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Why New Things
Make You Think
You Have SEEN
THEM BEFORE
By Prof. EDWARD K. STRONG, Ph. D..
Fellow In Psychology at Columbia University.
HAVE you ever gone to an entirely new place and
yet had a sudden feeling that you once were
there before? Have you ever in the midst of a
conversation had a strange conviction that long ago
you said Just those words tinder just those circum
stances? ,
And if so, how did you explain the feeling?
Many poets and authors have felt and described this
experience, though, as a rule, they do not attempt tn
explain it
Thus, Sir Walter Scott says: "How often do wn
find ourselves In society which we have never before
met, and yet feel Impressed with a mysterious, ill
defined consciousness that neither the scene nor the
subject Is entirely new; nay, we feel as If we could
anticipate that part of the conversation which has not
yet taken place.”
Charles Dickens, Thomas Hardy, Pierre Loti, and
many others also testify to the experience.
It must then be of fairly common occurrence. And,
in fact, I doubt if a single person who reads this has
not had it at some time or other.
Then surely it should have a name. And here the
scientists step In Poets may first have described the
sensation, but ft remained for the psychologists to
christen IL As usual with psychologists, they chose a
good long name, and termed the illusion a form of
paramnesia. And this particular form Is generally de
noted by the French phrase, deja vu. or "already seen.”
Now as to the reasons for the occurrence of deja vu
We have already spoken of the ld<a that It la the
result of our living repeated lives with the sama per
sonality. Many people believe In Iho reincarnation of
souls, and to those who so believe this explanation of
deja vu is certainly most simple and satisfactory. The
feeling accompanying the Illusion la described as
"weird,” "uncanny." "transcending human esperlence.’'
and so on. And all those adjectives are quite what one
would expect of an experience connected with a for
mer life.
So I think I could readily say, “If reincarnation is
Picking Teeth a GOOD HABIT
Etiquette frowns upon the use ot
toothpicks at the dhitng table, inf
modern dental science seeks to on
courage the habit. According to Professor
1 evett, one of the most eminent French dental
surgeons, the toothpick should he ns much a
part of tlie selling of the table as the knives,
forks and plates; and If the meal is a pro
tracted one. the toothpick should be used be
fore rising from the table.
It is n fact that, nofliwlthstnndlng the ac
knowledges skill and pronounced advancement
in tin* silence of dentistry, we still lose our
teeth far too soon. This Is either through
pyorrhea, that dread disease of the gums
which causes seemingly perfect strong white
teeth to detach themselves and fall out. or
through lack of cleanliness upon the part of
the individual.
To clean the teeth with a brush upon rls-
What RHEUMATISM Is, and How
By WILLIAM LEE HOWARD. M.D.
YOU may stand all day in cold streams or upon
rocks washed by the ocean tides and not get
rheumatism. Yon may eat red flesh and spiced
food, yet be free from gout or rheumatic affections.
Tramping in the rain or sleeping on damp ground will
not give you inflamed joints or cripple your muscles.
All I 'these statements are true of the man or woman
who is in perfect health. What I mean by perfect
health is that state of body and organs where all food
intake is properly distributed and the proper amounts
of by-products are daily eliminated. This means that
the skin must be In good working order so that free
perspiration, conscious and unconscious, will pass the
body poisons off through the pores; that the liver must
be in such a healthy state that every cell does its work
in separating the good from the bad in the blood; that
the kidneys must be in the same condition, and that the
lungs are daily emptied and filled up with fresh air.
This latter act must be accomplished by deep breath
ing exercises in the open air —open windows at night
will do the trick for you while you sleep.
There are very few of us who are in this perfect con
dition of always having the out go from the body balance
the in take so that no body poisons are retained. Most
of us have unconsciously abused the great clearing house
>f the body—the liver. There are many cells so over
gorged that finally they become useless. This means
that if we eat heartily or red meats or drink alcoholic
liquors the stuff that should be separated and passed
out of tlie body by the various channels cannot all be
attended to. because some of the cell workers are not
“on the job."
Finally there accumulate in the tissues acids which
irritate the spots where they are deposited. The joints
of the |>ig toe or the fingers give tlie first warning of im
Pending trouble.
