( ', ' ^.to n. gpr*. I < h ARMY MEDICAL LIBRARY WASHINGTON (j0 U/ Founded 1836 ANNEX Section Ntimbor 3..LR.H..U1 Fokm 113c, W. D., S. G. O. (Revised June 13, 1936) 23 THE PRINCIPLES OF PHYSIOLOGY APPLIED TO THE PRESERVATION OF HEALTH, AND TO THE IMPROVEMENT OF PHYSICAL AND MENTAL EDUCATION. BY ANDREW COMBE, M. D. PHT8ICIAN EXTRAORDINARY TO THE QUEEN IN SCOTLAND, AND CONSULTUCa PHYSICIAN TO THE KING AND QUEEN OF THE BELGIANS. WITH FIVE WOOD-CUTS. TO WHICH IS ADDED, NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS, BY 0. S. FOWLER, PRACTICAL PHRENOLOGIST, Editor of the American Phrenological Journal; and Author of<( Phrenology Proved, Illustrated, and Applied ; " Fowler's Practical Phrenology;" and several other Phrenological Works. rnOOT THE SEVENTH EDINBURGH EDITION. ENLARGED AND IMPROVED. NEW-YORK: FOWLER & WELLS, 131 Nassau Street 1847. " Nor is it left arbitrary, at the will and pleasure of every man, to do as he list; after the dictates of a depraved humour and extravagant phancy, to live at what rate he pleaseth; but every one is bound to observe the Injunction and Law of JVature, upon the penalty of forfeiting their health, strength, and liber- ty—the true and long enjoyment of themselves." Mainwayringe. 3,00 IH7 Entered according to Act of Congress, in the Year of our Lord 1842, BY O. S. FOWLEB, in the Clerk's Office of the United States' District Court of the Southern District of New York. STEREOTYPED BY VINCENT L. DILL, No. 128 Fulton Street, New-York li TO HIS MAJESTY LEOPOLD THE FIRST, KING OF THE BELGIANS. Sire, In consenting to ascend the throne, to which you were called by the fervent prayer of the Belgian people, your Majesty was graciously pleased to declare, that, having, from early life, been placed in many dim cult and trying situations, you had long learned to value power only as a means of advancing the solid and lasting happiness of your fellow-crea- tures. How nobly your Majesty has redeemed the pledge implied in this generous assurance, the tranquillity, security, and increasing prosperity of your Majesty's adopted country proclaim in language which it requires not the aid of individual testimony to confirm; and I venture to refer to it only because your Majesty's gracious permission to dedicate to you a work having for its aim the prevention and alleviation of human suffering is but another proof of the sincerity of the feeling by which it was dictat- ed, and of the deep interest which your Majesty takes in every thing con- nected with the welfare and improvement of mankind. As every amelioration of the physical condition of the people conduces not less to their advancement in intelligence and good conduct than to their bodily comfort, I am inclined to hope that, even in a moral point of view, some good may be effected by the present exposition of the more important laws of the animal economy, and of the numerous practical ad- vantages to be expected from their regular and adequate fulfilment. While thus laying my little work before your Majesty as a sincere though humble tribute of respect and admiration, may I be farther per- mitted to express my profound gratitude for the condescending goodness with which you have been pleased to receive my imperfect services, as well as for the professional confidence with which your Majesty continues to honour me. That your Majesty may long be spared, in health and happiness, to watch over the interests of the Belgian nation, is the sincere and earnest wish of, Sire, Your Majesty's most grateful and devoted Servant, ANDREW COMBE. Edinburgh, November 1, 1838. If ADVERTISEMENT TO THE SEVENTH EDITION. It is now about four years and a half since the present work was first published, and already six editions, consisting together of eleven thousand copies, have been exhausted in this country. In America, a much larger number has been sold, and an edition prepared with questions and answers at the end of the chapters to adapt it for a school-book, has been success- fully introduced into several seminaries of education. In Germany also, where an excellent translation appeared about a year ago, it has been fa- vourably received. These circumstances afford the most gratifying evi- dence that the importance of physiological knowledge as one of the most useful, if not indispensable, branches of general instruction, is at last be- ginning to be appreciated among the intelligent classes of society, and that the present attempt to communicate it in a plain and unambitious style has not been unsuccessful. The approbation bestowed upon this volume by several of the medical journals, and by many of my brethren, is an indication that the want which it endeavours to supply, has been extensively felt by the profession as well as by the public; and encourages me to hope, that although de- signed chiefly for the general reader, it may nevertheless be found useful as a guide to the medical student, in facilitating his acquaintance with a branch of knowledge, which, considering its practical importance in the improvement of man and in the prevention and cure of disease, is cer- tainly too much neglected, and on which he will not, however disposed, easily find elsewhere the means of obtaining adequate information. Various and extensive additions have been made to the work since it was first published, and to increase its usefulness, a comprehensive index was annexed to the fourth edition. With these improvements it has since been stereotyped; and in fulfilment of an intention formerly announced, a treatise on Diet on the same general plan, and entitled " The Physiolo- gy of Digestion considered in relation to the Principles of Dietetics," was published some time ago, and is now in its second edition. Edinburgh, Nov. 1838. CONTENTS. PREFACES, 9_20 CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTORY REMARKS. Physiology, Vegetable, Comparative, and Human. Animate and Inanimate Bodies. Objects of Physiology. Usefulness of Physiological Know- ledge. Illustrations. Evils of Ignorance. Error in separating Ana- tomy and Physiology from their Practical applications. What Health is—And how to be preserved, ..... 