Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-07-29

II ASKED my host in a little place in
l the country. who was urging me to
buy the meadow opposite his entrance
drive, what acreage there was in the
plot. He pointed to a distant tree
down a grassy slope and then drew an
imaginary line from it to n sunken
road and from that to the highway and
% to where we stood contemplating
the scene.
That" said he. would be about
Ave-a acre lot and enough to protect you
from undesirable neighbors II you built
right there" and he indicated slight
rise Of ground in n group OF trees some
200 feet from where we stood. =.
When the owner of the farm strolled
up to talk over the possible purchase,
l asked him casually how many acres
lay within the boundaries my friend had
, pointed out. and he very promptly
, replied:
oh. just fraction over five acres
I've had It surveyed In ely.
supposed, of course. he and the
other man had talked the plot over.
but not Mt all. 1t turned out 60 have
been shrcwd guess on my friend q
part. just as | had guessed almost 10
q foot the distance from wher" W"
s.ood to the possible site Of iutnr"
house as being 200 feet. When we
came 10 compare notes. We discovered
that he had lived most of his litc on
q five.acrc lot and had lived Tor
many years on on" of 100 feet III length
It was perfectly possible for us both
10 carry these yard.ticks OF dlHial."
with us and measure the same or twlr"
the amount in inches or icrt. IL"
man to whom VIC were taking >a'u
that he could always measure on
mile on any road il he did it on foot
becnusc as a boy lie had had TO so II
mile 20 school along a country ROAD.
7 SUPPOSE this power of the mInd
i 70 create and to r"mcmber standards
Of time or Of space accounts for n go"i
deal that strikes ono at the moment
AZ mystcrious. as for instance the rae
Ulty some persons have of tcNlinR the
time Of day or of waking M on IN" IN
slant they intended 10. or of gauglng the
nearncss or the distanc" OF an ap-
pronchinc object. Away back in one
childhood the mind has registered c"r-
tain inhc' ibla impressions that one can
draw out from the memory for instant
use with the same surcncss that car
penter draws out his two rule, or
the man driving car turns to his mile
age indicator.
I always knew dimly that what one
put in ones memory or allowed others
20 nut there had Il bearing on one 5
future. but | was never 30 poignantly
aware OF It when ! was in school busy
string up fuel for future use as ! be.
came much latr,' when that fuel came in
Useful or turned out poor stun
THE first time that | was aware of
L the really awful potcntaiitics OF
memory was when girl, who was
seemingly not very different from the
generality Of girls, fell very i'll at on,
house. She had some mental disease In
which the door OF memory, that she had
opened or shut. at will no doubt in hey
sane hours, sagged open and let things
confused and painfully distressing
sometimes Iuite shameful. tumble out
for all w.th!n the sound of her high
delirious voice to hear and sadly judg,
her secret thoughts by. / sat up on'
night with the nurse who beguiled tho
rather trying experience by recountin,
70 me other less lurid feats Of memor!
OF her former patients.
One l remember was the daughter o
q well-known clergyman. who had beef
very much her fathers helper and ha'
BOHe W with IlH III scuSou uH'
out in order to companion his walk
dutifully to church when he was apt t.
b nervous or depressed over the ap
preaching ordeal Of his sermon
Sharpened into an abnormal sensi
tiveness by her illness. the girl remem
bered and repeated word for word thos
sermons--preached them from text I,
benediction with all the infections o
her fathers voi;e When she recovere,
the normal use Of her mind, she coul,
barely recall n text, let alone the ser
mons that followed.
We are aware sometimes in dreams
when faces and personalities long for,
gotten or very dimly recollectcd in ou
waking hours, come vivdly into tn
scenes We are enacting-wc are awar
how much we took in of their man
nerisms and even Of the minute char
ncteristics OF their personal appear
ance that we did not know we had seen
let alone registered consciously.
TT IS sometimes difficult for very ro
L bust, that is. very energetic persons
TO understand to what extent illness o.
even n slight sort plays havoc with thu
healthy barriers of Thought They car
understand and pity delirium, and ever
while they shrink from the memorie.
and distorted visions of insanity, they
are tender and sympathetic with the
STI ~