The purpose of this communication is to report the findings of a comparative study of the pattern of intellectual functioning in groups of senile and arteriosclerotic patients. The results of this investigation raise the question of the existence of an aphasic disorder of subclinical intensity in certain types of cerebral disease. Most psychometric instruments which are currently utilized for the measurement of intellectual impairment in cerebral disease are based upon the principle of a differential decline of abilities coincident with either advancing age or cerebral pathology.* Specifically, it is believed that verbal abilities, as assessed by vocabulary level or range of information, are likely to be better preserved than are abilities involving immediate memory, visual analysis and synthesis, and abstract reasoning capacity. There is considerable empirical evidence which supports this principle. Nevertheless, certain qualifications must be noted. First, it is obvious that the principle holds only for "nonaphasic" cerebral disorder.