21-40 CHAPTER II. STRUCTURE AND FUNCTIONS OF THE SKIN. The skin—composed of three layers. The Cuticle—its structure and uses. The Mucous Coat—the seat of colour. The True Skin—its structure— the seat of perspiration—its nature—consequences of suppressed per- spiration. Sympathy between the Skin and other organs. The Skin a regulator of Animal Heat. The seat of Absorption, Touch, and Sensa- tion. Connexion between the Skin and Nervous System, . . 41-89 CHAPTER III. HEALTH OF THE SKIN, AND ITS INFLUENCE ON THE GENERAL SYSTEM. Mortality in Infancy from Cold. Animal heat lowest at that age. Too little and too much clothing equally bad. Rules for dress. Advant- ages of flannel in preventing disease. Ventilation of beds and clothing. Influence of light. Importance of ablution and bathing. Cold, tepid, and warm bath. Sponging with diluted vinegar. Friction of the skin. Vapour bath, and warm bath, useful in preventing and curing nervous diseases and liability to cold. Sailing and riding useful by acting on theBkin, . . - . . . 70-93 •1 CONTENTS. CHAPTER IV. NATURE OF THE MUSCULAR SYSTEM. Muscles. The structure, attachment, and conditions of action.—Necessity of arterial blood, and of nervous influence. Illustrations. Muscles act by alternate contraction and relaxation. Fatigue consequent on con- tinuing the same attitude explained. Injuries of Spine from neglect of this law, and from sedentary occupations in school. The mind ought to be engaged in exercise as well as the body. Superiority of cheerful play and amusing games. A dull walk the least useful exercise. In- fluence of mental stimulus illustrated by examples. Exercise to be proportioned to strength. Laws of exercise. . • . 04-123 CHAPTER V. EFFECTS OF, AND RULES FOR, MUSCULAR EXERCISE. Effects of Muscular Exercise on the principal functions of the body explain- ed. Shampooing a substitute for exercise. Evils of deficient exercise. Best time for taking exercise. Always to be taken in the open air. Different kinds—Walking—Riding — Dancing — Gymnastics— Fencing —Shuttlecock—Reading aloud. Case illustrative of the principles of exercise. Involuntary Muscles, . . . 123-143 CHAPijcR VI. THE BONES, THEIR STRUCTURE, USES, AND CONDITIONS OF 'HEALTH. The bones essential to motion, and to the security of the vital organs.— The Skeleton. Bones are composed of animal and of earthy matter. The animal part the seat of their vitality. The proportions between these vary at different periods of life. Vessels, nerves, life, growth, and decay of bones. Advantages of their vitality and insensibility. Their adaptation to contained Darts. Conditions of health. Neces- sity of exercise. ....... 144-163 CHAPTER VII. THE LUNGS—THEIR FUNCTIONS—AND HEALTn. Arterial and venous blood—Circulation of the blood. Respiration. Situa- tion and structure of the lungs—their air-cells and bloodvessels. Pul- monary exhalation and absorption. Conditions of healthy action in the lungs. Influence of hereditary predisposition—of wholesome food and good digestion—of the free expansion of the lungs-^of exercise of the muscles and voice—of cheerfulness and depression of mind—of pure air and ventilation. Vitiation of the air by breathing—extent and na- CONTENTS. ▼y ture of the vitiaticm—examples of death produced by great impurity— its influence in destroying health—illustrations. Want of ventilation in public halls, churches, schools, and houses—necessity for the scientific regulation of ventilation—disease from ill-regulated ventilation—means of ventilation—effects of vitiated air on the animal economy. Respira- tion the source of animal heat—Causes of deficient generation of heat. Means of strengthening the lungs and chest. Direct and indirect exer- cise of the lungs—Beneficial effects of, and rules for, pulmonary exer- cise. Precautions to be observed in diseases of the lungs, and in per- sons predisposed to consumption, particularly at puberty. 162-210 CHAPTER VIII. NERVOUS SYSTEM AND MENTAL FACULTIES. Nervous System. Structure of the brain. The brain the organ of mind and seat of sensation. Connection between the mind and brain. Condi- tions of health of the brain. Influence of hereditary constitution—of the blood. Effects of imperfectly oxygenated blood. Exercise of the brain and mind. Effects of mental inactivity—exemplified in the deaf and dumb. Mental inactivity a cause of nervous disease. Exempli- fied in retired officers, merchants, and others—in females of the mid- dle and higher ranks. Effects of mental activity on the brain. Effects of excessive mental activity—Exemplified in precocious children— in youth—in hard students—in early and middle life, case of Sir Hum- phrey Davy—^in advanced life, case of Sir Walter Scott—A cause of insanity. Effects of over activity of mind on health, cases of Gretry, Weber, and others. ...... 211-241 CHAPTER IX. RULES FOR MENTAL EXERCISE. Rules for the proper exercise of the mind and brain. Mind not to be tasked immediately after a meal. Best time for mental exertion. Im- portance of regularity in mental employment. Repetition of men- tal act indispensable to improvement of mind. Effects of repetition illustrated in moral and intellectual training. Every faculty to be em- ployed directly on its own objects. Illustrations. Direct exercise of the moral faculties. Best means of exciting the moral sentiments. Er- rors in ordinary moral education, and in boarding-schools. Use of philosophy of mind in conducting education. Influence of the brain and nervous system on the general health. Exemplified in ordinary life, and in the army. The depressing emotions destructive of health. Influence of the cheerful emotions in preserving and restoring health. Sir H. Davy's cure of palsy by the application of a thermometer ex- plained. Examples at the siege of Breda—in the army and navy, and in the late northern expeditions. . . . . . 242-276 Vll! CONTENTS. CHAPTER X. APPLICATION OF THE PRECEDING PRINCIPALS. Causes of bad health. Not always the result of moral or immoral conduct, —nor of accident,—but of the infringement of the laws of organization. Proofs from past history. Diminished mortality from increase of knowledge, and better fulfilment of the conditions of health. The ex- peditions of Anson and Cook contrasted. Gratifying results of the sanatory arrangements of Ross, Parry, and Franklin. Pulmonary dis- eases in the Channel fleet, from ignorance of physiology. Rates of mortality in different ages and countries. Causes of late improvement. Conditions of wealthier and poorer classes compared. Good done by the apprehension of Cholera. Influence of habit. Neglect of organic laws in recruiting service. Examples. . . . 