the most closely associated with it is that of increased volitional
control. Man is largely a creature of habit, and many of his
activities are more or less automatic reflexes from the stimuli of his
environment. Every new power of controlling these by the will frees
man from slavery and widens the field of freedom. To acquire the power
of doing all with consciousness and volition mentalizes the body,
gives control over to higher brain levels, and develops them by
rescuing activities from the dominance of lower centers. Thus _mens
agitat molem._ [Footnote: Mind rules the body.] This end is favored by
the Swedish _commando_ exercises, which require great alertness of
attention to translate instantly a verbal order into an act and also,
although in somewhat less degree, by quick imitation of a leader. The
stimulus of music and rhythm are excluded because thought to interfere
with this end. A somewhat sophisticated form of this goal is sought by
several Delsartian schemes of relaxation, decomposition, and
recomposition of movements. To do all things with consciousness and to
encroach on the field of instinct involves new and more vivid sense
impressions, the range of which is increased directly as that of
motion, the more closely it approaches the focus of attention. By thus
analyzing settled and established cooerdinations, their elements are
set free and may be organized into new combinations, so that the
former is the first stage toward becoming a virtuoso with new special
skills. This is the road to inner secrets or intellectual rules of
professional and expert successes, such as older athletes often rely
upon when their strength begins to wane. Every untrained automatism
must be domesticated, and every striated muscle capable of direct
muscular control must be dominated by volition. Thus tensions and
incipient contractures that drain off energy can be relaxed by fiat.
Sandow's "muscle dance," the differentiation of movements of the
right and left hand--one, e.g., writing a French madrigal while the