criminal psychology-第105章

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ow　that　really　very　different　sounds　may　be　mistaken　for　one　another；　that　the　test　of　misunderstandings　may　often　lead　to　false　results；　since　only　during　the　test　of　an　illusion　are　both　auditor　and　speaker　accurately　in　the　same　position　as　before。　Finally；　these　things　show　that　the　whole　business　of　correcting　some　false　auditions　is　very　difficult。　Yet　this　work　of　correction　may　be　assumed　to　be　much　more　easy　with　respect　to　hearing　than　with　respect　to　seeing。　If；　e。　g。；　it　is　asserted　that　the　revolver　has　been　seen　somewhere；　and　if　it　has　been　known　that　the　sight　was　impossible；　it　becomes　just　as　impossible；　almost；　to　determine　what　the　object　seen　really　was。　In　the　rarest　cases　only　will　it　be　something　altogether　similar；　e。　g。；　a　pistol；　most　of　the　time　it　will　be　an　object　which　could　not　be　inferred　from　no　matter　what　combinations。　In　hearing；　on　the　contrary；　if　once　it　is　determined　that　there　has　been　a　false　audition；　the　work　of　placing　it；　though　difficult；　need　not　be　unprofitable。　This　work　is　often　compulsory　upon　the　criminalist　who　receives　protocols　which　have　not　been　read　aloud；　and　in　which　mistakes　of　hearing　and　dictation　have　been　made。　Such　mistakes　are　considerably　disturbing；　and　if　the　case　is　important　their　source　and　status　must　be　inferred。　This　may　almost　always　be　done。　Of　course；　strange；　badly　heard　proper　names　can　not　be　corrected；　but　other　things　can。

As　regards　the　general　treatment　of　auditory　illusions；　it　is　necessary；　first　of　all；　to　consider　their　many　and　significant　differences。　In　the　first　place；　there　are　the　varieties　of　good　hearing。　That　normal　and　abnormal　hearers　vary　in　degree　of　power　is　well　known。　There　are　also　several　special　conditions；　causing；　e。　g。；　the　so　called　hyper…auditive　who　hear　more　acutely　than　normal　people。　Of　course；　such　assertions　as　those　which　cite　people　who　can　hear　the　noise　of　sulphur　rubbed　on　the　poles　of　quartz　crystals　and　so　on　are　incorrect；　but　it　is　certain　that　a　little　attention　will　reveal　a　　surprising　number　of　people　whose　hearing　is　far　acuter　than　that　of　normal　individuals。　Apart　from　children；　the　class　is　made　up　of　musicians；　of　young　girls；　and　of　very　nervous；　excitable；　and　sickly　persons。　The　musicians　in　fact　have　become　so　because　of　their　ears；　the　young　girls　hear　well　largely　because　of　their　delicate　organization　and　the　very　fine　construction　of　their　ears；　and　the　nervous　people　because　of　their　sensibility　to　the　pain　involved　in　loud　noises。　Many　differences　of　perception　among　witnesses　are　to　be　explained　by　differences　of　audition；　and　the　reality　of　apparent　impossibilities　in　hearing　must　not　be　denied　but　must　be　tested　under　proper　conditions。　One　of　these　conditions　is　location。　The　difference　between　hearing　things　in　the　noisy　day　and　in　the　quiet　night；　in　the　roar　of　the　city；　or　in　the　quiet　of　the　mountains；　is　familiar。　The　influence　of　resonance　and　pitch；　echo　and　absorption　of　tones；　i。　e。；　the　location　of　the　sound；　is　of　great　importance。　Finally；　it　must　not　be　forgotten　that　people's　ability　to　hear　varies　with　the　weather。　Colds　reduce　the　power；　and　not　a　few　people　are　influenced　by　temperature；　atmospheric　pressure；　etc。　These　considerations　show　the　degree　in　which　auditory　illusions　can　be　of　importance　even　in　tests　of　their　nature　and　existence。　They　show　above　all　that　the　same　object　of　comparison　under　the　same　circumstances　must　be　used　in　every　test。　Otherwise　much　confusion　inevitably　results。