277-301 CHAPTER XI. APPLICATION OF THE PRINCIPLES OF PHYSIOLOGY TO THE MORAL TREAT- MENT OF NERVOUS DISEASE AND INSANITY. Condition of the nervous and insane too little known. Necessity of impro- ved moral treatment. - Use of physiological knowledge in effecting the required improvements. Principles on which the nervous and insane ought to be treated. Necessity of providing the means of bodily and mental occupation, and humane and intelligent attendants, in asy- lums. Admission of visitors. Middlesex and Edinburgh pauper asy- lums contrasted. State of private asylums—M. Esquirol's retreat at Ivry. Conclusion. ..... 302-311 WOOD-CUTS. Muscles of the Human Body, 100. Bloodvessels of the Arm, 123. Human Skeleton, 145. Thoracic and Abdominal Viscera, 166. Human Brain, 210. PREFACE, BY THE EDITOR OF THE AMERICAN EDITION. The republication of this work, had its origin in the following causes:— 1. In a desire to furnish the American public with a cheap edi- tion of the best practical work on Physiology extant. Upon no subject is the diffusion of light required more than on this; and it is therefore deemed of the highest importance that suitable works on a science, calculated, as this is, to afford a correct knowledge of the laws which govern the body and the mind, should be disseminated at as low a rate as possible, so that all, especially the labouring classes, may be supplied with them, that they may know how to obey those laws, and enjoy all the comforts and happiness of a virtuous and healthy life. To hold works on Phrenology and Physiology at a high price, is wrong, for it vio- lates Benevolence to gratify Acquisitiveness. To gratify Bene- volence, by taking the shortest and surest means of reforming and benefiting mankind, is the principal object of this repub- lication. The following quotations from Combe's Tour in the United States, vol. i. p. 155-7, will show its propriety in a pro- per light:— " American Law of Copyright.—The' Americans deny copyright to any author or publisher of a work first published in a foreign country, and suffer some evils themselves in consequence. One evil is, that they must often rest contented with the first edition of an English work, if it has been reprinted by an influential man, long after the work has advanced through many editions, and re- ceived great improvements in its native land. a PREFACE. " Messrs. Harpers, of New York, reprinted and stereotyped Dr. Andrew Combe's work on Physiology applied to Health and Edu- cation, immediately after its appearance in England in 1834, and brought it out as a number of their ' Family Library,' in which form it was very widely circulated. In Britain the work went rapidly through several editions, in the course of which it was greatly improved, and much valuable practical matter was added. A request was made to the Messrs. Harpers, that since they had, without any advantage to the author, taken actual possession of the work, they should at least do him and the public the justice to reprint the improved edition, and not continue to circulate one every way inferior. This request was not complied with, because the first edition was stereotyped, and they did not choose to in- cur the expense of reprinting another, although by their own ac- count they had already sold many thousand copies of the book. Feeling anxious that the new matter should, in some way, be rendered accessible to American readers, the author sent out by me a copy of the seventh Edinburgh edition, and on his behalf I offered it for republication to respectable publishers in Boston, and inquired whether they would reprint it, and make him any allowance for it. They expressed their willingness to do so, and pay a fair per centage on the sales, but added that in effect they could not do either ; because, although by law there is no copy- right of British books in the United States, yet there is one by the courtesy of trade ; for whoever first reprints an English work, secures the copyright of it to himself, and that as the Messrs. Harpers had obtained the right to this work by priority of publi- cation, they could not interfere, even when the Messrs. Harpers continued to sell an inferior edition; and to this answer they all adhered. " I this day waited on the Messrs. Harpers—told them what I had done in Boston, and the answer I had received, and asked them to republish the book, and also to allow the author some recompense, for the new matter, of which they were not in pos- session. They requested to see the new edition, and to consider of it. I sent for the work to Boston for their use, and meantime told them, that although the author could receive no benefit from the sales, he was so desirous that the American public should have access to the most improved edition, that if they and all other booksellers declined to reprint it, I should do so on his ac- count, and employ the trade to sell the copies. Their answer was clear, and decided. 'You may do in this respect as you see pro- PREFACE. XI per, but we reserve to ourselves the privilege of retaliating two blows for one on any man who shall republish it; this is our rule;" I asked an explanation of this announcement, and was told that the copyright by courtesy is defended in this mannfc. If any publisher interfere with it, the party aggrieved reprints, in the cheapest form, two of the offender's own English reprints, and floods the market with them at the lowest possible price. The Harpers are rich, have extensive connections, and act so en- ergetically in retaliating two blows for one, that no respectable publisher will interfere with them. I made inquiries at several respectable publishing houses in Boston, Philadelphia, and New York, whether they would sell the work on commission if I re- printed it and stated in the preface the reason for doing so, namely, that the Messrs. Harpers continued to supply the public with an inferior edition ; but no one would undertake even to sell it. They assured me that