At first thought, no argument would appear to be needed to show why we should study the human mind. It was long ago said and accepted that "in the world there is nothing great but man, and in man there is nothing great but mind." Yet the average man has made little advancement in the study of his own mind. One would suppose that as all accomplishments are partly mental, and since man is nothing if not practical, the utmost attention would be given to the study of the mind with a view to increasing its efficiency. On the other hand, it is a law of human experience that the most important attainments come late if not last. Moreover, there are other reasons why the study of the mind has been neglected, as we shall presently see.

There is nothing more bewildering to the average reader who seeks to apply what he reads than to pick his way through the ordinary psychology with the hope of learning useful principles. The descriptions of mental life are often singularly lacking in reference to facts as the plain man knows them. When science lags so far behind, it is not strange that the rest of the world is ignorant. To be sure, psychologists have begun to realise this deficiency and are seeking to overcome it. Psychology was once merely speculative and undertook to explain mental life by assuming the existence of various qualities which no one ever