Some of them laugh more
than usual when they walk about, or attempt any muscular exertion.
The joyousness of most of these idiots cannot possibly
be associated, as Dr. Browne remarks, with any distinct ideas:
they simply feel pleasure, and express it by laughter or smiles.
With imbeciles rather higher in the scale, personal vanity
seems to be the commonest cause of laughter, and next to this,
pleasure arising from the approbation of their conduct.
[2] F. Lieber on the vocal sounds of L. Bridgman, `Smithsonian Contributions,'
1851, vol. ii. p. 6.
[3] See, also, Mr. Marshall, in Phil. Transact. 1864, p. 526.
With grown-up persons laughter is excited by causes considerably
different from those which suffice during childhood; but this remark
hardly applies to smiling. Laughter in this respect is analogous
with weeping, which with adults is almost confined to mental distress,
whilst with children it is excited by bodily pain or any suffering,
as well as by fear or rage. Many curious discussions have been
written on the causes of laughter with grown-up persons.
The subject is extremely complex. Something incongruous or unaccountable,
exciting surprise and some sense of superiority in the laugher,
who must be in a happy frame of mind, seems to be the commonest
cause.
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