this branch of trade, viz. selling on commission, so extensively carried on in London, has scarcely an existence in the United States. I asked the cause of this, and was informed that the extreme difficulty and expense of col- lecting accounts would swallow up any commission that could be afforded, and that, in point of fact, a large portion of the book trade in the United States is conducted by barter!" As to the " two blows for one" mentioned above, I have only to say, the more the better of the kind threatened; for I shall publish no work which I do not think eminently calculated to do good. If, therefore, the Messrs. Harpers or any body else can undersell me, the public will be the gainers, and the circulation of works calculated to do good will be facilitated and extended— my main object in all my publications. Again, I do not depend for my living on the selling of books, but on my profession as a Phrenologist, in which I stand in no need of their commendation, or fear of their " blows." 2. But my main motive for the republication of this work, is to be found in its intrinsic excellence. Its subject matter, and the consummate ability with which it is treated, combine to render it one of the very best works in the English language. No family should be without it; and no young man or woman should fail to peruse and reperuse every page of it. It should be a text book for all our Colleges, Academies, and higher schools, and its sug- gestions universally adopted. The Editor of this American edition allows his notes and infer- ences to speak for themselves, trusting that they at least will not Xll PREFACE. detract from the value of the work, and hoping that they may prove useful to some. Should this work prove acceptable to the public, it will be fol- lowed by other works on Phrenology and Physiology, of a uni- form edition, and styled " The People's Library of Phrenology and Physiology" comprising all the standard and most recent works on these subjects. The next in order will be " Combe on the Constitution of Man," which will be ready for delivery early in 1843. N. B. As this work has been published in monthly numbers, it can be sent by mail at a trifling postage. It will be 75 cts. in pam- phlet form, or ten copies for $5, or 50 cts. single copy in con- nection with Vols. IV. & V. of the American Phrenological Jour- nal and Miscellany. Direct to 0. S. FOWLER, Jfo. 131 Nassau St. JV. Y. PREFACE. The object of the present volume is to lay before the public a plain and intelligible description of the structure and uses of some of the more important organs of the human body, and to show how information of this kind may be usefully applied both to the preservation of health and to the improvement of physical and mental education. In selecting the functions to" be treated of, I have preferred to examine those which are most influential in their operation on the general system, and at the same time least fami- liarly known. Some, accordingly, whose sphere of action is com- paratively subordinate, I have not even named; and to others, of essential consequence in the animal economy, such as that of di- gestion, I have merely alluded. To have included the first, would have added to the difficulties of the reader, by the multiplicity of unimportant details; and to have treated of the latter would have been, in a great measure, a work of supererogation, as treatises on the digestive organs are already in extensive circulation.* In offering practical rules for the guidance of the reader, it has been my constant endeavour to exhibit the relation subsisting be- tween them and the particular laws of the organization according to which their influence is exerted, that the recommendation given * Notwithstanding the above expression of opinion, so many suggestions have been made to me, since the publication of the former editions, to continue the work, and give a similar account of the functions of digestion, nutrition, circula- tion, &c. that I have nearly completed the preparation of another volume for that purpose, to be entitled " The Physiology of Digestion considered with reference to the principles of Dietetics." In this work I have insisted more on the general laws of digestion, and on the adaption of diet to different ages, constitutions, and conditions of life, and less on the qualities of individual articles of food, than is usually done; and hope thus to have given it somewhat of the same plain and practical character which has contributed so much to the success of the present. 14 PREFACE. may rest, as far as possible, on the foundation of nature, and not on the doubtful authority of any individual. Many of the valuable treatises which have already appeared on the subject of health and of education, seem to me to have failed in making an adequate impression on the public mind, chiefly from this basis not having been brought sufficiently into view; and thus not only have the evils arising from defective education been unjustly and invidiously charged against education itself, but the most opposite methods have been advocated and practised with equal earnestness and plausibility, where a direct reference to the laws of the organiza- tion would have at once revealed the source of the error, and afforded a protection against its occurrence. It is not uninstructive to remark, that, in the case of the lower animals, the necessity of modifying the method of cultivation according to the peculiarities of constitution which they present, has been long perceived and consistently acted on, and with su*h success as to afford us good reason for applying the same rule to our own species, and for considering every mode of education as erroneous and inefficient, which is not in harmony with the higher nature of man. The extent, indeed, to which, by following this plan, we can carry our influence over the lower animals, and se- cure the developement and efficiency of almost every organ, has often been the theme of admiration and surprise; and there c|in scarcely be a doubt that, were the same principle followed in the cultivation of the physical, moral, and intellectual powers of man, and were no rule received which is not in accordance with the laws of his constitution, a much higher degree of success would reward our exertions than has ever yet been experienced. The little regard which has hitherto been paid to the laws of the human constitution, as the true basis on which our attempts to improve the condition of man ought to rest, will be obvious from the fact, that, notwithstanding the direct uses to which a know- ledge of the conditions which regulate the healthy action of the bodily organs may be applied, in the prevention, detection, and treatment of disease, there is scarcely a medical school in this country* in which any special provision is made for teaching it; the pupil being left to elaborate it for himself from amidst infor- mation communicated to him for other purposes. It is, therefore, only too true that " preventive medicine, the destined guardian of infancy, youth, manhood, and old age, adapted to the interior of families, has yet no existence."