The　presence　of　auditory　illusions　in　diseases；　fever；　hysteria；　nervousness；　alcoholism　and　its　associates；　mental　disturbances；　hypermia；　diseases　of　the　ear；　etc。；　is　well　known；　but　concerns　us　only　as　pointing　to　the　necessity　of　calling　in　the　physician　immediately。　They　have　their　definite　characteristics　and　rarely　leave　the　layman　in　doubt　of　his　duty　in　that　direction。　The　great　difficulty　comes　in　dealing　with　diseases　or　apparent　diseases　while　it　is　still　impossible　to　know　of　their　existence；　or　where　the　pain　is　of　such　character　that　the　layman　does　not　know　of　its　presence　and　thus　has　no　ground　for　consulting　the　doctor。　For　example；　it　is　well　known　that　a　large　amount　of　ear　wax　in　the　aural　passage　may　cause　all　sorts　of　ringing　and　sighing　in　the　ear；　and　may　even　produce　real　hallucinations。　Yet　a　person　having　an　abnormal　amount　of　ear　wax　may　be　otherwise　absolutely　sound。　How　is　the　need　of　a　physician　to　be　guessed　in　such　a　case？　Again；　the　perforation　of　the　drum；　especially　when　it　follows　a　catarrh；　may　cause　a　definite　auditory　illusion　with　regard　to　the　sound　of　voices；　or　the　illusion　may　be　effected　by　the　irritation　of　the　skin　in　the　ear　passage；　or　　by　anemia；　or　by　a　strong　carotid　pulse　and　a　distention　of　the　bloodvessels；　as　happens　in　alcoholism。　Many　people　become　abnormally　sensitive　to　sound　at　the　beginning　of　fevers。　Women　at　the　time　of　their　climacterium　hear　all　kinds　of　voices。　Inasmuch　as　this　soon　stops；　the　abnormality　and　incorrectness　of　their　audition　is　hard　to　establish。　Childbirth；　too；　makes　a　difference。　Old；　otherwise　conscientious　midwives　claim　to　have　heard　unborn　children　breathe　and　cry。

Examples　of　this　sort　of　thing　are　innumerable　and　they　teach　that　whenever　any　questionable　assertion　is　made　about　a　thing　heard　the　doctor　must　be　called　in　to　determine　whether　the　witness　heard　it　under　abnormal；　though　not　diseased　conditions。　Again；　merely　accidental　or　habitual　general　excitability　tends　to　intensify　all　sounds；　and　whether　the　witness　under　consideration　was　in　such　condition　can　be　determined　only　by　the　expert　physician。

The　illusions　of　hearing　which　completely　normal　people　are　subject　to　are　the　most　difficult　of　all。　Their　number　and　frequency　is　variously　estimated。　The　physician　has　nothing　to　do　with　them。　The　physicist；　the　acoustician　and　physiologist　do　not　care　about　the　criminalist's　needs　in　this　matter；　and　we　ourselves　rarely　have　time　and　opportunity　to　deal　with　it。　As　a　result　our　information　is　very　small；　and　no　one　can　say　how　much　is　still　undiscovered。　One　of　my　friends　has　called　my　attention　to　the　fact　that　when　the　beats　of　the　clock　are　counted　during　sleepiness；　one　too　many　is　regularly　counted。　I　tested　this　observation　and　my　experience　confirmed　it。　If；　now；　we　consider　how　frequently　the　determination　of　time　makes　the　whole　difference　in　a　criminal　case　and　how　easily　it　is　possible　to　mistake　a　whole　hour；　we　can　get　some　notion　of　the　importance　of　this　illusion。　Its　explanation　is　difficult　and　it　may　be　merely　a　single　instance　of　a　whole　series　of　unknown　auditory　illusions　resting　on　the　same　basis。　Another　and　similar　phenomenon　is　the　‘‘double　beat　of　the　hammer。''　If　you　have　an　assistant　strike　the　table　with　a　hammer　while　you　hold　both　ears　with　your　fingers　and　then　open　them　half　a　second　or　a　second　after　the　blow；　you　hear　the　blow　again。　And　if　you　open　and　shut　your　ears　quickly　you　can　hear　the　blow　several　times。　This　is　explained　through　the　fact　that　a　number　of　reflections　of　the　sound　occur　in　the　room；　and　that　these　are　perceivable　only　by　the　unfatigued　ear。　The　explanation　is　unsatisfactory　because　the　experiment　is　sometimes　successful　in　the　open。　Taken　in　itself；　this　matter　seems　very　theoretical　and　without　practical　value。　But　this　kind　of　action　may　occur　　automatically。　It　is　well　known　that　swallowing　closes　the　Eustachian　tubes　for　a　moment；　especially　if　done　when　lying　down。　Now；　if　this　occurs　during　a　blow；　a　shot；　etc。；　the　sound　must　be　heard　twice。　Again；　it　may　easily　happen　that　because　of　the　noise　a　man　wakes　up　half　asleep　and；　frightened；　swallows　the　collected　saliva；　then　this　accident；　which　in　itself　seems　unimportant；　may　lead　to　very　significant　testimony。　Such　occurrences　are　not　infrequent。