Now. if the joints of the feet at e slightly irritated by
an actual fact, then deja vu is caused by 'shadowy
recollections of a previous existence.' ”
But tinder no circumstances should I or any one
say. "Since we have this feeling of "already seen-ness,’
then there must be such a thing as reincarnation to
account for it."
For there are other explanations far more probable
One which Is somewhat related to the previous ex
istence theory Is that of Sir James Crichton-Browne.
M. IX He regards the experience as a “revival of
hereditarily transmitted or acquired states in new and
special combinations.” His idea is then, not that A
meets situation X, dies, is reborn, again meets situa
tion X and has a feeling of recognizing it because of
the facts of his previous life; but that A’s father meets
situation X, it makes an impression on his brain cells, and
thia impression dr memory is transmitted to A. so when
A meets X or something like X, ft seems familiar to
him because of the heredltn modification in his brain.
This sounds plausible, but It is generally admitted
now-a-days that such an impression could not be trans
mitted from father to son.
Turning to the purely psychological theories we
have several to choose from. Before giving them, how
ever, it may be as well to explain some of the technical
terms it will be necessary to use.
The first question usnally asked a class tn psychol
ogy is, “What Is the difference between sensation and
perception?” This roust be clearly understood before
one can go very far into any psychological discussion
But it Is a difference easy to grasp and easy to remem
her. The sensation is simply the message brought to
the brain from a sense organ, such as the eye or ear,
and the perception is the interpretation of the mes
sage. We look at a.n orange, for Instance. If we were
little new-born babies with eyes Just beginning to fo
cus, we would get a pure sensation of the orange—a
blob o* brightness of a different intensity from the sur
roundings. As it ta we get that same sensation, but
instantaneously we recognize from our previous expe
rience, that the blob Is round, and yellow, and opaque
—the good old orange of our breakfast table. Thus wo
have perceived the orange -sensation has merged info
perception. It Is safe to say that we are never con
scious of pure sensations. Always we have previous
experiences by which we Interpret them, rightly or
wrongly, and so Instantly turn them Into perceptions.
Anjel based his explanation of the deja vu on this
connection between sensation and perception. In the
case of the Illusion, he claims, perception has not fol
lowed sensation as closely as usual. The sensation has
come into the brain and registered itself, but the in
terpretation is delayed. Consequently “when this is
accomplished the result appears already known.” That
is, we have a feeling of two processes where ordinarily
we have only one. ,
This explanation is rather involved, but It is sup
ported by the fact that one is most apt to experience
Ing and before retiring Is not enough. The
various mouth-wash disinfectants and the use
of dental floss In themselves cannot be relied
upon. The scorned toothpick must be reestab
lished. according to Professor Levett, because
nothing else cart perform Its functions ade
quately.
The toothpick finds its way into all the lit
tle crevices of the teeth where bits of food
lodge and become dangerous putrid matter. It
may bo used. too. sis a support for the medi
cated cotton used to cleanse the upper part
of the teeth when they las-ome diseased under
the gum. The cetto., removes- the soft yellow
secretion, which, whien hardened, turns Into
tartar. Tartar is a dangerous deposit of sa
livary mucus, animal .mutter and phosphate of
lime, which incrusts the teeth and renders
them unhealthy.
The use of the toottfipick nt table may not
be extremely edifying, but. according to Pro
fessor Lovett. it helps to preserve the teeth.
the accumulated poisons, getting the
feet wet semis more blood to the
joints. This produces a pressure on
the tiny bloc*. l vessels, inflammation
follows, and- the condition called in
flammatory rheumatism ensues.
So you see the old theory that it
was meat, wlaich caused rheumatism,
excessive use of malt liquors, high
living and expensive delicacies real
ly lias no fouttdation. A little thought
would have convinced you that
WWW
gWiregal
•<S i! K 'Mh-
“Even such exposure es this wil’
not bring rheumatism to a person
whose system is in perfect condition’'
“Only an ILLUSION,” Psychology Says—NOT Proof of PREVIOUS LIFE
YOU MIGHT TRY—
For Fingermarks on Wallpaper.