! I*1 some of the foreign universi- * The same statement is probably more emphatically true of our own country. t Lecture Introductory, to a course of popular instruction on the constitution and management >ji the human body, by Dr. Thomas Beddoes, 1797, p. 58. TREFACE. 15 ties, indeed, chairs have been instituted for diffusing instruction of this description 5 and, in France, a Journal of Hygiene has existed for a short time. But, in this country, with the exception of Sir John Sinclair's elaborate Code of Health, and one or two other publications of a late date, the subject has never been treat- ed with any thing like the regard which it assuredly deserves. In one point of view, indeed, the omission is not so extraordinary as it may at first sight appear. The prominent aim of medicine be- ing to discriminate and to cure disease, both the teacher and the student naturally fix upon that as their chief object; and are con- sequently apt to overlook the indirect but substantial aid which an acquaintance with the laws of health is calculated to afford in restoring the sick, as well as in preserving the healthy from disease. It is true, that almost every medical man, sooner or later, works out this knowledge for himself 5 but, in general, he attains it later than he ought to do, and seldom so completely as he would have done had it been made a part of his elementary education, to which he saw others attach importance. In my own instance, it was only when entering upon practice that I had first occasion to feel and to observe the evils arising from the ignorance which prevails in society in regard to it. Impressed afterwards more deeply than ever with the interest and utility of the study, I con- tributed two or three articles on the subject to one of our periodi- cal journals, and resolved to make them the basis, at some future time, of a more detailed and connected exposition. This I have now attempted; not, I need scarcely add, with the view of super- seding the physician, by making " every man his own doctor," or of recommending the general perusal of professional treatises— for both practices induce many more ailments than they cure j but simply with the hope that the method which I have followed, of connecting physiological details with practical applications, may be found useful and interesting to both the student and the general reader. There is a tendency in the minds of many, when a new subject js presented to them, to run away with a part of a proposition, or with an individual illustration, and to condemn as unsound the prin- ciple in elucidation of which it is adduced, because they happen to know facts which are at variance with the particular example brought forward. In this way, there is perhaps no one rule which I have advanced, to which some individual case may not be plau- sibly opposed. But it does not necessarily follow that the princi- ple or rule is thereby disproved. An example may be badly chosen, and yet the truth it is meant to convey may be as much a ■ 16 PREFACE truth as before. Instead, therefore, of at once condemning a pro- position on account of a single apparent exception, it will be bet- ter to extend the inquiry, and discover whether any peculiarity of situation or constitution has interfered to modify the result,—7 and to condemn only when evidence of inaccuracy is obtained. Thus, because some drunkards have enjoyed good health, and lived to an unusually old age, we are by no means entitled to infer that drinking was the cause of the good health, and that if we would all drink as freely, we should all live as long. An example of this kind, far from disproving the principle that ardent spirits are prejudicial to the human frame, only establishes the fact that individuals exist who, from some idiosyncrasy, are better able than others to resist their bad effects ; and, in like manner, when I state, as a general proposition, that severe muscular exertion is hurtful during rapid growth, I do not consider it as any argument against the fact to say, that A. B. underwent great exertion when grow- ing, without being injured by it. The general principle obviously remains unaffected by single instances of this kind, for the appa- rent exception can almost always be explained, and even when it cannot, it occurs so rarely as to be entitled to no practical weight. It has been objected, 'that to teach any one how to take care of his own health, is sure to do harm by making him constantly think of this and the other precaution, to the utter sacrifice of every noble and generous feeling, and to the certain production of hypochondriacal peevishness and discontent. The result, how- ever, is exactly the reverse; and it would be a singular anomaly in the constitution of the moral world were it otherwise. He, who is instructed in and familiar with grammar and orthography, writes and spells so easily and accurately as scarcely to be con- scious of attending to the rules by which he is guided; while he on the contrary, who is not instructed in either, and knows not how to arrange his sentences, toils at the task, and sighs at every line. The same principle holds in regard to health. He, who is acquainted with the general constitution of the human body, and with the laws which regulate its action, sees at once his true posi- tion, when exposed to the causes of disease, decides what ought to be done, and thereafter feels himself at liberty to devote his un- divided attention to the calls of higher duties. But it is far other- wise with the person who is destitute of this information. Uncer- tain of the nature and extent of the danger, he knows not to which hand to turn, and either lives in the fear of mortal disease, or, in his ignorance, resorts to irrational and hurtful precautions, to the certain neglect of those which he ought to use. It is ignorance* » PREFACE. 