u ) DYSPEPSY FORESTALLED AND . iSTED: '"'•'"■£/ LECTURES DIET, REGIMEN, AND EMPLOYMENT; DELIVERED TO THE STUDENTS OF aMHERST COLLEGE, SPRING TERM, 1830. BY EDWARD HITCHCOCK, Professor of Chemistry, and Natural History in that Institution. Whatever will cure, will prevent; as water poured on will extinguiBh fire, so it will prevent its being kindled.—Cheyne. SECOND EDITION. CORRECTED AND ENLARGED BY THE ADDITION OF AN ADDRESS DELIVEBED BEFOBE THE MECHANICAL ASSOCIATION IN ANDOVEB THEO- LOGICAL INSTITUTION, SEPT. 21, 1830; AN APPENDIX OF NOTES. /fc§>^n *., ,fy LIBRARY AMHERST: PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY J. S. & C. ADAMS. NORTHAMPTON: S. BUTLER AND SON. NBW-TOBK, J. LEAVITT, J. P. HAVEN, G. & C. & H. CABVILL.— BOSTON, B. LOBD AND HOLBBOOK, PEIBCE AND PABKEE. 1831. f-dro |siO • tf'l'7'7 77 ,'/ DISTRICT OF MASSACHUSETTS,....^ wit: District Clerk's Office. Be it remembered, that on the eighth day of May, a. d. 1830, in the fifty fourth year of the independence of the United States of America, J. S. and C. Adams, of the said district, have deposited in this office the title of a Book, the right whereof they claim as Proprietors in the words following, to wit:— Dyspepsy forestalled and resisted : or Lectures on Diet, Regimen and Employment; delivered to«the Students of Amherst College; Spring Term, 1830. By Edward Hitchcock, Professor of Chemistry and Natural History in Amherst College. Whatever will cure, will prevent; as water poured on will extinguish fire, so it will prevent its being kindled.—Cheyne. In conformity to the act of Congress of the United States, enti- tled " an act for the encouragement of learning, by securing the copies of maps, charts and books, to the authors and proprietors of rtich copies, during the times therein mentioned;" and also to an act entitled " an act supplementary to an act,entitled an act for the encouragement of learning, by securing the copies of maps, charts and books to the auihors and proprietors of such copies during the times thereua mentioned; and extending the benefits thereof to the arts of designing, and etching historical and other prints.11 JNO. W. DAVIS, Clerk of the District of Massachusetts. PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION. Most of the additions to this edition of the following Lectures, consist of An Address on the Physical Culture adapted to the Times, delivered at Andover last autumn : and an Appendix of Notes. The latter contain fuller discussions of some points but partially examined in the Lectures, and also a view of several subjects connected with Hygiene, not treated of at all in the first edition. The whole work has also been divided into numerous sections, with short captions prefixed to each subdivision, indicating its contents, so as to render practicable a rapid examination of the work. To aid in the same object, the subjects treated of are stat- ed briefly, as far as possible, over each right hand page ; and a copious summary of the contents of the whole work, will be found in the usual place for a Table of Contents. Short notes have also been occasionally put in the margin of the body of the work, besides those in the Appendix. In only a few cases, however, have new thoughts been inserted in the original text: But the broad end of the SrvXoa has been often used, in erasing from thence, what further reflection showed to be erroneous or injudicious. The author acknowledges his obligations to the Editors of those peri- odicals and newspapers, who have inserted Reviews, or Notices, of the first edition of these Lectures. This acknowledgement extends, at least, to the following works ; and perhaps to others, which may have noticed the Lectures without his knowledge. American Journal of Education : Quarterly Register of the American Education Society : American Journal of Science and Arts : Spirit of the Pilgrims : Christian Examiner : Journal of Health : Journal of Hu- manity : Christian Mirror : Southern Religious Telegraph : Village Re- cord ; and Newburyport Herald. The author, also, is indebted to those very respectable gentlemen in the metropolis of New England, who have generously borne their public testimony in favor of the Fourth Lecture, as it appeared in the form of a Prize Essay. . . Whatever suggested amendments of the work are contained in these numerous notices, have been thankfully received ; and either made in the proper place, or the reasons for a different opinion have been given in llic !Nutcs In preparing this work—particularly the second edition—the following works have been more or less thoroughly consulted ; and extracts from them all will be found in this edition. The list is here inserted, in the hope that it may assist the intelligent dyspeptic, in the selection of his library. Journal of Health, 1st and 2d Vols. J. Johnson on Derangements of the Liver and Internal Organs. I Do. Essay on Morbid Sensibility of the Stomach and Bowels,&c. 1 Do." Influence of Civic Life, Sedentary Habits and Intellectual Re- finement on Human Health, &c. 1 Vol. Svo. \ Philip on Indigestion, &c. 1 Vol. 8vo. Paris on Diet, 1 vol. 8vo. Cheyne's Natural Method of Curing the Diseases of the Body and the Disorders of the Mind, 1 Vol. 8vo. Do. Essay on Health and Long Life, 1 Vol. 8vo. Do. Essay on Diet and Regimen, 1 Vol. 8vo. Trotter's view of the Nervous Temperament, 1 Vol. 12mo. Do. Essay on Intemperance, 1 Vol. 8vo. Sure Methods of Improving Health, and Prolonging Life, &c. 1 Vol. 8vo. The Manual for Invalids, 1 Vol. 8vo. The Dyspeptic's Monitor, 1 Vol. 12mo. Daggett's Abridgement of the writings of Cornaro, 1 Vol. 18mo. Faust's Catechism of Health, 1 Vol. 12mo. Reee' Cyclopedia. Edinburgh Encyclopedia. Encyclopedia Americana. Beddoes' Essays on Hygeia, 2 Vols. 12mo. Lambe's Additional Reports on the Effect of a Peculiar Regimen in Cases, &c. 1 Vol. 8vo. Reid's Essays on Hypochondriacal and other Nervous Affections. 1 Vol. 8vo. Sinclair's Code of Health and Longevity, 4 Vols. 8vo. Hufeland's Art of Prolonging Life, 2 Vols. 8vo. Noveaux Elemens D'Hygiene, Par Charles Londe, 2 Vols. 8vo. Paris 1827. Le Catechisme De La Medicine Physiologique, 1 Vol. 8vo. Paris 1824. La Physiologie Des Gens Du Monde Par le Chev, Chaponnier. 1 Vol 8vo. Paris 1829. * Hygiene Des Colleges et Des Maisons D'Education; Par Ch. Pavet De'Courtelle; Paris, 1827. rriEINA IIAPArrEAMATA nPOS XPHZIN TOYEJ- AHNIKOY AAOY; naoa KiiNSTAN'TlNOY KAPA0EOJS2PH Paris, 1829. PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION. As the following Lectures were prepared and delivered without solici- tation, so they are published upon the private responsibility of the wri- ter ; who has not waited to ascertain what reception they would meet from his hearers. If any explanation is needed for thus printing them so as to be offered for sale the very day after the last one was delivered' he would say to his auditors, who have given him so full and patient a hearing, that he hopes a desire to accomplish the most in the cause of temperance, has been his leading motive. He thought that the delivery of these Lectures would be likely to produce more effect than their peru- sal alone. Vet he supposed that no memory would be sufficiently re- tentive to preserve a distinct recollection, even of all the important rules and maxims connected with the subject. He wished, therefore, to give all who are disposed, an opportuuity to examine, at their leisure, the system of diet, regimen and employment, which he has advanced- by putting this volume within their reach. And he thought it important that this should be accomplished, while the interest excited on tne sub- ^T7 jcct,was yet fresh. Circumstances of a private and *J5ersonal nature, conspired also, to urge on this publication thus rapidly. The writer is aware, that such a course has rendered attention to literary niceties more difficult than would be desirable. For the whole business of wri- r ting, delivering, and printing these Lectures, has been crowded into' the space of a few months ; and this too, in addition to ordinary pro- fessional duties in College. He hopes, however, that though the style may need correction, the meaning will be found clear and definite—a point that has been kept steadily in view. The author presumes that these considerations will afford little, or no apology, for errors, in the view of the professed critic. To such, and to all others, into whose hands this volume may fall, he would say, in the! words of a distinguished dietetic writer of early times, in his preface to an Essay on Health and Long Life :—" I know not what may be the fate and success of this performance ; nor am I solicitous about it, be- ing conscious the design was honest, the subject weighty, and the ex- ecution the best my time, my abilities, and my health would permit, which cannot bear the labor of much filing and finishing. Being care- ful not to encroach on the province of the physician, I have concealed nothing, my knowledge could suggest, to direct the sufferer, in the best manner I could, to preserve his health, and lengthen out his life : and I have held out no false lights to lead him astray, or torment him unne- cessarily." The reader will perceive, that the fourth Lecture is the same, with a few slight additions, as a Prize Essay recently published under the di- rection of the American Temperance Society. Let him not hence infer, that that Society arc acquainted with the sentiments advanced in the other Lectures, and approve of them. For this is not the case : no member of that Society having been consulted, as to any of the opinions advanced. The writer is alone responsible for those opinions ; and to him alone belongs the credit, if they are correct, or on him must fall the blame, if they are erroneous. Amherst College, May 6th, 1830. Since the above was in type, the following communication has been received from the students of Amherst College. And while I take this opportunity to thank them for their favorable reception of the following Lectures, I am happy in being able thus early to comply with their request. To Prof. E. Hitchcock, Sir,—The members of the College, through the medium of the under- signed as thoir Committee, acknowledge their obligations to you for your interesting and instructive Lectures on the subject of Health. By giving them a permanent form, your wishes for the welfare of the stu- dents^ is believed, will be best accomplished, and at the same time, important information be placed within the reach of others. We are instructed, therefore, to request, in the name of the students, that the discourses in question may be printed. H. B. HACK.L 11. PETER PARKER. LYMAN GIBBONS. Amherst College, May 7th, 1830. H. D. HUMPHREY. 1* SYNOI xiC TABLE OF THE CONTENTS. PART I. DIET. LECTURE I. Motives for preparing this work, page 13—Nervous Maladies, their prevention and cure essentially alike: the former, however, most easy, 14—Great ignorance on this subject, 15—Men averse to attending to their health, 16—Fond of specific remedies, 17—Few will probably re- gard, my suggestions, 18—Indefinite notions as to the origin and cure of nervous complaints, 19—Dyspeptics eager after specifics, 20—Partial in their observances, 21—Definition of Diet, Regimen,and Employment, 22—Objections against living by rules, 23—Dr. Jackson, 24.— Diet : Objection that many live long without paying any attention to it, 25—And that writers do not agree on the subject, 26.— First Rule : that the quantity of food at any one meal should be very moderate, 27—Temperance of ancient Philosophers and Christians, 27 Galen, Parre, Francisco, 28—Dr. Cheyne, 29—Cornaro, 30—What quantity of food is necessary, 31—During severe study, 32—Late din- ners and wine,. 34—Another rule as to the quantity of food, 35—Dr. j. Johnson's rule on the subject, 38—Use of weighing food, 40-«-Starva- tion, 41—Strength of body and mind, promoted by a small quantity of food, 43—Training of Pugilists, 45—Eating a little too much :—Exam- ples,—Cornaro, Parre, Cheyne, Lloyd, 46—Remote Effects of excess, 48 —Curious Example, 50—Is appetite a safe guide, 51—Case of Clem- ent, 52—of Vinall, 53—Men generally eat too much, 53—Acute diseases often the consequence, 54—Definition of Intemperance, in diet, 55— n Appeal to temperate men 56—-To literary men and Christians, 57—God only can give them strength to resist appetite, 58. LECTURE II. Diet : Second Rule, that the less variety of food used at any one meal, the better, page 60—Variety disturbs and retards digestion, and tempts to excess, 60—63—Curious argument against the rule, 61—In- temperance in eating in the U. States, very prevalent, 64—Proof; Com- mon fare in respectable families, 65—Social visits; 66—A New-England Thanksgiving, 67—How far the female heads of families are to blame, 67—How far gentlemen are to blame, 70—Appeal to the members of Temperance Societies, 71—Gluttony as injurious as drunkenness, 73— Inconsistency of many temperate men, 71—Further proofs of dietetic: excesses in the land; Taverns, 75—Boarding Houses, 77—Experiment in Amherst College. 77—Dyspeptics much concerned in this subject, 78 —Examples of temperance for their reflection :—Dr. James Johnson, 80 —An American Scholar, 81—Howard, 81—Variety in diet not injuri- ous, 84—Danger from the second and third dishes, 84—The community not yet prepared for this system of diet, 85—Power of the human con- stitution to resist excesses, 86—Better die early than submit to such a. rigid system, 87—Nevertheless the cause is not to be despaired of, 88' —Abstinence when useful;—Examples—Howard—Franklin—Socra- tes. 89—Pomponius Atticus, 90—Importance of regular physicians, 91 —Remedy for common colds,-92—Concluding Remarks ; causes of fail- ure in dieting, 92—Warning, 94. LECTURE HI. Thibd Rule of Diet : Sedentary persons should not use animal food Vll more than once a day, 95—Is animal food ever necessary, 95—Effects of animal and vegetable food, 97— When a vegetable diet is best, 99— Actual practice of mankind in respect to animal and vegetable food, 99 —Supposed cure for debility, 100—Stimulants, and tonics, 101.— Fourth Rule of Diet : Literary men should take only three meals per day,p.nd no luncheons, 102—Times of these meals 102—This rule violated by irregularity in the time of meals, 103—Also by more than one hearty meal per day, 103—Also by late dinner hours, 104—Dangers from such habits, 105—Also by luncheons, 107—When shall we eat fruits and sweet meats, 108. Fifth Rule op Diet : Eat and drink slowly, 110—This rule necessa- ry for proper mastication and for preventing excess, 110—Also for in- creasing the pleasure of eating, 111—How to learn to eat slow, 111. Sixth Rule of Diet : Eat with the mind free and the feelings cheer- ful, 112—Anecdote of Sir I. Newton; Mutual civilities at table, 113— Literary discussions at table, 114. Seventh Rule of Diet : Never indulge in a full meal while much fatigued, 114—-Dr. Wallis's Remarks, 114—May a man eat. in pro- portion to his exercise ? Injurious habit of public speakers, 116. Eighth Rule of Diet : Diet should vary with the seasons, 117—The diet adapted to winter spring and summer, 117. Ninth Rule of Diet : Articles dj.ffer greatly in their nutritive and> digestible properties, 118—Materia Alimentaria, 118—The course pro- posed to be taken under this rule, 118—Reason for giving definite and perfect rules ; 1. Moral rules perfect; 2. Divine Laws perfect, 120 —3. Imperfect rules have failed ; 4. Students should not ask for loose and accommodating rules, 121.' LECTURE IV. Alcoholic and Narcotic Substances : AmAunt of alcohol in wines and spirit; Adulteration of wines, 125—Narcotic, substances ; opium and tobacco, 126—Appeal to students and other young men ; 1, On the principles of philosophy, 127—Classification of these substances, 127— Their composition : Definition of a poison, 128—Opium, tobacco, and alcohol proved to be poisonous, 129—Hence should be used only by the physician, 131—Warning against the use of opium, 132—Also against tobacco, 133—Is alcohol ever serviceable as a common drink 7 134— Does it promote digestion'?'137—Does it resist contagion? How does it operate upon the animal system 1 133—Does not naturally exist in grain, fruit, &c. How it produces strength ; How it exhausts the sys- tem, 141—And exposes it to disease; and brutifies the intellect, 142— Its besotting effect upon the moral feelings; Water the best substitute for alcohol, 145—Other substitutes, 14R ,-,.,...,., The appeal is made secondly; On the ground of self interest and prudence 119—Expense of these articles ; and their influence on the reputation, 150-Inconyenience of using them, 151—Students m pecu- liar danger of intemperance, 152.— ,,„,.,. irr , . The appeal rests thirdly; On the ground of Patriotism, 155—Amount of pecuniary loss, by these articles to the country, 155-Also of life; the sum total of loss, 156-Loss in physical and intellectual character 15b -In our social character, 158—In our moral character, 159—Our liber- ties in jeopardy, 160—The remedy— Total abstinence, 161.— ThcippPeal is made fourthly; Upon the principles ofChnsttamty 163-Scriptural argument for the use of wine and spirit, 163-Rep y a^o wine, 164-Do. as to spirit; other principle, of the gospel forbid their use ; particularly the second table of the law, 10j. Vlll LECTURE V. Liquids generally: Common drinks, 168—Their proper quantity and temperature, 169—Malt liquors, 170—Tea and Coffee, 172—Their effects on the health, 173—Medical testimonies, 174—Green and black teas, 177—Other drinks, 179—Milk, 180—Solid food ; main point in dieting, 182—Eggs and fish, 183—Poultry, Birds; flesh of quadrupeds, 184—Fat, grease, Butter, 186—Cheese, Bread, 187—Cakes, pastry, (fee, 189—Puddings, fruit, 190—Roots, Pickles, Peas, Beans, Salads, &.c., 191—Cookery, Condiments, 192—Salted provisions, 193—Aromatic condiments, concluding remarks, 194—Act without prejudice or pas- sion—The monster Intemperance described 195—How to avoid poverty, 196—How to obtain money for objects of benevolence and charity, 197 Temperance can civilize and Christianize the world, 198—The tax Christians pay to intemperance, 199. PART II. REGIMEN. LECTURE VI. Definition of Regimen : Exercise, 203—Experiment of Dr. Dwight; Case of the German scholars, 204—First rule as to exercise ; It should be regular: Exercise on the Sabbath, how to be obtained, 206—Occa- sional excursions for exercise, 208. Second Rule as to Exercise: It should not be violent or excessive, 208 —Caution in respect to Gymnastics, 209—Indolence not addressed, 210 —Quaint Rule, 211. Third Rule as to exercise : Several hours each day should be devoted to it, 211—Students violate it, 212— Its great importance, 212—How can this rule be observed in our literary institutions 1 Two plans for remov- ing the difficulty, 214. Fourth Rule : Exercise should precede, rather than follow meals, 216 —Ancient physicians and philosophers observed it, 216—Observed by the animals, 217—Best time for exercise; caution to invalids, 218— Exercise after breakfast, 219. Fifth Rule : A lively interest should be taken in exercise, 219—Natural History, 220—Gardening, 221—Plan of the ancient phycisians, 222— Anecdote of Sydenham, 223—Task exercises, 223. Sixth Rule : Exercise should be of various kinds, 224—Passive and active exercises ; Riding, 225—Walking, 226—Gymnastics, 227—Me- chanical arts, 228—Flesh brush; exercise of the voice, 229. Seventh Rule ; Be careful in ceasing from exercise, 230. Eighth Rule: Exercise no substitute for temperance in diet ; Be tem- perate or quit study, 230—Melancholy anticipations, 231—Story of LECTURE VII. Regimen: Air Pure bad, and evening air, 234-Crowded rooms ; crowded cities, 236—The Chlorides, 237. Clothing. How much of it do we need, 237-Hardening the system by exposure, 231-Best sorts of clothing; change of do.; Tight dres- Cleanliness-, Slovenly practices ; long beards ; the cravat, 240-Cold Baths, 242—Vapour and Warm Baths, 243. Evacuations: Regularity and how obtained, 244 Sleep: indiepensible,244-Best time, 245- Quantity, 246-How to ascertain the quantity; how to promote sleep, 248-Examples of early rising, 249—Proper hour of rising; students apt to forget it, 251—Ex- ercise and temperance promotive of sleep, 252—Case of Swedenborg, 253—Evening devotions a good preparation for sleep, 254—Other cir- cumstances that need attention, 255. Manners -. Their connexion with health, 256—Clownish habits among scholars, 257. The imagination and Passions -. Their effects upon the body, 258— Their curative power in certain cases, 259—Amusing calculation of a physician, 260—Examples of the power of fancy, 261—Influence of hope and joy, 262—Of Melancholy and Jealousy ; sexual attachments, 263—Love to holy objects ; its power over the physical system, 266. PART III. EMPLOYMENT. LECTURE VIII. Employment as distinguished from Regimen; different occupations compared, 269—study not unfavorable to health, 270—Opinions of wri- ters on this point, 271—Posture proper in study, 273—Posture greatly neglected among students, 274—Preparation for study, 275—The best place for study,276—Exercise and light meals before study,277—Strong excitement should not precede study ; 278—Light reading injurious to study : devotional exercises salutary, 279—What is study 1 what part of the day is best for study 1 280—Night study pernicious, 281—Professor Porson and Henry Kirk White, 282— Night study less successful than at other times, 283—Fatal practices of clergy- men, 2841—How many hours shall we study? 285—Protracted applica- tion dangerous; examples, 286—Means of preserving the eye sight, 287—Recreation from study; works of benevolence, 289—Amusements; light reading, 290—Social intercousc ; novel reading,291—Music, 293. Concluding Remarks: The system of diet and regimen, here defended, a safe one, 293—It is an antidote to poverty and crime; favorable to health and longevity, 294-A cure for chronic maladies, and a mitigation of those which are incurable, 295—A remedy for most bodily sufferings; it gives strength for privations and hardships, 296—and increases mental power, 297—It checks the passions ; and dissipates morbid feelings, 298—Fa- vorable to the religious affections, 299—It prolongs life, usefulness, and happiness, 300. PART IV. DYSPEPSY. LECTURE IX. Object of the Lecture : Knowledge concerning dyspepsy suppos- ed to be injurious, 303—Advantages of such knowledge, 301—Great de- ficiency of physiological and medical knowledge among educated men 305—Nomenclature of Nervous Complaints, 306. - Physical Effects of these complaints: Symptoms of Dyspepsy, ^US- Course which dyspeptics generally take, 309—The turning point, 311. Mental Effects of Dyspepsy : on the memory ; on the power of atten- tion and abstraction, 313-Irregularity of mental operations, ol4—Ef- fects on the Imagination, 315-Dyspeptics Dreams; Effects on the Juds-emcnt, 316—The mind in ruins, 317. Effects of these Maladies on the Heart: Despondency and Melancholy, 317-Hopc; Jealousy, 318-Misanthropy; Timidity, 319-Fancied Dang-ersf Decision; Resolution; Fortitude, 320-An icipated Evils, 321-Irritability and peevishness : The superstitious Philosopher .Ud, —Causes of Melancholy, and Irritability, 323—These feelings how far sinful, 325—^Irritability of Genius, 326. Effects of Nervous Maladies ort Society: On its physical character 327,—Examples: On its Enterprise, 328—On its Stability, 329—On its Literature, 330—Examples, 331—On its religious character, 331—The times demand a different piety, 332—Extent to which nervous mala- dies prevail, 333—The Cause : The Remedy, 334—Concluding Remarks, 335—Personal testimony, 336—Miseries of dyspepsy, 337. ADDRESS. THE PHYSICAL CULTURE ADAPTED TO THE TIMES. Proportion a Characteristic of Nature : Man violates its laws, 341—Society violates them, 342—Intellectual character of the age, 313 —Physical Education neglected, 344—Counter Efforts : The success of Pestalozzi and Fellenberg, 345—The Times demand peculiar attention to physical culture, 346. First; this is required by the pecuniary demands of benevolence: Literary labor cannot be adequately rewarded, 346—The poorest as well as the rich must be educated, 347—Plan of Self Support for indi- gent students : 1 By mechanical or agricultural labours, 348—2 By an abstemious system of diet: Water the best of all beverages, 349—Stimu- lants and Narcotics should all be abandoned : We must not parley with bad habits, 350"—One dish only at a meal, 351—This dietetic system not new, 353—It is promotive of happiness : A prophecy concerning it, 354 3 By Temperance Boarding Houses, 355—4 By school keeping, 356. Secondly : This physical Culture is demanded by the literary charac- ter of the times: Knowledge widely diffused at this day, 357—Painful example, 358—Vigorous minds usually united tq vigorous bodies : Longevity of ancient philosophers and Christians, 359—Of learned mod- erns, 360—Exceptions, 361—Feeble health favorable in some cases to literary distinction : Goldsmith—Cowper—H. K. White—Burns__By- ron—Montgomery—Pollok—Wilcox, 352—Correspondence between the Physical and intellectual Character of nations, 365. Thirdly : Eminent Professional Usefulness requires this physical Cul- ture: Among ministers especially, 365—The clerical character less reverenced than formerly : Parochial intercourse must be familiar, 366 —Clergymen must not be ignorant of common secular affairs, 367__ They need more vigorous health, 368—Dyspepsy very prevalent among them : They should depend on physical culture and not on stimulants, 369—John Wesley: Broken-down ministers, 371—Longevity, usefulness and piety promoted by physical discipline, 372—The church needs min- isters^ vigorous, bodily, mental, and moral health, 373—Motives for ef- forts in the cause of physical education, 375. APPENDIX. Note A Favorable reception given to this work, 373-Exceptions : Reply to the Reviewers, 378—Discussions concerning wines, 378—At- tempt to bring odium upon the friends of temperance : Apprehended di- vision among them, 380—Misapprehensions in respect to food 381— Argumentum ab invidia : The real difference between us stated, 382— Argumentumatuto: Pleasures of abstemiousness, Argument for excess from the cultivation of plants and the domestication of animals, 383- The true philosophy of this subject, 384-The religious argument of the Lectures passed by, 385-Cry of exaggeration, 386 ™SW™M XI Note B. Disagreement among dietetic writers : Its causes; The Brunonian System, 387—Temperance of physicians, 388. Note C. Additional examples of abstemiousness; Dr. Blair—John Wesley—A young man; Newton and Locke, 389—Franklin and Rush ; Effingham and Hender; the English Quaker; a Russian Peasant; Mr. Hor- ry, 390—Ancient Philosophers): Roman Gluttons; Frederickthe Great, 391. Note D. Effects of Excess in eating : Testimonies of the Edinburgh Review; American Quarterly Review; Of Dr. Fothergill; of a French Writer, 382—Of the Dyspeptics Monitor : Causes of the prevalence of Dys- pepsy in this country, 393~Of the Encyclopedia Americana; of Dr. Lambe; of Dr. Reid, 394—Of Sinclair, Hufeland and Carathedore, 395. Note E. Corpulency; its causes, 395—Examples; Cheyne, Corna- ro, Love, Bright, Daniel Lambert, Thomas Wood, 396. Note F. Reviewers opinion as to the quantity of food recommended in the Lectures, 397. Note G. Great importance of the second rule of diet, 397—Descrip- tion by Horace and Shakespeare of its violation, 398. Note H. Comparison between the dietetic excesses of the city and the country, 398. Note I. Boarding Companies in Amherst College; In Amherst Academy ; In Williams College, 399—At Bangor Theological Semina- ry ; At Andover Theological Seminary, 400. Note K. Dyspeptics must eat nothingthat does not agree with them, 400. Note L. Abstinence ; Case of Alexander Avery: A substitute for medicine and bleeding, 401. Note M. Cautions necessary in changing dietetic habits, 402— Should we occasionally indulge in feasting, 403—Objections to such a course, 404—Does attention to rules of diet induce dyspepsy, 406. ' Note N. Superiority of a vegetable diet for invalids: Opinion of Dr. Avery, 406—His personal experience, 408—Extracts from the writ- ings of Dr. Lambe, 408—From Hufeland : Dietetic habits of European Scholars, 409—Experience of Mr. Owen,* 410—French views of the na- ture of of dyspeptic and nervous complaints, 411—Chronic Gastritis and Enteritis : Treatment of these complaints in France, 412—Distinc- tion between the white and black meats : Effects of medicines in dys- pepsy, 413—Causes of the transient relief from stimulants : Example of the French mode of managing Dyspepsy in the case of an American Gentleman 414. , Note O. Doct. Londe's plan as to the proper time for meals : Plan of meals in the French Colleges, 420—Dyspeptics should omit supper, 421. . r , . r , , Note P. Dyspeptics must limit the quantity of their food at each meal, 422—Rules in respect to food and medicine from a private Jour- nal, 423. Note Q. The proper diet for invalid travellers, U1. Note R. Tenth Rule of Diet: never to eat till you are hungry, 425. Note S. Men unreasonably squeamish about specific dietetic rules 426—These rules do not abridge our comfort, 427—Cases of La Fayette, Mirabeau, Fox, Sheridan, Savage, Burns and Byron; Ease with which invalids can follow rules, 428—Advantages of Hygienic Rules, 4x59— Extracts from Reid and Hoffman, 430. * When this Note was written, it was supposed to refer to Mr Owen of New Harmony; but I believe it is his son : who has not to my knowl- edge, had any concern in " the Social System." XII Note T. Alcohol passes unchanged into the blood; Drunkards some- times take fire spontaneously, 430. Note U. Testimonies to the value of water as a drink, 431. Note V. Cautions in the use of cold water when heated and exhaust- ed, 433. Note W. Water the only proper substitute for spirit and wine, 433. Note X. Malt liquors generally pernicious, 434. Note Y. Tea and coffee; their merits farther discussed: Ground taken in respect to their use, 435—their nature and effects stated by Dr. Londe—and D^. Buchan, 436—ByDrs. Avery and Trotter; Green Tea poisonous; Dr Beddocs' Experiments; Does [their use promote the pleasures of social intercourse, 437—Does it help to prevent the use of alcohol, 438—Is it not idle to try to persuade men to abandon all their luxuries, 439—Tea with dinner, 440. Note Z. A milk diet farther considered, 44fJ—A correspondent's remarks : Dr. Avery's Do. 441—Case of Hanway : Fact from Hufeland : Londe's statements, 442—Of another physician: Common objection that the use of milk produces drowsiness, 433. Note A. A. Harmless Puddings, 444. Note B. B. Mistake about the use of fruit for costiveness, 414. Note C. C. Shampooing, 444. Note D. D. Rules for those who are exposed to night air, 445. Note E. E. Warm Bathing, 445. Note F. F. Londe's remarks concerning the proper time for sleep and its quantity, 146—His plan for reforming the late hours of a large city, 447. Note G. G. Ennui, a source of dyspepsy, 447. Note H. H. Self immolation—of students—of ministers, 448. Note I. I. Prevalence of Quackery, 449. Note K. K. Self supporting system at the Andover Philips Acade- my, 450—Noble Example, 451. Note L. L. Additional facts illustrative of the longevity of learned men—Living scholars, 451—Testimonies of writers concerning lon- gevity, 452. PART I. DIET. LECTURE I. Introductory Remarks. Errors in respect to the Causes and Cure of Nervous Complaints. Objections against living by rule. Objections against Dietetic Rules. Proper quantity of Food. Object of these Lectures. Gentlemen, The premature prostration and early decay of students and professional men in our country, excite a deep interest in the mind of every friend to learning and humanity. Time was, when it was generally thought, that this was but the dismal spectre of melancholy minds: but the fact is no longer doubted. Too many budding hopes have been blast- ed ; too many wrecks are strewed around us, to suffer the reality to be hid any longer. And now the solicitous inqui- ries are, what is the cause, and what is the remedy ? To answer these questions, is my object in addressing the mem- bers of this Institution. I have formerly made a slight and feeble extempore effort of this kind ; but 1 wish now to ex- amine the subject more systematically, more extensively, and more leisurely. I make no pretensions to professional knowledge concerning it; nor do I mean to invade the province of the physician. But a conflict of more than twenty years with the debility and prostration of which 1 have spoken, has compelled me to pay not a little attention to the means of resisting the foe; and taught me, experi- mentally, not a few of his insiduous and ever varying modes of attack. Whatever I have thus learned, I feel desirous of 2 14 LKCTURE I. communicating to the young gentlemen of this College, in the hope that it may tend to prevent their falling into the hands of the inexorable tyrant, to whose car I have so long been fettered : but from which, I am confident I might long ago have escaped, had some kind friend plainly point- ed out to me my situation and the means of deliverance. Let this belief be my apology for great plainness and earnestness. Prevention and cure of nervous maladies. The premature decay and prostration, of which I have spoken, result, most usually, from what i> generally called Dyspepsy. or Biliou*, or Nervous Disorders. And 1 would here state an important principle in relation to them ; viz. that essentially the same means that will cure, will prevent, these complaints. The same general rules in regard to diet, exercise, and employment, will apply both to the preven- tion and the cure. In the latter case, it only requires a more rigid and unremitting application of these rules. Prevention easier than the cure. This leads me to premise another most important fact on this subject; viz. that the prevention of nervous maladies, is vastly easier than their cure. They are not so incurable, 1 believe, as is commonly thought; Still, where they have made an impression on the constitution considerably deep, it requires so long and so strict an attention to rules, that few have the resolution and the perseverance requisite to success. And besides, when a cure has been effected, a recurrence to former habi'~, or a little extra exertion, is extremely apt to bring the system again under their power. The chief hope, therefore, lies in prevention : and on this account I feel particularly solicitous, that every young man, while yet he is tolerably free from dyspeptic habits, should be made acquainted with his dangers, that he may guard against them. NERVOUS MALADIES. •15 Ignorance a fruitful cause of nervous complaints. There can be no doubt, that we are to impute the alarm- ing prevalence of nervous complaints, in a great measure, to the ignorance that has so extensively prevailed among students, in the early stages of education, as to their causes, remedies, and means of prevention. This has been a part of education, which it has been the custom to neglect, and thus to leave the health of the young, the very foundation of all their hopes, to take care of itself. We have yet scarcely got rid of the belief, not long since so prevalent, that nervous ailments are the creatures of imagination, and that it is even unsafe to study into their nature, lest we should catch the mysterious contagion from the mere des- cription. Just as if knowledge, which, on every other subject, is the pole star of human conduct, should in this case, prove a mere ignis fatuus to bewilder and blind, while ignorance would be security and bliss. But though such absurdities are vanishing, still the means are not yet put into the hands of the student for guarding himself against the insidious approaches of ill health. He knows only, in general, that temperance and exercise are necessary for him, and that excessive study is injurious : But when he comes to apply these principles to practice, it is easy to see, that he knows so little of their details, that they are really worse than useless. He may be a glutton ; and his exercise, from the time or manner in which it is taken, may be an injury instead of a benefit; and his studies may be conducted in a way most fatal to health, while he sup- poses himself rigidly adhering to correct principles of diet and regimen. Necessity of thorough attention to this subject. Hence we see the necessity of attending to this subject thoroughly and minutely. The smallest circumstances must not be passed over; since it is such circumstances, opera- ting 6lowly, that more commonly undermine the constitution, 16. LECTURE I. than any great and sudden violation of the rules of diet and regimen. On this account, I shall be under the necessity of de- voting several lectures to this subject. If, however, any one should consider them too long and tedious, he can use the liberty which a general invitation gives him, of withdrawing whenever he pleases : since, as these lectures are wholly gratuitous and unsolicited, no one is required to be present. Difficult to convince men of the necessity of attention to health. But merely to bring the truth on this subject before the minds of students, is by no means the most diflicult part of the work to be performed. While men are in tolerable health, it is next to impossible to convince them that the minute rules which physicians prescribe for preserving it, are not puerile, inefficient, and unnecessary. To satisfy them that the continuance of their health depends upon a few ounces more or less of food at their meals; or upon an hour more or less daily, of exercise ; or upon the time of retiring to rest and rising in the morning ; or upon a little greater or less application to study; is almost to work a miracle. A feeble man may well enough attend to such minutiae ; but for the healthy to do it, is, in their estimation to make the constitution effeminate, and bring on the very disorders we would avoid. Still more difficult to persuade them to adopt these rules. Nor is it the most diflicult part of the work to convince the understanding of the necessity of attention to diet, reg- imen, and employment, for preserving the health. To per- suade a person to adopt the necessary habits, for conform- ing to these rules, is the great difficulty. Here we come di- rectly in contact with appetites and inclinations that have been indulged from infancy. Eat vastly less in quantity than you do—eat of one dish only at a meal—eat little or no an- imal food—drink much less—drink water—walk ten miles where you now go one—retire early to rest, and rise early ^iu short, be regular in all things, be temperate in all ATTENTION TO HEALTH. 17 things. Such are the rules which must be followed by him who would escape the iron reign of dyspepsy ; and it is easy to see, that they aim a separating blow at many darling ob- jects to which animal nature clings. The man will not give them up without a desperate struggle. They are his • gods ; the objects of a much sincerer worship, than the heath- en pays to his idols. Most difficult of all to persuade dyspeptics. Of all men living, it is the most difficult to bring up to the work of regularity and temperance in living, those, who are already suffering from the incipient attacks of dyspepsy. No other class of men are so liable as these, to violate the rules of temperance in their daily habits. They will trav- erse the whole country to find out and consult physicians; and will cheerfully submit to the operation of the most vio- lent emetics and cathartics : but touch their idols—try to make them give up their intemperate habits of eating, drink- ing, and study, and you will find yourself beating the air Source of this difficulty. The same feeling, in regard to the means of preserving health, prevails, to a great extent, among those, who are already in possession of it. If you recommend to them to resort at certain seasons to a course of powerful medicine or to some particular specific, they will listen to you with attention. And why '! Because you do not touch their idols. You only put them in pain for a little time, and when they have got through with their emetic or cathartic, they can gor- mandize with more relish than ever. Just as it was the cus- tom among the Romans, to prepare themselves for a feast by an emetic; a practice still continued among gluttonous men and wine bibbers. But when you require of a man the practice of daily abstemiousness in food and drink, vigorous exercise and regularity, and moderation in all his habits and employments, you oppose his strong appetites, and he will 2* 18 LECTURE U not believe your prescriptions to be necessary, because he wishes them unnecessary. Few will probably believe and practice the rules of health laid down in these lectures. On this account, it is, as I very frankly state in the outset,^ that I do not expect those who hear me, will be very ready to believe many things that I shall advance : much less do I suppose, that they will, in general, be persauded to adopt the course I shall mark out, as essential to continued health and long life. I expect, that much I shall say, will merely afford matter for witty and amusing remarks; which is the usual course men adopt on this subject to avoid the force of arguments. I do not expect to be disbelieved, because lam going to advance any novel doctrines: for I shall only at- tempt to embody and illustrate those general principles, which the ablest physicians and other distinguished writers of all ages, have advanced; and I shall take special care to fortify my main positions by the testimony of the best liv- ing physicians, in this country and in Europe. Nor do I anticipate this failure of conviction, because 1 suppose this audience to be more sceptical and obstinate than other lite- rary audiences : but simply because it is essentially like other literary audiences. And hence I have little doubt, that no small proportion of the young gentlemen, who hear me, will fall victims to nervous maladies and premature de- bility ; because a large proportion of just such individuals have fallen : that is to say, I believe many of these youths, will either go down to an early grave, or drag out a miser- able existence as confirmed dyspeptics. There is no need of such a result, I say; for, in general, these individuals might live and enjoy vigorous health to extreme old age. But I have scarcely a hope that they will believe and adopt those simple, yet rigid rules, without which they must prob- ably sink prematurely. And yet, there may be some one, or two, or three, among them, who will listen, and be per- suaded, and put in practice the essential rules of diet, regi- CAUSES AND CURE OF DYSPEPSY. 19* men, and employment, and thus be saved from the gulph. Should this happen, my labors will not be in vain, nor un- rewarded.* Loose notions as to the origin of nervous complaints. In respect to the causes of those chronic complaints to which sedentary persons are peculiarly exposed, there pre- vail very loose and inadequate notions, even among intelli- gent men. Very many mistake, by assigning as their ori- gin, only one particular and limited cause. Some will tell you, that they proceed from the neglect of exercise alone; leaving out of the account diet and employment: others impute them to the want of attention to diet, and even to the use of particular articles, such as tea, coffee, &c. Oth- ers assign the great mental efforts, to which professional men are called at this day, as their cause ; forgetful of the ponderous tomes of other centuries ; which, to say the least, demanded intense, and protracted mental labor. Others impute them, in the c:\vo things ; first, to eat only of one dish; and secondly to occupy at least- half ah hour at every meal. But I am perfectly satis- fied that this rule alone will not answer for invalids ; for any, especially, who are in the least dyspeptical, and who dr. philip's rule. 37 have that unnatural and inordinate appetite, which almost invariably accompanies such complaints. Dr. Philip re- marks, that " there is a moment when the relish given by appetite ceases; a single mouthful taken after this, oppres- es a weak stomach." " It should be observed," says anoth- er physician, "that a single mouthfuj taken after a certain quantity has been swallowed, and much before the relish given by the appetite ceases, will very often infallibly op- press a weak stomach, although the individual may not be sensible of it at the time, or for some hours after." This ravenous appetite of invalids may be reckoned among the daughters of the horseleech, mentioned by Solomon, crying give, give, and is never satisfied, until it has ruined the constitution. A man afflicted with it, will eat, and eat, even of a single dish, until he has fully established his title to the name of glutton. Without some other security, there- fore, than this rule of Dr. Philip's, such persons, and they are numerous, even among those who scarcely suspect that they are dyspeptic, will surely destroy themselves.* Nor ought it to be forgotten here, how very rare it is to find persons, even among the healthy, who retain a natural appetite. " Unfortunately," says the Journal of Health, a work conducted by some of the ablest physicians in our country, " there are but few individuals whom the luxuri- ous refinements of civilized life have not entirely deprived of this simple and unerring guide ; and who, by obeying the irregular and inordinate cravings which they experience, do not become the subjects of suffering and disease." The long use of high seasoned food and a variety of dishes, has rendered the appetites of most men artificial. Now I ask the healthy man, who sits down to a dinner of a single 3 " Now all this sounds very well in theory, but 1 unhesitatingly assert that it (Dr. Philip's rule) will not answer in practice. Gov- erned by this rule, too much will be constantly eaten, and I appeal to every dyspeptic of observation for the correctness of thia state- ment."—Dyspeptic's Monitor, p. 97. 4 38 lecture i. dish, cooked in the simplest manner, whether he will not satisfy his appetite sooner than he would, if a second, a third, and a fourth dish, rich and deliciously cooked, be brought forward ? WThich appetite, then, shall he take for his guide, as to the quantity of his food ? that which he has for one simple dish, or that which he has for half a dozen ? Does he reply, 1 will take that which I feel for the single dish as my guide: then I have few fears but he will be a temperate, abstemious liver; and 1 shall not contend with him about the soundness of his rule : But where in modern society, can he find a table spread with this patriarchal sim- plicity ? No where ; unless he spread it for himself alone. Perhaps he will say, that there is no harm in partaking of two or three dishes; and he will make it his rule to confine himself to these. But another man will say, I find that four or five do not injure me: and the glutton will say, that half a dozen are necessary for his constitution ; and even if there be a greater number, he never eats more than his natural appetite craves; for the glutton regards his appetite as nat- ural, as well as other men. Now can a rule, which thus varies with the temptation ; a rule, which is even so broad as to justify the glutton : is such a rule a safe one, particu- larly for students, who ought to be the most abstemious of men ? Dr. Johnson's rule on this subject. If I mistake not, however, there is a rule suggested by Dr. Johnson, for ascertaining the quantity of food necessary for each individual, that will come in as an important aux- iliary to either of the rules 1 have mentioned. He would have every one, particularly the nervous invalid, judge of the quantity of food and drink necessary for himself, by its effects, rather than by satiety of appetite, or by the weight. "Whenever our drink induces sensible excitement in the system," says he, " or our food is followed by an inaptitude for mental or corporeal exertion, we have transgressed the rule's of health and are laying the foundation for disease."— dr. Johnson's rule. 39 "Any discomfort of body, any irritability or despondency of mind, succeeding food and drink, at the distance of an hour, a diiy, or even two or three days, may be regarded, (other evident causes being absent,) as a presumptive proof that the quantity has been too much, or the quality injurious."—" If a few hours after his dinner he feel a sense of distention in the stomach and bowels, or any of the symptoms of indigestion which have been pointed out; ifhe feel a languor of body, or a cloudiness of the mind; if he have a restless night; if he experience a depression of spi- rits, or irritability of temper next morning, his repast [din- ner] has been too much, or improper in kind, and he must reduce and simplify till he come to that quantity and quality of food and drink for dinner which will produce little or no alteration in his feelings, whether of exhiliration immediate- ly after dinner, or of discomfort some hours after this meal. This is the criterion by which the patient must judge for himself."* To the same effect is the testimony of Cheyne. " If any man," says he, "has eat or drank so much as renders him unfit for the duties and studies of his profession, (after an hour's sitting quiet to carry on the digestion,) he has over- done."! Proper effect of food upon the system. In order fully to understand this rule of Dr. Johnson, it will be necessary to state, what probably many have never learned from their own experience, that the natural effect of eating is to give an immediate vigor to the mind and strength to the body. Hence any languor and stupidity af- ter meals, if not preceded by fatigue, show that the stomach is overloaded. Hear the testimony of Cornaro on thispoint. "My spirits are not injured by what I eat; they are only revived and supported by it. I can immediately on rising • Morbid Sensibility of the Stomach and Bowels, pp. 92 and 110. ■J- Essay on Health and Long Life, p. 38. 40 LECTURE I. from the table, set myself to write or study, and never hhd that this application, though so hurtful to hearty feeders, does me any harm. And besides I never find myself drow- sy after dinner, as a great many do : the reason is, I feed so temperately as never to load my stomach, or oppress my nerves; so that I am always as light, active, and cheerful, after dinner, as before.'** Here then is no bad criterion for a man, whatever be his constitution or health, for determining just that quantity of food and drink, which he needs to give the greatest vigor to his body and mind. He must reduce the quantity until his meals are followed by none of those effects upon the mind or the body, which have been mentioned. When he has ascertained that quantity, he should religiously adhere to it, as nearly as possible, in all situations. Use of weighing food. Of what use, then, is it to weigh out a given quantity of food and drink, according to the first rule ? The use is very great. That rule gives us the medium quantity of food and drink, (viz. from twelve to sixteen ounces of the former, and from fourteen to twenty four of the latter, per day,) which physicians have deduced from all the experi- ments that have come to their knowledge, as necessary for health, and vigor of body and mind in those of sedentary and literary habits. Now let every man just weigh out this quantity—let him take the largest if he please, and in nine cases out of ten, it will show him that he is in the dai- ly habit of eating and drinking at least twice as much as is necessary for a temperate man in like circumstances. He will be astonished to find that he eats so much more than he had supposed; and having thus learnt how to estimate by the eye, what is the proper quantity for him to eat and drink, he can lay aside the balances and judge by the eye in future with sufficient exactness. Let him immediately * Life of Cornaro, p. 27. FEARS OF STARVATION. 41 reduce his diet to this quantity, and make a trial of it for a month or two. The immediate effects will be, in most cas- es, an unexpected freedom and activity of mind after meals, and a gradual improvement of the health ; and the ultimate effects, if no fatal disorder is seated in the constitution, will be confirmed health, and an increased capacity for intellec- tual efforts, with a serene and lengthened old age, and final- ly a gentle discharge from life. This is starvation! Instead of persuading }'ou, my hearers, to adopt this course, I fear that some will exclaim, This is starvation ! this is the sure way to make me weak and puny ! I have no idea of reducing myself to a skeleton while I have an appe- tite. Lewis Cornaro is no rule for me. 1 must eat and drink for myself, without his balances or his spectacles. If the person who makes such an answer is in vigorous health, I shall not stop to argue the subject with him ; al- though perfectly convinced that by taking this first grand step in the course of temperance, he would add from thirty to fifty years to his life, and much to his happiness. But if he is a person of feeble health, already attacked by ner- vous complaints, 1 would earnestly entreat him to pause a moment before he resolves to reject the only method by which he can hope to regain his lost vigor, and retain it. Are you sure that sixteen ounces of solid food and twenty- four of liquid per day, would be starvation? How do you kuoiv it? Have you tried it for any considerable length of time ? Very many others have tried it through life, and found it sufficient, nay, most of them found it too much for them : will you pay no deference to so many fair experi- ments? Suppose that for a time j'ou should be compelled to suffer not a little from a craving appetite, which having been educated to receive an enormous load, knows not why it may not be indulged still, to the same extent? Will r feeling of hunger, when not excessive, compare with the pains of disease, or with the tormenting uneasiness of dys- 4* 42 LECTURE I. pepsy? Can the suffering be compared to the immense good that will result to you ?—health,—vigor,—long life ? " If we attentively consider the last scenes of most people," says an eminent physician, " and how it is that they die, and with what symptoms they expire ; we shall constantly find it to be of the too much, the too high, or too hot; and not of the too little, or too cool."* And yet you fear star- vation, if allowed no more than what has supported many scores of men to extreme old age. Quantity of food necessary to support life. How much food do you suppose is necessary to the sup- port of life ? Let physicians give the answer. " The quan- tum contained in two eggs, some say one, administered each day," observes a medical writer, " will keep a man alive and pretty well for six months."! " No person," says an- other, " is in danger of starvation, who can take a pint, nay, only half a pint, of good gruel in the twenty four hours."! Is there then probably much danger of starvation upon a quantity five or six times larger than either of these ?|| The quantity too small for muscular and mental vigor. But if not actual starvation, you reply, that the quantity, of which I have spoken, is not sufficient to give the great- est muscular vigor to the bodjr, and activity and energy to * Cheyne's Natural Method of Curing Diseases, p. 73. f Southern Review, August, 1827, p. 244. X Johnson on Morbid Sensibility, &c. p. 112. || Extract of a letter from a lady in Vassalboro"1, Maine, dated March, 1830.—A lady in this place reduced her diet to a piece of cracker as large as a cent, and the juice of a piece of beef an inch in size, and half a tea cup of milk and water. This was a meal ; and she was allowed four such a day, and not a particle of any thing between her meals. That little digested,and yielded a little strength. Persevering a few months in this way, she was raised from an almost hopeless state, to very good health ; but it was tedious, and she suf- fered exceedingly from hunger and thirst. FEARS OF STARVATION GROUNDLESS. 43 the mind. A person confined to so small a quantity, will become weak and puny, incapable of great bodily or men- tal efforts. And how do you know this ? Have you ever fairly tried the experiment? I suppose, indeed, that when a person first reduces the quantity of his food so much as must generally be done, to come down to rigid temperance, he will, for a time, feel a considerable degree of faintness, accompanied with a sense of weakness. And it is for pre- cisely the same reason that the drunkard, who abandons his cups, feels a depressing sense of faintness and weakness. For too much, or too hearty food stimulates the digestive organs, and the whole system, indeed, as well as ardent spirit. And the withdrawing of this stimulus, in either case, pro- duces similar effects. But a perseverance in such a diet for a few weeks or months, will, I am persuaded, satisfy a man that his strength of body and mind have gradually and greatly increased. Indeed, it is only because I believe that the quantity of food I have mentioned, will give to sedenta- ry men the greatest amount of strength of which their bo- dies are capable, while their habits are sedentary, that I urge such to confine themselves to it. The proofs on which I rest this belief are the testimony of able physicians and of others who have faithfully tried the experiment. Testimony of Cheyne. " There is nothing more ridiculous," says Cheyne, " than to see tender, hysterical, and vaporish people, perpetually complaining, and yet perpetually cramming; crying out, they are ready to sink into the ground, and faint away, and yet gobbling down the richest and the strongest food, and highest cordials, to oppress and overlay them quite."* Of another physician. Says another physician, " The}' who love to eat, will use ingenious arguments to convince themselves that they re- * Essay on Health and Long Life, p- 115. 44 LECTURE I. quire more food than is thus allowed them. They will de- claim against starvation and their friends will join them; they will complain that it produces faintness, and weakness and renders them unfit for the active duties of life. This is all delusion, all willful self deception. More nourishment and strength are imparted by six ounces of well digested food, than by sixteen imperfectly concocted."* Opinion of Dr. Johnson. "There is a greal error committed every day," says Dr. Johnson, " in flying to medicine at once when the functions of the stomach and liver are disordered, the secretions un- natural, and the food imperfectly digested. Instead of ex- hibiting purgatives day after day to carry off diseased secre- tions, we should lessen and simplify the food, in order to prevent the formation of these bad secretions. In doing this we have great prejudices to overcome. The patient feels himself getting weaker and thinner; and he looks to nourishing food and tonics for a cure. But he will gener- ally be disappointed in the end by this plan. From four ounces of gruel every six hours, he will under many states of indigestion, derive more nutriment and strength than from half a pound of animal food and a pint of wine."-" I have known dyspeptic patients gain flesh and strength on half a pint of good gruel thrice in the twenty four hours." —" The invalid will acquire a degree of strength and firm- ness not fullness, of muscle on this quantity, (half a pound of food at dinner,) which will in time surprise his friends as well as himself."! Says another physician, " a small quantity of food does not only ward off disease and prolong life, it likewise pre- serves the bodily strength ; and it will, therefore, be found universally, that, (cceteris paribus) those aged persons who consume the least food in moderation, are the strongest." 0 Southern Review, August, 1829, p. 224. f Morbid Sensibility, Sec, BOXERS--HOW TRAINED, 45 Training of pugilists. The practice of training men for pugilistic combats, * though most reprehensible in a moral point of view, has thrown much light on the subject under consideration. The rules these trainers adopt to bring the pugilist, " to the top of his condition," as it is called, that is, to give him the greatest possible strength, are essentially the same in re- spect to diet, as those which I have laid down ; although a rather larger quantity of food is allowed than is necessary for literary men, because these pugilists constantly exercise in the open air. The effect of this training is usually, to reduce the weight, especially if the individual at all inclines to corpulence, but wonderfully to improve the strength, symmetry, and beauty, of the corporeal frame. The train- ed boxer is no longer liable to dizziness from the heaviest blows: his lungs are surprisingly strengthened, so that he can hold his breath longer, and recover it sooner, after it is in a measure lost: his appetite becomes keen, so that not the least uneasiness results from food : his bones become so strong that they are with difficulty broken; and his nerves are so remarkably invigorated, that it is said, no trained person was ever known to become paralytic, or to suffer long from nervous depression. Dr. Jackson, the physician already referred to, who by living on a spare diet, of vegetable food only, without ar- dent spirit or wine, " wore out two armies in two campaigns," asserts that soldiers " endure labor and hardship better on a simple and spare diet, with tea for drink," than by full feeding, with ardent spirit.* To all these authorities, I could add that of the individ- uals already mentioned, who through a long course of years found a very small amount of food abundantly sufficient for preserving body and mind in the utmost vigor. And is all this testimony to be set aside as of no weight, while he who * American Almanac for 1830, p. 129. 46 LECTURE I. sets it aside, has nothing but his own feelings to oppose to it? If you say that you have made the trial and it has fail- ed ; 1 wish to enquire, in the first place, did you reduce the quantity of food until every unpleasant feeling, that follows excessive eating, disappeared? Did you reduce it as low as Cornaro's standard, viz. twelve ounces of solid food per day ? Did you persevere in this course for months ? Did you at the same time exercise as much as before in the open air? Were your habits in every other respect abstemious and regular ? And finally, did you live wholly on a vegeta- ble diet ? If you cannot answer all these questions in the affirmative, then your experiment was not a fair one, and will weigh nothing against the decided testimony which 1 have exhibited on the other side. Bad effects of eating a little too much. But perhaps some one will say, that he cannot believe any very bad effects will result from eating a few ounces more than is necessary for perfect health and vigor, and, therefore, all this parade about eating and drinking is un- necessary nicety. He cannot believe that men would suf- fer any more from eating and drinking, until their natural appetite is satisfied, than the brute creation does, whose hunger is their only standard as to quantity. In short, he conceives the evil against which I am contending, is rather imaginary than real, and that a general adoption of the rules for which I plead, would have but little effect in im- proving health, or lengthening life. Case of Cornaro. As to the effect of eating too much, even in very small quantity, we have a very instructive instance in Cornaro. His friends, and physicians too, persuaded him at the age of 75, against his judgement, to increase the quantity of his solid food, two ounces, and tts liquid food as much. " This increase," says he " had, in eight days" time, such an effect upon me, that from being remarkably cheerful and brisk, I slight bxcesses in diet. 47 began to be peevish and melancholy, and was constantly so strangely disposed, that I neither knew what to say to others, nor what to do with myself. On the twelfth day, I was attacked with a violent pain in my side, which held me twenty two hours, and was followed by a violent fever which continued thirty fire days, without giving me a mo- ment's respite." This was the only sickness with which he was visited, from the time he entered upon his temper- ate course, till his death; a period between sixty and seventy years. Of Parre and Cheyne. Old Parre, as already mentioned, lost his life by increasing the quantity, and changing the quality of his food ; and Cheyne was visited anew with his former complaints, as soon as he relaxed a little in his abstemious diet. Of Lloyd. The following instance is taken from an old medical wri- ter, in his own words. " Mr. John Bill related too, that Richard Lloyd, born two miles from Montgomery, was aged one hundred and thirty- three years within two months; a strong, straight, upright man; wanted no teeth, had no grey hair, it all being of a darkish brown color ; could hear well, and read without spec- tacles ; fleshy and full cheeked, and the calves of his legs not wasted and shrunk; he could talk well. He was of a tall stature ; his food was bread, cheese, and butter, for the most part; and his drink, whey, buttermilk, or water, and nothing else ; but being by a neighboring gentlewoman per- suaded to eat flesh meat, and drink malt liquor, soon fell off and died. He was a poor laboring man in husbandry." I cannot withhold the very judicious remarks of the Edi- tors of the Journal of Health upon this case : " The good lady above mentioned, no doubt thought that this old man ought to have more nourishing and strength- ening food than what had so long preserved him in excel- 48 LECTURE I. lent health. It is thus with the world generally. In the very face of the plainest experience, people force their nos- trums, and their good dishes, and nice cordials, on a com- plaining friend, who, becoming worse under this kindness, is after a while transfered to the hands of the doctor, as if it were in the power of any man, however learned and skilful, to remove by the aid of a few drugs, the effect of years of sensual indulgences." Nor can I neglect to give the concluding remarks of the original relator of the facts—addressed to his cotempora- ries : " A hundred examples," says he, " of this kind, may be found to confirm the doctrine of temperance and cool diet, as necesary to the prolongation of life: but if an angel from heaven should come down and preach it, one bottle of Bur- gundy would be of more weight with this claret-stewed ge- neration, than ten tuns of arguments to the contrary, though never so demonstrable and divine." Remote effects of eating too much rarely understood. Such facts conclusively show the danger of injuring.the health by even a slight excess in the use of food. But men do not perceive the bad effects of over feeding, because in general they are ignorant of their character, and confine their attention to the more immediate effects instead of looking at those which are remote. They generally sup- pose, that if the stomach, or any internal organ, be oppress- ed, or disordered, pain will be produced in the organ itself: whereas, the uneasiness and pain are most commonly in some other part, not unfrequently a remote part of the bo- dy. And oftentimes food, which ultimately does the man a great deal of injury, gives to the stomach a transient re- lief, just as piling a large quantity of wood upon a fire, seems for a time almost to extinguish it. Thus, the dyspeptic is oppresed with a sense of gnfwing, and faintness at the sto- mach, previous to his meals. The immediate consequence of eating to satiety, is, to remove this uncomfortable sensa- EFFECTS OF OVER EATING. 49 tion, and to produce a glow in the system, which, at first, is not disagreable. Hence such a man concludes that his hear- ty meal has done him good True, he feels an indisposition to bodily or mental effort, and perhaps drowsiness and sleep come over him for two or three hours ; but this he consid- ers as no bad omen : indeed, his nap refreshes him for the time, and although the thought may enter his mind, that perhaps he has eaten rather too much, should headach or heartburn come on, yet by a cup of tea, or a little exercise, he gets rid of these, and fancies that when he has forced the food from his stomach, no farther bad effects will result from a little excess in quantity. Should he have disturbed sleep and restlessness, the nightmare, or unpleasant dreams, the following night, he scarcely thinks of referring the mis- chief to the dietetic excesses of the preceding day. His appetite is good the next day, and he takes the same course, viz. to eat as much as his stomach craves: and although overloaded nature raises those signals of distress which I have mentioned, he is ignorant of their meaning, until after a hw weeks, or months, when gloom and jealousy enshroud the mind, as forerunners of the storm that is about to burst. Yet the man never thinks of imputing these feelings to his excess in eating, although, in fact, they are the direct conse- quence ; and, indeed,I am more and more convinced,thatmost of the depression of spirits, that accompanies nervous com- plaints, might be prevented by rigid abstemiousness in diet. Another remote consequence of eating too much, is un- easiness and irritability of temper, especially in the morn- ing ; which most men never regard as having such an ori- gin. " The greatest gluttons we ever beheld, (except one,)" says a medical reviewer,* " were meagre men, whose tempers became so crabbed, that even their children have wished them dead. That these are real dyspeptics is proved by their cure being practicable, if they are subject- ed to the same regimen which dyspeptics require." * Southern Review, August, 1829, p. 128. 50 LECTURE I. Curious example. Dr. Johnson mentions a curious case illustrative of this effect of excessive eating upon the mind. He had a hypo- chondriacal patient, who " was every second day affected with such an exasperation of his melancholy forebodings, that he did nothing but walk about his room, wringing his hands, and assuring his servants that the hand of death was upon him, and that he could not possibly survive more than a few hours. Under these gloonny impressions he would refuse food and drink, and, in fact, give himself up for lost. The succeeding sun, however, would find him quite an al- tered man. The cloud had broken away ; hope was re- kindled ; and the appetite for food and drink was indulged ad libitum. Next morning all would be despair, and nothing but death could be thought of. So he went on, as regular as light and darkness. But if on the good day, he could be kept on a very small portion of food, and the bottle unopen- ed, the next would be good also. This, however, could sel- dom be done, for as soon as he felt a respite from his mise- ries, procured by one day's abstinence, he returned to his indulgences, and again irritated his stomach and bowels, and through them reproduced the blue devils in the mind."* Final result of excessive eating. After nature has thus sent out for some time the groans, which a too heavy load extorts from her, and the man heeds them not, but continues to pile on more and more, she re- fuses to proceed ; and deluges him with all the pains of a severe dyspeptic attack. He flies to the physician for help. The emetic or cathartic usually relieves the burdened and clogged powers of digestion ; the appetite gradually returns; it is again indulged to excess, and the same scene is acted over again, and the morbid secretions are formed, and again removed by medicine. But each successive time, the slo- * Morbid Sensibility, &c. p. 105. DIGESTION. 51 mach and bowels become weaker, and disease gets more and more firmly hold of the constitution. If the man dis- covers soon enough that the root of his whole difficulty is his intemperance in eating, he may, if he will, save him- self from morbid secretions and the physician's hands, by rigid abstemiousness. But if otherwise, organic disease gradually supervenes and closes his days. Process of digestion. When food is taken into the stomach it is converted into a pulpy mass, called chyme. If the quantity be too great, of course this process is but imperfectly performed; as the gastric juice is not sufficient for the whole work. The con- sequence is, that imperfect chyme will make imperfect chyle, the second state into which food passes ; and imper- fect chyle will produce imperfect blood ; and imperfect blood will produce morbid secretions;—the blood will be too much in quantity, and poor in quality : and hence the system will be but imperfectly nourished. Hence, too, we see why a small quantity of food affords more nourishment than a quantity too large, viz. because the former is per- fectly and the latter imperfectly, converted into flesh and blood. Nature must make a great effort to get rid of the superabundance with which she is deluged. Hence she will force through the pores of the skin, fetid sweats, and load the alimentary canal and every part of the system, with every kind of morbid secretions. We see hence, why the men, who gormandize most, are generally pale and emaci- ated : though sometimes the excess of nourishment is con- verted into fat, which seems generally to be a morbid se- cretion. Can we, like the brutes, take appetite for a guide ? As to man's following the example of the brutes, by eat- ing as much as the appetite craves, it will not help the ar- gument much to take the domesticated animals for a stand- ard : for their imitation of man, or some thing else, has giv- 52 LECTURE I. en them an appetite somewhat too voracious; as every farmer knows, whose cornfield, or granary, has been broken open by his horse or ox. And as to the wild animals, they cannot properly be considered as examples, until man shall get rid of his factitious appetite, and will consent to live in the open air like them, and abjure all mental efforts ; in short, to become a brute in every thing but shape, which according to Cicero, is a genuine transformation : Quid enim interest, utrum ex homine se quis conferat in belluam; an homi- nisfigura immanitatem gerat belluae ?* And were this done, I think that even the voracious dyspeptic would not judge it safe for a being, who was once a student, to imitate the musquito, that quietly resigns life for the pleasure of suck- ing its fill; nor even the Siberian glutton, which, though not much larger than a dog, was not satisfied with thirty pounds of flesh per day.! Is the evil contended against, imaginary ? But the evil against which I contend, is thought to be im- aginary. Let us hear some testimony on this point. It is a prevalent opinion, that persons of rather feeble health, especially such as are on the gaining hand, should take food in generous quantity, and of nourishing quality, in order to gain strength ; and hence their kind friends will tempt their craving appetites, as much as possible, by food nicely cooked, and by persuasion ; and very commonly they yield to the solicitation, but rarely without reaping the bit- ter results. Case of Clement. To this course, the amiable and pious Clement, an English youth, whose name is probably familiar to some of you, fell a sacrifice. At the age of eighteen,his health declined rapidly, with symptoms of a consumption. But by rigid adherence to a * Cic. de. off. L. 3—20. f Smellie's Philos. Nat, Hist. p. 150, EXCESS IN EATING. 53 milk and vegetable diet, without spirit, or wine, he, in a short time, regained his health. But returning to his former liberal diet, his disorder returned also, with giant power, and soon laid him in the grave,—the real victim of intem- perance ; though nothing was farther from his thoughts, or those of his friends, than that he was intemperate* Of Mr. Vinall It is well known that a voracious appetite generally ac- companies a recovery from fevers ; and who has not known instances of fatal relapses by indulging it! It was the mis- fortune of Mr. Vinall, one of the first missionaries to the Osages, to be cast on the care and kindness of a Christian lady, after a severe sickness. With the best intentions, she plied him with rich and tempting food. He partook of it immoderately, and thus brought on an attack of apoplexy, which terminated his life.! Do men generally eat too much ? As it respects invalids, then, the evils of excessive eating are not imaginary. How is it with mankind in general? " There are few," says the author of Sermons to the rich and studious, " who do not eat one third or a fourth more than is necessary to support them."J " In general," says Dr. Franklin, " mankind, since the improvement of cookery, eat about twice as much as nature requires."|| " We may safely take it for granted, after long observation," says an American medical reviewer, " that almost every man, wo- man, and child in this country, habitually eats and drinks twice as much every day, on a moderate estimate, as is nec- essary."§ • Daggett's life of Cornaro, &c. p. 59. y Daggett's life of Cornaro, p. 51. t Do. p. 48. || Do. p. 42. $ Southern Rev. Aug. 1829, p. 221. 5* 54 LECTURE 1. Such I believe is the almost unanimous opinion of all who are qualified to judge of this subject. Now what is the effect of such enormous gluttony ? Let the answer be well considered by those who imagine I am fighting with shadows. "Most of all the chronical diseases, the infirmities of old age, and the short periods of the lives of Englishmen," said Dr. Cheyne, more than a hundred years ag-o, " are owing to repletion."* " I tell you honestly," says Mr. Abernethy, " what I think is the cause of the complicated maladies of the human race : it is their gormandizing, and stuffing, and stimulating their digestive organs to an excess, thereby producing nervous disorders and irritation. The state of their minds is an- other grand cause ; the fidgeting and discontenting yourself about that which cannot be helped ; passions of all kinds— malignant passions, and worldly cares pressing upon the mind, disturb the cerebral action and do a great deal of harm."! " It is the opinion of the majority of the most distinguish- ed physicians," says another medical writer, " that intem- perance in diet, destroys the bulk of mankind : in other words, that what is eaten and drank, and thus taken into the habit, is the original cause of by far the greater number of diseases which afflict the human race."J Acute diseases often the consequence of intemperance in food. Is such decided unbiassed testimony as this to go for nothing? Will any one still contend that attention to diet is unnecessary? that the monster who is cutting down "the bulk of mankind" is a chimera of the brain ? The truth is, God has so constituted the human frame,that if properly trea- ted, it will endure to old age, and rarely, if ever, be subject * Essay on Health and Long Life, p. 32. f Southern Rev. Aug. 1829. p. 215. t Sure Methods &c. p. 78. HEALTHY LOOKING MEN. 55 to the attacks of disease. Disease,in a plurality of cases, is the consequence of intemperance in diet; that is, excess in eating or drinking. A person dies of a fever, or of apoplexy, or other violent disorder,and men generally consider it as his unavoidable fate: whereas,in the majority ofinstances,itis the consequence of long continued excess in diet. Had the man followed the rules on thissubject,which experience has point ed out as safe, probably he would have escaped the acute dis- ease that ended his days, and in extreme old age, have sunk by mere decay.* But most people regard a full habit, a florid countenance, and strength of muscle as sure marks of health. Whereas, in nine cases out of ten, such a person cannot endure half as much hardship as a lean and seemingly feeble man : And the reason is, that the full habit of the former, is commonly the effect of excess, either in eating or drinking, and the powers of life have been urged on so fast, that they give way to comparatively slight shocks.! This vigour, indeed holds out for a time; but it is by drawing upon the powers of life, through the stimulus of rich and strong food, or drink : and thus the constitution is preparing to give way to the first attack of a violent disor- der. "Look," say those who decry abstemiousness, " look at Mr.___________: he does not live like an ascetic : What do you think, Doctor, of his robust frame and florid face." No answer ! After the lapse of a few years, perhaps months, from the date of this question, the doctor is solicited to visit this model of health, whom he finds deprived of the use of one side of his body,—jokes no longer come trippingly on his tongue ; it feebly and tremblingbly articulates the common- est replies."}: Intemperance in diet defined- I would not be understood as saying, that every person who at all exceeds 12 or 16 ounces of solid, and 14 or 24 of liquid food per day, is an intemperate liver. But 1 do say, • See Note D. t See Note E. t Journal of Health vol. 1. p. 18. 56 LECTURE I. that he who eats or drinks more than is necessary to give to the body and mind the greatest degree of health and vigor, is intemperate* This is essentially the rule given by Cicero —" tantum cibi et potionis adhibendum, ut reficiantur vires, non opprimantur." And I do firmly believe, on the best testimony, that scarcely any sedentary or literary man, who will make a fair trial, will find that he can much exceed the quantity mentioned above, and keep within the bounds of temperance.! Appeal to the friends of temperance. Need any literary youth, therefore, think it strange, that I press this subject with great earnestness upon the atten- tion of this audience. If I cannot persuade you, my hear- ers, to adopt some constant rule, as to the quantity of your food and drink, all my efforts, in respect to other parts of diet and regimen will be almost in vain. The corner stone will be wanting, and the superstructure can never stand. I appeal, therefore, to the friends of temperance, and entreat them to extend the principles, which they have so nobly adopted and defended, in regard to ardent spirit, to food also. If you admit that man to be intemperate, who uses ardent spirit, when it is unnecessary for health and vigor of body and mind, how can you consider him in any other light, who eats more than is necessary for the same pur- pose ? You very reasonably suspect that the man, who will not even make the trial of living for a time without spirit, to prove whether it is necessary, you justly suspect that he fears he shall be convinced that it is unnecessary ; and that he is inordinately attached to it ? Am I unreason- able, then, in entertaining a similar suspicion in regard to * " Intemperance is excess of any kind, and is applied to every function and action of both body and mind."—Journal of Health vol. 1. p. 205. " Temperance, is moderation in things not hurtful, and abstinence from those which are."—Pierson's Address, p. 4. t See Note F. APPEALS. 57 you, if you will not take the pains to ascertain whetheryou are not intemperate eaters ? And is intemperance in drink- ing any more criminal in the sight of God, than intemper- ate eating? or is it less injurious in its ultimate effects upon the individual ? Who shall decide between the guilt and the misery of the drunkard and the glutton? Extend, I say, your principles of temperance to your whole diet, or else abandon them altogether. Appeal to literary men. As literary men—as those who intend to rise high in the learned professions—I call on you to make trial of the prin- ciples I have advocated. If you are intemperate eaters, you will as certainly blunt the powers of your intellect, and fail of accomplishing any thing noble in literature and sci- ence, as if you were intemperate drinkers. How do you know but you are already ignorantly intemperate in food? Why shrink from ascertaining the fact ? Of all men in the world, you ought to be the last to become slaves to appetite. You have food to eat of which the ignorant multitude know nothing. Let them riot, if they will, in luxurious living: but you have chosen a nobler lot, and provided you have food enough to repair the wastes of nature, and sustain the health and vigor, you ought to despise the low ambition of those who live only to eat; and you should preserve a phi- losophical indifference as to the luxuries of the table. While ambrosia and nectar are within your reach, do not, I beseech you, become companions with swine on the dung hill. Appeal to Christians. I call on you as Christians, also, to reduce the quantity of your food to the standard of temperance. I see not a few here, who have, as I believe, sincerely devoted themselves to the service of God : and who desire to do as much as they are capable of doing, for his cause. And it ought not 58 LECTURE I. to be concealed, that such young men have oftener failed in their health, than almost any other class, as the records of the American Education Society will show. Most of them, having been accustomed to active habits before com- mencing study, and beginning rather late, make great efforts to advance rapidly : but the change is too great for the constitution. Dyspepsy creeps on, with its unnatural appetite, and not knowing but they may indulge it, they not unfrequently are compelled to abandon their object. But in nine cases out of ten, rigid temperance and exercise would have saved them. Let not, then, such a young man talk of his desire to do all the good he can in the world, if he is not willing to abandon his intemperate habits at the table. Let him not talk of the Christian ministry, until he can learn to live as abstemiously as a philosopher. For the bible tes- tifies, Every man that strivethfor the mastery, is temperate in all things. I do not contend for excessive and hurtful ab- stinence ; this is quite as injurious as repletion : but 1 do plead for a reduction to the standard of health, which in most cases, as we have seen, will be a reduction of nearly one half. I say that every Christian is accountable to God for exceeding this standard ; and 1 tremble for him who persists in following his voracious appetite, instead of the rules of temperance. Ground of hope. In conclusion, let me say, that I have little hope of the thorough and effectual reformation of any one, in this re- spect, who does not look to a higher source of strength and resolution than can be found in himself. But let him take the course that Cornaro did, and lie may hope to be trium- phant-—" I must confess," says he, " that it was not with- out great reluctance that I abandoned my luxurious way of living. 1 began with praying to God that he would grant me the gift of temperance ; well knowing that he always hears our prayers with delight. Then considering, that DIVINE AID NECESSARY. 59 when a man is about to undertake any thing of importance, he may greatly strengthen himself in it by often looking forward to the great pleasures and advantages that he is to derive from it: just as the husbandman takes comfort under his toils, by reflecting on the sweets of abundance; and as the good Christian gladdens in the service of God, when he thinks on the glory of that service, and the eternal joys that await him; so I, in like manner, by reflecting on the innu- merable pleasures and blessings of health, and beseeching God to stregthen me in my good resolution, immediately en- tered on a course of temperance and regularity." LECTURE. II. Diet, continued. Second Rule of Dietetics. Attempt to dis- prove it. Great Excesses in eating, in this country. The rule peculiarly necessary for Invalids. Examples for their encouragement. Abstinence. Cold or catarrh. Concluding Remarks. Second Rule of Dietetics. At the last Lecture, Gentlemen, I confined myself solely to preliminary remarks, and to the illustration, defence and application of the first rule of dietetics, which requires that the quantity of food, taken at any one meal, should be very moderate. If any apology was due for dwelling upon this point so long, and urging it so strenously, it exists in the vast importance of that rule; lying, as it does, at the very foundation of the whole subject. Yet the second rule, to which I proceed without preface, approximates in import- ance to the first; especially when we view the two in con- nexion.* It may be thus briefly expressed : The less variety of food and drink at any one meal, the better. First Reason for the rule. * This rule is as old as Hippocrates, the cotemporary of Socrates, and the father of medicine. Td y«^ avofioia aru- aia^ei, says he : and the very sound of this verb, axaataUi, represents not inaptly, the commotion produced in the stom- ach by the introduction of a variety of incongruous substan- ces together. This is, indeed, one of the principal reasons • Note G. NATURE OF DIGESTION. 61 for the rule under consideration. The gastric juice has not the power of dissolving a mixture of various substances, so perfectly as a single one : indeed, this is the case with all solvents, even the most powerful: though we ought not probably to consider the action of the gastric juice upon food, as a mere chemical solution. The principle of life is so intimately concerned in the process, and so modifies it, that the term solution does not fully describe it The pro- cess of digestion seems to be partly chemical, partly me- chanical, and partly mysterious. Hence Dr. Hunter face- tiously remarks, in his Lectures ; " Some will have it, that the stomach is a mill: others that it is a fermenting vat; others again that it is a stew pan; but in my view of the matter, it is neither a mill, a fermenting vat, nor a stew pan —but a stomach, gentlemen, is a stomach." Sbakspeare has a better discription of it *' It is the storehouse, and the shop Of the whole body. True it is, That it receives the general food at first : But all the cranks and offices of man, The strongest nerves and small inferior veins, From it receive that natural competence Whereby they live.1' Facts accord with the rule. But though we may not perfectly understand the whole rationale of digestion, we do know, because experience teaches us, that the more simple the food is, which the stomach receives—that is, the fewer the kinds are, that are mixed together in it, the more easily does digestion go on, and the less is the system affected by the operation. No principle in medicine is more clearly established than this; nor have dietetic writers failed, in any age, to proclaim and apply it, however little it has been heeded by men. Attempt to disprove the rule. A curious argument, however, has of late been brought 6 62 LECTURE II. forward, by the lovers of variety in diet, to prove that it is as easy for the stomach to digest the most compound mix- ture of substances, as a single one. Chemists have shown that all vegetable substances consist essentially of carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen; and the same elements enter into the composition of all animal substances, with the addition only of nitrogen. Hence, then, all vegetable and animal food consists of these four simple substances, oxygen, hydro- gen, carbon and nitrogen. Whether a man, therefore, takes- one, or twenty kinds of food, these four, and only these, will be present; and why, then, will it be harder for the stom- ach to digest twenty varieties of food, than one variety? If all the compound vegetable and animal substances, ta- ken as diet, were decomposed into their elements before eating, this argument would be a sound one : for then, there would be uniformly but three or four substances on which the gastric juice would operate. But in order that this ar- gument should hold in the present case, it must be shown, that all compound substances, made up of the same elements in different proportions, are dissolved and decomposed with equal ease; since solution, or decomposition, appears to be the result of the operation of the digestive powers. Now every chemist knows, that there is an immense difference in the ease with which solution and decomposition are ef- ected ; even in those cases where substances differ only in the proportion in which the same elements are combined. The more of variety, therefore, that is introduced into the stomach, the more burdened will be the powers of digestion. Hence this specious argument amounts to nothing. What would 30U think of the man, who should invite you to partake of a collation of fruit and wine, and then present you only with charcoal and water, giving as a reason that these latter substances were composed of carbon, oxygen and hydrogen, and that the same elements, and no more, enter into the composition of fruit and wine; and, that there- fore, the difference between them is merely imaginary. You would hardly thank him for his chemistry. VARIETY OF DISHES. 63 But this case does not require the aid of chemistry, to show the fallacy of the argument adduced. The expe- rience of physicians, and indeed, of almost all other agrees in the statement, that one article of food, taken at a meal, digests more easily and much quicker, than a mixture of several. This, then, is a sufficient ground for establishing the rule of diet, which recommends, as best of all, to confine ourselves at each meal, to a single dish. Second reason for the Rule. A second, and even more important reason for this rule, is the strong temptation that is presented by variety in food, to exceed the bounds of temperance in quantity. This is, indeed, the original source of nine tenths of the gluttony in the world. The state of the case is just this. A man usu- ally eats of the first sort of food presented to him at the ta- ble, until he begins to feel as if he had eaten enough, and, indeed, he has eaten enough; and then is the lime for him to leave the table. But a second sort solicits his appetite, and such is the wonderful influence of the temptation over the stomach, as to produce a desire for the second kind of food, full as strong as for the first. The second sort is eaten, until a sense of satiety begins to be felt, which, however, does not usually happen till nearly enough of the second dish has been taken to suffice for a meal. The third variety attracts the appetite with nearly as great power, if cooked tempt- ingly ; and even a fourth, or a fifth, or more, will not be set before the gourmand in vain. And it happens in this case, that the more indigestibly these sorts are prepared, the more filled up with gravies, and sweets, the mere power- ful is their influence over the appetite. The truth is, the quantity of food that men eat, is nearly in a direct ratio to the number of sorts that are set before them: that is, two sorts will double the quantity ; three sorts, treble it, and so on. ' Or, if towards the close of the repast, the pastry, and cake, and fruit, are not taken iaso large quantity, their more indigestible nature makes up for the deficiency. 64 LECTURE II. What is meant by a single dish. But what do I mean, when I speak of one sort, or one dish ? Is it meat alone, or bread alone, or butter, or salt, or pepper alone. By no means. I understand by the term, one of the more substantial articles, included in every meal, as bread, or meat, with the usual condiments and accompan- iments ; such as butter, salt, sugar, potatoes, &c: that is, such of these articles, as a person chooses to eat along with the bread, or the meat, his principal article. But if any of these, or other articles, such as pudding, cake, &c. are in- troduced, after the removal of the principal articles of the first dish, it constitutes what I call a second sort, or a second dish. Hence it appears, that what I understand by one dish; or sort, may include several varieties of food ; for example —milk and bread—bread and butter—meat, bread, potatoes, and salt, &c. It is presenting another dish in a new form, after finishing one of these, that I have mentioned, which tempts the appetite and does the mischief. If a man would mix his five or ten sorts together at the table, just as they are mixed in the stomach, after eating, it is not probable that he would eat much more of the whole, than of any one of them taken separately. I should hardly object indeed, to hav- ing every compound considered as a single dish, which was mixed together before it was eaten : though'certainly the less compound such a dish is, the less oppressive will it prove to the stomach. But a man will not eat as much of such a mixture, by any means, as he would, if the same articles were presented to him one after another; especially if a little modified by cookery. Great intemperance in eating in the U. States. If the preceding view of this subject be just, how im- mense is the intemperance in food, and the gluttony of our land! In other countries, you will undoubtedly find exam- ples of greater excess of this kind among the higher class- es of society : but probably in no other part of the world, EXCESSES IN EATING IN THE U. STATES. 65 have the great mass of the people the means of furnishing their tables with so great a variety, as among us.