TNINGER marks on wall jmper will quickly disapt>enr when rubbed with a
stiff dough of Tlour and water.
Fruit Stains on Linen.
QMEAR the Mains over with some pure glycerine. the linen for an
hour, and then wash in warm, soapy water. Repelit n second time if
necessary.
When Cooking Greens.
A PIECE of bread tied in a bit of muslin and dropped into the water in
■“ which greens are boiling will absorb the unpleasant odor.
To Prevent Shoes Squeaking.
TTAVE the shoemaker “spring” each shoe, and insert a spoonful of French
-*-*■ chalk between the soles.
For Gas Stoves.
AFTER using a gas stove for baking leave the door o|ien a little while.
** This allows the heat to escape, and will prevent the metal sweating
and rusting.
You Can AVOID IT
something was wrong in this theory, fjr those who
suffer the most from rheumatism are those who cannot
get plenty of red meats, wines and sweetbreads. The
poor working classes suffer from rheumatism, because
they d<> not get sufficient fresh air into their lungs, be
cause they are uot always able or do not know how to
ki>ep their skin in perfect condition, and because they eat
much Indigestible food.
You may not have any trouble in your stomach diges
tion. but this is the smallest part of the digestive appa
ratus. There are the intestines, and the liver, and even
the kidneys may be considered in this matter as diges
tive organs.
There Is undoubtedly a germ which causes a certain
form of rheumatism, but this germ would be made harm
less by the cells In the body there for this special pur
pose If there was no accumulation of the poisons I have
mentioned.
If you notice the slightest tinge of pain or soreness in
the joints, take a hot bath and thoroughly wash the
whole body. Then dress according to the weather, not'
according to the season, and see that you perspire freely.
Take a mild laxative night and morning and drink all
the fresh water you can put into your body Keep from
getting wet. and if you get caught out in a wet storm
see that you are thoroughly dried as soon as possible.
For a while eat sparingly. This will soon rid you of
the little accumulation of which the pain has warned
you. And ever after you must remember that you may
become a rheumatic if you neglect the rules for i>erfect
health- —the sort of bodily equilibrium I have outlined.
Probably it will seem to you that strict adherence
to these rules will enable you to escape, not only rheum
atism. but most other diseases. And that is true. Even
diseases directly caused by specific germs—as typhoid,
tuburculosis, even cholera—need hardly to be dreaded
by those whose bodies acquire "resistance'' through a
wholesome way of living.
BSjvi.
the illustlon when one is fatigued,
and when in consequence the brain
■right be supposed to work more
slowly.
Lalande's theory seems to me a
triflle clearer. According to him
the case is this: A in a moment
of absent-mindedness perceives X
without becoming entirely conscious
of it. The next instant A’s brain
clears of its abstraction, he be
comes conscious of X. and immedi
ately feels that he has known it
before. He actually has known it
before, of course, without knowing
he knew it.
That this state of mind is quite
possible I know from my own ex
perience. For instance, last night
as I sat reading my wife asked me
the time. I was engrossed in my
article and only realized that she
had asked me something, I didn't
know what. I finished my sentence
and said, “What did yon say?" Be
fore she repeated her' question i
found that I had my watch in my
hand. Without being conscious of
her request 1 had perceived it
clearly enough to respond tn it.
Several explanations of deja vu
are based on such unconscious or
subconscious mental action. The?
do not need special comment, for.
though they trace the illusion
variously to the "subliminal self,”
to "doubling of personally,” or to
•'dissociation,” they can be re
duced practically to the same foun
dation as the theory of absent-mind
edness given above.
The explanation which I find most
reasonable is that "the illusion re
sults from the, presence of certain
similar or analogous elements in
the situation to some previous ano
forgotten experience.” In other
words, the situation X, which I meet
to-day, resembles in some respect
Y, which I met ten years ago. 1
have forgotten Y, but the impres
sion it made on my brain remains,
and on the entrance of similar
impressions from X there is a
quick feeling of familiarity.
I have been able to trace most of
my own feelings of deja vu down to
such facts. For example: When
i SMHIEAHHI
I first came to New York from the West, one of my
earliest sight-seeing trips was a walk across Brooklyn
Bridge. I stopped when I came to the middle of the
bridge and stood near the railing, looking up the river.
