The St. Johns herald., 1892-12-15
MENTAL ACCIDENTS.
Queer Things That E1ppen to
 Absent-Minded Men.
Mechanical Activity of tho Mind as Re- -~ suit of Hab;t-A Failing That Is Common to Literary
 
People.

People.
 A literary man, who is victim of ab- sent-mindedness, says that frequently after he gets into bed he lies awake and wonders why. He is conscious that something is wrong but cannot deter mine what it is. Finally, in despcra- tion, he gets up, looks around and d.S- covers that the gas is burning. He turns it out and goes promptly to sleep. The strange part of this failing is that he not infrequently has the same experience, and one would suppose that when he found himself wakeful in lighted room his first thought would be of the lighted gas. This and few other examples which are now recalled seem to indicate that literary men are very likely to be extremely absent-mind- ed and suffer most from this fail ng immediately after having concentrated their minds upon their writing or close reading.
 One man has trouble in keeping his manuscript sheets in order, says the New York Tribune. After writing one sheet he is likely to toss it aside among old bits or discarded writings. He writes an extremely fine hand, and in correcting his manuscript he is forced often to rewrite whole page. In such cases he tears up the old page to keep it from getting mingled with the oth- CTS. At times, however, after rewrit- ing sheet, with the corrections which he wishes to make, he innocently tears up the new manuscript and replaces the old sheet precisely where it was and just as it was before.
 Later, when he discovers his old friend or enemy, say page forty-nine, he is surprised to find that it has not been changed when he fancied that he had completed his work, it not occur ring to him at that moment that he real ly had rewritten the page but had again destroyed it.
 A very remarkable case of a mind which leads to certain action by force of habit when the thoughts are else where is that of another writer whose workshop" is on the second floor of his house. He sits up late every night and the first thing he does after finish ing his writing or studying is to go downstairs and turn out the gas in the hall. He never forgets to do this. Re- gently, however, he went to the head of the stairs thinking of some work upon which his mind had been intent. He was conscious in a vague way of having difficulty in finding his way down the stairs. When he reached the hall he was affected by strange feeling of be- wilderment. He was perfectly aware that he had come downstairs to put out the light, but when he raised his arm he could not find the chandelier. The room was in darkness. Still, as his mind was mechanically urging that the light be put out and at the same time actively engaged with other thoughts, he could not comprehend that some one else had turned out the light for him.
 Strangest of all was his next act. He actually struck match, so that by its light he could see if the gas really were not burning. He then turned on the gas, lighted it. put it out again and went to bed. It did not occur to him until the next morning that he had done any thing stupid, as he innocently expressed it to his wife.
 There does not seem to be any treat ment or discipline which will benefit this peculiar mental neglect. One man knows perfectly that his failing in this direction is that be has trouble in find- ing his ties. They are always kept in particular drawer and he does not for get that he should put on his tie. But, while aware that his ties are in one drawer only, he will look in the first drawer which his hand touches and then go on opening and closing others until he finds the right one. Again, when his mind has selected certain tie to be worn on that day, he will run over several of them, that particular one in- cluded, wondering where it is.
 He has been known te call his wife after doing this and to ask her to pick out his ''blue and white" or his polka dot" or his "black silk" tic. In this case his mind is so far away from every thing except the general idea of "blacll tie" that when the specific "black tie'' lies before him the brain impression of general black tie" does not give way to be replaced by the more marked im- pression, "this certain black tie"
 1t is not essential, however, that these men are always in such confusion men, tally. When their brains think of ''that certain black tie," to go back to that example again, there is no trouble at all. It is the fact that a man mechanic ally will do certain things while his men, tai activity is exerted in an entirely diff ferent direction that causes the trouble. Often the man who cannot find his ties is suddenly brought back to the present when his hand touches the wrong drawer. He then instantly opens the right one.
 If you are absent-minded you will find if you watch yourself (provided your absent-mindedness will allow you to watch yourself) that this is so, though you seldom stop to notice it. One thing more on this subject. If an absent minded man's wife did not sympathize with him he would indeed be luckless creature. But by the law of coulpcnsa-