* Even the poor are usually able to have their second and third dishes. So that probably there is no nation where excess in eating is so universal as among us: nor can we regard the opinion, already quoted, as an exageration; " that al- most every man, woman, and child in this country, habitu- ally eats and drinks twice as much every day on a moder- ate estimate, as is necessary." Who among us thinks of making out a meal from a single dish, unless under the care of a physician ! What traveller would not consider that a most wretched public house, where his table was furnished with only one sort of food, however wholesome and well prepared ! How soon would that boarding house be desert- ed, which should rigidly adhere to the rule I have laid down, as most conducive to health, even were its prices greatly reduced ! Now were this excess indulged in only by the laboring classes of society, its effects, so far as health is concerned, would be comparatively harmless: But it ex- ists, perhaps in an equal degree, among the sedentary class- es ot' society—yes, even among literary men, and religious men. Let us select an example of this latter description, from those who are considered temperate and respectable. Let us sum up the ordinary fare of such a family for one day. Daily fare of a respectable family. Probably a majority of sedentary and literary men among us, make use of meat for breakfast; and generally of two kinds. Accompanying this, there must be bread and pota- toes, salt, pepper, pickles, and sometimes eggs, &c.; in ad- dition to these, there must be toast or warm cakes, or bis- cuit and butter, and cheese. At dinner, there are usually two sorts of meat; accompanied by bread, potatoes, gravies, pickles, and various other vegetables and condiments. Af- • Note D. 6* ^6 LECTURE II. ter this comes a pudding; then bread, cheese, and butter, and pie ; and not unfrequently some kind of fruit closes the repast. At supper there must be bread, or biscuit, cheese, and butter, and generally preserves, with the addition of some kind of cake, or pie, and sometimes both. Dietetic treatment of friends. When the same family invite their friends to dine, or sup with them, there must be an addition to the dinner, of at least a third kind of meat, and one or two other pies, cus- tards, &c. To the supper must be added dried beef, or beeve's tongue, pastiy, preserves, custards, and two or three kinds of cake,—the loaf cake—the pound cake—the sponge cake, &.c—of all things the most unfit to put into a seden- tary person's mouth. Not long after tea—which must also be so unreasonably strong as to produce wakefulness through the best part of the night—come other temptations in the form of fruits, nuts, jellies, trifles, &x. And we must recol- lect, also, that it is the general custom of the guests, on such occasions, to taste, at least, of nearly every variety of food and drink that is presented to them. Oh, when we re- member that one of the simplest of these dishes alone would be the most conducive to health, what shall we think of cramming down such a heterogeneous,indigestible mass, into a stomach disposed by occupation to weakness! Ask th-; individuals next day what they think of it. And yet, such are the common and approved entertainments that are met with every day, in our land, in intelligent and relig- ious families—among the most worthy and most pious part of the community. I say nothing here of those extensive and ridiculous fashionable parties among the gay and worldly minded, where the chief object seems to be to ex- clude common sense and prudence, and to do all that is pos- sible by food, drink, and folly, to ruin the health and the morals: but I speak of the manner in which many temper- ate men of public education—many professors of religion, many ministers of the gospel, live nearly every day—and THANKSGIVING. 67 of the manner in which they are wont to entertain their friends, when they invite them to common social enter- tainments.* A New England Thanksgiving. But what shall I say of that chef d"1 ozuvre of licensed glut- tony, a New England Thanksgiving? I would not be thought to condemn an institution, so hallowed by religious, patri- otic, and domestic associations; and really so happy in its influence upon the community. But I condemn its mon- strous abuses in stuffing and gormandizing, and even sanc- tioning gluttony by religious acts. Even the poorest in so- ciety, feel themselves perfectly justified in devoting a large part of their earnings to the preparation of numerous va- rieties of rich and stimulating dishes, for one or two meals. And as to the middling and richer classes, there is no cal- culating the expense and profusion of a thanksgiving din- ner ; whose almost only effect is, to unfit them entirely for the religious duties of such an occasion. Just compare this enormous waste, with the scanty and comparatively con- temptible contributions to benevolent objects, which are made on these occasions ; and inquire, whether such a per- version of heaven's gifts, must not be highly criminal in the sight of God. If this were a necessary evil connected with thanksgiving, I would submit to it in silence, rather than lose the benefits of so valuable an observance : But it is on- ly a gangerous excrescence, that demands the application of the knife, which religion and temperance are at this day using so effectually. How far the blame is to be imputed to females. I am aware, indeed, that very much of the sin of this ex- travagance and gluttony, on all the occasions above pointed out. must rest upon the ladies, who are at the heads of fam- ilies, and who have it in their power, in a great measure, " See Note H. 68 LECTURE II< to regulate the bill of fare at their own tables. And were this the proper place, I would most seriously remonstrate with this class of the community, who are ever ready to follow in the path of duty, when it is clearly seen by them. It is not merely irreligious and worldly minded females, who take the course I have described ; but many of the most pious, many who feel it to be a duty to make sacrifices to promote objects of benevolence, and who carry round the subscription paper to collect the widow's and the or- phan's mite, for sending the Gospel to the ends of the earth. Such especially, I would ask, how they can reconcile this worse than unnecessary expense in living, with their profes- sed principles of benevolence ; with their duty to the poor, the distressed, the heathen of our own and of other lands ! You cannot deny that the expense of living, so far as food is concerned, increases almost in direct proportion to the number of dishes you introduce. You cannot deny that the expense of an occasional entertainment of your friends, in your way, does involve no small amount of cost. Your pies and cakes, your sweet meats, and various condiments, are all made up of the most costly materials : And are they not also, for the most part, excessively indigestible ? Do you really believe that they are as well adapted to promote the health of your families and friends, as a more simple fare ? Which person do you suppose would rise next morn- ing most vigorous and refreshed, and best fitted for intel- lectual labor; he who had made his supper from a cup of weak tea or coffee, and a little dry toast and butter, or he who followed your recommendation, and drank your con- centrated extract of tea or coffee, and ate the whole round of your hot biscuit, and pastry, and cakes, and sweet meats, and fruits? Oh, how can a lady, who has a knowledge of this subject, even after she has prepared such a farrago of indigestibles, urge them, as an act of kindness, upon her guests, if they are literary persons ? To them such trash is rank poison—poison to the body and poison to the soul; and they ought to touch not, taste not, handle not No sto- EFFECTS OF EXCESS. 69 mach can endure them without injury, except it be that of the sailor, the soldier, the drayman, and the hard working farmer. From other circles, especially from among litera- ry men, and all ladies, and those in easy circumstances, these things ought to be banished as real and dangerous enemies. Instead, therefore, of saying to a literary friend, as if it were an act of kindness, do let me help you to a piece of this pie, or this cake, or these sweet meats, or these fruits; it would be a fair statement for a lady to say, " this tea, Sir, will probably give a sleepless night, and a headache to-morrow. This biscuit is just baked, so as to be exactly adapted to lie heavy on your stomach, and give disturbed and unrefreshing sleep. This cheese, if you will take a little of it, along with the biscuit, will load your imagination with unpleasant dreams. Add a few of these sweetmeats, and you may be sure of the nightmare. This kind of cake, with a little wine, is well adapted to bring on a fit of the gout; this kind, to make it sure that a person will be a fashionable and confirmed dyspeptic; and this kind to prepare the constitution for a fever. These walnuts, Rev. Sir, will be sure to give you a dull audience next Sabbath. These almonds, Sir, will make your client lose his cause in court to-morrow. These raisins, Sir, will be sure to sink below its competitors, the prize essay, you are preparing. And the digestion of this pine apple, Sir, will prevent your digesting the mathematical problem that la- bors in your mind." This is no caricature. These very results have follow- ed such causes hundreds and hundreds of times. How can a woman of principle, of religious principle, therefore, be willing to present so many fatal temptations before those whom she respects and loves. Does she expect they will resist the temptation ? Alas, she expects more from human nature than it has ever yet exhibited. There is certainly no sure way of preventing men from becoming gluttons, but by keeping the temptations out of sight. Do females plead that tyrant custom and fashion will not permit them to do 70 LECTURE II. otherwise than they do ? and that if they reduce their bills of fare, they shall only be called niggardly, and no one will second their efforts ? But have they ever fairly made the experiment? How do they know but there are many, who are not wholly given to appetite, and who will rally around them ? How long is it since these same tyrants, Cus- tom and Fashion, imperiously demanded the circulation of wine, as an essential part of an entertainment? But now their decree seems likely soon to go forth for its total ex- clusion. How far gentlemen are to blame. But ladies plead that their husbands, and their guests are gratified with this variety and richness of food and drink ; and that, therefore, they are under a sort of necessity of complying with their tastes. And with the gentlemen, I am inclined to believe, the great burden of the sin does rest: though I am aware, that the fear of being thought out of fashion, and the desire of being at least equal to others, in the variety and richness of an entertainment, are nearly omnipotent in many a female bosom. But if their husbands, if the majority of influential gentlemen, were to raise their voices against these extravagant and ruinous habits, I have no fears but intelligent and pious females would bring the food and drink of their tables within the bounds of temper- ance. But the truth is, the great mass of men, even of lit- erary and professional men, are pleased with the variety of dishes and dainties that they meet in a modern visiting par- ty. Now for men of intellectual habits, I maintain, that this is scandalous. It is an entire perversion of the proper object of social entertainmets, which is, to improve intel- lectually, morally, and religiously : for by thus gormandiz- ing and stuffing himself, with twenty indigestibles, a man is much better prepared for the glutton's couch, than to give or receive intellectual, moral, or religious improvement. It is high time, therefore, for every student, to prepare himself to-set his face against the monstrous extravagancies APPEAL TO TEMPERATE MEN. 71 and perversions that exist on this subject, if men of no mental culture will continue to make social and friendly meetings an occasion for gluttony, let them do it. But no student should venture near such meetings, unless he can successfully resist every temptation to excess. How con- temptible is that man, who suffers a cultivated intellect, in this way, to be manacled and brutalized ! And a man may accomplish the degradation without resorting to entertain- ments, simply by permitting himself to indulge his appetite daily, in a great variety of food and drink. Hence the law- yer returns from the county court, and the legislator from the capitol of the state or the nation, where they have yielded too much to the temptations of high living, hence they return, stupified and incapable of mental effort. Hence too, the clergyman often gets the name of a great eater, be- cause he is so often tempted, by the variety and richness of food, which his kind hearted parishioners set before him, to indulge to excess : and hence, too, he is so incapable of attending to composition, after returning from the presby- tery, association, or religious anniversary. For on these public occasions, it seems to be the general impression, that in proportion as a man excels in intellect, or holiness, so he ought to excel in the capacity and power of his stomach. At least, this is the most charitable explanation you can give, of the extravagant dinners, which religious men pre- pare on such occasions, for ministers of the gospel. Appeal to the members of Temperance Societies. On this subject I cannot avoid appealing with earnestness, to those men, especially, who act on the principle of entire abstinence from ardent spirit. 1 maintain that the same reasons, which led them to adopt this course, apply with no less power, in favor of taking for their guide, the rule which excludes a variety of dishes from the same meal. Do they abstain from the use of ardent spirit, because its use, even in the smallest quantity, exposes them to intemperance in drinking ? So does the second and third dish expose 72 LECTURE II. them as certainly to intemperance in eating. Do they abstain because spirit would do them no good ? Nor does the second and third dish ; but injury, in almost every case. Is ardent spirit destructive to property, health, and life ? I hesitate not to say, that the intemperate eating in our land is scarcely less injurious in these respects. Suppose, that upon an average, the people of this country, of all classes, consume twice as much food as is necessary; and suppose that the average annual support of each individual, of our twelve millions, is twenty dollars, and that by reducing the quantity of their food one half, they should save one third of the expense. This would produce an annual saving of eighty millions of dollars. But in the words of an able medical writer, whom I have already quoted, " it is the opinion of the majority' of the most distinguished physicians, that intemperance in diet destroys the bulk of mankind ; in other words, that which is eaten and drank, and thus taken into the habit, is the original cause of by far the greater number of diseases which afflict the human race." Sup- pose three quaters of the diseases and deaths occurring un- der seventy years of age, are imputable to this cause. In this country, it is reasonable to impute one sixth of the deaths, (40,000 annually,) to intemperate drinking. Deduct also one tenth for those individuals who live to the age of seventy; this being the medium length of human life, ac- cording to the Bible, when not shortened by accident, ex- posure, or intemperance; so that all who attain to that period, may be regarded as uninjured by excess. This calculation will leave us one half of the diseases and deaths that occur, under the age of seventy, to be laid to the charge of intemperance iu eating. Now the bills of mor- tality, in the healthy part of the civilized world, show, that one half of mankind die under twenty years of age; two thirds of them are gone at forty five ; and three quarters of them at fifty, or a little beyond. It is a moderate estimate therefore, to say that one half of the people in this country' lose from twenty to thirty years of life, in consequence of GLUTTONY COMPARED WITH DRUNKENNESS. 73 intemperance in eating: that is, they fall short of seventy years by that amount. This premature departure of so many citizens, is an immense pecuniary loss, to say nothing of the expense they incur by sickness, and the comparative feebleness and inefficiency of their efforts while they live. For it is the saying of a wise and observing man, confirmed by experience, as a general truth, that " he who eats but of one dish, never needs a physician." Gluttony as injurious as drunkenness Excess in eating produces similar, though to the eye of common observation, not equally striking effects, upon the intellectual, moral and religious character, as excess in drinking. It is a very rare case, that an habitually great eater, possesses much acuteness of intellect Gormandizers, who never stop eating, till they have tried all the dishes before them, who eat, according to the proverb, " ab ovo usque ad mala," usually discover great obtuseness of per- ception and clumsiness in their mental operations. They never make any great and striking literary, or scientific ef- forts : nor rise to much eminence in society. And even those, who in early life, have been abstemious, and have made great attainments in learning, if they begin to indulge their appetites to excess, soon destroy the energy of their minds, impair their memories, and are early taken away by some acute disease. Nor can a man make himself a beast in in- tellect, without exhibiting bestiality in his moral conduct, —without losing sensibility of conscience and benevolence of heart. How much there is to choose, in a moral point of view, between the swinish insensibility of the gtutton, and the frantic ravings of the drunkard, 1 will not under- take to say : but as evils affecting property, health, life and intellect, can any reasonable man doubt, that the excessive eating of our land, is at least as great as the excessive drink- ing : 1 mean in the aggregate; for when we come to in- dividual cases, there can be no doubt that drunkenness is by far the most prolific in waste and misery. 7 74 LECTURE II. Now if 1 have shown this, or any thing like it, how can the honest disciple of total abstinence from ardent spirit avoid the conclusion, that he is bound to apply his princi- ples to intemperance in food, and to do, what can be done, to check the evil and the sin? The only course, by which he can hope to accomplish much, is to adopt, and adhere rigidly to the rule under consideration ; viz. to make out his meal uniformly from a single dish—and to endeavour to persuade others to do the same. If this rule be not adopted, you might as easily confine water in a mill dam, after open- ing the sluices, as to prevent excessive eating. But if it were to become fashionable, it would be nearly as effectual, in respect to food, as total abstinence is, in respect to strong drink. Inconsistency of many who abstain from ardent spirit. I know that the calculations, which I have made on the subject, will be regarded as of a Bobadil character, by ma- ny. But if they are so, alike Bobadil, are the calculations that have been so repeatedly made, in respect to intemper- ate drinking. I maintain that the basis of the calculations is as good in one case as the other: and I can only say, let their hollowness and falsity be shown, if they can be, in some other way than by ridicule. I would not be thought to underrate the evils of drunkenness ; nor to be indifferent to the efforts that have been made for its extinction. In the proper place, I think I shall convince you, that I am no friend to ardent spirit, as an article of luxury or diet. But 1 plead that the same general principles, which have been applied so successfully to excess in drinking, should be brought to bear upon excess in eating. I maintain that we need sermons, and addresses, and agents, for the suppression of the latter, as well as the former. I maintain, that a man cannot consistently put forth his zeal in vindication of total abstinence from the one, without a correspondent zeal for temperance in the other. Yet how many zealous and able advocates for putting away ardent spirit, are to be found, INCONSISTENCY. 75 who, if tried themselves by the rules of temperate eating, would be found transgressors of no common stamp ! Nay, some well meaning friends of abstinence from spirit, have recommended the substitution of food for drink, when the stated seasons for indulgence had arrived; thus, converting men from drunkenness to gluttony, instead of subduing their inordinate appetites, by withholding all substitutes. Oth- ers, who abstain from alcohol, are as much disappointed and as fretful, if the usual variety and richness of food are not upon their tables, as is the drunkard, if deprived of his dram at the accustomed hour. And probably one of the effects of abstinence from spirit, wherethe habit of drinking had acquired considerable strength, has been to make men inordinate eaters—that is, in avoiding Scylla, they have rushed into Charyhdis: and they havedone it too, under the impression that in Charyhdis there was no danger. But 1 am confident that most of the men, who have abandoned the use of spirit, have so much piety and strength of character, that when they once see their in- consistency, in not applying the like principles to every part of their diet, they will suffer no cravings of disordered appetite to prevent their practice of temperance in all its branches. Conscience will torment them, just as it does the pious advocate for moderate drinking, until they can no longer endure its reproof. Further proofs of dietetic excesses in the land. Some may think that I have not sufficiently shown the existence of a very great excess among us, in respect to food. Let me therefore, allude to one or two other indi- ces of the public taste in this respect. The keepers of public houses will certainly be apt to find out what that taste is, and to adapt their bills of fare to it Certainly, they will be under no temptation to be more profuse or va- rious in the meals which they provide for travellers, than 76 LECTURE II. the general appetite requires; since variety and profusion only diminish their profits. But who that has travelled much, does not know, that even the humblest country tav- ern, loads its table with enough varieties of food to satisfy a practised glutton, though not perhaps so delicately cook- ed, as he might wish : and who has not seen the ill humor and indignation of gentlemen, even literary gentlemen, if any of these six or eight sorts—meats, butter, cheese, bread, potatoes, sauces, gravies, pickles,—the castor of spi- ces, catchup, cayenne and oil-pie, cake, crackers, &c. were wanting ? Wrho has not seen the voracity with which one dish after another was dispatched, as if the traveller thought no evil could result from eating, when upon a journey. Nay, so universalis this demand for variety and richness of food, that if a temperate man call only for one dish—for a breakfast of bread and milk, or milk porridge, or dry toast; or for a dinner of nothing but a slice of steak, and a piece of bread ; or for a supper, of a cup of tea, and a slice of bread only ; the landlord supposes he does it, not because he pre- fers this fare, but in the hope of lessening his bill. And here let me remark, that it is, indeed, unreasonable, that the price of meals at our public houses should be regulated by the amount that is required to satisfy a glutton ; and that a temperate man must pay for this amount, though he call for only the quarter part of it. In some of our cities, indeed, provision is made, as in all the large places in Europe, for getting only those articles which you want, and at prices corresponding to their value. But in the country, the man whose comfort and conscience forbid him to gormandize, must pay the same bill, whether his meal consists of one, or a dozen sorts of food : and he has only the poor consolation of reflecting, that it would have cost him nothing but his health and conscience to have partaken of twelve. When will the time come, that abstemious travellers enough shall be found upon our public routs, to make a demand for a ta« ble spread in the genuine temperance style I INDICES OF THE PUBLIC APPETITE. 77 Boarding Houses. Boarding houses are another good index of the public ap- petite for food. And what, in common language, constitutes the essence of the best boarding house ? Simply the great- est variety and richness of food, cooked in the best manner : though surely, if things were called by their right names', that would be regarded as the worst refectory, where a man was most likely to ruin his health. And the fault that meu find with boarding houses, in nine cases out of ten, is found- ed upon what they consider a deficiency in the variety or richness of the food. You rarely hear a man complaining that the food offered him is too rich, or too various. Even in those cases where the remark is made, that there is greater richness and variety than is necessary, it is generally obvi- ous that the man likes it well enough himself, although he may fear for others. The keepers of boarding houses, are, therefore, compelled to supply the fare that a gluttonous appetite demands, or lose their custom. And it is in such boarding houses, that literary young men particularly, ac- quire habits of intemperate eating. They do not know their danger, until so strong an attachment has been acquir- ed for high living, that their eyes are blinded, and they will not see il ; and then they are confirmed in intemperance, probably for life. Experiments in Amherst College. It gives me great pleasure to allude in this place to an experiment, which Imnderstand has been made, by several of the members of this Institution, to regulate their board, essentially according to the principle, which I am advocat- ing, in respect to variety in food : that is, to have only one substantial dish at a meal. Such individuals have taken one most important and fundamental step towards obtaining and preserving vigorous health, long life and happiness ; and thus furnishing themselves with ten times greater means of usefulness, than he possesses, who eats every dish that is let before him, and thus brings on premature debility of 78 LECTURE It* body, and imbecility of mind. If they are eqdally resolate* in adopting and adhering to the other established rules for the health of literary men, and in the cultivation of knowl- edge, I fear not to predict, that in future years, they will far outstrip in usefulness and respectability, every companion who lingers over his second, and third, and fourth dish, and that they will bear away the prize, while the latter are toiling and panting in the middle of the race. Could such a custom, as I have here alluded to, become universal in this College, it would do more for its prosperity and usefulness than wealth could give. Nay, it would be a substitute, in a degree, for wealth: for it would certainly reduce the price of board one third : and this would be a most impor- tant help to those meritorious }'oung men, who are not daunted by poverty, from pressing forward in a course of public education.* Dyspeptics particularly concerned in this subject. If the arguments, which I have adduced in favour of con- fining the diet to a single dish at a meal, are of sufficient weight to render it desirable and important, even for those in good health to adopt the rule, surely they will apply.with ten fold power, to those who are even in a slight degree, affected by dyspepsy. So insiduous is this class of com- plaints, that very many students, in the early part of their literary course, suffer their constitutions to be deeply affect- ed by them, ere they have any suspicion of the real enemy that is within the citadel. They are occasionally subject, indeed, to a depression of spirits, to which they were for- merly strangers ; and now and then headach, heartburn, or foul stomach, oppress them, along with listlessness and drowsiness. But in general, their appetite is unusually good; nay, it is not easy to satisfy their hunger. Hence they conclude, that their occasional bad feelings car.not be any thing serious, and a resort to an emetic or cathartic re- » See Note I. APPEAL TO DYSPEPTICS. 79 lieves them. Now such individuals are the men, above all others, who ought to adhere most rigidly to the rule under consideration, in connection with that considered in the last lecture, as to quantity. They are dyspeptics, most de- cidedly so: their ravenous appetites, accompanied by ema- ciation, rather than corpulency, is abundant proof of this ; and the adoption of these two rules, with vigorous exercise, would be an almost certain cure, while yet they are only in the first stages of the malady. And, indeed, it is most pain- ful to see such persons, evidently ignorant of their situation, load and overload their stomachs, with pudding upon meat, and bread and butter, or pies and cakes, upon both ; and then cram down fruit upon the whole. But of all men to convince that they eat too much, dyspeptics are the most difficult. " Of all mankind," says Dr Trotter, " they are the most liable to surfeits." And this on two accounts : first, they generally have a ravenous, inordinate appetite, which is almost irresistible : secondly, their powers of di- gestion cannot make way with as much food as those of a man in vigorous health, because they are weakened. If any present belong to this class, and 1 fear there are many, I earnestly entreat them to deliberate well upon the consid- erations, which, in the faithfulness and plainness of friend- ship, 1 have suggested. If you were not persuaded by the last lecture to apply the balances to your food, you have no idea probably, of the enormous quantity which you daily consume. Are you willing to learn the amount? Then I have one other plan to suggest, without using the balances. For one day, place in a dish set by your side, just as much of each article as you eat and drink, and at night look at the incongruous mixture, and if it does not startle you, I shall think it strange. After this, go on, if your consciences will let you,—you, who have devoted your lives to learning,—you, who are willing to make any sacrifice to attain clearness and vigor of thought,—you, who have perhaps devoted your days to the service of mankind, and your God and Redeem- 80 LECTURE II. er,—go on, I say, to fill up the reservoir daily, with the same disgusting mass, until your system sinks under the load, alongwith your hopes of distinction and usefulness.* Examples of temperance in diet. But if there be any desponding invalid, whose resolution is half formed to engage at once in this self denying effort of temperance, perhaps it may cheer him forward, to listen to a few more decided testimonies to the efficacy of this system in bringing back the sinking constitution to health and vigor. The first is from Dr. James Johnson, who, as one of the ablest London physicians, is now reaping its pre- cious fruits. Case of Dr. James Johnson. " By adherence to the foregoing plan," says he, " vary- ing the quantity (of food) according to the feelings subse- quently experienced, the surest foundation is laid, not only for health, but for happiness. Under a regimen of this kind, the body will be brought to the greatest degree of muscular strength, of which the individual constitution is susceptible; and the intellectual powers will be raised in proportion. Equanimity of mind will be attained, if attain- able at all; and where moral causes of irritation or afflic- tion cannot be avoided, they will be greatly neutralized. Under such a system of diet, the corporeal frame will be rendered capable of undergoing fatigue; and the mind more able to resist misfortune, than by the richest dishes, and most luxurious wines." " The rigid system which 1 have proposed, is not the creature of speculation engendered in the closet. It is that which many, to my knowledge, have adopted with the most perfect success; it is that by which I have conquered the most intense degree of dyspepsy in my own person. Those who have courage and perseverence to reap the fruits of ' See Note K. EXAMPLES OF ABSTEMIOUSNESS. 81 such a system, will hardly be induced to change it, however strongly they may be tempted by the luxuries of the table, and the seductions of convivial society. .It would be well for those in the enjoyment of present health, if they em- ployed it as a preservative of that invaluable blessing ! But this I do not expect I am addressing those who have tast- ed the bitter cup of sickness; and especially those who have experienced the horrors of dyspepsy. The latter alone can appreciate the luxury of immunity from the ter- rible feelings of mind and body, engendered by that worst of human afflictions."* An American scholar. One of the most distinguished scholars now living in this country, who declares that he has "been an invalid, and one standing pretty high on this list, for some thirty years," testifies, that he " should have been in his grave before he was 45 years of age, had he pursued the tonic system"— His diet consists of a " gill of coffee in the morning, and half that quantity of tea at night:"—" Simple nutritive food in moderate quantities ; nature's beverage ; milk and fari- naceous diet; meat with great moderation, and never more than once a day; avoiding the whole tribe of deserts, pies, cakes, sweetmeats, and all the various articles of mere lux- ury, which the love of gratifying appetite has invented." " Since I have practised in this way," says he, (though his constitution was too completely undermined in early life, ever to be restored to an entire state,) " I have more than doubled my ability to labor in my vocation, and more than half diminished my sufferings."! Howard, the philanthropist. The next case is that of Howard, the distinguished phi- • Morbid Sensibility of the Stomach, Ac. p. 115. f Journal of Humanity, Dec. 2, 1830. 82 LECTURE II. lanthropist, whose name is familiar to all. His story shall be given in his own words. " A more 'puny whipster' than myself, in the days of my youth, was never seen. I could not walk out in the evening without being wrapped up : I could not put on my linen without its being aired ; I was, politely speaking, enfeebled enough to have delicate nerves ; and was occasionally trou- bled with a very genteel hectic. To be serious, I am con- vinced, that whatever enfeebles the body debilitates the mind, and renders both unfit for those exertions which are of such use to us all as social beings. I therefore entered upon a reform of my constitution, and have succeeded in such a degree, that 1 have neither had a cough, cold, the vapors, nor any alarming disorder, since I surmounted the seasoning. Prior to this, I used to be a miserable depen- dant on wind and weather : a little too much of one, or a slight inclemency of the other, would postpone, and fre- quently prevent, not only my amusements, but my duties ; or, if pressed by my affections, or by the necessity of affairs, I did venture forth in despite of the elements, the conse- quences were equally absurd and incommodious, not seldom afflictive. I muffled up even to my nostrils ; a crack in the glass of my chaise was sufficient to distress me; a sudden elope of the wheels to the right or left, set me a trembling; a jolt seemed like a dislocation, and a sight of a bank or a precipice, near which my horse was to pass, would disorder me so much, that I would order the driver to stop, that I might get out and walk by the difficult places. Mulled wines, spiritous cordials, and large fires, were to comfort me, and to keep out the cold, as it is called, at every stage, and if I felt the least dampness in my feet, or other parts of my body, dry stockings, linen, &c. were instantly put on: the perils of the day were to be baffled by something taken hot on going to bed, and before I pursued my journey, the next morning, a dram was to be swallowed, in order to for- tify my stomach. In a word, I lived, moved, and had my HOWARD. 83 being so much by rule, that the slightest deviation was a disease. " Every man must, in these cases, be his own physician. He must prescribe for and practise on himself. I did this by a very simple, but as you will think, a very severe regi- men, namely, by denying myself almost every thing in which I had long indulged. But as it is always harder to get rid of a bad habit, than to contract it, I entered on my reform gradually ; that is to say, I began to diminish my usual indulgences by degrees. I found that a heavy meal or a hearty one, as it is termed, and a cheerful glass, that is, one more than does you good, made me incapable, or at least disinclined to any useful exertions for some time after dinner hours ; and if the dilutive powers of tea assisted the work of digestion, so far as to restore my faculties, a lux- urious supper came in so close upon it, that 1 was fit for nothing but dissipation, till I went to a luxurious bed, where I finished the enervating practices, by sleeping eight, ten, and sometimes a dozen hours on the stretch. You will not wonder that I rose the next morning with the solids relax- ed, the juices thickened, and the constitution weakened. " To remedy all this, I aie a little less at every meal, and reduced my drink in proportion. It is really wonderful to consider, how imperceptibly a single morsel of animal food and a tea-spoonful of liquor deducted from the usual quan- tity daily, will restore the mental functions, without any in- jury to the corporeal—nay, with increase of vigor to both. I brought myself, in the first instance, from dining on many dishes to dining on a few, and then to being satisfied with one : in like manner, instead of drinking a variety of wines, I made my election of a single sort, and adhered to it alone. " My next business was to eat and drink sparingly of that adopted dish and bottle. My ease, vivacity, health, and spirits augmented. My clothing, &c. underwent a similar reform; the effects of all which is, and has been for many years, that I am neither affected by seeing my carriage dragged up a mountain or driven down a valley. If an acci- 84 LECTURE II. dent happens, I am prepared for it, so far as respects un- necessary terrors; and I am proof against all changes in the atmosphere, wet clothes, damp feet, night air, transi- tions from heat to cold, and the long train of hypochondria affections." " In his 63d year, Mr. Howard was in full possession of his mental and physical powers. He, however, accidental- ly contracted a malignant fever whilst visiting the sick in an infected district, which terminated his life in a few days.* Variety in diet allowable. In my remarks upon the use of a variety of dishes at the same meal, I would not be understood as condemning a va- riety in the diet. 1 care not, if a man find a new dish for every meal through the year, provided he use them all in moderation, and they be not of such a nature, or so com- pound, as to be, by common consent, indigestible. Yet, as there is not a great variety of simple food that is easily di- gested, it is a better course to select a few articles, for the principal part of the diet, and continue usually and regular- ly to use them, so long as they are relished ; because new varieties, even when only one kind is employed, are apt to prove a strong temptation to excess. But let no one con- tinue to eat any particular article after his relish.for it is gone : since even less digestible food will be better than that most so, without such a relish : for the relish quickens the power of the stomach. Dangers from the second and third dishes. Nor would I be understood as asserting, that more than one kind of food cannot, in any case, be taken at a meal, without a transgression of the rules of temperance. If due attention be paid to the quantity, according to the rules which I have already illustrated, excess need not be the result. But whenever a man once begins upon the second * Journal of Health, Vol. I. p. 59. DANGER OF THE SECOND AND THIRD DISHES. 85 and the third dish, he is constantly exposed to eat too much. He is exactly in the condition of the moderate drinker of ardent spirit—not indeed actually intemperate, but drawn towards the vortex, by an almost irresistible power. In either case, the only safety lies in living within the rules which temperance prescribes. For it is much easier to be abstinent than abstemious. And for the individual espe- cially, who is endeavouring to put in practice the rules of temperance in diet, for him to continue to take a little of the second dish, and a little of the third, &c. a little of the pudding, or pie, after the meat; a little of the pastry, or cake, or sweetmeats, after the toast, &c this will prevent his ever effectually overcoming his old hankerings after an enormous quantity. Appetite will be perpetually tormen- ting him, with its demands, and he will be almost constant- ly trespassing and repenting; resolving and reresolving; and it is a wonder if he do not die the same. Whereas, by a resolute restriction to one dish, he would soon forget the second and the third, and temperance would become so habitual as to be natural. The community not yet. prepared for this system of diet. But I fear that I am labouring almost in vain, both with the invalid and the healthy, in urging a rigid adherence to the rules, as to quantity and variety in food, which have been explained. It is not because the positions I have ta- ken, are wanting in argument, or medical authority, to support them, that they will not be admitted. For they are established as fundamental principles in dietetics : and physicians and philosophers, have been urging them for thousands of years. But still, to the great mass of men they sound new and strange, and probably absurd and ex- travagant. I come forward, therefore, in defence of them, in the face of public opinion. It is yet too early, I fear, for such opinions to be received; I had almost said, by half a 8 86 LECTURE II. century.* " This system is too rigid, too ascetic for me," will be the general exclamation. " It is not necessary to be so particular and abstemious. I have been in the habit of eating such things as were set before me, and as much of them as my appetite seemed to crave, and 1 am not aware of having received any injury. My health is as good as that of most others : and I have no idea of ruining it by the adoption of any new fangled rules of eating and drinking, until I find the need of it." By some such answer as this, will most persons evade the force of all my arguments, or else they will call in the aid of ridicule to complete the triumph, and justify their own gluttony. Even the invalid, will not feel the need of these rules, until he is very far gone ; and then he will be ready to go to London and Paris, to consult those physicians of distinction, whose advice, gratuitously sent to him, before it is to late, he rejects because it is too rigid and ascetic. " Nothing is more common" says the Journal of Health, " than to see a miserable object with a constitution broken down by his own imprudence, and a prey to disease, bathing walking, riding, and in a word, doing every thing to solicit a return of health—yet, had his friends recom- mended these very things by way of preventing, the ad- vice would in all probability, have been treated with con- tempt, or at least with neglect. Such is the weakness and folly of mankind, and such the want of foresight, even in those who ought to be wiser than others." Power of the human constitution to resist excesses- The man in health feels no need of dietetic rules, be- cause his constitution has hitherto been able to resist all the effects of excessive eating : and he infers that it has suffered no injury. But such men ought to know, that God has given to the human system the power of withstanding, even for years, inordinate indulgencies, when they are not 9 See Note A. THIS SYSTEM TOO RIGID. 87 very excessive. Still, they gradually undermine the con- stitution, and, if continued, will sooner or later break it entirely down. Some students, who eat immoderately, will hold out in tolerable health till they get through College : others do not fail till their professional education is nearly completed; and some endure for years longer, and then sink. Present health, therefore, furnishes no reason for neglecting those precautionary measures which 1 have urged : and the later in life a man's health fails him, in consequence of disregarding them, the more guilty is he ; because with so much stamina of constitution, he might more easily have saved himself Better to die early than submit to these rules. But some will say, that rather than submit to such un- merciful rigor of diet, and thus forego all the pleasures of good living, they had rather risque the danger of poor health and premature death. Such persons, however, cer- tainly know little of the wretchedness of constant feeble health ; nor can they have thought much of the solemnities of dissolution. " But I," says old Dr. Cheyne, " who give little credit to such bounces, know self preservation to be the great law in nature, never met one but the true practi- cal and habitual Christian among my many patients, and even scarce these, who was truly willing and pleased to strip and lie down ; and only him who was always resigned to the order of providence either in life or death: and not even him at all times and in the dark moments of trial; or any but the extremely miserable in life. But here the case is not mere dying but living a dying life, perhaps for many years.—In short, not to take up with a low regimen here, is a plain rebellion against the orders and designs of prov- idence, manifested by nature, the relations of things, phi- losophy and experience, for the mere gratification of vicious morbid appetites : In a word, it is deliberate suicide, the greatest of all rebellion and sin." 88 LECTURE II. True reasons why men zvill not adopt this system. This may seem a severe judgment: but it is nevertheless true, that the grand cause why men are so averse to dietetic rules, is, that they prefer a little present indulgence to a future good. It is precisely .the same reason that makes one man persist in using a variety of dishes, at the same meal, and another unwilling to abandon his bottle. Both of them suppose some thing else to be the ground of their un- willingness : But he who has himself gone through the process of breaking off from these intemperate habits, knows well that the solicitations of an inordinate appetite are the secret source of all the repugnance to abstemiousness. Experience, reason, physicians, conscience, all tell a man that he only, who is strictly temperate, is truly happy: but how can he forego the exquisite pleasures of the palate, for future philosophical composure and peace. Encouraging circumstances. When 1 think of the omnipotence of bad habits, and the long and deep slumber of the public mind and conscience on the subject of eating, I confess I feel as if 1 were mere- ly beating the air. But when I think of the powerful movement of the day, in regard to drinking, I take courage ; and begin to hope that the sun of temperance will dissi- pate all the fogs that cover his face, sooner than I had hoped. This temperance movement is certainly preparing the public mind to look seriously at the subject I am urging in these lectures: and already there are pleasing indications that some of the totally abstinent in respect to ardent spirit, are beginning to feel the necessity of extending their prin- ciples to solid as well as liquid food. The establishment, as well as character of the Journal of health; a work rich in learning and experience; free from empiricism; attrac- tive in its style and arrangement, and so decided and thor- ough in respect to dietetics;—should he hailed as auspicious harbingers of light and reformatio^ Nor does the weekly ABSTINENCE. 89 herald of the American Temperance Society belie its name, by passing over this subject in silence. I should rejoice to see a fire opening forthwith, from every temperance bat- tery in the land. But let me say to any, who unsheath the sword, in this cause, that the battle will be more fierce and obstinate than that which is now raging with ardent spirit ; because the enemy will then feel, that he is attacked almost in his last entrenchments ; and that if driven from these, temperance, health, and happiness ; peace, morality and religion, will reign once more in those dominions which he has usurped. "What!" the gormandizing world will say, "is it not enough to have wrested from us, by the force of pub- lic opinion, our right to use ardent spirit: will you also attempt to starve us ; or at least, to shut us up in prison and confine us to bread and water, weighed in your own light balances ? Leviathan, you will find is not thus easily tamed, De aris eifocis certandum.'>'> Abstinence- To those literary men who are determined in spite of arguments and physicians, to live as they have lived, in the indulgence of their appetites, there is one direction, which may serve to obviate the effects of their excesses. It is the observance of occasional seasons of abstinence from food. This is the sovereign remedy the brutes employ for nearly all their diseases ; and, indeed, in chronic complaints, it has a wonderful power over the human constitution. John Home, the author of Douglas, and otherwise distinguished in literature, bore without inconvenience the luxuries of London, by eating on the Sabbath nothing more than a sin- gle poached egg.* This course was not only wise, but Sun- day was the best day of the seven for observing such a fast. Examples of abstinence :—Howard, Franklin, Socrates, £e. A French writer, in a work entitled " An Apology for • Sure Methods, &c. p. 88. 8* 90 LECTURE II. Fasting," has made a comparison between the longevity of 152 bishops or clergymen, who not only led strictly tempe- rate lives, but frequently fasted, and the same number of men devoted to literature and science, who were also tem- perate but not abstinent; and he finds that the lives of the bishops were seven years longer, upon an average, than those of the Academicians; which he imputes to the effects of fasting. Howard, the philanthropist, fasted oneway in the week ; as did also Franklin, for a time : And Bonaparte, when he felt his system unstrung, gave up his usual repasts, and took exercise on horseback.* The ablest physicians declare that abstinence is one of the most effectual means of preventing violent and inflam- matory disorders, such as fevers and sore throats. Socrates lived in Athens during the whole of the celebrated plague, that made such desolation in that city in his time ; yet he escaped unhurt: and this is unanimously ascribed, by the writers of those times, to his uninterrupted temperance.! I do not mean by abstinence in this case, that which is excessive : not such as monkish austerity has so often practis- ed, and which has been the source of so much religious su- perstition, self-righteousness, and cruelty. Seasons of en- tire abstinence, unless directed by a physician, are rarely extended with advantage, beyond a day or two. But the danger on this side is so small, that a caution seems at this day scarcely necessary. Case of Pomponius Atticus. An amusing and instructive example of the good effects of abstinence, occurs in the case of Pomponius Atticus, the friend of Cicero. The melancholy accompanying a disor- dered stomach, brought him to the resolution of destroying himself; and he called together his friends, to consult as to 8 Journal of Health, Vol. I. p. 13. fSpectator, No. 165, also Rees' Cyc. Art. Abstinence. PHVSICIANS. 91 the best means of accomplishing his design. His son-in-law, Agrippa, with great sagacity, advised and persuaded him to starve himself; recommending, however, that he should occasionally swallow a little water, to alleviate the pains of abstinence. To this he consented, supposing, as people generally do at this day, that water affords no nourishment, although, in fact it is almost the only fluid that does nourish. In this case it sustained Atticus, day after day, beyond the time he had calculated upon dying by starvation : and not only so, but this water and the abstinence, removed the complaints of his stomach, and his dejection of spirits; and he was then easily persuaded by his son, that it was his du- ty to live. He did live to an advanced age.* Importance of physicians. There is one subject connected with abstinence, which I shall take occasion here to notice, although it may seem to require rather the prescription of a professed physician. And I wish to be distinctly understood, as disclaiming all pretensions to a knowledge of the practice of medicine, technically so called.—My object is not to prescribe as a physician, and thus invade his province; but to point out that diet and regimen which will keep men out of the physi- cian's hands ; and which every intelligent man ought there- fore to understand. Yet let me here also remark, that I am by no means disposed to declaim against regular scientific physicians, as useless. On the other hand, 1 thank God that so many of this character are found at this day, to bless so- ciety. And when a man is attacked by acute disease, he cannot apply to one of these too soon. Life is often sacri- ficed by a few hours delay. And when any man is in such a state of health, as to render it advisable for him to be un- der the physician's care, let him adhere rigidly to the pre- scriptions of the physician : for in sickness, it is sometimes necessary to direct to a course, which is entirely opposite • See Note L. 92 LECTURE II. to those rules of diet and regimen, that are so salutary in health and in mere functional disorders. Common cold or catarrh. But to return : the subject to which I alluded, is that of a common cold, or catarrh. And concerning its cure, there is a most false and pernicious saying: viz. "glut a cold, and starve a fever." But what is a cold, if not an incipi- ent fever ? certainly fever is always present. And if a man wishes to aggravate all its symptoms, and to hinder nature in restoring the system, let him follow this rule, and eat and drink even more voraciously lhan ever—as his appetite will tempt him to do. But if he wish to assist nature, and break up a cold in its very commencement, let him at once enter upon a course of rigid temperence, or even abstinence, avoiding all unnecessary exposure. In this way, it is said, indeed, that a man may come at length into the habit of ridding himself of every incipient catarrh, before it has fastened upon the head, or the lungs ; and thus avoid one of the most common germs of fatal disease. A man has on- ly to try this course faithfully once or twice, to be satisfied that the general practice of mankind, in such cases, is alto- gether erroneous ; and that abstinence is the sovereign re- medy. What monstrous absurdities have been palmed up- on human belief in regard to the treatment of diseases! and how much more prone are the majority to receive the nostrums of quackery, than the results of knowledge and experience !* One or two more remarks on the general subject of this lecture, and I shall close. If any one who hears me, should be induced to adopt in practice the rules of diet, for which • The lively remark of a French writer will apply to most of the wonderful cures, that are so much celebrated in the community .-— " C'est malgre eux, et non par eux, que ce bonheur est obtenu." It is not by the medicines, but in spite of them, that the cure is ef- fected. Le Calcchismc DelaMedecine Physidlogique, p. 245. DIETETIC FAILURES. 93 I have contended, I entreat him not to do it by halves. Let him make thorough work, both as to quantity and simplicity in food ! or else let him not complain of these rules, if he do not experience the beneficial effects, which have been declared to flow from them. Many profess to be dieting, who,in fact,violate the rules of diet every day. Thus do they torment themselves to no purpose. They lose both the good effects, which rigid temperance would produce, and the pleasures of indulging the palate ad libitum. In a word, to be half way temperate, is to live and die a starving glutton. Again, if a man enter upon the abstemious course that has been pointed out, let him make a persevereing trial of it. Invalids, in particular, are apt to get discouraged, if they do not experience from such a course, a very rapid improve- ment, and even a speedy reestablishment, of health. They expect that the ravages of years of indulgence, will be re- paired by a few weeks or months oftemperance : whereas, Revocare gradum, superasque evadere ad auras, hoc opus, hie labor est. As Cheyne says, " in a low regimen, even when upon necessity and prudent counsel and advice a person has entered upon it, and has continued in it for a long time, they may have many plunges, discouragements and exacerbations. This interruption will only retard the cure a short time, and will give strength to perfect it."* Others fail in this matter, because they do not pay as strict attention to their exercise and other means of health, as to their diet. Some give over the contest, because their companions in health ridicule their peculiarities. And some become alarmed when their friends expostulate with them upon their danger of starvation. But more fail because they still exceed the rules of temperance in the quantity of their food. Appe- tite grows clamorous, and fancying themselves to be grow- ing weaker, they begin to relax in their struggles, and like the ancient Israelites, when fed on manna, they exclaim, Who shall give us flesh to eat? We remember the fish which • Diet and regimen, p. 56\ 94 LECTURE II. we did eat in Egypt freely ! the cucumbers and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlic. But now our soul is dried away ; there is nothing at all besides this manna before our eyes. Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness ? Let the invalid, who thus suffers his appetite to bring him back again, like the dog to his vomit, read his subsequent history in that of the Israelites. •So they did eat and were filled: for he gave them their own de- sire ; they were not estranged from their lust: but while their meat was yet in their mouths, the wrath of God came upon them, and slew the fattest of them and smote down the chosen men of Israel. From all that I have seen and experienced, fully convinced I am, that only two things will give a man resolution to enter upon, and persevere, in the strait and narrow course of temperance, that leads to health and long life : one is, a deep and abiding impression, that he must either do this, or soon die ; and the other is, such a strength of Christian principle, as will make him feel it to be his imperious duty. Alas, that the latter is so often weaker than appetite ! and alas, too, that the former is not usually felt, until the constitution is irretrievably ruined !* • Note M, LECTURE III. Diet, continued. Third—Fourth—Fifth—Sixth—Seventh—■ Eight—and Ninth Rules of Dietetics. Objection against their rigor considered. Gentlemen, The remaining rules in respect to diet, will not require so protracted an illustration and application, as the two that have been already considered. The third may be thus an- nounced : Sedentary persons should not use animal food more than once a day. That persons in feeble health, may, under certain circum- stances, require the constant and almost exclusive use of an- imal food, I admit; but these are excepted cases, requiring the directions of a skilful physician. In ordinary cases, the general conclusion, that is now considered as established, by all respectable writers on diet, is, that men generally, but particularly the sedentary and the literary, should in- dulge in the use of animal food only at dinner. Is animal food necessary at all ? The enquiry, however, has been extensively agitated, whether animal food is requisite at all for the health and vigor of the animal system. In discussing this subject, an appeal is made both to the principles and discoveries of chemistry, and to the practice of different nations and indi- viduals. Chemistry of the subject. Vegetable and animal substances are composed of the same simple principles, or elements, except that the latter 96 LECTURE II. usually contain nitrogen in considerable proportion ; in which, most of the former are wanting. Hence the inquiry has arisen, how vegetable food alone can supply the nitro- gen which the animal system demands ? Some have thought that the nitrogen of the atmosphere was taken into the blood, in the act of respiration : but the most modern and satisfactory experiments do not show that any of this sub- stance is absorbed in this process. The conversion of the superabundant carbon of the blood into carbonic acid, seems to constitute the whole chemical result of respiration. Chemistry, therefore, does lead us to the conclusion, that some animal food is necessary to the support of life, unless the vegetables eaten should happen to contain it; as some of them do.* Experiments upon animals. Majendie thinks that he has established the same conclu- sion by experiments upon animals. He fed dogs exclusive- ly upon the most nutritious substances, that are destitute of nitrogen, such as sugar, gum, olive oil, and butter; and in a few days they began to pine away, and died in every case, in less than forty days. He infers that it was the want of nitrogen that destroyed them. But Dr. Paris says, it was owing to their having received their food in too concentrat- ed a state ; and that men and animals universally suffer, if their rich food be not sufficiently mixed with that which is less nutritive. The inhabitants of Kamtschatka, for in- stance, are frequently compelled to live on fish oil alone; and they have learned that it is even better to mingle it with saw dust, than to receive it in an unmixed state. Argument from Anatomy. Throughout nearly the whole animal kingdom, we find • "The existence of nitrogen is not absolutely indispensable in ali- ments, to render them nutritive. The system has other means of procuring nitrogen when it is wanting in alimentary substances—a case that very rarly occurs." Noveaux Elemens D^Hygien Dcuxi- rne JLarlic. p. 10. ANIMAL AND VEGETABLE FOOD COMPARED. 97 that the structure of the frame points out the nature of the food destined for the support of the species. Thus the graminivorous tribes have uniformly a double row of grind- ing teeth, and larger stomachs and intestines, than those that live solely on animal food, and are hence called carni- vorous. The latter are furnished with cutting and canine teeth to seize and devour their prey. Now man is furnished with both the kinds of teeth found in these classes of animals. Hence it is very rationally inferred, that he was intended to feed both upon vegetables and animals: or to speak techni- cally, he is neither graminivorous nor carnivorous, entire- ly, but omnivorous. Some writers have even gone so far as to infer, from the relative number of teeth in the human species, adapted to animal and vegetable food, that men ought to use 20 parts of the latter, and 12 parts of the for- mer. But the premises are probably too narrow for the conclusion. Effects of animal and vegetable food. As to the effects of these two kinds of food upon the sys- tem, it is agreed on all hands, that animal food is more nu- tritive and stimulating: that is, the same quantity of the former, will form more blood, and sustain life longer, than the latter. Hence, for men exposed to constant and hard labour, animal food is more important; though I cannot be- lieve, that this is a sufficient reason for justifying the so common practice, among the labouring classes in our coun- try, of using meat, in large quantities, three times a day. Certainly it does not render necessary their hearty suppers, when the toils of the day are over, and the stomach, as well as other parts of the system, need rest. But my concern now is with sedentary men: and as to these, the ef- fect of much animal food, is to produce too much excite- ment in the system, and to urge on the powers of life too fast. Hence, in hot climates, men instinctively prefer a vegetable diet: and thus they escape many of those violent disorders, to which, those living very much on animal food, 9 98 LECTURE III are subject; such as the scurvy, malignant ulcers, inflamma- tory fevers, &c. Animal food is also much more unfavour- able to the free operations of the mind, than vegetable : hence one of the reasons why men are usually so unfit for study immediately after dinner; though it is to be feared, that this is more frequently imputable to excess in quantity. The experience of Newton and Franklin, as to the favour- able influence of vegetable food upon mental operations, I have mentioned in a former lecture. To these examples I might add many more, were it necessary. " Vegetable ali- ment," sa3's Dr. Cullen, a name highly revered in medi- cine, "as never over-distending the vessels, or loading the system, never interrupts the stronger motions of the mind ; while the heat, fullness, and weight, of animal food, is an enemy to its vigorous efforts." Another writer says, that vegetable food " tends to preserve a delicacy of feeling, a liveliness of imagination, and acuteness of judgment, seldom enjoyed by those who live principally on meat"* Hence there is greater danger that the student will take too much, than too little, of animal food. In most cases, six or seven ounces per day, taken at dinner, is abundantly sufficient; and the corpulent, and persons advanced in life, should re- duce this quantity. Indeed, they would probably do best, in general, to confine themselves to vegetables alone. In 'what cases a diet exclusively vegetable is best. In any case, as Dr. Paris remarks, " it must be allowed that an adherence to vegetable diet, is usually productive of far less evil than that which follows the use of an exclu- sively animal regimen."! Cheyne says, that at fifty years of age, a man ought to lessen his animal food ; and at sixty, entirely give it up : "descending out of life, as one ascends into it, viz. by milk-porridge, wafer-gruel, panada, and the like." Most physicians also advise, that little if any ani- « Sure Methods &c. p. 13. )(t On Diet, p. 67. VEGETABLE DIET MOST COMMON. 99 mal food, except milk, should be allowed to children ; and indeed nature seems to instruct us in the same lesson : nor can it be doubted at all, that the prevalent system of stuff- ing and cramming children with all sorts of indigestibles, is a principal cause of the death of one third of those that are born, before they reach the age of three years. Actual practice of mankind. The practice of mankind, respecting the use of animal and vegetable food, supports essentially the views that have been given : though it must be confessed, that it almost leads one to conclude, that a diet wholly vegetable, would, upon the whole, be more favourable to human health and happiness; though probably not so favorable to the devel- opement of the sterner features of our nature. The truth is, a large majority of men, do live, almost exclusively, on vegetables. Millions in Asia, are sustained by rice alone, with perhaps a little seasoning of vegetable oil: And al- though these Asiatics with their feebleness and effeminacy, may be regarded as no very flattering examples of the val- ue of a vegetable diet; yet when we compare them with the timid and stupid Laplanders, Esquimaux, and Samoide- ans, who subsist almost entirely on animal food, the other side of the picture does not seem more inviting. The Bra- mins of Hindostan, even in their exhausting climate, are not- ed for longevity. And when we recollect that the Neapolitan Lazzaroni, with their active and well proportioned forms, are sustained by bread, oil, and sallad ; and that millions of the Irish peasantry, proverbial for vivacity of mind, ro- bustness of body, and capability of enduring fatigue, scarce- ly ever eat meat; and that the Scotch and Swiss peasantry also—as fine examples as the world can afford of health and bodily strength—live chiefly on bread, milk, and cheese ; surely, we shall not be disposed to insist upon it, that ani- 100 LECTURE III. mal food, even in high latitudes, is essential to the full de- velopement of the powers of man.* Intemperance. According to this view of the subject, what opinion shall we form of those students, who think they cannot make out even a tolerable breakfast, without a good supply of meat ? and who will eat meat, even three times a day, if it be set before them ? Surely we must conclude that they are slaves to their palates; and consequently will never exhibit any great vigour of mind, or proficiency in literary pursuits. They will probably tell you, that they find nourishing food necessary to give them strength ; and if they neglect to take this, they shall be so debilitated, as to be unfitted for study. This is just the plea the intemperate drinker uses, to vindicate his poisonous draughts. True, if he neglects these, debility follows; because it is an abstraction of the usual stimulus, and his system is so much injured, as not easily to move on without it: and this is precisely the cause of the debility the intemperate eater experiences, by giving up his animal food in the morning. Now the opin- ion of most men is, that debility is a real disorder, and if by some stimulus they can remove it, they have removed the disease : Hence the great fondness they exhibit for tonic and bracing food and drink. Whereas, debility is merely a symptom of some oppression, irritation, or inflamation, in some part of the body: and this whole system of bracing and strengthening the invalid by nourishing food and drink, is, in most cases, the effectual way to aggravate the disease ; although it affords a temporary relief to the debility : For, too much food, irritating the stomach and bowels, in a ma- jority of instances, is the sole cause of the debility. The * For a fuller discu3sion of this subject, see Paris on Diet, p. 63. Sure Methods, &c. p. 11. Smellie's Philosophy of Nat. History, Ware's first Edition, p. 148, and Edinburgh Encyclopedia, Article Aliment. BTIMULENTS AND TONICS. 101 Contrary course, that is, a spare and simple diet, is generally the method of removing the cause, and ultimately the de- bility. But quacks will tell men otherwise ! and here is the strong hold of empiricism. Their nostrums, elixirs and balsams, are all calculated for the alleviation of symptoms, and not for the cure of diseases : Now it is not a difficult matter to soften down the symptoms ; and when this is once done, the cure is proclaimed ; whereas, the embers are raging within, struggling to get vent, and will ere long break out in tenfold fury. But until men shall learn in some measure to distinguish between symptoms and diseases, they will continue to be the dupes of newspaper quackery and unprincipled ignorance. Stimulants and tonics for debility. According to his own account, " says the Journal of Health," the invalid is in a state of debility. This to a certain extent, is true ; but it is a debility that can be re- moved only by restoring to health the organ primarily affected: a task for which the experienced physician is alone competent. But the sufferer is of a different opinion : he is debilitated; all he requires is something to restore strength to his system generally; additional and more stimulating food; some cordial or elixir—some potent tonic ! These are soon obtained ; a momentary excitement is the result, to sustain which requires their frequent repe- tition : but so far from any permanent advantage resulting from their use, the symptoms advance with increasing ra- pidity ; the individual becomes more and more exhausted; and if he fall not a speedy victim to the disease itself, be too often does to the effects of intemperate habits induced by the remedies to which he has had recourse."* Fourth dietetic rule. The fourth rule of dietetics, which I consider as estab- • See Note N. 9* 102 LECTURE III. lished, is, that literary men should take only three meals PER DAY AND NO LUNCHEONS. Breakfast. After the rest and the fast of the night, it is natural that the stomach should demand food in the morning. But as it comes immediately before the most active labors of the day, it should be moderate in quantity, and simple in quality ; consisting usually, in this country, of a little lea, or coffee, or milk, or milk porridge, or water and milk, with bread and butter, or dry toast. It should be taken about an hour after rising ; and, therefore, should usually be ready from six to seven o'clock;—say six in the summer, and seven in the winter. This will leave five or six hours before noon for study and exercise—which are emphatically the golden hours of the day ; and the student should calculate to get through with the most laborious part of his daily duties, during this period. Dinner. By twelve or one o'clock, the stomach will have thor- oughly digested the light breakfast taken at six or seven, and have rested besides one or two hours, so as to be pre- pared for dinner, the principal meal of the day. Supper. Five or six hours after dinner, a cup of tea, or milk and water, cold or hot, according to the season, may advanta- geously be taken, with a smaller quantity than in the morn- ing, of vegetable food. The less of this, however, the better; and perhaps the invalid will best consult his com- fort, by omitting it altogether, unless perhaps to the amount of one or two crackers.* Violations of this rule. I can hardly move a step on this subject, without coming • See Note O. THIS RULE VIOLATED. 103 into collission with the habits and practices of society. You will perceive that the course which I have here marked out, is directly opposed to that pursued bj' multitudes. First mode in which it is violated. Many, in the first place, violate this rule, by irregularity in the times of taking their food. If their dinner be delay- ed an hour or two beyond the proper time, they seem in- different about it, as their appetite will be better, and they shall enjoy the repast better. But they will be sure to overeat. Exactness and uniformity in respect to the hours of meals, is considered by physicians as of the first impor- tance to those who are in feeble health. One of them re- marks, that he has often said to his patient; " I will wave all my objections to the quantity and quality of your food, if I am sure that such a sacrifice of opinion would insure regularity in the periods of your ineals." I am happy, however, in knowing, that the regular routine of college exercises, prevents almost entirely the occurrence of this difficulty among us. May all learn so thoroughly the value of regularity in this respect, as never in after life, to be in- duced to swerve from it. Second mode. In the second place, others violate the rule under consid- eration, as above detailed, by indulgence in more than one hearty meal per day. Some, even some students, are in the habit of taking three hearty meals in a day : that is, they devour at each meal, quite as much as the most lax rules would allow for dinner. Yes, not a few young men do this; men who are full of expectation that they are go- ing to rise high in the world in learning and usefulness. But without an alteration of their habits, they will always remain mere scavengers in literature and religion. For if, as a wise man has said, " the second meal, (that is, the se- cond full meal,) makes the glutton,"—what can the third make, but a beast ? Among the ancient philosophers, the 104 LECTURE III. eating of more than one hearty meal in the twentyfour hours, was considered monstrous. What have you seen ? said a friend to Plato on his return from Sicily : Vidi mon- strum in natura; hominem bis saturatum in die. Literally, " I have seen a monster in nature ; a man twiced stuffed in a day!" What would Plato think, could he be revived from the dead, and were to spend one week only, in many of the boarding houses connected with the literary institutions of our land! Oh, let every Christian youth, on whom this satire falls, be ashamed to be thus reproved by a heathen ! Third mode. In the third place, this rule is violated by many, in tak- ing dinner at a late hour; or, as it is called, the fashiona- ble hour; and a consequent delay in the other meals. I rejoice, indeed, that in this institution, we are free from this pernicious practice ; and I rejoice also in the fact, that the great mass of the yeomanry of our country have their dinner upon the table at twelve o'clock—the hour which nature and reason point out as the proper one for the prin- cipal repast. But the habit of late dinners, which originat- ed in the unnatural and luxurious habits of the higher class- es in cities, is certainly gaining ground among the same classes, even in the country : so that the temperate student is liable to be annoyed by it wherever he goes. Every literary man, therefore, should make up his mind on the subject of its utility; and if convinced of its bad influence, be prepared to raise his voice and example against it. Objections to late dinners. The objections to late dinners are these : first, the bodi- ly powers are not as well able to bear the digestion of a hearty meal near evening, as in the middle of the day. The pulse is then quickened and the secretions lessened, and the system begins to feel the need of repose. Secondly, this practice furnishes an almost irresistible temptation to excess in eating: the appetite having been so long denied LATE HOURS. 105 gratification, that in a healthy man, it must become rave- nous before five or six o'clock, or even before three or four. Thirdly, to prevent this suffering from hunger, men are tempted, either to eat excessively at breakfast, or to fall into the unhealthy practice of taking luncheons. Fourth- ly, the practice almost infallibly results in late suppers, late retiring to rest, and late rising in the morning, and conse- quently, in late breakfasts. And the inevitable result of thus inverting the order of nature, and turning night into day, and day into night, is debilitated constitutions, nervous mal- adies, and imbecility of mind. Wherever you find late din- ners, you always find more or less of these effects. But if din- ner be taken at twelve, or one, tea will not be delayed longer than six or seven ; and consequently, men will be prepared to retire to rest at nine or ten ; and in the morning, they will rise at five or six : thus employing the night for repose, and the day for action, as God intended. Late dinners among the great mass of the community, would, therefore, be one of the greatest evils that could come upon them. It is hence the duty of every well wisher to his country, to resist the ruinous custom by his example and influence. It is true, that the inhabitants of our cities plead in behalf of Ibis custom, that it is more convenient to finish their daily routine of business before dinner; and that they cannot find time for dinner at twelve or one: nor do they feel as well qualified for business after dinner as before it But were they to commence business at six or seven in the morning, instead of nine or ten, there would be no want of time ; and were they to dine sis temperately as they ought, they would be refreshed instead of stupified by the repast, and ere long might resume business with as much alacrity as ever. How any Christian parent can consent to educate a family of children, in this system of late hours, with all its hurtful accompaniments, and thus take an almost infalli- ble method of debilitating their bodies and their minds, I confess I do not see. Nor do I wonder at a fact stated by Dr. Johnson, in regard to the inhabitants of London, that 106 LECTURE III. " we shall not find one in ten whose digestive organs are in a natural and healthy condition :"* nor at another fact, stat- ed by a different writer, that while in the country the annu- al mortality is only one in about sixty, in London it is one in twenty.! Hence is seen the truth of the remark, that " large tozvns are the graves of the human race :" hence too the ground of the exclamation of the Roman poet: ----------------pericula mille Saevae urbis ! But if those who live in the cities will persist, (as doubtless they will in spite of my expostulations,) in their late din- ners and late hours, let them do it; let also the glutton do it, and thus the sooner relieve the society which he bur- dens ; and we will join the poet in saying, " Lusisti satis, edisti satis, atque bibisti; " Tempus abire tibi est."t But I protest against the encouragement and introduction of these habits in the country, as some, who are aping city manners, are attempting to do. Happily it is not, as I be- lieve, too late to sound an alarm on this subject among the sober and religious citizens of our interior. In most cities such an appeal would be useless. Even physicians there, seem to be yielding up the point, or rather striving for a compromise. "No dinner," says one, "should betaken later than four o'clock, and in fixing this hour I go to the utmost limit allowed by the principles of health and longe- vity."||—"With regard to the proper period at which inva- lids should dine," says another, " physicians entertain but one opinion; it should be in the middle of the day, or at about two or three o'clock."§ " Early breakfast," says a third, " dinner as near the middle of the day as fashion, or * Influence of Civic Life, &c. p. 21. f Sure Methods, &.c. p. 107. X Hor. L. 2. Episl. 2. Lin. 212. || Sure Methods, p. 72. } Paris on Diet, p. 134", LUNCHEONS PERNICIOUS. 107 folly, or pride will permit, &c."* These receipts were written for the latitude and longitude of London : and it seems that there, these physicians consider it altogether useless to tell men that they ought to dine at twelve o'clock. and so they say, if you will not delay till seven or eight, we will meet you half way, and consent to let you have till three, or even four, to prepare to gormandize. Luncheons. In the fourth place, the rule under consideration, re- quires that luncheons be dispensed with : that is, food should not be taken in the intervals between meals. If a person, indeed, be so weak, that he cannot bear enough to sustain him at three meals, he may increase their number. But in this case he will need to be under the physician's care ; and therefore, he is not in a condition in which I shall undertake to prescribe for him. Others will tell us, that without their luncheon, they find themselves so faint, that they cannot attend to business. And so does the drun- kard, who is deprived of his cups at the regular hour, and for the same reason ; viz. that his stomach has been accus- tomed to the stimulus at that time. But let him, and let the luncheon eater, resolutely persist for some time in denying the calls of appetite, and the palate will crave no more than at any other hour. We are in these things the creatures of habit : and we can learn the stomach to crave, or not to crave, food and drink, at particular seasons, very much as we please—provided we furnish it with enough to sustain the health and strength. The faintness and weakness, which a person feels, by neglecting his luncheons, are of the same character, as that debility which the excessive eater feels for a time, when he reduces his food to a healthy standard ; resulting more from a change of habits, than from real weakness. * Johnson on the Liver, p. 189. 108 LECTURE III. The worst time for taking luncheons. Of all luncheons, the worst are those taken a short time previous to the hour of rest in the evening. It is the sure way to produce restlessness and sleeplesness at night, and dullness and headache in the morning. It is, indeed, the very worst time in the twenty four hours, for taking food. It is the original cause of those late suppers, which are indulged in by many of the wealthy and luxurious, and which are preeminent in the list of indulgencies that shor- ten life. " Cardan observes, that he had conversed with many persons, who had lived to be a hundred years of age, and they all declared to him, that they had made it a rule to eat little at night." It is like loading your horse with a heavy additional burden, after he has been toiling all day, and is weakened by fatigue : or like filling up the mill hopper, when the water is nearly run out. People may tell me, that they cannot sleep without this luncheon, or supper, just before bed time : but they may rest assured, that a persevering indulgence in it, will ere long bring on a sleep, that will be broken only by the archangel's final shout. When shall we eat fruit and sweet meats. But some will enquire, when, according to these princi- ples, they are to be allowed to partake of those delicious fruits and sweetmeats, which, to many, constitute so much of the pleasures of an evening entertainment, or of the family circle ? If you are an invalid, 1 reply, you had better not take them at all; and ifin health, the more abstemious you are, in respect to most of them, the better; though I would not be understood as condemning the use of ripe fruit, at the proper season. Indeed, a moderate quantity of it, is un- doubtedly salutary in health, and even in many cases of debility. But it should be eaten at the regular meals,— particularly at breakfast,—and as a part of the meal; the other food being proportionably lessened in quantity. EATING FRUIT. 109^ There is an old saying, founded in truth, "that fruit is goldin the morning, silver at noon, ami lead at night." It is lead at any time of the day, when taken between meals ; but late in the evening—the usual time of passing it to com- pany—it is dross : Especially when apples, almonds, wal- nuts, raisins, &c. are crammed down, one upon another, as they often are, into the stomach of a dyspeptic student, or delicate nervous lady. To crown all, some two or three kinds of sweetmeats, as compound and indigestible as cook- ery can make them, are loaded into the stomach, and then a glass of wine, or cordial, is added, to drown the groans of laboring nature. And this is done, too, by professing Chris- tians ; who are commanded to be temperate in all things. and who are told that their bodies are the temples of the Holy Ghost!* Eating without cessation. Scarcely less censurable, or fatal, is a practice indulged in by students, probably more than any other class in socie- ty ; I mean the repeated use of apples, nuts, raisins, and other fruits, between their meals. In this way, many ac- custom their stomachs to be incessantly craving some such pernicious article, which constantly disturbs the process of digestion, and ends in gluttony and dyspepsy. Indeed, some cannot cease their champing, during the short season of lec- ture or recitation; and they make it a rule, just as some animals do, to strew every room where they are admitted, with the husks, the shells, and the cores. Persons of such habits will not find it so easy a matter to get rid of them, when, at a future time, they shall find that such slovenly practices would turn them out of a lady's drawing room, or a gentleman's parlor. • There is much diversity of opinion among dietetic writers, as to the best time of day for eating fruit; but nearly all agree, that it ought to constitute a part of some one meal. j 10 110 LECTURE. III. Eating by stealth. By indulging in the use of luncheons surreptitiously, as it were, many invalids defeat all their pretended efforts in dieting. However particular they may be as to what, and how much they eat, it is all useless, until they will reso- lutely govern their appetites during the intervening peri- ods : unless,.*Indeed, this period, at any particular time, should be unusually long, and extra exertions should be requisite, when some simple food, as a piece of bread, or a cracker, may be taken with impunity. Fifth rule of dietetics. The fifth rule of dietetics is, to eat and drink slowly. Mastication. A physician of distinction, whom I once consulted, said to me, " have you ever thought for what purpose Provi- dence gave you teeth ?" It was a fact that I had never deliberately done this; and from the hurried manner in which most people swallow their meals, I fear few persons ever do it. The fact is, imperfect mastication operates very unfavorably in two ways. It prevents the food from being properly comminuted for the action of the gastric juice ; and does not afford the saliva an opportunity to be properly mingled with it. To expect that the stomach will produce healthy chyme, from food thus driven pell mell into it, is almost as unreasonable, as for the Egyptian task masters to require brick without straw. Here then we perceive one important reason for the rule above an- nounced. This rule prevents excess in eating. Another reason for its adoption is, that it tends to pre- vent excess in eating. Physicians may not agree in assign- ing the reason, why the same quantity of food introduced WHY WE SHOULD EAT SLOWLY. 1 1 1 slowly into the stomach, satisfies the appetite much more ef- fectually, than when eaten rapidly : But as to the fact, there can be no doubt. Every person must have observed, how a short interruption in the midst of eating, has dimin- ished, if not entirely destroyed, his appetite, and produced the feeling of satiety. The same thing happens in a less degree in eating slowly. But he who forces his food half masticated down his throat, as a farmer would load a cart, just before a thunder storm, will have exceeded in quantity, ere the feeling of satiety gives him any warning. Pleasures of eating. This rule is recommended too, by the superior pleasure to be derived from eating slowly. Dr. Faust, in his excel- lent Catechism of Health, a work which Dr. Rush recom- mends for parents to teach to their children, inquires ; " What gives the most delicious relish to food? Answer: Hunger, and the thorough chewing of the food." (p. 53.) The man who spends half an hour in masticating six ounces of food, experiences vastly more pleasure from it, than he, who eats two pounds in half that time. It is difficult per- haps, to fix upon any precise number of minutes, that ought to be assigned to our meals. Some physicians say, that dinner ought to occupy not less than an hour. Perhaps this is too much, for those who dine on one dish; but certainly it is desirable to devote half that time to each meal. Students violate this rule. Students, 1 believe, are proverbially violators of this rule. From what I have seen, I do not believe that the average length of time, given to their meals, by the mem- bers of our colleges, exceeds ten minutes. Not improba- bly it would be found, that it does not exceed five. How to learn to eat slow. To conquer this habit is no easy task. A great help in overcoming it, is to adhere to the rules, as to quantity and 112 lecture hi. variety, that have been discussed. When a person first sits down to the table, let him collect before him, every parti- cle of food which he intends to eat at that meal. Know- ing that he shall have a good appetite when he finishes this, he will be induced to enjoy it as long as possible.* Another help is to divide his food into as many portions as 1 he conveniently can, and then admit only one piece into his mouth at a time. If in addition to this, he should make it a rule to lay down his eating apparatus after every mouth- ful, he will find the practice a good rein upon his appetite. Some may think it unnecessary nicety to be thus particu- lar in a public lecture. But 1 regard nothing unnecessary) on such a subject, that will help you to conquer a bad habit. Nor am I very fastidious about literary niceties, when they come in competition with a plain and forcible develope- ment of important truths. Sixth dietetic rule. But after all, the most important precaution in this case, is always to sit down to the table, with the mind free FROM CARE, INTENSE THOUGHT, OR PASSION, AND DISPOSED TO be cheerful and sociable. So important is this direction, that I shall give it as the sixth rule in dietetics. So inti- mate is the connection of the mental with the corporeal powers and operations, that any strong excitement of the mind, will most effectually check, if not entirely stop, the process of digestion. A violent fit of anger, coming on when a person is eating with a good relish, or the reception of distressing news, will as assuredly destroy the appetite, as a fit of apoplexy : while, on the contrary, agreeable and j easy conversation, kindness and hospitality, or pleasant in- telligence, will create an appetite. So we all know, that heavy cares, or afflictions, will indispose for taking food. Severe thought will do the same. * Note P, DIGESTION INFLUENCED BY THE MIND. 113 Anecdote of Sir Isaac Newton. Sir Isaac Newton retired one day to his study, and gave orders to his servant that he must not be disturbed. A friend called to see him ; and learning his directions, wait- ed for him at the hour of dinner. But Sir Isaac not ap- pearing, the friend took his place and devoured the chick- en. Newton coming in soon after, and seeing the picked bones upon the table, exclaimed, " I thought I had not din- ed, but I now find that I have."* State of the feelings influences digestion- According to these views, we learn that when a man is in an agitated state of mind, he is not in a condition to sit down at the table; he had better wait till he is cool and compos- ed, and if possible, till he is cheerful. For the same reas- on, he should not engage in eating, while poring intently over a mathematical or metaphysical problem. And no gentleman, who understands good manners, will introduce at table, any subject for discussion, that is likely to call forth strong feeling, or vigorously to exercise the powers of the mind. For the same reason, reading should not be indulg- ed in while eating, unless it be of a character to amuse rather than task the mind ; nor should any details be given that are calculated to harrow up the feelings and produce strong emotion. In all cases where these rules are not re- garded, you will find men eating and drinking in a hurried manner, forcing down their food almost without chewing, and plying their knives and forks with gluttonous rapidity. Good effect of mutual civilities at table* This principle shows us, also, that the mutual attention to one another's wants, which good breeding demands, at the table, contributes no less to health than to good manners. By striving to help your neighbour first, and to the best, • Library of Useful Knowledge, No. 50, p. 18, 10* 114 LECTURE III. you put him, as well as yourself, in good humor; and pave the way for pleasant conversation and for a return of favors. The man who takes care of himself only at table, appropri- ting to his plate, whatever his appetites craves, and then gormandizes in silent moroseness, will be amply punished by the clog he thus puts upon his digestion. When the poet would describe a total unhinging of society, and the oblit- eration of every fellow feeling, he says, —" And each sat silently apart, Gorging himself in gloom." {Byron.) Literary discussions at table. In view of the rule under consideration, I more than doubt the expediency of the practice atsome of our semin- aries of learning, of introducing some regular theme of dis- cussion at table, the principal presiding. It has a show of great economy in point of time. But it is cheating the stomach out of the hour that properly belongs to it; and depend upon it, that organ will be revenged upon the intru- der. There will be too much of formality and constraint at such a table ; and pupils when questioned, cannot but feel such an excitement, as to be injurious. Seventh rule of dietetics. A seventh rule of dietetics, in which physicians agree, is NOT TO INDULGE IN A FULL MEAL WHILE MUCH FATIGUED. Remarks of Dr. Wallis. " The generality of mankind," says Dr. Walli*, in his Art of Preserving Health, " are accustomed after they have suf- fered fatigue, and that perhaps severe, from hunting, shoot- ing, cricket playing, walking, or any other species of undue exercise, to indulge their appetites, by eating copiously of solid food, and think it one of the advantages thence arising, that they are enabled to throw down such a load of gross materials; nay not content with this, they make it FATIGUE IMPEDES DIGESTION. 115 float in porter, ale, or some other viscid liquor, and after- wards indulge themselves with a jolly bottle. This prac- tice they think supported by reason ; for when the machine is exhausted, they argue, it is most natural to conclude that it requires much refreshment. If we examine, however, the effects of such indiscreet conduct, we cannot hesitate to pronounce it erroneous, and to condemn the practice. For after eating and drinking copiously under such circumstan- ces, the system grows dull and heavy, and general lassitude comes on; the pulse grows quick, the face flushes, a tem- porary fever ensues; the skin is dry—the mouth clammy-— thirst attends—and in the place of that recruited strength, alacrity and cheefulness they expected to obtain from their healthy meal and night's repose, they arise in the morning after a few hours of disturbed sleep, weary and depressed with pain, or stiffness in the joints, an aching head, and a stomach loathing its accustomed food. Nor can it be other- wise ; for the digestive powers of the stomach, in that state of exhaustion induced by fatigue, are incapable of perform- ing the task to which they are excited ; and the load of food which is taken, in place of recruiting the strength and ac- tivity of the system, is a cause of suffering and disease, ex- tending from the stomach itself to the residue of the sys- tem."