The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1891-02-26
CONCERNING MEMORY.

soue Wonderful Fests RecOrdcd-Tricks
Of Memory.
History furnishes us with a large number
OF examples Of wonderful memory. Scali-
GER, mn Italian, ia twenty-one days, COM
mitted to memory tho Had, which COM
prisss IL, 21O verses, and the Odyssey, which
also comprises u large number; Lipsius, A
professor at the university Of Lsyden. Of
fered to recits Tscitus' history in its on
ti.ety in tho presence OF a person armed
with q poignard, who should stab him with
IL Mt tho first error; Louis Kill, after a
YEARS time. could draw from memory the
plan of a country with oil its details; and
the actor Lsssaussiclere, after reading nd
vertising sheets for an hour, could repeat
them te1tualIy. and this, IL may be said. by
way of paTenthesis. must have been pretty
wearisome. It ID stated also that
an Enolishman who had an ex-
t~raordinary memory was introduced to
frederick at Potsdam, and on the same
day Voltaire having brought some verses to
the king, the latter had the EnRlishman
concealed and requested Voltaire to real
his work. "But these verses are not yours"
aid the king, ''they were recited to me
this morning. He then produced the
Euplishman, who, to the great aBtonlSb-
ment Of Voltsire, recited them without
error.
It il especially in the legendary stories OF
ANTIQUITY that we find numerous examples
ri Extraordinary memory Let us recall
the fact that to Adrian the successor OF
Trsian. to Mithridates, to Thenistocles, 10
Scipio, TO Cyrus, and to many others, ~ AZ
tributed tho faculty OF remembering tine
names Of sll their soldiers; that it II claimed
that Hortsnsius the orator attended q pub
lie aale lasting a whole day and recalled, in
order. all the objects sold and the names OF
the purcbasers; and that the ambassador
Ciness. having been resolved in the senate,
saluted by name, on the folio wing day, all
the senators, whom he had seen put once
These numerous examples from antiquity
are easily explained. In fact, before the
determination Of the art Of writing. the de-
velopmsnt of the memory WAS irdiSpenBd-
bic, In our day. this faculty is less Guilt
waited, at least for ordinary requirements,
since, by means OF notes, We can limos
dispense with 1t. Yet there IL a memory
that every one Possesses and that many per
Sons are ignorant OF, and that Is the mem
orv Of tine eve. the memory OF things seen.
that Of the artist and the drgughtsman-the
faculty that permits the latter to reproduce
an ornament, for example. that they nave
possessed by every one IN q
creator or less state Of development,
for everyone sees, and to u greater or less
extent Classics in his brain the things
seen. and that too without being conscious
OF it. 1t il this memory Of the eye that
forms IN excellent mnemotechnIcal method.
The following are q few examples: Many
soldiers, in order to recall theory, endeayor
to figure to themselves the page recto We 30
and then the place on the page where the
article that they wish to recall ~ found.
Certain pyestiaigitators employ the same
method for indicating in n book the page
and line containing n citation that ~ MADE
to them. Others, after having had repeat
ed to them ANY forty common names, at
once repeat them in order, either by COM
mencing at the beginning or the end, or ut
random, in assigning TO each OF them the
given. An author OF tue sixteenth century
named Muret tells that he once saw a Cor
sican to whom he dictated two Thousand
Latin, Greek, and barbarous words having
no affinity with each other, and who
repeated them to him IN order. Ihis ap-
PEARS 10 US doubtful, for 1t is pretty diff
cult to memorize aud repeat forty words
only, and requires a well drilled memory.
Yet with the memory OF the eye we can
quickly reach the same result, not with
forty but with twenty names, for the diff
Guilty increases IN proportion to ths nufnoe5f
OF words added. 1t IL necessary to proceed
as follows: Let US suppose that the FIRST
name given is .'mouse:" do not attcmpt to
recall the word, but consider your memory
as q sensitized photographic .piate-in a
word make a negative Of the object. see be-
fore your eyes the animal itgeif walking
slowly and carving a placard marked no.
1. Let us take ''hat' for the Gee
ond name. Imagine a hat with IL.
number 9 fixed above, as upon
tie hat Of a conscript. For No. 3 let US
suppose "chair." Imagine a chair pro-
vided with q number showing its tricc az
marked by the dealer, etc. You will then
easily recall the succession OF the objects
and the number of their order and will be
able to name them in every way possible
Proceed in this manner up to ten, and tneI
the next day up to twelve, and SO on. giad-
uaIIy increasing the number. After a fe"
repetitions Of this exercise. you will be as
tonished at the ease with which you vii
succeed in retaining twenty or more words
absolutely classified in your mind AZ If Of
drawing paper, 30 that when you are eskee
the number the name will come TO you
mind, and reciprocally. This is a pleasin;
diversion for family reunions on long win
ter eveEings.-M. Alber, pIe3tidigltator, II
LIN Nature.