17 therefore, and not knowledge, which renders an individual full of fancies and apprehensions, and robs him of his usefulness. It would be a stigma on the Creator's wisdom, if true knowledge weakened the understanding, and led to injurious results. And, accordingly, the geuine hypochondriac, whose blind credulity leads him to the implicit adoption of every monstrous specific, is not the person who has gained wholesome knowledge by patient study in the field of nature ; but he, and he alone, who has derived his notions of the human constitution, and of the laws of nature, from the dark recesses of his own crude imagination. Those who have had the most extensive opportunities of form- ing an opinion on this subject from experience, bear unequivocal testimony to the advantages which knowledge confers in saving health and life, time and anxiety. Thus, Dr. Beddoes, in alluding to the delicate constitutions of females of the higher ranks in this country, remarks, that he cannot " conceive how they can be ren- dered more hardy or less nervous, if that term is preferred, other- wise than by being seasonably taught the principles of self-manage- ment." And adds, that he specifies " the principles," because " little good can be expected unless we proceed as in other in- stances where we exhibit to sense, that connection between cause and effect which constitutes the order of nature," (p. 26). In like manner, Dr. Davies, of the East India Company's Depot at Chat- ham, distinctly states, that the man of mature age, who has been some years af a trade before enlisting, and who has consequently gained some knowledge of his own constitution, always makes the most valuable soldier, because " he not only conforms with more ease to the system of diet and restraint necessary to subordina- tion, but having more experience, he is more observant of health, learns sooner how to take care of himself, to avoid or diminish causes of disease, and when ill, he gives more aid in bringing about a state of convalescence." Dr. Davies adds afterwards, that this " knowing how to manage is an invaluable qualification to a soldier embarking for service in a tropical climate ;" and if it is invaluable to the sol- dier, it is assuredly not less safe and advantageous to the civilian. If, indeed, ignorance were itself a preventive of the danger, or could provide a remedy when it approached, then it might well be said that " ignorance is bliss ;" but as it gives only the kind of se- curity which shutting the eyes affords against the dangers of a precipice, and consequently leaves its victim doubly exposed, it is hio-h time to renounce its friendship and protection, and to seek those of a more powerful and beneficent ally. If ignorance could divest us even of the sense of anxiety attending the apprehension of evil, the consequent tranquillity of mind, deceptive though it 18 PREFACE were, would be at least some compensation for submitting to its rule. But, unhappily, so far from ignorance of the nature and ex- tent of the threatening danger saving us from gloomy anticipations, the fact is notoriously the reverse; for the darkest picture ever drawn is assuredly that devised by an unenlightened imagination. Every medical man can testify, that, natural character and other circumstances being alike, those whose knowledge is the most limited are the fullest of whims and fancies, the most alarmed at every trifling ailment, the most credulous respecting the efficacy of every senseless and preposterous remedy, the most impatient of restraint, and the most discontented at suffering. There are some, no doubt, whose constitutional sensibility prevents them ever con- trolling their feelings, or being guided by the dictates of reason; but such persons are comparatively few in number, and even they become more tractable as well as more comfortable in spirit, when their minds are enlightened, and their true situation is distinctly understood. If any of my readers be still doubtful of the propriety or safety of communicating physiological knowledge to the pub- lic at large, and think that ignorance is in all circumstances to be preferred, I would beg to ask him, whether it was knowledge or ignorance which induced the poorer classes, in every country of Asia and of Europe, to attempt to protect themselves from cho- lera, by committing outrages on the medical attendants of the sick, under the plea of their having poisoned the public fountains 1 And whether it was ignorance or knowledge which prompted the more rational part of the community to seek safety in increased atten- tion to proper food, warmth, cleanliness, and clothing'? In both classes, the desire of safety and the sense of danger were the same, but the modes resorted to by each were as different in kind as in result; the efficiency of the one having formed a glaring contrast to the failure of the other. In thus strongly advocating the benefits to be obtained by the wide diffusion of a general knowledge of the laws of health I must, however, express my belief, that the study of diseases, and their modes of cure by unprofessional persons, is not only unprofitable, but often deeply injurious—just because such persons cannot pos- sibly possess the collateral knowledge required to form a correct judgment of all the attending circumstances, and are therefore ex- tremely liable to fall into error, where every error is attended with risk. Let us suppose, for example, what I have seen and what has often happened, that a person of an apprehensive dispo- sition, who has been occasionally subject to palpitation, takes up a medical treatise, and there finds that palpitation is a symptom PREFACE. 