East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1912-11-20
WHY EVERY BASEBALL
PLAYER REALLY
HAS TWO BRAINS

That the phenomenal baseball play
er possesses an auxiliary brain which
is responsible for his success, is the
Astonishing assertion of DR.. II. Mar
tin Bruins of Baltimore, well-known
alienist.
This auxiliary brain is not born but
made, and 1t is located not In the
players bead, but in the lumbar, or
lower region of the spine.
Strictly speaking, 1t Is a specially
developed section of the spinal col
umn, which, through repeated exper-
fences, has become particularly sus-
ceptible to certain impulses upon the
receipt of which its acts almost auto
matically through what is technically
called an established reflex.
That which might be termed an
auxiliary baseball BRAIN" declared
Dr. Bruins, "is a set OF reflex actions
set up in the lumbar region of the
spinal column by previous baseball
experiences. OF course the brain
must act too, but not nearly to the
same extent as in the case OF the or
dinary individual in whom these re-
flex actions have not been developed
when a player sees a ball coming
toward him at a time when success
or failure upon his part may mean
victory or defeat for his team, his
nerves are strung TO the highest ten
sion, and his actions are not all the
result of deliberate thought. He
springs toward the ball without any
conscious effort whatever, and If he
is an expert player he gets the ball
through the medium of his establish
! ed reflex which directs him properly,
whereas an ordinary individual, un-
equipped with this supplementary
brain, and relying almost entirely up
on the result of deliberation, would
miss 1t.
This auxiliary brain, If such 1t
| may be termed, consists of certain
motor cells in the lumbar region of
the cords which have been educated
to act in given way upon receipt of
given impulse. The ordinary indi-
vidual playing baseball misses chanc-
es which the expert would take cas-
| lily simply because these particular
| cells which control motion lack the
| training which makes for speedy re-
! sponse to given impulses"
To illustrate his point, DR.. Bruins
referred to some of the plays in the
recent Worlds championship series
| between the New York Nationals and
the Boston Americans.
But for his auxiliary BRAIN Hoop
er's wonderful catch in the last game
! sible," he declared.
When the ball left Doyle's bat the
sound of the impac of bat and ball
was carried via the auditory nerves
to the players brain. At the same
| moment the sight of the ball laving
the bat was similarly communicated
to the brain via the optic nerves. The
brain then telegraphed its orders to
the motor nerves controlling the motor
muscles. So far the process was no
different from that which would
have occurred with any other indi-
Vidual playing the game in Hooper's s
position.
I'm the case of Hooper, however,
no sooner did the message flashed
from the brain reach the specially
trained section of the spinal cord
(Which l have termed the auxiliary
brainD than the response which sent
him flying after the ball was instan-
eous. In the case of an ordinary in
dividual the response would have
been much slower, and the ball would
have fallen to the ground long be-
fore the player was near enough to
get it,
I'm the same way must Devore's
wonderful catch in the third game of
the series be accounted for. Prompt
response to the given impules. made
possible through repeated experiences
made 1t possible for him to pull down
the ball which would have meant de-
feat for the Giants but for the little
players wonderful auxiliary brain ;
The expert players extraordinary
coo!ness, an extremely important
FACTOR in any game, is due to the pos-
session of this auxiliary BRAIN for
1t has become Injured to respond only
to certain impulses and remains oui.
escent In their absence.
Both the man at the bat and the