It was the first time that I had seen the East River
and all its bridges. Yet as T stood there and watched
a little white yacht with a blue flag come down stream,
I had a sudden feeling that I had stood in just that
spot and seen just that sight before. The view was
familiar, the damp feeling of the salt breeze on my
face was familiar, the conglomeration of sounds was
familiar—l even felt that I cotild tell' the name of
the little yacht if I thought hard and long enough.
Yet I certainly had never been in precisely that
situation before.
For some time I was unable to account for this
case. Thon one day on looking through some old cor
respondence files T came upon a colored post card
sent me in San Francisco by a friend in New York
of the view up the East River from Brooklyn Bridge.
wM)
r- : -■ T- A
J
The Sight of the Jewelled Snuff Box (X) Gives the
Young Man (A) the Feeling That He Haa Seen It
Somewhere Before. Although, as a Matter of Fact,
He Never Has. According to Sir*James Crichton-
Browne, This Feeling la Due to the Fact That the
Young Man's Father (B) Saw the Snuff Box During
His Lifetime, and the Impression It Made on His
Mind Has Been Transmitted to His Son. This Ex
planation of the “Already-Seen” Illusion Is No
Longer Accepted, Because It Is Believed Impossible
for Definite Brain Impressions to Be Passed On in
This Way From One Generation to Another.
Should We All GO SOCKLESS?
EVERYBODY likes silk stockings best. Why?
Largely because they are prettiest, doubtless. But
there is another reason. As most of us have
noticed, they are cool.
The comfort of stockings depends largely upon their
material. Fabrics differ in the readiness with which
they transmit heat and moisture. The best material for
stockings is that which conducts heat and allows evap
oration most rapidly. Lisle thread is far less com
fortable than Bilk, for the reason that it is a bad con
ductor of heat and moisture.
The less our clothes interfere with the passage of
heat and moisture from the body, the more comfortable
they are. Furthermore, it is desirable, for comfort'*
sake, that the body should be air-bathed at all times.
Men used to wear long stockings. Having adopted
socks instead, they find them so much more comfortable
MUSKRATS Worth More Than OYSTERS
IT sounds rather unbelievable to state that the
humble muskrat is worth more th%n the rather
aristocratic oystfcr, or, in otffer words, trapping
muskrats is a bigger industry financially than slop
ing up oysters from their various beds along our
seacoast.
The muskrat is the most important fur-bearing
animal of North America, and it must be remembered
that there are some extremely valuable furs in North
America. In one year (and this w-as several years
ago) a million and a half muskrat skins were put on
the market, and these brought to the trappers, who
sell at the bottom price, of course, more than
$1,700,000.
The largest share of muskrats are trapped along
the Atlantic seaboard, and up the tidewater streams
of this coast in Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey and
Why DBUG Stores Sell CANDY
WHY does the drug store sell candy?
A not inconsiderable part of lhe
business of the average druggist
to-day is the selling of candy. And yet
one might imagine that drugs and confec
tionery had no very obvious relation.
But the fact is otherwise. Centuries
ago in Europe candy was sold exclusively
by druggists. Not only that, but they were
the only candy manufacturers. It may be
said, indeed, that the pharmacist always
has been a seller of candy.
Nor, indeed, has the manufacture of
candies, even to-day, gone entirely out of
his hands. Druggists still make medicated
confections of various kinds, such a hore
hound drops, for colds, and licorice.
An effort is being made just now by the
Government authorities to prevent the
sale of unwholesome candies, some of
There was even a white ytcht with a blue flag in the
foreground. I had paid as little attention to the card,
when I received it as one usually does to those little
dodges to get out of letter writing, but the picture
had nevertheless been perceived and recorded by my
brain. The fact that the air, sounds, etc., on the bridge
also seemed familiar was probably due to the circum
stance that I was accustomed to such an environ
ment on a large bridge.