19 commonly present where the heart is diseased. It is almost cer- tain that such a person will, in his ignorance, make no farther distinction, but hurry at once to the conclusion, that his own heart is affected, and that he must speedily die. The notion once bei)iLr implanted in his mind, he will become anxious and watchful of every sensation, deny himself necessary exercise from fear of over-exertion, and necessary food from fear of a blood-vessel giv- ing wayj and in no long time will fall into a state of weakness and disease which will confirm every one of his apprehensions. But had this individual, instead of acting on his own imperfect know- ledge, consulted his medical adviser, whose business it is to make himself acquainted with the whole of the case, he would have dis- covered immediately that the dreaded source of all this suffering was originally a simple fit of indigestion, which nature would have cured in three days, had not the machine been so perversely de- ranged by the very want of exercise and food, in which the patient was ignorantly seeking for safety. Even here, be it observed, the danger arises from the incompleteness of the knowledge possessed; and I would condemn the perusal of medical books only because the general reader cannot, except by going through a course of professional study, become qualified to make a proper use of their contents. And accordingly it is well known that few students escape fits of hypochondriacal apprehension, when they first seri- ously enter on the study of diseases; and that they become free from them almost in proportion as their knowledge advances.* Various repetitions occur in the course of the present work, which to some may seem unnecessary, and for which I ought to solicit the indulgence of the reader. These have arisen chiefly from the intimate manner in which the different functions are connected with each other rendering it impossible to explain one without constantly referring to the rest. Occasionally, also, the novelty and importance of the subject have led me to risk repeti- * The number of the Metropolitan Magazine for July, 1834, contained a very fa- vourable review of the first edition of this work, which it recommended to the attention, especially of medical men. But it went on to caution ladies and unpro- fessional persons from dipping into its pages, not because they would find in them any thing indelicate, unintelligible, or devoid of interest, for it expressly acquitted the book of all these faults; but because they would immediately afterwards fancy themselves ill, and be afraid to move from fear of deranging some part of the bodily machinery! To those whose curiosity should get the better of their discretion, the reviewer recommended, as an antidote, the perusal of Shakspeare, Don Quix- ote, or some entertaining novel, to raise their spirits. I mention this, to show, that the remarks in the text (which, by a curious coincidence, were first published in the second edition simultaneously with the review) are not uncalled for. 20 PREFACE. tion, in order to ensure attention; but I trust that these faults, if felt as such, will be forgiven. Those who desire to obtain farther information of a general na- ture in regard to the structure and functions of Man, may refer to Mr. Lord's " Popular Physiology," Dr. Hodgkin's " Lectures on the Means of Promoting and Preserving Health;" and also to an excellent Treatise on Animal Physiology, in four of the earlier numbers of the Library of Useful Knowledge. The last is under- stood to be from the pen of Dr. Southwood Smith, the able author of a volume entitled " The Phylosophy of Health," which was pub- lished in London simultaneously with the third edition of the pre- sent work, and with whose sentiments on the subject now before us, as expressed in the following extract from the concluding page of his earlier treatise, I need hardly say I entirely concur:— " The obvious and peculiar advantages of this kind of know- ledge are, that it would enable its possessor to take a more ration- al care of his health; to perceive why certain circumstances are beneficial or injurious j to understand, in some degree, the nature of disease, and the operation as well of the agents which produce it as of those which counteract it; to observe the first beginnings of deranged function in his own person ; to give to his physician a more intelligible account of his train of morbid sensations as they arise ; and, above all, to co-operate with him in removing the mor- bid state on which they depend, instead of defeating, as is now through gross ignorance, constantly done, the best concerted plans for the renovation of health. It would likewise lay the foundation for the attainment of a more just, accurate, and practical know- ledge of our intellectual and moral nature. There is a physiology of the mind as well as of the body; both are so intimately united, that neither can be well understood without the study of the other ; and the physiology of man comprehends both. Were even what is already known of this science, and what might be easily communi- cated, made a part of general education, how many evils would be avoided, how much light would be let in upon the understanding, and how many aids would be afforded to the acquisition of a sound body and a vigorous mind;—pre-requisites more important than are commonly supposed, to the attainment of wisdom and the prac- tice of virtue." CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTORY REMARKS. Physiology, Vegetable, Comparative, and Human.—Animate and Inanimate Bodies —Objects of Physiology.—Usefulness of Physiological Knowledge.—Illustra- tions.—Evils of Ignorance.—Error in separating Anotamy and Physiology from their Practicable application.