The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1873-04-26
Our 0lio.
Improvement Of the Memory.

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neglected. It is that peculiar intellectual
power which enables us to retain the
knowledge of facts and events, and by the
aid of recollection, to call them up for use
at pleasure. The terms memory and re-
collection are not synonymous. The for
mer implies the power Of the mind to re-
tain, without the volition to call up; while
the latter is the direct result of volition and
implies the power to recollect or summon
up for immediate use, whatever of the past
may have been impressed upon the senses.
Memory is the storehouse of the mind and
is to mans intellect, just what the saw
ings bank is to his finances. 1t is safe
repository of capital for occasions of emer-
gency or for current use. No power Of
the mind Is more capable of rapid and un-
limited Improvement than the memory,
where proper and judicious efforts are made
to that end. 1t is faculty which most
persons earnestly eoyet, but for which few
people are willing to encounter the labor
necessary to acquire, and the abuse Of
which everybody dcplores Rochefoucauld
says, "Eyery one complains of his memory,
no one of his judgment" A bad memory,
is lethean pool beneath whose waters our
Ignorance may be buried and which will
serve on all occasions to excuse us from
all that we never knew. 1t is a convenient
scape-goat for all our intellectual short
comings The impressions made upon the
mind by which the yiyidness of events is
permanently retained depends upon habits
Of close attention. Men who read hastily
and without thought make but little per-
ceptible progress in knowledge; while
those who read slowly, weighing every
thought with care, seem to leap forward
with supernatural strides. Again, men
who read indiscriminately without judg.
ment or classification Of knowledge, make
but little speed in mental advancement.
This is occasioned by the fact, that such a
course makes the mind mere lumber.
room, and gives rise to a confused and EN-.
barassed memory. The individual who
possesses such an unfortunate faculty is
more to be pitied than he who can attri.
butte all his defects to an utter inability tc
remember. There is no doub. that the
majority of men could secure to them.
selves the ability to remember everything
valuable, if they would set about to &C,
quire it, for after all, it is only an acquired
habit, and is a certain reward to those whe
seek it. It is said that Cyrus acquired a
memory which enabled him to call by name
; all the soldiers in his army. Hortensius
Roman orator, was able to repeat an en-.
tire discourse, Immediately after he had
written it without omission of single
word. Seneca could repeat two thousant
names in the order in which they had beer
announced to him. Victor Purdy. an
English collier, committed the entire bible
to memory. In order to cultivate thil
habit of remembering, the faculty must be
kept in constant exercise, by committin,
to memory something useful every day
for, unless constantly occupied, the power
is rapidly lost by disuse Then the habi
of close attention and careful observation
must be secured by continual practice
: And, lastly, knowledge must be classified
That is, the various departments Of infor
nation must be kept distinct in the mind
and each item of knowledge, as fast as i
is acquired, must be assigned to its partic
ular place. Thus will every new fact fine
its appropriate station, and, by being asso
eiated with similar knowledge already ac
quired, will bepermanently retained almos
without effort. OF this classification ther,
will be, first, the business or profession o.
an individual which must necessarily. oc
cupy the largest portion of his thoughts
Information in that connection from fore,
of circumstances, is so easily assimilatet
that is seems to come by intuition, anG
Immediately assumes its peculiar corner
Then will follow his intellectual recreation,
which may be divided among all Tho
branches of knowledge he may find it con
yenient or proper to pursue, the natura
sciences, chemistry, astronomy, mathema
tics, general literature or otherwise. Eacl
of these departments Of information mus
have its distinctive place in the mind il
order that kindred knowledge may clustel
around it, for the mind quickly grasps th,
fruits presented to il in clusters. Thus b,
constant exercise through the frequent re
currence Of thought to the topics thu
classified in the mind viii the memory be
come strong and knowledge viii accumu
late to an unlimited degree.
I