﻿Concerning 
  Emotive 
  Phenomena. 
  

  

  39 
  

  

  raids, 
  and 
  of 
  the 
  " 
  military 
  execution 
  " 
  of 
  a 
  Belgian 
  witnessed 
  at 
  Termonde 
  

   in 
  1914.) 
  

  

  The 
  experiment 
  was 
  repeated 
  three 
  times 
  on 
  subsequent 
  clays 
  with 
  similar 
  

  

  results, 
  viz. 
  : 
  — 
  Quiet. 
  Excited. 
  

  

  16 
  mgrms. 
  13 
  mgrms. 
  

  

  10 
  „ 
  8 
  „ 
  

  

  24 
  „ 
  15 
  „ 
  

  

  I 
  have 
  taken 
  great 
  pains 
  to 
  satisfy 
  myself 
  about 
  the 
  action 
  of 
  atropine 
  

   upon 
  the 
  emotive 
  response 
  and 
  have 
  failed 
  to 
  find 
  any 
  evidence 
  that 
  it 
  possesses 
  

   any 
  action 
  at 
  all 
  upon 
  the 
  response. 
  A 
  negative 
  finding 
  is 
  always 
  unsatis- 
  

   factory 
  and 
  demands 
  greater 
  bulk 
  of 
  evidence 
  than 
  does 
  a 
  positive 
  finding. 
  

   But 
  in 
  reality 
  the 
  case 
  is 
  reversed, 
  it 
  is 
  absence 
  of 
  response 
  during 
  atropinisa- 
  

   tion 
  that 
  is 
  the 
  negative 
  evidence, 
  its 
  presence 
  that 
  is 
  positive 
  evidence. 
  I 
  

   have 
  repeatedly 
  witnessed 
  emotive 
  response 
  during 
  what 
  I 
  regarded 
  as 
  being 
  

   adequate 
  if 
  not 
  profound 
  atropinisation. 
  Nevertheless 
  I 
  found 
  it 
  difficult 
  to 
  

   rest 
  satisfied 
  with 
  the 
  result 
  in 
  presence 
  of 
  the 
  opposite 
  findings 
  of 
  other 
  

   workers. 
  My 
  statement 
  that 
  such 
  responses 
  do 
  actually 
  occur, 
  and 
  that 
  

   therefore 
  the 
  emotive 
  effect 
  is 
  not 
  exclusively 
  independent 
  of 
  sweat 
  glands, 
  is 
  

   based 
  upon 
  observations 
  taken 
  at 
  the 
  outset 
  of 
  the 
  enquiry 
  before 
  its 
  photo- 
  

   graphic 
  technique 
  had 
  been 
  mastered, 
  and 
  at 
  the 
  last 
  of 
  these 
  earlier 
  

   observations 
  the 
  result 
  was 
  so 
  clear 
  and 
  the 
  general 
  symptoms 
  of 
  atropinisa- 
  

   tion 
  so 
  unpleasant 
  that 
  I 
  have 
  not 
  felt 
  it 
  justifiable 
  to 
  repeat 
  the 
  trial 
  for 
  the 
  

   sake 
  of 
  obtaining 
  a 
  record. 
  In 
  case 
  some 
  future 
  observer 
  may 
  consider 
  it 
  

   necessary 
  to 
  do 
  so, 
  I 
  shall 
  state 
  what, 
  in 
  my 
  opinion, 
  would 
  constitute 
  

   satisfactory 
  photographic 
  evidence. 
  A 
  series 
  of 
  emotive 
  responses 
  to 
  a 
  given 
  

   stimulus, 
  say 
  a 
  pin-prick, 
  then 
  an 
  injection 
  of 
  atropine 
  sufficient 
  to 
  produce 
  

   general 
  symptoms 
  and 
  abolition 
  of 
  the 
  emotive 
  response. 
  

  

  Local 
  application 
  of 
  atropine 
  by 
  liniment 
  and 
  plaster 
  affords 
  a 
  less 
  con- 
  

   vincing 
  test, 
  and 
  can 
  be 
  of 
  value 
  only 
  after 
  the 
  general 
  test 
  has 
  shown 
  

   atropine 
  abolition. 
  The 
  local 
  test 
  produces 
  no 
  general 
  symptoms, 
  and 
  no 
  

   local 
  effect. 
  I 
  possess 
  simultaneous 
  records 
  by 
  two 
  galvanometers, 
  one 
  

   connected 
  with 
  the 
  normal 
  hand 
  the 
  other 
  with 
  the 
  atropinised 
  hand, 
  that 
  

   exhibit 
  identical 
  large 
  emotive 
  responses 
  in 
  both 
  palms. 
  But 
  as 
  matters 
  

   stand 
  this 
  is 
  at 
  most 
  a 
  " 
  weak 
  confirmation 
  " 
  of 
  the 
  negative 
  result 
  witnessed 
  

   in 
  association 
  with 
  general 
  symptoms 
  after 
  subcutaneous 
  injection. 
  

  

  I 
  make 
  no 
  attempt 
  to 
  account 
  for 
  the 
  positive 
  results 
  witnessed 
  by 
  other 
  

  

  observers.* 
  Gildemeister, 
  in 
  the 
  same 
  issue 
  of 
  the 
  ' 
  Miinchener 
  Wochen- 
  

  

  * 
  Veraguth, 
  loc. 
  cit., 
  p. 
  185 
  ; 
  Leva, 
  ' 
  Miinchener 
  Medic. 
  Wochensehr.,' 
  28 
  Oct., 
  1913, 
  

   p. 
  2388 
  ; 
  Wells 
  and 
  Forbes, 
  in 
  ' 
  Archives 
  of 
  Psychology,' 
  published 
  by 
  the 
  Columbia 
  

   University 
  (Verbal 
  communication 
  by 
  Dr. 
  Forbes 
  to 
  A. 
  D. 
  W.). 
  

  

  