To those who hold that such cases of paramnesia
are "intimations of immortality” there is no explana
tion, I believe, so unwelcome as the one I have given
above I count several members of this persuasion
among my acquaintance, and bitter indeed are their
protests to my common sense view' of their "weird ex
periences.” They assure me that there was not the
slightest chance of a resemblance to a previous for
gotten incident causing the They had never
been in any situation even remotely resembling the
one in question.
It is easy to say so, and 1 am sure they thought so.
But there are so many elements in every situation
that we must have many repetitions. A friend of
mine, for instance, tells me that she had the feeling
of deja vu one day when she walked down a path in
Central Park where she had never been before. Every
thing seemed familiar though she had considered it
an exploring tour. She finally discovered, upon ana
lyzing the elements in the scene, that there was a faint
odor of honeysuckle in the air, upon which she im
mediately realized that there had been a hedge of
honeysuckle near her home in childhood, and that
she had been reminded of that.
I feel convinced myself that such similarity in odors
is a frequent cause of deja vu. Unless /an odor is
very strong we are rarely definitely conscious of it.
We may think "how sweet the air is to-day,” without
perceiving that we are walking past a field of new
mown hay. And on some later occasion We pass a
hay wagon. Again we do not definitely perceive th©
odor, but it awakens the old memory, and we say, “I
have lived through this before.' Then if any one tries
to tell us that the feeling is due to "similar or analo
gous elements to a previous experience,” we insist
fervently that no such similar elements are present
and prove it to him. But all the time, of course, we
do not think of the smell, because we were never really
aware of it.
So a slight noise, a special clearness in the atmos
phere, or a particular Emotional mood, serves to recall
an occasion in which it previously appeared. If the
past experience Is entirely recalled, we say, "This X. ic
minds me of Y.” If It Is indistinctly recalled we merely
think, "How familiar X. seems!" And sometimes, when
it is very poorly recalled, we exclaim, “I have been here
before!”
At least that is the theory I prefer to hold.
What do you think about It?
which come in prize packages, the latter
containing also small tokens of lead, cop
per or other poisonous metals, embedded
in or in contact with the candy.
Candies in the form of toy doll babies,
whistles, guns and marbles are deemed
objectionable, although the sale of them
cannot be prevented. Children play with
them before eating them, with results at
which the bacteriologist would hold up
his hands in horror.
There are also some undesirable candies
which imitate chocolate, though more In
appearance than in flavor. But the palates
of children are not very discriminating.
The manufacturer of such chocolate sub
stitutes protects himself by avoiding the
use of the word "chocolate” on his labels
or in his advertisements.
The word “candy,” by the way, is of
Oriental origin, and means simply “sugar.”
The Orientals were the first users of
candy.
that they will never go back to th* old style. The now
fad of socks for women has at least the justification of
comfort
All children enjoy going barefoot. But this involves
some danger of injury to the feet, and, in addition, tho
unpleasant possibility of lockjaw. Consequently, many
judicious parents compromise on sandals without stock
ings. Perhaps, a generation from now, we may find our
selves going back, both men and women, to the classic
sandals.
Most people do not realize that a stocking that is too
tight is almost as bad for the foot as a shoe that is too
small. Its most common effects are ingrowing toenails
and enlargement of the big-toe joint. Care should be
taken that stockings be long enough. A foot 10 2-3
inches long and 3% Inches wide cannot wear a stocking
under size 11 without inducing a tendency to the above
mentioned complaints and to crumpling of the toes.
Connecticut. Os course there are quantities of musk
rats inland all through the country, around the great
lakes and along the rivers and their tributaries.
But the most of these valuable little muskrats are
trapped along the coast of the Middle Atlantic States.
In Dorchester County, Maryland, which consists for
- part of marshes, these marshes are leased -J
trappers on a 50 per cent basis. Every year more
than a quarter of a million muskrats are trapped in
the marshes of Dorchester County, Maryland.
Not only the fur of the muskrat is used, but ch 3
meat also, which finds a local consumption and 13
shipped to Baltimore, Wilmington and other cities.
It is surprising to learn that the financial return ex
ceeds that of the large oyster industry of the same
region The fur of the black muskrat commands the
highest price, and in Dorchester County some of the.
marshes yield fully one-half of this variety.