* Exercise before meals. These remarks must not be understood as implying that exercise before meals is not important: for that is, indeed, the best season during the day : But when that exercise has been carried so far as to induce considerable fatigue, the diet should be confined to liquid food chiefly, or that easily digested, such as plain broth, milk, light bread, or pudding: or else a man should take time for nature to re- cruit her exhausted energies before partaking of his repast. •Journal of Health, p. 110. 116 LECTURE III. May a man eat in proportion to his exercise ? ^ There is a prevalent opinion, that a man may eat in pro- portion to his exercise : and it is undoubtedly true, that vig- orous exercise will, in a measure, counteract the bad effects of excessive eating. But in the case under consideration, that is, when the exercise becomes fatiguing and exhaust- ing, we see that the rule will not apply. Hence there is no small danger in taking it for our guide; although it is sup- ported by the authority of Lord Bacon. The better rule is to adhere always to nearly the same quantity from a single dish, and to suffer ourselves to exceed it but very moder- ately, even when journeying, or otherwise spending our whole time in active exercise abroad : For experience as- sures us, that even in such cases, nature does not require any very great addition. We shall then always be safe from excess, without the danger of starvation.* Injurious habit of public speakers. The rule under consideration shows how very injurious is the habit of some speakers, particularly clergymen, of eating very heartily soon after a fatiguing effort in public. The anxiety which they feel previous to the effort, usually moderates their appetite : but when the work is finished, they give up the reins of self control and indulge in the most hearty food and the strongest tea or coffee, even to satiety—not aware that the stomach, like every other part of the system, then needs rest The consequence is, an uneasy wakeful state of the system, which physicians call the digestive fever. Hence results most of the clergyman's sleeplessness and nervous excitement sabbath night; and hence too, many of what he calls his Mondayish feelings. Let his supper be unusually light and sparing on the Sab- bath, and let him contrive to get some active bodily exer- cise in the evening, and he would find sleep no stranger to his couch, nor Monday a day of yawning and listlessness. • Note Q. DIET ADAPTED TO THE SEASONS. 1 17 TJ0~' Eighth rule of diet. An eighth rule respecting diet may be added, which di- rects that OUR FOOD AND DRINK SHOULD VARY SOMEWHAT WITH THE SEASONS OF THE YEAR. Animal food, for example, is better fitted for the winter, than for thc%pring or summer ; because then the system needs to be more braced to resist the cold, and to endure the more vigorous exercise which is requisite to health. But in spring, a change of no small magnitude takes place in the system. The sluggish movements and torpid action of winter are succeeded by greater mental susceptibili- ty, more acuteness of feeling, increased circulation of the blood, and a greater flow of perspiration and sensi- bility of the digestive organs. This change brings along with it a susceptibility to new forms of disease, and de- mands peculiar attention to that fruitful source of disor- der as well as of health—the digestive process. The food generally, but animal food in particular, should be diminish- ed in quantity, and its quality be nourishing, but not irritat- ing. Ardent spirit, wine, and every species of stimulating drink, should be most carefully avoided: even tea and cof- fee are often injurious at this season, and should in such case be abandoned. People are apt to imagine, that in the spring their blood has become impure and needs the apothecary's compounds to correct it. But, says the Journal of Health, " Increase of thirst, feverish heat, pains of the head ; or palpitation, with a sensation of languor or uneasiness, are best obviated by a reduction of the usual quantity of food —and a substitution, almost entire, of vegetable for animal food. Copious potations of water, at this season, will be found the very best purifier of the blood and remover of all peccant matter ; while milk, as an article of diet, with good light bread, baked on the preceding day, or vegetables, may be regarded as the grand cordial and true tonic. This is in many countries, the food of the robust ploughman and hardy mountaineer, whose spirits are strung in a very dif- 118 LECTURE III. ferent key to what the sipper of wine and cordial, the bib- ber of beer and porter, or the tippler of ardent spirit, can boast of." Diet in Summer. During the relaxing heats of summer, essentially the ^ same course, as to diet, should be followed, as in the spring, by all who would secure an immunity from disease. The cool, the light, and the little, should be sought, and the gross, the stimulating, and *the indigestible, should be shunned. How many would in this way avoid the prevalent fevers, dysenteries, and other violent disorders, that cut down so many in early autumn ! But when one and another falls be- fore these complaints, no one thinks of looking for their causes to the dietetic excesses of the preceding months. Ninth rule of diet. The ninth and last general principle in respect to diet, must be expressed in a rather general manner, to embrace those points on which there is a general agreement among dietetic writers. It is this : Some articles of diet are MORE NUTRITIVE AND MORE EASY OF DIGESTION THAN OTHERS ; AND SOME ARE ENTIRELY DESTITUTE OF NOURISHMENT.* Materia Alimentaria. I now come to a part of the subject which men generally regard as the essence of dietetics, viz. the comparative value of the different kinds of food: But I have already express- ed the opinion that this is of much less importance than is supposed. Still, it is a wide field, and must not be left alto- gether unexplored. In respect to a few articles of the Materia Alimentaria, as Dr. Paris calls it, 1 shall enter into a minute examination ; because they have a most important , bearing upon man's temporal and eternal interests : while in respect to the others, I can only briefly notice their lead- ing properties and effects. •See NoUR. CLASSIFICATION OF ALIMENTS. 119 The course proposed to be taken. All our alimentary substances are naturally divided into Liquid and Solid. I shall first consider those that are liquid. And before such an audience as this, it seems peculiarly de- sirable, that we should examine as philosophers, patriots, moralists, and accountable beings, the nature and effects of those alcoholic and narcotic substances, that are in such general use among all classes of society ; particularly ar- dent spirit, wine, opium, and tobacco. These are not, in- deed, all liquid ; but coining into the same class of substan- ces, because they have many properties and relations in com- mon, they are most conveniently examined together. And in this examination, I am determined to follow the course which philosophy, prudence, patriotism, and religion point out as the path of temperance I am aware that it may lead me close along in front of the heavy batteries of public opi- nion, prejudice, and evil habit. But I am determined not to turn to the right hand or the left, however warm may be the fire that may open upon me; for though it may be easy to cut me down, it is of little consequence, provided the truth remain: and I feel strong confidence that this will not be easilv overthrown; for magna est Veritas, et prevalebit. Dangerous to push this subject to extremes. I am aware that many will consider me as taking an in- judicious course, in attempting, as#I have done, and pur- pose still to do, to draw out and apply the principles of temperance so closely, so rigidly, and so universally. They will regard it as the sure way to defeat ray object: because men cannot be persuaded to go to such extremes. They will not give up every luxury and every unecessary indul- gence of the palate : and therefore, we ought to direct our efforts against those only, that are most hurtful; leaving to them the smaller and comparatively harmless indulgences, if they will abandon the more pernicious. To grasp at so much, is to lose all. Instead of attempting to adopt such as- 120 LECTURE III. cetic rules, men will reject the whole, as entirely Utopian and impracticable. Reasons for giving definite and perfect rules. That but faw persons will be induced to incorporate the principles of universal temperance into their practice, is what I expect. Bot that this furnishes a sufficient reason for modifying and softening down these rules, so as to suit the caprices and morbid appetites of men, I do not believe, for the following reasons. Moral rules require perfection. 1. The moral philosopher knows full well, that no man will ever perfectly put in practice the rules of ethics ; yet he does not regard this as a reason for softening down and modifying these rules to suit the humours of men. But he presses them in all their unyielding strictness, as demand- ing perfect obedience. And does the perfection of moral precepts render them nugatory, or furnish any excuse for rejecting them ? Law of God perfect- 2. The law of God, requiring supreme love to him, and sinless perfection in every man, was never yet obeyed com- pletely in its spirit by any mere human being; nor will it ever be thus obeyed in this world. But God did not,therefore, lower its demands ; and endeavour to accommodate it to man's deficiencies and likings. This would have convert- ed it into a mass of wax, which must be moulded into dif- ferent shapes in different states of society. He has given a perfect and invariable standard, and the nearer men come to it, in their conduct, the better: but heaven and earth must first pass away, before he will lower down, or alter, any of its requirements. Now the rules of temperance are only one of the branches of morality and religion.— Why then should we not urge them upon men exactly in the form in which philosophy, experience, and religion, de- RULES SHOULD BE PERFECT. 121 clare them most perfect, and best calculated to promote human happiness? This is what 1 have endeavoured to do. If I have not stated them correctly, that is another thing: and I shall most cheerfully see them corrected. But I maintain that because men will not adopt them, it is no rea- son for giving them a modified, accomodating form. I have not taken my own experience as the infallible guide, ex- pecting that every man must come up precisely to that stan- dard in diet, exercise, and employment. Indeed, I do not pretend that my own practice, is perfectly conformed to these rules, any more than it is to the rules of morality and religion. But because I have not the resolution and the government of my appetites, sufficient to observe these in perfection, shall I, therefore, bring them down to my defec- tive practice ? Derived as they are, from the principles of philosophy and medicine, and the testimony of general ex- perience, I have not dared to give them any other form, even when they seemed at variance, (as in a few minor cas- es they did,) with my own particular, limited experience. And satisfied as I am, that he who comes nearest to their perfect observance, will be most benefited, I would not pre- sent them in an other form, any more than I would modify the principles of ethics or religion. I wish it to be dis- tinctly remembered, that my object is not to give merely good rules, but the best rules ; not to point out a standard that will be of some service, but a standard which is the best that can be ascertained. And I am confident that with such a standard before him, every man, who attends at all to diet and regimen, will be more successful in his efforts, and rise higher, than if that standard were low and ac- commodated to the tastes and prejudices of society. And as to those, who are repulsed by its strictness, they would pro- bably be repulsed by any rules rigid enough to do them good.* • See Note S. 11 1 22 LECTURE III. Loose and imperfect rules have failed to do any good. 3. But in one branch of temperance, the experiment of acting according to what would be called a more liberal and accommodating principle, has been tried ; and utterly failed. A few years since, numerous associations were formed in the land, whose object was to discourage the intemperate use of ardent spirit, by lending the power of example in favor of a moderate use : but since men's views differed as to what constituted a moderate use, the result was, that every one used just as much as he chose ; while the drunk- ard ridiculed the plan as a mere farce. But just so soon as the fundamental principle of total abstinence was taken as a guide, which multitudes still consider as too rigid and self denying for their adoption, intemperance received a pro- digious shock; and temperance commenced its march, from conquest to conquest, and from victory to victory. Now this history is a most instructive lesson, as to other branches of the same subject. I never yet saw a drunkard, or a glutton, who would not join me, in condemning luxuri- ous eating and drinking : but where does all this take place ?. Oh, I am not guilty of it—but in some cities or towns far hence, the rich and the indolent are very intemperate. And just so will all men look somewhere else than to their own "practice, for the evil; until the rules of diet are applied so clearly and particularly, as to bring home the faithful warn- ing, Thou art the man- Merely to tell men that they ought to be very temperate in their diet, while you do not mark out the limits of temperance, nor apply its rules, is one of the most useless of all kinds of instruction. Students should not wish for accommodating rules. 4. Finally; the character of my audience, as it seems to me, renders it peculiarly proper, that I should urge a very high standard of temperance for their adoption. They are young men, who cannot plead the power of bad habits, in- dulged till they have become a second nature, as the more advanced in life often do. Nor, can many of them tell us STUDENTS SHOULD AIM HIGH. 123 of long continued infirmities, and debilitated constitutions, which might receive too severe a shock from great and sud- den changes in living. In short, they have that youthful vigor, and that pliability of constitution, which will enable them with comparative ease, to adopt the most thorough system of training, that philosophy and experience approve. To them, therefore, may the inspired principle be address- ed in its strictest meaning : Every man that striveth for the mastery, is temperate in all things. And the peculiar reason for addressing it to them, may be given in the words of another inspired writer : / have written unto you, young men, because ye arc strong. Moreover, these young men are students; who ought, therefore, to sacrifice eve-ry sensual indulgence, and be willing to endare any self denial, where- by they may attain vigor and clearnesss of thought, and the power of close application to study: for they are the young Samsons, who are hereafter to help sustain the pillars of of our intellectual greatness. They are to furnish a quota of our future legislators, and civilians, and ministers, and missionaries. 'Add too to all this, they are comingiorward at an age, when the energies of the human mind are waking up to mighty efforts; and when they will need every aid, which mental and bodily discipline can furnish, to sustain them in the high places of conflict. And shall I talk to such men, in such circumstances, of making a compromise be- tween temperance and appetite ? Shall I fear that they will be repelled by any rules, however strict upon animal nature, if their effect be to fit them for the high and holy achievements on which they have set their hearts? And especially when I recollect, that these young men are most peculiarly exposed to be assaulted and overcome by dys- pepsy ; and that every year we see no small draft made upon their number, by this unmerciful scourge ; shall 1 fear that the only weapons by which they can be defended, and which I am endeavouring to put into their hands, will be too, bright and keen? Were I addressing an assembly of farmers, or hardy mountaineers; of soldiers, or of sailors; I 124 LECTURE III should hardly need to remind them that they have stomachs ; so securely defended are they against this enemy, by the plaited, seven fold armour in which their occupations en- case them : But not so with literary men ; or any others of sedentary habits. They must be taught, that such a subtle and desperate foe, cannot be repulsed, or kept at bay, by parleying; or by any armour half buckled on, or by any telum imbelle Priami. He must be met in the " panoply com- plete " of temperance; And if I can persuade the young men of this, or any other literary institution, resolutely to buckle it on, and to stand always braced for the conflict, 1 shall not fear to begin the shout of victory. LECTURE IV.* Alcoholic and Narcotic Substances, as Articles of common Use: viz. Ardent Spirit, Wine, Opium, and Tobacco. Appeal to Students against their use. I. On the ground of Philosophy.— Water recommended. II. On the ground of Self Interest and Prudence. III. Of Patriotism. IV. Of Religion. Quantity of Alcohol in Spirit and Wine. Gentlemen, The substances in common use which contain the largest quantity of alcohol, are ardent spirit and wine. The pro- portion of this principle, in 100 parts, of the most usual varieties of these articles, is as follows : Rum, 54 Brandy, (French) 53 Gin, 52 Scotch Whiskey, 54 Port Wine, from 19 to 26 Madeira, " 19 " 24 Currant Wine, 21 Sherry, Lisbon, & Malaga, from 18 to 20 Claret, from 13 to 17 Tokay, 10 Adulteration ofxoines. Tvr-«"y all the wines used in this country contain a much larger proportion of alcohol than the above table indicates ; • Originally published ai a Prize Essay by the American Tem- perance Society. 11* 126 LECTURE IV. as it is well known to be the practice of many dealers in wine, to add brandy and other articles, to give them more life and a richer color. Indeed, it is stated by a most res- pectable medical authority, that " for every gallon of pure wine which is sold, there is perhaps a pipe, or fifty times the quantity, of that which is adulterated, and in various manners sophisticated—the whole, without exception, the source of a thousand disorders, and in many instances an active poison imperfectly disguised."* Narcotic Substances. Of the narcotic substances commonly used, opium and to- bacco contain much the largest quantity of the narcotic prin- ciple. I would, therefore, solicit the attention of every stu- dent and other intelligent young man, to an examination of the nature, relations, and effects of spirit, wine, opium, and tobacco; in the hope of persuading them all, totally to ab- stain from their use. Reasons for discarding all these articles. I group these articles together, as alike to be rejected, because they agree in being poisonous in their natures; un- necessary to the healthy; incapable of affording nourish- ment to the body; fascinating to diseased appetite, and de- structive to property, health, and life. Of these articles, however, ardent spirit is preeminent in the work of destruction; and, therefore, abstinence from this, is of preeminent importance. But wine, opium, and tobacco, in all the Protean forms they are made to assume, Dumber not a few among their victims. They ought, there- fore, to be all proscribed together/! Moreover, abstinence from one or more of these articles, while we retain the habit of using any of them, u«~-* effectu- ally neutralizes the influence of our example in favor oftem- • Journal of Health, Vol. I. p. 136. f See Note A. ALCOHOLIC AND NARCOTIC SUBSTANCES. 127 perance. " I should prefer to use wine, instead of rum, or whiskey," says an intemperate man ; " but wine is too ex- pensive. Give me your wine, and 1 will abandon spirit." " I am ready to abstain from alcohol," says another, " when you do from tobacco." This appeal must effectually shut the mouth, and destroy the influence, of any one, who will persist in the use of wine or tobacco. By total abstinence from the alcoholic and narcotic sub- stances above mentioned, I mean an entire disuse of them, except when they are prescribed for bodily disease, by a regular physician, who is not himself addicted to their use. Like most other poisons, they may sometimes be employed advantageously, as medicines ; though several medical men of the first standing in our country, have pronounced all of them, except opium, to be unnecessary, even to the physi- cian ; since in all cases, as good, or better substitutes may be employed.* Appeal to students. The appeal, which I now proceed to make, to every scholar and intelligent young man, urging him to abstain en- tirely from ardent spirit, wine, opium, and tobacco, is based, I. Upon the principles of philosophy. Classification. These articles, it is well known, have all a vegetable ori- gin. Alcohol is the principle that gives to ardent spirit and wine their intoxicating power; while the narcotic principle • " Appeal to the medical profession of the country, and ask them to correct the false idea, which so extensively. I may say so univer- sally prevails, viz. .• that ardent spirit is sometimes necessary in the treatment of disease. This opinion has slain its thousands and tens of thousands, &c."—" Appeal then to the medical profession, and they will tell you, every independent, honest, soher member of it, «Ul tell you, that there is no case in which ardent spirit is indii- fessor Sewai.^T which there is not an adequate subititote."—Pr»- eiety p 20 *'*•" the Washington City Temperance «•- 128 LECTURE IV. imparts similar properties to opium and tobacco. In popu- lar language, alcohol is classed among the stimulants ; and opium and tobacco among the narcotics; which are sub- stances, whose ultimate effect upon the animal system, is, to produce torpor and insensibility ; but taken in small quan- tities, they at first exhilarate. And since alcohol does the same, most medical writers, at the present day, class it among the narcotics. Compositoin of vegetable substances. All vegetable substances consist essentially of three sim- ple principles ; oxygen, carbon, and hydrogen. These, and these only, compose the sweetest as well as the most add parts of plants : the mildest as well as the most powerful; the most salutary as well as the most poisonous. Nor can chemistry discover any difference in their compo- sition, except that the elements above mentioned, usually exist in them in different proportions. A knowledge of the chemical constitution of the narcotics under consideration, affords no assistance, therefore, in determining whether they are salutary or injurious. Their physical effects upon ani- mals, however, prove them to be active poisons. Definition of a Poison. But what are we to understand by a poison 1 Any thing, which being introduced into the animal system, proves de- trimental, or fatal, may properly be denominated poisonous; so that the same substance may be a poison, or not, accord- ing to the quantity and circumstances in which it is taken. Thus, a very small quantity of arsenic, and a moderate amount of animal food, may be taken with equal impunity, and sometimes with equal benefit. But a large quantity of the food proves sometimes as fatal to health and life, as a large dose of the arsenic ; and the effects of the two are not much dissimilar. Smallness of quantity and a certain obscu- rity in the mode of operation, seem includejltttfY^cjrcum_ eon's definition of the word. But tb*- POISONS COMPARED. 129 stances merely, and therefore not essential. If the effect be rapid and powerful from small quantities, the poison is said to be active. In order to determine, therefore, whe- ther the substances under consideration belong to this class, we have only to compare their effects upon the animal sj's- tem, with that of articles universally acknowledged to be actively poisonous. Morphia and Nicotin. As to Morphia and Nicotin, which are the quintessence of opium and tobacco, there will be no dispute. "A grain and a half of morphia," says Dr. Ure, " taken at three dif- ferent times, produced such violent symptoms upon three young men of seventeen years of age, that Serturner was alarmed, lest the consequences should have proved fatal." UA drop or two of the chemical oil of tobacco," says a med- ical writer, "being put upon the tongue of a cat produces violent convulsions and death itself in the space of a mi- nute."* Opium, Tobacco, and Alcohol, compared uith other vegetable Poisons. Whether opium is used in the form of pills, tinctures, con- fections, electuaries, or anodynes, such as laudanum, pare- goric, &c. ; or whether tobacco is chewed or smoked, or taken as snuff, the virulent poisons above mentioned, which give them their power, are greatly weakened by mixture with other substances. Still, the paw of the lion cannot be entirely hid. A few grains of common opium, indeed, will destroy a person unaccustomed to it; and a large quan- tity of tobacco has produced the same effect. The habitual use of opium brings on weakness of the digestive organs, and imbecility of mind ; a remarkable sottishness in the ap- pearance, and premature dissolution. In those not accus- tomed to it, tobacco excites nausea, vomiting, dizziness, in- digestion, mentaj dejection, and in short, the whole train of • Rees's Cyclopedia, Article Tobacco, 130 LECTURE IV. nervous complaints. No wonder that James the first, on seeing such effects from this " Nicotian drug," should have sent forth his " Counterblast to Tobacco," and edicts still more powerful, to prevent its introduction into England : that the Pope excommunicated those who used it in the churches: and that the civil power was arrayed against it in Russia,Turkey, and Persia. But tobacco has triumphed; and the only hope of its extirpation from our land, lies in rousing against it a mightier power than any Eastern des- pot wields ; and that it, enlightened public opinion. Most of the other powerful vegetable poisons, such as hen- bane, hemlock, thorn apple, prussicacid, deadly nightshade, foxglove, and poison sumach, have an effect on the animal system scarcely to be distinguished from that of morphia and nicotin, or opium and tobacco. The operation of alcohol is also very similar. These poisons produce nausea, verti- go, vomiting, exhilaration of spirits for a time, and subse- quent stupor, and even totalinsensibiltty : and so does alco- hol. They impair- the organs of digestion, and may bring on fatuity, palsy, delirium, or apoplexy; and so may alco- hol. These effects, indeed, usually follow only in a slight degree from spirit, as it is commonl) drunk ; because the alcohol is so much diluted. Even spirit of the first proof, contains, as we have seen, only about 50 parts of alcohol in'* 100; yet seven drams introduced into the stomach of a rab- bit, produced death in an hour and a quarter;* and 6 drams proved fatal to a robust dog in three and a half hours.t % Nor are the cases rare, in which alcohol, thus diluted, has proved fatal to men. Were the alcohol perfectly pure, or undiluted, these effects would be doubly powerful. Now all the virulent poisons, if mixed with other substances, so as to be less concentrated, may be used for a long time, even habitually, without seeming to produce any very inju- rious effects. A horse may take a dram of arsenic daily and • Rees's Cyclop, article Poison. t Nancredi's Abridgment ofOrfila on Poison. USE OF ALCOHOL AND NARCOTICS. 131 continue to thrive ; and a very small quantity seems not to affect a man. In short, there is so close a resemblance be- tween the operation of alcohol and most of the powerful vegetable poisons, that to regard the latter as poisonous,and not the former, would be highly unphilosophical. Accord- ingly, the best medical writers of the present day, do class alcohol among the poisons, as well as opium and tobacco. Physicians alone should administer these substances. It is surely reasonable to infer from hence, that these substances must be very dangerous, when employed as arti- cles of luxury or diet; or when administered as medicines, except under the direction of the regular physician. He may use them, (especially opium) in many cases, perhaps', with advantage. For the same substance, that is deadly poison to the constitution in health, may be eminently salu- tary in sickness. And a similar difference exists indifferent constitutions; which is the reason that some men are worn out much sooner than others by the use of stimulants and narcotics. But the physician is the only proper person to judge of the cases and the quantity, in which these substan- ces ought to he used. For every man to take the business into his own hands, without any knowledge of medicine, and to undertake to determine when, and how much, of ardent spirit, wine, opium and tobacco, are necessary for him,.is just as absurd and as dangerous as if he were to prescribe and deal out arsenic, or corrosive sublimate, or calomel. Nor can the man in health do it, to gratify his appetite, without certain injury to his constitution. He may not per- ceive injurious effects for years, on account of the immedi- ate exhilaration ; but complicated chronic complaints will, after a lime, creep upon him, making life a burden, and ending in premature dissolution ; though he may impute his sufferings to other causes, and even die, folded with un- suspicious confidence, in the arms of his murderer. 132 LECTURE IV. Opium ; when used injudiciously. There can be no doubt that opium, in the hands of a ju- dicious physician, is a most valuable medicine ; nor any more doubt, that when used habitually, or even occasionally, without medical advice, it is almost uniformly and highly injurious. We have, indeed, few genuine opium eaters among us; but the laudanum and paregoric phial, are con- sidered almost indispensable in every family. Nor does the mother hesitate, night after night, to quell the cries of her infant, by administering increasing doses of these poisons, and thus almost infallibly to ruin its constitution. The nervous invalid also, resorts to this remedy for allaying the irritation of his system and procuring repose. And more especially, does the delicate votary of fashionable life, make this her nightly resort, on returning at midnight from the assembly, the dance, or the tea party, " all soul within and all nerve without." And nearly all these persons, numerous as they have become among us, are probably ignorant that they are thus destroying themselves and their children. But if they will not listen to the following awakening warning, coming from high medical authorit}', they are irretrievably ruined. Warning against the use of Opium. " However repugnant to our feelings as rational beings may be the vice of drunkenness, it is not more hurtful in its effects than the practice of taking laudanum"—" this is not the language of exaggeration or speculative fear. We speak from a full knowledge of the facts. We repeat it—the per- son who gets into the habit for weeks, (he may not reach to months, or if he pass these, his years will be but few and miserable,) of daily measuring out to himself his drops of laudanum, or his pills of opium, or the like deleterious sub- stance, call it tincture, solution, mixture, potion, what you will, is destroying himself as surely as if he were swallow- ing arsenic, or had the pistol applied to his head. The fire of disease may for a while be concealed—he*may smile in- TOBACCO. 133 credulous at our prediction ; but the hour of retribution will come, and the consequences will be terrible."* Medical Testimony against Tobacco. Not less decided is the testimony of physicians against the use of tobacco in every form. " Did the least benefit result to the system from its habitual use," says the same authority, " there would then be some reason why, with all its loath- someness of taste and smell, it should have become so gen- eral a favorite. But we know, on the contrary, that all who habituate themselves to its use, sooner or later experience its noxious power. Tobacco is in fact an absolute poison. A very moderate quantity introduced into the system—-even applying the moistened leaves over the stomach—has been known very suddenly to extinguish life." "In whatever form it may be employed, a portion of the active principles of the tobacco, mixed with the saliva, invariably finds its way to the stomach, and disturbs or impairs the functions of that organ. Hence, most, if not all, of those who are accustomed to the use of tobacco, labor under dyspeptic symptoms. They experience, at intervals, a want of appetite—nausea —inordinate thirst—vertigo—pains and distensions of the stomach—disagreeable sleep, and are more or less ema- ciated." How very pernicious, then, must be that filthy practice, to which some are given, of swallowing down purposely, a quantity of tobacco spittle after meals, to assist digestion ! Or the still more degrading habit, of chewingsnuff; to which it is said, not a few delicate ladies are addicted ! Alas, to what depths of degradation will brutal appetite bow down the immortal mind ! Tobacco rarely, if ever, useful. The common opinion, that tobacco, in some of its forms, is serviceable for headaches, weak eyes, the preservation of the teeth, purifying the breath, cold and watery stomachs, • Journal of Health, Vol. I. p. 162,163. 12 134 LECTURE. IV. &c. is mere delusion. " At first had recourse to, by some, for the relief of headache, or disordered eyes,—snuff, when long continued," says a medical writer, " brings on those very evils it was intended to remove." And here I am hap- py in having permission to give the opinion of one of the ablest physicians in Massachusetts, as to the use of tobacco in another form; " The chewing of tobacco," says he, " is not necessary or useful in any case that I know of: and I have abundant evidence to satisfy me that its use may be discontinued without pernicious consequences. The com- mon belief, thai it is beneficial to the teeth, is, I apprehend, entirely erroneous. On the contrary, by poisoning and re- laxing the vessels of the gums, it may impair the healthy condition of the vessels belonging to the membranes of the socket, with the condition of which, the state of the tooth is closely connected."* The practice of smoking is alike deleterious. If it were ever useful as a medicine, the habit, by deadening the ner- vous sensibility, must prevent every good effect, and then it becomes injurious only : Indeed, " even in persons much accustomed to it, it may be carried so far as to prove a mor- tal poison."t The counsel given by the Journal of Health, is, therefore, in perfect accordance with the principles of medical philos- ophy. " Our advice is, to desist, immediately and entirely, from the use of tobacco in every form, and in any quantity, however small."—" A reform of this, like of all evil habits, whether of smoking, chewing, drinking, and other vicious indulgencies, to be efficacious, must be entire, and complete, from the very moment when the person is convinced, either by his fears or his reason, of its pernicious tendency and operation," Is A Icohol useful or necessary ? Ardent spirit and wine are considered very serviceable, 9 Letter from Dr. John C. Warren of Boston, March, 1830. t Ree's Cyc. article Tobacco. ARDENT SPIRIT AND WINE. 135 by multitudes, in several circumstances. Let us see wheth- er this opinion is correct. Is alcohol necessary for the farmer, to sustain him under protracted labour and fatigue? The experiment has been fairly and repeatedly tried, by many of the most hard-work- ing men inths country; and their testimony is, that spirit is decidedly injurious, by increasing the very evils it is suppos- ed to remove ; notwithstanding the temporary exhilaration which it produces. Is it necessary for the soldier 1 Says Dr. Jackson, a dis- tinguished surgeon in the British army, " my health has been tried in all ways; and by the aids of temperance and hard work, I have worn out two armies, in two wars, and probably could wear out another before my period of old age arrives. I eat no animal food, dtink no wine or malt liquor, or spirits of any kind ; I wear no flannel ; and nei- ther regard wind nor rain, heat nor cold, when business is in the way."* A general officer in the British service thus testified also, more than thirty years ago. "But above all, let every one who values his health, avoid drinking spirits when heated ; that is adding fuel to the fire, and is apt to produce the most dangerous* inflammatory complaints." " Not a more dan- ger*, us error exists, than the notion that the habitual use of spirituous liquors prevents the effects of cold. On the con- trary, the truth is, that those who drink most frequently of them are soonest affected by severe weather. The daily use of these liquors tends greatly to emaciate and waste the strength of the body."! The Roman soldiers, who conquered the world, and bore a weight of armour that would almost crush a modern war- rior, drank nothing stronger than vinegar and water.| * Sure Methods of Improving Health, &c. p. 79. f Military Mentor, vol. 1. p. 24—25. t " I stand here a living monument of the utter uselessness of ar- dent spirits, having never tasted them ; arid yet I have endured my full proportion of fatigue and exposure, in peace and war." Gov. Cass's Address before the Detroit Temperance Society. 136 LECTURE IV. Are alcoholic mixtures necessary for sailors? In 1619, the crew of a Danish ship, of sixty men, well supplied with provisions and ardent spirit, attempted to pass the winter in Hudson's Bay : but fifty eight of them died before spring. An English crew of twenty two men, however, destitute of ardent spirit, and obliged to be almost constantly exposed to the cold, wintered in the same Bay, and only two of them died. Eight Englishmen did the same, in like circumstan- ces, and all returned to England : and four Russians, left without spirit or provisions in Spitzbergen, lived there six years and afterwards returned home. In accordance with these facts, it is found, that when sailors are exposed in high latitudes to cold and wet, those endure best, and live longest, who drink no spirit.* Is spirit necessary for slaves, who are exposed to a sum- mer's sun in warm climates ? " On three contiguous estates," in the island of Cuba, says Dr. Abbot, " of more than four hundred slaves, has been made with fine success, the exper- iment of a strict exclusion of ardent spirits, at all seasons of the year. The success has far exceeded his (the proprie- tor's) most sanguine hopes. Peace and quietness, and con- tentment, reign among the negroes; Creoles arc reared in much greater numbers than formerly; the estates are in the neatest and highest state of cultivation, and order and disci- pline are maintained with very little correction, and the mildest means."! * Extract fiom the Neic York Mercury of March 3lst, 1830. On Thursday night a very fair experiment was made on the effect of spirituous liquors to sustain men under fatigue. The vessel was on Barnegat Shoals when the storm came on, and through the night was in great peril. All hands drank spirit except one man sixty years of age. He stood at the helm from five o'clock in the evening of Thursday, until ten o'clock on Friday, the sea breaking upon him constantly, when he came off in good condition—All the men who drank spirits had given out several hours before."—See also, Rett's Cyclop. Article Cold. ■j- Abbot's Letters from Cuba, ALCOHOL FOR DYSPEPSY. 137 The men in Europe, who are trained to become pugilists, and to whom it is the object to give the greatest strength and most perfect health, are not allowed ardent spirit at all; and the best trainers prohibit wine. Now if spirit and wine are not only unnecessary, but de- cidedly injurious, in the extreme cases that have been point- ed out, surely they cannot be beneficial to the student, who is subject to none of these exposures. Some, however, will say, that their moderate use by such persons greatly assists digestion. Does alcohol promote digestion ? "It is a common enough belief," says an European medi- cal writer, " that a dram after meals promotes digestion. But there cannot be a more erroneous opinion. Those, in- deed, who have acquired this pernicious habit, may find, that without their usual stimulus, digestion goes tardily on. But this only bespeaks the infirm and diseased state to which the stomach has been reduced. For the digestion of the healthy and unaccustomed, is sure to be interrupted and re- tarded by a dram. Common observation might satisfy us of this. But. the question has been submitted to direct experi- ment by Dr. Beddoes; and he found that the animals to whom spirits had been given along with their fond, had di- gested nearly one half less, than other similar animals from whom this stimulus had been withheld."* Physicians were, indeed, formerly in the habit of recom- mending a little brandy and water, or wiue, to those affected with the dyspepsy. But the opinion of the ablest of them now, at least in this country, is, that such tonics, in most ca- ses of this sort, give only a transient and deceitful relief;! and in fact tend to exhaust the invalid's scanty strength. In- deed, they maintain that "permanent strength is never given » Edinburgh Encyclopedia, Article Aliment, vol. 1. p. 498. f For the opinion of French physicians on the effects of tonic* and stimulants in Dyspepsy, see Note N. 12* 138 Lecture iv. by stimulating medicines."* A distinguished scholar in oaf country, who has been a dyspeptic for "some thirty years," says, " that the worst of all tonics is ardent spirit. For a dys- peptic, however, wines of all kinds are a deadly poison ; even worse than brandy, but for different reasons." Does alcohol guard against contagion ? Many suppose that spirit, wine, and tobacco, possess a wonderful efficacy in resisting contagion : and hence they are freely used by those in attendance upon the sick. But their only value in this respect, appears to consist, in inspir- ing confidence in those who employ them; and this is a state of mind, more favorable than that of fear, for repelling con- tagion. But on the other hand, the insensibility, produced by these substances, is a far more prolific source of danger; so that the man under their influence, is peculiarly exposed to contract disease. A single phial of the chloride of lime, or soda, (substances now easily obtained in our country,) ap- plied occasionally to the nose in the rooms of the sick, af- fords more security against contagion, than all the alcohol and all the wine, and all the tobacco, and all the aromatics in the land. Let a man furnish himself with this safeguard, let him see that the rooms of the sick are well ventilated, and if he please, fumigated with the chlorides, and let him not go fasting to visit them, and he has taken the best methods known, for avoiding the contagion of dangerous maladies. How alcohol does operate upon the animal system. It would be passing by a most important part of the phi- losophy of this subject, not to endeavour to give a true ac- count of the operation of alcohol upon the animal system. Water, milk, and solid food, strengthen that system, by be- ing actually converted into its substance. In the stomach * See Dr. Hales' able Essay in the Journal of Humanity for Nov. 18th, 1829, &c. ALCOHOL IN THE BLOOD. 139 they are changed into a pulpy mass, called chyme ; thence they pass into the the bowels, where their nutritious portions become chyle; and this, being taken up by the lacteals, passes into the blood: which, in its circulation, conveys the chyle to every part of the system that needs to have its wastes repaired. Does alcohol operate in the same manner to invigorate the bodily powers 1 In other words, does it impart any nourishment to the system 1 That the water, with which alcohol, when drunk, is dilu- ted, might be nutritious, if it were to pass into the blood, cannot be doubted. Usually, however, it does not go into the blood ; but is thrown off by those organs, "which are set as waste gates to the system," because the system is al- ready supplied with fluid enough. This excess of liquid must weaken the digestive power of the stomach over nu- tritious substances, by too much diluting the gastric juice ; while the alcohol will have a similar debilitating ef- fect, by exhausting the stomach's excitability. Moreover, it is now ascertained, that alcohol, frequently, at least, passes unchanged into the blood;* so that if you distil a drunkard's blood, you will obtain pure alcohol : indeed, it has been found in the ventricles of the brain.! Now alcohol in the » M. Majendie tied up the passage from the stomach to the intes- tines in a dog, and then injected alcohol into the stomach. In half an hour afterwards, the chyle was examined and contained no alco- hol ; but its odour was very sensible in the blood, which yielded it on distillation. Hence, alcohol may pass in some mysterious man- ner, and through some hitherto undiscovered passage, directly from the stomach into the blood—perhaps through the agency of galvan- ism. May it not pass into any other part of the system in the same manner, arid corrupt the various secretions ; and when a man is thus filled with alcohol, will he not be liable to take fire ; and will not this explain the spontaneous combustion of drunkards, which in sev- eral instances has undoubtedly taken place.—Paris on Diet, p. 46.* f Journal of Humanity, Nov. 18th, 1829. See also Mussey's Ad- dress, p. 5. » See Note T. 140 LECTURE IV. blood cannot nourish any part of the animal system, because no part of that system is composed of alcohol; and there is no reason to suppose that this substance is decomposed after getting into the circulation. All the organs, as an in- genious medical writer remarks, idecline'> this alcohol, as the blood conveys it round to them. " The head says, <- my nerves are calmer, my thoughts are clearer, without it,—I beg to be excused :' the heart says, ' my motions are more regular, my affections are purer, without it,—1 have no oc- casion for it:' the limbs say, 'our strength is firmer, our vigor is more durable without it,—we need it not:' all say, 'it cannot nourish up, it cannot sustain us,—we will none of it:' and at length rejected by all, except by those organs whose peculiar office it is to convey out of the blood, its refuse and worthless parts, it is taken up by them and thrown out of the body,"* No nourishment in alcohol ! How can this be, when it is extracted from molasses, grain, and other substances confes- sedly nutritious, and seems to constitute their essence ? And how is it, that intemperate men not only live, but grow corpulent, upon less solid food than the temperate ?• How can it be expected, I reply, that a stomach so de- bilitated as the drunkard's, so worn out by constant excite- ment, should be able to digest as much food as that of the temperate man? And who can mistake the bloatedness of a diseased body, for firm and robust muscle ? As to the ori- gin of alcohol, it is a mistaken opinion, that it exists natu- rally and originally in any kind of fruit, or grain. For it always results from the fermentation, or incipient decomposi- tion, of those substances that contain, or will produce, su- gar. Before any part of fruit or grain can become alcohol, its nature must be as entirely changed, as that of manure, before it can become the stalk, or flower, or fruit, of a plant. * Journal of Humanity, Dec. 8th. 1820. ALCOHOL EXHAUSTS VITALITY. 141 Alcohol not natural to cider, grain, <$-c. Since spirit is obtained from grain and other nutritious sub- stances, some have inferred, that God intended it for drink, as much as he intended flour for food. But the alcohol does not exist naturally in the grain, in much quantity, without the artificial processes of fermentation and distillation. True, the laws of chemical affinity, which God has estab- lished, operate in the production of alcohol, by these pro- cesses. And so they operate in the production of the most hateful and dangerous gases, resulting from the decomposi- tion of vegetable and animal substances: and if this fact proves that alcohol is to be used for drink, it proves equal- ly, that these gases are to be used in respiration. Some too, cannot conceive how alcohol should he poison- ous, since the substances from which it is produced, are so eminently salutary. But if alcohol be an entirely new sub- stance, formed out of the ruins of the grain, cider, &x. why should it be thought any more strange, that it should be a poison, than that poisonous gases should result from the de- composition of the sweetest and most nutritious vegetable and animal substances. Hozo Acohol produces strength. But if alcohol afford no nourishment, how can it sudden- ly inspire a man with such surprising vigor? I answer, by its action on the nervous system, whereby the latent ener- gies of the constitution are roused into action. God has gi- ven to the animal constitution, a capacity to exert an amount of physical power, much superior to what is necessary for ordinary occasions. The key to this store-house ofstrength is the excitability of the system ; and this is put into requi- sition by the action of alcohol. Alcohol does not create any new physical power; it merely rouses into action that which already exists in the constitution. Alcohol frequently exhausts the system. If such be a true account of the operation of alcohol, and I might appeal to the highest medical authorities for its 142 LECTURE IV. correctness, it is very obvious that this substance must pre- maturely exhaust the system. That secret energy, which nature has in reserve for seasons of great bodily and mental effort, for extremes of heat and cold, hunger, thirst, and dis- ease, is thus prodigally and irretrievably wasted. It is, as if a powerful prince should unlock the magazines collected by his predecessors, against a time of need, and wantonly expend them upon his lusts; while powerful enemies were hovering along his frontiers. And exposes it to disease. The friends of temperance are very frequently urged to point out any bad effects, resulting to a man's constitution, from a very moderate and prudent use of ardent spirit, or wine. In the statement just made, we have the answer. The premature exhaustion which is thus infallibly produced, in a greater or less degree, renders the individual peculiarly liable to the attacks of violent and dangerous disorders. He is seized with fever, or dropsy, or apoplexy ; but never suspects that his prudent use of spirit, or wine, is the cause. But his physician understands the matter; though prudence may prevent his even hinting his suspicions. Nor is this all. This premature exhaustion renders the 6ystem far less able to resist disease, than if it had been subjected to no unnatural excitement. Hence the most moderate drinker, is far more apt to sink under his disorder, than he, who is rigidly temperate. Listen to the opinion of one of the most respectable medical societies in our land, on this point. " Beyond comparison," say they, " greater is the risk of life undergone in nearly all diseases of whate- ver description, when they occur in those unfortunate men, who have been previously disordered by these poisons "* Influence of Alcohol upon the Intellect. Philosophy urges total abstinence upon literary men, on • Report of the Committee of the Philadelphia Medical Society, Jan. 24, 1829. THE MIND WEAKENED BY ALCOHOL. 143 the ground also, that spirit, wine, opium, and tobacco, exert a pernicious influence upon the intellect. They tend di- rectly to debilitate the digestive organs ; and we cannot take a more effectual course to cloud the understanding, weaken the memory, unfix the attention, and confuse all the mental operations, than by thus entailing upon ourselves the whole hateful train of nervous maladies. These can bow down to the earth an intellect of giant strength, and make it grind in bondage, year after year, like Samson, shorn of his locks, and deprived of his vision. Would to God, there were not so many melancholy illustrations of this position in the his- tory of drunkenness in our land. Alas, intemperance seems to select the brightest intellects as her victims, that she may show her omnipotence by crushing them in her iron embrace. But to pass by the sot and the drunkard; 1 maintain that the unnatural excitement, which a moderate and occasional use of alcoholic and narcotic substances produces, is unfa- vorable to clearness and vigor in mental operations. The dizziness of the brain, and exhilaration accompanying their use, especially that of alcohol, what are they, butincipient delirium, and the premonitions of apoplexy. The mental operations may indeed seem to be quickened; but to what purpose is it, that the machine is furiously running and buz- zing, after the balance wheel is taken off! From such a severe denunciation as this, however, must not the mild and healthful exhilaration of an occasional glass of wine be exempted? Have not-literary men, and even some physicians of early times, declared that " wine inspires a genius favorable to the poet?" True, I answer, there has been a deep delusion on this, as well as an other important subjects: Armstrong, in his gen- erally excellent poem, on the Art of Preserving Health, even advises men "to learn to revel." But a more mo- dern poet, of no mean name, could say, " We never drew our inspiration from ihe flask."* ' Cumberland's Retrospection. 144 LECTURE IV. And more modern, and not less able physicians too, have testified as follows : " My whole experience assures roe, that wine is no friend to vigor or activity of mind. It whirls the fancy beyond the judgment and leaves the body and soul in a state of listless indolence and sloth. The man that on arduous occasions is to trust to his own judgment, must preserve an equilibrium of mind, alike proof against contingences as internal passions. He must be prompt in his decisions ; bold in enterprise ; fruitful in resources ; pa- tient under expectation ; not elated with success; or de- pressed with disappointment. But if his spirits are of that standard as to need a fillip from wine, he will never con- ceive or execute any thing magnanimous or grand. In a survey of my whole acquaintance and friends, I find that water drinkers possess the most equal tempers and cheer- ful dispositions."* " The depths of philosophy, and the elevations of poe- try," says the Journal of Health, "are most felicitiously explored by those whose minds are allowed to exert their powerful faculties, unclouded by the muddy vapors of wine or spirit." Influence of alcohol upon the moral powers. Finally : Philosophy makes her appeal on this subject, on the ground that alcoholic and narcotic substances, blunt, and ultimately almost destroy, the natural affections, and moral sensibilities. Philosophy well knows, because she has seen the experiment tried, and that too by her own mis- taken votaries, that even to weaken these affections and sen- sibilities, is to undermine the pillars on which society rests; and to destroy them, is to knock out the key stone of the arch, that sustains all which is beautiful and valuable among men. Experience, too, the handmaid of philosophy, points us to the victims of Intemperance, that meet us at every corner ; and bids us see, with our own eyes, the desolating * Trotter's Essay on Intemperance, p. 170. INTEMPRANCE. 145 influence of alcohol. These men and women were once the ornament and hope of society. Once, they were the joy and the pride of parents and friends ; but now, are they their shame and anguish. Once, their bosoms swelled with honorable feeling, and virtuous enterprise; but now, they are past shame, past effort, except to complete the work of self-immolation. Once, some of them were husbands and wives: in whose bosoms there glowed a tender, pure, and unchanging conjugal affection ; and they had children clus- tering around them, affectionate and beloved, whose ears never heard a sweeter sound, than the name of father or mother; and their home, O, how sweet a paradise it was, for such a world as this! but now, their bloodshot eyes look with stupid unconcern, or savage glare, upon the partners, whose bosoms they have made desolate, and upon the chil- dren, whom they have covered with rags and infamy ; and their voices now sound like the yelling of fiends, in that home, once so sweet, now almost converted into an abode of fiends. Once, they had consciences, quick to discern, abhor, and shun every thing immoral and base ; but their conscience now, O, it is dead and buried, never to awake till the judgment day. Would the temperate and educated youth of our iand es- cape this horrible desolation? Total abstinence is the only sure wall of defence, which they can build up around them. Every other rampart has been demolished by the insidious sappings of the foe. Trust in no other, then, if you would escape the moral ruin, which, sooner or later, follows in the track, even of moderate indulgence. A substitute for Alcohol- Bat what substitute has Philosophy to offer, when she thus demands the abandonment of stimulants and narcotics? God has provided one: a most safe, most salutary, and most abundant substitute.* Most mercifully is it scattered in purity • Note U. 13 146 LECTURE IV. and profusion, all around us : gushing forth, clear as crystal, from the base of every hillock in our favoured land. Its name is Pure Water: though it sometimes assumes the name of milk and water, vinegar and water, sweetened water, or small beer, without losing its essential and characteristic ex- cellencies. I know that so simple a beverage is loathed by a stomach that has lost its natural tone, and has become ed- ucated to the use of stimulants and narcotics. But such a stomach may be again learnt to relish it: and it is now too late to maintain, that water needs the admixture of any oth- er substance, to render it, of all drinks, the most promotive of health, strength, longevity, and serenity of mind. Let us hear a few testimonies on this subject, from medical men. Testimonies in favour of Water. Cheyne, a distinguished physician, who wrote more than a century ago, and who had himself experienced incalcula- ble benefits from the use of water, describes its value with great enthusiasm. " The benefits," says he, " a person who desires nothing but a clear head, and strong intellectual fac- ulties, would reap by drinking nothing but water (tepid or cold as the season is,) while he is yet young and tolerably healthy, well educated and of a sober honest disposition, are innumerable: As first, that he would live probably till to- wards an hundred years of age, A9imv T», 9ixaioritTOiv ttviownur. Whatever foundation there may be for this opinion, cer- tain it is, that a diet chiefly of milk, does produce a moit 16 182 LECTURE V. happy serenity, vigor, and cheerfulness of mind; very dif- ferent from the gloomy, crabbed, and irritable temper, and foggy intellect, of the man, who devours flesh, fish, and fowl, with ravenous appetite ; and adds puddings, pies, and cake, to the load.* Curious Compromise. Some persons, convinced in their consciences, that milk diet at one of their daily meals would be serviceable, yet too much wedded to their meat, or their coffee, to give them up, have undertaken to unite the two, in a manner highly agreeable to a glutton's taste. After devouring their usual rations of meat, they take a bowl of bread and milk, to neutralize all the bad effects of their hearty meal. This is like loading down a cart with gravel, and then adding a few bushels of apples to make the draught easier. Solid Food. In speaking of solid food, I shall be as brief as possible ; only presenting the result of general experience, particu- larly of weak stomachs, as to the digestibility and nutriiive powers of the different varieties. On this subject, how- ever, there is no such thing as a universal rule. For a man's stomach does sometimes digest an article of food, which in another condition, it could not master. Early habits, also, are to be taken into the account. Thus, a medical writer says, that " a dyspeptic Irishman can digest a potato which would kill a Scotchman. So bacon and long collards might lie easy in the bag of a Virginian, when they would raise a tempest in that of a New-Englander, whose stomach would rejoice in a sop of "molasses that would turn the Virginian's insides into a vinegar cask."! Grand Point in Dieting. These remarks show us that the grand point in a system * Note Z. t Southern Review, Aug. 1829. p. 225. EGGS AND FISH. 183 of dieting, is not to select certain articles of food, as indi- gestible, and others as digestible, and then, ever afterwards, to reject the one class as poisons, and adhere to the others as if they were sure to save life and restore health, paying little or no attention to the quantity. Yet this is the whole amount of the dieting, of which many make so much noise. They would as soon commit sacrilege, as to taste of the proscribed articles—perhaps pickles, ch«ese, or fruit— while at the same time, they will swallow down, pork, beef, gravies, puddings, pies, &c. almost without end ; and all the while imagine, that they are wonderfully strict in their diet. But the truth is, there is scarcely any article of food that may not be digested with comfort, even by a weak stomach, provided the quantity be not too large. Hence, when a man is so situated, as to be under the necessity of making a meal, from a dish which is very indigestible in his stomach, his only safety lies in taking special care that he does not eat too much of it. In respect to most articles of food, however, there is a general agreement among those best qualified to judge ; I mean among persons of weak digestive powers; as to their agreement or disagreement with the stomach. Eggs and fish. In respect to digestion, we may place eggs next to milk, when they are lightly boiled, or for two minutes and an half* But boiled hard, or fried in the fat of pork, or ba- con, we may place them next to pebbles. Fish hold a " "The best mode of cooking this nutritious and valuable article of food,11 says a correspondent, "I have found to be the following. After the water boils, take it from the fire, and place it at a little distance, where it will not cool too fast—put in the eggs, and letihem remain from 5 to 7 minutes, moving them around once or twice. They will then be moderately cooked nearly to the centre, whilst the albumen will he only a soft jelly quite to the shell.11 Any one has but to try this method to be convinced of its superi ority. 184 LECTURE V. middle rank as to nutrition, between vegetables and warm blooded animals : and in a proper state, and properly cook- ed, several species are not difficult of digestion. Salmon, however, when salted, though very nutritive, is extremely indigestible. The same may be said of eels. They are too oily, and are said, like all other oily species, to produce eruptions on the skin, which, in warm climates, are very troublesome. Wence the reason why all fish without fins, were prohibited to the Jews, in the Levitical law. Of the shell fish, oysters are the safest: lobsters, muscles, crabs, &c. need the strongest powers of digestion to manage them. Upon the whole, every invalid should be very cautious and sparing in his use of fish. u It is," says an able physician, "a very precarious if not dangerous species of food in weak stomachs. Without butter, or other sauces, it is insipid ; and with these additions, it is poison."* Poultry, Birds, SfC Of the class of birds, the flesh of the common hen is, upon the whole, the best and easiest of digestion. The guinea hen, quail, common pigeon, and lark, are nearly as good. But to digest goose, requires a stomach of Hercu- lean power. Ducks and all wild water fowl, are nearly as bad—and the turkey, especially with its attendant stuffings and gravies, is not mueh better. Flesh of Quadrupeds. The meat of quadrupeds mostly in use, is beef, mutton, lamb, veal, venison, and pork. These contain a great deal of nourishment in a small space : and if we consider mere- ly the comparative ease with which animal substances are decomposed, the flesh of quadrupeds would be thought very easy of digestion. But experience shows that it produces greater heat and irritation in the system—called by Dr. Paris " the digestive fever"—than vegetables; and hence ' Mordid Sensibility, p. 113,—See also. Note N, MEATS. 135 it urges on the powers of the invalid too fast, and though it may give him temporary vigor, it weakens the digestive organs, and ultimately aggravates his complaints. Hence the necessity of mixing bread and other farinaceous food with meat: and hence too, the nervous and the feeble, ex- cept in peculiar cases, should be very sparing in animal diet. Fresh meat, which has been kept as long as may be, without putrefaction, is undoubtedly far more digestible than pickled, salted, or smoked. Mutton is said to be the best of all these meats, so far as digestion is concerned: lamb is less valuable; and in general, " the flesh of young animals is less nutritious and less easy of digestion, than that of full grown."* Hence it is, probably, that veal is found to be so very unfriendly to a weak stomach. For tender beef, next to mutton, is perhaps best adapted to such ; and in point of nourishment, it stands, I believe, at the head of the list. The flesh of the deer, the hare, and the rahbit, little known in this quarter of the world, is said to be very di- gestible and nutritious. Pork also yields perhaps to no food in point of nourishment; and is hence well suited to persons who lead an active laborious life : but can hardly be considered wholesome for the sedentary and the literary, even when their health is good ; for it produces obesity, disorders of the skin, and foulness of the digestive organs. Salt pork is more unfriendly to health than fresh : and as to bacon, it is so extremely indigestible and heavy, that it ought if possible to be avoided, except by the healthy and laboring classes. The same may be said of beef that has been thoroughly salted; though that which is merely corn- ed, is more agreeable and salutary. Rule for the Invalid. In all cases, however, in which the invalid cannot con- veniently avoid partaking of such kinds of meat as salt pork, beef, bacon, and veal, there is one very safe rule for him to 'Sure Methods, p. 11. 16* 186 LECTURE V. follow ; and that is, as already mentioned, to partake of it in so small a quantity, as to be sure of not overloading the stomach.* Every man of feeble digestive powers, ought, therefore, to know, in general, how different articles agree with his stomach ; that he may judge how much of each he can bear. He ought to know, for instance, that a man can bear about four times as much of milk and vegetable diet, as of meatt—and that one pound of roasted meat contains as much nourishment as two of boiled meat:};—and that " an ounce of fat meat affords nutriment equal to four ounces of lean."|[ Fat, and Grease. It is of great importance, also, for every man to know that fat and grease of all kinds, and the different oils, are among the most indigestible and dangerous of all articles of food. Hence all those preparations of flour, potatoes, bread, eggs, &c, that are baked or fried in grease, or lard, are to be shunned by the invalid and the sedentary, and indulged in only by the athletic hind, who does not know that he has a stomach. Probably grease or fat, when burnt, stands at the head of all indigestibles. Yet 1 believe it is no unfrequent ingredient of the diet of the sedentary. It comes upon the table, if I mistake not, in the form of burnt pork, burnt spare rib, burnt goose, and turkey, &c and some dyspeptic stom- achs are in so morbid a state as even to crave the poison. Butter. From these remarks, in regard to the generally injurious effect of oils, fat,- grease, &.c. we must except fresh, unmelt- ed butter; which, used in small quantities, upon cold bread, • A far better rule, however, when it is possible, and it generally is so, is to substitute a vegetable diet for meat. If an invalid can get bread and water, he is in no danger of suffering. f Cheyne on Diet and Regimen, p. 30. J Paris on Diet, p. 76. || Paris on Diet, p. 72. BREAD. 187 is generally, though not always, wholesome. When melt- ed, however, it clogs and spoils digestion : and hence the wisdom of avoiding dipped toast. Solid butter, also, if used, as not a few do use it, in quantities almost equal to the bread which it covers, must be injurious : it ought to be re- garded only as a condiment, to be spread as thinly as possi- ble over the bread ; or else it should be abjured.* Cheese. Cheese is by far more hurtful than butter for the invalid. It is very hard of digestion, produces constipation, and af- fords but little nourishment: and the most vigorous powers of digestion can alone grapple with it. If toasted, it is still worse. For the invalid to mix it with bread and butter, pye and cake, is suicidal. Farinaceous A limenis—Bread. The most important articles of nourishment, derived from the vegetable kingdom, are those called farinaceous ; out of which bread is prepared—a substance not unaptly denom- inated, the staff of life. This is usually made from some sort of grain ; as wheat, rye, barley, oats, buck wheat, in- dian corn, rice, &.c.; and it may be prepared from the po- tato, and several other roots, and even from chesnuts. In all these substances, there is more or less, I believe, of a mucilaginous, saacharine matter, starch, and what is called gluten ; all of which are highly nutritious. Wheat is the most so ; and in general the best adapted for bread. That made from the finest wheat flour, called whiten in England, is, however, constipating, and the nutriment rather too much concentrated. If a part, or the whole of the bran be left in the flour, the bread, called in England, wheaten and household, is, for most constitutions, far preferable. The " A very common, but pernicious mode of using butter, is to melt it upon hot pudding, or cakes, and then add a large quantity of sugar, or molasses. Either of the latter articles alone is Abundantly suffi- cient. 188 LECTURE V. same is true of other kinds of bread : the coarser sorts being much the best. Brown bread, made of a mixture of wheat and rye, is said to be excellent: and for those in health, that prepared from rye and indian corn, is salutary. That from rye alone, is more laxative than if made from wheat. Barley and oats are scarcely used in this country for bread: though very commonly employed for this purpose in Eu- rope : but such bread is less valuable than that from wheat or rye. Rice and potatoes require the addition of some flour, to render the bread made from them easily digestible. Leavened, or raised bread, agrees best with most stom- achs. Of unleavened bread, the sea biscuit, called also sea bread, &c. and made of flour and water only, is the best; and is often extremely salutary to the invalid. The bread known by the name of crackers, in this country, is unleav- ened ; but contains butter to render it light and tender ; and is, therefore, more objectionable ; though certainly not un- healthy. The common biscuit used among us, contains the same ingredient, and is also leavened. New and hot bread. There is one rule in respect to bread, in which I believe all physicians agree; and which nearly all men violate, but which is nevertheless of great importance to the invalid and literary man : viz. not to use bread that is newly baked. Eaten just from the oven, and hot enough to melt the but- ter that is put upon it, it is lead in the stomach. Yet so depraved are most appetites, so educated to relish unwhol- some articles, that the great mass of mankind eat their bread in this very state : and loathe it when it has become stale. The student and the invalid, who habitually take their bread thus smoking from the oven, may be certain, that they are most effectually clogging both mind and body. If they must eat it new, let them take the precaution to PASTRY AND CAKES. 189 have it thoroughly toasted. Indeed, I believe this is saluta- ry in most cases.* Cakes, pastry, &rc. Cookery has invented numerous other compounds, whose basis is some kind of flour. I am glad to say, that 1 am not enough acquainted with Dr. Kitchener's vocabulary, to enu- merate the rarer varieties. But those most in use are the various cakes, filled with lard and butter, and then immers- ed in the same, while cooking over the fire: such as pan- cakes, slapjacks, nutcakes, &c. which are to be eaten while warm: next come the different kinds of pies or pastry; and last, and worst of all, the pound-cake, sponge-cake, loaf-cake, bride-cake, &,c.| All these are so compounded as to tempt the palate, after the stomach has taken enough of other food ; and without exception, they are extremely hos- tile to health and comfort. In this opinion physicians all agree. Dr. Paris, who as a writer on diet, is more favora- ble to the full liver, than almost any other, and who even seems disposed to yield not a little to the gluttonous habits of the Londoners, loses all patience on this subject. " All pastry," says he, " is an abomination. I verily believe, that one half at least of the cases of indigestion which oc- cur after dinner parties, may be traced to this cause."} " Is it good," inquires the Catechism of Health, " to give * "When it [bread] is new, or recently baked, it is of a glutinous or heavy nature, and extremely difficult of solution. Cases have been recorded, indeed, in which an immoderate quantity of fresh baked bread proved the cause of death."—Rees' Cyc. Art. Diet.— See London Medical Journal for 1781. Vol. I. p. 333. t The cakes, or mustacea of the Romans, so common after a rich entertainment, were composed of meat, aniseed, cummin, and sev- eral other aromatics; and their object was to remove, or prevent, the indigestion so frequent after a hearty meal; whereas most of the cakes of modern times, are, as Dr. Paris remarks, " an excellent invention for producing instead of curing indigestion.11 | On Diet, p. 121. 190 LECTURE V. children dainties, cakes or sweetmeats? Ans. No. Chil- dren are thereby rendered too fond of their bellies, become gluttons, and degenerate from the dignity of their nature."* In direct opposition to such advice, it is the practice of very many parents at this day, to suffer their children to cram themselves, particularly at meals, with all the indi- gestible varieties of pastry, cakes, hot and cold, and sweet- meats, which they use themselves : and when the child is carried abroad to visit a friend, it must be loaded with cakes and confection by the kind relative : And in this way, it is, that we all learn very early to crave rich and stimulating food ; and find it so hard to come back again to the plain and simple fare which nature provides and health demands.! Puddings. Puddings are among the articles of very doubtful utility for literary men. Those made from bread, or coarse flour, and rice, are the best; those containing suet, the worst. In addition to their indigestible nature, they are commonly eaten quite hot; swimming in butter and sugar, or some other seasoning; and taken after people have eaten as much of one dish as temperance will justify.} Fruit. As to fruit, some sorts are salutary, if fully ripe, and if eaten at breakfast or dinner, as a part of the meal ; the other food being proportionally diminished in quantity. The best fruits are apples, pears, peaches, ap- ricots, strawberries, raspberries, oranges, and currants. Cherries, plums, olives, melons, cucumbers, and all kinds of nuts, are very difficult of digestion: and to eat them, as » Faust, p. 57. f The different articles on the diet and regimen of children, that have appeared in the Journal of Health, should alone induce every parent to possess that valuable work, | See Note A A, ESCULENT ROOTS, ETC . 191 some do, in addition to a full meal, or between meals, is ruinous to the healthy and poisonous to the invalid. Ches- nuts, walnuts, butternuts, filberts, and almonds, are particu- larly injurious, taken at such times. Not much better are raisins, prunes, figs &c* Roots. Of the esculent roots, turnip?, potatoes, and onions, are the best. Dry, nTealy potatoes, especially, are capable of sustaining life, health, and vigor, alone, or simply with salt.t The sweet potato, though abounding in nourishment, is less digestible. From the potato is prepared most of the arrow root of commerce. This is essentially starch, as is also tapioca, sago, and salep. All these are very nourishing and digesti- ble, if eaten with bread: and they are used advantageously by people recovering from sickness. Pickles. Pickles are mere vegetable receptacles for vinegar. All the sedentary and literary will do well to let them alone; unless directed to their use by the physician. Peas, beans, 4*c. All vegetables of the pulse kind, of which peas and beans are the most common, are among the most unwholesome articles of diet, for sedentary and literary men ; being not only indigestible, but deficient in nourishment. Salads, <$"C. Lettuce, radishes, and most pot herbs, may be occasion- • See Note BB. f The introduction and use of the potato into Europe, was resisted for two centuries, by the most violent prejudices. But after Louis XV had worn a bunch of potato flowers in his coat on a day of fes- tivity, the people enthusiastically began to cultivate and use this root. 192 LECTURE V. ally serviceable, in small quantities, to those in health ; but nervous invalids will almost always suffer from their use. Radishes in particular, will answer only for the strongest stomachs. Carrots, parsnips, beets, and cabbage, should be sparingly used, if used at all by such. Cookery. By the art of cookery, the different alimentary substances undergo very important changes. These are accomplished by the application of heat and water, or by admixture of different articles. Aliments that are roasted, retain more of their nutritive qualities than if cooked in any other way. By baking and stewing, they do not lose their nutritive qualities, but are rendered much less digestible. Boiling extracts not a little of the soluble nutriment; and it is said that articles are thus rendered less proper for weak sto- machs, than by roasting or baking. Broiling is probably not inferior to roasting in rendering food salutary and nutri- tious ; and this is the mode of preparing meat for the ath- letic, while under the training process. Frying is the worst of all the simple modes of cookery; because it requires the use of oil, or fat, made boiling hot; and thus rendered empyreumatic. Fried meat is, however, less injurious than fried potatoes, or pudding, for weak stomachs. Of all com- mon articles of food, those that are saturated with butter or fat, while at a boiling heat, are the most pernicious. Condiments. These simple processes of cookery are all that are essen- tial to health and happiness. But these do not satisfy the craving appetite of gluttony. Food thus prepared, was soon found, by men in a luxurious state of society, to be too mild, too void of stimulation. The first resort was to the various kinds of seasoning, called condiments. These are of five sorts. 1 The oily condiments ; as oil, butter, cream, and fat: 2 The saccharine condiments ; sugar and honey : 3 The acid condiments ; vinegar and lime juice : 4 The CONDIMENTS. 193 saline condiments; common salt and nitre : 5 The acrid condiments, or aromatics; including pepper, spice, cloves, nutmegs, cinnamon, &c. Of the first class I have already spoken—Of the second, I would say, that sugar and honey are undoubtedly among the most nutritious of all substan- ces. The nourishment, however, is in too concentrated a state, to be used without a due admixture of bread, or other farinaceous aliment. Hence the nausea and uneasiness that result from eating these articles in any considerable quanti- ty. The acid condiments, of which vinegar is the princi- pal, are undoubtedly serviceable with some kinds of food; and to the healthy stomach ; but few invalids can employ them with advantage. Among all these condiments, no one deserves so much to be recommended as common salt. This seems to be universally adapted to promote the nu- trition of plants and animals ; and the want of it is attended with the most disastrous consequeuces. One of the sever- est penalties annexed to the ancient laws of Holland, was, that criminals should " be kept on bread alone, unmixed with salt." " The effect was horrible : these wretched criminals are said to have been devoured by worms engen- dered in their own stomachs." Salt may indeed be used in too large quantities; but there does not appear to belong to it, any of those bewitching properties, that tempt so many to excess in other articles of food and drink. Salted provisions. If such be the effect of salt, how happens it that salted provi-ions are so indigestible; and when used exclusively, produce the scurvy and other painful disorders? In the case of salted meat and fish, it may be replied, there seems to be a chemical change produced in the meat and the fish by their union with the salt, and thus their character, as food, is essentially altered; whereas, salt used as a condi- ment produces no such change. And although our senses are not aware of such slight differences, yet the stomach is affected by them more than the most delicate chemical test. 17 194 LECTURE V. On the same principle, although the stomach immediately separates milk into butter and cheese, yet in such cases it digests these with far more facility, than when these sub- stances, artificially prepared, are eaten. Aromatic Condiments. The aromatic condiments operate as stimulants upon the digestive powers, and therefore, furnish a temporary assist- ance to digestion ; just as brandy and wine do. But I can- not see why these aromatics do not prematurely wear out the stomach, just as alcohol does. Let every man, who is fond of stimulating food or drink of any kind, remember, that the momentary strength and comfort which they give, is to be succeeded by early prostration and disease. Ac- cording to this principle, that literary and sedentary man conducts wisest, who uses least of the aromatic condiments. He, to be sure, will not experience the temporary glow and excitement of one whose system is braced up by a tonic diet: but he will enjoy comfort and serenity of mind, long after the other is in the grave. He must, however, carry out this system, into every part of his diet, to experience such effects. For example, all the compound gravies, and sauces, made up, usually, of a mixture of different condiments, in which melted butter predominates—must be discarded by him altogether. Not that it would be particulary injurious for him to partake of such articles in small quantities, oc- casionally : but if he partake sometimes, he will never know where to stop. In all cases, therefore, where an ar- ticle of diet is not necessary for health, or strength, the lit- erary and sedentary should make it a principle to discard it, even from their occasional bill of fare. Concluding Remarks. 1 crave the patience of this audience, while I close the extended view that has been given of the subject of diet, by a few remarks, suggested by all that has been advanced. INFERENCES. 195 Act understanding^ and without prejudice. In the first place, let me conjure you not to reject the great, fundamental, leading principles, which I have advo- cated, unless you can find authorities and arguments against them, stronger than I have adduced in their defence. I may have mingled minor peculiarities of my own with these principles ; and these, 1 would have you adopt, or reject, ac- cording to the evidence. But for the leading principles ad- vanced, I have made my appeal to the highest medical au- thorities of past and present times, and to the known laws of the human constitution. Now what I request is, that you would not reject these principles until you can find at least as many, and as good authorities and arguments against them, as I have given in their favour. In other words, do not reject them because they are contrary to your own practice and feelings. Go to work as diligently as you please, to study dietetic writers, who have collected togeth- er the results of experience on these subjects; and find, if you can, that my views are wrong, according to the testi- mony of a majority of the ablest of them; and I shall very cheerfully acknowledge my errors : But until you can do this, let not a love of high living, or the sneer of ridicule, persuade you to reject principles which may be your only security against sickness, imbecility, and an early grave. The Monster, Intemperance. Secondly; if the principles which I have advanced be correct, we learn that Intemperance is a Monster far more hideous and gigantic in his members, than has been suppos- ed. So frightful are the ravages of intemperate drinking, that men have been led to suppose the whole power of the monster there concentrated : But in fact, this is only one of his paws, which he reaches out from the place of his concealment, in order to seize upon his victims. This sub- ject throws new light into his den ; and discovers to our view his other gigantic limbs, and terrible mouth, and mam- moth bulk. 1 bid God speefl to the resolute soldiers, who 196 LECTURE V. have gathered around his lurking place, sword in hand, and are attempting to cut off this paw ; which is so busily and powerfully engaged in the work of destruction: Already several of the muscles and sinews have been severed, and the monster begins to feel the loss of blood. The entire amputation will weaken and cripple him still more. But let no man think that the battle will then be over. He will wake up with the power that desperation gives ; and must be met and overcome by the power that religion gives. Sources of poverty. Thirdly ; the discussion of this subject shows us how groundless are most of the complaints made in our country, about hard times, the impossibility of paying debts, support- ing families, and contributing to benevolent objects. Most of the men, who thus complain, are the very persons, who are expending every year nearly double what is necesary, for unnecessary and highly injurious articles of diet. They can hardly make out a meal, unless three or four varieties of food, and a quantum of the strongest tea, or coffee, are before them. Clogged as they are by this needless extra expense, and incapacitated as they are for the vigorous prosecution of business, by excess in eating, it is no wonder that they find it difficult to keep their expendi- tures within their income. But let them only adopt those rules of diet, for themselves and families, which experience and the best physicians point out, as most calculated to pro- mote health and happiness, and they would find their tem- poral concerns most astonishingly blessed. Instead of com- plaining of the hard times, and the difficulty of sapporting their families, they would be continually praising God for casting their lot in a part of the world, where their facili- ties for obtaining the comforts, and even luxuries of life, are unexampled; and where by honest industry and econo- my alone, they can not only do this, but obtain a surplus. for meeting in a liberal manner, the various calls, which, learning, benevolence, and religion make upon their chari^. MEANS FOR BENEFICENCE. 197 ty: and besides this, have something left as a reserve for future exigences. I am aware, indeed, that it requires the spirit of a martyr, for any individual at the present day, to adopt, and carry through, such a system. Public opinion will ridicule his zeal on this subject as fanaticism, if he be not regarded as derang- ed ; and his conscientious simplicity of living, will be branded as narrow minded parsimony : and he will be in danger of be- ing cast out, with his family, from respectable and even re- ligious society. His best friends will affectionately urge him not to starve himself and his family, and try to make him believe, that his children will be despised for the pe- culiarities of their father ; and that as soon as they are out of the reach of his excesive restrictions, they will give the rein to all their desires, and become dissolute. Unless a man, therefore, is prepared to meet all these difficulties, (and nothing but strong religious principle, and daily prayer, can prepare him,) he had better not make the attempt. Alas, how few there are, who aspire to the honor of this martyr- dom ! But it will not be always thus. Means for Benevolent Efforts. Fourthly; the discussion of this subject shows us from whence the means are to be derived, for civilizing and Christianizing.the world. They are to result from the prevalence of temperance. In the first place, this will furnish men for the work. When children shall be brought up according to strict temperance, and shall persevere in the same course through life, there will be little more complaint about debilitated constitutions and feeble health : nor will acute diseases but seldom cut down suddenly the most vigorous and useful of men : But they will live until natural decay shall remove them ; that is, at a medium, until seventy years old. Certainly this will add twenty or thirty years to the present term of life : and it will add more than this, to the period of usefulness: because we need not make so much allowance, as we now 17* 198 LECTURE r. do, for sickness and premature debility. The same num- ber of men, therefore, under the reign of temperance, will do much more in the mighty work of renovating the world, than they can do, under the influence oflhe present habits of society. Is this all imagination? Or does the language of proph- ecy teach us the same ? Speaking of the latter days, Isaiah says : there shall be no more thence, an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days ; for the child shall die a hundred years old: but the sinner, being a hundred years old, shall be accursed. And they shall build houses and inhabit them ; and they shall plant vineyards and eat the fruit of them. They shall not build and another inhabit; they shall not plant atid another eat; for as the days of a tree are the days of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the zvork of their hands. Certainly this passage describes an important addition to the term of life in latter times: in this world too, because sinners are here spoken of. And if we seek for natural causes to account for such a result, how exactly does tem- perance answer the requisite conditions. The same prophet says also, of the Jerusalem, in which the righteous shall dwell in millenial times, that the inhab- itant shalt not say I am sick. And to produce such a won- derful and most desirable consummation, what else is needed, but the universal practice, of universal temperance ! But the progress of temperance, in respect both to drink and food, paves the way for the progress of true piety. Hence temperance will be the means of qualifying many more young men to be ministers and missionaries. And since its general prevalence will render unnecessary many branches of business, now extensively pursued, more and more youth can be spared for the benevolent work of carry- ing civilization and science to their ignorant and benighted fellow men. Money for the work. Temperance will also furnish the pecuniary means for RICHES OF TEMPERANCE. 199 this work. Our benevolent societies now find it extremely diflicult to procure money enough to carry forward their operations on a very limited scale. But were only their present contributors to adopt the principles of temperance, they might enable these societies to enlarge the sphere of their labors in an astonishing ratio. Admitting that the 800,000 professing Christians in the United States, consti- tute these contributors, or are equivalent to them as to number, and the following estimate must be regarded as very moderate. The pecuniary expense of ardent spirit ia this country, cannot be but less than one hundred millions of dollars an- nually. Divided equally upon our thirteen millions of in- habitants, it will give eight dollars to each individual. Sup- pose that professors of religion expend only one third as much as the average sum for this article ; and the 800,000 would, by total abstinence, save $2,136,000. Suppose each of these individuals, by reducing the quan- tity of his solid food one half, could save ten dollars per annum. The whole amount saved would be $8,000,000. To this ought to be added at least $4,000,000 more, for the unnecessary dishes, and sweet-meats, cakes, fruits, &.c. with which friends and parties are regaled. Tobacco, cigars, and snuff, at one pound for each individ- ual, (about the quantity consumed in England) and at twen- ty cents per pound, amount to 160,000 dollars.* Tea, at one pound for each person, at one dollar per pound, $800,000. Coffee, at two pounds each, and thirty cents per pound, $480,000. The whole amount is not far from fifteen millions; or thirty times more than the income of the charitable and benevolent societies in the United States in 1829. To this might be added, could it be estimated, a large sum, saved by the influence of temperance, from the ordinary expen- ses of sickness. Another large amount also, for the addi- * See Journal of Health, p. 27. 200 LECTURE V. tion to life, resulting from the same cause ; and the conse- quent ability to enlarge the pecuniary stock above the pre- sent standard. Nor should it be forgotten, that a speedy and natural consequence of rigid temperance, would be, to lead to an immense reduction of those extravagances in dress, furniture, and equipage, which even exceed the ex- cess of Christians in eating and drinking. All these items must more than double the amount mentioned above; which the thorough practice of temperance would set at liberty, for the service of the Lord. This, then, is the enormous annual tax, which Christians in this country pay, for feeding the maw of intemperance. Let this monster be starved, and all this might go to hasten forward the conversion, civilization, and salvation of the world. Oh, it is a matter of joy, that such vast resources can be poured so easily into the streams of benevolence— making healthier, happier, and richer, those who give; and imparting peace, and joy, and eternal blessedness, to those who receive ! And if the present comparatively small number of professing christians in our land, could do so much, what might the great mass of the inhabitants accom- plish, were they too, to become temperate and devotedly pious ? One hundred millions annually, they could have at their command, by total abstinence from ardent spirit: another hundred by temperance in eating; twenty or thir- ty, by abandoning hurtful narcotics ; and more than double the whole of these items, by a reasonable reduction of evtravagancies in dress, furniture, and equipage 1 Carry your thoughts farther; and suppose these principles of temperance to prevail among all Christian nations; and surely you have the means in your hands for the complete renovation of this wretched world. Yet all this, may Christians hope to see, in millenial times. And who knows, but the temperance movement in our land, is the grand, in- strument, which God means to employ, to bring about such mighty and glorious results! If there be any approximation to truth in these principles THE REIGN OF TEMPERANCE. 201 and inferences, Oh, what constraining motives are here pre- sented to the educated youth of our country, to adopt the principles of temperance, in their widest applications I What a mighty influence upon the destinies of our world, might the youth, even in the literary seminaries in this place, exert, if they could be persuaded, early and effect- ually, to incorporate these principles with all their habits, and be seen moving on, in an unbroken phalanx, in the holy war against intemperance.* Oh, the light and influ- ence, which they might thus send out into the world, and down to posterity, would not, like other emanations pro- ceeding from a centre, spread and increase in the slow ratio of the square of the distance and the time; but in a ratio so high, that the quadratics of the millenium could alone express and resolve it. • Not far from 400 Students, have for several years past, been connected with the College, Mount Pleasant Gymnasium, and the Academy, in this town. PART II. REGIMEN. LECTURE VI. Exf.rcise : its comparative importance. Case of Dr. Dwight. First—Second—Third—Fourth—Fifth—Sixth—Seventh— and Eighth Rule concerning Exercise. Conclusion. Definition. In commencing this lecture, Gentlemen, I enter upon the second principal branch of my subject: that is, Regimen. 