. Of course simulation would not be hard here ; l)ut 

 M. Binet disbelieves this (usually very shallow) explanation 

 to be a probable one in cases in question.* 



The usual way in which doctors measure the delicacy 

 of our touch is by the compass-points. Two points are 

 normally felt as one whenever they are too close together 

 for discrimination ; but what is ' too close ' on one part of 

 the skin may seem very far apart on another. In the 

 middle of the back or on the thigh, less than 3 inches may 

 be too close ; on the finger-tip a tenth of an inch is far 

 enough apart. Now, as tested in this way, with the appeal 

 made to the primary consciousness, which talks through 

 the mouth and seems to hold the field alone, a certain per- 

 son's skin may be entirely ana3stlietic and not feel the com- 

 pass-points at all ; and yet this same skin will prove to have 

 a perfectly normal sensibility if the appeal be made to that 

 other secondary or sub-consciousness, which expresses 

 itself aiitomatically by writing or by movements of the hand. 

 M. Binet, M. Pierre Janet, and M. Jules Janet have all found 

 this. The subject, whenever touched, would signify 'one 



* This whole phenomeuon shows how an idea which remains itself below 

 the threshold of a certain conscious self may occasion associative eftects 

 therein. The skin-sensations unfelt by the patient's primary consciousness 

 awaken nevertheless their usual visual associates therein. 