The　intensity　of　a　sound　already　heard　may　be　of　considerable　influence。　Certain　experimenters　have　indicated　the　remarkable　character　of　slightly　intensive　effects　of　sound。　If　you　hold　a　watch　so　far　from　the　ear　as　to　hear　it　clearly　but　weakly；　the　sound　decreases　until　finally　it　is　not　heard　at　all；　and　after　awhile　it　is　again　heard；　etc。　This　may　lead　to　hearing　distinct　sounds　made　up　of　many　tones；　and　need　not　evince　any　great　illusion　with　regard　to　the　ticking　of　a　watch。　But　the　thing　may　occur　also　in　connection　with　more　powerful　and　more　distant　sounds；　e。　g。；　the　murmur　of　a　brook；　the　rush　of　a　train；　the　pounding　in　a　distant　factory。　Noises　far　removed　are　influenced　by　reflections　of　sound；　waves　of　air；　etc。；　and　it　is　possible　that　all　kinds　of　things　may　be　heard　in　a　completely　monotonous　noise。　This　can　be　easily　learned　by　listening　to　the　soft　murmur　of　a　distant　brook　at　night。　Given　the　disposition　and　supposing　the　existence　of　the　brook　unknown；　it　is　easy　to　hear　in　its　monotonous　murmur；　human　voices；　sighs；　shrieks；　etc。

Another　remarkable　observation　shows　that　in　the　dark　very　distinct　things　are　heard　during　the　playing　of　delicate　instruments；　such　as　mouth…organs。　The　humming　approaches　and　withdraws；　then　it　comes　on　various　sides；　and　finally　one　has　the　feeling　that　the　whole　room　is　full　of　humming　and　winging　insects。　And　this　may　go　on　indefinitely。　There　is　a　large　collection　of　reasons　for　this　reduplication　of　monotonous　sounds。　Everybody　knows　the　accord　of　the　olian　harp　which　consists　of　identical　notes；　and　the　melodies　which　seem　to　lie　in　the　pounding　of　the　train　on　the　rails。　This　can　become　especially　clear　when　one　is　half　asleep。　If　ever　thinking　begins　to　be　ousted　by　slumber；　the　rhythmic　pound　begins　to　dominate　consciousness。　Then　the　rhythm　gets　its　appropriate　melody　which　becomes　progressively　more　intense；　and　if　one　grows　suddenly　wide　awake　one　wonders　why　the　clearly…heard　music　is　missing。　Similarly；　it　is　often　asserted　that　a　row　of　travelling　wild　swans　make　pleasant　chords；　although　each　swan　is　able　to　utter　　only　one　cry。　Difference　in　distance　and　alterations　in　the　air　cause　the　chords。

The　difficulties　in　distinguishing　the　intensity　or　weakness　of　a　sound　are　of　importance。　Fechner　learned　from　the　violinist　Wasilewski　that　he　observed　that　a　male　choir　of　four　hundred　voices　did　not　sound　essentially　louder　than　one　of　two　hundred。　At　the　same　time　one　clock　is　not　heard　at　a　great　distance；　a　hundred　clocks　are　heard。　One　locust　can　not　be　heard　eating；　when　1000　eat　they　are　heard；　hence　each　one　must　make　a　definite　noise。＇1＇　Early　authorities　have　already　indicated　how　difficult　it　is　to　distinguish　the　number　of　bells　ringing　together。　Even　musicians　will　often　take　two　or　three　to　be　five　or　six。

Certain　dispositions　make　some　difference　in　this　respect。　The　operating　physician　hears　the　low　groaning　of　the　patient　after　the　operation　without　having　heard　his　loud　cries　during　the　operation。　During　the　operation　the　physician　must　not　hear　anything　that　is　likely　to　disturb　his　work；　but　the　low　groan　has　simply　borne　in　upon　him。　The　sleeping　mother　often　is　deaf　to　considerable　noise；　but　wakes　up　immediately　when　her　child　draws　a　deeper　breath　than　usual。　Millers　and　factory　hands；　travellers；　etc。；　do　not　hear　the　pounding　of　their　various　habitual　environmental　noises；　but　t