1 have already slated what I shall consider as indued in this term : viz. Exercise, Air, Clothing, Cleanliness, Evacua- tions, Sleep, Manners, and the Influence of the Imagination and Passions upon health. I am aware that some of these points cannot be arranged under Regimen with logical pre- cision ; and that the term is often used by good writers, to include attention to diet. But there is a convenience in grouping together these subjects under this head ; nor am I without good authority in so doing. Indeed, this term, signifying in general a rule, may be applied with a good deal of latitude. Exercise. The most important branch of regimen is exercise. And because I have urged the subject of diet with great earnest- ness and minuteness, let no one conclude that I am about to represent the other means of preserving health and curing nervous maladies, as comparatively unimportant. I have already stated, and I wish to reiterate the declaration, that 204 LECTURE VI. attention to diet alone, however rigid, will not avail as a substitute for exercise, or the other rules of regimen; ei- ther to preserve health, or to restore it. In many protracted cases of dyspeptic complaints especially, persevering, sys- tematic exercise takes the lead of all other means for re- covery ; and will succeed when dieting utterly fails. JHence Mr. Abernethy says, " he knows of no remedy for these complaints, but air and exercise." Case of Dr. Dwight. To evince the necessity of attention to exercise as well as diet, even for the most vigorous constitutions, we have an instructive example in Dr. Dwight of Yale College, while he was tutor in that institution. He reduced the quantity of food, first to twelve mouthfuls of meat at din- ner, and then to the same of vegetable- food ; his other meals being proportionably light; neglecting at the same time nearly all active exercise. Within a year, his consti- tution was almost ruined. But by removing to Northamp- ton, and there in the course of another year, taking up- wards of 2000 miles of pedestrian exercise, and 3000 of eques- trian, his vigor was restored and held out forty years.* German scholars. The inquiry will here probably be started, how is it, that many of the German scholars are able to sustain such long continued application to study, with so little exercise ? I reply, that their vigorous constitutions, their early training to coarse and temperate diet, their perfect regularity, and perhaps more than all, their climate, do, indeed, enable some almost to mock the rules of regimen : yet probably their application and neglect of exercise have been much exag- gerated. At any rate, if Germans can live without exer- cise, Americans cannot: and he who attempts it, will only add another victim to the long catalogue of those in our a See Dwights Life, prefixed to his Theology, p. 13. ABUSE OF EXERCISE. 205 country, who have ignorantly or presumptuously tried the experiment, and found, as the consequence, an early grave.* True, they may hold out for a few years; but the seeds of disease are germinating in their constitutions, and will ulti- mately flourish with fearful luxuriance. The discerning eye reads in the pale and dull countenance of all such indi- viduals, the secret progress of internal decay. Need of exercise generally admitted. At this day, however, there is scarcely any individual among the sedentary and the literary, who does not ac- knowledge, in general terms, the necessity of exercise. Now and then you will find one, indeed, who has the vanity and presumption to believe that he shall not fail, in repeat- ing the experiment of Dr. Dwight; and that his genius is of so extraordinary a character, that it is his duty to devote all his time to study, lest the world should be cheated of some of the fruits of his mighty intellect. Very few also, have any accurate or just notions of the quantity of exer- cise they need, or of the time and manner in which it should be taken. Hence half enough is not taken ; and much of the other half, is productive of injury instead of benefit. We need not wonder, therefore, at the multitude of pale, cadaverous countenances, that are seen at our colleges and preparatory schools. Object of this Lecture. My object at this time, is, to collect and define those general rules on the subject of exercise, which the experi- ence of physicians and others have established ; or in which the great majority are agreed. There is even less of dis- agreement on this subject, among those best qualified to judge, than upon dietetics : and, since I need not stop to proue the necessity of exercise, I trust I shall be able to * Homo edens sanus esse non potest, nisi etiam laborat.—Hippoe- rates DcDieta, Lib 1. 18 206 LECTURE VI. dispense with much of that prolixity which seemed indi- spensable in treating of diet. First rule as to exercise. The first established rule in respect to exercise, is, that IT SHOULD BE REGULAR. Some students think it sufficient, if once a week they break away from their books, and spend half a day, or a whole day, in laying in a stock of exercise for the week. But this will answer scarcely better, than to eat enough every seventh day for the intervening six. Just as the food would oppress the stomach, so will such exercise exhaust, rather than strengthen, all the powers of life. Nature at- tempts to conform her operations to our habits : and if we make sudden transitions from long repose to protracted mus- cular effort, she has not become habituated to it, and suf- fers violence ; because she has been endeavoring for some time to accommodate her movements to a state of rest. The processes of digestion, assimilation, and secretion, must daily go forward, in order to keep the system sustain- ed. Now the great object of exercise is, to assist in car- rying on these operations: and, therefore, exercise will be needed every day, as much as food. Exercise on the Sabbath. Some may inquire, whether it be proper to exercise on the Sabbath: In itself considered, there is surely no viola- tion of the divine command to keep the Sabbath holy, in taking so much exercise, of some kind, as will render a person most fit for a due observance of the day. But if one man is in a habit of riding or walking abroad on that day, however pure his motives, his example may have a bad effect upon those, who do not understand how it is, that he needs exercise, when rest is their surest method of coHect- ing their thoughts and directing their minds to religious ob- jects. Hence the student, and even the dyspeptic, had bet- ter make it a rule to avoid, as much as possible, exercise EXERCISE ON THE SABBATH. 207 in public on the Lord's day ; unless medical prescription requires it. As a substitute, they can make some muscular efforts within doors, that will answer the purpose in a mea- sure : These in-door exercises, however, should be of such a nature, as to show that nothing but necessity, or a sense of duty, induces a man to perform them. If a man saw wood, or work at some mechanical art, it gives too secular an aspect to his efforts, and they will have a bad influence upon his family or friends. But if he walk briskly through an open hall, for an hour ; or swing a chair or other weight a hundred times; every one will see that he does not exercise for the sake of pleasure or pecuniary profit. Another expedient will help the conscientious man very much in this matter. Let him take a great deal more ex ercise abroad on Saturday, than on any other day : for al- though this method will not furnish him with a supply of exercise for the week, yet, if the constitution be accustom- ed to regular, daily exercise, an increase in the quantity, on the sixth day, will strengthen the system for resting on the seventh. Indeed, the rule, which the Israelites were directed to observe in regard to collecting manna, may be a good one for the Christian, in respect to out-door exer- cise. They were oblieged to collect a quantity of it every morning, sufficient only for that day; except on Saturday, when they gathered double the usual amount; and this suf- ficed them for the Sabbath, although, in any other case, it was good for nothing but a single day. There is another circumstance of great importance in respect to this point. Let the man who would pass his Sabbath pleasantly and profitably, with little exercise, re- member that he should be peculiarly abstemious in his diet on that day, eating much less in quantity, and of less stimu- lating kinds of food. Nay, some recommend actual fasting as a most valuable means, not only of avoiding the evils I have spoken of, but likewise as purifying the system from the effects of any dietetic excesses of the past week, and strength- ening it against any that may be committed during the one 208 LECTURE VI. which the Sabbath commences. At any rate, they certain- ly do not observe this role, who eat more on the Sabbath than on any other day ; which I fear is the case with very many: nor those who live on vegetable food the early part of the day, but devour animal food enough at night to gorge a Polyphemus. Occasional excursions abroad. In urging the necessity of regularity in exercise, I would by no means be understood as discouraging the student from the salutary habit of occasionally taking a larger amount of it than is usual; breaking away, for example, for a day or two, from his books, and climbing the distant mountain, or in some other way, escaping beyond his daily circle of occu- pation and thought. This exerts a most salutary influence upon the system and upon the mind, if not carried so far, and indulged in so frequently, that the control over the mind is lost, and a roving, discontented, indolent disposition is acquired. But a certain amount of daily exercise must not be dispensed with, however frequent these occasional efforts can be made. And ordinarily, it is best, as far as convenient, to devote a certain portion of each day to this object; not suffering any thing else to interfere with, or encroach upon, a period which is probably of more impor- tance to the scholar, than any other part of the twentyfour hours, except his seasons of devotion. Indeed, as old Cheyne has justly remarked, a man should "make exercise a part of his religion." At least, every student ought to make it a point, to fail no oftener in his daily exercise, than he does in his regular meals; since his digestion requires the exercise, as much as his stomach does the food. Second rule as to exercise. The second rule respecting exercise, is, that it should NOT BE VIOLENT OR EXCESSIVE. This rule is particularly important for the invalid of de- licate habits: Very many such, having heard in general, VIOLENT EXERCISE. 209 that exercise is the grand panacea for the feeble, conclude that the more they take of it, the better. Hence they rouse up from a state of inaction, and exert all their ener- gies at once, until the frame becomes exhausted; and instead of the recovered health and strength which they had ex- pected, they find themselves prostrated by actual disease. Whereas, had they commenced very moderately at first, and every day added a little to the quantity of their efforts, their system would gradually have gained strength and firm- ness; and ere long they might have performed wonders in their corporeal exertions. The grand point, then, seems to be, to begin moderately, and not to carry exercise so far as to produce extreme fatigue and exhaustion. And yet, do not cease your efforts, until you feel fatigue in a moderate degree. Caution. This same caution is necessary for the healthy, who have not been accustomed to much active exercise. Particular- ly dangerous is this sudden violence of effort in the spring, when the motion of the blood is accelerated by the genial warmth of the season ; and when, consequently, too great exertion may produce effects suddenly fatal, or lay the foun- dation for distressing and incurable diseases. On this ground it was, that Galen, one of the most celebrated phy- sicians of antiquity, inveighed against the Gymnasium : And if caution was requisite in this species of exercise, among the athletic Greeks and Romans, it is certainly not out of place, for the debilitated constitutions and sedentary habits of modern times. I do not condemn this species of exer- cise, so much celebrated in our day ; but I say, that cau- tion should be used in its early stages; and that a student should begin with its most simple and least violent move- ments, and proceed slowly through the prescribed course. In this way, the constitution may be gradually brought to endure with impunity, the most severe and protracted la- bors. This is shown by the great hardiness acquired by 18* 210 LECTURE VI. those classes in society, who are brought up from their ear- liest years, in habits of the most laborious industry. The student may sigh because the vigor, which he sees them exhibit, cannot be his : but let him never attempt to com- pete with it, until he has gone through a similar prepara- tory discipline. No excuse for the indolent. Let not these remarks be misapplied to the justification of the indolent voluptuary, who begins to complain of de- bility and exhaustion, ere his exercise is well begun ; and who would consider it intolerably cruel, to prolong his walk, or ride, till real fatigue came over him. I am only urging caution at the beginning of a new course of exercise: for when the system begins to feel its bracing influence, it is all important that the quantum be increased, until the healthy medium, between laziness and excess, be attained. In particular, let no one, who has the direction of children, endeavour to curb their natural inclination for active and al- most constant motion. Until the age often or twelve, they should be permitted to pursue their little sports as much as possible in the open air, scarcely interrupted by tasks of any kind ; and their books, and other means of improvement should be made a part of their amusement. The ambi- tion manifested by many parents, to exhibit their young children as prodigies of learning, and their consequent ef- forts to confine them to their books for an unreasonable length of time, is generally repaid by sickly boyhood, and bodily and mental imbecility in manhood. But let the child be allowed in its early years to follow the promptings of nature, as far as possible, in respect to exercise, and vigor of constitution, bodily and mental, will be the rich reward. I dwell on this subject, because here is the fruitful begin- ning of a large part of the feeble health, that now meets us at every corner. Very few mothers have any just ideas concerning the physical education of their children. So fearful are they, lest they should be exposed to the open air, AMOUNT OF EXERCISE. 211 or should lose their delicate complexions under a meridian sun, or become rude in their appearance by running abroad, or soil their nice clothes in the dirt; that they must be sed- ulously kept within doors, most of their- time ; and even there, be restrained from every active movement: and thus, erelong, they become as delicate and white as the porce- lain ornaments around them : and almost as frail and void of mind. Alas, this is no caricature : the original is seen on every side : it is seen in the nervous lady of eighteen, and in the pale faced pedant of the literary institution. Quaint Rule as to exercise. But my business at this time, is with those, who are act- ing for themselves, in respect to regimen. And in regard to the extent to which their exercise, while in tolerable health, should be carried, there is rather a quaint rule giv- en by writers, which is not an useless one, viz. "that the lean should exercise ad ruborem, that is, till the body and spirits are gently heated ; for that will help to fatten them : and the fat, ad sudorem, that is, till they perspire : for that will help to reduce them ; and consequently extenuate the body."* Quantity of Exercise necessary. The third rule on this subject, requires, that literary AND SEDENTARY MEN SHOULD DEVOTE SEVERAL HOURS EACH DAY, TO KXK'.CI^E IN THE OPEN AIR. The quantity of exercise which it is proper for a man to take, is the most important part of the subject; and yet, it is not possible to be very definite in pointing out that quan- tity. However, we know that there is danger of erring by taking too little, rather than too much. And the shortest time, which will answer for the preservation of health, is two hours per day in the open air. It is far better to de- vote three hours to this object: observing the last rule, not » Sure Methods, p. 100. 112 LECTURE VI« to exercise violently or excessively. Indeed, those individ- uals, who have derived the greatest advantages from exer- cise, have more commonly extended their out-door efforts, their walks, or their rides, or their gardening, or their herb- orizing, to four hours. This has enabled them to walk from 6 to 10 miles; or to ride from 10 to 12: but it is bet- ter to limit our exercise by time, rather than by the space gone over; because, by the latter rule, we shall be very apt to compress into one hour, in order to save time, those efforts, which should employ two or three. These three or four hours for exercise, should not be taken at once ; but rather at two or three times during the day ; though it is better to have these times fixed, in order to avoid a temptation to omit them. Students generally exercise much less than the rule requires. I do not doubt that many who hear me, will be amazed that I make so large a demand upon their time for exercise ; and will be conscious, that in times past, they have given only a small moiety of four hours daily, to this object. Nay, it is my belief, that if they were to make an honest confes- sion on this subject, not a few would say, that a hasty move- ment, three times a day, from their studies to their board- ing houses, has constituted the principal part of their exer- cise, since they commenced study. And they probably fan- cy, that in this way, they have gained a great deal of time for study, which others have lost in uncecessary exertion abroad: whereas, in fact, they have most unquestionably lost time abundantly. For if there be any fact clearly es„ tablished, in relation to this matter, it is, that a man, who devotes four hours daily to exercise, will make more pro- gress in study in one hour, than he could do in three, with only one hour's exercise. Without sufficient exercise, the movements of the animal machine are heavy and laboured, and the mind is clogged in the same proportion : and ere- long, both become feeble and inefficient in their operations. The difference, indeed, between the movements of the MUCH EXERCISE NECESSARY. 213 mind with, and without exercise, is as great, as between the movements of a clock, clogged and groaning with fric- tion and dirt, and one newly oiled and cleaned ; with eve- ry pivot,, wheel, and pin, in place. The true way, there- fore, for a student to gain time for literary pursuits, is to devote, without grudging, these three or four hours per day, to giving strength, and freedom, and lightness of play, to the numberless wheels, and delicate cords, and levers, and springs, that make up bis corporeal system. Aerugo animi—rubigo ingenii, says Seneca: and Plato calls him a cripple, who, by neglecting this bodily discipline, cultivates his mind alone ; suffering the delicate machinery of his sys- tem to rust and sink into decay, through sloth and inaction. He may seem to be rearing up a luxurious crop of the flowers and fruits of learning: but he may rest assured, that like the productions of the greenhouse, they will be wanting in just proportions, and in ripeness. The rule urged. Again would I repeat, to those who hear me, that to give these three or four hours per day to bodily exercise in the open air, is a point of the last importance to their health of body and mind. Consult the history of the most distin- guished literary men that have lived ; except, perhaps, that of some anomalous German literati; and you will find that such was their practice*; and that they impute to it, their chief ability to accomplish sO much as they have done. In vain is it to adhere rigidly to an abstemious diet, and to every other rule of regimen, if this be neglected ; for the student has no security against disease and prema- ture debility. Nor, indeed, ought he to expect any sym- pathy in his fallen state, if he will not listen to the voice of experience on this point. For however various may be the opinions of distinguished physicians and other writers, on other parts of this subject, here, so far as I know, they are unanimous, from Galen and Pythagoras downwards. To disregard their testimony, therefore, is a mark of most 214 LECTURE VI. disgusting self conceit and presumption. For any one to do this, who professes to be devoting himself to literary pursuits, for the sake of promoting the Divine Glory, is worse than folly ; it is criminal. How can the rule be observed in our literary institutions ? But I doubt not, that the members of this college, and of most other literary institutions in the land, will enquire, " how is it possible for us, consistently with an attention to the required routine of study, and other indispensable requirements, to find three or four hours each day, to de- vote to exercise ?" I confess I must answer, that I hardly know. In the words of the Secretary of the American Education Society, in his able address on the union of study with useful labor—" the truth is, that the founders and governors of most seminaries of learning have made no positive provision whatever for taking exercise. Their laws and regulations are silent in regard to it"—I fully agree with him also, in saying, " there must be a change in this respect. Instructors and overseers of literary and professional schools, must give to exercise a prominent place: they must make room for it in the regular employments of each day; and throw the whole weight of their influence into the scale in favor of it."* First planfor removing the difficulty. Does any one enquire, how college duties could be so arranged, as to accomplish this important object? I reply, though diffident of my opinion, in either of the following modes. Retaining the present number of exercises per day, I would have morning prayers at 5 o'clock in the summer, and at 6 o'clock in the winter; and breakfast an hour af- terwards—the intervening period being allowed for exer- cise. Immediately after breakfast, or from 7 to 8 in the * Quaterly Register, Sec. No. X. p. 60. PLANS FOR COLLEGE EXERCISES. 215 summer, and from 8 to 9 in the winter, I would have the first recitation : then an hour for exercise ; then study hours, from 9 to 11 in the summer, and from 10 to 12 in the winter: then a second recitation, from 11 to 12 in the summer, and from 12 to one in the winter: next the dinner hour from 12 to one in the summer, and from one to two, in the winter. From 2 to 5 in the afternoon, should be study hours, in the summer; and from 2 to 4 in the winter: the hour from 4 to 5 in the winter, and from 5 to 6 in the summer, should be devoted to exercise : evening prayers at 6 in the summer, and at 5 in the winter: tea immediately following : then recitation commencing at half past 7 in the summer, and at half past 6 in the winter. From 8 to 9 in the winter, a study hour, this plan provides for three pe- riods of exercise, during the day, of an hour long; and at the most favorable seasons in the day. Second Plan. The other plan proceeds on the supposition that only two recitations be required per day—prayers and meals being at the same times as mentioned in the first plan. The first recitation should come in after breakfast, as in the first plan, allowing an hour and a half for its duration; the second recitation immediately before evening prayers; occupying, also, an hour and an half. Dinner at 12 through the year: hours of exercise, before breakfast, immediately after the forenoon recitation, and after tea in the evening. Study hours to commence in the afternoon at 2, and con- tinue till recitation: from 8 to 9 in the evening, in the summer, and from half past 7 to 9 in the winter, might be study hours. I am aware that neither of these plans is free from diffi- culties and inconveniences. But it seems to me to be a settled point, that some change must be effected in our colleges, in respect to the time allotted to exercise. I can- not believe that the guardians of these institutions will rest satisfied with the present system much longer. A correct 216 LECTURE VI. public opinion is beginning to form on the subject, which must be regarded. And who, in the community, are more likely to adopt any regulations, which reason and experi- ence call for, than the high minded and liberal men, who make laws for our literary institutions ? I have no preju- dice in favor of the plans I have suggested: 1 only say, let us have something, which will give to every student the most favorable opportunities for deriving the greatest pos- sible advantages from exercise, so that he can blame no one but himself, if he neglect them. Almost any system that oan be proposed, has fewer difficulties, and objections than that which prevails, I believe, in at least all the New- England Colleges : and therefore, my conscience would not rest easy until I had borne testimony against it. But until it shall be altered by the proper authority, we are all bound, I say, to submit to it. We may reason and petition against it; but let no man lift a finger of rebellion, to throw it off violently. Even while it is in operation, stu- dents can so manage their time, as to find three or four hours daily for exercise ; though not I confess, at the most favourable period. But let them make strenuous efforts for doing this, and they will find their reward to be most ample. The fourth rule respecting exercise, is, that it should PRECEDE, RATHER THAN FOLLOW, MEALS. This rule is as old at least as Hippocrates ; for we find him saying, oc novog anov eyseo-du)—let exercise precede food. The other ancient philosophers, whose views in gen- eral, were much more correct, concerning diet and regimen, than on most other subjects, understood this principle. At least, an extract from Cicero will show that the practice of Socrates was conformed to it—Socratem ferunt, cum usque ad vesperem contentius ambularet, quaesitumque esset ab eo, quare idfaceret, respondisse, se, quo melius coenaret, opsonare ambulando famen.* * Tutc. Dis. L. 5. BEST TIME FOR EXERCISE. 217 Practice of animals. The practice of nearly all animal nature, bears testimo- ny in favour of this rule : for most animals indulge in rest, if not in sleep, immediately after eating. And such rest greatly assists the work of digestion. The experiment was tried upon two dogs, that were fed with equal quantities of food. One of them was immediately taken to the chase, and the other suffered to lie down in his kennel. After a little more than two hours, both were killed; and while digestion had hardly commenced in the stomach of the dog that had been violently running, in the other, it was al- most completed, so far as the stomach is concerned. Eve- ry man, also, must have noticed, that when called to exer- cise violently, immediately after a full meal, particularly after dinner, the digestive process has been greatly imped- ed- The same effect likewise follows upon vigorous mental efforts, soon after hearty meals. Moderate exercise, how- ever, at that period, is not much injurious to the healthy : and the experiment with dogs only shows, that violent ex- ercise is injurious. On the other hand, the constant prac- tice of the active classes in society, who return to their tasks soon after the heartiest meals, proves that moderate systematic exercise is not to them very injurious; though sedentary, and particularly feeble persons, should be cau- tious in drawing inferences as to what they can do, in re- spect to eating and drinking, from the habits of those, whose employments are calculated to invigorate their di- gestive and assimilating powers ; and concerning whom the dyspeptic cannot but often exclaim with Horace ; O dura messorum Ilia! Upon the whole, we may conclude, that every literary man should endeavor to gain a few moments, at least, imme- diately after eating, for rest of body and mind : to the inva- lid this is indispensable. It is more important after dinner, than other meals, because the others are, or ought to be, 19 218* LECTURE VI. comparatively light. Yet if we have not overloaded the stomach, we need not greatly fear, if called forthwith to moderate exertion ; though all violent efforts are then un- doubtedly injurious. But habit, in respect to moderate ex- ercise after eating, will do wonders ; and in most cases, that drowsiness and indisposition to exertion, which are felt af- ter meals, result from excess in quantity or quality: Indeed where we cannot account for this state of feeling from pre- vious fatigue, we may be sure this is the cause. Best time for exercise. A few hours after eating, however, when the food has passed from the stomach and small intestines into the blood, an instinctive desire for exercise succeeds; and that is the fittest period, both for bodily and mental effort. Hence the reason of the rule under consideration. In the morning, before breakfast, in the forenoon before dinner, and pre- vious to tea, are therefore the very best times that we can devote to exercise : and we ought not to suffer the fact, that these are also the best periods for study, to induce us to monopolize for the mind, the whole of that time, which Providence intended should be divided between the mind and the body. If we do, we may rely upon it, that the body will ere long claim its dues with compound in- terest. Caution to invalids- Persons of very feeble health, however, ought here to be cautioned against too protracted efforts in the morning. An hour previous to breakfast is abundantly sufficient for such to spend in the open air: and indeed, in some cases, the physicians will advise, that exercise at this period be wholly omitted. The healthy, and even the invalid who is well enough to be comfortable, however, need not fear the morning air, even at the earliest dawn ; nor need they fear occasionally to protract their morning walk beyond an hour. The bracing influence of morning air, has always been celebrated; but not overrated. It is nature's grand restora- BEST TIME FOR EXERCISE. 219 five tonic; and ordinarily the only one that should be used by the nervous invalid. Exercise after breakfast. Immediately after breakfast, is no very unseasonable time for exercise, where, as in our colleges, the hour previous is devoted to other duties. Indeed, in summer this is a far better time than the hour just before dinner. For the oppressive heats of the middle of a summer's day, should if convenient be avoided. At this season too, a walk after tea is preferable to mid-day exercises, if it be not pro- longed into the damps and chills of the evening, which are even worse for the health, than the burning heats of noon. From this view of the subject, we .iue that the old poeti- cal rule, as to exercise and rest, has some foundation in truth : After dinner, sit awhile ; After supper, walk a mile. It ought to be remarked, before proceeding to the next rule, that exercise before meals, particularly if it have been fatiguing, ought not to be protracted to the moment of sit- ting down to our food : because all exhaustion of the sys- tem, renders the stomach incapable of grappling with food. It is well, therefore, to rest for a short time previous to eat- ing, if one be fatigued ; though it is the ihvalid, who is chiefly concerned in this remark. Exercise with an object, and natural history, recommended. The fifth rule recommends that some interesting object OF PURSUIT, OR AT LEAST, HARMLESS DIVERSION, BE ASSOCIATED WITH OLR EXERCISE. The man who goes abroad to his exercise, as to an un- pleasant task, who does it merely because he thinks he cannot live without it, might as well cleave to his study, till he became fixed to the spot, like a zoophyte. " Task exercises," says a lively medical writer, " under which de- nomination may be included all those which are resorted to 220 LECTURE VI. merely for the sake of muscular exertion, bear pretty much the same relation to health, as the castigations of the peni- tent do to piety or virtue."* The fact is, the mind must be turned off from its ordinary routine of thought, at the same time that the body is put in motion, or the latter will receive very little benefit. The mathematical or meta- physical chain of reasoning must be thrown aside when a man leaves his study, as much as his books on these subjects; and amusing, and altogether different ideas, must succeed —ideas that neither pall by their dulness, nor fatiguo by their abstruseness- Hence the great advantage of an agree- able friend, to attend us in our exercise; one who will di- vert by the the versatility of his mind, not one who will harrass us by starting and following out some difficult dis- cussion. Hence too, the advantage of so arranging our walks or rides, as to present before us the greatest possible variety of objects, that will be likely to produce the quick- est succession of heterogeneous ideas. Hence a great ad- vantage in riding over walking. Hence too, the solitary wood is one of the most unfavorable places for exercise; though it may be the most favorable for serious and pro- found thought. If, however, a man have a taste for natural history, no solitude, no desert, no mountain, can he traverse where he will not find variety enough to excite a continu- ally renewed 4nterest; and-that too, of the most lively, though not agitating kind. And here, in my opinion, is one of the greatest advantages resulting from a taste for this pursuit, among literary men. So numerous and varied are the minerals, plants and animals, that it will require many years, before they will all become so familiar as to cease to amuse and instruct. And that interest, when it is awak- ened in the bosom, is of the most absorbing kind ; so that even the sluggish invalid will entirely forget his maladies, as he is hurried on by the spur of curiosity, through the deep- est glens and morasses, and up the most craggy mountains. r. see Journal of Health, p. 151. NATURAL HISTORY. GARDENING. 221 The dyspeptic here forgets his stomach and his forebodings, and not a few of such have I known brought back to life and usefulness.by these pursuits,after years of prostration and mis- ery. I hope therefore, it will not be imputed to undue parti- ality for my department in this Institution, if 1 urge the culti- vation of a taste for natui'al history, as one of the effectual means of rendering exercise salutary ; and thus preparing the man for more vigorous mental efforts. 1 might urge it on the ground of the pleasure it affords, were I to permit my own experience to be judge : for I can truly say, that during many years of feeble health, no pursuit of a mere- ly worldly character, has afforded me such real, unmixed enjoyment, and none appears upon the retrospect, so inno- cent and delightful, as the many hundred rambles 1 have taken, through every variety of soil and location, in the prosecution of these studies. And often in the warmth of my enthusiasm and delight, have I expostulated in the lan- guage of Beattie, with those who could see no beauty, and derive no pleasure, where I was continually feasting: " Oh how canst thou renounce the boundless store Of charms, which Nature to her votary yields! The warbling woodlands, the resounding shore, The pomp of groves, and garniture of fields; All that the genial ray of morning gilds, And all that echoes to the song of even,— All that the mountain's sheltering bosom shields, And all the dread magnificence of heaven ; Oh how canst thou renounce, and hope to be forgiven !" Gardening. For those who have little relish for these pursuits, how- ever, no mean substitute is the cultivation of a garden ; in whose neatness and beauty they can take an interest. The operation of digging is said to be peculiarly favorable to health. And who is there that cannot find a spot large enough to exhibit his ingenuity and taste, in planting, dress- ing, and pruning, those vegetables that are useful, and those 19* 222 LECTURE VI. that are ornamental? In other countries, particularly Eng- land, the poorer classes fill every nook with flowers, that spread an air of freshness and contentment around their cottages, which is rarely seen in our country; where, in fact, very many more comforts are within the reach of po- verty. By not improving this innocent source of happiness, our poorer classes are very apt to be inferior, in point of correct taste, to the European peasants. For even lite- rary men would find the cultivation of a garden, no con- temptible means of improving this faculty. Prescriptions of the ancient physicians. So thoroughly convinced have physicians always been, of the necessity of having some object to divert the mind during exercise, that they have resorted to various me- thods to accomplish it. Hippocrates used to require of his invalid patients, that they should go from Athens to Mega- ra, for no other purpose than to touch the walls of the lat- ter place ; and this doubtless better than to send them abroad with* nothing in view, but the recovery of health; an object seldom attained, until the person's attention can be diverted from it. Dr. Johnson recommends, from his own experience, a long journey through an interesting country, without having the particular route, or direction, previously marked out: He would have the traveller di- rect his course by convenience and inclination ; and remain no longer in a place a moment after its objects cease to in- terest him. By such a journey, with two other invalids, of 2500 miles, he succeeded in raising himself from the lowest depths of dyspepsy, and cured his companions. And if the rule we are considering be correct, his advice to invalids in this respect, is most judicious. The good effects of most journies are lost, by hurry, anxiety to reach the end of them, and the want of something to enliven the attention, and di- vert the mind by the way. And thus it happens, that jour- neying, one of the most effectual of all means for the re- covery of health, and for giving fresh vigor to the healthy, ANECDOTE OF SYDENHAM. 223 bo often merely exhausts the vigorous, and wears out the invalid. Anecdote of Sydenham- An amusing story is told of Sydenham, a celebrated Eng- lish physician of early times, illustrative of the principle under consideration; without intending, however, to justify the palpable falshood which he thought proper to employ. He told a wealthy patient, long under his care, that he could do no more for him ; but that a certain Dr. Robinson, at Inverness, several hundred miles distant, was remarkably successful in such complaints. Away went the invalid flashed with the hope of seeing Dr. Robinson. But to his utter dismay, no one at Inverness had ever seen, or heard, of such a physician. Full of indignation, the gentlemen returned to vent his wrath against Sydenham ; which was expressed in no very measured terms. " Well," replies Sydenham, "are you in better health?" " Yes, I am per- fectly well : but no thanks to you !" " No ?" says Sy- denham, " but j'ou may thank Dr. Robinson for curing you — 1 wished to send you a journey with some object of in- terest in view ; I knew it would be of service to you : In going, 3'ou had Dr. Robinson and his wonderful cures in contemplation ; and in returning, you were equally engaged in thinking of scolding me."* Task Exercises. It may be thought that the rule under consideration op- poses the practice in some literary institutions, of requiring the pupils to take a certain amount of exercise each day, under the direction of an instructor; and this is a correct inference, if those task exercises cannot be made interest- ing. If the youth is stimulated to engage in them, simply through fear of censure, or punishment, the grand object certainly is nearly defeated : and I presume that the bet- 0 Paris on Diet, p. 194. 224 LECTURE VI. ter way would be, to subject such a one daily, to a specified number of stripes upon his naked back—not by way of punishment, but as a substitute for the gymnasium, or the ride ; because the whipping would undoubtedly do him the most good, by exciting a strong interest in his mind to know how he should be revenged: and probably too, such a cas- tigation, for a youth of such a disposition, would not be un- deserved, about as often as once a day. But I believe that the difficulty under consideration, is scarcely found to exist in those flourishing Gymnastic In- stitutions, that are springing up on every side. The in- structors find it not difficult, by introducing variety and innocent amusement into their exercises, to awaken a lively interest in the breast of every youth, who has mind and curiosity enough to be worth educating. Whether task exercises can be profitably introduced into our Colleges, and Theological, M edical, and Law schools, admits, I think, of serious doubt. These remarks suggest a sixth rule of exercise ; that SEDENTARY PERSONS SHOULD INTRODUCE INTO IT AS MUCH VARI- ETY AS POSSIBLE. To render exercise appropriate during health," says a dietetic writer, " it is necessary that motion be communi- cated to every part susceptible of it; that the breast be dilated beyond the usual bounds of rest; that all the mus- cles attain the utmost degree of their extension and con- traction ; that strength of course be exerted, and enjoy all its developements." Now there is probably no one kind of exercise that will accomplish all this; unless it be, per- haps, the whole series of movements, usually denominated gymnastic. Hence we should seek such a variety as will embrace the necessary conditions. Such variety will also tend very much to excite fresh interest, and more effectual- ly turn the current of thought into new channels; and thus assist in an observance of the last rule. Considerable vari- ety will likewise be necessary, to enable a person to exer- cise in all kinds of weather. On all these accounts, every VARIETY IN EXERCISE. 225 student should contrive to have within his reach, a number of kinds of exercise ; so that he may be sure of being able to use some one of them, in any situation in which be can be placed. There is, indeed, as a general fact, a decided advantage in some varieties of muscular effort over others. But the very poorest of them is better than none ; or as Seneca says :—Praestat aliud agere quam nihil* I have only time to glance at some of the principal modes of exercise within the reach of literary men, with their most important characteristics. Kinds of exercise- Exercise is of two kinds, in respect to the mode of ta- king it; viz. passive a:.d active. In passive exercise, the person is put in motion by other powers than his own ; and it embraces the different modes of riding, sailing, swinging, * &c. In active exercise, a person depends upon his own muscles to put him in motion. The best of the first cla^s, is riding horseback; for this combines many of the advan- tages of active and passive exercise. Indeed, where it can be borne, it is probably of all exercise, the best for invalids. By persevering in it for a long time, several distinguished physicians are of opinion, that a fixed pulmonary consump- tion has been cured. The feeble person, however, must commence this exercise with much caution ; gradually in- creasing in quantity and speed, as his strength will bear : though probably very violent horse riding, is never as serviceable to sedentary men, as a more moderate pace, lonp; continued. R iding. Riding in a pleasure carriage, particularly one that is closed, is one of those methods, which modern luxury has invented, for preventing the good effects of journies. The verv persons, who are able to ride in this manner, are • J The .Manual for Invalids, p. 34, 226 LECTURE VI. such as need, above all others, to use their limbs ad sud- orem. In bad weather, especially, when every shutter is closed, the air within soon becomes absolutely unfit for respiration. Yet riding in this manner, is what people of wealth and fashion, particularly in cities, call taking the air. It is, indeed, taking such air, as will soon kill a man : and to pleasure carriages of this kind, physicians impute not a little of the bad health of cities. Lord Monboddo, author of the Ancient Metaphysics, would never enter a carriage, even in the severest weather; though he annually rode on horseback from Edinburgh to London, and took other long journies. He died at the age of ninety ; and long after seventy, found himself as vigorous as ever. The small one-horse waggons, used so much in New England, are not liable to the objections above mentioned : and next to riding horseback, they doubtless furnish the healthiest mode of carriage exercise. Riding in a sleigh, can hardly be called exercise : and hence those who prac- tice it, are usually as much chilled, as they would be, by the northwest wind of a New England winter, if sitting still the same length of time, fairly exposed to it. As to swinging, sailing, &.c. they are often servicable for the invalid; but the want of the muscular effort attending them, is a great objection to their use by the healthy, ex- cept for the sake of variety. Walking. Of all active exercises, fortunately the very best can be taken by those in health the most easily. This is walking. Comparing it with riding horseback, the rule is this : riding is the best for regaining health, walking for retaining it. The pace in walking should be steady and regular, but not quick and violent; and ground that is hilly, is better than a plain, to pass over. In the summer, morning and evening are the proper seasons; but the middle of the day should not be taken for this purpose. VARIETY IN EXERCISE. 227 Students usually lose a very important advantage, which they might derive from journies on foot, by throwing them- selves into a stage coach, at the close of each term, and rid- ing day and night, until home be reached. Whereas, Sbuld they control their home-sick feelings enough, to set out moderately on foot, and take the proper amount of rest and nourishment on the route, they would find their self denial most amply rewarded by invigorated health and spirits. But so seldom do literary men take journies on foot, in our country, that it is the general impression, that all who do it, are obliged to take this course on account of their pov- erty: and hence, at the public houses, they will not receive as good attention. A respectable English traveller recently mentioned to me his surprise and mortification at finding such a feeling among us; whereby he was deprived of much of the pleasure and profit of his tour. k I have already spoken of gardening, as an excellent spe- cies of active exercise during the summer. In winter, cut- ting, sawing, and splitting wood, are a tolerable substitute. Gymnastics. Gymnastic exercises I have already noticed. With the precautions that have been mentioned, the system is cer- tainly extremely valuable. True, some in ancient, as well as modern times, heedless of these precautions, or ignorant of them, have ruined their constitutions: but ten times more saved themselves from miserable health and premature de- cay, by a resort to these exercises. They were the prin- cipal means of saving Cicero from the grave, when reduc- ed by a stomach complaint, to a state of great debility. He went to Athens, and there in the gymnasium, became firm and robust, and acquired a sweetness and firmness of voice, to which he had before been a stranger. By military gym- nastics, that is, long marches, coarse diet, and long expos- ures in the open air, Julius Caesar threw offthe epilepsy, headach, and an effeminate delicacy of habit. In a similar way, might most of the pale faced, nervous, unhappy deli- 228 LECTURE VI. cates of modern days, be invigorated and healthful. Cal- isthenics (the classical name for female gymnastics,) would be the most effectual means ladies could employ, forgiving freshmess and fairness, and a rosy glow to their countenances, and permanent vigor to their constitutions. But so long as they will persist in tight lacing, sipping strong green tea, late hours, and neglect of vigorous exercise, they must ex- pect that the rose will leave their cheeks, firmness of mus- cle and strength their limbs, and that squalid, or haggard, or pimpled faces, irritable tempers, and melancholy hours, will be their inheritance. Domestic cares and labours ought also to be included in Calisthenics : and should the articles and employments described by Solomon, in the 31st Chapter of Proverbs, be substituted in the place of stays, corsets, and easy chairs, we should hear little more of dyspepsy, twisted spines, or any other part of the vocabula- ry of modern, fashionable, female complaints. But until "* some change of this kind does take place, Spartan mothers will be rare, and Spartan children rarer. Mechanical Arts. Of all the exercises taken within doors, active, mechani- cal labour, is probably the best. During a considerable portion of the year, the workshop may be so ventilated, that in fact the labor will be performed in the open air. When this cannot be done, the labors of the workshop should by no means be substituted for all exercise abroad. This kind of muscular effort, however valuable as an auxil- iary, must never be considered as precluding the necessity of other exercise. Other exercise may, indeed, be neces- sarily associated with it; either by removing the workshop to a considerable distance from the study, or by making its labors interchange with agricultural pursuits. Such a plan is now, as you know, adopted at several seminaries in the land, and with the most flattering success. The few me- chanic shops, fitted up in this College, several years ago, have not been multiplied, from a want of means, and not MFCHANICAL LABOR- 229 from a conviction of their Inutility.* I am satisfied that it is important, such a plan should be adopted in nearly every literary institution ; and not only this, but the means for every variety of exercise should be accumulated around them, that every student may consult his own taste, as to the kind; and thus be induced to save himself from debil- ity and ennui. 1 would not even exclude some military ex- ercises; such as marching, the use of the broad sword, the erection of small fortifications, &c The different games too, which are not linked, as several of them are insepara- bly, with immorality, should not be excluded. In short, I would endeavour to make every literary seminary, a Uni- versity, as to exercise : so that no student should have any excuse for neglecting to strengthen his physical, as well as mental energies. Even in the most inclement weather, there should not be wanting the means of exercise : for if a man can not exercise, neither ought he to study. Flesh Brush. Friction with the flesh brush, is another in-door exercise of great utility. It has often done wonders—Cicero found it among the best means he used for the restoration of his health : and the ancients generally valued it so highly, that they would not pass a day without it. And among the mod- erns, its reputation stands equally high. It should be prac- ticed about half an hour, morning and evening.! Exercise of the voice. Literary men should by no means neglect training the voice, and strengthening the lungs, by reading aloud, for an hour or two daily. This practice gives strength also to "Only two rooms in the basement story of the Chapel building have been devoted to this object; and these, it is but justice to say, were fitted up at the mggestion of Prof. Abbott in the year 1826 ; earlier, 1 believe, than any similar effort in this country. t Note C. C. 20 230 LECTURE VI. the stomach, and wonderfully invigorates all the organs of the chest. The great men of antiquity understood this, and adopted the practice. Mox orationem Graecam Latinamve, says Pliny, dare et intente non tarn vocis causa, quam storn- achi lego, pariter tamen et ilia firmatur. A seventh rule I have to mention on this subject, is, that CARE SHOULD BE TAKEN, OIC A CESSATION FROM EXERCISE, TO PREVENT A SUDDEN SUPPRESSION OF THE PERSPIRATION. Bad practices- Some will throw themselves upon the damp ground, or take a station at a window, in a current of air, without any additional clothing, immediately after the most violent ef- forts. Such persons need not wonder, if stiff limbs, rheu- matic pains, and severe catarrhs, follow : they may, indeed, think it strange, if they escape without something more se- rious. They may suppose themselves, in this way, to be hardening their constitution; but in fact, they are breaking it down. Nature will not bear these violent efforts. Even if they could bring themselves to endure.with impunity such exposures ; yet it could be effected only by a long course of training: even then, it would be hazardous. The better way is to throw on an additional garment for a short time, after violent or long continued exertion; or to con- tinue to exercise less and less violently, until the system is reduced to its natural condition. Finally, we should consider it an important rule, not to ATTEMPT TO MAKE EXERCISE A SUBSTITUTE FOR ATTENTION TO DIET. Case in which study should be abandoned. It is true, that vigorous exercise will, in a measure, coun- teract the bad effects of excessive eating. But in order to accomplish this object, a student must give up study. If he does not join temperance to exercise, as Cheyne says, " the evil will be as broad one way, as it is long the other. Foi since exercise will create a greater appetite, if it is indulg- LABOR PROPORTIONED TO FOOD. 231 ed to the full, the concoctive powers will be as unequal to the load as they were before."* A single ounce of food too much, taken into a weak stomach, will require a half day's vigorous exercise, above what would otherwise be necessa- ry. The student, therefore, who cannot confine himself to a temperate diet, had better make up his mind to abandon study altogether ; and become a farmer, a carpenter, a sai- lor, a soldier, or any thing else, that will require him to ex- ercise severely from twelve to sixteen hours per day; and then he can, with comparative impunity, enjoy the luxuries of a glutton. If all the use he makes of the vigor and good appetite produced by exercise, is, to furnish an excuse for eating to excess, he never will accomplish any thing in lit- erature or science ; and the sooner he exchanges the toga lileraria for the frock, or the apron, the better. Melancholy reflections. Such are the principal rules of exercise, by which the most distinguished philosophers and literati of ancient and modern times, have been able to sustain their health and vigor, under the most severo and long protracted mental efforts. Had they neglected these rules, their names would never have come down to us, encirled with such halos of glory; but one line would have told their whole history— premature decay—an early tomb. And it is painful to look around upon the rising ranks of our literary youth, and to be compelled to believe, that this line, will be all that will be written on the monumental stone of very many, who are disregarding these same rules. It would not be so painful a thought, did we not know, that many of these have high- er aims than to wind the wreaths of knowledge around their brows: aims, which look only to the glory of God, and the welfare of their fellow men. For this purpose they have left other pursuits, and are toiling day and night over their books: but alas, they know not the terrible disappointment that • Essay of Health and Long Life, p. 100. 232 LECTURE VI. awaits them, unless they wake up from their bodily inactiv- ity, and vigorously cultivate their physical, as well as intel- lectual faculties. O, that I had the power to break the de- lusion, that surrounds them ; and could thus be the means of saving some powerful minds, and honest, holy hearts, from being buried under the rubbish of a ruined frame ! In the language of the ablest medical men, I would say to them : " Throughout all nature, want of motion indicates weakness, corruption, inanimation and death. Trenck in his damp prison, leaped about like a lion, in his fetters of seventy pounds weight, in order to preserve his health : and an illustrious physician observes, " I know not which is most necessary to the support of the human frame, food or motion.'''' Were the exercise of the body attended to in a corresponding degree with that of the mind, men of great learning would be more healthy and vigorous—of more gen- « eral talents—of ampler practical knowledge—more happy ^ in their domestic lives—more enterprising, and more at- tached to their duties as men. In fine, it may with much propriety be said, that the highest refinement of the mind, without improvement of the body, can never present any thing more than half a human being."* " A man," says Sir William Temple, "has but these four things to choose out of—to exercise daily, to be very tem- perate, to take physic, or to be sick." Story of Ogul. Finally, if the student cannot be persuaded to use proper exercise in any other way, 1 could wish him to be made the subject of a deception, amusingly described by Voltaire. " Ogul," says he, " a voluptuary who could be managed with difficulty by his physician, on finding himself extreme- ly ill from indolence and intemperance, requested advice : "Eat a Basilisk stewed in rose water," replied the physi- cian. In vain did the slaves search for a Basilisk, until they met Zadig, who approaching Ogul, exclaimed," behold 9 Journal of Health, p. 85. vpl. I. STORY OF OGUL. 233 that thou desirest;" "but my Lord," continued he, "it is not to be eaten ; all its virtues must enter through thy pores ; I have therefore enclosed it in a little ball blown up, and covered with skin: thou must strike this ball with all thy might, and I must strike it back again, for a considera- ble time; and by observing this regimen, and taking no other drink than rose water, for a few days, thou wilt see and acknowledge the effect of my art." The first day Ogul was out of breath, and thought he should have died from fatigue ; the second he was less fatigued, and slept better; in eight days he recovered all his strength. Zadig then said to him, " there is no such thing in nature as a Basilisk ; but thou hast taken exercise and been temperate, and hast there- fore recovered thy health." 20* LECTURE VII. Air- Clothing. Cleanliness. Evacuations. Sleep: 1. The proper time for sleep ; 2. the proper quantity ; 3. the means of promoting it. Manners. Influence of the Imagination and Passions upon Health. Gentlemen, Intimately connected with the subject of exercise, is that of AIR. Indeed when urging the importance of spending at least two hours each day in the open air, I have anticipated the most important part of this subject. A few things, however, ought to be added. Pure air. The clear dry air of the country, such as we breathe in this land when a mild westerly breeze prevails, is the natu- ral state of the atmosphere, and most conducive to health. Indeed, who does not immediately feel its invigorating in- fluence? It then consists of about 79 parts of nitrogen, and 21 of oxygen. Bad air—evening air. The agents that contaminate this air, are an excess of moisture, carbonic acid, and the various vegetable and an- imal miasms arising from putrefaction. During clear days the sun dissipates the excess of mois- ture, which rises by evaporation from the land and the wa- ter. But at night it acccumulates ; hence the proverbial EVENING AIR. 235 unhealthiness of the night air. To avoid this, should be a grand point with the invalid ; or if exposed to it necessa- rily, it is folly not to protect himself by an additional gar- ment. The healthy too, should always be on their guard against the damps of the evening; as no constitution can harden itself against their morbific influence. In hot cli- mates such exposure is the height of presumption ; and in our climate, those mild and balmy evenings, which most tempt the student abroad, and induce him to saunter by the way, or to sit down under the open sky, are usually the most dangerous. A notion prevails with some, that fear- less and unprotected exposure to evening air, is the way to become hardened against its influence : whereas, he is best prepared to resist it, who by temperance and vigorous ex- ercise during the day, has imparted a healthy tone to his constitution.* On the same principles, exercise abroad in the day time, in damp, foggy weather or in low plains, is not as good as that taken under a clear sky, and on moderately elevated ground. The damps of the morning, however, are not in- jurious to those in tolerable health: on the contrary, expo- sures then are less often followed by colds, than at any other time of the day; and indeed there is very little weather during the day, so unfavorable, as to justify the omission of the stated out-door exercise. These same principles show us the importance of having our studies, our dwellings, and our sleeping apartments, in airy and dry situations, where they can be frequently venti- lated. And if Providence should make it our duty to spend our lives in a low and marshy region, our only security lies in most vigorously adopting those rules, which serve as a security against the damps and putrid miasms that surround us. • See Note D. D. 236 LECTURE VII. Crowded rooms. By breathing, each individual renders a gallon of air un- fit for respiration again, in about a minute: that is, he con- sumes its oxygen, or vital principle. Hence the reason why close rooms filled with people for some time, are so injurious. A hall 30 feet long, 25 broad, and 30 high, con- taining 22,500 cubic feet, would not permit a hundred peo- ple to remain in it more than four and a half hours; twice that number could remain in it only half the time. Hence we see the reason why theatres, ball rooms, and, indeed, any public places of meeting which continue several hours, are so injurious to the health. And the danger here is greatly increased, by being so much hidden : for the person perceives little more than slight debility or headach, even when serious mischief has been done to his health. The same is true of air rendered irrespirable by the burning of charcoal in close rooms—a cause that yearly sends not a few out of the world, and debilitates many more. It is the opinion of respectable medical writers, that the reception of other deleterious gases into the lungs, such as sulphuretted and carburetted hydrogen, exerts more influ- ence upon the health than is generally imagined, by actual- ly poisoning the blood.* Unhealthiness of large towns. These various circumstances are the cause why cities and large towns are so much more unhealthy than the open country : for they are all operating more or less, in such places ; though other circumstances must doubtless be taken into the account. In England the annual proportion of deaths in the large towns, is not far from one in tzventy; in moderate towns, about one in twenlyseven ; and in small vil- lages and the open country, about one in fortyeight.\ In this country, the difference is not so great. * See the Manual of the Invalid, Chap. IX. Also Paris on Diet, p. 141. f Sure Methods, &c. p. 107. HOW MUCH CLOTHING SHALL, WE USE ? 237 The chlorides. For destroying the putrid and contagious effluvia of the rooms of the sick, and indeed, of every other place, the chloride of lime, a substance lately discovered, and men- tioned in a former lecture, is by far the most effectual ; and as it can be most easily and safely applied, no educated man ought to be ignorant of its uses. It can now be easily ob- tained at the shops of our apothecaries, with directions how to employ it. CLOTHING. Clothing is another point in a system of regimen, that deserves attention ; especially as there are erroneous no- tions prevailing on the subject. Some sedentary men are engaged in the Quixotic scheme of hardening their systems by reducing themselves almost to nudity in the winter.* But even if they could succeed, it is doubtful whether it would not be at the expense of life: that is, they would probably shorten life. For it is certainly plain, both from the nature of the case and from the Bible, that men were intended to use clothing. They are the only species of an- imal that is not naturally provided with clothing. The on- ly question is, how much they shall employ. And my an- swer is, enough to keep them warm. For this is the chief object of clothing. And of what service is it, except merely for decency's sake, to wear clothes at all, if this be not accomplished. To effect it, will of course require a great variety in the articles of dress, according to the age, constitution, state of weather, the health, and the season of the year. But the man whose clothing is so thin that he is shivering with the cold most of the time, may be sure that he is injuring his constitution, instead of hardening it, • " It is absurd to endeavor to inure one's self with few or thin clothes. Let but the clothing be comfortable, not too heavy; and regular exercise and regular living will be found the best means for fortifying the body against the elements."—Journal of Health, Vol. 238 LECTURE VII. True, he may envelope himself with as many folds of dress as an Egyptian mummy every time he goes abroad, and thus bring on an oppressive heat and debilitating perspira- tion; but this is not likely to prove so injurious, as the too common practice of exposure to the cold and dampness of the evening, without an additional garment. Many con- sumptions take their rise from this imprudence. When a person has thrown himself into profuse perspiration by ex- ercise, he ought also to put on an additional garment, instead of endeavoring to cool himself by natural or artificial currents of air. When he goes abroad to exercise, he should be thinly dressed ; but when exposed without much exercise to cold and damp air, he should put on clothes enough to secure to himself the natural warmth of the body ; the feet in particular should always be kept warm and dry. This part of the frame is peculiarly sensible to the effects of cold and moisture ; and a person ought never to sit down after they have been wet, until his stockings are changed. Indeed, this should be a general rule in regard to every part of the body. The absurd notion that it is better to let wet clothes dry upon one's back, has sent many to a premature grave; and the escape of any who follow such a rule, is rather to be imputed to the strength of their constitution, than to the harmlessness of the practice. Hardening ourselves by exposure. <4 Great injury is often sustained by sedentary men in the spring and autumn, by attempting to harden themselves so as to live in cold, damp rooms without any fire. If indeed they were vigorously to exercise in such rooms, there would be no danger ; but to sit still there until they are chilled, and this day after day, is a sure method to lay the foundation for rheumatism, consumption, and dyspepsy. True, there is seme danger of making our studies too hot, so that debility will be the consequence ; but small fires, rather late in the spring and rather early in autumn, are important to counteract the moisture. KINDS OF CLOTHING. 239 When, however, the system has become chilled more or less thoroughly, it is an important rule, but one little re- garded, to restore the natural warmth, not by sitting down before a large fire, but by vigorous exercise. Such a prac- tice would prevent nearly half of the colds or catarrhs that afflict men. Best kinds of clothing. In cold and changeful climates garments made of woollen are decidedly the best, to be worn next the skin ; and for invalids such a dress is indispensable. Cotton is next in value ; and for warm climates is generally superior, on ac- count of its lightness. Linen is an article of luxury that should be indulged in with caution by the invalid ; and it is not to be much recommended to the healthy. Silk worn next the skin, is still more objectionable. Persons of fee- ble health have not unfrequently derived benefit from wear- ing in winter a waistcoat and drawers of chamois or deer's leather. Change of clothing. Not a little mischief is done by leaving off the winter clothes too early in the spring, and delaying to resume them till late in the autumn. Some physicians have recom- mended that the winter dress be laid aside the day before • midsummer, and put on again the day after. To be seri- ous, however, June, July, August, and perhaps a part of September, is the only time when summer clothes should be used. Tight dressing. It would seem hardly necessary to caution gentlemen against tightness of dress. Yet according to the experi- ments of Dr. Herbst, a young man of twenty one, when dressed, took in, every time he drew his breath, only 50 cubic inches of air: but when his clothes were loosened, he inhaled 96 cubic inches each time. This shows us, 240 LECTURE VII. that much as we may declaim against the corsets and tight lacing of females, we are not entirely out of danger; espe- cially if we are ambitious of being brought into that wasp- like form, that meets us in the drawings of the latest Lon- don fashions, hung up in almost every tailor's shop. But had Dr. Herbst performed his experiment upon some of the ladies, it is to be apprehended the result would have been truly appalling; for, as a medical writer remarks, " we often meet ladies so cruelly dressed, that we wonder where their lungs and livers are gone to."* CLEANLINESS. Another branch of the subject of regimen is cleanliness. It does not strictly belong to this subject, in connexion with health, to speak of the effects of careless, slovenly and filthy habits upon the respectability of a literary or professional man in the world : and yet, 1 can hardly refrain from say- ing, that the success of such men depends nearly as much upon a proper attention to neatness and cleanliness, as up- on their talents or acquirements. The world like to have their tastes gratified, as well as their intellects : and the avenue to the affections is through the taste. Suppose then, you are introduced into good society, as a man of talents, and you appear there with a long beard, a dirty cravat, unbrushed boots, or hair uncombed. Not the strong- % est mind, or the finest wit, or the deepest lore, can prevent you from being a disgusting object in such a community. And if your debut be of this character, depend upon it, that a prejudice will be excited against you, which you will find it no easy matter to conquer. Slovenly practices. Now the fact is, that the secluded life of the scholar, and the constant pressure of his studies, expose him, in a peculiar manner, to the acquisition of slovenly and filthy • Journal of Health, p. 117, vol. 1. IMPORTANCE OF CLEANLINESS. 241 habits. Hence it is, that his room, if left to his own over- sight, sometimes does not correspond with our ideas of the domicil of a young Cicero, or Masillon. Hence too, you will see him abroad with slip-shod shoes, or with a cravat in which he has slept for two or three nights; or with a beard, that is troubled with a razor only once a week. When a man is pressed with a multitude of cares and duties, he is sometimes compelled to neglect, more than he Could wish, some of these minor points : but such an ex- cuse, no student in a literary institution can plead. And just so certain as you find any one indulging such habits, while there, you may expect, ifyou meet him in after life, to find them still cleaving to him, and injuring his useful- ness. I am not, indeed, pleading for a foppish attention to appearance ; nor would I have the student indulge in costly articles of dress, or be very solicitous to have his coat in the latest London fashion. But I would have him show cleanliness and neatness in every part of his person ; espe- cially when he appears in public. If engaged in any em- ployment, where dust will necessarily cleave to him, he ought, indeed, to adapt his dress to the situation, nor feel any more ashamed of it, than of the newest and richest garment in the proper place. But I would not have him consider it a matter of no importance, what be his appear- ance in public. If he chooses, in respect to his beard, to be- come a Jew, I have no objection ; but I do object to his wear- ing a beard, which belongs neither to Jew nor Gentile : for it will make him alike disgusting to both. Nor is attention even to such small things as the cravat and beard, of no importance to health. I have known a fit of dyspepsy and nervous depression removed, by a clean cravat and a clearing away of the beard: and indeed, clean- liness throughout produces such a sense of comfort, that this single feeling, like all other pleasurable emotions, con- tributes not a little to continue the wheels of life in motion. Hence, to keep the skin clean, is a most important object; for thereby the pores are kept open, and insensible per- 21 242 LECTURE VII. spiration—whose operation is essential to life—is greatly promoted. This is accomplished by bathing. Bathing. Bathing, among the ancients, was practiced almost uni- versally : and in warm climates, and in Russia, and Hungary, much attention is paid to it at the present day : and it is the opinion of physicians, that its neglect by other nations is to be regretted. Certainly it is among the means of health, that ought not to be neglected, either by the healthy, or invalids. Cold Baths. In taking the common cold bath, a running stream, with a bed of pebbles, or sand, should be selected: and the com- mon opinion, that if a person be in a state of slight perspi- ration, he should wait upon the shore till he becomes cool, is erroneous. He ought not indeed to plunge into the wa- ter if greatly fatigued : lest the proper reaction should not ensue. But if moderately warm by exercise, his system is in the very best state for sustaining the shock, produced by the cold water. And the same remarks will apply to the shower bath; which, in many respects, is preferable to the running stream. In either case, a general glow and warmth of the whole body ought to succeed the chill first felt: and if that chill remain for a considerable time, and is succeeded at last by a dry skin and feverish heat, dullness, headache, or tightness across the chest, it indicates that the requisite reaction has not taken place; and that such bathing does not agree with the constitution. At any rate, vigorous ex- ercise ought to succeed the act, until a considerable degree of perspiration is excited. In using the shower bath, only a single effusion of water should be taken at once ; and no one ought to remain immersed in a stream, more than a minute or two, unless vigorously employed in swimming, when a little more time may be allowed : though in gener- al, there is great danger of lingering too long in the deli- COLD AND WARM BATHS. 243 cious sport. Immediately on coming out of the water, the bod}' should be vigorously rubbed, with a coarse cloth, as a means of exciting the vessels to action. The early part of the day, particularly between breakfast and dinner is the best time for this business: and in our climate, the cold bath can hardly be continued with safety very late in the autumn, except by the most vigorous constitutions. Tepid baths, however, in which water is heated from 70 to 85 of Fahrenheit, may be substituted for the cold season. Or during the winter, invalids would do well to sponge them- selves every morning on rising, with water somewhat warmed, or with vinegar and water. And some persons are in the habit on rising, of plunging their feet, for a mo- ment, into cold water : and physicians speak well of the practice, where the constitution will bear it. Vapour ami Warm Baths. Vapour baths are intended for the application of steam to the whole, or a part of the body ; and usually require the direction of a physician. But warm baths may be used by almost every description of persons, as a pre- servative of health, a restorative to health, and a luxury ; and that too, at all seasons of the year ; provided a few pre- cautions be observed. The water in the bath should never be used, until it has risen to a temperature between 90 and 98 ; and a person ought to remain in it, from 5 to 20 minutes. The best time of day for using it, is two or three hours after breakfast ; and the conduct to be pursued on coming out of water, is similar to that already pointed out in respect to cold bathing.* Once a day in our climate, is often enough, and probably too often, for bathing of any kind. I have been thus particular on this subject, from a wish to render the bathing establishment, some of you have seen fit to connect with this institution, as useful as possible ; and lo prevent any abuse of it. Believing, as I do, in its * Note, E. E. 244 LECTURE VII. great importance, I could wish to see it so enlarged, that every student might avail himself of its benefits. EVACUATIONS. So important is the due and timely evacuation of the faeces ; so injurious their retention in the bowels, after their nourishment is withdrawn ; and so liable are the se- dentary to costive habits, that no motive of delicacy would justify the construction of a code of health, which should omit to notice this subject. But all needful directions con- concerning it may be given in a very few words. The grand object is, to secure a movement of the bowels, in most cases, once a day—in some cases, it does not seem necessary more than once in two days. Let there be, how- ever, a stated time, and immediately after breakfast is the best time, for attending to this business. Even if no desire for the exoneration of the bowels be felt, let the proper place be regularly visited at the stated time, and habit will help nature. Attention to diet and exercise will usually ensure a discharge at the proper hour.—In particular, let unbolted wheat, or rye flour, be used for bread: and let no one, if possible, contract the very injurious habit of resort- ing to medicine, even if it be merely to occasional chew- ing of rhubarb, to accomplish this elimination. He will find the remedy worse than the disease.* SLEEP. Sleep is the grand restorer of nature's exhausted ener- gies ; nor can the animal system be prevented for any great length of time, from falling under its influence. Couriers, coachmen, and travellers, it is well known, often * " Costiveness," says a friend, " with which Dyspeptics are gen- erally afflicted, may be happily obviated, by using the Phosphat of Soda, in the room of common table salt, which it very much resem-r bles in taste. It may be used very freely, without imparting any unpleasant sapidness to the food."—See also on this subject, Note, C. C. NIGHT THE TIME FOR SLEEP. 245 fall asleep in their carriages, and on horseback. During the retreat of Sir John Moore, in Spain, many soldiers were found to be asleep, while yet they were marching on ; and some boys, completely exhausted, fell asleep in the midst of the battle of the Nile.* But the most important points that now require attention on this subject, are, first, what is the best time for sleep : secondly, what is the needful quantity: and thirdly, what are the best means for promoting sleep? Best time for steep. As to the first point, nature throughout all her dominions, speaks an unequivocal language, proclaiming night to be the season best adapted to repose. All animals, according- ly, obey the instinct which prompts them to rest at that season, except beasts of prey and some of the insect tribes. Man, in his unsophisticated state, is not an exception ; but man, perverted by custom, joins the carnivorous tribes in converting night into day and day into night. Philoso- phers, physicians, and ministers of the Gospel, have long and loudly remonstrated against this debilitating, demoral- izing transformation ; but still the current of fashion and pleasure bears along its votaries, as numerous and infatua- ted as ever, to the midnight feast, or dance, or route. And especially in large cities at that hour, all is life and motion; while the beautiful rising sun sees only here and there the market man, the watchman, or the stranger, to welcome his first beams, and to drink in the balmy breezes of the morning. Oh, this is a monstrous perversion of the course of nature, and no wonder God visits it in wrath by with- holding refreshing slumber from those who are guilty of it, and bringing upon them hundred headed diseases, that make existence a curse. Let every student make up his mind, while yet he is on safe ground, that he will never yield to ' Rees1 Cyc. Art. Sleep. 21* 246 LECTURE VII. such a practice ; and let him adhere to his resolution to the end of his days. To quell the reproofs of conscience, an opinion is main- tained, that it is of little consequence what part of the twentyfour hours is appropriated to sleep, provided the proper quantity be taken. But this sentiment deserves re- probation. The fact is, one hour's sleep before midnight gives more refreshment to the system, than two hours af- terwards. Hence it is agreed on all hands, that ten o'clock is the latest hour at which a literary man should retire to rest. And really, if I had the power, 1 should not be want- ing in the disposition, to establish military law in our col- leges on this point, and absolutely to prohibit any one, ex- cept in cases of sickness or other providence, from burning his lamp after that hour. I would not annex as severe a penalty as did Frederic the Great, who executed one of his officers for continuing, contrary to orders, to burn a lamp in his tent a few moments after ten o'clock, in order to fin- ish a letter to his wife, as he expected the next morning to go into battle : but though I should regard this as rather too severe, yet I would have a penalty follow, that should be neither light nor tardy. For in fact, such a rule would be of immense advantage to every literary youth. And every such one would gain still more, if he should make it a rule to be in bed at nine o'clock. This would be restoring the good old habits of our ancestors; and would, I doubt not, bring back some of their virtues.* Quantity of sleep necessary. The second inquiry relates to the quantity of sleep that is necessary. And this, we all know, depends upon the age of the individual and the state of the health. Females, it is said, also require rather more sleep than men; and dif- ferent constitutions demand some latitude in this respect. But leaving children, invalids, and aged people, out of the account, the young and the middle aged require from six to • See Note F. F, Quantity of sleep. 247 eight hours of rest. It has been said by some one, that six hours were enough for a student, seven for a gentleman of leisure, eight for a farmer, and nine for a hog: but I am satisfied that the student requires quite as many hours to recruit his system as the hard laboring man ; because the latter usually sleeps much sounder. Probably every young man engaged in study ought to calculate upon getting from seven to eight hours of rest; for it is of great importance that a sufficiency of sleep be obtained; and every real stu- dent, from the character of his employment, is liable to be cheated out of a full amount of the rest which nature de- mands. Mental exertion without a correspondent exercise of the body, tends to wakefulness; or rather, when the mind is put into powerful action, it is not the work of a mo- ment to stay the fervid wheels ; whereas bodily efforts di- rectly dispose to sleep, unless they be excessive. It is true indeed, that not every young man may need as many as seven or eight hours of repose ; to some six is abundantly sufficient. But considering the temptations to curtail the amount of sleep, that beset the student in the wide and al- luring fields of science before him, he had better perhaps calculate upon this quantity, rather than upon less. In middle age, he will probably not require so much as he now does. Bishop Taylor thought that even three hours in the four and twenty were enough ; Baxter supposes that four hours will suffice for any man;* the celebrated Dr. John Hunter, and Frederic the Great, as he is called, de- voted only four or five hours to rest;! Suwarrow, the re- nowned Russian general, accustomed himself to still less ; and Charles the XII. of Sweden, uniformly slept but four hours;J John Wesley, the celebrated itinerant preacher, found six hours necessary for him, and probably this is nearer the common standard for the middle aged, than the other ex- amples. The man inclined to be corpulent, however, must • Duty and advantage of Early Rising, p. 44. f Rees1 Cyclo. Article Sleep. | Military Mentor, vol. i. pp. 11 and 13. 248 LECTURE Vlt. not fear to rival even Suwarrow and John Hunter in this re- spect; for as old Parr used to say, such an one must " keep his eyes open and his mouth shut." How to determine the proper amount of sleep. It is desirable that each individual should be able to as- certain the precise amount of sleep, which his constitution demands; and, according to John Wesley, who printed a sermon on this subject, he may do this. " If any one de- sires," says he, u to know exactly what quantity of sleep his own situation requires, he may very easily make the experiment, which I made about sixty years ago. I then waked every night about twelve or one, and lay awake for some time. 1 readily concluded that this arose from my lying in bed longer than nature required. To be satisfied, I procured an alarum, which waked me the next morning at seven, near an hour earlier than I rose before ; yet 1 lay awake again at night. The second morning I rose at six ; but notwithstanding this I lay awake the second night. The third morning I rose at five ; but nevertheless I lay awake the third night. The fourth morning I rose at four, (as by the grace of God I have done ever since,) and I lay awake no more. And I do not lie awake, taking the year round, a quarter of an hour together in a month. By the same experiment, [rising earlier and earlier every morning,] may any one find how much sleep he really wants." How sleep is best promoted. The third inquiry is, what are the best means for pro- moting sleep, or for securing the proper amount ? To accomplish this, the student should not rest satisfied unjil he is confirmed in the habit mentioned by Wesley, of taking the whole of his sleep for twentyfour hours, in un- broken succession, without any wakeful intervals. Thi3 requires an attention to several particulars. In the first place,uniformity as to the period of repose ; say from ten at night to five or six in the morning. Nothing but EARLY RISING. 249 necessity should induce any one to deviate from the hours he has fixed upon, Secondly, the habit of retiring to rest early. Upon this point I have already insisted. Thirdly, early rising. Of so much consequence is this habit justly regarded, that volumes have been written to enforce it. Philosophy, physic, poetry, and religion, unite their testimony and their appeals in favor of the practice. They paint to us the natural beauties of the morning; the clearness of mind, the exhilaration of spirits, and the in- vigorated strength, which are then possessed, and the con- sequent facilities for study, for meditation, for devotion, and for enjoyment, that are presented ; nor have these advan- tages been overrated. Nevertheless, immense multitudes, whose only pursuit in this world is happiness, disregard them all, and suffer the sun to shine one, two, three, or four hours upon the world, before their eyes behold it; and thus do they deprive themselves of the possibility of real enjoyment; and as for usefulness with such persons, it is out of the question. For, as Dr. Trotter justly says : " Can any human being be in pursuit of noble and elevated hon- ors, who is found in bed at eight or nine in the morning? Such a man never yet in the world acquired the title of ei- ther good or great."* On the other hand, those men who have done most for literature and science, or in the cause of benevolence, have, almost without exception, illustrated the good old rule : Early to bed and early to rise, Is the way to he healthy, wealthy, and wise. Examples of early rising. To give a few instances : most of the ancient philosophers and poets, as Homer, Horace, and Virgil, were of this de- scription. In modern times, Dr. Parkhurst, the philologist, rose at five in the summer, and six in the winter: Sir Matthew Hale, who studied daily sixteen hours, rose early. * View of the Nervous Temperament, p. 283. 250 LECTURE VII. Bishops Jewel, Burnet, and Home, have left us their testi- mony and examples, in favour of early rising. Sir Thomas More, the author of Utopia, found time to compose that work by means of rising uniformly at four; and he repre- sents the Utopians as being in the habit every morning of attending public lectures before day break. Old Parr, to whom I have frequently referred, sums up the rules of diet and regimen in the following weighty sentence—" Keep your body cool by temperance—your feet warm by exer- cise. Rise early—go to bed soon. Never eat till j'ou are hungry—never drink but when nature requires it." Dr. Doddridge informs us, that most of his works were com- posed by means of rising at five, instead of seven o'clock. And it is said that Sir Walter Scott sends forth his semian- nual and even monthly volumes, by means of rising at four o'clock and devoting only five hours to study: so that after nine in the morning, he is free to engage in other pursuits. But one of the most instructive examples on record, is that of Dr. Paley. " 1 spent," says he, the first two years of my undergraduateship happily, but unprotitably. 1 was constantly in society, where we were not immoral, but idle and expensive. At the commencement of the third year, after having left the usual party at a late hour, I was awak- ened at five in the morning by one of my companions, who stood at my bedside and said, " Paley, I have been thinking what a fool you are. I could do nothing, probably, if I were to try, and can afford to lead the life you lead. You could do every thing, and cannot afford it. I have had no sleep during the whole night on account of these reflections; and am now come solemnly to inform you, that if you persist in your indolence, I must renounce your society." " I was so struck," says the Doctor, " with the visit and the visitor, that I lay in bed a great part of the day, and formed my plan. 1 ordered my bed maker to lay my fire every morn- ing, in order that it might be lighted by myself. 1 arose at five—read during the whole day—took supper at nine— went to bed—continued the practice up to this hour." EARLY RISING. 251 Proper hour of rising. From four to six o'clock seems to be the time for rising, if we follow the best examples : the precise hour being fixed by the season of the year, the age, the hour of going to bed, and the state of the health. He who rises thus early, and is not indolent, (and early rising and indolence, I believe, never go together,) will be sufficiently fatigued by nine or ten o'clock at night, to fall into a sound sleep, which, in ordinary cases, will not be broken till the regular hour of rising. At any rate, no student should permit him- self to indulge in the second, or morning nap, after a wake- ful interval. On this point physicians urgently insist.* Nor should any one indulge himself in lying in bed after first awaking in the morning: for nothing debilitates more. If he feels a strong propensity to fall asleep again, at the early dawn, let him spring instantly from his couch, and the shock of a refreshing air bath, will dissipate his drowsiness : and even if he has not had his usual allowance of sleep, it is far preferable to make up the deficiency at some other time, even after dinner, than to do it in the morning. For morning slumbers, are, of all others, the most unrefreshing ; especially if the early part of the night has been spent in wakefulness. Yet by indulging in them, even in such cases, the pernicious habit of lying long in bed in the morning will be acquired insensibly. But by resisting the inclina- tion, and determining that only certain hours of the night shall be devoted to slumber, the constitution soon yields to the habit, and an immense advantage is gained in respect to health. Students apt to forget salutary college habits. But why do I press the point of early rising, in a place where, noletis volens, it must be practiced ? I answer, be- cause 1 fear that this requirement is too apt to be regarded by students, as an unwelcome task, which greatly inte rferes • See Journal of Health, vol. I. p. 75. 252 LECTURE VII. with their comfort. And I draw this inference from the fact, that so many, the day they leave college walls, revert to their old habits of going to bed and rising late ; and con- tinue in them through life. Whereas, in fact, to have ac- quired permanently, habits of a contrary character, would be an ample compensation for all the confinement and ex- pense of a college course. And if young gentlemen would look at the law on this subject in a rational light, and not as an unnecessary and unpleasant penance, their own ex- perience would show them its immense importance to their future usefulness and happiness. I ought to add in this place, that persons remarkable for longevity, all agree in having been early risers. Exercise necessary to sound sleep. But in the fourth place, early rising is not all that is requisite to secure unbroken and refreshing slumbers at night. A proper amount of exercise during the day, is of immense importance ; as is shown by the fact, that labouring men rarely find any difficulty in securing a due proportion of sleep, unless their exercise has been excessive. The want ofthis exercise, is the principal cause of the sleepless- ness and restlessness of the nervous and the bilious. Hence, if it have not been taken during the day, measures should be adopted for securing it before retiring to rest. To walk up and down an open passage for an hour, or more, before bedtime, is recommended for this purpose—agreeable to the practice of Cato, of Utica. Other kinds of exercise, however, afford good substitutes. Temperance necessary. Fifthly; temperance in diet, is indispensable to quiet and refreshing slumber at night. This thought is well expres- sed in Ecclesiasticus : (Chap. 31. v.20.) "sound sleep comelh of moderate eating: he riseth early, and his wits are with him : but the pains of watching, and choler and pangs of the belly, are with an umatiable man." Almost every one SLEEP AS AFFECTED BY FOOD. 253 has found this sentiment true by his own experience. After indulging a little too much in some favourite dish, rich food, or unseasonable luncheon, or dessert, especially late in the evening, what man has not been tossed to and fro on his couch, harrassed by unpleasant dreams, and disposed to pro- tract his slay in bed in the morning, to make up for the fa- tigue and restlessness of the night; and when he arose, found himself dull, unrefreshed, irritable, and melancholy? But though all allow such to be the effect of great excess in eating, "it is worthy of observation also," says a physician, "that the stomach will sometimes be much irritated by a small quantity of indigestible food taken at night, and thus may sleep be prevented as certainly as if the organ were overloaded with food."* Even a too hearty dinner, taken at twelve o'clock, will very often produce such an irritation of the digestive organs, as to disturb, or destroy, the rest of the subsequent night: much more, then, might we expect this result from a hearty supper ; and still more, from a ten o'clock luncheon of meat. This irritation of the intestinal nerves, is the grand cause of those unpleasant dreams, so troublesome and exhausting to nervous invalids : and even the night mare, which is only the climax of dreaming, is usually occasioned in the same manner. It produces also, in some constitutions, the idea of spectres, visions, and rev- elations. You probably have a case ofthis kind in the ex- perience ofCowper. " To whatever cause it is owing," says he "(whether to constitution or God's express appoint- ment,) I am hunted by spiritual hounds in the night season. Case of Swedenborg. A single hearty dinner was undoubtedly the source of the delusions of Swedenborgianism ; as is evident from Swed- enborg's own account of his first vision. "J dined very late" says he, " at my lodgings at London, and ate with great appetite, till at the close of my repast, I perceived a a Sure Methods &c. p. 177. 22 254 LECTURE VII. kind of mist about my eyes, and the floor of my chamber was covered with hideous reptiles. They soon disappear- ed, and the darkness was dissipated, and I saw clearly in the midst of a brilliant light, a man seated in the corner of the chamber, who said to me in a terrible voice, " eat not so much" At those words my sight became obscured; after- wards it became clear by degrees, and I found myself alone- The night following, the same man, radiant with light, ap- peared to me and said, " I am God, the Lord, Creator and Redeemer, &c."