mental power possesses of giving continuance to thoughts and feelings when they have sprung up in the mind. This property appears to exist in different degrees in different minds; to which, of course, the diversity in the manifestations of Concentrativeness, with which we are so often presented, is to be mainly attributed. "It is not difficult to see in what way this property of permanence operates in producing the various peculiarities of a concentrative turn of mind. It is a law of thought which all systems of mental philosophy recognise, although they may explain it differently, that a conception or feeling, when present to the mind, naturally acts in calling up other conceptions and feelings of the same class. Ideas of Causality call forth other ideas of Causality; emotions of Benevolence or Destructiveness are followed by trains of conceptions associated by sympathy with the previous mental state. If, then, one predominating conception or feeling be held before the mind by the force of a strong Concen. trativeness, the mental action just described will of necessity be greatly enhanced. The secondary conceptions will re-act upon the original, increasing the intensity of thought and feeling, and adding to the excitement of the mind. A more extensive range of ideas, all bearing the same kindred character, will thus be brought into view; and while the intellect, seizing from a distance the point to be pursued, arranges its materials on such a plan as is best adapted to attain it, it is at the same time prepared for executing the design with greater strength of conception, or, as the nature of the subject may require, with a tone of more powerful emotion. The effect of this concentration naturally extends to the active powers in cases where their cooperation is necessary; the associated volitions flow more readily along with the mental train, and participate in the harmony of all the other faculties. "In perfect consistency with this view, we find that any circumstance which gives permanence to an emotion independently of Concentrativeness, produces the same effect. The continued presence of a cause of provocation will excite Destructiveness to a greater excess of passion. Large Cautiousness, along with deficient Hope, will give a permanent tinge to all the mental feelings; and, when excited by disease, may so completely fill the mind with their gloomy suggestions, as to render it inaccessible to every idea of a brighter complexion. Every sentiment, whatever its character may be, casts its own peculiar light over the mental prospects; and the objects beheld reflect that light alone to the mind, whether it be the splendour of our more bright and joyous feelings, or the fiercer glow of the destructive passions, or the sombre illumination of a more melancholy mood. "It occurs to me that the amount of this power, in the composition of intellectual character, has not been fully estimated by phrenologists. Independently of Phrenology altogether, the varieties of mental constitution cannot, I think, be satisfactorily accounted for, but by supposing that Concentrativeness is an original element of mind, varying in force in different individuals. In connecting this power with the cerebral organ, phrenologists have proceeded upon experience; and so far as my limited observation has gone, I have been gratified by the remarkable coincidences which it has presented between fact and this part of the system. The following remarks have been suggested by observation, and are not merely speculative; but, at the same time, they are submitted, to be set aside or confirmed as to their phrenological accuracy by the more extensive observations of our veteran phrenologists. organ I have "What is the result of extreme defect in this had no opportunity of knowing. Deficiency, in the more ordinary degrees, discovers itself in different ways, according to its combination with other faculties. In some individuals it produces an indisposition to settle into any regular plan of life; or, if this has been controlled by circumstances and other faculties, there may still be seen a want of method, forethought, and continuity, in the vari ous concerns of intercourse or business. The individual does not appear like one driving constantly towards a particular object; his mind takes its direction from shifting circumstances; and if other faculties conspire, he may be characterized by a sort of careless facility or vivacity of disposition. Should these appearances be restrained by large Cautiousness and Firmness, while the reflecting organs at the same time are full, the manifestations of the deficiency will be considerably different. There may be a propensity to reason, and possibly to deal in abstract speculation; while the individual will exhibit, in his attempts at argument, a degree of cloudiness and ambiguity of conception, which evidently results from an incapacity of holding up distinctly before his mental vision the subject of thought. ness. "We occasionally find persons with large reflecting organs, whom we are surprised to observe little given to sustained reasoning or philosophical speculation. The writer has noticed some such, with Causality and Wit both large, while he has had reason either to know or to suspect, that the organ of Concentrativeness was considerably deficient. The intellectual perceptions of such appeared to be strong and rapid, and possessed the momentary brilliancy imparted by Ideality, or the energy derived from a large CombativeBut the mental action was never sustained; the energy ceased when its impression had just been felt by the auditor; and the decisions of Causality and Wit were never prolonged into a train of connected argument. They came to their conclusions by judgments, and not by ratiocination. Whatever could be seen at a glance or two, they perceived, and often with much perspicacity and originality; but they failed in every thing requiring the investigation of abstract principles or logical deduction. They excelled in whatever admitted of succession and variety of remark, but were unsuccessful where a single point was to be kept in view, and carried by argument. They were better orators than writers, and more powerful still in con versation than in prolonged oratory. It might be that they argued well in conversational controversy; but this was because the successive replies of the debate broke the reasoning into steps, if I may say so, and always presented a new point for immediate judgment.-All this appears to be the natural consequence of a deficient Concentrativeness. We must observe, however, that such a mind, when its faculties are under the influence of strong excitement, may exhibit a degree of unity and sustainedness of thought beyond what is usual to it at other moments;-but this would prove nothing against an actual deficiency in Concentrativeness. All possess the quality in some degree, and, of course, on occasions of greater excitement, its power will be augmented. And still it may be said, that if great Concentrativeness were placed in the same circumstances, its manifestations would be still more remarkable. "Full or large Concentrativeness gives rise to other descriptions of intellectual character. We may occasionally observe a class of persons, who, with the intellectual organs rather poorly developed, are notwithstanding great dabblers in argument. They are a species of Lilliputian gladiators, who are perpetually skirmishing and hair-splitting with all about them in behalf of certain favourite opinions, to the merits of which few, alas! are sensible but themselves. This is the extreme case, but various modifications of it will be found. The probability is, that in all such the faculty of Concentrativeness is full; it may be seen, indeed, in the natural language of their looks and gestures along with this, Causality will be discovered to be relatively the largest of their intellectual faculties, although absolutely small. Their reasonings are distinguished by two qualities. The first of these is a deficiency of strength and breadth in the conceptions which compose them; so that their track is something like the lines of navigators' courses in the charts, remarkable for nothing but its continuousness. The second is, that they take no com prehensive survey of the general principles which bear upon a question; but having the power of seeing and dis. secting that which is immediately before them, they work onward by the help of certain little formulæ, now right, and now wrong, till they strike upon some palpable absurdity, some contradiction to more general principles or more extensive analogies. When such individuals are compared with persons of the former class, who have large Causality, and yet do not reason, an apparent contradiction is presented to the phrenological account of Causality, as a faculty which disposes to metaphysics, and gives the perception of logical consequences in argument.' The contradiction vanishes when we connect two powers together as necessary to reasoning. The Causality of every one whose mind is sound, is capable of perceiving the relation between a cause and its effect, or between simple premises and a conclusion. If Concentrativeness be added, which gives the power of keeping the subject of thought steadily before the mind, there will be a capacity for pursuing such a connected series of judgments as constitutes reasoning. In mathematical reasoning, where every term has a definite extension, the above power will be sufficient for forming sound conclusions. But, in the investigation of moral subjects, there is required a comprehensive conception of the various relations of each term or principle employed in our deductions; and this appears to be the property of a large Causality in conjunction with the knowing organs; -the former giving a powerful memory for relations previously discovered, and the latter supplying the materials on which the decisions of Causality are founded. In both of these, such reasoners as we speak of are deficient; and hence their speculations want the elements both of strength and comprehensiveness of thought. When full Concentrativeness is joined to large Causality and Individuality, the power of philosophy and reasoning appears in its greatest perfection. The mind is at once possessed of large intellectual resources, and is capable of |