The managing director of one of the largest business houses operating in

Great Britain and America had been sent to me for treatment by his

medical adviser. We had frequently discussed the psychological

tendencies and characteristics of young men likely to make their way in

the business world. One day, after a chat on this subject in which we

were both interested, he informed me that there was always room in his

firm for the right kind of young man, and intimated that if I knew one

he would be glad if I would send him along. For some weeks prior to this

time I had been asked to interest myself in a young man I had never met.

I mentioned this to my pupil, and he said, “Ask the young man to write

to me and I will fix an appointment.” This was done, and the following

is the young man’s account of the interview: “I called on Mr. —— and he

positively insulted me. When I entered his office he asked me to sit

down while he finished a letter. After about five minutes he jumped

suddenly from his chair, walked towards me, and banging his fist with

great vigour on a table near me, shouted, ‘What the devil do you know

about business?’ Of course,” the young man continued, “I was so unnerved

that I could not even collect my thoughts and I was so flurried that I

could not answer his further questions. He told me he hadn’t any

position to suit me.” “My dear young man,” I remarked, “why did you

allow Mr. —— to insult you? Why did you not remonstrate with him and

assure him that you could not permit him to speak to you in such a way?”

“I was so upset by his sudden attack, and I didn’t expect to be treated

in such a way.” “Just so,” I replied, “you were nonplussed by the

unexpected. But I hope this will be a lesson to you. Mr. —— was only

testing you, and he wants men who are capable of dealing with unexpected

events and situations in his business. If you had made an instant

protest against his manner, you would now be in a position in his firm

because you would have come successfully through his test.”

In that stage of evolution which may be defined as purely animal, the

powers of instinct in accustomed circumstances are quite remarkable, and

it is due to this fact that the animal, in certain conditions of danger,

will do the one right thing to escape. On the other hand, in proof of

the limitations of instinct, we have only to name the noble and

subconsciously controlled ostrich, so wily in its movements, and so

clever in many directions, which when confronted with more than an

ordinary danger, presses its head into the sand and allows its pursuer

to kill it. The powers of instinct are undoubtedly limited in the animal

kingdom, in uncivilised mankind, and in all stages of evolution where

subconscious control is the guiding principle. This fact perhaps

accounts more than anything else for the rise and fall of nations and of

races, for no community as yet has cultivated and developed a national

consciousness in communication with reason. The psychology of nations is

too large a subject to deal with here, but, logically, if the principles

of conscious guidance and control, as I have outlined them in

application to the individual, were further adopted by the rising

nation, it is unthinkable that it should ever suffer from deterioration.

It would act in all crises strictly in accordance with the dictates of

reason, and, guided by a judgment born of tested experiences, it would

be supreme.

V

CONSCIOUS GUIDANCE AND CONTROL

APPREHENSION AND RE-EDUCATION

The average person may exhibit complete nerve control and balance during

accustomed experiences and accomplishment of the different mental and

physical demands made during the ordinary round of life, but, when

suddenly confronted with the unexpected or unknown, he betrays undue

apprehension and loss of control, even when the new experience may not

hold any real terrors for him. The fact is, he becomes panic-stricken by

the effects of the new experience. He is mentally incapable of

considering the “facts of the case,” for his reasoning power is thrown

completely out of use by the unusual, and he is reduced to the level of

the terrified animal or savage. This shows that we have not reached the

stage of evolution where, by employing the reasoning faculties, we

should be able to meet any emergency with control and calmness and do

the right thing at the psychological moment. The really clever barrister

takes advantage of this human weakness, and when cross-examining

proceeds to unbalance the witness by an unexpected attack on a new line.

If the barrister is successful in his choice in this connexion he will

assuredly gain his end with the witness who has not learnt to meet the

unusual with reasoned judgment. He will become unnerved, and the

barrister can hardly fail to succeed in disconcerting him.

Let me point out, however, that the barrister himself can be caught in

the same trap if the witness adopts a mode of procedure which will be

new to his rival. It will be merely a matter of which gets his blow in

first. As an instance, in a case of special interest at which I was

present, the following took place. Incidentally I should mention that

the barrister and witness had a mutual friend by whom they had sent

uncomplimentary messages to one another before the meeting in court.

Naturally both were on guard. The barrister opened by, “Now, Mr. ——,

might I _suggest_——” and made the unfortunate mistake of repeating this

the second time, whereupon the witness calmly remarked, “May I remind

you that you are here to _ask questions, not to suggest_.” The barrister

was quite nonplussed for the moment. This disturbed his usual control

and allowed his feelings to dominate his judgment, and during the

remainder of the case he failed to regain his balance and gave so much

attention to trying to get even with the witness that he missed many

points of the greatest value to his case and the verdict was gained by

his opponents.

The removal of the Hunt Club Cup from its stand at Ascot Race Course is

a trenchant example of the practical application of the knowledge of the

weakness of men and women in the direction indicated. Constables and

employees of the makers of the cup were on duty to ensure its safety,

and moreover, there were always crowds of people round it. To any

ordinary person it would have seemed absolutely impossible to remove

such a large article without being detected. Despite this fact it was

taken from its stand and removed from the Ascot grounds. One of those

who successfully carried out this scheme must have been a highly

developed psychologist, a man who knew only too well the weaknesses of

his fellow-men. Presumably he knew that something unexpected must be

done suddenly in order to attract and divert for a considerable length

of time the constables guarding the Cup, during which time the thief

would be enabled to get some distance away with his prize before its

removal would be noticed. We are told that a group of men caused a

disturbance, that heated words were exchanged and blows followed, no

doubt at a prearranged signal. The thief counted on the psychological

fact that the constables were unlikely to use their reason and so

preserve their self-control by continuing to watch the Cup in the face

of this unexpected occurrence, and during the distraction therefore the

theft was accomplished.

It must be obvious that there is going on a wicked waste of this

wonderful power of reasoning, where reliance is placed on an automatic

subconsciousness which permits the suspension of our common-sense and

upsets our balance, thus narrowing our sphere of usefulness. Therefore

if we are really to progress in the future, subconscious guidance must

be superseded by a reasoned and conscious guidance which can safeguard

us in unusual circumstances and at critical moments. For with real

progress on a sound basis we must expect a great increase in “critical

moments” and “unusual circumstances,” and our development must be on

those lines which will enable us to meet them with calmness and

common-sense, doing the one right thing the latter will suggest. This

failing in reasoned action is as common amongst the educated as amongst

the uneducated, and it is a most serious indictment of our present

educational system that it should be so, and that as it is at present

constituted it does not offer any real solution of the problem to be

applied by the men and women of the future.

Take as an example a very prevalent form of human weakness, namely, our

attitude of mind in regard to simple worries, whether real or imaginary.

It is an interesting psychological fact that there are millions of

highly educated people who have cultivated unwillingly what may be

called the “worry habit.” This worry habit is directly the outcome of

the lack of use of our reasoning faculties, as is conclusively proved to

me in my long professional experience by the fact that people suffering

in this way worry exactly in the same degree when the cause has been

removed as when it was actually a reality. I can hear my readers say,

“But the person is not convinced that the cause has been removed.” In

the experience I refer to they were absolutely convinced, and in my next

book there will be a fitting opportunity, I hope, to explain at

considerable length this mental condition which seems so extraordinary

and unreasonable.

This is one of the most difficult mental defects a teacher can be called

upon to eradicate, because it shows that the person so afflicted is

dominated by a subconsciousness built up of delusion and undue

apprehension without any relation to common-sense or fact. Another

instance of the disregard of reasoned judgment is demonstrated to me

constantly in the mental attitude of my pupils when they first come to

me for lessons. In the endeavour to perform some particular act, however

simple, many pupils exhibit a degree of apprehension out of all

proportion to the point at issue. This makes progress almost impossible

and causes considerable distress. It is not my intention to deal with

any of the complex examples which come to my notice in my daily

experience with intelligent and educated pupils, but merely to set down

some of the very simple examples of difficulties which seriously retard

the progress of well-meaning people while undergoing any training.

Naturally a teacher is forced to point out at the beginning that this or

that is wrong. All too frequently the pupil at once shows distinct signs

of unnecessary apprehension. As this condition is the most retarding

feature in any teaching work, I have for years in my own work devoted

special attention to it and at once make an attempt to prevent it by

endeavouring to put the pupil into “communication with his reason.”