—" That same night the eyes of my inter- nal man were opened, and fitted to see things in the world of spirits, and in hell, in which places I found many persons of mine acquaintance, some of them long since and others lately deceased."* If such be the consequences of hearty dinners and sup- pers, how important the sentiment of the old latin prescrip- tion : Somnus ut sit levis, sit tibi cotna brevis ;f Which has been thus translated, or rather paraphrased ; To be easy all night, Let your supper be light. The person, who is afflicted with sleeplessness and hateful dreams, has only to put this rule into vigorous practice for a few months, to be satisfied that it is perfectly efficacious. Unbending the mind before sleep. Sixthly ; it is essential to sound sleep, that the mind be un- bent from severe study, a considerable season before bed time; long enough, if possible, to get the subject entirely out of mind. Perhaps nothing is so well calculated to ac- complish this, as those devotional exercises, that are appro- priate to the close of the day, if they be performed with the faithfulness and interest they demand: and surely, the » Christian Spectator, Dec. 1823, p. 618. f Cheyne's Essay on Health and Long Life, p. 81. HOW TO SLEEP QUIETLY. 255 calm and peace which religion inspires, are most eminent- ly calculated to sooth the irritated nerves, and induce quiet and refreshing repose. But to this point I shall probably again refer in another lecture. Other circumstances that need attention. Finally, there are several other circumstances, of less importance, that contribute somewhat to secure the repose the literary man needs. His sleeping apartment should be as spacious as possible ; or if small, the doors leading to the adjoining apartments should be left open. A room in an upper story is best. To crowd several beds into the same apartment is highly pernicious. It is hardly necessary to say, that a nice attention to cleanliness, not only in beds and clothing, but also in the chamber, is of high importance. Very warm sleeping apartments are injurious. Indeed, for persons in health, no fires should be admitted into them, at any time : or if admitted, free ventilation before bed lime is desirable. The temperature ought not to be higher in any case for the healthy, than fifty degrees. The practice of warming the bed, unless dampness or previous exposure to cold render it necessary, is very de- bilitating: and so is the habit of loading one's self with an insupportable weight of clothes. Enough to produce com- fortable warmth, is all that is necessary. The practice of leaving open the windows of a bed cham- ber during the night in summer, is a bad one. It might do no injury to the sailor, or the soldier; nor to the student, after he is thoroughly trained to the sailor's or the soldier's life. But, says the Journal of Health, " many persons have experienced serious and irreparable injury to their health, by being in this manner subjected, while asleep, to a cur- rent of cold air from without."* Multitudes, I know, will • Vol. I. p. 85. 256 LECTURE VII. say that they practice this impunity; but this only proves the strength of their constitutions, and not the good effects of the habit, nor its freedom from danger, to the more feeble. Writers on the means of preserving the health, are al- most unanimous in condemning the use of feather beds, es- pecially for the young; unless it be in the severest part of a northern winter. A mattrass, composed of moss or hair, should, they say, be invariably preferred. Curtains drawn around the bed are inadmissible in any case; because they confine the air. Sleeping with the head beneath the bed clothes is still more pernicious; and, for the same rea- son, beds should never be placed upon the floor; since the impure air generally settles to the lower part of the apart- ment. The practice of sleeping after dinner is of very question- ble utility; chiefly because it prevents refreshing sleep at night; and disposes a person to the habit of sitting up late. If the tendency to sleep at neon be brought on by excess in eating, as it usually is, it is the precursor of apoplexy, and must be resisted. Even the invalid, if he can, will do well to avoid his " forty winks' nap" at noon. Some writers, however, I ought to renTark, recommend to such, a short indulgence of this kin J. manners. Attention to manners, may not appear, at first view, to have any connexion with the health. But it is not so. All our habits of body and mind are so intimately related, that their mutual influence is great; and not one of these habits can be named that does not, directly or indirectly, affect the health. And I maintain that gentlemanly manners, or the manners prevalent in good society, are favourable to health. I speak not here of Chesterfieldian niceties, nor of Chester- fieldian absurdities; but of those fundamental rules of po- liteness, which regulate the conduct of a gentleman and a GOOD MANNERS PROMOTIVE OF HEALTH. Christian. These principles dispose him to treat others with urbanity, kindness, and due respect; to make him ex- tremely cautious of injuring their feelings, diminishing their reputation, or throwing obstacles in the way of their en- + joyment. And on the contrary, it is a leading object in all his intercourse with others, to make them happy ; not in- deed, by any sacrifice of truth, or principle, but by exhib- iting a disposition to befriend them; to overlook their mi- nor failings ; and to give them credit for every virtue which they really exhibit. Now such treatment from our fellow men, has a powerful tendency to buoy up the mind, and make it cheerful; and thus to promote the health. And by cultivating such feelings towards others, we shall perceive a happy reaction upon ourselves; contributing not a little to bodily, as well as mental sanity and enjoyment. Students apt to neglect the promotion of manners. Now it ought not to be concealed, that the retired life of students, tends strongly to prevent the formation of such manners as I have just described. Hence it is, that they are so apt to indulge in jesting and innuendo, in their inter- course with one another. Hence they so often visit each others' rooms in quaker style, as to their hats. The consequence is, they are very apt to carry the same habit into the public rooms of college ; and it will be strange, if such persons do not find this habit clinging to them when they go abroad into the world, producing an impression upon cultivated minds and tastes, that it is easier to obtain a diploma for progress in knowledge, than to get rid of un- couth aud clownish manners. The same inferenoe will be drawn, should the student, when hereafter he becomes a clergyman, or a judge,, or a legislator, be seen lolling, and yawning, and raising his feet upon the breast work of the pulpit, or the bench, or the senate chamber, as he used to do at college, in the chapel and in the lecture room. 22* 258 LECTURE VII. INFLUENCE OF THE IMAGINATION AND PASSIONS UPON HEALTH. These are the grand moving powers, not only of the soul, but of the body : take them away, and you leave nothing but a lifeless, stagnating mass of matter and mind. But as in mechanical operations, the moving forces are sometimes too powerful for the delicate machinery on which they operate, so the passions sometimes strain and sweep away the curious organization both of mind and of body. Hence their mighty influence over the health. Hence a quaint writer calls them " the thunder and lightning of perturba- tion, which causeth such violent and speedy altercations in this our microcosm, and many times subverts the good es- tate and temperament of it." Effects of violent passions on the body. Every man must have realized in his own experience something of the mighty influence of the more violent pas- sions over the body. Who has not been sometimes sensible that the blush of shame was hurrying the blood to his cheek, and the strong nervous excitement of anger, agitating his frame ? Who has not felt the violent beating of his heart on opening an important letter, or on receiving weighty intel- ligence 1 History testifies, that the Emperor Valentinjan the first, Wenceslas, Matthias Corvinus, king of Hungary, and many others, died by a violent fit of anger* Murat, king of Naples, received a letter from his wife, while absent in Buonaparte's celebrated Russian campaign, detailing some proceedings of his government, which he thought encroach- ed upon the royal prerogative ; and so great was the effect of his jealousy, that before-he had'finished the letter, his whole skin beeame completely jaundiced.t Excessive joy is often fatal: thus it is said that Sophocles, the tragic wri- ter, died inconsequence of a decision being given in his fa- vor in a contest of honor. Diagoras died at the instant * Journal of Health, Vol. I. p. 154.. f Do. do, p. 142. EFFECTS OF VIOLENT PASSIONS. 259 when his three sons were crowned on the same day as vic- tors at the games. Pope Leo X. died of a fever produced by the joyful news of the capture of Milan.* Suddeu and excessive fear has often produced a similar effect. A boy was once let down the side of a very high precipice in a basket, to rob an eagle's nest: while suspended some hun- hreds of feet above the rocky base, he was attacked by the eagle ; and in cutting at the bird with a sword which he carried with him, he siruck the rope by which he was sus- pended, and cut it nearly off; on drawing him up, his hair was found changed to white.T Sudden horror and anguish produce similar effects. A widow in Paris, on learning that her daughter with her two children had thrown herself from an upper story of the house and was dashed in pieces, became in one night as black as a negro.J Terror has am effect equally powerful. Thus, " a Jew in France came irv the dark, over a dangerous passage on a plank that lay over a brook, without harm ; the next day, on viewing the perilous situation he had been in, he fell down dead.1T Sudden grief has sometimes proved alike fatal. Philip V. of Spain died suddenly on learning the disastrious defeat of his army ; and on dissection it was found that his heart was literally burst asunder; showing that the common phrase, a broken heart, is sometimes pathologically correct- Diseases cured by imagination and passion. On the other hand, imagination and passion have often proved of the highest benefit in the cure of diseases. His- tory is full of examples ofthis kind. The animal magnetism of Mesmer, and the metallic tractors of Perkins,, whereby thousands were actually cured of most obstinate disorders, by means which were proved in the most satisfactory man- * Rees' Cyc. Article Passion. t If I recollect rightly, this is related in Thornton's Medical Ex- tracts. t Johnson on the Liver, &c. p. 210. H Johnson on the Liver, ttc. p. 205. 260 LECTURE VII. ner to be mere mummery, curiously illustrate this subject; ■ although I have no time to enter into details.* Indeed, un- less the physician can secure the influence of imagination, or rather of hope operating through the imagination, in fa- vor of his medicines, he has little expectation of effecting a cure. Hence too it is, that particular remedies have such a wonderful efficacy for a time, and then fall into disuse. And hence too, the success that often attends quacks, who are as destitute of medical knowledge, as they are of mo- ral stamina. By noise and profession they secure the con- fidence of the ignorant, and in this way do really perform many remarkable cures; though in the end, they usually de- stroy a greater number than they restore. Hence too, the same medicine will cure in the hands of one physician, that will do no good, administered by another: for " plures sa- nat, in quern plures confidunt" Amusing calculation. That those maladies which originate in a disordered im- agination, can be cured by producing a belief that they will be, seems most rational; and that the proportion of disorders originating from this source, and from the influ- ence of passion, is large, none can doubt. The following amusing estimate, said to be made by an old London physi- cian, exhibits the origin of the different cases of disease to which he was called in the course of a year ; viz : Vaux- hall, Theatres, hackney coaches, and places of wor- ship, (that is, crowded public assemblies,) 1600;—Indul- gence in Wine, Spirit and Smoking, 1300;—Indolence, 1000;—Sudden changes in the atmosphere, 1200;—Preva- lence of the North or East winds, 1800 ;—Force of Imagi- nation, 1500;—Gluttony, 1300;—Quack Medicines, 900;—- Love, 750 ;—Grief, 850 ;—Unsuccessful gambling, 900 ;— Contagion, 900 ;—Study, 950 ;—Reading novels, 450. " Of these real friends of the physician," he adds, " I am •See Rees1 Cyc. Article Imagination. CONCEIT CAN KILL, CONCEIT CAN CURE. 261 more indebted to Vauxhall, the theatres, places of divine worship, and hackney coaches, than any other, because the diseases they occasion are inflammation of internal parts, which is not soon reduced, and often terminates in chronic diseases, as pulmonary consumption and rheumatism. To Fancy I do not feel much indebted, because the patients are very far from being pleasant ones to attend; indeed, I had rather have been without them. The north, east, and north- east winds, always add considerably to my list of patients. Gluttony, and abuse of ale, wine, and smoking, are excellent friends, because they are constantly acting for me. Quack medicines are sincere friends, because they amuse the minds of the restless hypochondriacs, and convert acute diseases into chronic. Gambling occasions nervous affections which reflection cures. The south and west winds are also good friends, as they add to my reputation by curing many dis- eases. Love and grief, although perfect stangers to me, are nevertheless sincere friends."* Real disorders yield to thepozaer of fancy. But fancy is not concerned in the production and cure of imaginary disorders merely. Some that are real and obstinate yield to its power. At the siege of Breda in 1625, the scurvy raged to an alarming degree ; so that the garri- son was about to surrender ; when the Prince of Orange sent into the fortress a few phials of sham medicine, which was distributed among the sufferers, as most costly and in- valuable. The effect was almost miraculous. " Such as had not moved their limbs for a month before, were seen walking in the streets, sound, straight, and whole. Many, who declared that they had been rendered worse by all former remedies, recovered in a few days, to their inex- pressible joy." The remarkable cures of persons afflicted with the Scro- fula, or King's Evil, by the kings of England and France, particularly by Charles II. and those of the pious, though ""• Journal of Health, Vol. I. p. 107. 262 LECTURE VII. superstitious, Valentine Greakraks ; those of Francisco Bagnone, in Italy ; and those celebrated as miracles in the Romish Church, by touching bones, relics, &,c. all belong to the same class ; and are well worth the student's atten- tion, as illustrating the power of imagination over the body,' and as showing the facility with which mankind may be duped by the crafty and designing. The case of a man cured of the gout by terror and alarm, as mentioned by physicians, is striking. Another person, disguised as a spectre, entered his chamber while he was in a paroxysm of the disorder, seized him and dragged him down stairs with the gouty feet trailing behind him. Then the ghost disappeared; when the sick man sprang upon his feet with the utmost ease, ran up stairs, and never afterwards felt another symptom of gout. Case of Muley MoluC, The sudden strength, which strong passion can inspire, even in a dying man, is well illustrated in the history of Muley Moluc, Emperor of Morocco. His troops were en- gaged in battle with the Portuguese ; and he was carried upon a litter into the field, conscious that he must die in an hour or two, of an incurable disease. But his army began to retreat. He sprang from his litter, rallied his flying troops, saw the enemy beaten, and then returning to his litter, sunk down exhausted and expired. Hope and joy. With the exhilarating and invigorating influence of the milder passions, both upon the mind and the body, we are all, I trust, familiar. Every nervous invalid especially,can doubtless recollect the remarkable transition in all his men- tal and corporeal feelings, produced by the unexpected breaking in upon his mind of a ray of hope, or a gleam of joy; how from being silent and melancholy, he became sociable and cheerful; how his sloth was exchanged for active efforts; how the dread of disease and death, which EFFECTS OF THE PASSIONS. 263 had been haunting his imagination, disappeared ; and the world, which just before was clothed in sombre hue, was soon dressed in a sunny radiance, and he arose a renovated being. Melancholy and jealousy. On the contrary, every such man knows full well, how paralyzing is the effect of melancholy, despondency, and jealousy. For these are the passions that brood, like an incubus, over his spirits, a large portion of the time : and most persons of this character, by the free use of stimula- ting food and drink, under the idea of giving their bodies more strength, do in fact oppress the corporeal powers, and thus feed these morbid passions, that are slowly con- suming their lives. Nor can they ever get rid of the cloud, until a change of habits shall break up the strong delusion. Temperance in diet, and thorough persevering exercise, will accomplish their emancipation, and bring them under the influence of settled cheerfulness and tranquillity of mind —a state of feeling, perhaps the most enviable in this world—and absolutely necessary to longevity and usefulness. To secure such a state, therefore, should be a grand object with every student. Let him labor for it without remission; assured that it is the true elexir vitae—the genuine philoso- pher's stone. Youthful Love. There is one passion of omnipotent sway in the youth- ful breast, to which I have not alluded. And ought I not, from a sense of delicacy, to pass it by? If I had not in these lectures undertaken, in the plain and fearless lan- guage of a friend, to warn you of every danger, which I could discover in the field I am exploring, I might consent to leave the subject of early attachment to the female sex, untouched. But I look upon students, as a class among men, who make the pursuit of knowledge, paramount to every other of a worldly nature ; and who are ready to sacrifice 264 LECTURE VII. any other object, when it comes in collision, or interferes, with this ; certainly, during the eight or ten years of their preparatory course. On this ground I have urged the im- perious necessity lying upon such, to deny themselves every gratification of the palate, inconsistent with the most vigorous exercise of the mind. On the same ground, I warn them against the mighty and dangerous influence of love. If they fall under its magic influence, and become devotedly attached to some angelic nymph, while yet they are green in literature, and have not acquired an uncon- querable relish for study ; I do not say that they are ine- vitably ruined ; but they are walking along the edge of a precipice, over which thousands and thousands have plung- ed : At any rate, they have thrown a mighty obstacle into their literary course ; and it will be marvellous, if their progress afterwards be not with a feeble and halting step. " To sighs devoted and to tender pains, Pensive you sit, or solitary stray, And waste your youth iu musing— The infected mind, DissolvM in female tenderness, forgets Each manly virtue and grows dead to fame. Sweet heaven, from such intoxicating charms Defend all worthy breasts !"—Armstrong on health, p. 96. I am not arguing, with misanthropic stoicism, against a proper attention to this subject at the proper lime. It is a wise and beneficent law of heaven, that the heart should yield to its influence, when it will not interfere with other concerns of higher moment. But why this great hurry to be unalterably affianced to some bewitching fair one, while yet the tastes, and habits, and manners of the student are forming? and especially, while he has an object before him, sufficient for his whole powers to grapple-with ; I mean the thorough discipline of his mind by study ? When his edu- cation is finished, and his taste and habits are formed, he will have ample leisure to attend to this concern; and will BAD EFFECTS OF LOVE UPON THE STUDENT. 265 then be less under the influence of a skittish fancy, and le68 liable to become tired of his choice. For however the ar- dent lover of eighteen may resent it, it is true, that as his mind becomes more expanded, his taste more correct, and his acquaintance with the world more extensive, the angel- ic charms of his lovely fair one, may fade away; and he find himself in the sad dilemma, of spending life with one for whom he has little respect, or attachment; or of violently breaking asunder engagements, for whose fulfilment he is most solemnly pledged. Such a dilemma is a perfect cure for the enthusiastic notion, so prevalent among the young, that these sexual attachments are beyond their control; and that if the spell comes over them, they have nothing to do but to submit to it; indeed, that these " congenial minds" are fitted for one another in heaven, before their descent to this world ; according to the love sick ditty of Dr. Watts' Indian Philosopher. The wisest course. Wisest and happiest by far, then, in my opinion, is that student, who during his collegiate course, avoids the snare of female love. 1 do not mean to charge him with moral delinquency if he is entangled : but I say to him, that he has bound a load upon his back, that will be very likely to re- tard his progress up the hill of science ; and which may altogether discourage him from advancing. Nay, let him not forget, that this very hindrance has turned not a few talented and even pious youth, out of the path that leads to usefulness and respectability, and sent them down into the valley of forgetfulness—alas, some have landed in the gulf of infamy. And where else should we expect to find such, as have given themselves up to female influence ? " An ille mihi liber videatur, cui rnulier imperat, cui leges imponit, praescribit, jubet, vetat quod videtur; cui nihil imperanti negare potest, nihil recusare audet ? Poscit ? dan- dum est. Vocat ? veniendum. Ejicit? abeundum. Mi- 23 266 LECTURE VII. natur ? extimcscendum. Ego vero istum non modo servum, sed nequissimum servum puto."—(Cicero.) But if virtuous love be thus dangerous, what shall I say of every species of meretricious connexion ? What shall I say ? Solomon has already said it all, with the tongue of inspiration. He has shown us the way to the house of in- famy, and hung up over its entrance, in burning characters, the appalling inscription—her house is the way to hell : HER GUESTS ARE IN-THE DEPTHS OF HELL--NoNE THAT OO UN- TO HER RETURN AGAIN, NEITHER TAKE THEY HOLD OF THE paths of life. If the student heeds not this warning, it is because moral principle, and the sense of shame, and the fear of God, are banished from his bosom ; and therefore it is useless to make any farther appeal to one who is thrice dead. Holy Love. But to turn our thoughts far, far away from such scenes, I remark, that there are exercises of the principle of love, which have an omnipotent sway over every unruly pas- sion, and a most salutary effect upon the health. I refer to the love which religion inspires for holy objects : for God as the supreme excellence, and for other beings, in propor- tion to their purity and value. This is the mighty energy, that is able to control the fiercest passions, and to strip the most desponding of their power. Even the settled melan- choly of the bilious and the nervous—obstinately defying every other agency—may be dissipated by holy love. This turns off the affections and the attention from created ob- jects, and makes the man feel, that it is of little conse- quence what evils betide him here, or through what storms he has to pass, since there are cloudless skies a little be- yond, and a secure haven, which he is sure of entering and enjoying. " His hand the good man fastens on the skies, And bids earth roll, nor feels her idle whirl.11 HOLY LOVE. 267 He can take up, and apply the triumphant reasoning of Paul : If God be for us, who can be against us ? He that spared not his own son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not, with him, also, freely give us all things. When such a principle is in vigorous exercise in a man's bosom, what inferior passion will dare to lift its puny arm to make war therein ? And the serenity, cheerfulness, and stability, which it inspires, exert a mightier power in the prevention and cure of diseases, than any prescription the physician's Dispensatory can furnish. Yea, and when na- ture grapples with her last enemy, it is this principle alone, that enables the soul still to triumph ; and amid the ruins of the body, to exclaim, O Death, where is thy sting! O Grave, where is thy victory ! PART III. EMPLOYMENT, LECTURE VIII. Influence of different Employments upon Health. Literary pursuits favorable to Health. Study: best posture of the body ; best time of day for its prosecution; night study injurious. Means of preserving the Eyes. Recreation from study—Active benevolent Enterprises—Light Reading—So- cial Intercourse—Music. General Inferences, With this Lecture, Gentlemen, I enter upon the third general branch of my subject, viz. Employment. Without much impropriety, indffed, I might perhaps have treated of this under the head of Regimen. Still, in the case of the student, it seems desirable to bring forward his daily avo- cations in bold relief; since these exert so important an influence upon his health. And this can be done most ef- fectually, by considering literary pursuits as a prominent and distinct branch of the general subject. Different occupations compared. Although it is a matter of every day's experience and remark, that some occupations are more favorable to health and long life, than others: yet but few accurate observa- tions have been made to determine definitely the amount of influence that is thus exerted. The following statements, however, will give some idea of the subject. In Hamburgh, in Holland, it was ascertained that the proportion of deaths among the tailors, was about one in 23* 270 LECTURE VIII. every nine; among the cabinet makers, about one in 25 ; and among the barbers, nearly one in 18.* Of 424 individuals, who lived over 80 years, there were, according to Schroter, Apothecaries 2 Painters 3 Physicians & Surgeons 14 Musicians 3 Astronomer 1 Philosophers 18 Poets 3 Clergymen 33 Lawyers 23 Merchants 11 Schoolmasters 8 Housekeepers 10 Military Officers 21 Gardeners 4 Soldiers 12 Herdsmen 3 Noblemen 8 Laborers 8 Ministers of State 4 Mechanics 71 Countrymen 87 Sailors 2 Citizens 55 Grave Digger 1 But the character of my audience renders it unnecessary for me to dwell upon any occupation, that is not essentially literary.f I shall, therefore, direct my remarks, In the first place, to the subject of study ; and In the second place, to recreation from study. Study not unfavorable to health. There exists a prevalent opinion, that literary pursuits are peculiarly unfavorable to health. The active part of society make this inference, from the fact that so many students are complaining of bad health ; and so many others are compelled to abandon their books : and the student him- self comes to such a conclusion, from an unwillingness to acknowledge that the failure of his health may more probably be imputed to his excesses in diet or study, or neglect of exercise, than to the nature of his pursuits; because in the one case, the fault lies with himself; and in the other, it is a mere misfortune.! But I do not believe the opinion to • Journal of Health, vol. I. p. 166. t See Note, G. G. t See Note H. H. STUDY FAVORARLE TO HEALTH. 271 be correct. Certainly to maintain the mind itself in a healthy state, it must have almost constant occupation—the more the better, if it do not fatigue. It is a want of such mental employment that gives rise to ennui, melancholy, and the whole train of depressing passions, accompanied by intellectual imbecility. Now a disordered mind will soon produce a disordered body. And what mental exertion, if properly made, can be more favorable to health, than the pursuits of literature and science ? To every one, who de- serves the name ofa literary man, the acquisition of knowl- edge is an extraordinary pleasure : and this circumstance adds greatly to the good effect of study upon the bodily health ; because no task is imposed. There is indeed, such a thing as an excessive attachment to books, which is inju- rious ; because it leads to the neglect of every proper means of health : such was the enthusiasm of the English mathematician, when he exclaimed; Crede mihi, extingui dulce erit mathemaficarum artium studio. Still a great degree of devotedness to learning, is not always unfavorable to lon- gevity : " and," as a medical writer observes, " we have many instances on record, of men who have attained their century of years, retaining their intellectual faculties, and admiring mental acquirements with the avidity of youth."* In support of the position, that literary pursuits are in themselves favorable to health, I might add, that while they afford a man all needful facilities for attention to diet and regimen, they enable him to avoid many of those ex- posures to wet, heat, cold, and excessive fatigue, to which the laboring classes are liable ; and which are the exciting causes of a multitude of fatal diseases. They enable him, also, to adopt greater regularity in his mode of life, than can be done by others; and this is extremely favorable. Opinion of writers on this point. This view of the subject is supported by all medical, and other authorities. Says one of the former class; " to cul- • Manual for Invalids, p. 36. 272 LECTURE VIII. tivate a love of literature and the fine arts, and to direct the taste to pursuits of usefulness, is very comfortable both to health and happiness.* Says another, of the latter class; "the time will come when the most cultivated and vigorous minds will be found connected with the most energetic bodies. " The languid eye ; the cheek Deserted of its bloom ; the flaccid, shrunk, And witherM muscle ; and the vapid soul,'1 ought as rarely to be found in our academic halls, as in the habitations of our hardy yeomanry. Sana mens in corpore sano, is, with proper management, emphatically the privi- lege of students. They may enjoy even better health than the most laborious. Alternation of bodily and mental effort will be found more favorable to health, than the long con- tinued muscular action of the farmer and the mechanic. Studious men have more knowledge of the regimen essen- tial to health, than others ; and their situation for following it, is in general more favorable. That temperance in all things, which God has enjoined, especially in eating and drinking, united with that exercise of the mental and phys- ical powers for which he made us, will be found to ensure the most perfect health."! " The cultivation of the sciences," says the Journal of Health, " appears particularly favorable to longevity : there can be but little doubt that an individual who exer- cises his mind as well as his body, has a fairer prospect of life, than the one whose body alone is occupied—Franchini has enumerated 104 Italian mathematicians of different epochs: he has ascertained that of 70 of these, 18 attained the age of 80 years, and 2 of 90.—In France, according to M. Berard, 152 men of science and letters have been taken at random : half the number appear to have cultivated sci- ence, and about half to have been devoted to general lite- » Manual for Invalids, p. 49. f Frost's Oration. POSTURE IN STUDY. 273 rature : on computation, it was found, that the average life of each of the 152 individuals, was 69 years."* Those who die early left out of the account. In advancing such principles, however, it ought not to be forgotten, that those who fall an early sacrifice to litera- ry pursuits, are not taken into the account; because their names are unknown, beyond the small circle in which they moved. And in our country, and our times, the number of such victims is unusually great. But shall their premature fall be imputed to the insalutary nature of their pursuits ? By no means : In the ignorance and neglect of the rules of diet and regimen, I have already pointed out fruitful causes of their melancholy fate : and another cause is to be found in their violation of the rules, which experience has shown to be best, for regulating the time and quantity of study, and the mode of pursuing it. My present object, is to point out these rules with as much distinctness as possible. Posture in study. In the first place, particular attention should be paid to the posture of the body in study. In general, that posture ought to be erect—certainly so far as the chest is concern- ed. Even when the student is sitting, the breast should be thrown forward, or swelled out, and the abdomen drawn a little inwards, that the lungs may have their full play, and none of the internal organs be unduly compressed. Bending over a table, so as to contract the organs of respiration, for any considerable time, is peculiarly injurious. And to avoid this most effectually, and also to give every organ a natural and unrestrained position, standing upon the feet is by far preferable to sitting, while engaged in study. In the former position most persons will hold out twice as long, with the same fatigue, as in the latter. 1 know that our natural indolence will plead hard for the easy chair ; and for one accustomed to this luxury of a study, of so questiona- ble utility, it will require not a little resolution and self-de- • Vol. I. p. 167, 274 LECTURE VIII. nial, to learn to stand upon the feet. But 1 would urge per- severance in this habit, as of great importance. True, when a person attempts to study after fatiguing exercise, he may be excused for sitting until refreshed; but if his lassitude does not proceed from fatigue, let him not yield to it. If long standing is painful, the chair and the table may be used for a short time and then the standing position be resumed. Indeed, such an occasional alteration will gen- erally be found highly beneficial ; although the time spent upon the feet should always exceed that spent in the chair. General posture of students. It can hardly be thought a digression here, if I should say a few words upon the position of students generally. For they are very apt to acquire postures of the body, that are both extremely ungraceful and unhealthy ; so that prob- ably no equal number of any other class of men, taken at random, can be found, whose form and positions would be more exceptionable to a military eye and a correct taste, than theirs. And the reasons ofthis are, that they are gen- erally bent over and cramped when studying; and few of them take any pains to correct their forms and postures at other times. But when we consider of how much impor- tance is an erect and graceful form in a public speaker— how it half makes up for lame and crooked sentences—it seems strange that the subject is thus neglected. Every scholar ought to learn the posture of a soldier on parade, and to accustom himself to it so long, that it shall become easy and habitual. This posture does not consist in strut- ting, as most suppose ; that is,in throwing the head far back- ward and the belly forward ; but in holding the head per- fectly erect, drawing in the belly, throwing forward the breast, and the shoulders backwards. This will place the line of the body in a perpendicular direction ; which is the natural position of man, and very different from that slouch- ing, ungainly, parabolical, indescribable form which we not unfrequently see under a scholastic habit. Some may, in- PREPARATION FOR STUDY. 275 deed, imagine that it savours of a proud spirit to appear always, a la militaire, with the head erect, the breast prom- inant, the elbows close to the body, and the legs straight; and that the curvilinear, undisciplined posture looks most like humility. But I do not think that an epicycloidal back is always indicative of a submissive spirit; nor a rectilinear spine, a sure index of a stubborn will. Depend upon it, gentlemen, that age and infirmity will bend you down ear- ly enough, however careful you may be to accustom your- selves to a soldier-like and gentlemanly form and posture in youth. While it is in your power, therefore do not bring a libel on human nature, by neglecting to cultivate your forms, as well as your minds; especially when health, equally with future usefulness and success, demands it. Preparation for study. In the second place, health, as well as success in study, demands a certain preparation for those seasons that are devoted to it. This preparation embraces both body and soul. If the mind be agitated by cares or passions, or dis- gusted with literary pursuits, attempts at successful study are mere mockery. And so if the body be oppressed with disease, listlessness, or excess in diet, the mind operates to an immense disadvantage ; and to the still farther prostra- tion of the corporeal powers. The body and the mind, therefore, must be put in order before we let in the steam, for putting the machine in motion. Otherwise some crank unequally pressed will be broken, some valve will not play, or some boiler will burst. Very many students, especially in the earlier part of their course, estimate their proficiency by the number of hours which they employ with their books open "before them ; whereas in fact, a man who engages in study with no pre- paration for it, though he may spend his twelve or fifteen hours per day over his classics, frequently gains nothing in point of knowledge or mental discipline. Nay, he is not unfrequently like the frog in a well, concerning whom the 276 LECTURE VIII. arithmetic inquires, how long before he will get out, if he ascends two feet per day, and falls back three ! But stu- dents learn before many years, that a single hour spent over their books, when mind and body are harnessed for the work, is worth twelve, when the one is unstrung and the other chained. It is surely, then, an object of great importance, for eve- ry student to know how he may accomplish the most men- tal labor in the least time. Vigorous health is indeed of immense importance in effecting this ; but the person of rather delicate constitution, can perform wonders in this respect, if he observes certain rules: And first, his study should be retired, dry, airy, and agreeable. Best plan for study. Euripides, indeed, is said to have composed his tragedies in a cave; and Demosthenes chose a place for study, where nothing could be heard or seen. But other men, equally happy in their mental labors, have found that the cheerful light of the sun, and the bracing influence of dry and pure air, were quite as favorable to the invention of original and happy ideas, as the gloom and dampness of a prison or a cavern. The groves and walks of the Academy and Lyceum near Athens, where Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle taught, were certainly far more conducive to health and cheerful- ness ; and the examples of wisdom and knowledge which have emanated thence, will surely sustain a comparison with any that antiquity can boast. The confined air of a small apartment, and the dampness of a sunken cell, must cer- tainly be avoided by the invalid if he means to preserve comfortable health, or sustain much literary effort. Nor should any one think it an object of no importance, to ren- der his study a pleasant place ; at least, to exhibit taste, or- der, and neatness, in its internal arrangement; and if it have some loop-hole through which his eye can rest upon an interesting landscape, it will lend to make his situation agreeable, and therefore, like home. A study, however, PREPARATION FOR STUDY. 277 should not crowd too closely upon the busy street, or other resorts of men, lest the attention be too much distracted. Exercise before study. Secondly ; exercise, but not fatigue, should precede the hours of study. The exercise is necessary in order that the various parts of the bodily machine should be put into easy, vigorous, and harmonious action. For until this be effected, the finer intellectual organization within will be cramped, and operate only sluggishly and ineffectually. Every one must have perceived what acceleration and life have been given to mental operations, by exercise in the open air un- til a gentle perspiration opens the pores, carrying off the crudities of the blood, and the pulse is made thereby to beat full and strong, and the head is relieved from pains and drowsiness. But if the exercise be carried so far as to occasion severe fatigue, the mind, sympathizing with the body, demands repose ; nor can it be spurred up to vigor- ous action, without making such a draft upon the secret en- ergies of the constitution, as will be extremely hazardous to comfort and health. Light meals before study. Thirdly; light meals should precede study. I mean, when the hours devoted to study follow the meals with but little interval, the food should be very simple, and mode- rate in quantity. It is said, that it is very difficult to make a dog see objects through a window, because he looks only at the glass. And this, it seems to me, very exactly repre- sents that student's condition, who sits down to his books after having loaded his stomach beyond all reason. True, he can fasten his eyes upon his books; but the clearest rea- sonings are all opaque to him, because his mental vision is so blunted by gluttony, as not to be able to penetrate the most transparent medium. He, however, does not suspect the cause, why he falls so far behind others in his attain- ments ; nor why, after hours of study, no distinct impression 24 278 LECTURE VIII. remains upon his mind. He charges it all to his poor me- mory, while God charges it to his intemperance. Hence it is, that study is so unprofitable to most persons immedi- ately after dinner. And hence it is so unprofitable to mul- titudes after breakfast and supper too ; for after they have eaten at those meals as much as is necessary for twenty- four hours, their minds can no more operate freety, than can the lungs when a cord is tightly drawn around the neck. The mind, in such a case, must lie still until the stomach has got rid of its load. Hence too, it is, that the mind is less clear and the power over the attention less entire after a meal of animal food, than after one of vegetables ; for the latter exercises, far less vigorously than the former, the digestive powers, and produces less feverish heat. Hence too, abstinence, when not carried so far as to produce pros- tration, is perhaps the most favorable condition of any, for clear and powerful mental abstraction. Strong excitement to be avoided. Finally; the mind should be kept free from strong ex- citement, or even very engrossing diversions, for some time previous to regular study. The waves of the ocean, when once raised, cannot in a moment be calmed, even if the cause of their excitement ceases. No easier can you put d»wn at once the movements of the mind. You may excite counter waves in the ocean, but those already existing will conflict with them for some time : and the same is true of counter mental emotions. But in order to grapple success- fully with the abstrusities of science, the mind should be brought to the task, in a collected and unruffled state. No half subdued gust of passion should startup—no melancholy train of thought should pour in its muddy current—no sudden start of a skittish fancy, or engrossing remembrance of a darling diversion—no dreams of romance—should come in to ruffle the smooth surface. The whole soul should be only a mirror of thought, where every image should he well defined, and without distortion. Intent only upon thor- PREPARATION FOR STUDY. 279 oughly comprehending the point before him, the student should endeavor to forget every thing else ; and to concen- trate all the energies of his soul upon the task he has un- dertaken. And yet, so absorbed should he be in his work, as forthwith to forget that it is a task, and only feel that it is a pleasure. Although at the proper time he may give up his mind to business, care, light reading, or diversion; yet these hours are consecrated sacredly to study—to the thorough discipline and enlargement of his mind ; and to all other things he should be able to say, procul, O procul, este profani! How very different will be the progress of a stu- dent thus fitted tor the work—thus nerved with giant strength, and wielding an Herculean club—from that of him whose head is confused and heavy from a loaded stomach, whose strength is weakness from want of exercise, and whose mind is distracted with corroding passions, or light and airy thoughts ! Reading newspapers and other periodicals. Altogether incompatible with such a preparation as this, is the practice of lounging in the early part of the day, over the last newspaper or periodical. Information thence derived may be serviceable, if obtained at thefproper time; that is, if such works be read as a relaxation from study, and after the regular study hours are past; but to dip into them in the morning, or into the romance, or the play, or the poem, is effectually to unfit the mind for the vigorous, un- divided efforts which the solid branches of learning demand. Hence students of this character, although they catch ma- ny of the floating and iridescent bubbles of polite literature, and acquire a pert flippancy and readiness of expression, are usually marked with tckel when put into the balances. Devotional ezerdises. Finally, perhaps there is no means more effectual to se- cure this meutal preparation for study, that is so desirable, than by devoting the season immediately previous to devo- 280 LECTURE VIII. tional exercises. I am not urging this duty as a theologian, but merely as a most effectual method of collecting the thoughts, of fixing the attention, of calming the excited feelings, and of awakening a determined purpose of soul. 1 speak not here of a hasty, formal, unfeeling, or unmean- ing repetition of a prayer; but of those sincere and thor- ough devotional exercises which make the man feel the presence of God, and the controlling influence of religious motives, and the vanity, folly, and guilt of acting from merely selfish and ambitious views. Depend upon it, that he who has six hours before him for study, will make great- er proficiency by devoting one of them to such exercises, than by monopolizing the whole for literature or science. Such a course, I might add, enlists in our favor infinite pow- er and boundless wisdom ! What is study ? Having thus described the requisite preparation for lite- rary labor, the third inquiry is, what portion of the day shall be devoted to regular and systematic study ? For when I speak of study, I do not mean every thing that goes by the name. I look upon the reading of a newspaper, a pe- riodical, a romance, a play, or a poem, as merely a relaxa- tion from study. It is oniy when the mind is investigating some branch of knowledge, hitherto wholly or partially unexplored; and is advancing systematically in its conquests from one position to another, that the effort ought to be dignified with the name of study. A man may " toy with his books," and sometimes ought to do it for health's sake ; but this is neither mental discipline nor mental conquest, and therefore not study. What part of the day is best for study. As to the season most proper for study, I shall speak the unanimous sentiment of every intelligent friend to health, and learning too, when I say that the earlier part of the day is decidedly the best, Every thing conspires to render MORNING THE TIME FOR STUDY. 281 it so. The mind, as well as the body, is then refreshed and vigorous from repose ; and every organ plays its part freely and pleasantly. And if the student do not clog his powers by too hearty a breakfast, or too violent exercise, or improper diversions, he will be able most successfully to prosecute his studies until the hour of dinner; interrupted only by those seasons which should be devoted to exercise; for 1 have already shown that such seasons are imperiously demanded, both for the preservation of health, and as a pre- paration for mental efforts. General practices. Those individuals in the literary world who have left the most imperishable monuments of their industry and knowl- edge, have, almost without exception, executed the great- est portion of their works in the early part of the day; de- voting the latter part to exercise, recreation, and business. I have already, in another lecture, mentioned a striking living example, which may stand instar omnium, that Sir Walter Scott devotes only the hours from four to nine in the morning to literary labor. As to the practice of study- ing before day light, however, no student should enter upon it without great caution ; for few have health and eyes suf- ficiently strong to endure it. But when a man has ascer- tained that no injury results from such a practice, he will certainly find a vigor and clearness of mind at that season, which he can scarcely hope to possess during any other portion of the day Night study. ^F While upon this subject, there is still greater need that I utter a strong caveat against night study : I mean study after nine or ten o'clock in the evening. Few literary men are aware of the great risk they run, by indulging in such a habit. And it is the besetting sin of studious men. The in- terruptions of the day, the stillness of the night, and not un- frequently the unnatural wakefulness produced by strong 24* 282 LECTURE VIII. tea, or a deficiency of exercise, are almost irresistible tempt- ations to such, to prolong their studies beyond the hour^ when health demands their discontinuance. The conse- quence is, disturbed and unrefreshing sleep. " The tired brain," says a physician, "can no more repose, than the overstrained muscles after violent exertion ; hence the stud- ies of the day rise in incoherent images at night, or drive away sleep altogether."* Every student's experience will attest the truth of this statement: But every one should make the most strenuous efforts to prevent the recurrence of such excitement during the night; for if suffered to con- tinue long, it will infallibly destroy the constitution, and in some instances, it has proved suddenly fatal, by bringing on apoplexy. Warned by the existence of such a state of nerves, the student must forthwith follow the advice of Dr- Johnson. " Whenever we find," says he, " the diseases of literature assail us, we should have the lamp scoured out and no more oil put into it. It is night study that ruins the constitution, by keeping up a bewildered chaos of impres- sions on the brain during the succeeding sleep—if that can be called sleep, which is constantly interrupted by incohe- rent dreams and half waking trains of thought." Professor Porson. To procure repose in such cases, some resort to the laud- anum or paregoric phial, or to spirituous liquors. Th^ is suicide : for it tends to produce congestion, or imflammation of the brain: and thus, according to Dr. Johnson, did the celebrated Professor Porson terminate his days. J Henry Kirk While. A more painful case of self-immolation, by immoderate night-study, was that of Henry Kirk While. Burning with an ardent desire for distinction in the literary world, and full of that self-confident presumption, which leads many students to despise all the advice of their seniors, and to ex- * Johnson on Hygeia. NIGHT STUDY INJURIOUS. 283 pect that their constitutions are strong enough to render all attention to health unnecessary, he persisted in an almost incessant application to study, until the delicate machinery of his system gave way, and left him only time enough in this world, while flesh and body were consuming, to pour forth the unavailing regret: how have I hated instruction, and my heart despised reproof'. He allowed himself scarcely no time for relaxation, or meals, or sleep. He used to study till one, two, and even three o'clock in the morning; and then devote only two or three hours to sleep; having fixed a larum to his clock, to awake at five. His kind mother remonstrated, wept, entreated, and prayed in vain. She used to go every night to his study, at a certain hour, to extinguish his lamp; when he would conceal the light, and springing into bed, feign to be asleep: but rise again to his self-immolating work as soon as she had gone. The sacri- fice was soon completed ; and the victim has left his blood sprinkled over the vestibule of the temple of science, as a warning to every ardent youth, who attempts to enter in an unlawful manner. Night study less successful. Most literary men are convinced, that very late study at night is injurious to health : but few have any idea that it is equally hostile to the most vigorous and successful ex- ertion of mind. Yet such is the fact: and if a man will re- view in the morning, the mental labours of the preceding night, especially if they were performed under the influence of any artificial stimulus, such as tea, coffee, or wine, he will find, that although there is exhibited evidence that the mind was in operation, yet the balance was gone, and the movements were too irregular to be useful. We should predict that the mind's vigor and calmness would be affect- ed at night, by the bodily exhaustion ; and the final result shows this to be a true prediction. We see this particular- ly, in the far greater retentiveness of the memory in the morning than at night: although probably there is a differ- 284 LECTURE VIII. ence equally great, in the exercise of the other mental pow- ers. The scholar, therefore, who wishes not pnly to pre- serve his health, but to bring forth the full strength of bis powers, must choose the early part of the day for the bur- den of his intellectual labours. His most severe efforts should be over before dinner. In the afternoon, indeed, gentle application to studies requiring no great abstraction of mind, is not particularly injurious : and the same may be said of the evening, until nine or ten o'clock : But to throw the principal and most severe studies into this part of the day, is slow, but effectual suicide : and especially to spur up the mind to intense action, after nine o'clock in the evening, is aiming a blow, not only at health and life, but at all the budding hopes of literary distinction. Fatal practices of Clergymen. Probably no class of men violate these rules so extensive- ly as clergymen. Their literary labours are necessarily very great; composition being probably more exhausting than any other kind of study : and as the necessity of com- position is constantly recurring, and other duties are crowd- ing upon them, they are tempted to defer, as long as may be, the preparation of their sermons. Too often they pro- crastinate till evening, whose stillness invites to religious meditation ; and excited by some interesting train of thought, or, it may be, by strong green tea, they find the clock strik- ing eleven, or twelve, or even one, before the exhausted powers demand repose. Worse than all, such protracted mental labours most frequently occupy Friday, or Saturday night, following a day of severe mental effort, and preceding the day, when a laborious bodily effort is to be made in pub- lic. Now this severity of study is the very way to unfit the body for sustaining the labour of public speaking, which is trying enough, under the most favourable circumstances; but excessively prostrating to powers weakened by immod- erate mental application. Can we wonder, that so many clergymen at this day, are victims to early prostration, and % HOW MANY HOUHS SHALL WE STUDY? 285 almost constant feeble health, if such, or any thing like this, be their practice ? and I fear, that essentially this course, is taken by a majority. The fact is. Friday and Sat- urday, or at least the latter, ought to be devoted by the clergyman, almost entirety to exercise ; and his prepara- tion for the Sabbath, should be nearly, or quite completed, before that time. Or it might be better for him, upon the whole, to make it his rule, to devote his forenoons only to study: and the remainder of each day, to parochial visits and other bodily exercise : and to have his people under- stand, that any calls or visits before dinner, except such as are imperiously necessary, will be regarded as an ungentle- manly intrusion. Such a course, resolutely carried through, would work wonders in respect to the health and usefulness of those who minister in holy things. % How many hours shall we study ? As to the precise number of hours, which it is advisable to spend in regular study, no definite rule can be given. Some consti'tutions will bear twice as much confinement as others, with the same health. And then again, an increase of exerccise will enable one to sustain a greater amount of study. Besides, the man who enters his study, thoroughly prepared for taskwork, will accomplish more in one hour, than he who is unprepared can do, in four. So that no student can estimate his proficiency by the number of hours he devotes to his books. But each one may give as many hours to his study as he can do, after attending faithfully to the rules which I have mentioned in respect to diet and ex- ercise : provided he finds his health remaining firm and vig- orous. If morbid feelings beset him, he may be sure some- thing is wrong, either in his diet, or exercise or amount of study ; and if he can discover the difficulty no where else, he must shorten his season of study, and increase the amount of his exercise, until he has found out the proper medium. 286 LECTURE VIII. Practice on this point extremely various. Literary men have varied exceedingly in the amount of time which they have given to close mental application. Some could even confine themselves from twelve to four- teen hours each day ; others, with feeble constitutions, have found six or eight as much as they could endure : And, says the Secretar3' of the American Education Society, " One of the most active and laborious professional students in Amer- ica, and one who has given to the world as substantial fruits of his labours perhaps as any other man, in proportion to the time he has been upon the public stage, spends three hours of the day in close study, and a large part of the re- mainder in exercise. But study, with such men, is a term of different signification from what it has in the vocabula- ries of many who call themselves students. The hour comes, and finds them ready, like a strong man, to run a race. The mind grasps its subject, and refuses to quit its hold till it has gained its object."* Danger of too protracted application. The student ought here, however, to be cautioned against too protracted and intense application to one partic- ular point. When the mind becomes exceedingly absorbed in a favorite branch of knowledge; exercise, succession of time, and even the common meals, are apt to be forgotten ; and the man, in his reverie, becomes almost a martyr to his pursuit. This was once the case of the learned physi- cian, Boerhaave. Having for a few days and nights bestow- ed intense study upon one subject, he fell suddenly into a state of extreme lassitude, and lay for some time in an in- sensible and death-like condition.! To avoid such a result, •Quarterly Register of American Ed. Soc. vol. I. p. 58. t Manual for Invalids, p. 39.—" The philosophic and strong minded Pascal, had hi3 brain so much affected, after long and forced meditations, than he imagined for a long time a gulf of fire at his side."—Journal of health, vol. 1. p. 275, PROTRACTED APPLICATION. 287 let no student permit himself to employ the whole of any one day, much less several days, in exclusive attention to a particular train of thought. The rules for diet and exer- cise, which I have advanced, if properly attended to, will effectually guard against this evil. And in this respect, if no other, the required attention of the student to two or more branches of study during the same day, in most of our literary seminaries, operates very favorably. Not a few conscientious students exceedingly injure their constitutions, by confining themselves a certain length of time to their books, when their health is so far impaired, that they can neither fix their attention upon one point, nor make any valuable advances in knowledge. Unwilling to yield in the contest with dyspepsy, or ignorant that it has seized them, they struggle for a long time to overcome their morbid feelings by force ; whereas, a little yielding to them at first, a little relaxation from severe application, would effectually remove the difficulty, which is only ag- gravated by an uncompromising resistance ; which, in the end, is sure to bring down upon the man a full phial of vengeance. Indolent scholars in no danger. I do not mean, by any thing I have said, to excuse the indolent scholar, who would gladly escape all mental labor; not because his mind has become jaded out with effort, but because it never learned how to operate aright, nor is ca- pable of applying itself closely to any thing .more than a novel, or a poem, or the last Monthly and Quarterly. Such men have my full liberty to study all night, and all day, if they will. 1 have no fears that they will injure themselves. And if they do, society will not regard it as an irreparable loss. Means of preserving the eye sight. The means of preserving the eye sight is so intimately connected with this part of the subject, and is moreover, of 288 LECTURE VIII. such vast consequence to the student, that I feel desirous of devoting a moment to the subject. The natural light of the day is most favorable for the eyes ; as we might expect from the beneficence of God. If our studies, however, have a southern exposure, the light of the sun is apt to be too intense. A northern ex- posure is far preferable. The light entering a north win- dow from a summer landscape, is probably more congenial to the eye than almost any other degree, either more or less intense. Green is the most favorable of all colors for the eye: and hence the benevolence of God appears in spreading this color over the earth's surface for so large a portion of the year. Hence too, the reason that the painter uses a green palette : and that screens of this color afford so good a defence to weak eyes in the evening. Hence too, the value of green spectacles * But here permit me to express the opinion, that many lose much of the benefit of such glasses, by wearing them in cloudy weather. For unless the eyes be very weak, they ought to be used only when artificial lights are employed, or when the person is exposed to the sun, shining in his strength. At other times, they are apt to strain the sight. All artificial light, such as (hat of candles, lamps, gas, &c. is very trying to the eyes. Hence the great danger of injuring the vision by night study. Every person, who reads much in the evening, should provide himself with a green silk screen, and if convenient, with green spectacles of a light shade of color. Perhaps the worst time for making use of the eyes, is during twilight. Nor is it well, as soon as the sun disap- pears, to shut up our window blinds and resort to a candle. The change seems to be too sudden. Another season pe- culiarly trying to eyes, in the least degree weakened, is before day light in the morning. * Hence too, it is a good practice to paint a study of a green colour. * CARE OF THE EYE SIGHT. 289 Repeated ablutions of the eyes in cold water, especially in the morning, are generally of service. Any more pow- erful applications, however, should be employed with ex- treme caution, and not at all, undirected by a physician : for an organ so delicate as the eye, will not endure much quack doctoring If the eyes begin to fail, the best remedy, usually, is to give them rest. Upon the whole, strict temperance and regularity, par- ticularly in respect to sleep, with exercise in the open air, are the grand means of preserving and restoring this most delicate and all important organ: and when we consider how extremely sensible is the eye to injury, and how carelessly men use it, we shall rather wonder that so few fail, than that the instances of their failure are not infre- quent. If however, students were aware of the inconven- ience and suffering, consequent upon impaired vision, these cases would be far less numerous than they now are. Recreation from study. Having discussed the essential principles relating to study, 1 proceed, in the second place, as proposed, to say a few words in relation to recreation from study. I have so often, in these lectures, urged the necessity of diverting the mind from intense thought, by turning the attention to other objects, and those of a pleasant and amusing kind, that I need not dwell upon this point again. And I have already alluded to most of those amusements and pursuits, proper for the sedentary, and connected with exercise. A few other means of recreation, which have little connexion with exercise, although powerful in their influence upon soul and body, remain to be noticed in this place. Labors of Beiievolence. In selecting our amusements, we are not at liberty to forget, that we are moral and accountable beings: and that whether we eat, or drink, or whatsoever we do, we are bound to do all to the glory of God. Happy, therefore is that man, 25 290 LECTURE VIII. who finds some branch of active benevolence, the only amusement that he needs.—When the exercise of benevo- lence is congenial to the taste, and the student can find a field opening before him, he may be sure that such an em- ployment is the very best recreation he could choose. For the consciousness of doing good puts the soul into just that happy state, which is most favorable to the free play and security of its frail tenement. Other amusements. But it is not always in every man's power, who chooses It, to find such a pleasant field for benevolent effort, when he needs relaxation from study. He must therefore, choose between those amusements which are within his reach. And here the first and most important point is, to make such a selection as will be most favorable to virtue. For unhappily, some very popular amusements, either possess in themselves a positive tendency to corruption of morals, or are so closely associated with excess of some kind, as to be dangerous to innocence, however well fortified by princi- ple. For example, the practice of dancing is in itself a harmless recreation, and salutary to health; and practised in the patriarchal simplicity, in which we find it in some parts of the world, the most rigid moralist could scarce find fault with its influence. But in most civilized coun- tries, it is so connected with unseasonable hours, the ex- hilaration of wine, spirit, and tobacco, and with lascivious- ness, that every man who respects his own reputation, or regards the good of society, must resolutely abjure it. And the same remarks will apply, essentially, to those various games of chance, which are so perverted by avarice and unprincipled harpyism, as to prove to the young, en- chanted ground : whose pits and quicksands they can escape, only by avoiding the spot. Light Reading. Among the amusements peculiarly appropriate for liter LIGHT READING 18 NOT STUDY. 291 ary men, is what goes by the name of light reading. I in- clude in this term, all that is comprised in novels, plays, poems, newspapers, and periodicals. Indeed, it may include some branches of philosophy : for when a man permits his mind to shift from object to object, as it chooses, and just stops to sip a moment at the different fountains it pas- ses, 1 should call this indulging in light reading: and some minds would be drawn to the retreats of philosophy or history, more strongly than to the bowers of fiction. Such reading as this, I should hardly dignify with the name of study ; and yet, I fear that many professed scholars are ac- quainted with no other kind. But to indulge the mind of the real scholar in this discursive rambling, just to catch a little sweet from the flowers of literature, is certainly a most salutary recreation. True, it does not relieve the mind from thought: but it unbends it, and this is all that health requires: " It is not thought—for still the soul's employed— 'Tis painful thinking ihat corrodes our clay." Novel Reading. Of the different kinds of light reading, unquestionably novel reading is the most dangerous. It occupies too much time to go through a whole volume at once; and to leave it half read, distracts the attention, and renders a man un- easy, while engaged in his regular task of substantial study. These works, also, produce too much excitement in the soul, and generally in the passions too—producing a mor- bid sensibility, unfavorable to strength and firmness of intel- lect. But I have not time to discuss this subject. Let it suffice to say, that other kinds of light reading, exist in such abundant variety, and are so attractive, as to preclude all necessity for resorting to any species, whose value and influence are at all questionable. Social Intercourse. Social intercourse is another most important means of 292 LECTURE VIII. unbending the mind, and promoting the health. How often an hour's cheerful converse with friends or acquaintance, has scattered the darkest clouds of melancholy, every dys- peptic can testify. Nor is the influence of the intercourse hardly less improving to the mind, than study itself; al- though it is the study that renders the intercourse profita- ble. We are thus brought into direct contact with other minds, and learn how the subjects that have engaged us intently, are regarded by them ; and some new views are most commonly elicited by such a discussion and compari- son. It is literary society therefore, that is generally most profitable to the student: and he has a fine opportunity for such intercourse, living in the midst of so many compan- ions, whose tastes and pursuits are congenial to his own. We need not wonder, therefore, that friendships formed in this manner, are among the purest and most endur- ing in life; and that the student never afterwards re- collects his college friends, without strong and peculiar emotions. The influence of social intercourse upon the manners, is another of its most valuable effects. But here I confess that students labor under a peculiar difficulty. For in or- der that the manners should acquire that refinement and delicacy which is desirable, virtuous and respectable female society is, I believe, indispensable. Men associating toge- ther alone, will not conduct towards one another with that respect and suavity which genuine politeness demands. There will be a grossness and roughness in tl eir mutual treatment, which they would not dare to indulge towards a refined and respectable female. True, even this is better than dandyism ; which shows its head sometimes even with- in college walls ; and which I would not be understood as advocating; for this is the opposite extreme. It manifests itself in the wasp-like figure—the finical aspect of the whole dress and accompaniments—the watch chain—the breast pin—the tasseled cane—the exquisite cut of the hair—and above all, by the shallowness of the soul;—R characters- MUSIC AS A RECREATION. 293 tic proving most conclusively, that this is an exotic within college precincts, and cannot flourish without a green house. Music. One other amusement only, I shall notice in this place. " There is a charm, a power that sways the breast; Bids every passion revel or be still; Inspires with rage, or all your cares dissolves ; Can sooth distraction, and almost despair. That power is music."-------- Cultivated at the proper season—that is, at the close of severe study, to calm and divert the mind ;—and not in de- fiance of law and good breeding, to disturb the stillness of the hours sacred to mental application, its effect is most happy. But its virtues have been so often celebrated, that I need only repeat the poet's penegyric. " Music exalts each joy, allays each grief, Expels diseases, softens every pain, Subdues the rage of poison and the plague ; And hence the wise of ancient days, adorM One power of physic, melody, and song." Concluding remarks. L have now finished, young gentlemen, according as I have been able, the system of Diet, Regimen, and Employ- ment, which I proposed to develope. In conclusion, I would occupy your attention a few moments in briefly bringing to- gether the most important advantages that would result to literary men from its adoption into their practice ; although most of these advantages have been incidentally mentioned in the course of my remarks. This dietetic system is a safe one. In the first place, there is safety in adopting this system. Many, 1 know, will feel that the dietetical part, is little short of starvation ;—that the regimen is severe drudgery ; __and that the rules as to employment, are unfavorable to 25* 294 LECTURE VTlLr a vigorous prosecution of knowledge. But after all, is there any one, who will contend that this system will shor- ten life ? Death is making ravages all around us ; but how seldom do physicians tell us, that excessive abstemiousness, or too close attention to regimen, is the cause ! True, in- stances have occurred, in which individuals have actually starved themselves; but 999 out of 1000 die of reple- tion ; yet the single case of starvation is more noticed, than the multitudes of an opposite character; simply be- cause men wish to prove to themselves that abstemiousness is dangerous, that they may not be compelled to practice it. In spite of their wishes, however, long life and free- dom from disease,, are so generally the rewards of temper- ance and regularity in living, that they are unwillingly forced to acknowledge, that safety, if not happiness, does attend the adoption of the system for which I plead. It is an antidote to poverty and crime. Secondly, the adoption of this system by all classes of the community, would free most countries from nearly all their poverty and grosser crimes. And for this reason, that ex- cess and extravagance are the original source of these evils in a vast majority of instances. Three fourths of the pau- perism and crime in this country, result from intemperance in drinking ; and probably the largest moiety of the remain- der may be set down to the account of intemperance in some other respects. But in order that the lower classes in society shall practice rigid temperance, the example must be set them by the higher classes. And who so well calculated to take the lead in this matter as literary men? It is favorable to health and longevity. Thirdly, the thorough adoption of this system would pie- serve the life of the healthy, and secure them, for the most part, against acute as well as chronic disease, to extreme old age. Here again would 1 appeal to experience. Can there be an instance produced, in which persons in good THIS SYSTEM WARDS OFF DISEASE. 295 health have found the practice of temperance to be pro- ductive of disease and early debility ; unless it were pushed to a degree of rigor for which I have not contended ? On the contrary, have I not brought forward a multitude of in- stances in which continued health, cheerfulness, and hap- piness have attended the practice of this system of tempe- rance to extreme old age ? I have a right, therefore, to conclude, that such would be its effects in every case, were it faithfully adopted. That is to say, two of the greatest blessings of this life—health and longevity—would be the rich reward of following out the system. " Some will tell us," says Cornaro, " that old age is no blessing; that when a man is past seventy, his life is no- thing but weakness, infirmity, and misery. But I can assure these gentlemen they are mightily mistaken; and that I find myself, old as I am, (which is much beyond what they speak of,) to be in the most pleasant and delightful stage of life." It is such an old age as Cornaro's that results from tem- perance; and not the "labor and sorrow," the fretfulness, melancholy, and infirmity, which are the lot of all the aged who, in any respect, violate the laws of temperance. It would cure most chronic complaints, and 7niligate those that are incurable. Thirdly, the adoption of this system would cure most chronic complaints, particularly nervous maladies, or ren- der those subject to them more comfortable, prolong even their days, and smooth their passage to the grave. Most chronic maladies are brought on by overworking some part, or the whole, of the system. It is rational, therefore, to conclude, that by suffering the fatigued organs to rest as much as possible, for a time, they would probably recover their original strength. Temperance gives them this rest; or requires them to labor only enough to keep the animal machine in play—demanding no superfluous effort. The consequence is, that if the disorder under which a man la- 296 LECTURE VIII. bors, be curable, temperance will cure it. And it has cured many when medical skill had exhausted its powers in vain. But if the constitution be too far reduced, and actual organ- ic disease has proceeded very far, it may be too late for any thing but a miracle, to save a man from the grave. But even in such a case, rigid temperance will alleviate the symptoms, enable the powers of life to hold out longer, and give finally a gentle discharge from life. Even then, if the invalid is not sure of restoration to health, by the adoption of this system, he may confidently calculate upon most im- portant beuefits from it. For when we feel disease to be triumphing over nature, how great a blessing do we deem a respite of even a few months, especially if it be accom- panied with superior tranquillity of-mind, and followed by a release from life comparatively easy and peaceful. It would free rnenfrom most of their pains and diseases. Fourthly, it follows, that the adoption of this temperance system, would free men from the largest proportion of those pains and diseases that now afflict them. For it is the ne- glect of these rules that brings the greater part of these sufferings upon us. True, some causes of disease and pain would remain, were men perfectly temperate and regular: such, for instance, as some of the unsubdued passions, which temperance would not restrain ; various unavoidable acci- dents, &c. But after all, it is intemperance and irregularity of some kind, that are the most prolific sources of disease and and suffering. Few, indeed, will believe this ; but it is not for want of proof;—and whoever lives in the milleniutn, will probably have before him an ocular demonstration It gives strength, and sustains privations and hardships. Fifthly, the adoption of this system would greatly increase the power of sustaining privations and hardships of all kinds. It is not the men of full feeding and full muscle, whose ap- pearance is healthy and vigorous, that can ordinarily sus- tain the severest labors, vicissitudes of weather and climate, IT INCREASES BODILY AND MENTAL POWER. 297 hunger, thirst and nakedness. The lean Arab will go through hardships without injury, that would destroy such a man. For such a man's constitution is predisposed to di- sease, and will sink under the first shock; whereas tempe- rance and coarse fare have hardened the Arab's system, so that disease is almost a stranger to it. What but a change in his habits of living, from excess and indolence to rigid temperance and active labor, could have sustained Howard so long in his fearless exposure to the filth and contagion of so many prisons and lazar houses? "Accustomed," says his biographer, "to the most rigorous temperance, so as to discard from his diet animal food and fermented liquors, he found no difficulty in living in the poorest countries; and he endured hardships of every kind without repugnance." It is this system, incorporated into all the habits, that can alone preserve the traveller and the missionary who visit un- healthy climates, and are exposed to a thousand privations and dangers. If there be any before me, who are looking forward to either of these enterprises, may I not hope that this fact will make a deep impression upon them. They may, indeed, go to foreign lands, unprotected by the habits I am urging them to adopt; but disease and death will soon terminate their usefulness and their lives : whereas rigid abstemiousness would have built up around them a wall of defence which might secure them for a long period. Let the young man who is not convinced of the truth of these re- marks, consult those medical writers who have treated of this subject, and he will no longer doubt. Of all men in the world, perhaps the youth who is training for the missionary work, needs to be the most temperate in his diet and the most attentive to his habits. It increases mental power. Sixthly, the adoption of this system would exceedingly increase the ability of sustaining mental labors, and give new energy and clearness to the mind. There is as much difference in the movements of the mind, with and without 298 LECTURE VIII. these habits, as there is in the motions of the limbs, with and without a heavy load upon the shoulders. Intemperance, ei- ther in food, drink, or study, oppresses the mind, as much as such a load does the body. Hence the mental powers work, if I may so express it, at a great mechanical disadvantage ; and the effort soon exhausts. Whereas, rigid temperance removes this clog, and the intellect not only operates with greater freedom, but can keep in play much longer without exhaustion. Hence it is, that the temperate scholar, al- though he may want fulness of muscle, can sustain double the amount of literary labor, that he can who depends up- on stimulating food and drink for sustaining his energies. It checks the passions. Eighthly ; rigid temperance is the most effectual check, next to religion, upon every inordinate animal indulgence. Excess in eating and drinking and a deficiency of exercise, are the fuel that feeds every unhallowed animal appetite and desire. At least, without this excess, they would burn only with the gentle flame, that warms, while it does not consume the system ; and which spreads no conflagration around. It cures morbid feelings. Ninthly; the adoption of this system would cure most cases of melancholy, despondency, fretfulness, and discon- tent ; and substitute tranquillity and equanimity of mind, cheerfulness and 'lontentment. The man who is subject to dejection of mind, iritability of temper, jealousy, and fickle- ness, (and this is the case, more or less, with every dyspep- tic,) has only to make a thorough trial of this system, in or- der to have the most gratifying conviction of the truth of this statement. A thorough trial I say: for many, who adopt it only in a very imperfect manner, remain as much the slaves as ever, to these gloomy feelings. But he who adopts the plan in earnest, will be most agreeably surprised, to find a cheerful, contented, equable state of IT PROMOTES RELIGIOUS AFFECTIONS. 299 mind, succeeding the contrary one ; and producing so much happiness as amply to repay him for all his self-denial, and to strengthen him in the course he has begun. It is favorable to the religious affections. Tenthly ; The adoption of this system would operate most favorably upon the religious affections and exercises. A severe attack of dyspepsy rarely fails of being accompanied by religious despondency ; and very much of the stupidity, languor, and sluggishness, of which Christians complain, id merely the effect of overloading the digestive powers, and neglecting a due amount of exercise. Persuade a man to change his habits, to live abstemiously, and to take vigor- ous exercise, and the cloud will pass away from the mind ; devotional exercises will become pleasant and profitable : lively apprehensions of divine things will be experienced ; and a cheerful hope of the favour of God will be kindled up afresh in his bosom, encouraging him forward in the path of duty. He will be surprised at the change ; and be con- vinced that the melancholy and hopelessness, and stupidity ^ which he formerly imputed to his constitution, and unavoid- able disease, are, in fact, merely the effects of an excessive and sinful indulgence of appetite. And now that his eyes are opened on the subject, he will see, that to continue such indulgencies, will be doubly criminal. This part of the subject is extremely important, and de- serves the solemn consideration of every Christian. " Take heed," says their Master, " lest at any time, your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting and drunkenness. It is your hearts, remember, that are here described as borne down, or op- pressed, (Pagvvw—gravo—premo,) by excess. And if men persist in thus enslaving their spiritual, to their animal na- ture, God often does with them as he did to the ancient Is- raelites, who lusted for flesh ;—he gave them their request, but sent leanness into their souls. " Whereas many embrace a holy and contemplative life," •ays Cornaro, when 95 years old, " teaching, and preaching 300 LECTURE VIII. the great truths of religion, which is highly commendable —O that they would likewise betake themselves wholly to a regular and temperate life! They would then be consid- ered as saints indeed upon earth, as those primitive Chris- tians were, who observed so constant a temperance and liv- ed so long. By living like them to the age of one hundred and twenty, they might make such a proficiency in holiness, and become so dear to God, as to do the greatest honor and service to the world ; and they would besides enjoy constant health and spirits, and be happy within themselves ; where- as they are now too often infirm and melancholy. In short, if all religious people were strictly temperate and holy, how glorious a scene should we then behold ! such num- bers of venerable old men, as should create surprise. How many blessings might they shower upon the earth ! and not as now, eating and drinking so intemperately as to in- flame the blood and excite worldly passions, pride, ambi- tion, and concupiscence, soiling the purity of their minds, checking their growth in holiness, and in some unguarded moment, betraying themselves into sins disgraceful to relig- ion, and ruinous to their peace for life."* It prolongs life and increases usefulness and happiness. Finally ; the adoption ofthis system, would greatly en- large the sphere, and prolong the duration, of a man's use- fulness and happiness. It would lengthen out his life, and give him greater power to labour during all his days. Thus might he accomplish much more, in which he should engage. If he places his happiness in the accumulation of property, or knowledge, or reputation, or in promoting the cause of religion, temperance would thus increase his facil- ities for the attainment of his object. It is, indeed, the grand secret of success in any laudable pursuit: for a tem- perate man is always an industrious man : and an industrious man, with tolerable health, is the most happy man; espe- cially, if he be engaged in benevolent efforts. * Daggers Cornaro, p. 32. IT INCREASES USEFULNESS. 301 But 1 need not dwell any longer upon the utilities of this system. If those already pointed out, do not influence my hearers to adopt it, I know of no arguments that will avail. If they have not resolution enough, nor religion enough, to restrain their inordinate appetites, aud conquer their intem- perate habits, they must go on and abide the result. And what is that? Know thou, that for all these things, God will bring thee into judgment. 86 PART IY. DYSPEPSY. LECTURE IX. Nervous maladies : knowledge concerning them important. Their general character and designations. — Their Effects: 1. Upon the body ; 2. Upon the intellect; 3. Upon the heart; 4. Upon society. Extent to which these maladies prevail. Con- clusion. Object ofthis Lecture. To cure and prevent nervous maladies, you are aware, Gentlemen, has been the grand object I have had in view in these Lectures. Yet I have given no regular and distinct account of the nature, or effects, of these complaints. And it seems to me, that it would leave too great a chasm in the subject, to close without attempting this. It is not my object, however, to do it in the technical phraseology of the physician ; but in such a manner as is best adapted to the wants of every intelligent man, who has no professional acquaintance with medicine. Knowledge on this subject thought to be injurious. 1 know, indeed, that many regard all attempts to enlight- en men on this subject, as injurious in their tendency. It is supposed that the effect will be, to lead many to conclude themselves sick, who otherwise would never have known it: and such will set up for fashionable invalids, when in- dolence and indisposition to study, are the amount of the difficulty. Hence it is thought better for students to let 304 LECTURE IX. medical works alone ; lest they should bring on the very maladies they would avoid. Advantages of such knowledge. That men, under the influence of certain forms of these complaints, and in certain stages, are liable to entertain exaggerated apprehensions concerning their disorder and their danger, I readily admit: but in such a case, their error lies in a too limited acquaintance with the charjacter of diseases; whereby they are led to imagine themselves af- flicted with those of the most terrific character. But more accurate acquaintance with nervous maladies, will teach them, that they mimic almost every other disease, though they are rarely changed into other disorders, unless long neglected and aggravated. Now what advantage can there be in remaining ignorant of these facts? If nervous com- plaints in their early stages, can be readily and effectually conquered, and in a more advanced state are very difficult to be brought under, can a man know too early that they have assaulted him? Especially, if they are to be met and overcome, not so much by the physician's emetics, cathar- tics, and tonics, as by diet, regimen, and employment ; is it not important, that he know how to distinguish accurately their earliest vestiges? Ignorance with the name of knowledge. It appears then, that it is not knowledge on the subject of nervous maladies, that is dangerous ; but ignorance, under the name of knowledge. If a man, altogether unacquainted with medical science, plunges, without a guide, into a pan- dect of medicine, and expects to ascertain what particular disorder he is labouring under, by comparing his nervous feelings with the symptoms therein described, it is to be ex- pected that he will be injuied; simply because he will not know enough of medicine, properly to discriminate be- tween so many diseases. But if dyspepsy alone be the ob- ject of his examination, and Us effect on body and mind be KNOWLEDGE ON THIS SUBJECT IMPORTANT. 305 accurately described, there can surely be little difficulty in any man's determining whether he be affected with it; cer- tainly, if it has really assailed him. And where can be the injury, in letting a man know his real condition, who is dyspeptic? Will it excite unreasonable and extravagant fears, and lead him to suppose his case much more alarming than it is ? This surely cannot be the case, if he acquires a correct knowledge of dyspepsy : for this will show him, that this complaint, in its earlier stages, is merely a slight derangement of the digestive organs; which scarcely de- serves the name of a regular disease : that it is by no means dangerous: and that it requires little else, than attention to diet and regimen, to throw it off: and that even if it con- tinues, it does not usually endanger life seriously, for years ; unless it be aggravated by peculiar causes. He will learn too, that unreasonable fears, despondency of mind, and dis- mal forebodings of evil, are among the symptoms of this complaint; and hence he will be led to guard against them ; especially when he learns that the real nervous invalid is commonly less liable to violent and fatal disorders, than those in vigorous health ; unless it be after years of suffer- ing. In short, such knowledge will put his disorder almost completely in his power, with only the occasional advice of a physician. And can such knowledge as this be injuri- ous? Is it not all important ? Is not the want of it, the grand reason why so many literary men suffer dyspepti« habits to be inwrought into their constitutions, before they take any effectual means of resisting them ? Does not every such man, when his eyes are at length opened upon his true condition, lament most bitterly that he has been kept so long ignorant of his maladies and their remedy; and feel almost sure, that early knowledge on the subject, would have been his salvation ? The most able physicians, at the present day, lament that there is such a deficiency of medi- cal knowledge, even among educated men. " It is much to be wished," says one, "that men of education and informa- tion in our country, had more generally some knowledge oi 26* 306 LECTURE IX. the principles of medicine. A general knowledge of the human frame, of physiology and the animal economy, of the obvious phenomena of diseases, and the outlines of their principles and treatment, of the general rules of diet and regimen, both in health and sickness, constitute some of the most interesting subjects, in which a man of a philosophical turn of mind can engage."* "On the supposition that hygiene and physiology were to constitute, as they ought," says another, " a part of a liberal, academic, or collegiate education, less objection would apply to the amateur read- ing of medical works "t " The time will certainly arrive," says a third, "when medical philosophy will form a very important part of general education."—"A well informed mind upon the principles of health and disease, by a knowl- edge of the causes and the effects of maladies, will be cer- tain to acquire considerable power over events : knowl- edge gives power and resolution also."| Nervous complaints—their various designations. Nervous maladies belong to an advanced, and more es- pecially, to a luxurious state of society. Savages, and men whose lives are chiefly spent in active pursuits, in the open air, are rarely troubled with them in the slightest degree. Even in Europe, they were little known 150 years ago. " Sydenham, at the conclusion of the seventeeth century, computed fevers to constitute two thirds of the diseases of mankind. But at the beginning of the nineteenth century, we do not hesitate to affirm," says Dr. Trotter, " that ner- vous disorders have now taken the place of fevers, and may justly be reckoned two thirds of the whole, with which civilized society is afflicted."§ But notwithstanding their prevalence at this day, physicians cannot yet invent a name for them, which shall convey just notions of their character. • Christian Spectator for March 1830, p. 79. f Journal of Health, vol. I. p. 197. t Manual for invalids, p. 10—47.—See also JVb/e I. I. $ Nervous Temperament, p. 13. Introduction. VARIETIES OF NERVOUS MALADIES. 307 Hence they are known under a variety of terms. "Of all these designations," says Dr. Johnson, ^Indigestion has been the most hackneyed title, and it is in my opinion, the most er- roneous. The very worst forms of the disease, (that is, cer- tain cases of hypochondriasis and melancholy,) forms in which the body is tortured for years, and the mind ultimate- ly wrecked, often exhibit no signs of indigestion.—Nearly the same objection lies against the term Dyspepsia, or diffi- cult digestion. The term Hypochondriasis, conveys no just idea of the nature of the disease, though a group of some of its more common phenomena is usually understood by that term—Bilious disorder is a term equally vague and equally erroneous as the others.—Of the various other de- signations, as spleen, vapors, melancholy, nervousness, irri- tability, mental despondency, &.c. I need only say, that they are forms or features of a disorder that assumes almost all forms. Hence my sagacious friend, Dr. Marshall Hall, not in- aptly applied to this class, the generic name Mimoses, or imita- tors ; an appellation which is very significant, but which, of course, conveys no idea of the nature of the malady." Dr. Johnson himself, employs the phrase, Morbid Sensibili- ty of the Stomach and Bowels, to designate these complaints.* Varieties of nervous maladies. Some writers divide nervous maladies into several va- rieties, distinguished by some peculiarities of symptoms. Thus, hypochondriasis is generally regarded as distinct from dyspepsy : the latter being the common form of indi- gestion, and characterized by difficult conversion of food into nourishment. The hypochondriac, on the other hand, often makes no complaint ot difficult or imperfect digestion; still, he is troubled by severe nervousness, and the facul- ties of his mind are much more powerfully affected, than in simple dyspepsy ; so as sometimes to terminate in insani- ty, partial or universal. But these varieties of the gener- al disorder, pass into one another by imperceptible shades; • Morbid Sensibility of the Stomach and Bowels, p. 53. 