“Let me explain,” said Leighton. “I am going to give you, one at a time, a number of disconnected words. As you hear each word, you must reply with the first word that suggests itself to your mind. For instance, suppose I say ‘black.’ The word gives rise, instantly, to some answering mental picture, and that picture will suggest a word with which your experience has associated it. Thus, when I say ‘black,’ you may think of ‘night’; or, if your thought goes by contraries, the word ‘white’ may occur to you. In any case, tell me the first word that comes into your mind upon hearing my word—and remember that the promptness of your reply is an important factor in the experiment.”
“It sounds easy,” remarked David. “Let’s begin.”
On a small table at which he was standing, Leighton placed his watch, a writing-pad and pencil. Seating himself, he commenced the experiment in the way he had proposed, noting each word as he gave it on the pad before him, and marking the number of seconds elapsing before each of David’s answers. Una, ensconced in a large armchair, watched the scene intently.
“Theater,” was Leighton’s first word.
“Music,” came the prompt reply.
“Noise.”
“Sleep.”
“Lion.”
“Teeth.”
“Sound.”