APHASIA.
[To THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR."] SIR,—Though the wish of your correspondent who signs himself " Semipaganus" for further information respecting the various ways in which that curious affection, aphasia, manifests itself, will probably bring a greater number of letters than you can insert, yet, as my experiences have been different to any of those recently given in the Spectator, or in an interesting article on the subject some two or three years ago, I will give them to you in as few words as I can. I was ill, and had some fever, but it was not at all high ; my mind was perfectly clear. When the medical man came I opened my lips to detail my symptoms, without a misgiving respecting my power to do so intelligibly; but instead of this, to my great annoyance, heard them relate a story about a sailor-boy climbing a mast. The strangest part of this experience was that while I had clearly laid out in my mind what I wished to say, I was not conscious of any thoughts corresponding to the words I spoke, nor could I then or afterwards recall any story that I had read, or fancied that I had read, which could account for the words uttered. I felt as though some will, apart from my own, for the time possessed the power over my organs of speech. On two or three other occasions during that illness I had sunnier experiences, but less strongly marked, a word or two only in a sentence being different to those I intended to utter. Some years after I was in tolerable, but not strong health, when my sight failed me in a somewhat similar way. Being at the time overdone, I had by a considerable effort written a letter on a subject requiring some thought. Being desirous to make myself clear, I had previously chosen some of the terms to be used, and having finished it, proceeded to read it over to ascertain whether I had succeeded in doing so, when, to my great surprise, I found, as I thought, quite different expressions to those which I had intended to use, the difference being the most marked in those sentences which I had framed with the greatest care. In some alarm respecting my sanity, I put the letter away, and when, later in the day, I took it out again, found that it was worded exactly according to my
original inteution.—I am, Sir, &c., B. E. M.
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