From the foregoing notes and comments it must be concluded that although the psychological conditions were probably as favorable at the International Y. M. C. A. College at Springfield for an experiment of this kind as would be found anywhere else, still there was a certain amount of opposition (negative suggestion) which had to be met by the men who were on the food reduction. The men could not live by themselves. It seems to us now that arrangements should have been made so that they could have had their meals separated from the other men rather than at a table in one corner of the main dining-room. This would have proved a double advantage: (1) the subjects would not have had continually before them the abundant food placed on other tables for their fellow-students, and (2) the other men could not have known how limited was the quantity of food allowed the low-diet subjects. Their dietetic regime and physical appearance were constantly topics of conversation for their fellows. In the nature of things comment would not be generally favorable or enthusiastic. The subjects were loyal and determined to see the experiment through to the end. Nevertheless, the comments of their friends could not but act upon the men as suggestions, and it seems only fair to believe that to some extent at least, these comments gave color to the personal impressions of some of the subjects regarding themselves. The psychological atmosphere, at least, outside the squad was charged with expectation of trouble. What others saw in them, the men, to some extent, may have come to see in themselves, but this matter of suggestion must not be pushed too far.

It must be remembered that these subjects were men, intelligent, and quite capable of forming independent judgment. They became to a great extent a gregarious group; there was a good deal of the spirit of caste and group pride. This engendered a certain amount of combative spirit not favorable for the operation of suggestions from the outside. Comment is practically unanimous as to the change in mental attitude and disposition accompanying the reduction in diet. The men were more irritable, more easily annoyed by each other and by outside associates.1 As they expressed it, they were more "crabbed." They recognized this in themselves, and others recognized it. Those who had not known them before the beginning of the experiment and who formed opinions concerning them during that period were surprised to discover the difference after the men had begun eating uncontrolled. The men joked about their own irritability only because they recognized it and believed it to be a temporary condition from which they would rally when the food reduction was passed. It seems altogether probable that this irritability may have been due, at least in part, to other things besides the mere reduction in amount of food. However, the indications are that it was most prominent in those times when the body-weight was being actively reduced by an unusually low caloric intake, as in October and early November and also following the Christmas vacation in early January. In December and late January the men commented upon themselves in a much more pleasant way. When they were present at the Laboratory, they laughed and talked much more freely and seemed generally much less irritable, if not, indeed, entirely normal. The crabbedness, so-called, developed prominently in some of the members of Squad B during their 3 weeks' greatly restricted diet from January 8 to 28. Space will not permit giving their comments.