Professor Loisette's Lecture.

In Sanders Theatre last evening, Professor A. Loissette spoke to a good-sized audience on "The Improvement of the Memory." It is the practical work of the improvement of the memory to which I have devoted myself. Let us begin by understanding what memory means. My definition is as follows: Memory is the revival to consciousness of a previous mind experience. There are two stages in every act of memorizing; - first the experience, and secondly, the revival of that experience. In order to arrive at any proficiency at memorizing, attention is indispensable. There can be no first impression without attention, and the more serious the attention the more perfect the impression.

The principal causes of weakness in memory spring from the following reasons:

First class. - When the first impression is weak and the revival of the experience is also weak, owing to slight attention, a very poor memory results.

Second class. - When the first impression is weak and the revival is good, a memory which acts slowly but surely results. To this class belong the plodders, those who have difficulty in mastering a subject but once mastered, always mastered.

Third class. - When the first impression is vivid but the power of recalling it is weak. The emotional, highly excitable belong to this class. They exhaust all their strength in acquiring the first impression.

Fourth class. - When the first impression is vivid and the power of revival is prompt. This makes a good memory and is the object we are striving for. Attention governs all and it is defective attention that causes defective memories. Out of ten hours of ordinary study one really concentrates one's mind but half the time. Attention is naturally weak; strengthen it, is the best advice one can give. No power is more easily destroyed, no power may be more highly developed than that of attention.

The many methods of memorizing such as by writing down, or relating an event immediately after it has happened are practically valueless to the majority of people. In Lord Bacon's definition of education, one approximates the true theory. Education, he says, is the cultivation of a just and legitimate familiarity between mind and things. Professor Loisette advocates what he has named the analytic synthetic method. In memorizing a passage, he reduces it to the simplest statement and then by gradually adding the modifying phrases he learns the whole by association. This is the secret of his system - association - which, combined with careful attention, insures at least an improved memory.