There are numerous and widely differing means to this end in the early

stages of re-education to the description of which a whole book might

easily be devoted, but it is sufficient here to mention it in a general

way. I begin by pointing out that we expect these different things to be

wrong, that their being so is not a case for worry or apprehension,

seeing that they assuredly can be corrected. I draw attention to the

obvious fact that a pupil comes to a teacher because there is something

wrong. That must be the primary idea, otherwise the teacher’s help is

superfluous. Then, why worry when the defects or failings are discovered

and made known to one? Surely it is something that should evoke pleasure

rather than worry. In other words, if we have imperfections and defects,

we seek help because we are conscious of their existence, because we

wish to know definitely what they are, so that we may have an

opportunity to eradicate them. Common-sense dictates that we should find

a teacher who can detect these defects and diagnose their cause, and

when this is done the pupil has much to ease his mind, much to bring him

real satisfaction when the teacher can assure him of their eradication,

and a changed mental attitude should immediately follow. But many people

are so out of communication with their reason that it needs days of

re-education to establish a satisfactory working basis.

Now, to bring about the correct performance of any act by the principles

of my system of teaching it is not necessary at the beginning to call

upon the pupil for any specific physical efforts. This very fact should

remove immediately any cause for worry or apprehension, but in many

cases it does not. When this is the case the teacher must explain that

the reason that the pupil is unable to perform the act correctly is that

he believes that there is something for him to do physically, when as a

matter of fact the very opposite is necessary. He _is doing_ what is

wrong. Obviously he should begin then by ceasing to do what is wrong,

not by endeavouring blindly to do what is right. The process is this:

Apprehensively he tries to do what he thinks his teacher desires him to

do. The old wrong subconscious orders follow in their usual channels,

and before he realises the fact he is performing the act in the old

wrong manner. Therefore he must learn to inhibit these incorrect

subconscious orders, which result in undue physical tension and the

imperfect use of his muscles. But instead of employing inhibition he

adds to his difficulties by renewing his efforts on the old basis to put

right what he is told is wrong, and he actually employs increased force

in accordance with his own estimate of the amount needed to perform the

act. And why so? Chiefly because the ordinary human being has lost the

habit of inhibition, and because he is guided here by his sense of

feeling, in this connexion the most unreliable guide.

When it is explained to such a pupil that inhibition is the first step

in his re-education, that his apprehensive fear that he may be doing

wrong and his intense desire to do right are the secrets of his failure,

he will invariably endeavour to prevent himself from doing anything, by

exerting force usually in the opposite direction. And so he creates a

second harmful force which, in conjunction with the first, serves only

to increase the undue physical tension and to intensify the already

exaggerated apprehensive condition. The fundamental principle in the

re-education of such a subject is the prevention of this undue and

unnecessary apprehension. He must not attempt to remedy any defect by

“doing something” physically in accordance with his sensory

appreciation, which is the outcome of his erroneous preconceived ideas

and incorrect psycho-physical experience. His reasoning power is

dominated by his sense of feeling where his psycho-physical self is

concerned, so that he cannot even attempt to carry out any physical act

excepting the one he _feels_ to be right, despite the fact that by his

reasoning faculties and practical proof, he knows that his sense of

feeling is misleading and is the outcome of erroneous preconceived

ideas. We must therefore make him understand that so very frequently in

re-education the correct way to perform an act _feels_ the impossible

way. There is only one way out of the difficulty. He must recognise that

guidance by his old sensory appreciation (feeling) is dangerously faulty

and he must be taught to regain his lost power of inhibition and to

develop conscious guidance. The teacher must with his hands move the

pupil’s body for him in the particular act required, thereby giving him

the correct kinæsthetic experience of the performance of the act.

To the uninitiated this may seem a simple matter, but if my reader will

put it to the test, it will not be necessary for me to convince him that

it is quite otherwise in the majority of cases. This is not surprising

when it is realised that as soon as the teacher places his hands on the

pupil and attempts to move him, he is at once in contact with his faulty

and deceptive sense of feeling, the dominating sense in the

subconsciously controlled person under such circumstances. My experience

has proved that the pupil at first will act in precisely the same way if

I attempt to perform the act for him as if I had asked him to do it

without my assistance. He is just as apprehensive as a result of one

request as of the other, and in this state of apprehensiveness he is,

mentally and physically, impossible to deal with from the standpoint of

re-education. He conjures up in his mind all kinds of fears that he will

do this or that incorrectly. If you mention that he did a certain thing

when you placed your hands on him, he will make an endeavour physically

to prevent himself the next time. This, of course, is one of the worst

errors a pupil can make. It is usually attended by far more tension and

apprehension than when he performed the act which you pointed out was

incorrect. The re-education work really begins here and it takes weeks,

nay, sometimes months to bring the pupil to a stage in his co-ordination

when he will be really once more in communication with his reason. With

these facts before us I feel that my reader will advocate with me the

necessity of adopting principles which will create new and correct

habits, and eradicate needless apprehension and fear from the souls of

human beings. To this end we must break the chains which have so long

held them to that directive mental plane which belongs to the early

stages of his evolution. The adoption of conscious guidance and control

(man’s supreme inheritance) must follow, and the outcome will be a race

of men and women who will outstrip their ancestors in every known

sphere, and enter new spheres as yet undreamt of by the great majority

of the civilised peoples of our time. The world will then make in one

century greater progress in evolution towards a real civilisation than

it has made in the past three.

VI

INDIVIDUAL ERRORS AND DELUSIONS

Frequent reference has already been made to individual delusions,

errors, and misconceptions of a more or less harmful nature associated

with our mental and physical efforts in the different rounds of daily

life. I wish now to draw special attention to those which may be said to

have a more strictly personal bearing than those referred to heretofore,

and which have not been fully recognised despite the fact that they are

forerunners of unusually harmful and persistent bad habits. The

individual misconceptions, errors, and delusions to which I refer are

indicated in the cases which follow. They are the direct result of most

laudable attempts to accomplish something considered necessary to the

welfare of life, something which seemed essential to success in life,

something which was felt to be a worthy achievement in life. Among these

I would instance:

The attempt to bring about some change considered necessary in the shape

or use of a part or parts of the physical organism, and to conceal or

change some supposed or real psycho-physical peculiarity, weakness, or

defect.

The clinging to erroneous reasoning, in the face of undoubted evidence

which revealed the errors in such reasoning, regarding the mode of

procedure adopted in the attempt to prevent or “cure” attacks of illness

and painful or disagreeable experiences.

The decision that a certain condition is present, and the definite

conclusion as to its degree of harmfulness or the extent of its general

effect upon the organism, or its influence upon the daily conduct of

life.

The attempt to remedy what the subject considers a lack of

concentration.

The attempt to gain benefit by relaxation in consequence of the

recognition of undue tension of the muscular mechanisms, not only in

physical acts, but also during the attempt to rest by sitting in a

chair, lying on a bed or couch, etc.

The detection by the subject of symptoms which are always considered

serious and call for immediate eradication and future prevention. The

original conception in this connexion is influenced by warped and

incorrect subconscious experiences, and consequently a narrow and

perverted view is taken of the conditions present.

The “one-brain-track” method is in operation and the _modus operandi_

adopted by the subject is therefore deduced from false premises.

Symptoms are considered causes and furthermore the chief aim of the

subject in practical procedure is the attainment of the “end” desired,

not the due and proper considered analysis of the “means whereby” which

will secure that “end.”

Perusal of the following history of cases will serve to draw attention

to the little-recognised but all-important fact that mankind’s attempts

at self-help on a subconscious basis in the spheres indicated cause him

to live in a self-created danger zone. Moreover, the area of this zone

is being gradually but surely extended by each and every new experience

in those psycho-physical activities where attempts are being made in

what may be termed preventive and curative spheres.

The foregoing applies to a very wide range of bad habits over the whole

organism, such as:

(1) The cultivation of harmful habits in consequence of misdirected

energy and mental delusions which cause disorders and defects of the

eyes, ears, nose and throat, etc.

(2) The development of the dangerous habit of not hearing any

instructions, opinions, advice or argument which if put into practical

procedures would be contrary to the psycho-physical subconscious habit

associated with some defect, peculiarity or other abnormal condition.

(3) The development of overcompensation in some direction. “Running an

idea to death,” as we say.

(4) The harmful domination by a “fixed idea,” on account of which the

subject struggles to gain an “end” without adequate and sound

consideration of the correct “means whereby,” or of possible

consequences to him in the cultivation of defects during this process.

CASE I

An attempt to hide a thin neck.

The subject’s wife intimated that the thinness of his neck made him look

many years older than his real age. This occupied his mind for some time

and he was increasingly worried by his wife’s statement. He felt that he

must find a practical remedy, but in the plan which he conceived he only

thought of the “end” he had in view which was to hide what he believed

to be an unsightly and unsatisfactory part of his anatomy. He conceived

the idea of wearing as high a collar as possible and, not being

satisfied with the result, he took a second and very harmful step in the

hiding plan. This was a deliberately cultivated habit of shortening his

neck until the under part of the jaw rested on the top of the collar,

while the head was pulled back until the lower part of the back of the

head pressed on the back of the collar. From his point of view a

satisfactory remedy had been found and the denounced neck was at last

concealed from view.