308 LECTURE IX. and are probably in most cases, dependant on the same cause, viz. " a disordered condition of the gastric and in- testinal nerves; in which their natural sensibility is chang- ed, being morbidly acute, morbidly obtuse, (torpid) or perverted."* Instead of occupying time in physiological discussions concerning the nature of nervous complaints, my purpose is to devote this lecture to a description of their effects up- on the body—the intellect—the heart—and society. First, their effects upon the body. Symptoms. Every man, who has ever eaten too hearty a dinner, knows something of the symptoms of dyspepsy : for though such excess be rather a fit of intemperance than indigestion; yet the symptoms^are essentially alike. A sense of weight, fullness, and uneasiness, is felt in the stomach, some time after eating. Eructations of disengaged air take place, of- ten with a sensation of acidity, or heartburn. Sometimes nausea and chilliness succeed ; and generally lassitude and drowsiness come on, accompanied by a considerable degree of feverish heat. Sleep, during the subsequent night, is disturbed and unrefreshing; attended by dreams and incu- bus : and on the following morning, the head aches, the spirits are sunk, the nerves are unstrung, the tongue is furred, and the bowels often disordered. These symptoms commonly ere long pass away, after giving a man a fore- taste of dyspepsy in its milder forms: and probably there are few men among the healthy, whose experience cannot testify to the truth of this statement: for " nine tenths of men in civilized society," says an observing physician, " commit more or less ofthis intemperance every day." •Morbid Sensibility of the Stomach and Bowels, p. 67.—This r§ essentially the view taken of the philosophy of this subject by the ablest physicians, and it is certainly far more lucid and satis- factory than the confused notions of most English writers.— See Note, If. SYMPTOMS OF DYSPEPSY. 309 From whatever cause confirmed dyspepsy proceeds, it creeps on gradually and insidiously. Suppose the individ- ual be a student, who is daily in the habit of indulging too freely at the table, or who neglects appropriate exercise, or is too much devoted to his books. For a season, he feels only an occasional, it may be a daily, recurrence of the symptoms I have described. But these gradually in- crease in severity. His headaches are more frequent and abiding: his bowels are generally costive ; though when relieved in this respect, disposed to an opposite condition. To remove the constipation, he resorts to drastic mediciues; which, indeed give relief for a short time, but not perma- nently. His strength begins gradually to decline, and he feels an almost unconquerable disposition to inaction, espe- cially after meals. His countenance assumes a pale, or yel- lowish aspect; his tongue is almost constantly furred ; and frequently—particularly in the morning—an unpleasant taste is perceived in his mouth ; accompanied, it may be, by nausea. Heartburn, flatulence, and colic, are experienc- ed ; unpleasant dreams, and even nightmare, are not un- frequent. Sometimes, partial numbness of some part is felt for a day or two : he finds it difficult to keep his hands and feet warm, in the early part of the day ; but after din- ner, a feverish heat oppresses him, with extreme languor. Dizziness, with noise in the ears,—nervous twitchings of the muscles ; shooting pains in various parts ; dimness of sight ; palpitations of the heart; emaciation, in a great- er or less degree, &.c. &c. are no uncommon sympathetic affections. Course generally taken by the dyspeptic. The student who has such symptoms, is an established dyspeptic; and he finds that his studies now become irk- some, and his mind and his feelings are affected no less than his body. He becomes alarmed—tells his tale of suffering to every one he meets—consults physicians of all sorts— and follows every kind of prescription, except attention to 310 LECTURE IX. diet, exercise, and employment- Pills, tinctures, cordials, bitters, &c. affording a temporary relief, because they alle- viate his symptoms, are most diligently employed ; until af- ter a long time he finds that they aggravate his complaints, though they cure symptoms. He is now told perhaps, of the necessity of paying some attention to diet and exercise ; and he begins by discarding some particular articles of food, and taking longer walks. But as to the quantity of his food he does not think it will answer to reduce this much, be- cause his kind friends tell him, that he must try to keep up his strength as much as possible, by a good supply of nour- ishment; and this advice is moreover exactly agreeable to his inclination ; since his appetite, instead of diminish- ing, has become much better than formerly. It is, however, somewhat capricious ; and what seems to agree well with his stomach to-day, disagrees to-morrow ; and so he chang- es from one article to another, at least once a week, always imputing the bad effects of his diet to the kind, and not to the quantity. For how can it be, that he eats too much, when he feels so faint the greater part of his time ; and could eat twice as much as he does. In this way, he wor- ries through the term of study ; calculating upon vacation in which to"»recruit himself. Vacation comes; and the change of objects, and more exercise abroad, and less stu- dy, do indeed exhilarate his spirits and afford no small re- lief. But his appetite gains strength also, and he indulges it freely; and when he returns again to his studies, he lays but little restraint upon his palate, having become satisfied that the starvation system will not answer for him, since full feeding has served him so well during vacation. Flesh, fish, and fowl, therefore ; gravies, sauces, and condiments; butter, pies, and cakes, and it may be, wine and brandy, are the grand anti-dyspeptic restorative mixture which he em- ploys ; and in one or two weeks, he is quite as deep in the mire as ever. Some physician or friend now faithfully states to him the absolute necessity of rigid attention to diet and exercise; insisting upon it, that he must eat only THE CRITICAL PERIOD. 311 of one dish at a meal, and but a small quantity of that dish; and altogether abandon stimulants and narcotics. Turning point with the dyspeptic. The dyspeptic has now reached a critical period in his course. If he listen to the voice of conscience, which se- conds this advice, and persevere in a course conformed to it, he will, in almost every case, be gradually, though it may be very slowly, restored to health and happiness. But if appetite prevail over reason, and he still resolves to in- dulge the palate ; or if, after having commenced a course of abstemiousness, he grows weary of the self-denial, and not immediately deriving from it the benefit he had expect- ed, he gives up again to appetite the reins of self-control, then his subsequent history will be only that of a melan- choly, misanthropic, neglected hypochondriac. It may be that through the kindness and influence of literary friends, he will be smuggled into professional life. But it will be only to make a few inefficient, unnoticed efforts, producing mortification and disappointment to his friends, and drawing from the world only the acknowledgement, that he is an un- fortunate man. For the dyspeptic symptoms I have de- scribed, will gradually gain strength, while the resistance of his constitution will become weaker and weaker. For- merly his sufferings were only occasional, but now he is rarely at rest. Although the essential symptoms of his com- plaints remain nearly the same, yet so many changes are wrought upon them, and so many new pains and morbid feelings are continually springing up, as to produce an al- most incessant state of alarm ; and the apprehension that some dreadful malady has seized him, which will shortly end his days. Indeed, at this advanced stage of the com- plaint, these fears are not altogether groundless. For there is a constant tendency in his system to organic disease. For years, dyspepsy is a disorder of function merely ; that is, certain organs do not properly perform their office ; al- though they are merely weakened, but not oppressed with 312 LECTURE IX. any actual disease. But disorder of function will ultimate- ly produce organic disorder : that is, some one organ will be attacked in its structure, and be actually destroyed, if the attack cannot be repelled ; and most generally in such a case, life itself will be destroyed too. For the organs most liable to be attacked by long protracted nervous mal- adies, are the brain, the heart, and the lungs—the three grand centres of life. The system of the dyspeptic, when his dis- order has advanced thus far, may be regarded as a besieged place. To-day the enemy pushes his assault against one point, and to-morrow against another ; always selecting the weakest. Now all his energies are brought to bear upon the heart; and then appear palpitation, dyspnoea, and other symptoms of angina pectoris, one of the most terrible of all maladies. At another time he assaults the brain; and then come on violent headache, vertigo, and other pre- monitions of delirium, palsy, and apoplexy. When the lungs are assailed, the cough, the hectic, and difficult brea- thing of consumption, technically called "dyspeptic phthi- sis," succeed. So long as there is energy enough left in the constitution, to repel these assaults, the threatening symptoms of the several diseases gradually disappear. But worn out at length by long protracted resistance to repeat- ed attacks, some one point gives way, and speedily the whole citadel is in ruins. Thus essentially have many of the noblest geniuses and most upright men lingered, and suffered, and died. They have fallen victims to their early ignorance of their com- plaints, or to their wedded attachment to the indulgence of their appetites. Having lived in perpetual violation of the laws of nature, the inevitable retribution has been terrible. I have followed out the melancholy history of its effects upon the body, until death has closed the scene. But after all, the mental sufferings and decay resulting from nervous maladies, are of a character still more painful. I proceed In the second place, to give an account of those effects upon the mind. THE MENTAL POWERS AFFECTED. 313 On the memory. One of the first marks of superannuation, is a failure of memory ; and this faculty also, earliest and most distinctly manifests the inroads of nervous maladies. In the latter case, however, there is a singular capriciousness of memo- ry not observable in the former. The most impressive and interesting circumstances which the man supposes indelibly fixed in his mind, suddenly and strangely pass away, like the morning cloud; while those facts and objects that are of little importance and disagreeable, seem to be written on the tablet of the memory with a pen of iron and the point of a diamond. Power of attention and abstraction. The nervous invalid will also early perceive, that he is losing the power of attention and abstraction. His mind may have been thoroughly disciplined in the school of ma- thematics—of all means the most certain and effectual, to give a man the mastery over his thoughts—and yet he will find that the Circean rod of dyspepsy has more than coun- teracted the influence of science. For a time, perhaps, he may struggle successfully against this erratic disposition of mind ; and by increasing the centripetal force, balance, in a measure, the centrifugal. But such mental efforts only weaken the corporeal powers still more, and render every successive trial to chain the attention more arduous. In this way, that is, by often repeated efforts to force the mind up to the work of attention and abstraction, has many a man riveted the chains of disease upon himself through life; and so prostrated his energies, that the mind became the sport of every nervous feeling. Was he a mathematician? * the pursuit must be abandoned ; for patient and fixed thought are no longer within his power. Did he delight in tracing mental phenomena to their sources, and in the metaphysics of theology ? his leaden wings cannot ldnger bear him so high nor guide him aright. In this case, however, we find the same capriciousness in 27 314 LECTURE IX. the power of attention, as of memory. Upon his own suf- ferings and the evils that hang over him, the mind of the nervous invalid fastens with painful, and a sort of involunta- ry intentness. He may force himself into pleasant society, or mingle in the bustle of the city, or range over the hills and dales of the country, even when they are clothed in vernal loveliness; yet will the mind turn away from all these alluring objects, and brood with morbid interest over its own woes, and conjure up a thousand terrific images, which, like so many incubi, sink the soul into the dust. Irregularity in the mental operations. Extreme irregularity in the mental operations, is another characteristic effect of nervous complaints. Let the ner- vous man become exhilarated by propitious occurrences in his temporal prospects, or by abstinence from his usual in- ordinate quantity of food ; or by some stimulating, or nar- cotic substance ; and his intellectual movements will seem to be most clear and most rapid. They will resemble, however, the running down of a watch, when the balance wheel is removed; producing few valuable results, and exhausting the system. For if a man examines his mental labors at such a time, he will find them incoherent and un- satisfactory ; a few diamonds buried amid loads of chaotic rubbish. On the other hand, when the dyspeptic horrors settle down upon a man, after having loaded himself with food or drink, or neglected appropriate exercise, or met with some adverse occurrence, the mental torpor corresponds to the corporeal; and he finds it an intolerable hardship to 4 spur up the mind to any successful effort. He bends over his classics, or his mathematics; but all is fog*—all is con- fusion. Or if a glimpse of light break into his dungeon, it seems swallowed up by the darkness, and leaves no abiding impression. * THE INVALID'S FANCY. 315 Effects on the imagination. It is the imagination, however, that probably suffers most from nervous maladies ; though this influence is not usually so obvious to the invalid himself. For to him the distorted and magnified images of fancy, are undoubted realities ; and while others perceive many of them to be but " the baseless fabric of a vision," he rarely discovers their ex- travagance. In the hypochondriac these strange workings of fancy often shoot out into the most monstrous distortion6; and in fact, constitute the essence of his disorder. They make him the butt of ridicule ; and indeed, no risibles but his own, can remain unmoved by the strangeness and ex- travagance of some of his imaginations. When we see a man, (as some have done,) firmly believing himself made of wax, and dreading, on that account, to approach the fire, or fancying that his bones have become soft like tallow, and therefore not daring to trust his weight upon them ; or pining away through fear of want, while he is actually wal- lowing in opulence ; or wilder still, when we see such a man as Simon Browne, writing an able defence of revela- tion, and yet, in the dedication of his book to Queen Eliza- beth, declaring with the utmost sincerity of belief and dis- tressing anguish, that " by the immediate hand of an aven- ging God, his very thinking substance has for more than seven years been wasting away, till it is wholly perished out of him ;"—when we see such delusions, we cannot but smile, even though compassion for a soul in ruin, would teach us rather to weep. But such cases are the very ex- travagance of hypochondriacism ; or rather they are decid-' ed mental derangement—to be pitied, not ridiculed ; and the experience of most dyspeptics has in it nothing ap- proaching such wildness. Still, in probably every case of these complaints, there is no small play of a morbid imagi- nation. The soul, turning away from the lovely visions which hope would paint on the future, fixes her eye alone upon the scenes which timidity and despondency have drawn with sombre hues ; or, as the poet says, 316 LECTURE IX. " Fear shakes the pencil; fancy loves excess. Dark ignorance is lavish of her shades ; And these the formidable picture draw." Dyspeptic dreams- If such be the waking visionsof the dyspeptic, we might calculate that his real dreams would exhibit the wildest ri- otings of fancy. And her images in sleep, are nearly al- ways disgusting or terrific. She opens the grave and digs up the mouldering and festering dead ; she descends into the world of despair, and plunges her captive victim into the burning lake ; now she hurries him over the tumultu- ous waters, or sinks him choking beneath the dark waves ; anon she drags him to the brink of some dizzy precipice, and casts him over ; now she plants him on the battle field, and there transfixes him with the bullet, or the sword; or leaves him to sink in unequal contest with the solitary mur- derer, rushing from his ambush. She even immures him in prison, and then drags him to the scaffold, there to suffer with the dreadful consciousness of crimes,.from which*when awake, his soul would shrink with horror. Effects on the judgment. If the individual faculties of the mind be thus powerfully affected by nervous maladies, the judgment most obviously will be subject to a correspondent deflection. If sensation convey erroneous impressions to, the understanding ; if me- mory retain only a partial and indistinct view of facts ; if the power of attention be partially wrested from the hands of reason ; and a peculiar obtuseness of intellect be mani- fested towards some objects, and a morbid acuteness to- wards others ; and if the reins be given up to a disordered imagination ; what is the judgment, that it should form correct conclusions, when the guides to its decisions are all gone out of the way? It makes no difference, though the nervous man's impressions are many of them mere spec- tres ; for to him, they are realities, exerting over him the same influence as if there were no delusion. THE SYMPATHY BETWEEN BODY AND MIND. 317 The mind sinking into ruins. Upon the whole, these mental effects of indigestion, are the worst part of the disease. So long as the intellect re- mains unshattered, a man can see, with comparative com- posure, his bodily powers gradually yielding to decay: but to perceive the immortal part losing its energy—the me- mory failing—the power of attention and discrimination weakening—the imagination giving to almost every object a false coloring—the judgment clouded and erratic—in short, the whole mind sinking into fatuity—who, but those thai feel it, can tell the anguish of such experience? True, the invalid may suppose the inroads made upon his mind, deeper than they are in reality ; yet even the mildest at- tack of these complaints does influence, weaken, and con- fuse the mind; and sometimes the mental powers do so sympathize with the corporeal, that before death closes the scene, mere idiocy is all that remains of a once powerful and noble intellect. In the third place, I shall speak of the effects of ner- vous maladies upon the heart; orthc passions and affections. Despondency and Melancholy- Every man, w ho has seen a nervous invalid, knows, that despondency and melancholy are elements of his character: for their gloomy lines are depicted even upon his counte- nance. Though he be surrounded and caressed by all the kindness and symphathy of the most sincere friendship and affection ; though external prosperity, peace, and plenty, bear him along upon their full unruffled flood; and even though some cheering intelligence may have just reached him ; yet if the fit overtake him, not all these buoyant cir- cumstances can keep him from sinking into the mire ; until the digestion of his too hearty meal be over, or the north easterly, easterly or southerly wind be succeeded by one from the northwest; bringing with it a return of sunshine, and inducing him to go abroad to inhale the purified air, and to throw off the morbid and acrid secretions, that pro- 27* 318 LECTURE IX. duce his melancholy. Then the cloud passes also from his mind ; and a clear sky succeds, until some physical or men- tal cause, again involves him in gloom. Yet as the disor- der advances, these paroxysms of despondency usually in- crease in frequency and severity, until often they become settled, hopeless, melancholy. Hope. The deadly influence of such a state of mind upon the hopes of the invalid, must obviously be very great. I do not mean that this passion is totally extinguished in his bo- som : for how then could life be tolerable ?—but it is so neutralized, as almost to cease to be a moving spring of ac- tion. In his ordinary worldly pursuits, he goes forward mere from necessity, and a sense of duty, than in the ex- pectation of success. But if he be a religious man, his prospects beyond the grave, stir up within him a more dis- tressing anxiety. Once, he may have seen some evidence of personal piety : But now, he can see in his heart nothing but unbelief, murmuring, impatience and stupidity. Once, he thought himself at least sincere: but now he charges himself with hypocrisy, and with performing all his relig- ious acts to be seen of men, or from a self righteous spirit. Justly, therefore, does he feel himself given over to a rep- robate mind : and as he looks over the sacred record, his eye fastens with terrible self application, upon all those passages that describe the awful doom of one, who has re- sisted the Spirit of God, and is living only to fill up the measure of iniquity. Among these he classes himself: nor can you break the delusion, until you can unlock the iron grasp of dyspepsy. Jealousy. While the nervous man is thus suffering from desponden- cy, another gloomy passion settles, like an incubus, upon his soul. It is jealousy. Disposed by his melancholy feel- ings to shrink from public inspection, when business or duty, HATEFUL FEELINGS. 31 9 force him into an intercourse with a bustling and selfish world, he watches every word, and almost every look, with a strong suspicion that some insult, or unkindness, is intend- ed against himself. He is ever fancying that some one is trying to injure him, or to insult him, or to wound his feel- ings. The least appearance of neglect, stirs up within him, the most bitter, and the most desponding feelings: And es- pecially, if any of his groundless imaginations are treated with ridicule, it sends home a dagger to his heart: and even if his best friends do not listen with symphathizing attention to his oft repeated tale of suffering, he judges them to have become his enemies. Misanthropy. The effect of such a morbid state of mind is to produce a gloomy misanthropy ; and to fix strong prejudices in the bosom against individuals. Those in stations superior to his own, he looks upon as oppressive and unjust in their re- quirements ; and his equals, he regards as desirous of sup- planting i^im. If he is counseled, he looks upon it as abuse : if he is exhorted to rise above his gloom and jealousy, he resents it; and retiring into himself, he broods with morbid relish, over his feelings, and cries out in the biterness of his soul ; " There is no flesh in man's obdurate heart, It does not feel for man." Timidity. Excessive timidity is another passion attending nervous complaints from their commencement. The mere throb- bing of the temples, or a shooting pain, which the healthy man would scarcely feel, will sometimes produce such anx- iety in the mind of the invalid, as to make him fear that his last sickness has come : and then his imagination will paint before him, all the terrors of the final struggle ; the ago- nizing parting of friends; the failure of sensation; the rav- ings of delirium ; the shroud, the funeral, and the dark 320 Lecture iX. grave. And still worse, his hopeless prospects in futurity, will be arraj'ed in all their blackness before him, awaken- ing intolerable forebodings, and realizing to him all the horrors of a hardened sinner's dying hour. This is the most common channel in which the fears of the dyspeptic run. But when less agitated, and less oppres- sed by his disease, he looks no farther than this world, the prospect is gloomy. True, his property, his friends, his reputation, are not yet lost. But he fancies, that amid the gloom of the future, he sees the blow impending, that will, speedily sweep these blessings away. Fancied Dangers the most dreadful- It is a curious fact, that these apprehensions of the ner- vous man, are more strongly excited by trivial and fanciful causes of danger, than by those that are a real ground of alarm. And so his anticipated dangers and trials are far more dreadful to endure, than those which are present and real. He, whom the slightest unusual bodily sensation will make pale with alarm, will sometimes be found, patient and resigned, when disease has actually settled upon some or- gan, and brought him upon the bed of sickness. He, who lived in perpetual fear, lest poverty, or sickness, should visit his friends, or family, will be found, calm and collect- ed, witnessing the flames devouring his habitation, or watch- ing the sick bed of a dying wife, or child. So powerful magnifiers are distance and obscurity in fancy's telescope, that the merest mote in the field of view, seems to the mind an ominous cloud, overspreading the whole heavens. Decision, Resolution, Fortitude. This timidity, with the attendant melancholy of the ner- vous invalid, deeply affect his decision, resolution, and for- titude. He dare not decide, lest some tremendous conse- quence should ensue, that would furnish ground for long and unavailing repentance. Thus will he remain, halting between two opinions—one of the most painful conditions EVILS IN PROSPECT. 321 in which a man can be placed. And so long as he is under the power of this indecision and irresolution, whether in respect to temporal or spiritual concerns, he must remain, not only one of the most inefficient, but most miserable of men. For it is vigorous action alone, that can impart hap- piness to the mind, whether engaged in worldli', or ielig- ious pursuits. Anticipated Evils. It is not so much real tangible evils that break down the dyspeptic's fortitude ; but rather the dark cloud which he sees hanging over the future ; the force of whose thunder- bolts, when it bursts, he cannot predict. His quickened sensibilities have opened his eyes wide upon danger; but they have also weakened his power of withstanding them. The unfortunate man seems, like the trembling aspen, to be shaken by every breath ; and to be crushed into the dust, like a bruised reed, unable to rise from his ruins. Philosophy may teach him lessons of firmness, and religion bid him trust in the overruling Providence of God, and wait calmly the event; but alas, how feeble is even religious principle—the mightiest power on earth—in a soul that is borne away by an excited sensibility, an overpowering fear, and a gloomy fancy ! Much that goes under the name of Christian fortitude, would be found mere strength of nerves if accurately tested; and much that is censured as weakness of Christian character, will appear at last, to be but the inevita- ble result of nervous maladies. So that, in fact, it would, in many cases, be more proper to congratulate the man of res- olute fortitude, on the soundness of his nerves, than to cel- ebrate the strength of his Christian character: and, on the other hand, we ought frequently to pity the man of irreso- lution and indecision, for the excessive sensibility of his bodily system, rather than blame him for want of faith and fortitude : though I pretend not to say, that men are gene- ally without fault in suffering nervous maladies to creep upon them. 322 Lecture ix. The Philosopher made superstitious. This nervous timidity is seen sometimes to produce the singular effect, of rendering a philosopher and a Christian, somewhat subject to superstitious apprehensions. His re- ligion and philosophy may both remonstrate against regard- ing unfavorable dreams, or remarkable natural appearances, as prognostics of personal misfortune, sickness, or death ; yet when " he is all soul within, and all nerve without," his imagination is sometimes so excited by those occurren- ces, that he cannot wholly divest himself of the secret im- pression, that he may have been thus supernaturally warn- ed of impending calamities. They will be apt to fasten upon his memory, for a long time, and haunt him from day to day, until he half believes them divine admonitions: and sometimes reason is overpowered, and the man fancies himself favored, or rather tormented, with visions and im- mediate revelations. When the fears of the nervous man assume a religious character—as they do whenever such a man is religious— they put on a still more unhappy aspect. He, who dare not expect any thing prosperous in this world, will surely not dare to believe his name to be written in the Lamb's Book of Life. He, who cannot confide in any thing future on earth, will feel a like want of faith in the Divine Prom- ises, as applied to himself. Thus will his religion partake more of the drudging service of slavery, than of the confid- ing, unsuspicious confidence of sonship. Irritability and Peevishness. Irritability of temper, or peevishness, is another charac- teristic effect of nervous maladies upon the heart. It is not however, in the early stages of these complaints, that this effect becomes obvious to the invalid himself. But even the man of phlegmatic temperament, in whom, when in health, patience and forbearance were scarcely virtues, and who never felt the need of a guard on this side of his character, after struggling for years with dyspepsy, finds GLOOMY PASSIONS. 323 himself most imperceptibly betrayed into a hasty resent- ment of injuries ; and when insulted, perceives a counter tumult rising in his bosom, which is apt to break forth upon his adversary. Nay, he gets ere long to such a pass, that he cannot bear to be contradicted when the irritable fit is upon him ; and he will give vent to his spleen and ill humor, in spite of decency and religion. Jealous in the extreme, and oppressed with gloomy feelings, not even his best friends can escape the discharge of his ungoverned temper: much less can others escape; and even the poor domestic animals, and inanimate objects around him, feel the fury of the storm. Misanthropic and dejected, he mur- murs at the allotments of Providence ; considers himself maltreated by nearly all his fellow men ; and censures, with great severity, the failings of his brethren; while any marks of superiority in a neighbor, or companion, awaken bitter envy in his heart. True, when the irritable parox- ysm passes by, he has some sense of the entire contrariety between his feelings, and those which religion inspires ; and he repents of his wickedness: but ere he is aware of it, again is he overcome by the same temptations, and man- ifests the same unlovely disposition. This lays the founda- tion for still more bitter repentance; so that he is render- ed, not only a most uncomfortable companion, but most burdensome to himself. Melancholy generally results from excess in diet. This capriciousness and irregularity in the nervous man's feelings, are not only very characteristic, but in general, most unaccountable to himself. One hour, or one day, his whole soul may be calm ; his feelings unruffled and cheer- ful ; while the very next hour, or day, without the least change, as he can perceive, in his external condition, or that of his health, he finds himself borne down by melan- choly and jealousy, and unable to bear the slightest trial of his temper, without exhibiting a high degree of irritation and fretfulness. Such a sudden transformation ofsoulisen- 324 lecture ix. tirely inexplicable to most nervous invalids: while those in health are hence led to conclude that these paroxysms of bad and anomalous feelings, result from no physical cause, but are merely unnecessary and sinful aberrations of mind ; to be cured by moral means. But the fact is, these mental phenomena are almost in every case, the result of a fit of indigestion—Too much food; or of a bad kind ; or too many sorts; or not sufficient exercise has been taken; and although the excess has not been great enough to pro- duce any sensible disorder in the body, the irritation it produces in the nerves, powerfully affects the more deli- cate organization of the mind. " There is no effect of indigestion more common," says Dr. Johnson, " than de- jection of mind, when no corporeal inconvenience appears to follow—The mental despondency (in hypochondriacs) is invariably dependent on some disorder of the body, and in nine cases out of ten, it is immediately dependent on a mor- bid or irritable state of the nerves of the stomach and bow- els. Of the truth of this I have had such multiplied proof, that not a doubt remains on my mind respecting it. It is as useless to attempt the removal of this mental despondency by moral means, or mere persuasion, as to remove a fever or an inflammation by argument. The attempt, indeed be- trays a great ignorance of the real nature of the com- plaint."* I have already mentioned in a former lecture, the case of the hypochondriac, who exhibited these men- tal paroxysms regularly every other day, because he could not be prevented from eating and drinking to excess every other day. And Dr. Johnson says, " 1 have known many instances where individuals, having this morbid sensibility of the gastro-intestinal nerves, experienced, after eating certain articles of difficult digestion, such a state of irrita- bility of temper, that they were conscious of the danger they ran, by the slightest collision or contradiction from * Observations on the Disease &c. of Invalids from Hot Climates. —p. 16. DYSPEPSY--WHEN CRIMINAL- 325 even the nearest relations : and therefore, avoided society till the fit went off. One gentlemen in this state always caused his servants to tie his two hands together, lest in the paroxysm of irritation (without any observable cause) he should cut his throat or otherwise commit suicide."* When are you most desponding and irritable ? If any who hear me, are subject to occasional dejection of mind, and irritability of temper, with more or less of those other effects on the mind, which I have described, as resulting from indigestion ; 1 would ask them, in the first place, whether they are not usually most free from suffer- ing of body and mind, just before bed time? If so, the reason certainly is, that then the food they have eaten dur- ing the day, is digested ; and consequently irritation is re- moved from the stomach and bowels. Again, if you eat a late and hearty supper, are you not subject the next fore- noon, to dejection of mind, irritability of temper, and ob- tuseness of apprehension ? If so ; do not these effects evi denlly flow from excess in eating? Once more ; are you not more likely to be melancholy, fretful, and incapable of study, Monday forenoon, than any other day of the week ? If so ; how can you doubt that it is owing to your having indulged your appetite too freely on the Sabbath, while you had less of exercise ? These feelings often very sinful in the dyspeptic. My object in putting these enquiries to the dyspeptic, is, to show him, first, that in most cases, it is in his power in a great measure, to get rid of melancholy, jealousy, a fret- ful temper, languor and imbecility of mind, and stupidity, simply by avoiding their most common cause, which is, excess in eating, or drinking. Let him, for instance, great- ly reduce his diet on the Sabbath, and see whether his Mondays will be days of gloom, irascibility, and incapacity for study. And if he finds that a reduction of his food does •Morbid Sensibility, ice. p. 106. 28 326 LECTURE IX. produce such an effect, then I would say to him, in the se- cond place, that his mental dejection, irritation &c. are highly criminal. Dyspeptic as he is, he can in a great measure overcome these hateful feelings, and that imbecility of mind, which so unfit him for study, and for duty of any kind. God therefore, will not hold him guiltless, if he does not so restrain his appetite as to do this. His sin does not lie so much in the feelings themselves ; as in their cause; for when the stomach and bowels are overloaded with food, such a state of feeling can no more be prevented, than a tooth ache ; but a man, even if he be a dyspeptic, can eat less; and this will ordinarily preserve him in a pleasant state of mind and heart. If he will not do this, if he will not do it thoroughly, he ought to receive no sym- pathy, when he pours his tale of sufferings, as the nervous are apt to do, into the ear of friendship. For he is wilfully sinning against his body and soul, and against God. He will not restrain a mere bodily appetite, although it would immensely increase his power of doing good, and of ad- vancing in knowledge and virtue. Why then is he not as guilty, as any other man, who is a slave to bodily ap- petites ? Irritability of Genius. A striking trait in the character of eminent literary men, has usually been, a peculiar irritability of temper. It is well known that the ancients described an irritabile genus vatum: and it has been the practice of modern writers, to dignify this unlovely trait of character, with the phrase, Ir- ritability of Genius ; and to regard it as a necessary accom- paniment of a great mind. But I apprehend, that in most cases the least unfavourable account of the matter, which justice can give, is, to impute it to dyspepsy : since few literary men, given to close habits of study, escape this complaint entirely. And if the irascibility of dyspepsy, is, in most cases, criminal, because the result of excessive eat- ing or drinking, so probably is the " irritability of genius." Cicero, indeed, by a dexterous use of words, attempts to SOCIETY AFFECTED BY DYSPEPSY. show that this trait of character is usually to be imputed to goodness. Irritabiles esse animos optimorum saepe viror- um, eosdemque placabiles ; et esse hanc agilitatem molliti- emque naturae plerumque bonitati tribuendam. It would come nearer the truth, I apprehend, to say, Plerumque dyspepsiae et voracitati tribuendam. I proceed, in the fourth place, to point out the effects of nervous maladies upon society. Societies and nations will be distinguished by the aggre- gate character of the individuals composing them. Just so far, then, as nervous complaints prevail in society, they will modify the characteristics of the mass. We have only, therefore, to suppose a community, in which the influence of these complaints is so great as to modify its character, and then infer their effects upon the whole, from their effects upon individuals. The physical character of society affected by dyspepsy. I. Their effects will be obvious upon the physical char- acter of a community. Much as the nervous have to do with imaginary sufferings, they are by no means free from real bodily infirmity. Though the deterioration of strength and vigor be slow, yet who, that has seen the emaciated frame, and torpid movements of the dyspeptic, can doubt that the constitution is wearing down ; and every physical energy gradually sinking to decay ? Suppose now, that these complaints should so infect society, that its army and navy must be recruited from nervous invalids; and its man- ufactures, commerce, mechanic arts, and agriculture, must depend upon such men to carry them on. How could such soldiers and sailors stand a moment against men of undimin- ished bodily power, and of courage undaunted by imaginary dangers. Nay, how inefficiently must even the common pursuits of society be conducted, by men of such withered muscle and irresolute souls? Let the officers of govern- ment, in the legislative, executive, and judiciary depart- ments, be nervous invalids, characterized by their fickle- 328 LECTURE IX. ness, irascibility, jealousy, and despondency, and who would wish to be among the governed? Examples. The pages of history give us abundant examples, illustra- tive of these suggestions. For no nation becomes rich and prosperous, without becoming also luxurious and debilitat- ed. Now this luxury, intemperance in food, and drink, and living, infallibly produce nervous complaints, and work a gradual change in the character of a people : For such complaints arc hereditary; or at least debilitate the con- stitution, and predispose to dyspepsy and bilious attacks- Energy of body and mind ; the power of enduring hardships; and the fortitude that braves difficulties, disappear before these diseases : Hence it was that Route, luxurious, ener- vated,dyspeptic Rome, sunk an easy prey before the brawny arm of.the Goth and the Vandal. Compare Italy at that time, or Italy now, with what she was in the early days of Roman glory, and you see the genuine influence ofthese maladies, operating through centuries. There is scarcely any nation, indeed, of long duration, whose character does not exhibit more or less of this same influence. Even Eng- land, roused to effort, as she has been, by so many causes ; and cultivated as she now is, in intellect, in arts, and re- finement, presents, in the sterner features of her character, an alarming contrast between the eupeptic days of Eliza- beth, and the dyspeptic times of William the Fourth. Nor can the observing eye fail to perceive in this country, the same debilitating causes powerfully at work, when it com- pares the habits, manners, and constitutions of our fathers with our own. Effects on the Enterprise of the Community. 2. Nervous complaints will unfavourably affect the en- terprise of society. The irresolution and heartlessness which they produce in individuals, cannot but extend to the community : Because those individuals compose the com' A DYSPEPTIC COMMUNITY, 329 munity. And we cannot expect that they will exhibit ar- dor and perseverance in public enterprizes, when even self interest, one of the most powerful of impulses, cannot spur them up to the work, in their own behalf. Accordingly we find, that the periods in the history of nations and par- ticular societies, which exhibit the most noble and daring achievements, and the most useful public enterprizes, are commonly previous to the time of their greatest external prosperity. Splendid baths, and mausoleums, and monumen- tal pillars, and arches, may, indeed, spring up at the com- mand of imperial or lordly pride, in degenerate times. But when is it that commerce pushes her adventures into the farthest seas ; that agriculture encroaches most successfully upon the forest; that the most useful canals, and roads, and other means of intercommunication arc constructed ? When are institutions of learning and benevolence most success- fully and numerously founded ? Before a nation or society has reached the acme of its prosperity, 1 reply : for when this point is passed, what shall we. eat, and what shall we drink ; where shall we find any new sensual pleasure ? these arc the all-absorbing inquiries; and the consequence is, imbecility and irresolution, both of body and mind. On its Stability- 3. These maladies injuriously affect the stability of soci- ety. They are characterised by a sensibility either mor- bidly acute, or morbidly obtuse, strongly and irregularly excited. Hence those under their influence act more from feeling, (and that too often of an unhealthy character,) than from sober judgment. Consequently, they are liable to counter feelings, which erelong lead them to new and op- posite conclusions. To-day, a nervous community, under the influence of strong irritation, may adopt measures which are exceedingly imprudent; and thus involve themselves in suffering. This brings on melancholy: which will make them feel that all is lost; and they will refuse to act at all when a little vigor in action would free them from impend- 28* 330 LECTURE IX. ing evils. Again, jealousy, or strong prejudices, for, or against individuals, high in office, may draw forth, either immoderate praise, or scurrilous abuse. In short, a society leavened by dyspepsy, will exhibit so much of rashness and extravagance, that little calculation can be made upon their opinions, or their conduct. Every new gust of passion will swell the surface of the public mind into tumultuous waves ; and every ebbing tide of feeling will drain away even its vital flood. Effects on Literature. 4. These maladies exert no small influence upon the lit- erature of society. They tend to make it superficial. Such is the usual effect of feeble health generally, upon in- dividual scholarship : for such a person cannot sustain the protracted labours that are necessary to enable one to drink deep of the Castalian fount. The alternative with such a one, is, often, whether he shall just sip the waters, as he hastily passes, or leave.them altogether untouched. Multi- ply such individuals in the community, and you create a kind of necessity for superficial literature. Writers must be superficial, because they cannot endure the physical ef- forts which profound investigation demands: and readers will prefer superficial works, because they are too dyspeptic to endure the labour of long and patient thought. We are not therefore, to impute the inundation of the literary world, in modern times, by light reading, so much to a defect in our systems of education, as to the creation of a host of su- perficial writers and readers by nervous maladies. A morbid sensibility in literature created and demanded. The same cause imparts to literature a morbid sensibility and creates a demand for it. If a scholar be of a melan- choly temperament, a sombre hue will be imparted to his pages ; if he be choleric, his spleen will discharge itself from his pen ; if he be jealous, his imagination will delight in conjuring up dark plots and schemes of blood and suffer- DYSPEPTIC LITERATURE. 331 ing, that have no likeness in real life. And since these passions usually reign in the bilious man's bosom, it were folly to expect that his writings should be free from them. Nay, we should expect that the gall, and the hemlock, and the wormwood, and the vinegar, would be mixed together on his pages. Such a mixture would not, indeed, be very palatable to a healthy appetite. But nervous ailments produce a morbid appetite in the mind, as well as in the body ; and hence, such disgusting mixtures are greedily de- voured. In short, the dyspeptic writer is apt to find a dys- peptic community to relish his productions. The prevalent literature of the day. If the history of the prevalent literature of the day does not illustrate this view of the subject, then am I greatly mistaken. True, we have profound works upon science issuing at this day from the press; yet they are not the pro- ductions of dyspeptics, but of the few of strong intellects, that are not crushed by the power of the monster. The great mass of the common literature of the day, however, —our romances, and plays, and poems,—exhibit more or less of the morbid sensibility of weakened nerves. And if there were not a preternatural excitement pervading the community, resulting from excess of various kinds, they would not devour so greedily as they do, these unhealthy productions. But when we see with what a ravenous ap- petite, the concentrated mixtures of every vile and murder- ous passion, which a great and noble poet of modern times so often poured forth upon the community, were devoured and relished, can we doubt the v\ide spread and perni- cious influence of nervous derangement, through luxury, excess, and indolence ? Religious character affected by these complaints. b. These same-causes exert an unhappy influence upon the religion of a community. I mean they give to it a pe- culiarity of character, that is unfavorable to devoted per- 332 LECTURE IX. sonal piety, and to the progress of the Redeemer^ kingdom among men. The timidity, despondency, and hopelessness of the nervous man, are not limited to earthly objects, but take hold with a stronger power upon his eternal interests- Hence he lives, not like a freeman and a son, but like a slave beneath the throne. Fear, and not hope, seems to be fhe inspiring motive of his actions. And a similar timidity and want of resolute action and confidence of success, are seen in the religion of a community that is much affected by dys- peptic complaints. There is exhibited a hesitation, a wa- vering, a fickleness, in the religious aspect of such a soci- ety, that very much neutralizes the influence of its example. The times demand piety of a different stamp. Now I greatly mistake the aspect of these times, if they do not demand a very different character in the religious community. The elements of society are wakened into a feverish excitement on almost every subject; among others, opposition to religion exhibits such a character. Nor is it to be successfully met and encountered by the puny arm and shrinking sensibility of dyspepsy. It needs the resolution, the assured faith, and the energetic action of our Pilgrim Fathers. And then again, whai but the strong arm, and the resolute courage, and unwavering faith, of men sustained by eupepsy, as well as the grace of God, can urge forward into the dark and untrodden fields of spiritual death, the mighty wheels of benevolence that are in motion ? And as to the men who go forth as missionaries into these fields of danger and death, what can dyspeptics do there, with all their despondency, timidity, and irresolution ? Non tali auxilio, nee defensoribus istis Tempus eget. True, they can go to the field ; but it will be only to fall prematurely, victims to the climate, or excess in diet, or cares and labors too mighty for their enfeebled frames. They were eupeptics who carried the gospel over the earth in primitive times. They were eupeptics, who in modern NERVOUS MALADIES WIDELY SPREAD. 333 times, have successfully engaged in the same work ; and they must be eupeptics, who arc to bring on the millenium. Extensive prevalence of nervous maladies. Such are the the deadly influences of nervous maladies upon the corporeal, the intellectual, and the moral powers; and upon the character of society. I have only sketched some of the outlines of the picture. But the filling up would afford no alleviation to its gloomy lines. Nor is it a picture of the imagination. At this very day, thece mala- dies are exerting a withering influence, not only upon indi- viduals, but upon nations. We have the testimony of the ablest physicians as to their influence in Great Britain ; and though it is to be hoped that our own country, as a whole, is not yet equally under their power ; yet we are advanc- ing, with the most rapid strides, to the same state; and therefore, we have, in her condition, an example of what we shall shortly be, and are now almost become.* Thirty years ago, as we have seen, Dr. Trotter declar- ed that "two thirds of the diseases in society, [in England of course,] were nervous." More recently Dr. Johnson de- clares, that " what with ennui and dissipation in the higher ranlcs—anxiety of mind arising from business, in the mid- dling classes—and poverty, bad air, bad drink, and bad oc- cupations, among the lower classes, there is scarcely an in- dividual in this land of liberty and prosperity—in this king- dom of ships, colonies, and commerce, who does not expe- rience more or less of the l English malady'—that is to say a preternaturally irritable stale of the nervous system con- nected with, or dependent on, morbid sensibility of the stomach and bowels." To the older and more thickly set- tled parts of our country, this description would probably apply without alteration. Indeed, we may justly regard nervous maladies as already a formidable national evil. • Dr. Avery thinks dyspepsy to be now more prevalent in this country than in England.—See Note D, 334 LECTURE IX. And the leaven is spreading wider and wider; and by its fermentation, is secretly heaving up the foundations of so- ciety. The ravages of these complaints will always go hand in hand with luxury, intemperance, and excess ofeve- ry kind. Probably there is no class of the community,how- ever, who are so closely beset by them, as literary men. The church of God deeply feels their inroads, in prostrating the energies, and prematurely destroying the usefuluess, of multitudes of her most valuable and able ministers. They lurk too, around our Theological Seminaries, our Colleges, and preparatory schools; and seize as victims many of the most devoted and able youth, who had consecrated them- selves to Christ and the Church. Indeed, scarcely any real scholar escapes altogether their withering touch.* Excess the cause. Can there be any doubt as to the causes that produce this mighty evil ? It is intemperance in some of its hydra forms —excess in eating, or drinking, or study, or the indulgence of other consuming passions and appetites, or a neglect of exercise and the other requisitions of appropriate healthy regimen. And when we reflect on the almost universal prevalence of these excesses and abuses, we are led rather to wonder that nervous complaints are not more prevalent and obstinate, than that so many are their victims. Temperance the remedy. Nor can there be any more doubt, as to the means which can alone arrest their progress. It is the adoption of tem- perance in all its branches ;—temperance in eating, tempe- rance in drinking, temperance in regimen, and temperance " " The disorder of the digestive function is the most frequent and prevailing of the ailments that afflict man in the civilized state; all classes and all ages suffer from its attacks. Few are so happy as to pass through a life of ordinary duration, without undergoing a pro- tracted struggle with this malady, and experiencing its torments."— Encyclopedia Americana, Art. Dyspepsy t 9 ARGUMENTUM AD HOMINEM. 335 in employment. This is the sole and the sovereign anti- dote, which God has given for stopping this desolation. Men, therefore, have their choice, to suffer the evil to con- tinue ils inundating march, or to raise up this mound against it. There must be a great change in the present habits of society, even among those who are considered temperate, or dyspepsy will continue its ravages and multi- ply its victims. Motives for preparing these Lectures. Firmly convinced of the deadly influence and wide ex- tent of this Protean malady; and that no other means, but decided, thorough, universal temperance, can ever retard its progress ; and perceiving the deep slumber of the pub- lic mind on the subject, while the interests of learning, hu- manity, and religion, are trampled upon and crushed under the tread of this destroyer; I have been induced to come forward, and publicly lift up my voice, to warn the literary youth of his danger. I thank God that he has given me strength to finish my testimony. 1 am aware indeed, that carrying, as I do, the marks of dyspepsy in an emaciated frame and a debilitated aspec', the proverb will be in al- most every mouth,' Physician, heal thyself.' If the system of diet, regimen, and employment, which you urge so zea- lously, as the grand panacea, cannot restore your own sys- tem to a healthy state, how can you expect others to be- lieve in its mighty efficacy ? Reply to the objection. It is not pleasant, thus publicly to recur so often to one's private trials and feelings, as I have done in these lectures. But in the present case, I am bound to answer a few words. Permit me then, to sjiy, that in order to estimate correctly the difficulties against which I have to contend in this mat- ter, it ought to be considered, first that it is not the work of a month merely, nor of a year, to restore to health and vigor, a constitution, which, like mine, has been for some 336 LECTURE IX. twenty years, sinking lower and lower under the power of dyspepsy—Secondly, although I had for years supposed myself attending to diet and regimen, yet it has been only a comparatively short period, in which I have even attempt- ed to adopt the system which I have recommended in these lectures. I formerly selected certain articles of diet, which were of easy digestion, and adhered to their use; but de- feated all the good effects by eating too much ; and espe- cially, by not making out my entire meal from a single dish : and into these errors 1 fell through ignorance of the true system of dieting. The same cause led me into similar er- rors in respect to regimen and employment. And, indeed, there is scarcely a rule in this whole system, which 1 have been enforcing, whos.e importance I have not learned by experiencing the bitter effects of its violation ; and, there- fore, I can say to any, who are only partially adopting it for their guide, that they will certainly fail of deriving from it any important benefits. In the third place, I must confess with shame, that even since I have known the proper course for me to follow, I have too often found an inordinate appe- tite, or in,lolence, conquering the firmest resolutions; and thus, in a great measure, counteracting the good effects of temperance and exercise. Finally, it ought to be recollect- ed, that nervous complaints, long continued and aggravated, do, at length, become organic, and beyond the power, not only of diet and regimen, but of every means of cure. That such is my case, I neither assert nor deny- 1 would cheer- fully leave the event with God. If he has more labour for me to perform in this world, he will give me strength. If not, all I would pray for, is a quiet and cheerful submission to his will, and a peaceful exit from this trying scene. Personal Testimony. But notwithstanding all these unfavourable circumstances, 1 can most conscientiously testify, that just so far as I have faithfully adopted the system, which I have been advocat- ing, I have never failed of realizing from it, the most hap- THE DYSPEPTICS SUFFERINGS. 337 py effects, fully corresponding to my expectations. Indeed, after so many years of almost unalleviated suffering, I can hardly speak,without enthusiasm, of the influence ofthis sys- tem on the body, the mind, and the heart. To mention a sin- gle example : the preparation of these lectures, in the space of a few months, in addition to my usual profes- sional duties, small as the labour may seem to a man of vig- orous health, especially when so imperfectly performed ; has nevertheless, so exceeded my powers for many years past, as to excite my surprise and gratitude : for it has been solely the result of attention to diet, exercise, and employ- ment: and at a season of the year too, when my system has to struggle the hardest with the inclemencies and vicissitudes of our climate. Miseries of Dyspepsy. Finally ; it may be that Providence has thus brought me before you, a living example of the nature and desolating influence of dyspepsy, that you might be roused to flee from the destroyer, before his cords shall be bound around you too firmly to be severed. If I can not tell you of health re- stored by diet and regimen, I can testify of the personal, bodily, and mental sufferings, that accompany this com- plaint. And should any of you struggle for two or three de- cades of years against it, you will then regard Cheyne's de- scription of these sufferings, evtravagant as it may now seem, as not overdrawn. "Of all the miseries that afflict human life," says he, " and relate principally to the body in this valley of tears, I think nervous disorders, in their extreme and last degrees, are the most deplorable, and be- yond all comparison the worst. It was the observation of a learned and judicious physician, that he had seen persons labouring under the most exquisite pains of gout, stone, colic, cancer, and all other distresses that tear the human frame ; yet he had observed them all willing to prolong their wretched being, and scarce any ready to lay down cheer- fully the load of clay, but such as laboured under a constant 29 338 LECTURE IX. internal anxiety, meaning those sinking, suffocating, and strangling nervous disorders. It is truly the only misery, almost, to be dreaded and avoided in life- Though other evils be burthens, yet an erected spirit may bear them; but when the supports are fallen, and cover the man with their ruins, the desolation is perfect." May a happier experience be yours! May no one, who hears me, ever know from his own ex- perience, the truth ofthis appalling description. May no one be compelled, after twenty or thirty years contest with dyspepsy, to look back, and see the lopped-off fragments of himself, strewed over the field of combat. O, such expe- rience has all of death in it, but the last pang. Nay, it is death, protracted, repeated, multiplied, concentrated. But I rejoice in the belief, that none of the members ofthis In- stitution are acquainted with these bottomless gulfs of dys- pepsy. I rejoice, that even though some of you may have felt the sting of some of his spent arrows, you all as yet oc- cupy vantage ground comparatively high. O gird on, I beseech you, the panoply of temperance, and maintain your post. Long after I shall be sleeping in the grave, may the next generation see you vigorous, healthy, and happy, moving in extensive spheres of usefulness, and leaving at your departure, the light and warmth of a love- ly example, to kindle up other fires in future times. THE PHYSICAL. CULTURE ADAPTED TO THE TIMES'. AN ADDRESS DEklVEREO BEFORE THE MECHANICAL ASSOCIATION IN ANDOVER THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY, sxpt. 21, 1830. evxov i hrt fiiv aatuara xal xf>vx<*i ^nv 7* oafyv narrwg 8ti roo(fitr tpalviodai 6vvauivi}V £)t xaXliara xal aQtorct ~i£iQyat*o6ai, tovto uir eg6(og 'riQ^rat nov ; Ought it not to be every where maintained, that a good education, gives the mind and the body all the power, all the beauty, and all the perfection, of which they are capable ?—Laws of Plato,Book vii. ADDRESS. Proportion essential in the works and operations of nature. Man suffers most from it! violation.—His physical arid In- tellectual Powers disproportionately cultivated. Physical Culture neglected by literary men. Peculiar attention to it demanded: First, from Pecuniary Motives: A system of Self Support for Students developed. 1. By well directed Exercise : 2. By a simple and a plain Diet: 3. By Tem- perance Boarding Houses : 4. By School ^Keeping. Peculiar attention to Physical Culture demanded, Secondly, by the Literary character of the times. And Finally, by the calls for high Professional usefulness—particularly among Min- isters. Proportion, a characteristic of Nature. No feature is more uniformly present in the works, and operations of nature than proportion. Men generally may not be able to give a logical definition ofthis characteristic; nor do they in ordinary cases, observe its presence. But let it be wanting, as it sometimes is :—let a sickly or dis- torted plant, or animal, be exhibited before us; showing the effects of a disproportionate developement or action of its parts, and we instinctively perceive the absence of con- gruity ; and hence learn, that its general, though unnoticed presence, is essential to the health and beauty of the natural world. Man distinguished for a violation of its Laws- Perhaps no part of the creation suffers so much from a 29* 342 ADDRESS. violation of the laws of proportion, as man. Less under the influence of instinct than the inferior animals, his physi- cal and intellectual character, receives a deeper impression than theirs, from factitious circumstances and appetites. Hence will result an unequal cultivation and developement of his powers. In savage life, his situation demands little besides physical efforts ; and therefore, he will cultivate almost exclusively, his bodily powers; his mind being suf- fered to lie coiled up and feeble in its material prison. Muscular energy and mental imbecility, therefore, will be the prominent characteristics of the savage. Society in its different stages. The progress of society from its incipient, to its most refined and luxurious state, exhibits a gradual, and finally a complete change, in this picture. As the intellect begins to receive attention, the bodily powers are less and less cultivated; until at length the happy medium is reached, when each is disciplined in due proportion. This is the golden age of society ; when sana mens in corpore sano, is no longer a poetic dream. It is that period in the history of nations, when their character is most complete in its grand outlines: when great vigor of intellect is connected with great vigor of body : when there is competence and independence, with little excessive poverty on the one hand, or enormous wealth on the other: when industry and enterprise are yet uncrippled by sloth and effeminacy : when there is refinement of manners without fastidious nicety ; and when the moral pulse of the community beats full and strong; not urged on to feverish violence by igno- rance aad credulity, nor feeble and intermittent, through the influence of luxury and scepticism. The physical powers disproportionately cultivated. But tiiis happy condition of society rarely lasts long ; and then begins to be exhibited the feebleness, and distor- tion, resulting from excessive cultivation of the mental CHARACTERISTICS OF THE AGE. 343 powers, while the physical are neglected. Ingenuity and wealth enable many to dispense in a great measure with aclive bodily efforts, and multiply the means for inordinate gratifications of every kind. Thus are engenderd a multi- tude of factitious wants, that give at length an almost eri- tirely artificial character to society. As a consequence, the firm and elastic muscle and the vigorous frame, are succeeded by debility, and the pale and lean aspect of dyspepsy. The eye of the mind, no longer bright and sparkling, looks out with a feeble glance, from its pale tenement; and although the intellectual faculties are plied with a thousand stimuli, they send forth only imperfect and di-torted productions; like the flowers of a garden exceedingly fertile, which, though of great size and gaudiness, have l«st their delicate natural form and simple elegance, and their power of pro- ducing sound and valuable fruit. In short, amid an excess of refinement, and every facility for the cultivation of knowledge and virtue; frivolity, imbecility and corruption, characterise the times : And all because the laws of pro- portion have been violated, by neglecting a cultivation of the bodily powers, correspondent to that of the intellect- ual. The present an intellectual age. The present age is characterised by most assiduous ef- forts, thoroughly, and in the best manner, to discipline all the powers of the mind. From the time when our children enter the infant school, till they have finished the/ir pro- fessional studies, they are met by the ablest masters and the wisest rules, to aid in the acquisition of knowledge, and in the expansion and discipline of the intellect. Indeed, the intelligent part of the community, have become decided- ly enthusiastic on the subject of intellectual education. So that we see veterans in literature and science, abandoning the folios of classic lore, and the abstruse demonstrations of philosophy, to compose the infant's manual. 1 complain not of this wide spread excitement; but acknowledge with 344 ADDRESS, gratitude, that it is accomplishing Wonders for the improve- ment of the intellect. But I do complain of the vastly disproportionate attention that is given to physical educa- tion. Indeed, except in a few recent instances, who, among the numerous founders, patrons, guardians, and instructors of our public literary institutions, ever thought of making any regular provision for keeping in play the delicate ma- chinery on which the immaterial principle so essentially depends for successful operation ? The whole business of physical education has been left, and in nearly all our oldest and most respectable institutions is still left, almost without time, encouragement, or direction; except, perhaps the erection of a few articles of gymnastic apparatus. If the student happens to have learnt that attention to diet and exercise is desirable, and should possess the resolution to cultivate his muscular energies, though the laws of the in- stitution, to which he belongs, have monopolized nearly all his time for mental discipline ; and though a thousand temptations to excess in diet meet him at every table :—if his resolution be strong enough to conquer these almost unconquerable difficulties, he may sustain the intellectual labors of his course, without destroying his bodily constitu- tion. But if untaught in the fundamental principles of phys- ical education, he suffers the ambition of scholarship, or a natural inclination to gluttony and inaction, to control him ; it will be wonderful if bodily health and vigor are not crushed by the load that is laid upon them; and the mind, ever after, do not partake in all its movements, of the fee- bleness and inefficiency of its material tenement. Instances of this character have been so alarmingly multiplied in lat- ter years ; bright hopes have been so often prostrated ; vig- orous and pious youth ofsprightliness, genius, and promise, have so often been irrevocably changed, into complaining, imbecile, gloomy dyspeptics ; that a solicitous enquiry has gone forth among the guardians of literature and religion, as to the cause and the remedy. And from almost every quarter, a response is sounded louder and louder in their PHYSICAL EDUCATION. 345 ears ; it is the neglect of early physical education. From no quarter has this reply come more distinctly and forcibly! than from the Association which I havft'the happiness of ad- dressing. Its existence proves a deep conviction among those best qualified to judge, and most deeply interested, that the cultivation of the bodily powers has been sadly overlooked and neglected in our literary institutions ; and that it is high time to commence a reformation on this sub- ject. And the decisive success that has thus early attended this effort:—its rescue of some already from impending ruin, and the general improvement of health which it has ob- viously produced in the Seminary,—must carry home to every impartial mind, a conviction of the necessity of wak- ing up to the subject of physical education. The same ap- peal is sustained by the operation of several institutions in our land, that recognise, as a leading principle of their es- tablishment, " the union of academic studies with systematic bodily labour." One of the most efficient of these, the "Manual Labor Academy of Pennsylvania," in its first annual report, thus testifies to the influence ofthis system upon the pupils. "The health of this interesting family has been uninterrupted, except in a few cases diseased when admit- ted. Every invalid remaining there has been restored to health.—Their blood (that of the students who have adopted this principle,) flows warm and rich and equable ; and the east winds cannot penetrate them. Their thirst demands water, their hunger plain food, their limbs rejoice in muscular efforts, and their minds in truth. Sleep rests them, and their waking eyes behold the light of another cheerful and useful day."* The success of Pestalozzi and Fellenberg- The man, indeed, who demands infallible success in these incipient efforts, undirected as they are by experience in • First Annual Report of the Manual Labor Academy, of Pennsyl- vania.—1829. 346 ADDRESS. our own country, and, therefore, liable to imperfection, will be disappointed : But he, who is content with results as propitious as can be expected under such circumstances,will be gratified and animated ; and especially when he recol- lects that in Europe, Pestalozzi aud Fellenberg have de- monstrated the utility of this system by a longer course of experiment; he will feel that the root of an alarming evil has been found out, and might and must be eradicated. The present times demand peculiar physical cultivation. If I mistake not, no age of the world has demanded such an assiduous cultivation of the physical powers as the pre- sent. 1 maintain that there are peculiar characteristics of the times in which we live, that demand peculiar attention to physical education. This is the subject which I wish to bring distinctly before this audience on the present occa- sion. In the first place, the pecuniary demands of benevolence at the pkesent day, call for thorough and systematic Bodily culture. In many parts of the world, but more particularly in this country, the services of educated men are needed, where only small and uncertain salaries can be expected, and where extra literary labors will meet with no pecuni- ary recompense. Knowledge must be extended to the low- est classes in society, and a scattered population supplied with physicians, lawyers, and ministers. Hence the men who engage in this service, must depend, in a greater or less degree, upon bodily efforts for securing a competent support. But if these efforts be not commenced in early life, they will never afterwards be successfully made. Now as no student knows where his lot will ultimately be cast, it is the part of wisdom early to habituate himself to these mechanical and agricultural pursuits, on which he may be compelled partially to depend for subsistence. THE PECUNIARY DEMANDS-OF BENEVOLENCE. 347 Objections by the ambitious scholar. I know that the spirit of many a youthful and ambitious scholar, who has been brought up in affluence, revolts from the idea of thus eating his bread in the sweat of his brow, and of withdrawing a part of his attention from the cultiva- tion of knowledge, for grosser pursuits. But he ought to know, that the revolution of a few annual suns will greatly change his views and feelings on this point ; and a little mortifying experience may teach him at length, that even such a sphere of labor, as we are speaking of, may be large enough for his abilities, transcendent as they now seem to him. Many, indeed, placed by the hand of Providence against their wills, in such circumstances, have at length acknowledged the wisdom that appointed their lot; and found that no condition is more propitious to human happi- ness, than the union of literary with agricultural or me- chanical pursuits. The poor as well as the rich must be educated. It is most important, in a country like ours—indeed, in what country is it not important—that our educated men should be those of the richest native talent. And these, to say the least, are as likely to be found in the poorer, as in the richer classes of society. Means, therefore, should be provided for the education of youth of this description, who are without property. And especially does the Christian Church need, for ministers and missionaries, all the indi- gent and pious young men of talent in the land. The call for their services has long been loud, and is now become imperative. Nor ought Christians to rest satisfied, until every such youth among us is searched out and put upon a course of liberal education. But shall all these be sus- tained, through their ten years of preparation, by the hand of charity ? Yes : rather than that they should not be brought forward at all. But it has become an interesting inquiry, whether some system cannot be adopted, by which young men of energy and talent can procure, in whole or 348 ADDRESS, in part, the means of defraying the expense of their educa- tion; and that without essentially delaying their progress. I maintain that such a system is not only practicable, but may be adopted without difficulty ; just so soon as a major- ity of the community are convinced of its feasibility. And when we consider how difficult, if not impracticable, is the work of procuring, in the ordinary way, the large amount of funds requisite for the object, and how greatly these funds are needed in the other branches of benevolent en- terprise, every philanthropist will surely listen candidly to any suggestions bearing upon so important a point. Plan of self support- The first part of this system of self support, which I shall mention, requires that the student devote from three to six hours each day, to mechanical or agricultural pursuits. Even if he give six hours to exercise, this will leave him nine for sleep and meals, and nine for study; and pro- • bably he could make as great literary progress in this time, invigorated as he would be by bodily exercise for the work, as if he were to devote twelve or fifteen hours to study. Now the common laborer receives generally about eight cents an hour for his services ; and at the same rate, the student would earn nearly three dollars each week ; or if he labor only three hours each day, (and every scholar needs at least that amount of exercise to preserve his health,) the weekly amount would be about one dollar and a half; or if we take four hours and a half per day, as his period of physical effort, the weekly income would be more than two dollars. 1 know, indeed, that unprovided as most of our literary seminaries are, at present, with any facilities for profitable labor, the student could not earn even eight cents per hour, were he ever so diligent. But let there be connected with our academies, colleges, and professional seminaries, a farm of proper extent, and shops for mechanical labor sufl-cientlv numerous, and it must be the student's own fan It if he cannot earn the moderate sums SELF SUPPORTING SYSTEM. 349 which I have mentioned. Nay, I doubt not, but under pro- per regulations, and with proper management on the part of the student, these sums might be nearly doubled ; while at the same time his literary progress would be accelerated, rather than retarded, by such vigorous and systematic cul- tivation of his bodily powers. Add to all this, that if neces- sary, a half or whole day, weekly, might be employed in active labor; and in the same manner, might be spent a large portion of vacations. Now with such a system of exercise, and so much time to spare for it, and such facilities for turning every muscu- lar effort to the best account, who will consider that a Uto- pian calculation, which decides, that most indigent stu- dents might thus defray a large proportion of the necessary expenses of an education? Indeed, might I not find evi- dence on this very eminence, that such a system is practi- cable ; and are not many, in other parts of the land, ready to testify from experience, that these results are neither visionary nor exaggerated ? And if so, will it be thought strange, if I urge upon an enlightened, benevolent, and Christian community, the pressing duty of an immediate and extensive introduction of the elements of such a sys- tem into our seminaries of learning? 1 plead for it in the name of our Education Societies—in the name of the unen- lightened and unconverted millions of other lands—and in the name of our new and destitute settlements. But the whole plan is not yet developed. For in the se- cond place, the student can greatly reduce his expenses, by adopting a very simple, yet healthy system of diet- Water the best of all beverages. The fundamental principles of this system are very plain and definite. One part of it consists in the student's dis- carding entirely, except by the physician's prescription, the use of all distilled and fermented liquors, such as spirit, wine, and cider; as also those bewitching narcotics, tea coffee, and tobacco. It is now too late—the blended rays 30 350 ADDRESS. of philosophy and experience fall with too strong a light upon this subject—for an intelligent man to maintain, that any of these substances are necessary for health, strength, or happiness. Nay, both chemical and medical philosophy testify, that their sole effect upon the healthy, is insidiously and prematurely to exhaust the animal system, and expose it to the fiercer onsets of disease. And those who have fairly made the trial, and adhered most rigidly to nature's beverage alone, have found that this is not a vain philoso- phy. If any class in society are preeminently without an apology for the use of these substances, it is the young and healthy, who are devoted to literary pursuits. For any one of this character, to be so wedded, I will not say to spirit or wine, but even to his snuff box, or cigar, or cup of tea, or coffee, that he cannot cheerfully abandon them all, to secure the important object under consideration, shows that he has not the self-denying spirit demanded in a minis- ter of Christ, or even in a Christian. Self denial! It can scarcely be called such, for a young and vigorous man to abandon these decidedly injurious habits, and to form others which are eminently conducive to health, longevity, pro- gress in knowledge, and usefulness : I mean the practical adoption of the principle, that water alone is the best and only proper drink for man. Nor need any such individual fear coming at once and fully into the practice of using this beverage alone—giving up resolutely, entirely, and forever, (except as medicines,) his wine, tobacco, tea, and coffee. Indeed, if they be abandoned only by piecemeal—if the at- tempt be made to break away from these enchanters by slow degrees—the result will be, in four cases out of five, that the cords of attachment will be strengthened and coiled more closely around the captive. If the habits are saluta- ry to health, they ought not to be abandoned at all; but if injurious, no young and healthy man, (and very rarely any other,) need fear their discontinuance at once ; any more than he need fear to loosen a cord, which is drawn so close- ly around his throat as to obstruct his breathing. When THE SCHOLAR S DIET. . 351 you hear a man professing himself able at any time to aban- don a bad habit in eating or drinking, and yet doing it only by slow degrees, through fear of injuring himself, you may rest assured, in the first place, that this is a device of ap- petite to quell the voice of conscience and put down reso- lution ; and, in the second place, that that bad habit is fixed upon the man with so tenacious a grasp, that he will proba- bly never get rid of it. How shall tie change our dietetic habits ? I know, indeed, that great and sudden changes in dietet- ic habits, even if ultimately salutary, are sometimes at- tended with bad consequences; and in persons of feeble constitutions, it may be, with dangerous effects. But even in the case of the invalid, is it not better at once to make the change, lest he should not make it at all; and if he find it very prejudicial, let him relax a little in the rigor of his discipline, until he has reached the healthy standard ; since it is much easier to let out the reins of appetite, than to draw them tighter. And as to the young and healthy man, there is stamina enough in his constitution easily to resist all changes of this kind, that are recommended by philosophy and experience. Let him not hesitate, there- fore, to free himself from every injurious habit by a single blow, and not attempt a mangled and protracted amputation at intervals.* Another part of this system of dietetics, consists in eat- ing of a single dish only at a meal, and of that dish in mode- ration. By a single dish, I understand some one principal and substantial article, as meat or bread, with such other arti- cles as any one chooses to add for dilution or seasoning. Indeed, any mixture of different articles, that is made be- fore eating, may be considered as a single dish ; though it ought always to be understood, that the fewer the article*- thus brought together, if they are of a proper kind, the • See Not* M. 352 ADDRESS. more favorable for health; since it is a principle in medi- cal philosophy, well established, that " the more simply life is supported, the better." But considering every mixture made before eating as a single dish, I maintain that when a man has partaken slowly and moderately of this, he has eaten enough for promoting health and giving the great- est strength to the body and the mind. This position is established as a first principle in dietetics. Hence then, whatever is eaten after this first dish, under the name of pastry, cakes, puddings, or sweetmeats; or as a second or third course, of different sorts of meat or fish j or the same sort, differently cooked, must be injurious. All such articles thus brought forward after the removal of the first or principal dish, are to be regarded as additional dishes; and 1 maintain that the student, and indeed, every tempe- rate man, ought to abstain from them. For if the first dish be sufficient for health, strength, and happiness; and the general effect of the additional dishes be injurious:—and I appeal to the records of philosophy, and temperance, to prove that such is the case ;—why, except to gratify a dis- eased and pampered appetite, should the literary man, or any other man, indulge himself in more than one ? Nay, farther; if he would reap all the benefits of temperance, he must partake of that one dish only in moderate quantity. In but few cases will it answer to take the appetite, even for that single dish, as a guide ; for appetite in almost every man,has become so perverted—is indeed, so factitious,—that it cannot be trusted. But a man may judge of the quantity of food which his constitution requires, by a careful obser- vation of the effects of different quantities upon his feelings and health. 1 do not maintain, that every man demands precisely the same amount of food, so that the balances can at once determine the point. But I do maintain, in the language of a distinguished living physician, that " any discomfort of body, any irritability or despondency of mind, succeeding food and drink, at the distance of an hour, a day, or even two or three days, may be regarded, (other eyir This dieting not novel. 353 dent causes being absent,) as a presumptive proof, that the quantity has been too much, or the quality injurious."— {Johnson.)—A careful attention to this rule will enable any man, to ascertain the amount of food which his constitution demands; and when this is determined, to that quantity be should most religously adhere. Such is the dietetic standard to which every resolute and really pious student might easily bring himself. "Water— water alone, unmixed, unspoiled," should be his drink ; and a single dish, and that in moderation, should limit his appe- tite at each meal. And can there be a doubt that such a system, exten>ively adopted at our literary institutions, would greatly reduce the expenses of living? So obvious is this conclusion, that I need spend no time in proving it. This system of diet not a novel one. But 1 am aware that many will exclaim against this sys- tem as unmercifully and injuriously strict—as in fact, slow, aggravated starvation. And so contrary is it to the almost universal practice of these luxurious times, that I doubt not many will look upon it as novel ; never yet tested fairly by experience; and therefore, merely hypothetical. But 1 beg evey literary man, before he adopts such an opinion, to review the history of the ancient philosophers, particu- larly of the Pythagoreans, and to read again the biogra- phies of the men of every age, who have been most distinguished for literature, science, and usefulness. And he will be astonished to find, that nearly all these incorpo- rated the elements of this system into their practice. Nay, he will find, that many a philosopher, many a physician, many a civilian, has left on record, a most decided testimony in favor of its efficacy and value.* But their enthusiastic • Sinclair in his " Code of Health," Vol. II. p. 301, has given a Catalogue of all the works that have appeared on Hygiene, Lon- gevity, and Old Age, and they amount to no less than 1878 !! via. In the English language, 312. In the other languages, 1566. 30* 354 ADDRESS. approbation of such principles, has been, as it were, a voice crying in the wilderness ; unheard amid the clamors of ap- petite, and falling on the ear of the invalid alone, who lis- tens to it, only as the last alternative that can rescue him from the grave. This system more promotive of happiness than any other. As to the degree of pleasure resulting from the adoption* of the system now recommended, compared with that to be derived from the common practice of eating of a variety of dishes, and as much as appetite demands, no man,who has tri- ed both systems, can hesitate to ascribe to the first the most decided preeminence. This assertion will sound highly paradoxical to those, who have become sincerely attached to high seasoned food, in great variety, and stimulating drinks. But the pleasure derived from eating and drinking, depends upon the relish one has for the repast, upon the time devoted to it, and upon the effects on the feelings and the intellectual operations. Now the moderate eater, par- takes of his repast with a natural appetite, which receives the simplest food and drink with a keener relish than a factitious appetite can give, for viands the most deliciously prepared: nor does the temperate man crowd down his food with the rapidity that is so common with the gour- mand ; and therefore, though he eats less, he enjoys it longer. And as to the effects upon the mind and the heart, those of rigid temperance cannot be described but with en- thusiasm, by any one who has ever experienced them. To represent a spare diet—even as rigid as I have recommend- ed__as inimical to happiness, is, therefore, in the face of all experience and philosophy. It is on the other hand, the only way to secure freedom from violent bodily disoiders, as well as to obtain equanimity of mind, clearness and vig- or of thought, and a contiol over the passions. A prophecy concerning this subject. Novel and impracticable as this dietetic system may seem TEMPERANCE BOARDING HOUSES. 355 to any at present, I cannot but predict that the day is at hand, when the great mass of the Christian world will adopt it in its fullest extent. And the rapid progress which one branch of temperance has made within a few years, is the principal ground of this prediction. It will ere-long be seen and felt, that the same principles which proscribe alcohol, do almost equally condemn other stimulants and narcotics, as articles of common use; and that a rigid ad- herence to the use of one dish only at a meal, is almost as effectual a security against intemperance in eating, as total abstinence from distilled spirit is against drunkenness. Christians will soon see, if they can be made fairly to look at tbe subject, that until they adopt this sale and definite rule, they live intemperately; and that without this rule, they are, as to principle, just in the condition of those, who make what they call a moderate use of ardent spirit. They will see too, that the money which they now devote to un- necessary articles of food and drink, is wanted, and by their Redeemer is required, to bring on the Millenium; and when they see and feel all this, they will not hesitate to adopt the system under consideration. I am led by the course of remarks to mention, as a third item in the system of self support, which 1 am advocating, that provision should be made at our literary institutions, for boarding houses, established on the principles of temperance. Who can expect that the student will be able to resist the temptations to excess, that meet him, in giant strength, at such boarding houses as are commonly provided; where he will have before him tea, coffee, and a variety of dishes, richly and deliciously cooked and seasoned, and where, to refuse a liberal allowance of all sorts, would subject him to the charge of squeamish nicety? Surely, it is too much to calculate upon, from poor human nature. But were a tem- perance table to be spread before him, from which the • injurious articles were excluded, the victory would be easy. And where would be the difficulty of establishing and sus- taining such boarding houses, provided students should 356 ADDRESS. unitedly prefer and patronize them ? Or how easy would it be for those determined to adopt a particular system of diet, to associate ; and having marked out their plan of living, to provide the means of carrying it into execution ? Nor can there b? any doubt—indeed, I might refer to trials of this sort that have been already made in some institu- tions, to prove, that such a system would very materially lessen the expenses of living* For take away tea, coffee, and a multiplicity of dishes, and you would diminish the pecuniary expenses, I had almost said, in direct proportion to the number of sorts which you remove. We may safely calculate, that such a plan would reduce the price of board one third. And when it was once seen by a conscientious community, that students could not only sustain life by such a system of diet, but like Daniel and his companions, when living on pulse, in the Babylonish court, were actually more vigorous in body and mind than others; they too would demand temperance boarding houses, and spread temperance tables, and thus be able greatly to swell the amount of their contributions to the cause of benevolence. Oh, who can calculate the mighty impulse that might thus be given to the progress of knowledge and piety ! But 1 forbear to indulge in such pleasing anticipations. Finally; if in the three methods that have been pointed out, the student should not find sufficient pecuniary resourc- es for self support, let him occasionally interrupt his literary course by the instruction of youth. An interruption of this kind is apt to be unfriendly to the literary progress, though the business of instruction is not without its advantages in other respects. But in general, it would be better, so far as pecuniary remuneration is regarded, as well as the men- tal and moral discipline, either to delay the work of instruc- tion till the collegiate course at least be completed, ortode- • vote a longer portion of time to it in the early stages of ed- ucation- Still, if a deficiency of resources demands it, no *See Note, I. HIGH LITERARY STANDARD. 357 one ought to hesitate to resort to the employment at any time, to secure the important object under consideration. Practical adoption ofthis Plan of self support. The plan which I have thus hastily developed, has been tested by experience 1 believe, in nearly all its parts, though not in its entireness, in any literary institution; unless it be recently in this place. Yet can it be doubted, that its judi- cious and complete adoption, would enable every healthy and energetic student to earn, and to save, nearly enough to sustain him in his course of education ? If so, how immense- ly important to the cause of learning and religion in our land, would be a practical, experimental demonstration, of its feasibility ? Indeed, that instructor, or that institution, which shall do this, will have given to our Education Societies, and, in fact, to every other benevolent enterprise of the day, an impulse that would be felt to the extremities of the globe. It is gratifying to learn that this experiment is in progress upon this interesting eminence.* I hasten to say, in the second place, that the uterary character of the times, demands a vigorous and pecu- liar cultivation of the physical powers. Efforts for simplifying and diffusing knowledge. I use the term literary in its broadest signification, as ap- plying to knowledge in general. And it will be admitted at once, that the present age is distinguished—particularly in every free country—for efforts to simplify knowledge, and diffuse it through the community. These efforts have been most happily successful; and the great mass of society are rapidly rising on the scale of intelligence. The neces- sary consequence of thus elevating the general character, is, to raise proportionably, the literary standard of educated men. No one can now wrap up a scanty stock of knowl- edge in algebraic formulae and pedantic terms, and thus hope to pass for a learned man. If he would acquire the • See Note K, K, 358 ADDRESS. name of an able scholar, he must be really such. Nor will the public be satisfied with limited and partial attainments. Each individual, among the various occupations of civilized life, expects that every scholar will be acquainted with all that is scientific, or literary, in the particular pursuit to which he has devoted himself. And the easiest mode of meeting this expectation, is to acquire so much knowledge of the principles of each art and profession, as to be able to converse respecting it, intelligibly and profitably. Espe- cially is this necessary for the clergymau ; whose knowl- edge of his own profession will be estimated, in a great measure, by the mass of mankind, from his acquaintance with, or ignorance of their own. Painful but common Example. Now this high standard of literary attainments cannot be reached by the scholar, without a vigorous cultivation of his physical powers. If these be neglected, or disciplined in a disproportionate manner, his constitution will almost infallibly sink under the effort. Especially is this true of the individual, who, in early life, was accustomed to active and laborious pursuits. Alas,, memory presents us with many painful illustrations of the truth ofthis remark. We have seed the youth of talents and piety, forsaking the farm or the shop rather late, and conscientiously entering upon a literary career, in the hope of being useful. Pos- sessing, as he supposed, an iron constitution, and feeling the necessity of pressing forward with all his might in his lite- rary course, he sat down to his books with unremitting ap- plication ; exercising his brain incessantly, but neglecting in a great measure, those 400 muscles, which, till that pe- riod, had been kept almost constantly in motion; and still continuing to load his digestive organs with the same amount and variety of food, as when engaged in daily labor. Na- ture bore this outrageous violation of her laws for a long time, almost without a murmur : but at length she began to send forth her cries, and to lift up her signals of distress :— LONGEVITY OF SCHOLARS. 