Occasionally an adult watching a small child gets the idea that the child "sees" things. Considering the ease of imagination and the uncertain distinction between the real and the unreal so often observed in little children, it is difficult to tell just what their experiences of this kind may actually be. However, they seem to be having hallucinatory experiences.

A California woman says that her little boy when about two began to act as if he "saw" things. For instance, she recalls, "One time, sitting in his sandbox, he got very still and with a faraway look in his eyes seemed to be staring at something. He said, 'Daddy stand up--long time.' My husband had gone to get our car license. It was the deadline and he had to wait in line several hours."

Of course, when a small child says he "saw" a distant event, one cannot tell if his use of the word is exact enough to mean that he had a hallucinatory experience or a bit of realistic imagination although it could mean the former.

A Wisconsin family was returning home from a trip when the four-year-old in the back seat stood up unexpectedly and asked, "Did Aunt Myrtle and Uncle Charles have a wreck with a train?"

The father in a disgusted tone, he says, asked, "What are you talking about?"

The answer, "I see'd they did."

The next day word was received that the aunt and uncle had stalled their car on a railroad crossing. They had gotten out of it before a train hit and demolished the car. As far as could be estimated, it was at the time of the child's remark.

SOURCE: Hidden Channels of the Mind by Louisa E. Rhine, 1961, p. 140. Account untitled, author's name witheld; title & byline added to aid searching & indexing.

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