In the standing, sitting, and walking positions these uses, or rather

misuses, of the muscles of the neck soon grew into a very firmly

established habit which became associated with a general tendency

towards the shortening of the neck and spine, whilst the muscular

co-ordinations of the whole organism were gradually and harmfully

interfered with.

Some of my impressions at the first interview were:

(1) The exaggerated rolling movement of his body when walking.

(2) The pressure of the under part of the jaw and the lower part of

the back of the head or upper part of the neck on the collar.

(3) The marked lumbar curve of the spine with the usual shortening of

stature and protruding abdominal wall. Harmful flaccidity of the

abdominal muscles and general stagnation of the abdominal viscera.

(4) The fallen arches of the feet—one foot caused very considerable

pain at times when standing or walking.

(5) That colour of the skin and condition of the eyes which indicates

serious internal disorder.

(6) The upper part of the front of the chest was held unusually high

(pouter-pigeon style). The thorax was harmfully rigid.

(7) The apprehensive mental condition in his own personal affairs and

also in his contact with the practical affairs of life.

His medical advisers were unanimous in declaring that he was suffering

from nerve and digestive disorders and he failed to make any improvement

during many years of treatment. In his own words he “had year by year

gone from bad to worse” until he was often too nervous to cross a street

with ordinary traffic, and his fears in this connexion were increased by

frequent attacks of giddiness when he almost lost his sense of

equilibrium. He complained of painful distention after meals and

suffered much from insomnia.

CASE II

An attempt to conceal his height when interviewing actor-managers of

shorter stature.

It is well known in professional circles that there is a prevailing idea

in the mind of the actor-manager that he should be taller than the

actors who support him. The actor to whom I refer in this instance

discovered that he had missed several lucrative engagements by being

taller than the actor-manager with whom he had arranged personal

interviews. Incidentally I may mention that he possessed a fine physique

and enjoyed at this time good health. It is obvious that an actor must

endeavour to prevent the loss of good engagements in his profession, and

as his height was the only stumbling-block to his desires and

necessities he considered his problem from this point of view only.

Never for a moment did it occur to him that any mental or physical harm

could result. With this “_one idea_” view he sought his remedy and soon

decided that he must train himself to use his mechanisms in such a way

that he could shorten his stature during interviews when seeking

professional engagements. He succeeded in this direction, but

unfortunately subconscious guidance and control takes no heed of the

“means whereby” to be employed. His idea was merely to make an effort to

gain the “end” he desired, and he was never really conscious of the

actual means he ultimately employed. He merely conceived the idea of

standing in a way which made him appear as short or even shorter than

the person he was interviewing. Of the real mechanical happenings he was

quite ignorant, and he had never thought it necessary to improve his

knowledge in these all-important processes. This man came to me for help

some four or five years after beginning to adopt this way of standing

during the interviews. He had then been suffering for a considerable

time from loss of voice, general exhaustion, and nerve and digestive

disorders. On one occasion he experienced a mental and physical crisis

which his medical advisers called “a nervous breakdown.”

Some of my impressions at the first and subsequent interviews were:

(1) The undue and harmful lumbar curve of the spine with the

corresponding intra-abdominal pressure.

(2) The harmful and undue depression of the larynx and its

accessories.

(3) The exaggerated “gasping” in breathing in vocal and dramatic

efforts.

(4) The undue rigidity of the thorax and a minimum intra-thoracic

capacity.

(5) The lack of mental control in any attempts in psycho-physical

re-education and co-ordination.

(6) A pessimistic mental outlook with recurring fits of depression.

(7) In the standing and walking positions the hips were held too far

forward, the knee joints were pressed too far back and the angle of

the torso from the hips was harmfully inclined backwards, with a

general tendency, as we say, to narrow the back.

CASE III

A fixed idea regarding a definite mode of procedure adopted after

experiencing a week’s illness in bed.

This lady developed certain symptoms for the first time. She then

decided upon a practical common-sense method of dealing with them which

would undoubtedly have been the correct one in the long run. The day

following her first efforts in this direction her feeling-tones

registered that she was much worse, in fact that she was very ill indeed

and that the latest symptoms were worse than those she had hoped to

remove and ultimately prevent. She decided that her attempted remedy had

actually been the cause of additional trouble without in the least

relieving the original symptoms. The remedy referred to was one of

activity, mental and physical. She therefore came to the conclusion that

this new phase of her illness had been actually brought about by the

attempt she had made to fight her symptoms by simple but active methods.

This conclusion became with her an _idée fixe_.

In discussing the matter the foregoing facts were vouchsafed to me. She

said that she had given due consideration to them and had concluded in

consequence of her experiences that the real remedy must be to go to bed

and to allow the disorder to take its own course. This unfortunate

experience caused her to continue to hold the idea that as soon as she

felt any of the symptoms which preceded the first attack she should at

once go to bed, to “prevent,” as she put it, “the possibility of

increasing the severity of the attack.” She was absolutely convinced

that she must not make any effort, mental or physical, in the way of

removing or resisting the disorder as she had done on the first occasion

of the attack. She decided upon the easy way of inactivity and

non-resistance. Once the conscience seized upon an excuse for what the

mental and physical “make-up” really craved she was doomed, and her

conclusions were really influenced by this subconscious tendency. It is

not surprising that after pursuing such a mistaken course for six months

the attacks became more frequent and severe despite medical help, and

the periods during which she was confined to her bed, and which she

considered necessary to her recovery, became longer and longer. But the

worst feature in her case was her increasing inability to make a real

effort in the direction of health. She was actually developing her

tendency to allow things to take their course, she was cultivating the

serious habit of being guided and controlled by what she “felt” rather

than by her reason. Her relatives at last came to the conclusion that

her psycho-physical condition was serious and I was asked to express an

opinion from this point of view.

At the outset one suspected some incorrect and harmful mental outlook

and after a few lessons succeeded in securing the pupil’s admission of

the fact. A review of this mental conception may prove interesting and

perhaps of great value to my readers, as it shows that as long as it

existed her chances of permanently eradicating these symptoms were nil.

The whole procedure constituted a prostitution of those physical,

mental, and spiritual forces which are inseparable from and absolutely

essential to that condition of the human organism which we call good

health. This lady was suffering from the inadequate functioning of the

vital organs associated with and responsible for good digestion and

adequate elimination. This was proved conclusively by the results which

accrued from a method of psycho-physical treatment which restored the

adequate functioning after the eradication of the mental conception

referred to above.

The position then was as follows:

Certain symptoms were recognised which were the result of the

stagnation of organs which needed increased activity in functioning.

As a matter of fact they happened to be such as would have yielded

more or less to a steady walk of a mile or so daily. The effect,

therefore, of lying in bed for days was only a palliative measure. But

in consequence of her first impressions through her debauched sense of

feeling when she adopted active measures as a remedy, she made a

definite decision against their adoption in the future; in fact, she

absolutely objected to a second trial of the active method. In the

intervals of freedom from these attacks the one idea was rigidly held

in mind that on the recognition of the slightest symptom she must go

to bed and remain there. She even considered any other mode of

procedure harmful. These ideas became an obsession. She became less

and less in communication with her reason and the fact that she

admitted that the attacks became more frequent and the symptoms more

serious did not cause her to relinquish her bed treatment in favour of

some other. The fact is that her debauched emotions and feeling-tones

had taken control instead of remaining secondary factors to reason.

It is possible to give hundreds of such cases, and attention is

specially drawn to the fact that the _one idea_ principle of meeting

life’s difficulties is the real cause of these serious results. If Case

I, for instance, had held in his mind the “means whereby” for the

concealment of his neck and had watched carefully the effect of his

attempts in this particular upon his whole organism, he would assuredly

have come to the conclusion that the thin neck, natural in his case, was

to be preferred to the positive evils he was unconsciously cultivating.

Neither he nor his wife detected any of the numerous defects as they

developed during the neck-concealing process. On the other hand, they

were both aware that he was gradually failing in health and had reached

a stage which his medical advisers considered serious. Of course, never

for a moment was the influence of the process of shortening the neck

connected with his increasing troubles and disorders. His mental

training had been solely on the lines of working for an “end” (“one

brain-track method”) instead of holding in his mind the “means whereby.”

He had never doubted for a moment the fallibility of the sensory

appreciation of his organism. He firmly believed that immediately he

decided to effect a change in his physical self he could command it by

the employment of his subconscious guiding principles. He was unaware

that these instinctive factors were delusive and unreliable as his

directive agents.