359 He, however, ignorant of their meaning, heeded them not, until driven from his books by the strong arm of dyspepsy, or incipient disorder in the lungs. Afterwards, nothing re- mained to him, but to nurse for a few years, a broken con- stitution, and to lament over the mysterious providence which tbus early blasted his hopes. But had he been ac- quainted with the laws of the human constitution, he would have seen that the providence had in it nothing of mystery ; but was the natural and inevitable result of his cultivating his mind and heart, to the neglect of his body.* The principle that firm bodily powers are essential to the highest degree of success in learning, is too little known and appreciated. Nay, we sometimes meet with the opinion, that a feeble constitution, which can not bear mechanical or agricultural labours, may yet endure hard study. But it ought to be known, that literary efforts are, of all others, most trying to the invalid ; and that the most vig- orous minds—with perhaps here and there an exception— have been united to vigorous bodies. In other words, those who have risen the highest in intellectual efforts, have been the men, who have inherited from nature, vigorous consti- tutions, or have given the strictest attention to impart ulrength to one naturally feeble, or debilitated by early ne- glect. Longevity of ancient philosophers and literati. If we look into the history of literature, we shall find support for this position in the biographies of individuals most distinguished for their attainments. What can be a better proof of a firm constitution, or at least, of one free from the seeds of disease, than longevity ? Indeed, though men of slender habits and rather feeble muscular power, have attained to a good old age by rigid temperance, yet it is essential to long life, that all the vital powers should be free from disease and vigorous. Now the most eminent • See Note H. II. 360 ADDRESS. scholars of all times, have generally been long lived. The ancient philosophers and christian writers were remarka- ble for their strict attention to diet and exercise, and for their longevity too, when not removed by the hand of vio- lence. The average length of the lives of 38 of these, em- bracing philosophers, orators, physicians, historians, poets, and divines, was no less than 81 years. Among these, were Plato, Socrates, Pythagoras, the two Plinys, Varro, Aris- totle, Hippocrates, Galen, Demosthenes, Cicero, Isocrates, Euripides, Sophocles, Virgil, Horace, Xenophon, Thucyd- ides, Josephus, Chrysostom, Justin Martyr, Origen, Hilary and Augustin ; several of whose days were shortened by vi- olent deaths. Average length of life among learned moderns. The longevity of learned moderns has been scarcely less remarkable. Twenty Italian mathematicians of differ- ent epochs, attained to the age of 81 : and 23 of the most able scholars of that country lived 76 years. In France, the average term of life in 152 men of letters, taken at random, was 69 years ; and 56 of the most eminent French scholars lived 77 years. Fifteen German scholars, proverbial for close study, lived upon an average 75 years. Among them were Leibnitz, Kant, Wolf, Michaelis, (David,) Adelung Werner, Heyne, Wieland, Haller, Jacobi, and Klopstock. Twenty five of the most eminent English and Scotch wri- ters, held out upon an average, 73 years. Among these, we find the names of Newton, Locke, Roger Bacon, Lord Bacon, Halley, Samuel Johnson, Young, Warburton, Ad- am Smith, Blair, Reid, Black, Robertson, Campbell, Play- fair, and Stewart. In our own country, 23 most distinguish- ed scholars, have reached the medium age of 76 years: Among whom, were the Mathers, the Chaunceys, Dr. Stiles, Johnson, Hopkins, Bellamy, Witherspoon, West, Dwight, Ewing, Franklin, President Edwards, Jefferson, and Samuel and John Adams. SHORT LIVED LITERARY MEN. 361 Medium longevity of scholars in all ages. According to these statements, the medium length of the lives of 186, of the men most distinguished in ancient and modern times for intellectual achievements, is 78 years. A longevity so remarkable, can be imputed only to great nat- ural vigor of constitution, or to scrupulous attention to phys- ical culture. For although intellectual pursuits, moderate- ly and prudently followed, are undoubtedly favourable to health, yet the intense and protracted efforts, which most of these men must have made, to accomplish their Hercule- an labors; and that too, in most cases, under the pressure of poverty, or in peril of life, or in the midst of vexatious public, cares, must have worn upon the animal system, and if not originally vigorous, or sustained by severe discipline, must have broken it down. Exceptions. I know that some examples may be quoted, in which men of apparently the feeblest constitutions, and strug- gling with disease through their short lives have, left im- perishable monuments of their learning. But if I mistake not, it will bo found, that in nearly every case of this kind, a naturally vigorous constitution was ruined by early col- lision with difficulties and exposures too great for flesh and blood to sustain ; or by a most wanton disregard of physical education. If, for example, Dr. Alexander Murray died at the early age of 38, it was not because nature denied him a strong constitution ; for when we learn how severe were his struggles with almost every kind of obstruction, and how * perfectly regardless he was of every thing relative to his body, we shall even wonder that he did not sink sooner. A similar remark will apply to Pascal, who died at the age of 39. If Sir Wiliiam Jones did not see half a century, yet the dis- order that terminated his days had its origin in an unhealthy climate, rather than in any natural defect or feebleness of constitution. Certainly, in a vast majority of instances, the men whom posterity will honor most for intellectual efforts, 31 362 ADDRESS. outlived the allotted period of threescore years and ten : and hence, as a general conclusion, which a few excepted cases cannot nullify, their bodily constitutions must have been naturally vigorous, or have been cultivated until they became so. A feeble constitution sometimes favourable to literary distinction. It will be admitted, however, that the excited and mor- bid sensibility which often accompanies chronic disorders, is peculiarly favourable to some, though the least valuable species, of intellectual labor. I refer to the composilion of novels and poems; particularly the latter. Men are fond of strong excitement; and in order to produce it in the reader, the writer must be under the influence of deep feel- ing : Ardeat, qui vult incendere. (Cicero.) But it is the ef- fect of health and temperance, to produce a state of mind too equable and unimpassioned for poetry and romance. Disease, or excess, destroys this happy equilibrium, and awakens that deep and irrepressible emotion, which is vented forth on the pages of the novel or the poem. This is the chief ingredient in the poet's inspiration ; and never is he more wretched, than when he is rearing the monument of his own immortal renown. Poetry of a didactic or philo- sophical character, may indeed, be written in the midst of health, prosperity, and happiness : But that which breathes a deep toned feeling, most commonly arises from the funer- al pile of the body ; where heart and flesh are consuming, either in the fire of ungovernable passions, or of internal dis- ease. So that in fact, when fancy and feeling feast upon the poet's labors, it is his very life, served up in the repast, that gives it its richness and relish. Examples. In illustration of these sentiments, the thoughts cannot but recur with melancholy interest, to Goldsmith, pining away in his garret; to Cowper, haunted and consumed by MORRID SENSIBILITY. 363 what he calls "spiritual hounds" ; to Young, made the prey of disappointed ambition ; to Chatterton, galled and fret- ted, and finally rendered desperate, by the triple chain of poverty, pride, and infidelity; to Petrarch, bleeding and fainting under the secret wounds inflicted by the eye of beauty; to Henry Kirk White, immolating himself upon the altar of literary ambition; and to Burns, crying out, as he withers away in the furious flames of intemperance: " Oppressed with grief, oppressed with care, A burden more than I can bear ; I sit me down and sigh ! O life ! thou art a weary load, A long, a rough, a dreary road, To wretches such as I!" Nor can we in this connection forget Byron ; whose brain was maddened, rather than inspired, by the concentrated poison of every unholy passion ; and who, in writing Don Juan, his master piece of poetic blasphemy and impurity, roused that poison into ebullition, as a late writer declares, by the influence of gin and tobacco ! " O, his were not the tears of feeling fine, Of grief or love ; at fancy's flash they flowed, I.ike burning drops from some proud lonely pine By lightning fired ; his heart with passion glowed, Till it consumed his life ; and yet he showed A chilling coldness both to friend and foe, As Etna, with its centre an abode Of wasting fire, chills with the icy snow Of all its desart brow, the living world below." We think also of Montgomery, a spirit of a different stamp ; and we hear him exclaiming, as he looks up with the eye of faith from the depths of despondency : " Though long of winds and waves the sport, Condemn'd in wretchedness to roam, Live ! thou shalt find a sheltering port, A quiet home.11 364 ADDRESS. Pollok too recurs to the memory, pouring his vital ener- gies with careless profusion into the " Course of Time,"" and dying " As sets the morning star, Which goes not down behind the darkenM west, Nor hides obscured among the tempests of the sky, But melts away into the light of heaven.11 Here also we cannot but remember our own author of the " Age of Benevolence," destined to have been the Cowper of New England, had not disease early marked him for its prey ; yet probably that sensibility, which imparts the richest charm to his productions, was the result of the slow fire that was feeding upon his life. Indeed, in this excess of sensibility, the result of frail animal organization, or of deep seated, wounded passion, we have the founda- tion of the adage, Poeta nascitur, nonfit; and here too we learn the reason why poets have not generally lived so long as other classes of literary men. Poetical distinction, there- fore, will never be coveted by any scholar, who knows at what expence of happiness and life it must be purchased. Invalids should not. be discouraged. Let not the important connection between bodily vigor and mental acumen, induce the invalid scholar to conclude that the road to eminence is entirely closed against him. For many of this description have performed wonders, and risen so high, in spite of every obstacle, that the world has only lamented that such mental powers were lodged in so frail a tenement—that the sword was too keen for its scab- bard. But after all, it is idle for such minds to hope, that they can ever in this world, climb to the pinnacle of intel- lectual greatness, Let them be thankful, if God permits them to labor in a subordinate sphere, and look to another state of being for the full developement of their powers. NATIONAL DETERIORATION. 365 Correspondence between the physical and intellectual character of Nations. If we compare the physical and intellectual character of nations, we shall arrive at the same conclusion, in respect to the dependence of the latter upon the former, as has been deduced from the biographies of individuals. It is in that golden age of a nation's history, already described, when the bodily and mental powers are cultivated in due proportion, that genius has reared her noblest monuments. But when dietetic excesses, slothful habits, and excess of refinement, have given rise to a thousand factitious wants, a deterioration of the bodily powers succeeds among the mass of the community. This effeminacy and corporeal imbecility, react on the mind, weakening its powers and cramping its efforts. Hence it is, that in the luxurious and corrupt periods of a nation's history, we find so few instan- ces of intellectual vigor; the excepted cases, showing merely, that the individuals have escaped the general mor- bid influence. If we wish for examples, illustrative of these positions, we have only to recollect what Greece was before the time of Alexander, and what she has been ever since : Or to compare modern Egypt, with Egypt when she was the cradle of the sciences : Or Italy, in our days, with Italy in the Augustan age. Other causes have, indeed, conspired to produce such changes ; but it seems impossible to doubt that physical deterioration has been a fruitful source of moral, political, and intellectual degrada- tion. I proceed, in the third place, to remark, that to be eminent- ly USEFUL IN PROFESSIONAL LIFE, AT THE PRESENT DAY, RE- QUIRES A PECULIARLY VIGOROUS CULTIVATION OF THE PHYSI- CAL POWERS. The observations I have to make under this division of the subject, are so much more applicable to the ministerial than any other profession, that I shall confine them to this alone. 31* 366 ADDRESS. Little supertitious reverence, for the clerical offict at this day- Did the mass of society look upon the man who wears the clerical habit, as in a great degree they once did, and still do in some parts of the world—did they look upon him as a kind of etherial being, having little to do with human wants and passions, and necessarily profound in his acquirements, it might not be important for him to be ac- quainted with the common business of life. But the diffu- sion of knowledge at the present day, has, in a great meas- ure, divested the office of that mysterious sacredness which once surrounded it; and men have learned that real piety and learning, not the profession, give genuine dignity to the man ; and that human wants and passions do not forsake the body, when the clerical character is assumed. They expect, therefore, that the clergyman will be somewhat ac- quainted with those pursuits that minister to the animal wants. And if they find him thoroughly ignorant of these .pursuits, they impute it to a defect in his early education, rather than to a spiritualization of his nature, so entire, as to render him indifferent to all worldly concerns. Ministers must mingle familiarly with their parishioners. One important effect of modern changes in the literary character, and of improvements in the mode of instruction, is the bringing of every faithful minister of the gospel into closer contact, and more familiar intercourse, with his peo- ple. It will neither satisfy his conscience, nor the public, nor his heavenly Master, if he spends his time in cloistered retirement, appearing only on public occasions, and then under circumstances that produce a wide separation between him and his people. He must go among them, and mingle in familiar discourse with men of every grade and occupa- tion. Nor will he best promote the cause of truth, by lim- iting his conversation at all times, to subjects strictly relig- ious. But he will better conciliate the favor of his peo- ple conquer their prejudices, and prepare them to receive kindly religious instruction, if he can occasionally and sen- the clergyman's secular concerns. 367 sibly converse upon secular subjects ; especially concerning the every-day employments of those he visits. If ignorant of these, some will conclude him as likely to be ignorant of the true gospel. And when he urges in his public minis- trations, the danger of worldly attachments, the vanity of human pursuits, and the necessity of a supreme attention to spiritual concerns, many a hearer will say, "if our min- ister were himself acquainted with common worldly con- cerns, he would know that they demand a greater share of time and attention than he will now admit ; nor would he look upon them as so utterly vain and sinful. He would be convinced, that we cannot give so large a portion of our time, as he now claims, for public religious meet- ings, reading the scriptures, and private devotions." But if a people know their minister lobe thoroughly conver- sant with these secular affairs, they cannot thus evade the force of his exhortations. Ignorance of common affairs obstructs a clergyman's usefulness. Nor is this all. Such knowledge produces more respect for his character among his people : and from his familiar- ity with subjects out of his particular sphere of action, they will infer his better acquaintance with those to which he dedicates his principal attention. Whereas, his igno- rance of common worldly pursuits, exposes him to the shafts of ridicule from not a few in the community, who think it lawful to amuse themselves and others, by retail- ing the history of his odd management in secular affairs. And exaggerated as such stories usually are, it can hard- ly be denied, that the awkward manner in which some professional men manage their secular concerns, furnishes some foundation for their fabrication. In country parishes, every step the minister takes in these affairs, is scrutinized with even more vigilance than his religious performances. And when great ignorance in this respect is discovered, there are always enough to take advantage of it at the ex- 368 ADDRESS. pense of the minister's purse. Hence he soon finds his sal- ary insufficient for his support. But when he communi- cates the fact to his people, they are ready to impute his embarrassments to want of economy. And indeed, mis- management of pecuniary and domestic concerns, is very apt to put on the appearance of needless and criminal evtravagance ; although its foundation be simply ignorance. But whatever be its origin, it almosts infallibly weakens the confidence of a people in their minister, and by conse- quence, alienates his feelings from them ; so that a danger- ous wall of separation grows up between them. Whereas, if a people find their minister managing his domestic and pecuniary affairs with economy, prudence, and sagacity, it tends to strengthen their attachment to him, and to open a wider and more effectual door of usefulness. Now it is alone by an early attention to physical education, and that too, not merely in the gymnasium, but in the mechanic's shop, the garden, and on the farm, that the kind of knowl- edge and discipline can be gained, which are indispensable to prevent the difficulties I have described. A people may for a time be delighted with the brilliant talents and ardent piety of their youthful minister. But when he comes to be necessarily somewhat involved in secular affairs, if they find him incapable of judicious management; in other words, if they find that with all his fine sense, and exalted sense, he is wanting in common sense, one half of the charm with which they listened to him in public is broken, and his power over them proportionably diminished. More vigorous bodily health needed by ministers. But in the next place, the more vigorous bodily health and increased ability for labour, which would result from physical education, is a still stronger argument for un- tiring attention to it. The Christian church at the present day is losing a great amount of power, by the feeble health of her ministers. To meet a clergyman, indeed, especially of the younger class, DYSPEPTIC MINISTERS. 369 is come to be almost synonymous with meeting an invalid. And the very distinct and particular statement of their com- plaints, which most are ready to make at the first introduc- tion, is proof enough that dyspepsy is the difficulty. For it is strikingly characteristic of this complaint, that it disposes a man to spread his ailments and troubles before every one he meets; and he would feel as if great injustice were done him, were he to pass an hour in any one's society without such disclosure. Now the sentiment of Homer, that " the day which makes a man a slave, takes away half his worth,"* applies in all its force to the minister of Christ, who has be- come the slave of dyspepsy. If able still to retain his place, his duties are but imperfectly performed. The grass- hopper becomes a burden; and in musing so much upon his own troubles, he almost forgets those of his people. In his literary efforts, he is superficial; in resisting the progress of sin, he is timid ; in special efforts, he is deficient; in pa- rochial duties, extremely remiss; in his temper, he is apt to be unreasonably jealous, desponding, and capricious. In short, while sin and error are strong and flourishing around him, he is disheartened and inefficient; and all because he has as much as he can do to manage a broken constitution. Alas, multitudes by neglecting in early life to alternate la- bor with study, and to form habits of abstemiousness in liv- ing, prepare their systems for yielding to the slightest shock ; and when once plunged into the mire, they are most commonly wading through it all their days. Physical culture, not stimulants, shoulil be the clergyman s dependance. Since neglected physical culture is the cause of this wide spread prostration of ministerial enegy, the remedy must be sought in early, systematic, and persevering attention to such culture. He can accomplish nothing of importance, in literature or religion, who is in the habit of indulging, * Huiov y«t respectable character, of the same import: Some of them ac- knowledging the personal benefit derived from the adoption of the exact system of diet and regimen, which I have recommended. Perhaps I may be pardoned, for introducing the unsought opinion of a veteran in this cause, who has sustained a feeble constitution, to the verge of three- score years and ten, by the practice of the most thorough temperance. "The volume," says he, "ought to be in the hands of every student in our country ; especially of every theological student; of every clergy- man ; of every literary man ; and of thousands of others, who may equally profit by it. Indeed, all persons whatever, have a deep concern in the subjects of which it treats, whether they be at present, Dyspep- tics, or Eupeptics—whether deprived of health, or in the enjoyment of it. The former must and will—the latter should, be sensible of the val- ue of just views on these subjects. It is easier to forestal disease, than to cure—to preserve health, than to regain it. With regard to diet, it is possible, indeed, to be too exact and scrupulous, and even too abstemi- ous. This however, is an error, which is not often committed. You, certainly, have given it no countenance : but have pointed out that wise and felicitous course, which the best guides clearly indicated, as neces- sary to the enjoyment of bodily sanity, with all its attendant blessing's ; awl which, if seasonably adopted, and steadily pursued, may, by the blessing of God, be expected to conduct the life of man, in ordinary cas- es (as it did that of Cornaro,) with comfort and usefulness, to its ordinary bounds. 1 doubt not that the workwill be the means of prolonging use- ful life to the amount of hundreds and thousands of years, and will perhaps be far the most important and useful labor you ever have, or will have performed." " You must, however, expect to meet with resistance, if not with con- tempt, from certain sources, as the reward of your labors, in this good cause. It will not be at all aurprisingl if opposition be made to a temper- ance reform, with respect to food, as well as with respect to super stim- 32* 378 APPENDIX. ulating drinks. In manycases, it will doubtless be made, on the same prin- ciple, that is, from an unwillingness to relinquish habits ofundue indul- gence. But we must not abandon the hope, that efforts to deprive the monster of both his paws, will eventually be successful: and if your book is now decried by many, the time is coming, when it will be duly estimat- ed, and its doctrines meet with a welcome reception: for the time is coming, when " the inhabitants" even of this enthralled and miserable world, " shall not say, I am sick" ; which cannot be the case, until per- fect temperance shall be practised in both kinds. Intemperance in the use of food is now, doubtless, productive of fifty fold more sickness and deaths, than intemperance in the U3e of ardent spirits, great as that evil is, in the earth." Such a state of preparation as these facts indicate in the public mind, for listening to a system of temperance so strict and thorough, was to me totally unexpected ; and I cannot but thank God and take courage. I knew, indeed, that there were many individuals, scattered through th« land, who were decided advocates, and bright examples, of universal temperance : but I was not aware that the system, which 1 have urged, would meet with so little opposition. Perhaps that opposition may be yet slumbering in conscious security; and will perhaps yet rouse from its lethargy in giant strength. But the experiment I have made has satis- fied me that there are at least seven thousand men, who have not bowed the knee in idol worship, and who will form the Argyraspides of tem- perance. Reply to the Reviewers. Since the above note was writtten, the Christian Examiner for Nov. 1830, has fallen into my hands, containing a systematic and well writ- ten attack upon some of the leading principles of my Lectures. The writer of that article will be pleased to accept my thanks, for the gentle- manly, temperate, and ph losophical manner, in which he has, almost without exception, treated the subject. There are, however, several im- portant, though I trust unintentional misstatements, or some misappre- hension, of the views contained in the Lectures: These I wish first to point out, and then to state definitely, so far as I am able, wherein v.e differ. And since several of the same, or similar misstatements, are found in a review of t!iis work in The Spirit of the Pilgrims for Novem- ber, I may as well notice them along with those in the Examiner; al- though I had concluded to make no formal reply to the former, since the writer in The Spirit of the Pilgrims declares that he differs from me only " in some points of detail, but not in his great principles ;" and I thought it better to suffer something from a misapprehension of my meaning*, than to take an attitude, that might seem in opposition to one, whom, if I mistake not, I have often seen in the fore front of the battle with intempe- rance. The Examiner states, that in my Lectures " the objections against wine, opium, and tobacco, are represented as of the same nature, and nearly as great in degree, as those against ardent spirit. Entire absti- nence from the whole, is urged upon grounds almost identically the same, &c." (p. 239.) The Spirit of the Pilgrims also seems to understand me as "denouncing it [wine] in the same terms," as ardent spirit. Now to avoid being thus understood, I inserted thi* sentence at the commence- ment of my Prize Essay : "Of these articles, however, (viz. wine, opium, tobacco and spirit,) ardent spirit is .preeminent yi the work of destruc- tion; and, therefore, abstinence from thi3 is of preeminent importance." NOTE A. 379 In that i:«ay I grouped these articles together, only so far as they agree in their nature and effects; and then described subsequently, the pecu- liar effects of each : and certainly, the greater part of that Essay is de- voted to an exhibition of the evils of drunkenness; because these are far greater than the evils arising from the use of opium, tobacco, and even wine, in moderate quantities. Where then was the need of devot- ing several pages of the Examiner, to prove that the influence of ardent spirit was much more destructive than that of wine, &c. 1 I see no dif- ference on t lis point, surely, between me and either of the Reviewers. Their principal fear seems to be, that I shall embarrass and divide exist- ing Temperance Societies, by connecting the consideration of other sub- stances with that of alcohol. But I have stated expressly, (p. 2S, U-^ay,) that "I should consider it extremdy injudicious, and even Quixotic, for any Temperance Society to require total abstinence from these milder stimulants." The Reviewers seem not to have borne in mind, that my Lectures were addressed to students ; and I did urge them, to abandon all these articles. I urged them to conic at once to the u=e of water alone, as the only safe resting place of temperance; and I extended the invitation to every young inn. Nor can I believe that the Re\ ic. rs themselves would ob- ject to such a recommendation. As to " those more advanced in life," I said: "they cannot believe but that their constitutions require some of those bracing and cheering beverages, [wine, beer, cider, &c. ] Well, let them have them, if they will; but let not our young men neglect to set a noble example on this subject." (Lectures, p. 132.) Suppose these Re- viewers had sous at College ; would they not be ready to second this ad- \ ice, in respect to them ? ,£ The Examiner says : " It is wrong to speak of wine as producing dele- terious effects equal to those of that quantity of alcohol which may be procured fro>a it by distillation." And I say the same : nor can the wri- ter find any thing in my F" •-}, which maintains such an error. Surely, he could not have thought mc"ignorant of a fact which is found in almost every elementary book on Chemistry !" The Spirit of the Pilg.-i.ns thinks fh.it wine is not poisonous in its na- ture. I thin!: it is; and my argument on the subject is a short one.— Wine owes its peculiar properties almost entiicly to the presence of alco- hol. .\ow alcohol is poisonous in its nature : and, therefore, win." is poisonous. For no dilution can change the nature of a substance; and all must admit, that the alcohol—at lc.ist, a part of it—exists iaaf.ee state in the wine. True, vine is less poisonous thai pure alcohol; be- cause it is so greatly diluted, and perhaps partly neutralized, by other Mibst inces. If in this state it may be used for years in moderate quan- tities, without any apparent injury, and even perhaps with decided benefit, so may arsenic be employed, much dilute,1;, i.i the same manner, and with lil-e effects. Tint who thinks, therefore, of s.iying that any mixture con- taining arsenic in a free state, is not poisonous .' But after all, 1 suspect, tint practically considered, the difference \,r ■ twecn mc and the Reviewers on the subject of wine, is much less than thev rir>po3;\ True, I urge- temporat^ men, to abandon the use of wine altogether : but I had reference to the wines generally sold in this coun- try ; which the Examiner declares to be "vile mixtures," "having all the essential qualities of ardent spirits ;" and the Spirit of the Pilgrims calls " a treat proportion of the wines sold in our country," "a vicious counterfeit, a drugged, adulterated mixture, variously prepared accord- ing to the skill and taste of the manufacturer, and which cannot bo too cautiously meddled with." Thus far then, we agree. And in respect to 380 APPENDIX. "the pure liquid" or "real wine," which the Reviewers recommend, I have remarked, (p. 45, Essay,) that " in those countries where the grape is cultivated, the use of wine is equivalent to the use of cider in those countries where apples are abundant." Now in respect to cider, I have merely said, that it would be Letter for the student not to drink it, just because water was a better and sufficient beverage ; but the common and general use of cider among other classes, I have said nothing about: And if the Reviewers will engage that henceforth ' the pure liquid,' 'the real wine,' shall be substituted throughout our country, for the 'vile mixtures,' the ' vicious counterfeits,' which are now sold in fortynine cases out of fifty, I will place the use of such wine on a par with that of cider, and write no more Essays against it. But it is idle to expect that such a substitution can ever take place. Why then should we con- tend about the use of a substance, which never has been, and probably ne- ver will be used, by one in ten thousand of our population 1 We might as well quarrel about the use of the fabled nectar.* I protest against the effort of the Examiner to bring odium upon a certain class of the friends of temperance, who are there called " over zealous partizans," by constituting me their representative : since I had explicitly stated in my Preface, that I alone was responsible for the opin- ions advanced in the Lectures. At the time they were published, I knew not that one individual in the United States would coincide with me in my views, because I had not consulted an individual. This con- fession may show me to have been presumptuous; but it shows, also, that no other man, or class of men, ought to be charged with my faults. I did profess, indeed, to represent the opinions of a numerous class of most worthy and distinguished men in various ages: but it was much easier to excite a prejudice against an unpopular class of men, now liv- ing, than to rebuff the authority, example, and arguments, of distin- guished philosophers and physicians. The Reviewers appear to be very apprehensive lest efforts like mine, should injure the cause of temperance in respect to ardent spirit, and produce divisions among its friends. Now the longer I live, the more thoroughly convinced am I, that honesty is the best policy; andthatafull devclopement of the truth, must, in the end, be beneficial. And I have en- deavoured only to do this; that is, to state exactly the comparative valuo of the different kinds of food and drink. If I have not done this correctly, it is easy to prove me erroneous. But in spite of the effort of the Ex- aminer to prove that no very bad consequences result from the use of wine and tobacco, and from dietetic excesses ; I still remain of the same opinion : and my reasons for this opinion are contained in the Lectures, unrefuted. But I ask no other man to believe with me, unless he is sat- isfied that I am right. I do not come before the public, as "the repre- sentative " of any influential and numerous class of the community ; but merely as a solitary individual, expressing my opinions solely on my own personal responsibility. What ground then, has any one to fear the ef- fects of my efforts, unless he fears that my arguments have so much weight in them as to produce conviction in unprejudiced minds ? As to throwing an apple of discord among the friends of temperance, by urging them to apply their principles in every respect, and thus be consistent, it seems to me to be a groundless apprehension. Who shall begin the schism? Not those of us who think it a duty to abjure wine, * Some judicious remarks may be found on this subject, in the Rer. Mr. Palfrey's Sermon on " Poisoned Drinks." See Liberal Preacher for August, 1830. NOTE A. 381 tobacco, and opium, as well as ardent spirit; and to avoid excess in diet. For we "should consider it extremely injudicious, and even quixotic," to endeavour to bind others to the same abstemious rules. And we re- joice that others will go as far with us as to abandon that substance, which is "preeminent in the work of destruction ;" feeling a strong con- fidence,that as they reflect on the subject, they will ere long be constrain- ed, by an application of the same principles, to forsake every "poisoned drink" and dietetic excess. And they surely will not fall out with us, because we judge it to be a duty to extend our principles of temperance over a wider field than they do; so long as we use no weapons but ar- gument and persuasion to bring them into the same opinion. The Reviewers have misapprehended and misstated some of my views in respect to food as well as drink. The Spirit of the Pilgrims " thinks the author sometimes over estimates the magnitude and extent of the evils, arising from an excess in eating, (those from drinking spirits can hardly be over estimated;") because I asserted that disease in most cases, (that is, as explained in the next sentence, " in a majority of in- stances") is the consequence of intemperance in diet." But by the term "excess in diet" the Reviewer means excess in food merely: but I in- cluded excess in drinking also, agreeable to my definition on page 19th —" Under Diet, I shall include all that is taken into the system in the form of food and drink." In giving this latitude to the word diet, I fol- lowed the authority of Dr. Paris, who, in his treatise "On Diet," includes both food and drink. Now as the Reviewer says that "the evils of drink- ing spirits can hardly be over estimated," I do not see that there is any disagreement between us, except in the use of terms. But the most important misstatement, or caricature of my views in re- spect to diet, is found on the pages of the Examiner. " His views," says the writer, are founded upon certain general and very important truths; but he carries all his doctrines to an unreasonable extent. He draws the reins too close. He does not allow enough for difference of constitu- tion and the effects of previous habits. He would bring all men down too much to one uniform standard of living ; and this standard he would fix at the lowest quantity and simplest quality. He has long been a dyspeptic himself, and seems disposed to measure the constitution of others by his own. There is in fact a very considerable latitude, both as to quantity and quality of food, which is consistent with perfect health." And who denies that such 'latitude' is found among men? I have not denied it: but on the other hand have said (p. 34 Lectures) that " the man who is in vigorous health demands more than the feeble invalid— be who exercises vigorously abroad, more than the man confined to his study, or his shop—the middle aged man more than the infant or the aged &o;" and that "it is by all admitted that there is some "difference in the quantity of food and drink necessary for those individuals simi- larly situated." The rules which I have given for regulating the diet, do not "bring all men down to one uniform standard," either as to the quan- tity, or variety of their food. I have said, (p. ^7, Lectures,) that "I would not be understood as condemning a variety in the diet. I care not, if a man find a new dish for every meal through the year ; provid- ed lie use them all in moderation &c." I merely object to a variety of dishes at any one meal. The rule which I have given, as to quantity, is, that it " should be very moderate at any one meal i" and by this I understand, " that quantity which physicians, and those in different situations and ages of the world, who have made a fair trial, have found most conducive to vigor and activity of body and mind, continued health and long life." And I recommend to every man to cat as much as is 382 APPENDIX- necessary to accomplish these important objects ; whether it require only the daily 12 ounces of Cornaro, or any other quantity, up to the Esqui- maux's repast of ten pounds. I do not prescribe any particular amount of food that will answer for all men, or any class of men, except merely as a convenient mode of commencing a system of diet. What greater latitude than this, can any one demand ? We shall soon see, how- ever, that the Reviewer thinks this not to be enough. The Examiner says, that I have " long teen a dyspeptic myself and seem disposed to measure the constitution of others by my own." This resort to the argumentum ab invidia, by a writer so philosophical and dignified in general, will have the effect on reasonable men, only to lead them to the conclusion,that he must have felt himself peculiarly hard pres- sed in this part of his subject. I asserted (p. 126, Lectures,) that " I had not talcen my own experience as the infallible guide, expecting that ev- ery man must come up precisely to my standard in diet, exercise and employment; and that "derived as they (the rules of diet, &c) are, from the principles of philosophy and medicine, and the testimony of general experience, I have not dared to give them any other form, even when they seemed at variance, (as in a few minor cases they did,) with my own particular, and limited experience." Probably, however, the Re- viewer thought it unnecessary to pay any attention to the testimony of a dyspeptic on this point. But were all the philosophers, divines, and physicians, whom I quoted so liberally, and whose system of diet, in- deed, I professed to give, instead of my own, were all these dyspeptics through their long lives ? If they were not, it was surely much the easi- est way to answer their arguments, and put down their authority, to con- sider me as their " representative," and then raise the laugh againts me by labelling me "a dyspeptic !" But notwithstanding all the misapprehensions of my meaning, that have been pointed out, there is obviously a radical difference of opinion on the subject of diet, between me and the writer in the F.xaminer. I maintain that the proper quantity of food is only that " which physicians, and those indifferentsituations and ages in the world, who have made a fair trial, have found most conducive to vigor and activity of body and mind, continued health and long life :" and that " he, who eats or drinks more than is necessary to give to the body and mind the greatest degree of health and vigor, is intemperate." But the Reviewer maintains, that "the stomach and nutritient organs, have the power of rceiving and di- gesting a good deal more than what is barely enough, and that without any embarrassment." "The organs themselves on which the labor first and chiefly falls, viz. the digestive—gradually become so accustomed to the increased labor, that they perform it as easily as that which origin- ally belonged to them.",—" We must confess that we have no symphathy whatever with the doctrine which would deny to those in health a moderate indulgence of the natural appetites."— But how much is " a good-deal more than what is barely enough 1" will be the natural enquiry of every reflecting mind. " Let us not be understood" " says the reviewer," as carrying this doctrine to an un- limited extent"—"This power of accommodation in our system, can be carried only to a certain extent." But lay your finger upon the exact point to which we may indulge our appetites. Point out to us the exact " medium speed at which the engine should be driven to get from it the greatest amount of work, consistently with the safety of the machine." Aye, there is the difficulty in this system. The Reviewer evidently feels it; and he at length says, that "the difficulty is in determining, with regard to each individual, what the measure of excess is. A great diffi- NOTE A. 383 culty it is ; one indeed which we cannot well get over—so much do con- stitutions differ, and so remote may be the evil consequences of excess." But if the limits between moderation and excess cannot be defined, and in strong lines too—then every man is left to eat and drink just so much, and in such variety, as his appetite, whetted and rendered unnatural by cookery and the habits of society, or chronic disease, may demand. Such a rule, will undoubtedly be well received by all who are unwilling to put the reins upon appetite. But every one who has anyjust sense of the dietetic excesses so common in this country, will see that it is a dan- gerous principle. Indeed, the Reviewer himself becomes alarmed before he finishes. " We beg," says he, " that what has thus been said in expla- nation of a principle which is as true in a physiological point of view, as it is beneficial in its operation on the physical, moral and intellectual powers of our race, may not be perverted or misconstrued so as to serve as an apology, in any degree, for indulgence." This is like letting go the reins of a high-spirited horse, and then entreating him not to run too fast, while at the same time the spur and the whip are applied at every step. I hope that every man, before he settles down in the adoption of this rule of the Reviewer, and rejects mine, as to diet, will apply still more carefully the arguuuntuin a tuto. If my rule allows food and diink enough to give the greatest amount of health and strength to the phys- ical and intellectual powers, surely there can be no danger in its adop- tion. But it is a fact that multitudes do brutalize themselves by dietetic excesses, if they are left to indulge themselves as far as can be done, in their opinion, without going to excess ; th-.it is, if they follow the Re- viewers rule. Admit then, that by the first system, the pleasures of eating and drinking are much diminished, when compared with the other. Yet surely, in the mind balances an ounce of safety in such a case, will outweigh a pound of gratification. But it is not true, that rigid abstemiousness diminishes the pleasure derived fro m eating and drinking ; although both the Examiner and the Spirit of the Pilgrims take it for granted that such is the fact. On the contrary, it is the universal testimony of all, who have practiced such abstemiousness, that the mere pleasure of eating and drinking has been thereby greatly enhanced ; and that not merely while they were recov- ering from dyspepsy, but through long lives of almost uninterrupted health. And many of these men had for years tried all the pleasures to be found in Epicurism ; and therefore, could form a correct opinion.— "The restriction which I propose," says Dr. J. Johnson, "is so far from being the imposition of a pcnance,that it is in reality the removal of one." Indeed, there can be no doubt, that even during the time of his meals, the man who partakes but sparingly and of a single dish, enjoys more pleasure than the unlicensed eater ; how much then, must the balance be in his favor, when all things are taken into the account! This will probably sound paradoxical to multitudes ; but they have only to adopt •uch a temperate course, to be convinced that this is no exaggeration. They will be satisfied that even the animated language of Cornaro on this subject is but a faithful transcript of his feelings. The argument of the Examiner, to provethat a man may with impuni- ty " indulge his natural appetites" as to diet, beyond what health and •trength strictly require, which he ingeniously derives from the cultiva- vation of fruits and flowers, from the domestication of animals, and the improved condition of man in a civilized state, merely proves that Una •ivilizcd state is more favorable to long life and happiness, than a savag« condition. But it proves nothing how far this superiority is to b« attrib- 384 APPENDIX. uted to diet. For a multitude of other modifying and powerful causes are to be taken into the account. And I maintain, that were it not for the monstrous dietetic excesses of civilized man, these causes would ren- der the civilized state vastly more prolific in health, longevity, and hap- piness. I derive proof of this, from observing the effects of strict tem- perance on an individual; and then imagining the like temperance to be practised by all the community. That the digestive organs may be educated to dispose of a larger quantity of aliment, than is necessary for mere health and strength, and that without any apparent embarrassment, I am willing to admit. But what is the true philosophy of this subject ? It depends upon two well established physiological principles, which apply to the vegetable,as well as the animal kingdom. The first is, that one organ of a plant, or animal, may be unduly strengthened and extended, at the expense of the others. Thus, (to take an example quoted by the Examiner,) the rose, which has naturally but five petals, may be made by cultivation, to produce ten times as many ; but this increase is at the expense of the stamens : for these are converted into petals, and thus the plant is rendered incapable, ever afterwards, of producing perfect seeds. Hence the botanist con- siders such a change'as unnatural—as a deterioration ; and the flower as a monster; although he would hardly say that the health of the plant was impaired. We frequently observe the like changes produced in animals by do- mestication. And this is most commonly the secret source of that pow- er, which the digestive organs acquire, for converting a large amount of food into nourishment. This is clearly stated by Charles Londe, an able French physician, in his recent work on Hygiene.* "At other times," says he, " and particularly when the habit of eating a great deal has been acquired gradually, the stomach and intestines by their exercise, acquire a real energy and actual predominance over all the organs of the system ; principally over those whose functions are related. The senses, the brain, and the muscles, lose their activity and cease to be developed. The power of excitement seems to fail in all the organs, and its whole force to be concentrated in the stomach." It seems then, that the man, who educates his digestive organs to re- ceive more food than is necessary to the system,may expect that the other organs will suffer inconsequence; particularly the senses and the brain, organs on whose healthy function, the intellectual powers are so depen- dent. This principle deserves the serious consideration of every litera- ry man. These organs and the mind will indeed suffer in proportion to the degree of the excess in eating; yet I cannot conceive why these ef- fects, in some degree, do not follow, when the least amount of food is taken beyond what the system actually demands. The other principle of physiology, to which I refer, as connected with the philosophy of this subject, is this: All the parts of the vegetable or animal system, may be developed more fully and rendered more vigorous by the application of rich and stimulating nourishment; but such de- velopement will shorten the duration of LIFE. Such nourishment acts as a stimulus to the excitability of the system, and thus urges on, with an accelerated step, all the powers of life. Thus a fruit tree, by the application of manure and other means of cultivation, may be made prolific in flowers and fruit, from a stinted and barren stock; but its life will be proportionably shortened. So the horse, by a large supply of *Noveaux Elemens D'Hygiene, par. M. Charles Londe, Tome Pre- mier, Deuxieme Partie, p. 13. Paris, 1827. NOTE A. 385 Ci ore nourishing food, and careful discipline, will become largcr,morc mus- cular and spirited, and capable of greater efforts; but he will the sooner wear out. And just so the man who takes a large supply of rich and nourishing food, and vigorously exercises every part of his system, may seem to improve in health, strength, appearance, and spirits; and for a time to accomplish more of physic al labor perhaps, than if his food had been simpler in kind and less in quantity; though his intellectual efforts will probably be diminished. But the system thus goaded on to extra efforts by strong stimuli, will the sooner yield to decay.* The philosophy of the subject, then, amounts to this. God has given to every human constitution a certain amount of power, beyond what is necessary for keeping the machine in perfect health; and each .one can use this power according to his choice, by applying stimuli to what may be called the excitability of his system. If a man chooses to concen- trate this power- in the digestive organs, so as to enjoy the pleasures of luxury, lie can do it; but not without proportionably reducing the pow- er of the other organs, and impeding the operations of his mind. Or if he choo.se to set the wheels of life in more rapid motion, and to add en- ergy to every organ, and every physical effort, this too he can accom- plish. But he must remember, that he will so much the sooner exhaust the fire of life. Indeed, I maintain, that he can neither eat nor drink, more than is sufficient for sustaining the body and the mind in health, but at the expense of some of his bodily, and all his mental powers, or by>4he sacrifice of long life and serenity. No notice is taken by the Examiner, of the religious considerations by which I have urged the adoption of a rigid, though healthy system of diet; alas, the same may be said of the Spirit of the Pilgrims. Even if it be true, that a. man may eat and drink more than health and strength require, without injury, yet I maintain that the Christian is bound to deny himself such a gratification, for the sake of promoting the benevo- lent operations of the times, and advancing the Redeemer's kingdom. For were only professing Christians to adopt this system, it would b"ing to bear upon the movements of benevolence, an amount of physi- ca', pecuniary, moral, and intellectual power, that would be felt to the ends of the < a>th. And it is the Christian's duty to present his body a living sacrifice to the cause of his Redeemer. But the Reviewer does not seem to have sympathy enough with such an argument as this, cm n to allude to it. No wonder then, that he should see so much of "exaggeration" in the Lectures : that he should feel that "the reins are drawn too close ;" and that he pleads so earnestly for "a moderate in- dulg-ence of the animal appetites." * "Culture and art, upon the whole, shorten life; and it may be ad- mitted as a general principle, that in general all wild plants left to them- selves, live longer than those which are cultivated." "The more cultivation strengthens intensive life, and internal con- sumption, and at the same time makes the organization more delicate, the more is it prejudicial to the duration of life. This we observe to be the case in all hot house plants, which by warmth, dunging, and other arts, are forced to a continual internal activity, &c." Hvj;i„nds Art of Prolonging Life, Vol. J. pp. 87 7 aphorisms, he can surely find stimulus enough to keep him in countenance : Or if not, he can appeal to Dr. Brown's own example : or if both should fail him, he need only resort to the article on Longevity, in the American Quarterly Review for December, 1830, 388 APPENDIX. As a class, I sincerely believe that no part of the community arc so much distinguished for temperance in eating and drinking, as physi- cians ; and I believe this is eminently true of the body of physicians, now alive in this country. Time was, indeed, when it was thought, that from their peculiar temptations, the proportion of intemperate drink- ers in this class was unusually large. But the noble stand they have recently taken on this subject, has effectually effaced this stigma. And as to excess in food, I am confident that no other portion of our citizens is so little guilty of it. Still, it would be folly to expect that even among able physicians, serine should not have a strong relish for the luxuries of the table : or that their love of good living, should not in- fluence their opinions in opposition to very strict dietetic rules—"Un- fotunately," says an able physician of our own country, in addressing his professional brethren—" in all our attempts to abolish practices pre- judicial to the best interests of man, we are compelled, in the outset, to encounter our own hive terate habits—habits which rise up in mutiny against reformation, and with clamorous note forbid us to proceed"— " Who can count the multitudes yearly consigned to the tomb by the indulgence of a fastidious and unnatural appetite ? Headaches, flatu- lencies, cholics, dyspepsias, palsies, apoplexies, and death, pursue the Epicurean train, as ravens follow the march of an armed host, to prey on those who fall in the "battle of the warrior, with their garments rolled in blood." The truth of this statement will not be questioned; yet where is the physician, possessing sufficient moral courage to raise his voice against the system of modern cookery.*" The enjoyment of vigorous health, or want of personal experience in dyspepsy, may essentially influence the opinions of physicians, as well as other men, on the subject of dietetic rules ; and lead them to the con- clusion, that men need no rules for eating and drinking, but to follow nature. I care not how extensive or accurate may be their knowledge of medicine ; if they have never known any thing of this complaint from personal experience, they cannot judge as accurately of the means of its prevention and cure, as if they had felt its withering touch in their own persons. Hence it is, that you never find men of personal experi- ence in this malady, among those, who maintain, that " the man who constantly aims at directing his diet and regimen by fixed rules, is overwhelmed with dyspepsia." Such men as Dr. Johnson in England, and Dr. Avery in this country, who speak from painful experience, will rather say, " it would be well for those in the enjoyment of present health, if they employed the rigid system which I have proposed, as a preservative of that invaluable bles-ing."t Can any- reasonable being expect health without scrupulously avoiding the causes which impair it?"* In view of these various causes, operating to warp the opinion of med- ical, as well as other men, the wonder is, iiotthat we meet with here and there a physician, who joins the popul ir slang against dietetic rules, but that we meet with no more. The fewness of their number is, in- deed, highly creditable to the profession ; especially when we consider that nothing could be more injurious to their business, than the general adoption of the very system of diet arid regimen which most of them re- commend ; though as old Cheyne says, they can have no great reason to * Mc. Allister's Dissertation on Tobacco, p. 8, t Morbid Sensibility &c. p. 115, t Dyspeptic Monitor, p. 84, NOTE C. 389 I>c alarmed on this point, " when the Devil, the World and the Flesh are on the other side of the question, which have stood their ground against the rules of life and immortality brought to light by the even gospel." NOTE C. PAGE 31. Additional examples of abstemiousness in diet, and the consequent health of body and mind. Rev. Dr. Hugh Blair. " Though his bodily constitution was by no means robust, yet by habitual temperance, and by attention to health, his life was happily prolonged beyond the usual period. During the summer before ms death l.e was occupied in preparing the last volume of his sermons tor the prcs<; and for this purpose he copied the whole with his own hanu. It seemed to give him much pleasure, that, at his advanced period ot life, he was able to make this exertion. .He di--d in the 83d year olhis age and the 59th of his ministry." Journal of Health, Vol. 1, p. <5J9. John Wesley. The case of the celebrated John Wesley is a striking one : but it will l,e foui'd in my Address delivered at Audo\er, inserted in this volume, p. 371. Se\ eral other similar instances will be quoted in these Notes. Case of a young man inclining io consumption. The following interesting example has been furnished by an esteemed correspondent. , . "I am acauainted with the case of a young man, who for some time Lad been in a very precarious state of health, apparently on the verge of phthisis pulmonalh, (consumption,) who has perfectly recovered, by the u-e of a diet consisting solely of bread made of wheaten meal, with- out separating any part of the bran, and using no other liquid but pure w iter This simolc diet he still uses of choice, and cheerfully foregoes all other luxui i-s, for the benefits which he derives from it. This diet, miffht howev. !,!<• rendered more palatable, in the estimation of other imalius, without diminishing its salubrity, by adding a little milk to the water ; and if desired, a little sugar ; and the bread toasted and infused. V/ith such a diet a prince might even be ^!i.-yicd.u Sir Isaac Xewio", %nd John I^ocke. " \- -m i ci I' v 1-- tem-cr.ii.ce, kt it be recollected, that Sir Isaac Newton, when'composing his celebrated treatise upon Optics, confined himself to w.ter and a vegetable diet: to this abstemious mode of hy- in-.-, probably may be ascribed the great age, mv eighty five years, to which he attained. John Locke, too, died iu the 1^ year of Ins age ; his common drink was water, which he justly considered as the cause of his life being prolonged to so great an age, notwithstanding the nat- ural feebleness of his constitution, &c»—Dr Hosack's Address. 33* 390 APPENDIX. Dr. Franklin and Dr. Rush. " Dr. Franklin and the late Dr. Rush, afford additional examples to show how much may be accomplished (in the latter case, even in a slender frame of body,) by temperance both in eating and drinking."—■ Dr. Hosack's Address before the Xrw York Temperance Society.—Sec Journal of Humanity fur August I'Jth, 1830. Effingham and Hendcr. J. Effingham, an Englishman!, lived 14-1 years. " In his youth, he never drank strong heating liquors ; he always lived remarkably tem- perate, and seldom ate flesh." Hendcr, of the Duchy of Holstcin, lived 103 years, "an industrious day laborer." " His food, for the most part, was nothing but oat-ineal and butter-milk."—Hufelands Art of Prolonging Life, Vol. 1, p. 115. Case of the English Quaker. " I could relate many instances of persons who were much emaciated, some of whom were of considerable stature, becoming muscular and fat upon four ounces of the most nourishing and easily digestible food, taken three times a day. A patient lately gave me the following account of his own proceedings with respect to diet. He said, "when thou toldest me to weigh my food, I did not tell thee that I was in the habit of weigh- ing myself, and that I had lost 14 pounds weight per month, for many months before I saw thee. By followmg thine advice, I have got rid of what thou didst consider a very formidable local malady ; and upon thy allowance of food, I have regained my flesh, and feel as competent to ex- ertion as formerly, though I am not indeed so fat as I used to be. I own to thee, that as I got better, I thought thy allowance rather scanty, and being strongly tempted to take mure food, I did so ; but I continued in the practice of weighing myself, and found that I regularly lost weight upon an increased quantity of food, wherefore, I returned to that which was prescribed tome."—Abernethy, as quoted by Rcece,in his Dissertation on Costiveness, p. 101. The following case, from the Boston Recorder of IlS30, scents worthy of insertion : A Russiaii peasant. In April last there died at Plcskow, in the government of Novogorod, Russia, a farmer named M. ichofsky, who had attained the wonderful age of 105 years. He led a very sober life. He never ate meat more than twice a week. At 120 he still labored in the field, and only desisted on account of a sprain in the foot. He has left 4 children, 30 grand chil- dren, and lb great grand children. His mother lived to the age of 117, and one of his sisters to 112, but his father died at 52. Mr. Horry. "Many years ago travelling in South Carolina, I fell in with a Mr. Horry, the brother of general Horry of revolutionary fame. He told me he was the oldest man in St. Johns, Colleton, and had seen the parish buried three times over. I observed to him that he must have been blessed with an excellent constitution. He said no, quite the reverse__ had his constitution been good, he should have been dead long ago. I asked him how he explained that. He said he should have done as NOTE C. 391 others lie was raised with, did—attended chilis, dinners and hunts— but he was always compelled to take care of his health, and live tem- perately, while others, presuming on the strength of their constitutions, put them to trials which they could not endure. He observed that the most robust people in South Carolina were generally the first to die."— —Journal of Health vol. 1. p. 357. Ancient Philosophers. "The following list of long lived persons among the ancients, is intro- duced by Van I looven, with the remark of Lucian, that it may be useful, " by showing that they who took the most care of their bodies and their minds, enjoyed the longest lives, accompanied with the best health.' " Hippocrates lived 109 years : Empedoclcs 109 : Georgius 107 : Xen- ophilus 105 : Pythagoras, who it is stated, never knew satiety, reached the age of 100. Zeno lived to 98, a stranger to disease, and never incom- moded by a real indisposition. His life, we arc told, was an example of sobriety and moderation : his manners were austere ; and to his tem- perance and regularity, he was indebted for the continued flow of health which he enjoyed. Laertius, when he lost his life, was 90 ; and Dioge- nes died when in his 90th year. Pyrrho, remarkable for the command which he held over all his passions and feelings, lived also 90 years. Joscphus informs us, that the age of the Jewish recluses was almost in- variablyprolonged to one hundred years ; and this he accounts for from their simple diet and mode of living."---lournal of Health, vol. ± p. 31. Examples in Contrast. Gluttony never was carried to such an awful pitch of extravagance, ashy many of the Roman Emperors. The memory of every one, at all conversant with history, recurs at once to the names of Nero, Hcl- io'rabalus, and Vitellius; whose table expenses for eight months are Baid to have exceeded 30,000,0U0 of dollars. The three Apicii too, who were Roman citizens, must not be forgotten in this connection : the mo.-t notorious of whom, is called by Pliny, " nepotum omnium altissi- mus gutges"—" the deepest whirlpool of all spend thrifts." The history of the life and death of such men, affords an instructive commentary on the annals of temperance. Frederick the great. Perhaps the follow ing account of this distinguished prince, from a Medical Review, will be as instructive as that of any modern gour- mand. " Frederic the Great, King of Prusia, was often afflicted, (as wt 11 he iiiurht be,) with complaints of the stomach and bowels. His physician, Dr? Zimmerman, visited him one morning, and pi escribed his favorite remedy, the juice of dandelion. His majesty promised to take the medicine and requested the doctor to repeat his visit at 3 o'clock. The medicine was taken with good effect aucl'at dinner the king acquitted himself as follows ; First, he ate a large quantity of soup, composed of Btron°-, and extremely hot ingredients, to which he added, as usual, a lurov5 spoonful of ginger, nutmeg and other spices, after this he ate heartily of bouilli a' la A'h.w (a' la Russe ; that is to say, prepared af- ter the Russian manner, with a pint of spirits.") After this, an Italian di bed in -apparent good health, after having enjoyed a hearty supper," and so forth. " It has been thought," says Dr. Fothergill, "that more people suihr by hard drinking than immoderate citing. My observation leads me to take the opposite side.— Rce» Cyclopedia, Article, Dirt. The effects of the habits of civilized life in producing disease, are thus enumerated by an eloquent French writer : " The extreme irregularity in the mode of living, the excessive labors which consume the bodies and break down the spirits of the poor, the still more dangcious softness which enfeebles the rich, destroying the one by their wants, and the other by their excess ; the ease with which sensuality can be excited and gratified, the too luxurious food of the rich, the monstrous mixtures, the pernicious seasonings, which stimu- late and overwhelm them with indigestion ; the bad and often insuffi- cient nourishment of the poor ; the .-yoilcd provisions, the sophisticated NOTE D, 393 drugs ; the knavery of those who sell, and the errors of those who ad- minister them ; the want of rest, the violent passions which agitate and exhaust us, the chagrins and vexations incidental to all conditions, are so many fatal proofs that most of our ills are our own work, and might have been avoided by adhering to the simple, uniform, and solitary life, prescribed by nature." "The history of the young savage of Aveyron,'' says Rec3' Cyclope- dia, "strikingly illustrates several of the for. ging remarks. In his wild state he bore the cold of the severest winter without any clothing, and could remain, when he was first taken, for several hours together in the winter, exposed half naked to wind and rain on the wet turf. He refused highly seasoned dishes and strong liquor, even when very hun- gry, and ate at first only potatoes, acorns, and raw chesnuts. His civili- zation went on so rapidly and successfully that in a few months he had three severe colds, and soon after became subject to epileptic fits." " A friend, says Sir John Sinclair, spe.ddng of the Irish beys, whom he employed on his farm or in his stable, remarks : 'At first, they were lively and intelligent, exceeding what is generally met with in youths of a more exalted walk of life in England. But in proportion as these boys were better fed, they universally relaxed in activity, and became dull and stupid.' "* Dyspeptic1 s Monitor. During the past year, a work of great merit lias appeared in New York, by Dr. Asery, entitled The Dyspeptic's Monitor. To this gentle- man's personal experience I shall probably refer in another place. Af- ter -ayin»- that his work ought to be in the hands of every nervous in- valid 'in tiic country, I shall in this place quote only his remarks upon the effects of excess in eating; and particularly upon the excesses of this description in our own country ; which must be regarded as of pe- culiar weight, from his extensive opportunities of observation. " What occasions," says he, "two thirds of all the inflammatory and febrile diseases .' but causes in th cmselvts not serious, operating upon a system highly suscej tiblc of diseased action from being overcharged with stimulating and nutritious matter." Page 73. "All our most eminent physicians agree in this one point, that asa people we eat far too much hearty food ; that is, we take in more rich nutriment than wc require, and the consequence is, our system becomes overloaded and oppressed, our organs are clogged in the performance of their several functions, the circulating fluids become too t!uck and stimulating, and the proi.encss to derangement and diseased action trreafly increased. Hence arises a l.ir.-.- pt ..portion of the inflammatory and febrile diseases amongst us, and h. nee it is that copious blood-let- ting and active medicines are so much more requred in America, t;;an in 'most other countries," &c. Page in'. . . " It has been stated that indigestion is exceedingly prevalent in this country. Considerable observation induces me to believe that it is far more so, than in any other, not even excepting England ; where it pro- bably exists to a greater extent, than in any other part of Europe, —@Q©— NOTE K. PAGE 80. Dyspeptics must abjure every article that does not agree with them. It is not only almost impossible to convince a voracious dyspeptic, that he eats too much, but nearly as difficult to persuade him, that a great variety is not necessary for him. He is always venturing a little beyond the limits of strict temperance ; and in that way does be defeat NOTE L,. 401 all the good effects of regimen. You often see such a man, after going through a long course of medicine, or finishing a long journey, throw himself back into as bad a condition as ever, by indulging for once on- ly, in some variety of food which past experience has taught him is hoe- tile to his constitution. But until such a man firmly resolves not even to touch those articles which he has found by experience, or which phy- sicians tell him, are of difficult digestion, he cannot obtain any perma- nent relief. So long as he is daily inquiring, may I eat a little of this cake, or this sweetmeat, or any thing else that does not agree with him, he must be content to bear the burdens of dyspepsy. " He must make up his mind," says a physician, "to live entirely on such food as will ugrce with him, and not even taste any thing else."—"The resolution must be taken and religiously adhered to, or health is out of the ques- tiiin."—" All the remedies on earth will not restore tone to the stomach while it is daily overloaded with food which from quality or quantity it cannot digest."—" Does he look with horror upon the man who deliber- ately seeks death at the mouth of the pistol ? or with disgust upon him who immolates himself at the shrine of Bacchus ? while he is as surely though more slowly, committing suicide by indulging in eating ?"*— Alas ! how few dyspeptics will suppose that these remarks apply to their case ! The fact is, most persons of this character have become real epi- cures, as much attached to their savory and high seasoned food, as any practised gourmand ; and the wonder is, not that they are dyspeptic, but that they are alive. NOTE L. PAGE 91. Another example illustrative of the good effects of occasional abstinence or fasting. " Alexander Avery, of Johnston county, N. C. is one of the only two surviving members of the Congress which framed the constitution of North Carolina in 1776. I think he is now about ninetyfive years old. Twenty years ago he told me he had never been bled, nor had taken medicine in his life. His remedy for every complaint, (diseases he had few,) was to abstain entirely from food until he found himself well or had mi appetite. He has sometimes fasted nearly a week. He is of a thin habit of body, and while I knew him, had the appearanee of a frail constitution."—Journal of Health, Vol. I. p. 356. Abstinence a substitute for bleeding, sweating, or taking a cathartic. " Much of the administration of medicines might be superseded, would mankind submit their appetites in a somewhat greater degree to the control of reason ; and Dr. Chcyne's observation is very just: Any one, says he, may lose a pound of blood, take a purge, or a sweat, by dropping the great meal, or by abstaining from animal food, or fer- mented liquors for four or five days, as effectually as by opening a vein swallowing a dose of pills, or taking a sudorific bolus.—Rees' Cyclop. Article Diet. * Dyspeptic's monitor, p. 34. 402 APPENDIX. NOTE M. PAGE 94. Some cautions necessai-y in changing dietetic habits. I ought, perhaps, to add in this place, some suggestions by way of cau- tion to any who have made up their minds, to adopt any considerable change in their dietetic habits. A writer in the Quarterly Register of the American Education Society, suggests, that I have not been guard- ed enough on this point; and perhaps there is some foundation for the suggestion ; though I feel some hesitation in recommentling to a man to change a bad.habit in eating,gratiuaZZy,as he does ; and for the same rea- son on account of which he urges "the devotee of Bacchus to an immediate dashing of the bowl from his lips," viz. "the fear agradual change would end in nothing but confirmed intemperance :" for I believe itquite ashard for a man to forsake excess in eating, as in drinking. I know that great and sudden changes of the habits are apt to affect the constitution deep- ly ; though probably in nine cases"out of ten, the reduction of the food at once to the standard of temperance, would produce, as it docs in most cases to abandon alcohol, nothing but an increase of mental and bodily health and happiness. In some cases, however, the constitution would suffer. Suppose then, that the change be made at once in every instance, and so soon as the injurious effects begin to appear, let appetite be in- dulged a little more for a short period, and then alternately denied, un- til the victory be complete. I should not object, however, to a man's at- tempting to reform gradually from his excesses, rather than that he should not make the attempt at all. But whether the change be sud- den or gradual, certain precautions will be of importance to success. If, for instance, a man would greatly reduce the amount of his animal food, or even adopt a vegetable diet entirely, the Spring or Summer is undoubtedly a more favorable time than the Winter, to commence the reformation. It is a better time also, for such a change, when the mind is free from care and not pressed with business, than when incessantly occupied and jaded out. Let a man also, who is resolved to commence a work of this kind, follow the example of those who commence train- ing for pugilists in Europe, viz. to begin with an emetic or cathartic, or both ; lest the sufferings produced by foul or overloaded digestive or- gans, should be imputed to the change of diet. Let every one, however, be careful, lest under the impression, that the most favorable time for the change has not arrived, he should continue to procrastinate the work, season after season, until health is gone forever. Vivendi recti qui prorogat horam, Rusticus expectat dum defluat amnis ; at ille Labitur et labetur in omne volubili3 aevum. Hor. Lib. I. Epist. 2. Lin. 41. But another more important suggestion relates more particularly to those whose pursuits are intellectual. The effect on the mind, of reduc- ing the quantity and simplifying the quality of food, is usually like re- moving a huge weight from the main spring of a machine. The intel- lect acts so much more freely, that the student lets it run, and does not feel the necessity of so much exercise in the open air. Rejoicing in his NOTE M. 403 drliyeranee, he grasps at too much ; and imagines that he can with im- punity, make up for lost time. But ere long, he begins to find that he is not a disembodied spirit, and that his mind is still associated with flesh and blood, and not encased in iron. In short, ere he is aware of it, his overstrained mental efforts have severely shocked his still frail bodily organization. Ignorant of his error, he imputes the bad effects entirely to the change in his diet; and very probably give himself up to his for- mer excesses in eating, and becomes thoroughly and inveterately preju- diced against the whole system of dieting and abstemiousness. Whereas, had he been careful to spend much time in vigorous exercise abroad, and imposed for a time a less task upon his intellectual powers he would have rejoiced in the change of his habits, through a long and happy life. The course many take is this. Conscience tells them that they arc too fond of the luxuries of the table, and that they should be great gainers by adopting proper rules of abstemiousness. Still appetite pleads loud- ly for indulgence ; and they would fain believe that it is not necessary to impose upon it those restraints that are demanded. In short, they commence dieting with strong prejudices against it, and with the hope that it will prove to be unnecessary, and even hurtful, in their case. Ac- cordingly they are ready to take the alarm the moment a bad feel- ing seizes them, and to impute it to the change in their diet; even though they have only half adopted a thorough system, or have been exposed to atmospherical vicisitudes, or have made undue bodily or mental exer- tions. No matter what is the real cause; the hated change in their di- et is in their view, a sufficient cause, and they resolve to try the exper- iment no longer. Others, who adopt a system of diet and regimen, find such a won- derful improvement in their health, and in their corporeal and mental vigor, that they become enthusiastic on the subject; and because they have doubled their ability for labor, and their capacity for enjoyment, by the reduction of one half the former quantity of their food, they in- fer that they shall gain in an equal ratio, by a still father reduction. They continue to push the experiment farther, until they have reached as great an extreme on the side of abstinence, as they formerly did on the side of repletion. The consequence, ere long, is an alarming prostration of all the powers of life and intellect. Then, not only does the man himself give up all confidence in systems of diet and regimen, but he becomes a monument for the triumphant derision of all those who hate rules of diet, because they love the indulgence of the appetite. Is it best sometimes to give up the reins to appetite and indulge in feasting ? There is a famous rule, recommending an occasional excess in eating, which I have passed over in silence. Lord Bacon is usually quoted as high authority on this subject. " Let him who would enjoy health," says this writer, " occasionally vary his course. Sometimes let him feast and sometimes fast, sometimes oversleep and sometimes watch, sometimes walk and sometimes run ; yet let him rather fast than feast,- rather than watch let him oversleep, and rather walk than run." Doct. Londe has given the essence of this rule, though in a more cautious and less objectionable manner, in his Xorcau Elemens, D'Hygiene, Deuvicme Partie, p. 1">8. " Since the power of the stomach," says he, " is not limited to a particular measure, it may sometimes be permitted," when the health is firm, to indulge in some deviations from rules of diet. The reason he gives for this indulgence is, that " it is the means of ena- 404 APPENDIX. blingthe stomach to increase its energies, when an occasion presents it- self, without injuring the health." I did not pass by this direction, which will be found in some other di- etetic writers, because I was ignorant of it, but because I doubted- its utility; nay, I feared it would neutralize nearly all I had said on the subject of diet; and the more I reflect on the suject, the more 1 find those doubts and fears strengthening. I do not deny that an occasional departure from the strict rules as to quantity, which dieting requires, if it be only moderate, may not only be sustained without perceptible in- jury to the healthy, but even be promotive of health : For it excites the organs of the body to more powerful action, and thus prevents the ten- dency, that sometimes exists, to stagnation ; just in the same way as agreeable news, or the meeting of friends, promotes digestion, and in- deed, every other function. Still, the following objections to the adop- tion of the rule above mentioned, have occured to my mind, which I present for the consideration of the temperate and the candid. In the first place, I doubt whether this rule will accomplish the object proposed without leading a man into gluttony. That object is to accus- tom the digestive organs to those unavoidable vicissitudes and situations in life, when exact rules cannot be followed. B ut to feast once in a year, or once in a month, will not be often enough to fortify those or- gans against the influence of excess in diet. In order to accomplish this object, the feasting must be so often as to become in a measure ha- bitual ; in other words, there must be a sort of habitual irregularity in the mode of living. But in the second place, this would amount to an abandonment of every important rule as to diet. It would be saying to men, true, you ought to be temperate aiid regular in your diet; but then, as often as appetite solicits, you may feast, and forget your rules. For if you are not able to tell men how often they may indulge to excess, you leave them to do it as often as they feel the inclination. In other words, you virtually say to them, eat as much as you please, and when you please : and after giving them such a license, of what use is it to attempt to per- suade them to adopt rules of diet ? Is it not to be feared, that a wish to live just as they pleased, that is, to indulge the appetite whenever strongly tempted, has, in many in- stances, led men to the adoption of this rule ? In respect to Lord Bacon, the writer in the Quarterly Register admits, that " his practical exem- plification of his rule, was sometimes beyond the sanction of reason." Now it strikes me, that his intemperance in eating was precisely such an exemplification of his rule as we might expect. For that rule was in fact an abandonment of all rule ; and if a man adopting it, does not be-. come a glutton, it will not be because his rules prevent him. In the third place, I sec no necessity for learning the stomach to digest a larger quantity of food than health and strength demand. For when will a man be placed in such circumstances that he will be compelled to feast, that is, to indulge to excess? He will often be so situated that he cannot obtain the kind of food which he prefers, nor so much, perhaps, as health and strength require : but when will he be obliged to overload1? If never ; then where is the necessity of learning the digestive powers to grapple with a feast ? I admit, however, that a man may so tie himself down to rules, as to the quantity and quality of his food, that he cannot well sustain those unavoidable irregularities to which he will be exposed. But in the fourth place, I conceive there are better means of fortifying the powers against these vicissitudes, than by occasional feasting. Surely, feast- NOTE h. 405 ing will not prepare him so well for 'fasting,' nor for ' watching,' nor for 1 running' as strict temperance will do. And let any man do his best to adhere to a certain quantity of food, I do not believe that one in ten can so regulate this rnattcr,that he will not vary as much in the amount of his food, as any circumstances in life will compel him to vary. So that it seems, to mc there is no need to caution men " to avoid too scru- pulous a regularity :" For let them aim at as great an exactness as they please, they will find that too scrupulous a regularity will not be prac- tised. And as to variety in food, it is very easy for a man, without 'feasting,' to indulge himself to as great an extent as he wishes, con- sistently with very rigid rules of diet: for he can use a different variety every day, and even at every meal, if he pleases. And it would proba- bly be better for most men, when in health, to be but little solicitous about employing this or that species of food ; and even to " eat what is set before him, asking no questions:" remembering only, that the more concentrated the nourishment, and indigestible the quality, the less should be the quantity. And even the invalid would probably do better to leave at home his "dyspepsia bread," and "mutton chops," instead of carrying them abroad in his pocket. I apprehend that a needless fear exists as to the bad effects of scrupu- lous regularity in diet. The writer in the Register appears to have been unfortunate in one of the examples which he selected to show the danger of this dietetic exactness. He says, "when the philanthropist Howard was in such a state that the least deviation from bis rules of living, was a disease, he was in a state far too artificial for this vai iablc world." Most certainly he was : but it so happens that this took place before Howard had adopted any rules of temperance at all. True, he lived by rule : but it consisted in using as much stimulating food and drink as he could force down, and then the functions of life were goaded on by sweetmeat? and cordials; and exposure to the open air was carefully avoided. In short, it was a scrupulous regularity in intemperance and sloth. But as soon as he practised scrupulous regularity in temperance, he became capable of sustaining the greatest vicisitudes and exposures without injury. As to the case of Cornaro, adduced by the same writer, it seems to me that no man, at the age of 75, could, with impunity, add a sixth part Ux his daily allowance of food and wine. My last objection to this rule of Lord Bacon—at least to that part of it which recommends occasional feasting, is, that the chief reason for its adoption will justify an occasional excess in the use of wine or ar- dent spirit. Feasting promotes the health, (if it promotes it at all,) by stimulating the powers of life, and preventing stagnation: and an occa- sional excess in wine or ardent spirit will operate in the same way : and hence the reason, probably, why periodical drunkards live so much lon- ger than habitual ones. Accordingly, distinguished physicians in Eu- rope have recommended to men, for health's sake, to indulge in the con- vivial frolic occasionally, and even to "learn to revel." But what Chris- tian at this day, would not regard such a recommendation as extremely dangerous and reprehensible ? Yet 1 do not sec how any one, who re- commends occasional feast ing.can, with any effect, reprove the man who prefers a bottle of wine to a feast. I do not believe myself, that any man requires the stimulus, either of excessive eating, or drinking, to keep the wheels of life in as rapid motion as ought to be given them. Variety in food at different meals, social intercourse, and enthusiasm in some literary or other pursuit, will furnish, it seems to me, the requi- site excitement. And if it be less boisterous, it will at lc«*t not so soon wear out the system. 406 APPENDIX. These are my objections to the rule under consideration. If others think them of little weight, they can adopt the rule. But with my views, I cannot but enter a caveat against it. Docs attention to rules of diet produce dyspepsy ? The singular opinion has of late come to prevail to a considerable ex- tent, that attention to diet will reduce a healthy man to a dyspeptic. "Accordingly we find," says a Reviewer, "almost without exception, that the man who constantly aims at directing bis diet and regimen by fixed rules, is overwhelmed with dyspepsia." The origin of so strange a doctrine may be found in the fact, that very few men pay any attention to their diet until by this neglect, they have become dyspep- tic : and when the fact is made known, those who are opposed to living by rule, impute the disorder to the man's abstemiousness. Whereas, ab- stemiousness, begun in season, would have saved him from dyspepsy. For what is it "constantly to aim at directing the diet and regimen by fixed rules," but another name for living temperately ? Temperance, without fixed rules of diet and regimen, cannot have an existence ; though a man may be temperate without being sensible that he is liv- ing by rule. And if there be any fact thoroughly established, it is, that -temperance in diet is the best of all preservatives against every species of disease. Ask the ancient philosophers and early Christians, whether the direction of their diet and reg-imenby fixed rules overwhelmed them with dyspepsy? Ask Sir Isaac Newton, Cornaro, President Edwards, Howard, Hanway, or among,physicians, ask Galen, Cheyne, and Boer- haave ; and of those living, Johnson and Abernethey, the same ques- tion ? I confess I should like to sec an cxplicaation of the philosophy of this new doctrine. If, indeed, a man expects that after practising the rules of temperance for a while, he can resume at once his old ha- bits with impunity, he will be mistaken. And if this is all that is meant by saying that attention to rules of diet and regimen produces dyspepsy, I admit the correctness of the sentiment. But certain it is, that living according to the strict rules of temperance, from our earliest years, will prevent dyspepsy ; and it is admitted by all physicians, I believe, that the rigid observance of these rules will cure most cases of dyspepsy. How then can their observance be the cause of this malady? That would, indeed, be a most remarkable physiology, that could demon- strate the same means to be both a cause and a remedy of disease. —<2»©©— NOTE N. PAGE 101. Further remarks upon the superiority of a vegetable diet, especially to the dyspeptic, and an expose of the French method of treating dyspepsy. The opinion is evidently gaining ground among physicians and others, that a diet altogether vegetable, is far preferable to any other for the dyspeptic,; nay, often indispensable to his recovery. The recent able work of Dr. Avery, entitled the Dyspeptic's Monitor, takes more decided ground on this subject, than any other, I believe, that has ap- peared in this country. But I apprehend it is tenable ground, and the sooner invalids get upon it, the better. He recommends strongly a vegetable diet to other classes also. NOTE N. 407 " But it is not the hard laborer, or man engaged in fatiguing bodily' employment, that I advise to abstain from meat; they seldom suffer from indigestion. It is the student or professional man.the shop keeper, the merchant, whose occupations are principally mental, and the fe- male, who passes a large portion of her life within doors, who are better without it than with it. If they taste it at all, it should be during the cold season of the year, and then very sparingly; but in the warm months they should avoid it upon the same principles that they do -tr.mg beer, and live upon bread, light vegetables, ripe fruit, milk, &c. Were this plan to lie generally adopted, we should have much fewer cases of sick headache, bilious attacks, with fever, cholera morbus, dysentery, and many other diseases that might be mentioned." "In thus urging the comparatively feeble and inactive to abstain from animal food altogether, particularly in summer, lam far from believing that a very small quantity once a day cannot be taken without decided injury. But the danger is, if they taste it at all, they will take too much. It contains too much ntitiiment in too condensed a form, and the risk of overcharging the enfeebled system is so great, that total abstinence from it is the safest course." " Should it be too great a sacrifice for the gentleman to give up his nutricions food, let him turn ploughman, and then he may cat pork and beef three times a day if he please." Page 121. As to invalids, particularly dyspeptics, Dr. Avery is decided in urging their adoption of a vegetable diet altogether. " It is very desirable," says he, " that people, as it respects themselves, should be undeceived on the subject of animal food, though it would be dire, tly against the pecuniary interests of the medical profession; for it will be readily admitted by every intelligent physician, that an im- mense proportion of his business arises from the effects of too hearty food." Page 72. " Another popular notion is, that feeble delicate persons require very nourishing food, such as beef, rich soups, jellies, &C. in order to give them strength—than which there cannot be a greater error. Their system may be compared to that of an infant which requires only the lightest and simplest food, pess. ssing a great share of irritability,(which isCgencrally connected with weakness,) and easily excited to unhealthy action by any undue stimulus. But nothing will be more difficult than to convince such persons that they do not need at least a little animal food, or to persuade them to adopt the simple diet most suitable for them. They will often admit that wine and porter disagree with them; be- cause their effects arc so immediate that they cannot mistake them ; but they cannot understand how rich food can have exactly the same effect, to il certain extent, as wine and porter, and that if the one is hurtful, the other must be." Page 71. Animal food has been thought nccessay for invalids much troubled with acidity. But Dr. Avery found by his own experience, that the most marked improvement resulted from the use of bread and milk. "I then lived," says he, " entirely on bread, milk, and rice, for two or three months, when the symptoms of acidity vanished." " Much subsequent experience, in the case of others, has confirmed the opinion that meat is injurious. It is not from the trial of any par- ticular diet, for a day or two, that any correct inferences can be drawn, particularly in the complaint now under consideration ; but it is only by steadily adhering to one course for weeks or months, that we may b* enabled to come at just conclusions." Page 93. 