A few words may suffice in regard to playful use of touch sensations in other parts of the body. We have seen that an infant enjoys being softly stroked, and we may assume that a soft bed is appreciated early in life. The question is, whether the child or the adult voluntarily produces such sensations for the sake of the pleasure they afford. Perhaps this is why we like to roll about on a soft bed, and more unmistakably playful is the fondness of children for throwing themselves repeatedly into a well-filled feather bed or on piles of hay, to feel themselves sink into the elastic mass. Violent contact is indulged in in many dances. In the Siederstanz, which I myself learned in the Gymnasium, the thighs were beaten with the hands. Somewhat similar, but decidedly more violent, is the Haxenschlagen of the Bavarian dances, and the ancients practised the ῥαθαπυγίζειν, an alternate striking of the foot soles on the back. A verse is preserved, written in praise of a Spartan maiden who succeeded in keeping this up longer than any one else—one thousand times.[28] Water affords delightful sensations of touch; in the bath, of course, enjoyment of the movements and temperature is more conspicuous, but the soothing gentleness of the moist element is not to be despised. For confirmation I will cite Mörike’s beautiful verses: “O Fluss, mein Fluss im Morgenstrahl! Empfange nun, empfange Den sehnsuchtvollen Leib einmal Und küsse Brust und Wange! Er fühlt mir schon her auf die Brust, Er kühlt mit Liebesschauerlust Und jaucbzendem Gesange. “Es schlüpft der goldne Sonnenschein In Tropfen an mir wider. Die Woge wieget aus und ein Die hingegebnen Glieder; Die Arme hab’ ich ausgespannt, Sie kommt auf mich herzugerannt, Sie fasst und lässt mich wieder.” “O stream, my stream in the morning beam! Receive me now, receive Me thrilling, longing as I am, And kiss my breast and cheek; I feel already in my breast The cooling, soothing influence Of fresh, delicious showers And joyous, rippling song. “The golden sunshine rains on me In glittering drops. Soft waves Caress my yielding limbs, My outstretched arms receive them As they hasten up to clasp And then release me.” Here, as in all specialized pleasures, intensive emotion betrays itself. In sea bathing the principal stimulus is found in the sharp blow from the waves as they break repeatedly over one. Last of all, we notice the sensation of movement in the air. We take off our hats to let the wind play with our hair, and fanning is not always indulged in merely for the sake of cooling off, but also for the sake of the touch stimuli excited by the soft contact with waves of air. 2. _Sensations of Temperature_