Sometimes the second 5 also is told off on the left hand, the same order being observed as in the first 5; but oftener the fingers of the right hand are used, with a reversal of the order previously employed; _i.e._ the thumb denotes 6, the index finger 7, and so on to the little finger, which completes the count to 10.
At first thought there would seem to be no good reason for any marked uniformity of method in finger counting.

Observation among children fails to detect any such thing; the child beginning, with almost entire indifference, on the thumb or on the little finger of the left hand.

My own observation leads to the conclusion that very young children have a slight, though not decided preference for beginning with the thumb.

Experiments in five different primary rooms in the public schools of Worcester, Mass., showed that out of a total of 206 children, 57 began with the little finger and 149 with the thumb.

But the fact that nearly three-fourths of the children began with the thumb, and but one-fourth with the little finger, is really far less significant than would appear at first thought.