If the reader’s interest can be aroused in this connexion, all-important

benefits must accrue in even the simplest spheres of daily life.

Furthermore, the more difficult problems of living will be sensibly

considered without fear of the disastrous results which are now so

common.

VII

NOTES AND INSTANCES

Since this book was published in England, I have received a steady flow

of letters from interested readers, lay and professional, which have

been of great value to me. Among this correspondence, three pertinent

questions occur again and again, and I am forced to infer (1) that these

points are of peculiar interest to my readers and (2) that no

satisfactory explanation of them is suggested by the application of the

broad principles I have laid down. I feel, therefore, that in this, the

American edition of my work, it may be well to treat these questions and

various other matters which arise out of them for the benefit of future

readers.

The three main questions—two of which occur in about eighty per cent. of

letters I have received—are these:

(1) What is the correct standing position, and the position of

mechanical advantage?

(2) How is the reader to apply the principles of conscious control as

here laid down, to specific bad habits such as overindulgence, whether

in tobacco, alcohol, particular foods, etc., or to the cure of such

diseases as asthma, tuberculosis, constipation, spinal curvature,

appendicitis?

(3) What are the outward signs of improvement to be noted during

treatment, and are there scientific reasons for these results? In this

connection I have several times been asked to give particulars of some

of my more striking and representative cases.

I will take these three questions _seriatim_, and devote as much space

as possible to each of them.

I. “_What is the correct standing position, and the position of

mechanical advantage?_”

I think the average man is very apt to forget that he cannot assume a

position of stable equilibrium and a position which ensures a perfect

mobility, unless his feet are so placed as to furnish at once a stable

pose and a ready pivot and fulcrum. The most perfect base is obtained by

setting the feet at an angle of about forty-five degrees to one another.

In all other erect positions (the defects becoming exaggerated as this

angle is decreased), it will be found that there is a tendency to hollow

and shorten the back and to protrude the stomach, and if any effort is

made to avoid these serious faults in posture, such effort will only

result—unless the feet are moved to the correct position—in a stiffened,

uneasy, and unstable attitude. It is not possible, however, to set out

in written language the correct pose of the feet and legs in the ideal

standing position, and I therefore subjoin four photographs which have

been specially taken for this purpose (first published on 22nd October,

1910), and which show quite clearly not only the correct position of the

feet, the fundamental problem, but also how the whole body of the person

is thereby thrown into gear.

But when this ideal position is realised, the task of obtaining it by

each individual has still to be undertaken. With reference to this task,

I cannot do better than quote my pamphlet of July, 1908, entitled _Why

“Deep Breathing” and Physical Culture Exercises Do More Harm than Good_,

from which it will be clearly seen that the ideal position varies

slightly according to the idiosyncrasies of the person concerned. The

passage in question is as follows:

“In the first place, to allow a pupil to assume, of himself, a certain

standing position, means that his own perceptions and sensations are

given the sole onus of bringing about the co-ordination upon which such

standing position depends, an onus which they are quite unable to bear.

“The perceptions and sensations of all who need respiratory and physical

re-education are absolutely unreliable. It is the teacher who should

have the responsibility of certain detailed orders, the literal carrying

out of which will ensure for the pupil _what is then the correct

standing position for him_. I emphasise this last, because no one

stereotyped position can be correct for each and every pupil. When the

person so employs the different parts of his body that one can speak of

his ‘harmful position in standing or walking,’ it is only by causing the

physical machinery gradually to resume correct and harmonious working,

thus changing the position from time to time, that serious harm can be

averted and satisfactory results secured. I may point out, moreover,

that in trying to assume the ‘proper standing position’ at the outset,

the pupil unavoidably puts severe strain upon the throat, thereby paving

the way for throat, ear, and eye disorders.”

Take the case, for example, of a boy who stoops very much, and combines

a sinking above and below the clavicles with abnormal protrusion of the

shoulder-blades. If he is told to “stand up straight” he will at once

make undue physical effort to carry out the order thus crudely given,

with the result that the shoulders will be thrown backward and upward,

the shoulder-blades still further protruded, and the front and upper

parts of the chest unduly elevated and expanded. There will also be a

narrowing, a sinking, and a flabbiness of the lower dorsal and posterior

thoracic region, with corresponding fixed protrusion and rigidity of the

front chest wall, undue arching of the lumbar spine, shortening of the

body and harmful stiffening of the arms and neck, instead of a fulness,

broadness, and firmness of the back, with free mobility of the chest

walls, resulting in normal curve of the lumbar region and comparative

lengthening of the spine. With the arms hanging vertically, the relative

position of that part of the thorax where the lungs are situated will be

seen to be in front of the arms, instead of being, as it should be,

behind them. In such a position, the boy feels helpless and tires

rapidly, owing to the imperfect co-ordination, and any attempt to

accustom him to this erect posture will ultimately result in

deterioration rather than improvement.

Now the narrowing and arching of the back already referred to is exactly

opposite to what is required by nature, and to that which is obtained in

re-education, co-ordination, and re-adjustment, viz., _widening of the

back and a more normal and extended position of the spine_. Moreover, if

these conditions of the back be first secured, the neck and arms will no

longer be stiffened, and the other faults will be eradicated.

In order to obviate the evils enunciated in the last two postulates the

teacher must himself place the pupil in a position of mechanical

advantage,[20] from which the pupil, by the mere mental rehearsal of

orders which the teacher will dictate, can _ensure the posture

specifically correct for himself_, although he is not, as yet, conscious

of what that posture is.

I further elaborated the same point in _Why We Breathe Incorrectly_

(November, 1909), and from this pamphlet I will now quote another

passage which bears directly on some important points involved, viz.:

“There can be no such thing as a ‘correct standing position’ for each

and every person. The question is not one of correct position, but of

correct co-ordination (i.e., of the muscular mechanisms concerned).

Moreover, any one who has acquired the power of co-ordinating

correctly, can re-adjust the parts of his body to meet the

requirements of almost any position, while always commanding adequate

and correct movements of the respiratory apparatus and perfect vocal

control—a fact which I demonstrate daily to my pupils. Continual

re-adjustment of the parts of the body without undue physical tension

is most beneficial, as is proved by the high standard of health and

long life of acrobats. It is a significant fact that the very reverse

is the case with athletes, showing that undue muscular tension does

not conduce to health and longevity.”

[Illustration:

A.A. THE FEET ARE HERE PLACED IN THE IDEAL POSITION FOR OBTAINING

PERFECT EQUILIBRIUM OF THE HUMAN MACHINE, AND FOR PERMITTING THE

MAXIMUM ACTIVITY OF THE FUNCTIONING OF THE WHOLE ORGANISM. NOTE.—IT

IS EVIDENT THAT EITHER THE RIGHT OR LEFT FOOT MAY BE IN ADVANCE

WITHOUT AFFECTING THE CORRECTNESS OF THE POSE.

]

[Illustration:

B.B. THE FEET ARE HERE PLACED IN A POSITION WHICH COMPELS AN IMPERFECT

ADJUSTMENT OF THE WHOLE ORGANISM IN ORDER TO SECURE EVEN AN

IMPERFECT EQUILIBRIUM. THIS POSITION RESULTS IN THE MINIMUM ACTIVITY

OF THE VITAL FUNCTIONING.

]

From what I have now said, it will be quite evident that the primary

principle involved in attaining a correct standing position is the

placing of the feet in that position which will ensure their greatest

effect as base, pivot, and fulcrum, and thereby throw the limbs and

trunk into that pose in which they may be correctly influenced and

_aided_ by the force of gravity. The weight of the body, it should be

noted (see diagram AA), rests chiefly upon the rear foot, and the hips

should be allowed to go back as far as is possible without altering the

balance effected by the position of the feet, and without deliberately

throwing the body forward. This movement starts at the ankle, and

affects particularly the joints of the ankles and the hips. When

inclining the body forward, there must be no bending of the spine or

neck; from the hips upwards the relative positions of all parts of the

torso must remain unchanged. When the position is assumed, it is further

necessary for each person to bring about the proper lengthening of the

spine and the adequate widening of the back. The latter needs due

psycho-physical training such as is referred to in the two extracts

quoted above.

This standing position as now explained is physiologically correct as a

primary factor in the act of walking. The weight is thrown largely upon

the rear foot, and thus enables the other knee to be bent and the

forward foot to be lifted; at the same time the ankle of the rear foot

should be bent so that the whole body is inclined slightly forward, thus

allowing the propelling force of gravitation to be brought into play.

