The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1912-07-05
EVENING CHAT
BIZ RUTH CAMERON.

! "Oh no, it's only our fourth ami
versary so we aren't going to do any
thing this year." 1 heard a woman say
the other day in speaking of her ap-
preaching wedding anniversary.
Next year Is our fifth, so of course
we will celebrate that
Did it ever occur to you to wonder
why five and ten and fifteen should
be such special stopping places; why
it shouldn't be three and six and
nine, or four and eight and twelve,
that are used in this way? What is
there so mystically important about
five and ten and the rest of that COM
pany, that they should be so honored
above their fellows?
Yes, L know that some mathemati-
cal person is telling me it is because
of the structure of our system of
numbers that this is so. OF course.
But how did this system of numbers
happen to be? Who invented it, and
how comes it that so many different
countries have the same system?
Numbers are queer things. To be
sure, most things are queer if you look
at them closely enough, but numbers
are especially SO. Perhaps you think
all this is nonsense, but there really
is quite a psychology of numbers, if
you will only stop to think about it.
Have you ever noticed what differ
ent round numbers different people
use, that is how differently they ex-
tional person always says "a dozen
or "a hundred" or "a million" ac-
cording to the size of the vagueness;
whereas the original person arrests
your attention by coming an indi-
viduaI round number. And while the
one ear and out the other without
ever approaching ones brain, the
specially coined number leaves a
definite imprint. For instance, don't
you think that There were at least
a thousand and a hundred there"
would be. more apt to reach your
brain than the conventional, There
were at least a thousand?"
Some people have individual round
numbers which they use on all occa-
sions. I remember a girl friend of
mine who always said "73" when she
wanted to express an indefinite num-
Der; and another original person desig-
mates any indefinite quantity as "a
little million"
Not only do we use the number five
and its multiples as especial stop
ping places for anniversaries and
'.sich like" but I think we are also
inclined to reckon times and values in
terms of five and ten. For instance,
you say afterwards, We'll. I wasn't
more than five minutes late" why.
you know you were at least ten min
utes late retorts your friend, in
dignantly. Whereupon you argue
heatedly as to which it was, and
neither of you ever thinks of nam
ing any time between the two, though
the chances are that you really were
tardy by seven or eight minutes.
There is one class of people who
do not need to be told that there is
such a thing as the psychology of
numbers and that is the advertisers.
They not only know that such a psy-
chology exists, but they have even
reduced it to a science. Their use of
such figures as $6.98 and S3.49, by
which they beguile an optimistic pub
lie into forgetting that it is practi-
cally paying $500 and $3.50 is a ia
miliar ruse.
/ suppose there are some of my
readers to whom all of this is simply
''tommyrot." To those who can see
something more in it, ] commend the
line of thought which I have started.