408 APPENDIX. Dr. Avery recommends as a substitute for meats, that " the farinace- ous articles, including the different bread stuffs, most kinds of vegeta- bles and fruits of easy digestion, milk, butter, and eggs, should com- prise the bill of fare." He proposes to the dyspeptic who hesitates to adopt his plan, the following fair and easy experiment. "Now let the dyspeptic put these articles [bread and milk] to the test of experience, notwithstanding he may fancy that tender beef sits better on his stomach than any thing else. Wine also, for a short time, imparts a pleasant sensation. Let him taste nothing for ten days but the tenderest meat and bread, and let his drink be water ; for the next ten days let him taste nothing but bread and milk. During both experiments he shall observe strict moderation in eating, and his exercise shall be the same, and he will then be able to form some idea which diet agrees with him best." Dr. Avery's personal experience, as given in the Preface to his book, is worthy the serious consideration of every nervous invalid. " In con- sequence of repeated attacks of intermittent fever," says he, "and the great fatigue, irregular diet, and want of rest, inseparable from an ex- tensive country practice, the author was for several years subject to a great variety of distressing symptoms occasioned by indigestion. As may be supposed, he consnlted the best treatises on the subject, and took almost every medicine recommended by them, but all without essen- tial benefit. At last, fully convinced of the entire inefficiency of medi- cine without a suitable regimen, which his professional duties rendered impracticable, and anxious to get rid of the depression of spirits con- nected with his complaint, he relinquished business and embarked for Europe. He visited a large part of great Britian and Ireland, resided some time in France, and travelled in Switzerland, Italy, and Sicily. During this time he enjoyed perfect health ; but as may be imagined, did not forget his former maladies : on the contrary he spared no pains in examining the peculiarities of diet and habits of the people of the countries he visited, and the greater or less prevalence of indigestion among them ; in a word, collecting all the information on the subject in his power. On his return home, he was soon visited by his old enemy, which convinced him that the usual American mode of living would in a short time place him where he was when he left it, and that though he had acquired by travelling an exemption from his com- plaints, he had not altogether recovered the youthful tone of his stomach. A little admonition was sufficient: he at once regulated bis mode of living upon principles which will be laid down in the course ofthis work, and has ever since enjoyed a degree of health which he believes is sur- passed by fev/, if equalled by many professional men." "As a general rule," says the Journal of Health, "it will be fountl that those who make use of a diet consisting chiefly of vegetable matter, have a manifest advantage in looks, strength, and spirits over those. •' partake largely of animal food : they are remarkable for the firm, healthy plumpness of their muscles, and the transparency of their skins. This assertion, though at variance with popular opinion, is amply sup- ported by experience."—Vol. 1 p. 217. Extracts from the writings of Dr. Lambe. I have met with no writer, who has more ably vindicated the exclu- sive use of a vegetable diet—especially in chronic complaints—than Dr William Lambe ; Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, London; in his work entitled, "Additional Reports on the effects of a peculiar NOTE N. 409 Regimen in cases &c." A few extracts follow. " It seems certain that it (the use of meat,) predisposes to disease, and even of those kinds, the immediate origin of which may be traced to other causes." (p. 92.) " There can be no doubt that animal food is unfavorable to the intel- lectual power—so that it has been not improperly said of the vegetable feeders, that with them it is morning all the day long." (p. 147.) " I see it is asked in a tone of triumph, whether it is possible that the species of food, which has formed a Fox and a Pitt, can be unfavorable to the production of talent. Why did not the writer who used this argu- ment, (Rees' Cyc. Article Man,) carry it to its full extent; and prove that a plentiful use of the bottle does not injure the intellect?" (p. 149.) " Life is prolonged about one tenth by a vegetable diet, in incurable diseases. (p. 105.) " Dr. Barwick tells us, in the life of his brother, who in the late civil wars had for many years been confined in a low room in the tower, dur- ing the usurpation ; that at the time of his going in he was under a phthisis, atrophy, and dycasy, and lived on bread and water only, se- veral years there ; and yet came out at the restoration, sleek, plump, and gay." (p. 96 : quoted from Cheyne.) " Rammazzini has recorded the history of a man, who lived in prison nineteen years, upon bread and water only ; and lived afterwards heal- thy, and free from the gout, from which he had before been a great sufferer." (p. 96.) £ The noble Francis Pecrii, a man of 50, and much afflicted with the gout, lay twenty years in prison, and when released, "to the astonish- ment of all the inhabitants ofVercclli, preserved like Lazarus from the tomb, he walked through the city with his sword by his side, without stiffness of his joints, without the aid of a stick. He thus escaped all the miseries of the gout by means of a slender diet, &c. In diet, there- fore, is the medicine." (p. 97 : quoted from Schenks Collections.) » From Hufeland's Art of Prolonging Life. " Instances of the greatest age are to be found among men, who from their youth, lived principally on vegetables, and who perhaps never ate flesh." (p. 169.) Dietetic habits of the Scholars of Continental Europe. In the kfirst number of a very valuable and able work, the Biblical Repositfl^, just published at Andover, [Jan. 1831,] Professor Robinson, the Editor, has given us a note concerning the habits of European and particularly German scholars; which must be considered as ex- tremely valuable, from the opportunities he has enjoyed for observation. He says that the opinion that any of them study 16 or 17 hours a day, is an exaggeration. Still they study hard and take comparatively but lit- tle exercise ; yet arc far less troubled with dyspeptic complaints than students in this country. This he thinks "cannot be set down to the score of diet :" for " they love their glass of wine," " drink coffee twice a day," and " German scholars love a warm supper before going to bed." The follow ing statements, however, in respect to their diete- tic habits, may in part explain the difference : especially if we recollect that " there, scholars are trained to study from childMAld ; and do not as is often the case here, after a youth of labor and habits of great activi- ty, change at onee and adopt a sedentary life." 35 410 APPENDIX. i " In respect to the article of food, there are three things which strike an American, and may probably have some influence in regard to com- plaints of the stomach, viz. that the inhabitants of the continent eat, aa a general rule, less meat than we do; that in both the German and French style of cookery, the food of all kinds is more thoroughly done — >{^B than with us ; and that the continental custom of serving the dishes in *J^H( succession at meals, instead of placing all on the table at once, obliges • them to eat much more slowly than we are accustomed todo. A dinner or supper table is there a place of animated conversation ; which of course occasions many interruptions, and affords opportunities for the appetite to become satisfied, before the stomach is overloaded." .^ Experience of Mr. Owen. The following is said to.be from the pen of Robert Owen ; and de- serves more attention, than all his experiments at New Harmony and elsewhere, "upon the " Social System :" " Last autumn and winter, I was much confined by my editorial and other sedentary duties, and I found my health beginning to suffer, al- though my manner of living then was what is usually called very plain. I used animal food only once a day, and then in small quantity ; ate . coffee and bread only far breakfast, and tea and bread only for supper ; drank neither spirits, wines^nor fermented liquors of any kind, (which indeed, I have never used at any period of my life,) and was consider- ed by my acquaintances as an abstemious liver. " Still, I found the incipient symptoms of dyspepsy coming on, in consequence, probably, of exerting the mind too much and the body too little. Had I been able to obtain a release from my desk, I doubt not they would soon have disappeared ; for at every period of my life, when I could spend half the day in the open air, 1 have enjoyed excel- lent health. But this was now impossible. So I determined to try another plan. I gave up at once the use of tea, coffee, and animal food : used bread and butter, with milk and water for breakfast, the j same for supper; and either bread and boiled eggs, or hard biscuit and ' boiled rice and milk for dinner. " To this diet I have now adhered for four months ; and, without any cessation of sedentary employment, I have completely regained my health. I found no diminution of strength or spirits from the change, butrather the contrary ; and even though I might return to my former regpmen with impunity, I have no desire to do so. I have lost all cra- ving for animal food, and can relish my breakfast quite' as well, though it does not come from China or th.; West Indies. " I have stated an insulated fact, and do not intend to generalize from it. Let it be taken for what it is worth. " My food, I think, costs me about ten or twelve cents a day. The Roman, who dined on beans, asked the aS|bassador who was sent to tamper with his patriotism, whether gold and silver were bribes to him who could enjoy such a meal and desire no better." French writers on dyspepsy and hygiene. Since the first edition of this work was pul.listed, I have had an op- portunity to examine some French worjss on Hygiene, and the nature of dyspeptic and nervous complaints, with their remedies; and I .have thought it would be acceptable to present a short account of the most ap- proved treatment of these maladies in France ; paiticularly as it agrees essentially with the course pointed out in this note. NOTE N. 411 French views of the nature of dyspepsy, &c. It will bepeccssary to premise, that many of the French writers de- scribe thc-most usual cases of this disorder under the name of cA.ro- nic gastritis, and enteritis : the first of which terms, is used by English writers, to designate a slow inflammation of the stomach ; and the sec- ond, an inflammation of the intestines. But says Dr. Londe, " it is ve- ry rare that weakness of digestion does not result from chronic gastri- tis:"* Says another physician, "he whose digestion is difficult, al- though his appetite be good enough, or even greater than common ; who experiences burning sensations in the region of the stomach ; retchings, eructations, and flatulency ; who perceives his face to b%. flushed, or who complains of bad feelings in his head, two or three hours after his meals, who then experiences pains, more or less poignant, at the pit of the stomach and under the false ribs of pne side . >r the other—places which wc call the hypochondrias ; 'who speaks of an internal heat, a sense of fatigue, and also of a slow febrile movement, is attacked with the chronic gastritis. I will say more ; almost all those who digest with difficulty; whose stomach, although very energetic, becomes ca- pricious, and can bear only certain kinds of aliment; those who are obliged to think continually of their stomach) those who cannot sus- tain hunger, contrary to their habit, without severe painsvthosc who are obliged to go abroad< and to drink, for accomplishing their digestion ; those who pass bad nlgjuts with unpleasant dreams, and awake with a bad taste in the mouth, their limbs fatigued, and the head heavy ; n.l- most all these individuals, I venture to repeat, are attacked with a chro- nic gastritis."t ■»»- " He who perceives a burning sensation in the region of the umbilio, or a constant pain, more or less sharp, in one of the hypochondrias, ex- tending sometimes to the shoulders; who is sensible of a slight dull colic, an uneasiness, or even only an inconvenient itching, or a species of stinging, sometimes in one part of the belly and sometimes in another ; who is tormented with wind, which distends greivously his intestinee, and is not driven out but with difficulty ; who is habitually constipated, but who evacuates, sometimes by a species of diarrhea, preceded by long and hard griping pains, a concrete or diffluent slimy matter, like a variety of membrane; he is attacked by a slow inflammation of the small intestines, or the intestines grilcs, a malady which we call chjeonic entcrtitis. If the appetite remains good, and the first part of digestion is perrormed without pain, the malady is simple ; if the symptoms of chronic gastritis, are associated with those of enter tit is,thc two are as- sociated together—the one produces the other, &C.I1 At the commencement, this writer supposes that these complaints amount to nothing more than an irritation of the nerves of the stomach and intestines : but if neglected, the irritation proceeds to inflammation. Hypochondria, be says, is "nothing more than a chronic gastro- intestinal inflammation in an indivitlual, whose brain and nerves are very irritable."5 Of hysteria, he says, " it is always one or-» gan irritated that troubles the others : Ici, e'est l,uterus."+ These va- rious irritations ancLinflauimations acting on the nervous system direct- * Xoceaux Elemrns D'Hygiene, Dcuxieme Partio, p. 81. t Le Catechisme De la Medicine Physiologique, p. 107. Paris, 1824, II Le Catechisme, &c. p. 109. § p. 228. ?p. 234. 412 APPENDIX. ly and by sympathy, produce a great variety of nor voua affections, which at first are but symptoms, but at length "become real diseases.* This statement of the French views of the nature of these com- plaints, will enable any one to sec more clearly the ground of the treat- ment which has been adopted by some of the ablest of their physisians, particularly by M. Broussais and his disciples. The following extract gives a summary view of that treatment in most cases. (See also, Histo- ric des Phlcgmasies, Par F. J. V. Bi oussais ; Tome 2, p. 246) "To him who has the chronic gastritis, we prescribe leeches in the region of the stomach, water or refreshing ptisan (a decoction of barley with other ingredients) for drink. We carefully avoid all those medi- cines calleck stomachics, tonics, digestives, and corroborants. We de- prive the individual of aliments, during a longer or shorter period, if there is any fever, or the digestion is painful, or there is any vomiting. Then we seek to restore his strength, without exasperating the inflam- mation, by the mildest aliments; such as milk, the lightest farinaceous articles, tender vegetables, and the white meats; and we brfng nim back by degrees to his habitual diet."—Le Catechisme, ef-c. p. 115. "The treatment of the inflammations of the intestinesgrtles, does not differ from that of the inflammations of the stomach. In the one case, as in the othtr, a perseverance of many years is sometimes necessary. For these complaints are liable to revive, whenever a person returns too soon to irritating aliments, such as mutton, bref, game, pastry, salted provisions, rich sauces, every kind of spiced dishes, or fermented liquors. Invalids of this character should be encouraged by the assurance that perseverance will overcome all obstacles. ^Having accustomed them- selves to a mild diet, they can bear it well. They will find in it nourish- * Similar views of dyspepsy are given by a late writer in the Encyclo- pedia Americana; Article, Dyspepsia. "The sub-acute and chronic forms of gastric irritation and inflamma- tion," says he, "the signs of which have only of late been fully appre- ciated, are the disorders that, in seven or eight cases out of tenv are termed dyspepsia." "The preceding form a first class of dyspeptic diseases, which, de- pending entirely on the stomach, may be termed gastric dyspepsia." " A second class of dyspeptic diseases is connected with the duode- nuinfand its functions.—It is more especially the chronic irritation of the duodenum, that passes for dyspepsia." fa " A third class of dyspeptic diseases, depend on the nervous organs, which furnish nerves to the digestive viscera." Dr. Avery's division of dyspepsy into three species, in his " Dyspeptic's Monitor," is founded essentially on the same principles. " The first species," says he, " is in a great measure confined to the stomach, and marked by symptoms denoting weakness of that organ, often existing without any material derangement of the liver or bowels. In the second, there is a predominance of symptoms, termed bilious, with more or less derangement of the stomach ans] bowels. Both these spe- cies are commonly called indigestion, dyspepsia, stomach and liver com- plaints, &c. The third is marked by symptoms indicating a morbid, sensibility or irritability of the inner siuftee of the stomach and bowelsv Under this species insy be placed melancholy, hypochondiasis, and a long catalogue of complaints termed nervous.-^-[p. 18, Introduction. These views of the French and American writers, it seems to me, throw more light on the nature of dyspepsy, than all that has been writ- ten in England, if we except the works of Dr, J. Johnson. Note n. 413 ment enough to preserve their fulness of muscle : for the farinaceous substances, such as bread, rice, vermicelli,* grout,t tapioca,* sago,+ salep.t and the white meats, such as fowl, veal, lamb, and fish, contain a great quantity of nutritive matter."—p. 123. As to drink, this writer says, that sometimes weak lemonade may be used | sometimes sweetened water ; sometimes an infusion of liquorice, &c. " Pure water is sometimes the best of all remedies. In chronic gastritis, where there is great sensibility, it is found best to restrict the sick to water alone, &c." (p. 126.) As to medicines, he says, " persons attacked with chronic gastritis, or enteritis, should abstain from all medicine, n, the flesh of the hare and rabbit, of old fowls, guinea hen, peacock, pigeon, duck, goose, quail, partridge, &c. Most of the white meats have been already mentioned. Few animals when young contain osmazome : hence veal, lamb, chick- en, cv-c. are arranged among the white meat . ; while beef, mutton, old fowl, &c. are put among the dark ones. The objection to the use of the meats containing osmazome by invalids, is, that they are too stimula- ting to the digestive organs, and thus increase the irritation or inflam- mation already existing in the system. Effects of medicines on dyspepsy. The effects of drastic medicines, tonics and stimulating food and drink, in most cases of dyspepsy, are well described in the Catechism of Phisiological Medicine, from which I have already quoted. The dialogue is between a Savan, or learned man, and a young physician. Plu/sician. " Many live habitually with a gastritis, which they keep alive by pills, or purgative salts ; and in spite of their sobriety, their privation is not great enough, nor continued long enough, to effect the destruction of that irritation." Lc Savan. That may be : But would you have a man die with hun- ■ -or, f ■'. fear of pioducing too much blood? /-Vn/wVia.-t. No, Sir ; but I would have him devote a period of time to the curing of any irritation by which he is attacked." p. 92. ♦ A composition of flour, eggs, sugar, and saffron, used in soups and pottages. t Coarse meal. t Substances similar to arrow root and starch, obtained from different vegetables and highly nutritious. II Elemcns D'Hygiene, Deuxieme Partie p. 33. § Same Work, p. 23. 35* 414 APPENDIX. " Purgatives irritate the stomach and intestines, as tobacco irritates the nostrils and mouth. Have you observed that a man has less need to spit and blow his nose, who uses tobacco in the form of snuff, or for smoking ? On the contrary, docs not the more frequent use of tobacco increase the frequency of these operations? well, the same thing takes place in the digestive canal. The more it is purged, the more it needs to be purged ; and the stimulus of the purgative becomes at length as necessary as that of the tobacco. This goes on very well so long as the digestive organs are not very feeble ; but if any part becomes inflamed, the purgative becomes as injurious as tobacco in inflammations of the mouth and nose !' (p. 95.) Reasons why stimulating food and drinks, afford a transient relief in dyspepsy. " In the commencement of chronic irritations of the stomach, which have not risen to inflammation, the stomach has not lost its power of being .agreeably affected by aliments and tonics; and of performing the work of digestion. It is not enough heated to become painful, but at the end of the digestion, two or three hours after the repast. After that operation, it becomes cool. And if at that time stimulants are giv- en, such as the strong wines, or juicy meats, the stomach receives them well, and the impression produced in it, diminishes for a short time its suffering; the pains which it had been sensible of, are concealed for some time, by a feeling of strength and comfort : but at the end of this period, the irritation having been increased, the stomach refuse's all aliments, the pains augment, and the invalid begins to sink. Emetics, purgatives, and mineral waters also, suspend for a time, the suffering of the stomach, by directly evacuating, or driving to the skin, those hu- mors, which the irritation bad accumulated in its interior ; but they act like the tonics; augmenting in the end that irritation which they hael alleviated. They raise it to the degree of inflammation, aud the diges- tion is altogether arrested." (p. 120.) Example illustrative of the French method of treating the Dyspepsy. I feel myself deeply indebted to a gentleman of the first respectability in our country, for furnishing the following statement of his own expe- rience as a dyspeptic. It affords a good illustration of the manner in which eminent French physicians manage dyspectic complaints ; anrl cannot fail, I think, to open the eyes of many a dyspeptic invalid, who is now pursuing the destructive - course of stimulating food and drink, and thus aggravating his complaints ; anel it may point out to him the true road to restoration and comfort. The hope that such may be the effect, has been the principal inducement with this gentleman to furnish the statement. He can, indeed, very sincerely and appropriate- ly adopt the sentiment, Haud ignarus mali, miscris succurrcre disco. MlT DEAR SIR, I entered upon the duties of life before my frame had attained its vig- or, or my mind its maturity, with a constitution formed at the school bench, and never invigorated by physical labor, or inured to exposure. You will not be suprised then, that I should speedily become the vic- tim of diseases of the digestive organs. Thirteen years have now elapsed since I became a confirmed dyspep- tic. During the early period of my disease, the course adopted was to NOTE N. 415 attend to symptoms; and emetics and cathartics, opiates, and stimulants, tonics and condiments, were alternately employed to palliate the imme- diate evils and enable me to continue the destructive course of exces- sive intellectual effort, in which I was engaged. After employing al- most every variety of these remedies in vain, with only a temporary relief; nature's medicines, as they are termed—the various species of the mineral waters—were next resorted to; which not only disappointed my hopes in the same manner, but also entailed upon me other com- plaints for years. A mild species of dyspeptic pills was then employed. The blue pill was the last of this long list of remedies. Each of these in its turn, xecmed to operate like a magicfan's charm, dissipating every cloud from the mind, and every pain from the body; but each left the system more prostrated, and the digestive organs more diseased than it found them. Journies were then recommended ; but with the same partial and temporary effect. Horse-back exercise was then pro- nounced by all practical men, a panacea for stomach disease, and I not only employed it daily, but occasionally took long journies. The effect was equally magical, but equally transient, with that of preceding rem- edies. I sometimes returned with so much increase of flesh that my friends scarcely knew me ; and yet, in a few weeks, was more pros! rated than before; although I continued journeying as much as a regular course of occupations would permit. I became at length so much re- duced as to be incapable of intellectual labor, and a voyage at sea seem- ed the only resort. The effects of an entire removal from the ordinary objects of thought and sources of responsibility which attends a life at sea : the constant but usually gentle exercise, produced by the motion of the ship, united with the effects of sea sickness, produced a calm and quiescent state of the organs and nci ves ; and enabled, as I was, to commit the result of the voyage to that Providence who rules the waves, it was not counter- acted by any anxiety on this point. The effects ofthis repose in re- newing the tone and vigor of body and mind, were obvious, but by no mcans'so rapid as theise produced by means formely employed ; it re- sembled the restoration produced by sleep, when compared with the ex- citement and energy arising from a stimulating draught. A voyage of several months, renewed in some degree the sensations of health, and enabled mc to resume labors which again prostrated me, and obliged mc to undertake a voyage to Europe. The voyage and the entire change of scene renewed the process of restoration, which was again interrupted by a scries of labors, and by journies. with their usual train of unavoidable excitements and irre- gularities in sleep, diet, and hours. I had previously found that the ircneral prescription of company and amusement, to an invalid, was to be taken with many grains of allowance ; that, when the nervous sys- tem had become irritable, this additional excitement was not the means of soothing it ;—that when it was exhausted with intellectual effort, it could not be refreshed by renewing that effort under the strong stimu- lus of agreeable society, or interesting objects of curiosity. Who would think of relieving his eyes, when suffering from application, by going into a brilliantly lighted room ? 1 became fully established in my convictions on this subject,by finding that in my own case, a day or two of great exhaustion, would follow each of these periods of delightful excitement, produced by the inter- esting objects and men and scenes of the old world; and by observing that more than one invalid traveller, whose remaining vigor enabled 416 APPENDIX. him to sustain this course of nervous stimulants much longer, sinking lower in proportion to his elevation, in the same manner as those who employed other artificialstimulants, as a means of daily support. I found, also, that two or three day's entire repose, to which an invalid is sometimes forced, amidst scenes and objects of no interest, were followed by re- freshment like that of sleep. Conviction, therefore, united with neces- sity in leading me to limit, much more than is usual, my hours of amusement as well as of exertion, and I endeavored to follow, as far as possible, the counsel of an Edinburgh physician—to break off from any book' or any occupation, as soon as it began to excite deep interest; and to deny myself the viewr*of any object, however attractive, if my strength had been previously tasked to a proper degree. I found too that it was indispensable to limit my bodily exertion, in order to avoid the necessity of tasking the stomach with the digestion of that great amount of food, which a traveller often feels himself compelled to take in order to sustain his extraordinary exertions, and which so often counteracts all the salu- tary effects of a change of climate and scene. I found too that my stom- ach required a longer period of rest than my limbs, and I found obvious benefits in taking only two meals a day. In short, I became satisfied that the debility and exhaustion of my whole system, and each particular portion, could be effectually relieved only by repose ; and that the elevation thus produced, was not succeeded by that corresponding depression which follows the use of artificial. stimulation, whether of the stomach, the ner\ cs, or the intellect. With this conviction, and after having experienced the delightful immediate effect, and the ultimate depressing influence of wines anel nervous stim- ulants, in the countries where they are found in the greatest perfection, and also of a new series of medicines, I was slowly led to the persuasion that a system which required to be sustained in this manner, could not endure long, and that the only efi'cetual relief must be to accustom it to subsist upon simple aliment. I now began, as rapidly as the vacillating purposes anel feelings of a elyspeptic allowed, to abandon the use of med- icines and stimulants, and to wait for tlie restoration of the system from its occasional paroxysms of suffering, by time and repose. The same experience led me to give up all condiments except salt, and to use this only in very moderate quantities. Still 1 was influenced by my previous opinions and medical advice, to eat some of the most stim- ulating kinds of food, as beef, mutton, and the brown meats, and to avoid as much as possible enfeebling their effect upon the stomach by the use of less solid food and drinks. Under this regimen, I experienced far less suffering than formerly, and the periods of gradual elevation were longer, but they were still intci rupted, by violent attacks of disease which produced complete prostration, and there was no evidence of any permanent or radical cure. A long journey to Paris at an inclement season of the year, produced one of the most violent of those attacks which I had experienced. Af- ter recovering from its worst immediate effects, having lost all confidence in the remedies of the English system of medicine, and having been led to despise the inefficient practice of the French physicians, and to dread their principles of starvation, as I heard them described, I did not venture for some time to employ either. I endeavored to restore my system by repose of body and mind, combining it most inconsis- tently with the use of the most concentrated and stimulating animal food, which had formerly been recommended in order to repair my lost vigor. I thus tasked to the utmost, and spurred on to the highest degree of action, those organs which were most exhausted, and refused NOTE N. 417 them as much as possible, the relief which might have been affordeel by soothing and diluting drinks. This course constantly reduced my physical vigor, and impaired my mental and moral energy, to a degree which I never before experienced. To walk a short distance, or ascend a flight of stairs, or converse a short time with a friend, completely ex- hausted me. My days were passed in gloom and suffering, and my nights in rest- less tossing. To fix my mind upon a single subject, or pursue a train of thought, was impossible ; and a slight cause of agitation would un- man me. In these circumstances I found that I could no longer rely upon my own judgment, and I gave- myself up to a French physician, aftfr exacting a promise from a medical student of rny acquaintance, that he would not leave me to be the victim of starvation, which I so much dreaded from their practice. I placed myself at once in one of their private hospitals, so common in Paris, and which ought to exist in every country, where an invalid may find the ordinary comforts of a boarding house,combined with ev- ery convenience for bathing and exercise, provided with nurses, and under the immediate superintendance of a physician. - #► The gentleman to whose care I committed myself, began by explain- ing to me the principles upon which his practice would be founded. He regarded my disease as an irritation of the digestive organs. He argued that every active remedy, and all stimulating food ; and also, by sympathetic influence, every effort of body and mind, which was be- yond the powers of my enfeebled system, must increase this irritation, although the apparent and immediate effects might be agreeable. On this principle he deemed it necessary for me to abandon all animal food, all medicine, and every thing which could irritate the stomach ; and to substitute such nourishment as was of a soothing and emollient charac- ter. He thought it indispensiblc, still farther, to use the smallest quanti- ty of this species of food which was sufficient to sustain the system, and thus give as much repose as possible to the irritated and exhausted or- gans of digestion. It was also deemed indispensable to limit the amount of bodily J|g¥knental effort by the actual degree of strength, instead of rousingthe system to artificial rigor, by means of stimulants. In correspondence with these views, my daily allowance of food was reduced to two bowls of arrow-root, prepared with water, (in which no seasoning was permitted, except loaf sugar, and a very small quantity of salt,) and four ounces of the finest and lightest stale wheat bread. The only animal nourishment given me was chicken tea, which was used as drink in the intervals of my repasts. During a visit to the south of France and Italy.I found great relief from the use of olive oil, when I could obtain it in its purest and best state, and I now employed it freely with obvious advantage. I ought to observe herc.that oil of the quality generally found in the United States, impaired by age, was pernicious to mc. • I wali a.h ised to use, as often as convenient, small quantities of drinks cot jflpsrd of syrup of gum arabic and other mucilaginous arti- cles, in order to sooth the irritation of the stomach, produced by the process of digestion. The only medication employed was external, by means of hot sulphureous baths every other day, continued from three quarters of an hour to an hour—jets or "douches" of stefun, or hot wa- ter, upon the stomach and bowels on the alternate days—and a cata- plasm of flax seed or bread, applied to the bowels every night. The two latter remedies were designed to counteract the peculiar debility of the bo\*li6, which formed one of the most obstinate and debilitating symptoms of my disease. It will of course be understood.that coffee and 418 APPENDIX. tea, spices, condimcnts,and stimulants of every kind,were absolutely for- bidden ; and evcryspecies of food.besides those already mentioned. The immediate effect of this course of living, was habitual relief from the confnsion of thought and unceasing despondence and gloom which had constantly attended main the use of solid food." My mind was clear, though feeble,and my feelings were natural, though peculiarly excita- ble ; and while compelled to keep my bed eighteen or twenty hours in twenty four, and to pass the greater part of the day in absolute solitude, in a land of strangers and in an asylum for the diseased, 1 experienced habitually a state of calmness which I had seldom known, and often had an elasticity of spirits which inclined me to sing with cheerfulness. In giving up the irritating articles of food, my stomach was relieved from that craving and sinking for want of additional supplies, which Were previously incessant; and one source of constant bodily uneasiness and •* mental anxiety was thus^removed. The cleanness of the tongue and sweetness of the mouth, which attended this mode of living, waaa luxu- rious feeling in itself; and the insipid articles which formedjsjay diet, were as agreeable to the palate as uelWacics had been before. My bodily vig- or wj^'for a short period somewhat impaired ; but Within ten days, reg- ular and easy digestion of this small quantity of food was obviously re- storing that strength which had been been impaired by the use of a full diet. The irregularities in which I sometimes indulged,showed me, very clearly, that the fatigue of the stomach was far more exhausting than any ot,her, and I never deprived the stomach of its prolonged repose without additional inconvenience; and the occasional trials which I made secretly of my former favourite remedies, to palliate the painful symp- toms (which of course frequ ntly recurred) established more fully their irritating and injurious influence ; and obliged mc to make confession to my physician and submit to a prescription of greater simplicity of diet than before, by way of atonement. Indeed, to one accustomed to the complex medication of our own system, it requires as great a sacri- fice of prejudice and pride to submit to this simple mode of trcatment.as it did for the Syrian to go and wash in the Jordan ; and^perhaps still more to overcome that undcfinable apprehension, which an invalid will naturally have, that a disease so serious cannot yield to methods so en- tirely negative. It ought not to be omitted, that regular exercise, and, as far as possible, daily exposure to the air, was regarded as an indis- pensible part of the course of treatment: and that such means and such a degree of amusement, as would draw off the mind of the invalid from himself,without exciting it to any activity were.considered as equal- ly important, although both the one and the other were often either un- attainable or neglected. Notwithstanding many irregularities, and a constant course of anxiety and intellectual labor, to which I was una- voidably subjected,my abstemious diet constantly increased my strength, and gradually restored something of the aspect of health, to my com- plexion and countenance. My sleep became more natural my feelings less susceptible, and my mind more vigorous, and my ph^icians hope, now became sanguine of my entire recovery. At the end of three months my vigor was so far restored, that I was advised to commence a course of gymnastic exercises, under the imme- diate direction of a person who took care to adapt them to my strength. At first,it was necessary for me to go to the gymnasium, a distance of a mile and a half, in a carriage. In the course of a short time I was en- abled to go and return on foot, and perform a course of graduated anel varied exercises every other elay, for "tin hour and a half, without ex- cessive fatigue. At the end of a month, my strength, as measured by NOTE N. 419 the dynamometer, was increased to forty pounds, when applied to the act ot drawing or pulling. At this time, fish, veal, and chickens were allowed me in small quantities, once in two days, and afterwards onoff a day ; and vegetables were added as I could bear them. It was deemed advisable however, that I should seek a warmer climate for the winter, and the exposure connected with the journey produced a violent rheu- matic affection. This compelled me to submit myself to the care of a physician, who pronounced my system to be in a new state, requiring a more invigorating diet. The result was a consielerable increase of suf- fering and of flesh, and an uncertainty in my own mind with regard to my state, thus absolutely pronounced to be changed, which prevented my pursuing the course previously prescribed. I at length returned to it as far as circumstances would permit; and since that time, a period of three years, I have used animal food habitually only once a day, and ,. not more than three or four days in a week. I have subsisted chiefly on farinaceous and vegetable food, with no condiments but sugar and salt; using water, or milk and water, and sugar and water, as drinks, to the entire'exclusion of tea, coffee, and every vinous and alcoholic Etimulaut. I have also been accustomed to leave the stomach at rest from dinner until the next morning, unless I was called to some exer- tion in the evening. A series of journies, with the accidents and at- tacks of disease arising from them, and the real or supposed necessity of too much intellectual exertion, have alternately retarded or inter- rupted the improvement of my health : and perhaps not less, that pain- ful sense of responsibility arising from a consciousness of my own inef- ficiency in regard to the duties of life, which is probably both a symp- tom and a cause of my malady. Still there has been a regular, though gradual process of restoration, both of body and mind ; and when com- pared with my former state, 1 may consider myself as enjoying health. The constant suffering and incapacity for exertion, which attended the use of a full diet, are exchanged for a degree of physical enjoyment ap- proaching that of health ; with the power of moderate daily occupation, and un amount of bodily exertion, formerly beyond my power. The paroxysms "of violent disease, which were formerly very frequent, now occur rarely. Instead of being constantly obliged to recur to medicines, I have not used them, in a single instance, for two years past. In place of the perpetual vacillation of spirits and hurry of feeling, and depend- ence on immediate stimuli, which attended my former mode of living, I enjoy, u-hen moderately employed, a degree of uniformity of condition and calmness of mind, which I never before experienced. My sleep is habitually quiet, my bodily functions generally regular, and physical pain is rare. In short, I sec full reason to believe, that could I but com- ply with those two simple precepts, ' Be temperate in all things, 'Be anxious for nothing,' there is no obstacle to my entire restoration ; al- though it is obvious that a feeble system, impaired by ten years' disease can only attain by \ery slow degrees, the full vigor of health The coursf of eliet which I have described, was far less rigorous than usual, in dbnlequcuce of the state of exhaustion into which I had fallen. Some of my fellow patients, whose disease was more recent, or whose constitutions were less enfeebled, were treated in the following manner : No medicine whatever was given, except in rare cases, of urgent ne- cessity. Leeches were generally applied to the stomach and bowels, in order to diminish the local irritation, and the application repeated as « 420 APPENDIX. often as the symptoms indicated.* Cataplasms were also applied every night, and sulphureous or other baths employed every other day in most cases. The diet usually consisted at first of three bowls of arrow root, prepared with water, per day, without any bread or other solid nourish- ment. Water with mucilaginous syrup was the only drink allowed, and was recommended to be taken in small quantities, in the intervals of repasts. As soon as the irritation appeared to have subsided, and this quantity of food was digested without any unpleasant symptoms, if the appetite craved more, a small quantity of veal, or chicken soup, with bread, rice, or the more solid farinaceous fdod, was given. This was succeeded by moderate portions of milk, or vegetables, or fruit, or white meat, according to the constitution of the patient. In every in- stance, the invariable rule was, not to allow a change in the quality or quantity of food, until that actually used, was digested without incon- venience ; and to retrace these steps as soon as the irritation was re- newed. The passage to the use of the black meats was still more cau- tious anel gradual, on account of the powerful stimulating character ascribed to the osmazome, which gives them their color. Veal soups were at first made, with a small addition of beef, which was gradually increased to one half, and two thirds ; and it was not until the patient could use strong beef soup, made, as is usual in France, of lean meat, that he was allowed to use any of the black meats. I knew more than one instance, when this course, combined with exercise, produced relief in a few weeks—and one, in which the ordinary medication had left the patient in a state of bilious disease and hopeless despondency for months. NOTE O. PAGE 102. Farther remarks upon the number and time of meals. Doct. Londe, in his New Elements of Hygiene, maintains*that what- ever be the number of meals daily, they should be taken atjkuch times that the first and last shall be equally distant from mid day. If only two arc taken, and he thinks that aged people particularly, need but two, they should be equally distant from noon. If three are taken, the dinner should be at 12 o'clock, the breakfast at seven, and the supper at five; since in healthy persons, who do not eat too much, hunger returns in about five hours after the repast. Young people, especially infants, he thinks, may need four meals which should be arranged on the same principle. Plan of meals in the French colleges. A work has recently fallen into my hands, published in Paris in 1827, by Dr. Pavet De Courteille, entitled Hygiene Des Collegers Des Mai- * I may here state that I have known a case of inflammation of the bowels, produced by a fit of intemperance, in a dyspeptic, and attended with the most agonizing symptoms, which was relieved by the applica- tion of several hundred.—I have also known a violent attack of colic, for which the individual had usually adduced opiates and stimulants, en- tirely relieved by cataplasms often renewed, with the mere use oTgruel and warm water. NOTE O. 421 tons D'Education. It contains a full developcment of the plan pursued in the French colleges, in respect to location, diet, and regimen. These institutions, however, correspond more nearly to the gymnasia recently established in this country, than to our colleges. For a Pensionnat, or boarding house, is connected with each of them, and the proper age for boys to enter them, is considered by this writer, to be from nine to ten years. At so early an age, they are thought to require an afternoon collation, orgouter, besides three regular meals, "on account of their growth, and the rapid movements of their vital powers ;" " all of the re- pasts, however, to be in that measure and moderation, which agree with temperance, one of the surest elements of health." (p. 48.) "The breakfast, taken at all seasons about two hours after rising, very properly consists generally of dry bread ; which is wondeifully seasoned by a good appetite. In the cold season, some youth are permitted to take a little milk porridge, or sweetened water, or chocolate ; but never meat." Fruits are also permitted at the proper season, (p. 49.) The dinner is taken four hours after breakfast; and is composed of soup or broth, with one or two dishes of meat and vegetables. The collation, or afternoon luncheon, is composed of bread, with some kind of fruit. The supper commonly consists of broth, vegetables, fruits, cheese, and in some instances, meat. " It should be lighter than the other repasis." The drink is commonly water ; sometimes beer and the light wines arc allowed. Dyspeptics should omit supper altogether. I am more and more satisfied that in nearly every case of dyspepBy, a great advantage would result from omitting supper altogether. The great advantage of such a practice is, that thus the stomach has a much longer time to rest ; and being the weakest part of the system, it needs more repose than the other organs. True, at first, appetite would plead loudly for the accustomed gratification: But habit will gradually overcome this unpleasant feeling; as many who have adopted the plan have experienced : the sleep would soon become less disturbed by dreams; and wakefulness, cheerfulness, and sweetness of temper, would succeed to melancholy and fretfulness; and the stomach would gradu- ally recover its lost tone. A little milk and a cracker, might not.indeed, do much injury, if taken early in the evening; but the danger is that the dyspeptic will not be contented to stop with these, and therefore, it would be better for him, to confine himself to two meals in the day. Nor do I believe, that even if the invalid do this, it will be necessary to adopt the plan of dining late. For I do not believe that there is one such, who delays his dinner till three or four o'clock, who will not eat twice as much as he ought; and this will be more injurious than to eat temperately at noon, and to take a light supper. " Suppers," says Rees' Cyclopedia, article Diet, "at present are discouraged among the affluent; and excessive ones, such as have been in use among our ancestors, very probably with good reason. Or perhaps we should ra- ther consider the meal of dinner to have been discarded, and an early supper substituted ; a change, which, on the whole, is to be considered KB detrimental, at least to invalids and persons of delicate habit. Two very moderate meals, at a suitable distance of time, would doubtless be digested with much more ease than one full meal, when the stomach has been debilitated by long fasting, and has suffered fatigue together with the body at large, from the exertions of a long day. So that, as 36 422 APPENDIX. Dr. Fothergill has observed, "when people assure us that they eat no suppers, from observation I am led to suspect, that it would be better for them if they did, than to oppress nature with a cumbrous load that may be much more detrimental." Even a healthy man need have no fears that he shall starve, or even suffer any inconvenience, if he gets into the habit of not eating a mouthful, from the time of dinner at twelve or one o'clock, till the next morning ; much less then, has the invalid any reason to fear from such a course. But both will be in great danger of injury, if they suffer the time between breakfast and dinner to be extended much beyond five or six h'»urs. If the appetite become good before bed time, it is a sign that the man will enjoy quiet and refresing repose.* For sleep is near- ly as effectual in satisfying hunger, as a full meal: and the reason why some, persons cannot sleep till they have taken their luncheon, or even till they have risen from bed to do it, is, that they have got into a habit of indulging in too much, or too stimulating food ; which has rendered the system alive to every exciting cause, and made the appetite morbid. NOTE P. PAGE 112. The dyspeptic must limit the amount of his food at each meal, before fir begins to eat. 1 fc-ar I have not urged this point with the distinctness and earnest- ness that its importance demands. I am perfectly convinced that all the invalid's efforts for reg-ulating his diet, will fail of any radical and cura- tive effect, until he is willing, every time he sits down to a repast, to fix upon the precise quantity of food which he intends to cat; and either actually to collect the whole upon his plate, or to measure it off with hia eye, and resolutely resist the temptation to partake of another mouthful. If he does not take this course, he will a3 certainly eat too much, as he eats at all: For in the first place, he cannot otherwise know how much he eats, and of course must depend upon his appetite to inform him when he has eaten enough ; a course that is no safer for a dyspeptic invalid, than for a man to trust himself upon a high spirited horse without a bridle. In the second place, by allowing himself to eat a little and a little more, he takes the surest possible course to tempt his appetite, and to increase its ravenousness. He may feel little or no appetite when he commences his repast, but if he partakes of it bit by bit, that appetite will increase in a geometrical ratio as he eats, and he will infallibly in- dulge to excess ; more particularly so, if he suffers himself to use a va- riety of dishes. The following is the direction of an able medical writ- er, often quoted in these notes.t " The best plan is to eat slowly of the plainest dishes on the table, ne- ver indulging in variety, and for fear of eating too much of the sub- * "The invalid who has been accustomed to more stimulation than the above scale affords, may pass some sleepless nights, and be often tempt- ed to break tho vile system of abstemiousness, which the doctor has prescribed. Let him, however, persevere. Sleep will come—and that too, of a more refreshing quality, &c,"—Dr. J. Johnson, t Dyspeptic's Monitor, p. 102, NOTE Q. 423 stantial kinds, as meat, to be helped to the quantity intended to be eaten at first; in this way it can be measured with the eye, and the danger of overloading the stomach diminished.'" But after all, nothing is so hard as to persuade the dyspeptic invalid, actually to put these elirections into practice. He is unwilling to know how mu-.h he eats: and especially is he ashamed that others, who sit at thr table with him, should see the enormous quantity, which he, a poor feeble invalid, in his own estimation, and just ready to sink into the grave, is in the habit of eating. He knows that should he set apart any reasonable or moderate quantity, it woulel by no means satisfy him ; and therefore, he prefers to get one portion out of sight before he takes an- other ; and then tries to persuade himself that he has eaten only a mode- rate quantity. O, were his body transparent, so that he could see the Htrugglings and writhings of half suffocated nature, under the load which three times a day, he lays upon her, he would no longer wonder at his feebleness of health and incapacity for intellectual effort. Cer- tain it is, that until he will take means to limit the quantity of his food at each meal, he will never be any thing else but an invalid, in body and mind. He may be very particular to avoid this and that article of food, and to take abundance of exercise, and to avoid study and care, but until he is persuaded to reduce and fix the amount of his food, be will remain an inefficient, wretched, and almost useless man. Example for dyspeptics. In this place, I am happy to have it in my power to introduce, from the private journal of one, who by rigid temperance has sustained a feeble constitution to the \cigc- of three score and ten, those rules of diet which he "keeps before him" as his guide. Those in vigorous health may ex- claim against the specific character of these rules ; but the feeble inva- lid knows, that if such rules are not specific and exact, they are good for nothing; and if he can by observ ing them, obtain renovated health and comfort, little will he heed the ridicule of those, who are about as well qualified to judge of the matter, as the blind are of colors. Rrgulce mihi strictim observandm, si valeti'dise/™ vellem. I. Nihil inter cpulas edere—aut gustabe. 2. Habere prse mc, desicjnata, cum incipio,(si fieri possit,)oMNiA quae quoque tempore, edere liceat. 3. Edere lbntissime. •1- Ea (eaque sola) edere, et in ea quantitate, quae Experientia docet, it tempore eelendi judico, mihi optima, et maxime propria, esse.—Ergo; :">. Nunquam edere incipere, donee vere dicere possim—" hoc (vel Htec) edere, et genere, et quantitate, omnibus consideratis, mihi op- timum esse nunc judico." (i. Nunquam edereplusquam tres uncias et dimidium, (aut plurimum, quatuor,) epula ulla una. 7. Nunquam edere plusquam decern uncias,(aut plurimum, undeccm) die ullo, in ties epulas, fere equalcs, divisas. Reg ula Mcdicinatis. Cum tc ipsum parum aegrotum esse percipis, statim cibum tuum usitatum reduce, (cum simpliciorem et parciorem reddendo,) donee (ut »-perare liceat) valetudo redierit. "In estimating the quantity of food by weight, I take fine wheaten 424 APPENDIX. bread for my standard ; and other things in proportion to the nutriment which I judge them to contain. A wine gill of rich milk, I consider equal to an ounce of bread, &c. I prefer bread made of wheat anel rye ground together, and sifted through a coarse sieve, and should con- stantly use it, if it were not for the trouble it would give to my family. __The diet which best suits me, is, for breakfast,about 2£ ounces of bread, toasted and broken into 1£ gill of milk, more or less diluted ; for din- ner 2 ounces of bread, toasted and moistened with ^ gill of milk and an equal quantity of water, and an egg, cooked in the manner I have men- tioned with no seasoning but salt; and for my third meal, 1 gill of milk diluted and 2 ounces of bread. I have sometimes made use of the fol- lowing kind of food : Make a gruel of one quart of water and a teacup- ful of rye, (Indian, oat, rice, or barley) meal, with a little common salt, or phosphat of soda ; when sufficiently boiled, add 3 or 4 gills of milk ; after this, it should not boil, but when on the point of ebulition, remove it from the fire, and stir in one or two eggs previously beaten. When used, a little sugar and spice may be added. This may suffice for three meals.'—Lentissime recipiendum." NOTE Q. PAGE 116. The proper diet when travelling—especially for invalids. The opinion is almost universal among invalids, as well as those in health, that when upon a journey, even in a close carriage, they may eat voraciously, or at least give up the reins to appetite. Accordingly, dyspeptics, in a majority of cases, defeat the good effects of a journey, by indulging to excess ; and return home, discouraged, and possessed with the idea, that theirs is a hopeless case. But if they could only be persuaded to eat less upon a journey than when at home, they would generally return home rejoicing in the improvement of their health and spirits. From not a little personal experience, I can bear testimony to the correctness of the ground taken by the Journal of Health, opposed as it is to the opinions and practices of the great mass of mankind. " People especially valetudinarians, must not imagine, as is so com- monly done, that because they are travelling, they can eat and drink more than when they were at home. The reverse opinion is a correct one. The motion in travelling is of itself a stimulus, and hence less stimulating nourishment is then required than in a state of rest. There is hardly any advice more pernicious than that frequently given to those fatigued after a day's journey, to drink a glass of wine, or spirits and water, or the like, to recruit the strength, which can only be suitably renovated by sleep. Such a practice, of which a hearty supper forms part, is of itself competent to produce indigestion, feverishness, and dis- turbing dreams. The meals of an invalid traveller, or indeed of any person on the road, ought to be of light nutritive food, in moderate quantities, taken early in the morning, or after a ride of eight or ten miles, and early in the evening, after the journey is completed ; so that some time shall elapse between this last repast, which is both dinner and supper, and the hour for retiring to bed." NOTE R. 425 "Many arc under the impression that the fatigues of travelling can be properly sustained only by a liberal allowance of the strongest food, with the addition of fermented, if not of distilled liquors." " In cold climates, and in the winter season, a temperate amount of substantial food will undoubtedly be requi'rsd by the traveller. Spirit- ous liquors are under no circumstances, either nece ssary or proper. A very simple and abtemious diet will be found on the other hand, the one best adapted to support the health and vigor of the traveller in warm climates, and during the heats of summer. On this point we have the experience of the judicious Burkhardt, who, describing his journey through the deserts of Arabia, uses the following language."* " The provisions of my companions consisted only of flour ; besides flour, I carried some butter and dried leben, (a kind of cheese) which when dissolved in water, forms not only a refreshing beverage, but is much recommended, as a preservative of health, when travelling in sum- mer. These were our only provisions. During the journey we did not sup till after sunset, and wc breakfasted in the morning upon a piece of , 37 <}'• 3S. Would it abridge the pleasures of social, intercourse to banish tea and coffee from entertainments ? Many feel as if the attempt to dissuade any from the use of these ar- ticles were a kind of sacrilege; because, in their opinion, they are in- dispciisable.to give life and happiness, to social visits.and even family repasts But not long since, the same feeling existed, and with many still exists in respect to wine and ardent spirit. It was thought that conversation would be neither lively nor interesting, unless sharpened by the inspirations of the flask. But it needed only a simple experiment to show that if bss boisterous, social intercourse was not less profitable. nor interesting, although neither ardent spirit nor wine were in the * Dys k\ tic's Monitor, p. 119. t Cold blooded animals were chosen, because they are peculiarly ecu sible to the influence of the vegetable poisons. 37* 438 APPENDIX. feast. And- it needs only a similar experiment in respect to tea and coffee, to show that any stimulus, which produces an unnatural excite- ment in the nervous system, mars the pleasure, anel the profit of social interviews. The equable flow of feeling, which health and temperance produce, is all the physical preparation which a man needs, for enjoy- ing the most himself, and communicating the greatest amount of hap- piness to others, in social intercourse. If every kind of unnecessary stimulus were put away, the social board would not so frequently be- come the scene of bitter contest; nor would men be obliged so often to look back upon these occasions, with remorse, because there they spake unadvisedly with their lips. " I remember a gentleman at Prince of Wales's Island, some years ago," says Dr. J. Johnson, in his Tropical Hygiene, " who was remark- able for his convivial talents and flow of spirits. The first time I hap- pened to be in a large company with him, I attributed his animation and hilarity to the wine, and expected to sec them flag, as is usual, when the first effects of the bottle were past off; but I was suprised to find them maintain a uniform level, after many younger heroes had bowed to the rosy god. I now contrived to get near him, and enter in- to a conversation, when he disclosed the secret, by assuring mc he had drank nothing but water for many years, in India ; that in consequence his health was excellent—his spirits free—his mental faculties uncloud- ed, although far advanced, on time's list ; in short that he could con- scientiously recommend the antediluvian beverage, as he termed it, to every one that sojourned in a tropical climate," Does the use of tea and coffee, tend to prevent the use of ardent spirit'.' The common opinion is, that it does ; but I ask for the proof. For all the evidence that occurs to mc, supports the opposite opinion. Where does intemperance in spirit most ahoun.d 1 In those countries —viz. England and the United States—where the greatest quantity of tea and coffee are drunk ; if we except China, and perhaps Turkey; where they have not the means of procuring so much spirit. I do not contend, indeed, that the use of tea and coffee, is the chief cause of the excessive employment of alcoholic mixtures : Yet it is philosophical to infer, that such would be their tendency : for the use of a mild stim- ulant of any kind naturally produces an appetite for one that is stronger; because the milder one soon loses its effect in a measure, and the sink- ing powers cry out for anothei more potent, to wake up their energies.*' The reason that habitual drunkards not unfrequently care little about tea and coifce, is, that their stimulating power is too weak for them. But this does not prove that any contrariety exists in the effects of these substances and spirit ; nor does it prove that the drinking of the former, was not a stepping stone to the use of th: latter, while the stomach wa* more susceptible. Upon the whole, it seems to me, that both reason anel experience are against the opinion, which imputes to tea and coffee, a power of resisting the progress of intemperance. * The extent to which this craving for additional stimulus will pro- ceed, is striking y illustrated in the fact, that the "Turks, habituated to opium, chew Corrosive Sublimate, to excite a little the sensibility of (he palate !"—La Physiologic Des Gens Du Monde, p. 204. tiOTE T. 439 But is it not folly to urge men to give up all their luxuries 1 Some persons feel as if it would greatly injure the caaiee of temper- ance, to say a word against such articles as tea and coffee, or even wine, by producing the impression that it is the intention to proscribe even the lawful indulgences of social life. It is said, " men will never con- sent to relinquish all the luxuries of life, and confine themselves to the necessaries. We cannot expect them to relinquish all their indulgences, even if these arc known to shorten the period of their existence."* And why will they not abandon their luxuries ? Because they suppose that thereby they shall abridge their comfort and happiness. But suppose you can convince them that such an abandonment will promote their happiness ; surely they can easily be persuaded to relinquish all their luxuries. Now I maintain, that any change in the habits of eating and drinking, which promotes health and long life, does also promote the happiness of the individual. The enjoyment may be less intense: but it is more enduring, and unaccompanied by the subsequent suffering that attends every unnecessary indulgence. A man has only to aban- don any of his unnecessary luxuries, and adopt a more simple mode of living, to be satisfied of the truth of this position. He who has long indulged in the use of spirit, cannot be persuaded that he shall not lose a great deal of pleasure by forsaking his bottle, until by the experi- ment, he is astonished to find how much his happiness is thereby promo- ted. Still more difficult is it to persuade the lover of wine, that to leave the flask, would not be the sacrifice of a great amount of enjoyment. But the simple trial produces an entire revolution in his feelings. Now as it is admitted that water tilone is more promotive of health, as a con- stant drink, than any other, it follows, that to forsake every other, will increase our happiness. And any one, (perhaps there may be some ex- cepted eases,) who will make a fair and thorough trial, will be satisfied that there is no fallacy in this reasoning. It is in a firm belief that a man's happiness is increased by every dc- grcc of temperance that tends to health and long life, that I have urged abstinence from many articles of food and drink, which are generally considered harmless, or venial indulgences. And if I mistake not, it is an ignorance or forgctfulness, of this principle, that leads so many to cry out against excessive strictness in diet and regimen. They seem to feel, that even if such . xa.tucss were necessary in some cases of feeble health, yet it is only a necessary evil; and that he who adopts it, must make an immense sacrifice of comfort, and really deserves to be pitied. But this is a totally erroneous view of the subject; as every one who has tried the erpcrintent faithfully, will testify. Even the inveterate tea or coffee drinker, would find it, in nine cases out of ten, a most im- portant acquisition to his happiness, to have permanently acquired the- habit of using only water and milk for his beverage. But it would be altogether idle forme to expect that I shall convince the great mass of the community, that such would be the effect of the disuse of these articles : and, therefore, I have not pressed the subject, except upon a few classes. But'the rule that I have adopted, to give a fair statement of the actual effects of different substances upon the health and happiness, would not permit me to withhold iny opinion, which, although free, I hope is not dogmatical. 1 . annot conceal my belief, however, that the temperance movements in the land, will, ere many generations, press hard upon tea and coffee. * Pierson's Address on Temperance, p. 2^. 440 APPENDIX. Christians at present, have but a faint conception of the amazing influ-' ence that will hereafter be exerted by the extension of the principle of total abstinence from alcohol. Even the noble spirits—" the apostles of temperance"—whocommcnced this enterprise, willprobably find, as they look down upon some future happy generation, from their thrones of glory, that their brightest visions were but indistinct and cloudy. I feel then, as if I had been presenting the views that will prevail in the millenium,, as to the articles under consideration, rather than those which may be expected to be entertained in our own days. And yet, when I hear the almost simultaneous call for help, that echoes from the failing treasuries of nearly every benevolent society in the land, and re- collect how they might be filled to overflowing, were the money now expended by Christians only for these two bewitching narcotics, to be turned in thither, I cannot but believe that every conscientious and be- nevolent man, will seriously enquire, whether duty may not call him to make the sacrifice, even now—especially, if it be true, that instead of suffering, it will result in an augmentation of his personal happiness. But probably the language of Christ, on another subject, may be ap- plied to this : All men cannot receive this saying, save they to whom it is given. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it. Tea with dinner, or three times a day. Months of recent travelling in New England have showm me, that the practice of having tea with dinner, has become almost universal at our public houses. Indeed, in some of them the traveller is not even asked whether he wishes it; but this is taken for granted : and in almost eve- ry other case, the question is put. Having dined one fine autumnal day, without tea, at a retired coun- try tavern, we sat down for a time in the elining room ; when we saw a " table spreading for some one else ; and perceiving the tea apparatus ap- pear, the impression was, that some nervous lady had ordered it. But soon the door opened, and there was ushered into the room, one of those objects, not unfrequent upon market roads, a portly teamster, " In fair round belly with good capon lined ;" and with one of those red gross faces, that showed him to be in the habit of bracing against the vicissitudes of his condition, by some more potent stimulus than tea. A good comment surely, we thought, upon the doc- trine, that the love of tea can hardly co-exist with a love of alcohol. NOTE Z. PAGE 182. Additional testimonies and remarks concerning a milk diet. When we recollect that almost every physician, and other dietetic writer, recommend the use of milk, with a fearless and almost en- thusiastic earnestness, particularly for the invalid ; and that every man who has fairly tried such a diet, echoes back the recommendation, it is really astonishing that so few can be induced to adopt it. The only excuse invalids make, in general, is, that " it does not agree with them." But in offering this apology, they virtually confess that they have widely departed from nature and temperance. For certainly milk NOTE Z. 441 was originally congenial to their constitutions ; and in ninety nine cases out of a hundred, the subsequent dislike to it must have resulted from the excessive use of food more rich and stimulating. " In general," says an able writer,* "disgust at particular foods, is produced by sur- feits, which injure the stomach and create in that exquisitely irritable viscus, an insuperable antipathy to receive nourishment which formerly gave it so much uneasiness to digest." Extract of a letter from an esteemed correspondent. I have been surprised, that milk should be so much overlooked by most writers on dietetics. " It is." says Buchan, "of more value (in consumption) "than the whole materia medica." And again ; "This preparation of nature, a mixture of animal and vegetable properties, is ihc most fit for restoring a decayed constitution." (And why not then for every purpose of health?) "But people despise," he adds, "this wholesome and most nourishing food, and devour with greediness, flesh, and fermented liquors, while milk is only deemed fit for hogs." I am satisfied, that the complaint, so often made, that it does not agree with the stomach, is in most cases for the want of a proper trial, or from a willingness, perhaps, that this should be the fact. An eminent medical writer, whose name I do not now recollect, observes, " that he had sel- dom found milk or eggs to disagree even with persons in fever." Opinion of Dr. Avery. "The diet which I have found to succeed best in a large majority of cases, (of common dyspepsy,) is bread and milk. There are many who are prejudiced against milk, and a few with whom it-really does not agree, who will be obliged to aelopt a different diet; but I advise all who have no disrelish for it, to give it a fair trial before they strike it out of their bill of fare." " It is unnecessary to say, that every one in his early days could eat milk, and if it really does not agree with him now, it shows how much liis stomach is influenced by habit. But in almost every instance, it may be brought hack to a state not to be disturbed by what once suited it so well. in one case, I recollect, when a milk eliet was aelvised, it occasioned for two or three days, both vomiting and purging; but per- severance conquered at last, and the stomach not only bore it pleasantly, but it was eaten with great relish.—There are many who cannot eot milk occasionally, for instance, at supper, after a meat dinner, who will find no inconvenience from it if they confine themselves to it entirely.— For those who cannot eat milk, I have found the follow iug diet to an- swer best. The breakfast should consist of plain bread, and a toft boiled egg without any drink if it can possibly be dispensed with—at most only a small draught of water.—Those who are fond of tea anel coffee mav think it rather hard, at first, to be deprived of them ; but they have only to lay them aside for a few days, and then return to them to be convinced of their injurious effects. Nothing can be more perni- cious than these two articles, whether taken strong or weak, in this spe- cies (of dyspepsy.) If weak, like all hot fluids, they are debilitating to the stomach; if strong, they irritate its nerves, occasion a great secre- tion of their mucus, and in a word, arc most powerful agents in promo- ting acidity. The invalid need not expect to recover while he persists in using them." ♦ Smcllie's Philosophy of Nat. His. Ware's first edition, p. 121, 442 APPENDIX. " The dinner in the worst cases, should be nothing more than the breakfast, and the supper a bit of bread alone."—Dyspeptic's Monitor, pp. 96, 97. Case of John Hanway, the distinguished philanthropist. " The precarious state of his health on his return to England—he then laboring under all the premonitory symptoms of consumption, ren- dered it necessary for him tov.se the utmost caution in bis diet and reg- imen. His perseverance in following the directions of his medical at- tendants was remarkable. Milk being recommended to him by Liebcr- kuhn, the physician to the king of Prussia, as the most proper diet to restore his strength—he made it the chief part of his food for thirty years: although at first it disagreed with his stomach, he persisted in trying it under every preparation of which it was capable, until at length he became reconciled to its use." "Mr. Hanway never drank spirituous liquors in any form, nor wine undiluted with water." " By this rigid attention anel care, his health was re-established, bis lungs acquired strength and elasticity; and there can be no doubt he would have lived many years longer, if the disorder, accidentally con- tracted, which was the immediate cause of his death, had left him to the gradual decay of nature."—Journal of Health, vol. I. p. 339, 340. From. Hufeland's Art of Prolonging Life, Vol. II. p. 249. - " Lord Bacon mentions a man of 120, who, during his whole life, never used any other food than milk." Dr. Londe's remarks upon the use of milk. "Milk calms the passions as it calms the respiration : it communicates mildness to the character, as it imparts moderation to the movements." "Milk generally agrees with nervous people : its use, continued a long time, is proper to restore to its natural state, an excessive sensibility— an irritability raised by the use of stimulants beyond the degree nec- essary for the support of life. It is particularly proper for restoring to the organs, that freshness, that color, that moderate fleshiness, and that youthful appearance, which we have lost by the abuse of every kind of stimulants in great cities." This writer says, that in Paris, the people and even the children, who live on milk, are often the most miserable of beings ; and in assigning several reasons why the full benefits of milk can never be felt, but in the country, he says ; " it seems to be necessary, in great cities, to has- ten the combustion of life, to prevent the flame from being extinguished; or, what amounts to the same thing, to employ means for sustaining life at the present moment, which are prejudicial to its duration." " Milk is particularly unfriendly to those of Lymphatic Temperament —to persons confined in low and humid regions, where the air is bad— even if these persons be infants. For such individuals, aliments which produce more of reaction than milk, are better ; provided always that the stomach be in a perfectly sound state."* Statement of another physician. " Milk does not generally agree with the perfect hypochondriac, nor the plethoric and corpulent, (the two latter classes corresponding to ♦Noveaux Elemens D'Hygiene, p. 69, 70, 71. NOTE z. 443 those of a Lymphatic Temperament according to Londe,) and disagrees particularly with tiplers, or those addicted to strong liquors." Sure Methods, tcility, and fu- ture worthlessness. Only convince the young gentleman, that it will not be fatal to his scholastic dignity to bestir himself a little, and live and act like other people, and at the same time put a little restraint upon his gluttonous propensities, and the blush of health, and strength . of limb, will soon return ; and with them will return that energy of mind, which will qualify him to study to some purpose. " Worn out by Arduous Labors.—We wish to add a few words, on the importance of this subject, when viewed in reference to the Christian ministry. At the present (lay, when there is such an alarming want of laborers in the vineyard of Christ, what a pity, we often feel constrained to say, that the energies of those already there, should be so sadly par- alyzed by this deadly foe to usefulness. Into whatever part of the coun- try we go, we hear of-ministers taken off from their labors by ill health. This is generally attributed to their arduous labors; sometimes we NOTE I. I. 449 doubt not, with reason; but in very many instances, we honestly be- lieve, arduous labors have about as much to do with the ill hctaJth of the ministers, as hard study has with that of,the young student. Their labors ate arduous we know ; but attention to a few simple rules would have preserved both body and mind in such a healthy, vigorous state, as would have rendered their burden comparatively light. The subject is peculiarly important, with reference to those sons of the church whom, by her charity she is endeavoring to train up for future useful- ness in the gospel ministry. Treasure that has been consecrated to God, should not be wasted in training up a race of invalids ; and after the light that is now shed upon this subject, we cannot hesitate to say, that the benefit iary, who persists in sacrificing health, to habits of bodily indolence and self-indulgence, ought to be regarded as guilty of a moral offence, and should be forthwith dismissed from the patronage of the church."—Christian Mirror. From the Christian Spectator. "We will not conceal the gratification, which we cannot but feel, in the exertions which have been lately made, in one quarter and another, to rouse the Christian student to his obligations to watch over the phy- sical nature, with which he is entrusted. Let the warning fall upon his car like repeated claps of thunder; Beware how you neglect the corpo- real frame work, with which all your intellectual operations aresoclosely connected. Let this frame work moulder by sloth, or be shaken by ex- cess, or be crushed by overstrained exertion, and you are lost to the cause, to which you might otherwise have been long and usefully de- voted. If you do not go down to an early grave, you will be a dead man while you seem to live. Oh, how many departed ones have been lamented, as martyrs to excessive application, who have died "as the fool dieth," the miserable victims of indolence and luxury ! The mis- sionary enterprise demands men of a widely different stamp,—men, who have consecrated their bodies as well as their souls, a living sacri- fice to Jesus Christ,—men who will spare no pains to preserve their lives and health unimpaired, that they may toil long and vigorously.and joy- fully, for their Saviour."—Christian Spectator, Dec. ISoO, p. 634. NOTE I. I. PAGE 306. Extract from the Preface to Le Catechisme De La Medicine Physiolog- ique, Paris, 1824. After condemning, in decided terms, such works as Buchan's Domes- tic Medicine, as having done a great deal of mischief, he proceeds : " But in spite of the discredit.into which such works (works on Hygiene) have fall-n among physicians, we think that they have become necessary in the present state of society ; and because the most of them are bad, it is indispensable that good ones should be prepared. Indeed, how can you hinder educated men from reading books of medicine? They have con- tracted that habit since physicians have written in the vulgar tongue F .ch amateur of our science has his theory, concerning the causes of maladies and the effects of remedies ; and these prepossessions are one of the principal obstacles which a physician meets, at the sick bed. One seduced by the trash of my Lord Leroy, pants after nothing but nureatives : another, having a scent of the Brunonian system, is not satisfied with any prescription but tonics and stimulants. A third, sees nothing in every malady, but a suppression of the perspiration, and 450 appendix. never will resort to medicines, till he has tried sweating beyond bounds, by wrapping himself up excessively and taking hot drinks. Since at this day empiricism and ontology have passed beyond the language of our classics, into that of the community, there is a multitude of persons, who entertain you with an account of morbid principles, or matters,un- der which they believe themselves laboring. They represent their own bodies to be the rendezvous of five or six sorts of diseases, which attack them together or separately : the gout, the rheumatism nervous disti- llers, glaires, bilious complaints, a humour, &c.; they demand of their physician a specific for each one of these ; and if he refuses to prescribe one, their confidence in him is shaken, and soon they give themselves up into the hands of some charletan, who succeeds in ruining their health." " Many men of merit, disgusted by the diversity of opinions among authors,have become altogether sceptical; (of which,most distinguished physicians, even lately, have set them a pitiable example,) and refused with obstinacy the assistance of our art." " What more shameful, what more dishonorable to science, and yet what more common, than to see men of letters, mathematicians, and distinguished civilians, reposing confidence in mere pretenders to med- icine, who are destitute of logic, and ignorant sometimes of the first el- ments of grammar, under the ridiculous pretext that such quacks may possess excellent receipts; and that they have seen them effect wonder- ful cures ! The more ignorant and coarse a man is, the more he inspires confidence in certain people. A physician, who has studied long to ac- quire information, has nothing marvelous about him ; but the individual who can hardly speak his native tongue, has the reputation of knowing secrets which are omnipotent against most disorders : many see in him something wonderful, even supernatural; and their confidence is strengthened by that which ought to destroy it." " Although at this day, medicine has become a science which r^sts on invariable principles, its practice is not yet accessible to the mass of society : but they can study its theory, because they can comprehend it: and they ought to do this, because they will derive from it great advan- tages. They will thus be able to judge concerning the physician who comes to their aid ; and to distinguish between the physiological prac- titioner, and the mere ontolgist, or routinist (routinier.)" NOTE K. K. PAGE 357. System of Self Support adopted at Philip's Academy, Andover. I was agreeably surprised to find, on visiting Andover, that the sys- tem of self support, which I was about to advocate before the Mechan- ical Association, was already in successful operation in the Academy in that place. " The diet" says one of the Trustees, who has had the good- ness recently to answer my enquiries, " in the commons, is bread and milk for supper and breakfast, and a plain common dinner of meat. During the season of the year for work on the farm, the students are required to labor eleven hours a week. We have now one vacation in the Spring, of one week, and another in the Summer, of the same length, and a third of six weeks in the Winter ; that our young men may keep school. The second term has just closed, and the experiment thus far, appears altogether favorable. The price of board, for the two terms, has been 77 cents a week. There were in the commons last ten* about 40. As far as I know, they were universally satisfied with their NOTE L. L. 451 living—their health was good, and one of the instructors told me, at the close of the term, that they had accomplished more in their studies than usual." The public will look with great interest upon the progress and final results of this interesting experiment: and I rejoice that it is under the guidance of men, who will conduct it judiciously. Noble example. The following statement of a pious young man at one of our western colleges—as contained in the annals of the American Education Socie- ty—shoA.s what can be accomplished by abstemiousness and self denial. 1 will tell you," said he to an agent of the Society, " how I live. I purchase a bushel of corn meal for 20 cents. I get a loaf baked each week for six cents. I live upon my corn bread and water, and it costs me but twelve and a half cents a week! With this fire I am well con- tented if I can prepare myself for usefulness in the vineyard of the Lord ; and at the close of the session, I doubt not but I shall be as healthy as any of my companions."—" While speaking of his health," says the writer, " I was forcibly reminded in view of his healthful counte- nance, of Daniel and his associates, who, from motives of Christian self denial, lived upon pulse, instead of the king's meat." Boston Recorder, Xov. 17, lb30. NOTE L. L. PAGE 361. Additional fads illustrative of the longevity of learned men. It would be very easy greatly to enlarge the list that is given in the Addnsd, of distinguished octogenarian students. In Sinclair's Code of Health, for example, we find the names of 158 scholars in Modern Eu- rope, (few of which, I believe, are included in the list that 1 have giv- en,) the average length of whose li\ es is as follows : 42 English Literati, - - - - 83 years, 81 French »----- 85 22 Italian "......«;"> " 6 German ------ 83 4 Dutch "......84 " Average, SI Living Scholars. It is believed that a list of the most-distinguished living scholars and philosophic is, would conduct us to the same conclusions : viz. that they must either have inherited vigorous bodily constitutions, or have ren- dered healthy and hardy by regimen, those naturally feeble : and that intellectual pursuits are favorable to health. The following list of dis- tinguished living German Savans* obligingly furnished me by Dr. Francis Lieber, will render this position probable. * The following note respecting the health of German scholars, (a sub- ject frequently alluded to in this work,) which was this moment received, from a gentleman who litis travelled extensively in Europe, is too val- uable to be withheld. " In the South of Germany, I found half the literati, whom I saw, dys- peptic ; some great sufferers. 1 believe there is error on this subject: though 1 suspect that the habit of unbending—the freedom from our slavish feeling of responsibility, has some influence." 452 APPENDIX. Blumenbach, born 1752, and is now 79 years old. Gothe, ... 1749 - ■ 82 Paulus, the theologian, born 1761 and is now 70 Eichhorn, - 1752 - . 79 Gauss, - 1777 - . 52 Bode, - - - 1747 - . 84 Rosenmiiller, - - 1768 - . 63 Heeren, - 1760 . - 71 Schleirmacher, - 1768 . . 63 Shlegel, Aug. Wilh. - 1767 - . 64 Savigny, - 1779 - - 52 Buttman, - 1764 - - 67 Hegel, - 1770 - - 61 Schelling, - 1775 - - 56 Wegscheider, - 1771 - - 60 Dc Wette, - 1780 - - 51 Average 66 Testimony of writers on this subject. Many volumes have been written on the means of lengthening life, and on the causes of longevity. One of the best views of the subject that have fallen under my notice, is contained in Hufeland's Art of Prolonging Life. " Deep thinking philosophers," says he, " have al- ways been distinguished by their great age, especially when their phi- losophy was occupied in the study of nature and afforded them the di- vine pleasure of discovering new and important truths." (vol. 1. p. 137, London Edition, 1797.) " The ancient philosophers," says he, " undoubtedly studied as much as the modern literati; and yet they never suffered from the hypochon- dria, hemorhoids, &c. The sole cause of this was, that they meditated more, lying or walking, and in the open air ; because they never drank coffee, or used tobacco ; and because, at the same time that they exer- cised the mind, they never neglected the care and the exercise of the body."— Vol. II. p. 30. In his first volume, (p. 69,) he says, "No instance can be found of an idler having attained to a remarkably great age." And since literary men are under peculiar temptations to live a life of celibacy, it may be well to quote the following from volume first, p. ■ 167. " All those people who have become very old, were married more than once, and generally at a very late period of life. There is not one instance of a bachelor having attained to a great age." Professor Chapponier of Paris, in his recent and interesting work, entitled, La Physiologie Des Gens Du Monde. &c. corresponds in his views of the subject of longevity, essentially with Hufeland. His chapter on that subject is very valuable. " A philosophical life," says he, " often prolongs the duration of exisr tence and longevity, and is by no means incompatible with intellectual labors when they are not excessive." (p. 319.) '' To live is not to vege- tate—to drag out long days in apathy. It is to think—to feel—to act." (p. 301.) " It is well known that the macrobiotic art, or the art of prolonging life, consists in abstaining from every kind of excess—even from excess in good things."----"The only source of all longevity, therefore, can, be nothing but temperance and uniformity in physical and moral ef- forts :—temperance and mediocrity in nourishment—in labors—in pleas- ures—in repose." (pp. 302, 303. JUST PUBLISHED BY J. S. & C. ADAMS, AMHERST; AND S. BUTLER & SON, NORTHAMPTON ; AND J. LEAVITT, NEW YORK : A SECOND EDITION OF DYSPEPSY FORESTALLED k RESISTED ; or Lectures on Diet, Regimen, and Employment; with an Address on the Physical Culture adapted to the Times; and an Appendix of Notes. By Prof. Edward Hitchcock. NOTICES OF THE FRST EDITION OF THE WORK. " It has seldom fallen to our lot to see so much practical good sense and animated philanthrophy, as are found in the pages of these Lectures."—Journal of Health, Vol. I. p. 411. " These Lectures are an attempt to point out to the whole community of students, their duties in respect to their bodily system. An intelligent librarian might place it, net among medical books, but in the alcove devoted to moral philosophy. In fact if, in a system of instructions on this last named sub- ject, the duties which arise from our connection with a cor- poreal frame, was made one grand division, this treatise would ably and fully cover the ground."—American Journal of Education, July, 1H30. " We recommend this amusing publication [the Lectures] to the consideration of all those, who are addicted to intem- perate eating and drinking, to the use of tobacco and opium, to luxurious living, and a neglect of exercise ;—to all, who are already suffering the deplorable consequence of these practices, or are in any danger of falling into them ;—in short, to no inconsiderable portion of our entire population, and more especially to students, and persons -engaged in sed- entary pursuits. If duly studied and regarded, it may save 2 them much expense, trouble, mortification, and suffering— from days of melancholy, and nights of anguish—from pre- mature infirmity, disease, and death."—Spirit of the Pil- grims, June, 1830. " We have differed from the author in some points of de- tail but not in his great principles—This volume well de- serves, and we are happy to learn is receiving, an extensive patronage. If most people believe only half of it, and reduce it to practice, they will find themselves richly compensated for its purchase and peiusal."—Same Work, p. 582, Nov. 1830. " These able and interesting Lectures were delivered last year to the students in Amherst College, and are worthy of the attention of all students, and indeed of all persons. We trust that the Journal of Health, the Journal of Humanity, and the Lectures of Prof. Hitchcock are doing and will continue to do much for the promotion both of the physical and moral health of the community." " Professor Hitchcock has justly urged the necessity of temperance and selection in the use of food as well as drink, and although under the latter head, we may differ from him in some details, and may think some of his opinions carried to an extreme, we do think his main argument sound and ir- resistible, and we believe that no one will rise from a perusal of his book (so well sustained by facts and authorities as well as by reasoning) without a disposition to be temperate in all things."—American Journal of Science and Arts, vol. 19. p. 167. " If we judge rightly from the few pages we have found time to read, it is a book (the Lectures) that will attract no little attention. The style is clear and forcible, and the mat- ter such as deserves the serious attention not only of the Stu- dent, but of every Christian and Philanthropist." Journal of Humanity, May 19, 1830i ----•*-. v " Every man of good taste, will read this book (the Lec- tures) with pleasure: and every dyspeptic who reads and practices upon its precepts, can hardly fail to derive profit from it."—Newburyport Herald. " We would advise the dyspeptic patient to throw away 3 his pills—to buy and read the work we speak of—and by strict attention to diet and exercise, to seek for that health which diet and exercise alone can restore."----" Every page, discloses research and learning; and the whole bears the im- press of a vigorous mind. The wise ancient, and the learned modern—the scientific man—the philosopher and the poet are all occasionally laid under contribution, for a fact, a pre- cept or illustratipn ; and the excellent author, while he teaches you the path to health, by a thousand interesting and agreea- ble facts and anecdotes, which abound in his work, allures you to the bowers of cherfulness."— Village Record, June, 16, 1830. "The subscribe!s have examined Professor Hitchcock's Prize Essay, and find it full of valuable matter. The facts and principles contained in it appear to be of such high im- portance, that we ardently hope it will be examined by heads of families throughout the country ; and if they think as we do, they will take pains to instil its doctrines into the minds of their children and dependants." John C. Warren, m. d. Boston. Hon. William Sullivan, " Enoch Hale, jr. m. d. " Hon. Samuel Hubbard, " Joshua B. Flint, m. d. " Rev. Charles Lowell, d. d. " " The fourth Lecture, on Alcoholic and Narcotic substances, as articles of common use, was first published in a separate form, In the American Temperance Society, as a Prize Es- say. The author, in it, appeals with great force of argument, and not unfrequently in eloquent strains, against the use of these substances."—Journal of Health, Vol. I. p. 311. " Although addressed to a particular class of persons, the considerations urged (in the Essay) are, for the most part, such as every man, especially every Freeman and Christian ought to feel."----" It deserves to be circulated and read every where, like Kittredge, Dickinson, and Beecher." Journul of Humanity, June, 10, 1830. " We must be permitted to repeat our recommendation of this invaluable Essay, not only to the class of persons for whom especially it was written, but to all; to those who are 4 interested in the welfare of the young, as well as to the young themselves, and to those who would forestal or conquer bad habits in their own persons, no less than to those who would preserve children or friends from entering on a road full of peril and leading down to the chambers of death." Journal of Humanity, Jane, 17, 1830. " Against the use of distilled spirits, wines, tobacco, and opium,the author of the Essay, speaks with great, force of lan- guage and in eloquent strains—and the appeal is rendered powerful by the facts—facts that will startle those who re- gard wine and tobacco as harm let'-- stimulants—which meet the reader on almost cverery page."----" No abstract of it can do justice to the argument, or present fully the consider- ations it contains, which cannot he soberly examined by any man without producing conviction."—Southern Relig. Tele- graph, July, 3, 1830. J. S. & C ADAMS, PRINTERS AND BOOKSELLERS, AMHERST, MASS. Keep constantly for sale, oh good terms, an extensive varie- ty of Books in the various departments of Literature. Stationary, Blank Books, &c. Printing executed on favourable torms^ and all orders for Books or Printing will meet with prompt attention. J. S. & C. A. have furnished their Printing Office with Three new and elegant Founts of Greek Type, which enables them to execute works in that language of any magnitude. NLM041422897