The whole physiology of walking is, indeed, perfectly simple when once

these fundamental principles are understood. It is really resolved into

the primary movements of allowing the body to incline forward from the

ankle on which the weight is supported and then preventing oneself from

falling by allowing the weight to be taken in turn by the foot which has

been advanced. This method, simple as it may appear, is not, however,

the one usually adopted. The mechanical disadvantage displayed in what

is known as a “rolling gait,” for instance, a gait which is common

enough, is absolutely impossible when the instructions given are

carefully followed. And the effect upon the whole mechanical mechanism

of the person concerned is shown by the fact that when the co-ordinating

principles brought about by this method are established, there is a

constant tendency for the torso to lengthen, whereas the usual

tendency—due to faulty standing position and the incorrect

co-ordinations which follow—is for the torso to shorten.

Nearly every one I examine or observe in the act of walking, employs

unnecessary physical tension in the process in such a way that there is

a tendency to shorten the spine and legs, by pressing—if I may so put it

familiarly—down through the floor instead of, as it were, lightening

that pressure by lengthening the body and throwing the weight forward

and moving lightly and freely. In consequence of the “shortening” and

“pressing down” just referred to, the civilised peoples are becoming

more and more flat-footed. The properly co-ordinated person employs a

due amount of tension in such a way that the tendency of the spine and

legs is to lengthen, and the equilibrium is such that the undue pressure

through the floor is absent and there is a lightness and freedom in the

movements of such a person that is most noticeable. The person who is

flat-footed has only to establish these conditions to restore the

natural arch of the flatfoot.

We can find, perhaps, no better instance of the necessity for the

application of the principles of conscious control to these fundamental

and essential propositions of standing, walking, and running, than in

the photographs taken of Dorando as he appeared when he was making his

last terrible efforts to reach the tape at the conclusion of the

Marathon race in London in 1908. One sees that he was desperately

wearied, and that whatever conscious control of his muscular mechanisms

he may ever have obtained, he was at this moment completely under the

domination of subconscious (or subjective) control, that he was out of

“communication with his reason.” His body, as we see him in these

photographs, is thrown back from the hips, his arms are outstretched

behind him, and his legs are bent forward at the knee. As a consequence,

he is compelled to use almost all his physical force in order to save

himself from falling backwards. He is struggling against a tremendous

gravitational pull which is dragging him away from his goal. If Dorando,

magnificent athlete as he undoubtedly is, had been trained in the

principles of conscious control, such an attitude would have been

impossible for him, tired and exhausted even as he was. For if he had

not been subconsciously controlled, he would have employed his

common-sense at this moment and would have acted according to the

guidance of its mandate. It is at such critical moments that we have

urgent need for the control of reason, for it is then that we suffer

most from the loss of the animal equivalent—instinct.

Dorando’s muscles may have been taxed to their utmost capacity, but if

he had been consciously controlled he would have leaned forward, not

back, and while he had the strength necessary (but a very small part of

the strength he was actually expending) to prevent himself from falling

on his face, that gravitational force would have dragged him on instead

of dragging him back from the object of his achievement, as was actually

the case. He would, in short, have been able to make the _best_ instead

of the _worst_ use of his powers.

Faults such as we see exaggerated in this instance are to be found in

the carriage of many people to-day, and the fact is one of great

importance to medical men. Patients are constantly advised to take

walking exercise, although in many cases that exercise undoubtedly does

more harm than good. In my opinion it is very essential that all doctors

should devote more attention to this subject than they are devoting at

the present time, in order that they may be in a position to advise

which of their patients will be benefited by taking walking exercise,

and which of them by so doing will aggravate the troubles from which

they are suffering. For it should be evident, I think, that the good

effects of fresh air and gentle exercise will be practically nullified,

if the patient can only obtain them by exaggerating and perpetuating the

defects which have led him to the prescription.

These same rules are equally applicable in principle to the acts of

sitting and of rising from a sitting position. Very few people have the

right mental conception of the “means whereby” of these acts or of the

correct use of the parts which should be employed in their performance,

and this despite the fact that we are performing these acts continually,

and with such apparent ease from our own point of view. If you ask any

of your friends to sit down you will notice, if you observe their

actions closely, that in nearly all cases there is undue increase of

muscular tension in the body and lower limbs; in many cases the arms are

actually employed. As a rule, however, the most striking action is the

alteration in the position of the head which is thrown back, whilst the

neck is stiffened and shortened. Now I will describe the correct method,

but it must be borne in mind that it is useless to give what I here call

“orders” to the muscular mechanism, until the original habit and the

principle of mental conception connected with this action have been

eradicated. If, for instance, before giving any of the “orders” which

follow, the experimenter has already fixed in his mind that he is to go

through the performance of sitting down, _as that performance is known

to him_, this suggestion will at once call into play all the old vicious

co-ordinations, and the new orders will never influence the mechanisms

to which they are directed, because those mechanisms will already be

imperfectly employed, and will be held in their old routine by the force

of the familiar suggestion. Firstly, then, rid the mind of the idea of

sitting down, and consider the exercise and each order independently of

the final consequence they entail. In other words, study the “means,”

not the “end.” Secondly, stand in the position already described as the

correct standing position, with the back of the legs almost touching the

seat of the chair. Thirdly, order the neck to relax, and at the same

time order the head _forward_ and up. (Note that to “order” the muscles

of the neck to relax does not mean “allow the head to fall forward on

the chest.” The order suggested is merely a mental preventive to the

erroneous preconceived idea.) Fourthly, keep clearly in the mind the

general idea of the lengthening of the body which is a direct

consequence of the third series of orders. And fifthly, order

simultaneously the hips to move backwards and the knees to bend, the

knees and hip-joints acting as hinges. During this act a mental order

must be given to widen the back. When this order is fulfilled, the

experimenter will find himself sitting in the chair. But he is not yet

upright, for the body will be inclined forward, unless he frustrates the

whole performance at this point by giving his old orders to come to an

upright position. Sixthly, then, and this is of great importance, pause

for an instant in the position in which you will fall into the chair if

the earlier instructions have been correctly followed, and then after

ordering the neck to relax and the head _forward_ and up, the spine to

lengthen and the back to widen, come back into the chair and to an

upright position by using the hips as a hinge, and without shortening

the back, stiffening the neck, or throwing up the head.

The act of rising is merely a reversal of the foregoing. Draw the feet

back so that one is slightly under the seat of the chair, allow the body

to move forward from the hips, always keeping in mind the freedom of the

neck, and the idea of lengthening the spine. Let the whole body come

forward until the centre of gravity falls over the feet, that is to say,

until the poise is such that if the chair were removed at this point,

you would be left balanced in the position of a person performing the

“frog dance,” then by the exercise of the muscles of the legs and back,

straighten the legs at the hips, knees, and ankles, until the erect

position is perfectly attained.

If you care to experiment on a friend in this act of rising, you will

observe that in the movement as performed by an imperfectly co-ordinated

person, the same bad movements occur, tending to stiffen the neck, to

arch the spine unduly, to shorten the body, and to protrude the

abdominal wall.

This completes the co-ordinating idea with regard to standing, walking,

and sitting, and the exercises indicated in the explanations I have made

will be found exceedingly helpful as a first step towards a proper and

healthful use of the muscular mechanisms in these simple acts of

everyday life.

II. “_How are the principles of Conscious Control to be applied to

the cure of specific bad habits, or to the cure of specific

diseases?_”

The following letter is typical of many:

“Dear Sir,—I have read your book, _Man’s Supreme Inheritance_, with

much interest, and I hope you will forgive me if I venture to point

out a difficulty which presents itself to my mind, and probably to the

mind of the ordinary reader.

“It is this: In what way is it proposed to _apply_ the principle of

‘conscious control’ in a given case—say in the overcoming of a habit,

such as smoking, to take a common example—or in the case of functional

disorders, as constipation? It seems to me that the great attraction

to most people of the popular books on so-called ‘New Thought’ is that

they lay down clear and precise rules which can be put into practice,

so that the reader knows what he must do to be saved. But I confess I

am unable to gather how you would recommend setting about the

attainment of your principles. It would be a great help to me, and no

doubt to others, if this could be explained, and probably in the

larger work which you contemplate this will be more fully done.

“In the meantime, however, if it is not asking too much, I should be

extremely grateful to you if you could very kindly indicate the method

you propose by which the principles could be applied in such cases as

I have suggested....”

Now, I may be doing the writer of this letter an injustice, but I am

inclined to class him among the many enquirers who seem confidently to

anticipate a miracle. In my introduction I have said, “In this brochure

will be found no mention of royal roads, panaceas, or grand specifics,”

yet I feel sure that some of my readers have, nevertheless, imagined

that by some marvellous means they may be cured by taking thought,

despite all that I have written with regard to that procedure. We see in

one paragraph of the letter quoted above a nice example of the desire to

lean towards any mechanical method. “The great attraction ... of the

popular books on so-called ‘New Thought,’” we read, “is that they lay

down clear and precise rules which can be put into practice.” It is true

that I have not laid down any “clear and precise rules” which may cover

every conceivable form of physical and mental trouble, as do the

exponents of “New Thought” and “faith-healing,” and I think that my

reason should be plain enough, for in my experience I have never found

two cases exactly alike, and the detailed instructions which I might lay

down for A might be extremely detrimental to B or C.

