The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1883-11-03
BEcK,s STRANGE FACULTY.
How the Senator Was Mysteriously Assisted
in Acquiring Latin.

in Acquiring Latin.
Louisville Courier-Journal.
Talking about peculiarities of mems
minds, | heard Senator Beck tell a queer
story the other day" said a gentleman to
some friends last night. "We were all dis
when Senator Beck remarked that he
thought popularity of his brain had done
him great deal OF harm in his life. L first
noticed it, said the Senator, when | was a
boy go ng to school in Scotland. l had a
strict old preacher for tutor, and with a
number OF other boys went to the parsonage
to be educated One night l was very
sleepy and still had long Latin lesson to
get of. ! tried hard TO learn It, but almost
before l was aware | would be
doing. At length | read the exercise
through in a half-dreaming condition. and
with the Latin all tumble in my head, 1
went to sleep. awoke the next morning
with my brain thoroughly clear, and strange
to say all the antiquities in my difficult
| lesson were made plain and read the Latin
without bak. The same thing happened
a second time, and | again found that when
| l went to sleep with a confused idea of my
lesson, learning it while half doing that |
awoke with all the knotted points unrav-
| eled. 1t became my custom after that to
read my tasks over just before going to bed
and | never failed to have them in the morn
ing. My strict old tutor saw that never
studied, and thought one of the other boys
was helping me. At length he gave me a
page of Livy to translate, and told me if
did not have it for him the next
morning he would fog me. He then forbid
any of the boys coming near me and watched
nv actions. / read the lines as usual before
going to sleep, and sure enough the next day
| had them pat as you please. He never
troubled me after that. Well, the year
passed by, and found my faculty still cling
ing to me- till l began to put too much faith
in it and depended almost entirely upon my
mysterious helper. Some time ago phre-
nologist came to examine my family's heads,
and they all went wild over him. ] paid no
attention to their talk, though my wife
urged ME to give the man a trial. One day,
however he met me and was so persistent
that I at length sat down to him. He said
that he would examine my head for So, and
give a chart for S.. / told him 50 was all
would throw away, and he began to name
my characteristics. At length he said;
"You have one faculty that is fully
developed. 1t is spirituality. You
have that faculty developed to marked de-
gree. You would have made fine medium.
Your mind is capable of working separate
from your body, that is, it can perform mem
tai labor while the body is at rest and knows
nothing of it. You sometimes solve difficult
problems while you are asleep and wake up
in the morning without knowing that you
have been at work" Here is $50 said l.
"a man who knows as much as you do de-
serves it."
"'My strange faculty., continued Senator
Beck, whether it is spirituality or not, is
growing weaker. I can hardly explain the
action of my mind during these abnormal
SPELLS / see the lines and words before my
minds eye, and, without knowing the pro-
cess or, indeed, being aware of any process,
/ work out the problem.
You remember John Sherman's anecdote
of Beck" continued the gentleman. Beck
was working day and night on the tariff bill,
when a member wondered how he got any
rest Oh said Senator Sherman. who was
present, Beck rests himself when he makes a
Speech A man who can work when he should
rest may be pardoned if he rests when he
should work.