Nevertheless, since I see that some further explanation is needed, I

will adumbrate the general principles which embrace the rule of

application, however diverse the method may be in practice.

In the first place, all specific bad habits such as overindulgence in

food, drink, tobacco, etc., evidence a lack of “control” in a certain

direction, and the greater number of specific disorders such as asthma,

tuberculosis, cancer, nervous complaints, etc., indicate interference

with the normal conditions of the body, lack of control, and imperfect

working of the human mechanisms, with displacement of the different

parts of that mechanism, loss of vitality and its inevitable

concomitant, lower activity of functioning in all the vital organs. When

the subject has arrived at this condition, harmful habits become

established and the standard of resistance to disease is seriously

lowered.

To regain normal health and power in such cases, what I have called

“re-education” is absolutely imperative. This treatment begins, in

practically all cases, by instructions in the primary factors connected

with the eradication of erroneous preconceived ideas connected with bad

habits, and the simplest correct mental and physical co-ordination. The

displaced parts of the body must be restored to their proper positions

by re-education in a correct and controlled use of the muscular

mechanisms. In this process the blood is purified, the circulation is

gradually improved, and all the injurious accumulations are removed by

the internal massage which is part and parcel of the increased vital

activity from such re-education.

Thus the first stage in the eradication of bad habits and disorders is

reached when improved conditions of health are established. Nor must it

be forgotten that in this process of re-education a great object lesson

is given to the controlling mind. In the very breaking up of maleficent

co-ordinations or vicious circles which have become established, a new

impulse is given to certain intellectual functions which have been

thrown out of play. The reflex action which is setting up morbid

conditions can only be controlled and altered by a deliberate

realisation of the guiding process which is to be substituted, and these

new impulses to the conscious mind have, analogically, very much the

same effect as is produced on the body by the internal massage referred

to above. The old accumulations of subconscious thought are dispersed,

and room is made for new conceptions and realisations.

When the first stage is passed, it is just as easy at almost any time of

life to establish “good” habits (“good” that is, by the test of all our

experience and knowledge) as “bad” ones. Bad habits mean, in ninety-nine

per cent. of cases, that the person concerned has, often through

ignorance, pandered to and wilfully indulged certain sensations,

probably with little or no thought as to what evil results may accrue

from his concessions to the dominance of small pleasures. This careless

relaxation of reason, in the first instance, makes it doubly difficult

to assert command when the indulgence has become a habit. Sensation has

usurped the throne so feebly defended by reason, and sense, once it has

obtained power, is the most pitiless of autocrats. If we are to maintain

the succession that is our supreme inheritance, we must first break the

power of the usurper, and then re-establish our sovereign, no longer

dull and indifferent to the welfare of his kingdom, but active,

vigilant, and open-eyed to the evils which result from his old policy of

_laissez-faire_.

So many people, I find, seem to regard the principles of conscious

control as a kind of magic which may be worked by some suitable

incantation. They appear to think that we may obtain conscious control

of, say, the secretive glands, that we may be able to give an order to

secrete more or less bile or gastric juice by a command of the objective

mind. If such a thing were possible, and if I could endow any person

with such power to-morrow, I should know perfectly well that I should,

by so doing, be signing that person’s death warrant; I might equally

well give him a dose of poison. To refer to my metaphor of the sovereign

ruler, you might as well expect a king to order and superintend the

detail of his subjects’ private life as expect the conscious mind

directly to order and superintend every function of the body. If the

king will ordain good and just laws, his policy will prosper; the detail

of organisation must be left to inferior officers. In the care of the

body the organisation is there, aptly and perfectly adjusted to its

functions, and when the ruling power of conscious control has ordained

the sane laws which shall establish peace and prosperity within the

assembly, the organisation already in force will work in harmony to its

fit and proper ends. On the other hand, there is great danger in

underrating the power of conscious control which, if it must not be

prematurely forced and made to intrude on automatic functions, must in

no way be undervalued or delimited.

For instance, though it may not be possible to control directly each

separate part of the abdominal viscera, we can control directly the

muscles of the abdominal wall which encloses the viscera, and in

reducing a protruding abdomen we can control many other muscles, notably

those of the back, which when they are properly employed and

co-ordinated will, by widening and altering the shape of the back, make

place for the protruded stomach, allow it to occupy the natural position

from which it has been ousted, and so give free play once more to the

natural functions of the viscera that have been distorted and pinched by

the forced positions they have had to assume. Here we see that though

conscious control does not affect by a process of direct command, as it

were, the lower automatic functions, there is great danger in assuming

that such functions are beyond the reach of my methods.

This danger was brought before me when I read, in the _British Medical

Journal_ for December, 1909, an article on one side of my teaching

contributed by Dr. S——, an old pupil of mine.

In this article Dr. S—— says:

“Man’s education does not always demand conscious instruction; in the

absence of unfavourable circumstances he can learn by unconscious

imitation of good models.”

Now this is not demonstrably untrue, but at the same time it is, as I

shall show, extraordinarily misleading, and is, in effect, just as

valuable as the prescription of champagne and hothouse grapes for a

pauper patient.

In the first place, we must remember, and Dr. S—— has himself admitted

the fact, that the normal is the rarest of all states. Medical experts

find that their most constant source of error in diagnosis arises from

the overreadiness to assume normal conditions in patients whose internal

economies and muscular co-ordination are, in fact, far from the ideal

standard of proportion and interdependence. Yet if the expert trained in

physiology fails to note the distortions which are upsetting the whole

economy, what body is to be named the supreme authority that shall

select the “good models” for unconscious imitation?

In the second place, we have to reckon with a psychological factor which

at once determines the question of the validity of unconscious

imitation. This factor is the demonstrable truth that unconscious

imitation does in nine hundred and ninety-nine cases out of a thousand

lay hold of the faults of the imitated and pass over the virtues. In a

long experience of re-educating many professional men and women for the

stage in this country, I have had abundant opportunity to observe the

methods of the “understudy” set to “imitate” his or her principal, and

my invariable experience has been that subconscious imitation has always

been shown by a reproduction of the actor’s or actress’s most prominent

failings. The intellectual reading of the part, the subtler inflexions

of voice and the finer details of gesture are passed by, and the

“understudy” reproduces the “mannerisms,” all those obvious tricks of

speech, manner, and gesture which are the least essential factors in the

true reading of the part. Again, my experience in cases of stammering

has shown me very clearly that especially among boys and young men, the

stutter has in a very large majority of cases come about by the

imitation of some other boy. We do not find boys so apt to imitate one

of their fellows who speaks particularly well.

Now this imitation of a fault in speech is subconscious and will not

always right itself naturally, and the reason for this will become clear

with a little consideration. Set a man to work on an elaborate and

intricate piece of machinery. Tell him that if he moves a switch here

and a lever there, certain effects will be produced and certain desired

results obtained. The movements are simple ones, and the man left to

himself will be able to control the working of the machine with ease and

certainty. But let us suppose that some essential part of the machine is

put out of gear, and that the machine instead of running smoothly and

easily begins to jerk and hiccough. Our assumed operator is immediately

at a loss. He sees that there is something wrong, and that there is

obvious friction where there was ease before; noise has taken the place

of silence; but he knows nothing of the working of the machine save the

elementary movements of the switch and lever, in the uses of which he

has had instruction. Now, he may perform these movements again and

again; but the machine still stutters, and our operator, quite at a

loss, can do nothing to obviate these faults. He must allow the machine

to continue working badly if it works at all.

The boy we have adduced as an example of a stammerer, who has copied

some fault of another boy and found that fault become permanent, is in

exactly the same position as the unskilled operator of our illustration.

This boy knows the ordinary uses of his vocal machine which have

heretofore produced normal results, but he does not know enough of the

machine to repair it when it is put out of gear; he cannot control the

machinery so that it may at once be restored to its previous efficiency.

But just as the unskilled operator may be instructed in the complete

mechanism he is set to supervise, and may then stop the machine when any

fault becomes evident, discover the source of the defect and set it

right; so will any person who has been instructed in the principles of

conscious control be able to detect and obliterate any fault in his

vocal or any other bodily mechanism, even if that fault was originated

below the level of consciousness.

These marked examples furnish a sound and unfailing analogy to the

principles of unconscious imitation in their application to physiology.

The perfectly co-ordinated man or woman does, as a matter of fact, offer

less mark for imitation to the ordinary observer than the man or woman

who displays an obvious defect, just as the perfectly dressed man or

woman passes with less remark than those people who affect some

exaggeration of costume in order to attract attention. Were we able at

this time to set the Greek model before our children, we should be able

to display it only on occasion, and the unconscious imitative powers of

the child would seize hold far more readily of the marked defects with

which it would be forced into contact during the greater part of its

waking life. In a perfect world, unconscious imitation would not be able

to exert a perverting influence, and to the conception of such a world

we may well turn our attention, but we shall never attain it by any

means other than these principles of conscious, reasoning, deliberate

construction, or reconstruction, upon which I have based the whole of my

theory and practice.

And, finally, there is still a serious danger to be reckoned with, even

should we find sufficient methods in our present civilisation from which

we might learn by unconscious imitation. We must remember that during

the advance of civilisation mankind has lost the faculty we call

instinct, the faculty which guided mankind in a state of nature as it

still guides the lower animal world. During our advance from this

primitive condition, the one great defect in our mental, physical, and

educational training has been the failure to recognise that civilised

life is the death-bed of instinct, and that in civilised life man’s

education must always demand conscious instruction. For we see that it

is at the critical moments that men fail to rise to the occasion. In

such a case as that of Dorando, already cited, we see that a perfectly

trained athlete, a man capable of the magnificent effort he made in the

great Marathon race, was robbed of his victory by his dependence at the

critical moment upon unconscious control as opposed to the conscious

control which is the thesis of _Man’s Supreme Inheritance_. And every

day we are told that at critical moments, at the crisis of a debate,

when suddenly called upon to decide a question of moment, or when faced

with terrifying physical danger, men “lose their heads”—and fail. It is

more especially at these times, at the crises of life, that the men who

had been _educated_ in the principles of conscious control would be

capable of acting with the same reason and common-sense that

characterised their mental and physical acts on the ordinary occasions

of life. If they had relied upon _unconscious_ imitation they would

still be dependent, to a certain degree, upon instinct.

Before leaving Question II, however, I will deal specifically with two

of the prevailing maladies of our time, viz., spinal curvature and

appendicitis, and show how the principles I have enunciated have a

particular bearing on the prevention and cure of these two serious

ailments.

1. _Spinal Curvature._ A perfect spine is an all-important factor in

preserving those conditions and uses of the human machine which work

together for perfect health, yet there are comparatively few people who

do not in some form or degree suffer, perhaps quite unconsciously, from

spinal curvature.

The present attitude towards this very serious mark of physical

degeneration would be ludicrous were it not that the matter is one of

almost tragic importance, and I may quote in this connexion a letter of

mine which appeared in _The Pall Mall Gazette_ for 14th March, 1908.

After dealing with certain other matters which need not be reproduced

here, I cited the following instances of the results of our present

attitude:

“In our schools and in the army, human beings are actually being

developed into deformities by breathing and physical exercises. I have

before me a book on the breathing exercises which are used in the

army, and any person reasonably versed in physiology and psychology,

and knowing they are inseparable in practice, will at once understand

why so much harm results from them. Take either the officers or the

soldiers. In a greater or less degree the unduly protruded upper

chests (development of emphysema), unduly hollowed backs (lordosis),

stiff necks, rigid thorax, and other physical eccentricities have been

cultivated. It is for these reasons that heart troubles, varicose

veins, emphysema, and mouth breathing (in exercise) are so much in

evidence in the army. As this is a matter of national importance, I am

prepared to give the time necessary to prove to the authorities

(medical or official) connected with the army, the schools, or the

sanatoria that the ‘deep breathing’ and physical exercises in vogue

are doing far more harm than good, and are laying the foundations of

much graver trouble in the future. The truth is that all exercises

involving ‘deep breathing’ cause an exaggeration of the defective

muscular co-ordination already present, so that even if one bad habit

is eradicated, many others, often more harmful, are cultivated.

“In this connexion it is only necessary to point to the serious

effects of ‘deep breathing’ and physical culture exercises in the

causation of throat and ear disorders, following upon the undue and

harmful depression of the larynx—the crowding down of the structures

of the throat—such depression occurring with every inspiration, and as

a rule with every expiration. This disorganisation and consequent

strain in the region of the throat is always found exaggerated, and

tends gradually to increase in people who are subject to asthma,

bronchitis, and hay fever, and the removal of the factors causing such

strain and disorganisation means great relief and gradual progress

towards the eradication of these disorders; but, of course, all

organic troubles should be removed in such cases.”

Now I may say further that I have not, up to now, examined any method of

physical culture or respiration which has not tended to bring about in

time some form of directly harmful lumbar spinal curvature. And I have

never examined a case of the (alleged) cure of spinal curvature in which

the front of the chest has not been harmfully altered, and very often

seriously deformed. The original idea in diagnosis of spinal curvature

which has led to the methods producing these results is “that the

activity of the muscles is necessary to the retention of the spine in an

erect position, in consequence of which, therefore, the primary cause

for the scoliosis must be sought in an abnormal function of the muscles

influencing the spine.” This is the myopathic theory of Eulenburg, an

authority whose dicta have had an important influence in medical

practice.

The error of advocating physical exercises, as generally understood, of

any kind in the treatment of spinal curvature is even greater than in

the case of John Doe, whom I cited in the earlier part of this work and

whose case should be again referred to in this connexion. The question

here also is one of correct conscious recognition, and it is much more

marked in the case of spinal curvature than in the case of my earlier

illustration, a case in which there was no special deformity, and in

which the muscle-tensing exercises I deprecated did not work to

emphasise a marked structural malformation.

The important factors in relation to spinal curvature are these:

(_a_) The bent or curved and therefore shortened spine.

(_b_) The decreased internal capacity of the thoracic cavity.

Plainly, attention must first be given to straightening and lengthening

the curved and shortened spine. This can be done by an expert

manipulator who is able to diagnose the erroneous preconceived ideas of

the person concerned, and cause the pupil to inhibit them while

employing the position of mechanical advantage. And it can be done

without asking the pupil to perform what he understands as a single

physical act. Moreover, if the correct guiding orders are given to the

pupil by the teacher, and the pupil makes no attempt to hold him or

herself in the lengthened position, such use of the muscular mechanism

will, nevertheless, be brought about as will ensure that the torso is

held in a correct position. Formerly, the consciousness in regard to the

correct action has been erroneous, a mere delusion, and the muscular

mechanisms have worked to pull the body down. The truth of the matter is

that in the old morbid conditions which have brought about the curvature

the muscles intended by Nature for the correct working of the parts

concerned had been put out of action, and the whole purpose of the

re-educatory method I advocate is to bring back these muscles into play,

not by physical exercises, but by the employment of a position of

mechanical advantage and the repetition of the correct inhibiting and

guiding mental orders by the pupil, and the correct manipulation and

direction by the teacher, until the two psycho-physical factors become

an established psycho-physical habit.

During this process of re-education, factor (_b_) has not been

forgotten. A little consideration will show that any alteration in the

spine must necessarily affect the position and working of the ribs. (The

analogy of the keel of a boat and the ribs which spring from it may well

be held in mind to make clear the following explanation.) It will be

seen that as the ribs are held apart by muscular tissues (analogous to

the boards of a boat), a bending of the spine will not buckle the ribs

unless great force is applied, force sufficient to rupture the muscular

tissue. But it is equally evident that there must be some play in the

ribs in order that they may adjust themselves to the new position. This

play is effected in the human body (and would be effected mechanically

in the ribs of a boat, if they possessed sufficient elasticity) by the

coming together of the ends of the “false” and “flying” ribs, that is,

those lower ribs which are not attached to the bony sternum. This

flattening of the curve of the ribs, and the approach of their free ends

towards each other, reduces the thoracic cavity, just as in our

illustration of the boat its capacity would be reduced if we forcibly

narrowed the distance between the thwarts. On the other hand, we see

that by increasing the thoracic capacity and so increasing the distance

between the ends of these ribs, we are applying a mechanical principle

which by a reverse action tends to straighten the spine.

These two actions, the re-education of the “Kinæsthetic Systems” and the

increasing of the thoracic capacity which applies a mechanical power by

means of the muscles and ribs to the straightening of the spine, are

both aspects of the one central idea, and are not separate and divisible

acts.

2. _Appendicitis._ The prevalence of appendicitis has always seemed to

me one of the most striking proofs of the inefficiency of present-day

methods in regard to health. At times I am filled with wonder that we

permit such bad conditions to become established as may necessitate the

removal of the appendix. It is, of course, well known that the operation

is frequently performed when the conditions do not warrant such extreme

measures, but cases have come under my notice, nevertheless, and those

not among the uneducated classes, in which the symptoms had become so

aggravated by years of harmful habits of life as to necessitate the

major operation. Fortunately there is a section of the medical

profession which objects, on scientific grounds, to the removal of the

appendix in all but extreme cases, and this opposition and the evidence

adducible as to the comparative ease with which the exaggerated

condition may be avoided and the trouble completely cured by natural

means, is doing much to limit the sphere of those champions of the knife

who are never content unless they can be dissecting the living body.

There can be no question or shadow of doubt that when the whole frame is

properly co-ordinated and the adjustment of the body is correct and

controlled according to the principles I have enunciated, it is a

practical impossibility to get appendicitis. The cause of the trouble is

due to imperfect adjustment of the body which allows or forces the

abdominal viscera to become displaced and to fall. The first consequence

of this is a change of pressures and the loss of the natural internal

massage, present in normal conditions. This leads to constipation among

other symptoms, and permits the gradual accumulation of toxic poisons.

When the trouble has already shown itself and there is some positive

inflammation of the appendix and tenderness in that region, it is by no

means too late to apply my methods. The new co-ordinations which may in

such cases be brought about very quickly, and established later, at once

relieve false internal pressures and permit a natural re-adjustment of

the viscera, and the furtherance of a rapid return to a healthy and

normal condition is greatly accelerated by the internal massage.

With regard to this latter treatment to which I have already referred in

this chapter, I may mention that many pupils have asked me if I use

internal massage in my system of re-education. In my brochure on the

_Theory and Practice of Respiratory Re-education_, included in Part III,

it will be found that I used this description, as I said, for lack of

one that was sufficiently comprehensive, but the principle itself is one

of the first importance.

When a patient or pupil is placed in the position of mechanical

advantage I have so often had occasion to refer to, the manipulator can

secure the maximum movement of the abdominal viscera in strict

accordance with the laws of nature and will obtain at the same time a

maximum functioning of all the internal organs. In this way foreign

accumulations are dissipated, constipation is relieved, and the more or

less collapsed viscera—the cause of all the trouble—are restored to

their proper places and resume their natural functions.

All these things, it will be seen, are essential factors in the

prevention and cure of appendicitis, and I may add that the application

of these principles in a very large number of cases in which an

operation has been medically advised has conclusively demonstrated their

value to the individual and to the race.

Appendicitis, like influenza, is probably almost an impossibility in the

natural state; it is one of the results of civilisation and

subconsciously controlled mechanisms, and is possible only through the

conditions we have developed; and these adventitious troubles and

ailments will continue to appear and to do their work of destruction

until some general recognition is made of the necessity for substituting

conscious control for the partly superseded forces which in a wild state

render these ailments impossible.

III. “_What are the outward signs of improvement to be noted during

treatment?_”

The signs of improvement are manifold and they necessarily vary

according to the nature of the original defect, but I will set out here

some of the more characteristic, such as occur in generally typical

cases.

We see, in the first place, that the characteristic defects of the body,

whether displacements of some part or parts of the muscular mechanism

(in some cases even displacement of the bones), or defects of pose which

throw some unusual strain upon a muscle, or, more commonly, a group of

muscles not intended to take such strain, all have some correlated

defects, which may be observed by the instructed as certain visible

peculiarities and abnormalities. And we must draw particular attention

in this connexion to the fact that these outer signs are _correlated_

with the inner defects. Neither outer sign nor inner defect is from one

point of view the _result_ one of the other. The original cause is some

faulty or imperfect co-ordination or conception of function; the inner

defect and outer sign-mark are equally a consequence as they are to us

an index.

As we should naturally expect, the chief sign-manual is to be found in

the face. To me, that is a most valuable document upon which is written

many curious, intricate, sometimes alarming confessions. The expression

of the eyes, the set of the lips, the drawing of the forehead, and the

more pronounced dragging of the flexible face muscles, are all marks

which may be read by the expert, and, to answer the question directly,

one of the earlier outward signs of improvement is to be found in a

relaxation of the forced and unnatural expression which results from

these contortions. It must be obvious that I cannot here set out in

detail the symptomatic distortions which accompany the various internal

defects, but one may be noted as an exemplar for the others however

diverse.

The case in question was one of dilation of the heart and as such was

brought to me by a medical friend, and, as a matter of fact, though this

was the most alarming symptom, it was but one of many springing from

deep-seated causes. Incidentally I may note that the spine was arched

inwards, the legs were unduly and most abnormally stiffened when the

patient was in a standing position, and the upper part of the chest was

held most harmfully high—this last symptom being the influence which

produced what was really a tertiary effect, though in this case the most

threatening one, viz., the dilation of the heart. Now this patient

carried certain very curious marks in the face: first a general

expression of strain in the eyes and cheek muscles, and secondly four

very marked indents or pits in the forehead. Here, indeed, were marks

which the expert might read, and it was extremely interesting to note,

as my treatment progressed and the patient recovered the proper use of

the body and a consequent return to perfect health, first, the

disappearance of the strained expression of eyes and face muscles, and

secondly, the gradual filling up of the four curious indentations in the

forehead. In this case the original symptoms were so marked that the

patient’s friends all commented on the change of expression during the

progress of the treatment.

The face, however, is by no means the only index. Many defects lead, by

way of stiffened neck and throat muscles, to an alteration in the

quality and power of the voice. There too the mode of movement and the

failure to express purpose in muscular action, the fumbling, indirect

attempt to perform a simple act, are aids to diagnosis, either of the

original defect, or, by their reversion to natural, easy functioning, of

the progress of the cure.

Generally, also, we observe a clearing of the skin and eyes as the

defects are eradicated, improvements which are due to better circulation

and the improved quality of the blood, factors which bring about a

continually increasing power in the organism to purge itself not only

through the bowels and kidneys, but also through the skin.

Lastly, we may note a general improvement in physique, in the carriage

of the body, in the whole appearance of co-ordinated, reasoned control.

Another curious and interesting test of the co-ordinated person who is

attaining conscious control of the uses of his body is obtained by

observing his hands when they fall to his sides in the position which

comes naturally to him. One may say that there are three main stages to

be observed in man’s development in this particular, though the

gradations are many and not, perhaps, always strictly progressive. The

first stage may be observed in the lowest savages, the Hottentot, the

Australian aboriginal, and many races at an early stage of development.

Such examples stand with body thrown back from the hips, stomach

protruded, and—here is the test—_with the palms of the hands forward_,

the elbows bent into the sides, the thumbs sticking out away from the

body. The second stage is evidenced in the averaged civilised man of

to-day who stands as a rule with the palms of his hands towards his

body, his elbows to the back, his thumbs forward. In the third stage,

the properly co-ordinated person stands with the back of his hands

forward, the thumbs inwards, and the elbows slightly bent outwards. This

is a curious but little known test, which, in my experience, has never

failed as an index to imperfect muscular co-ordination.

I believe I have now answered in sufficient detail the somewhat wide

intention of these three main questions, but in conclusion I will note

one further point that has been raised.

This is the question as to why the great majority of men and women

breathe from their stomach or the upper chest and so allow, among other

evils, the costal arch to be narrowed and the flying ribs to become

constricted and stiffened. In the case of many women there can be no

doubt that this is due to the use of tight corsets which confine these

ribs, and do great general harm in constricting the natural play of the

vital functions. But another and, in my opinion, the primary cause is

the common practice of swathing a child in bands almost immediately

after birth, and keeping him so fettered during many months of infancy.

The idea of this practice is to prevent rupture in male children should

they be subject to violent fits of crying or coughing, but the question

of the relative tightness or looseness of these swathings is left in the

hands of a nurse, who, in the great majority of cases, thinks it well to

be on the “safe side” by winding the child unnecessarily tightly.

Obviously the early habit is retained through life unless it is broken

by some outside influence. The pliancy of the young organisms is such

that the functioning of the breathing apparatus is quickly re-adjusted,

but the evils which gradually accumulate, from this and similar causes,

do not show themselves as a rule till much later in life.

Another cause is any imperfect adjustment of the muscular mechanism, a

failure which may be due to incorrect training, to unconscious

imitation, or to any of the chances which are always being presented to

the child in the haphazard system of physical education which obtains in

our nurseries and schools.

And on this note I may well conclude my chapter, for no argument I can

advance in favour of a careful consideration of the principles I have

laid down can have such cogency and force as the most superficial

examination of the physique of the children in our schools and the

adults in our streets. We are indeed suffering, not only in Great

Britain but on the continents of Europe and America, from a failure to

recognise that man is no longer a natural animal, whose life-habits were

dependent upon the development of the faculty of instinct, and that all

systems of physical culture (and how diverse they are!) must necessarily

fail unless they take into account that first and last essential, the

free use and consciousness of the reasoning, controlling mind.