—What Health is—And how to be preserved. Physiology, from nature and discourse, signifies literally a discourse about natural powers, but, as now used, it applies exclusively to the doctrine of the uses or functions of the different constituent parts of beings endowed with the principle of life. As applied to the vegetable kingdom, it is called Ve- getable Physiology; to the lower animals, Comparative Physi- ology ; and to' man, Human Physiology. In all these in- stances, however, the objects of physiology are the same, viz. the exposition of the mechanism and laws by which the va- rious functions which characterize living bodies are carried on, so as to fit each individual for the particular sphere in which the Creator intended it to exist. The grand mark of distinction between animate and inani- mate bodies, is to be found in the different relations in which they stand to the ordinary laws of the material world. Inani- mate or inorganized bodies have no internal power of action, and of themselves can effect no change. Possessed of certain fixed and invariable properties, they stand uniformly in the same relation to each other, and act invariably according to the same general laws, so that what is once ascertained of them can be predicted with certainty to hold true for ever after; and therefore, in conducting our investigations, we know that the same effects will always follow the same causes with ma- thematical precision. But when the same elementary mate- rial becomes part of a living body, this rule no longer holds; the laws of chemical and physical action are greatly modified, or for a time counteracted, and the now organized matter obeys 22 OBJECTS OF PHYSIOLOGY. the laws of vegetable or animal life, and is not again subjected to those of purely chemical action, either till eliminated from the body, or till life is extinct; and, in point of fact, the putre- , faction which instantly follows the*extinction of the vital prin- ciple, is neither more nor less than the ordinary laws of inani- mate matter resuming their dominion when no longer opposed by a higher power. An example or two will render the difference more apparent. All bodies gravitate towards the earth, according to a constant and well known law. But animals are able to resist this law, so far as to preserve an attitude at variance with its tendency, or even to rise like the eagle, many thousand feet in the air in opposition to their natural weight; but on the extinction of life they lose this power, and again become subject to the full influ- ence of gravitation. In the same way, many animals preserve an elevated and steady temperature, whether exposed to severe cold or to excessive heat; but when life ceases, rapidly as- sume that of the objects by which they are surrounded. A hu- man being may, for instance, be exposed to the intensest cold of the Polar Regions, without having his own internal temper ature reduced by a single degree so long as life endures; but from the moment when life ceases, his body begins to part with its heat, and ere long it becomes frozen and stiff like the inan- imate masses by which it is surrounded. Here, then, is a grand boundary line dividing the organized from the inorganized, the animate from the inanimate body. Chemistry and natural philosophy investigate the laws and conditions which regulate the action and movements of inani- mate or inorganized objects; but, from what we have seen of the power of the vital principle in modifying these, it will be manifest that, however extensive and accurate our knowledge of the properties of the elementary materials of living bodies, considered separately, may be, we can thence infer nothing in regard to the qualities of the animal compound when endowed with life, but must resort to observation and study for the dis- covery of the conditions by which life is characterized, and under which it is carried on. Physiology, or the history of the functions which charac- terize living beings, is thus a subject of peculiar interest; and human physiology, or that which is about to engage our atten- tion, is as important in its practical consequences as it is attrac- tive to rational curiosity. In its widest sense it comprehends OBJECTS OF PHYSIOLOGY. 23 an exposition of the functions of the various organs of which the human frame js composed; of the mechanism by which these are carried on; of their relations to each other; or the means of improving their developement and action; of the purposes to which they ought severally to be directed; and of the manner in which exercise ought to be conducted, so as to secure for the organ the best health, and for the function the highest efficiency. A true system of physiology comes thus to be the proper basis, net only of a sound physical, but of a sound moral and intellectual education, and of a rational hygi- ene ; or, in other words, it is the basis of every thing having for its object the physical and mental health and improvement of man; for so long as life lasts, the mental and moral powers with which he is endowed, manifest themselves through the medium of organization, and no plan which he can devise for their cultivation, that is not in harmony with the laws which regulate that organization, can possibly be successful. But besides the power of resisting the operation of the ordi- nary chemical and physical laws, living bodies are distinguish ed by other properties peculiar to themselves. Unlike inor- ganized matter, which exists in the same form from the begin- ning, bodies endowed with the principle of life derive their origin from previously existing living bodies of the same nature as themselves; and they in their turn give birth to others, and in this way the succession is kept up. Unlike the inert material which retains its properties unaltered throughout endless ages, the living body is constantly undergoing changes from the first to the last moment of its existence ; and these are exemplified, on the large scale, in the great stages of youth, maturity, old age, and death. Unlike inorganized matter, which neither grows nor decays, living bodies require a constant supply of nournishment to admit of their growth in youth, and to replace the worn out particles which are regularly thrown off at every period of. life ; and unlike inanimate objects, the properties of which never alter, living bodies cease at last to exist, and their component elements, deprived of the principle of life, again become subject to the ordinary laws of matter, and are speedily decomposed and scattered about, as if life had never been. The above properties, it may be observed, are common to vegetable and animal life ; but animals possess others peculiar to them- selves. Among the most remarkable of these are sensation, thought, voluntary motion, and the faculty of communicating 24 USEFULNESS OF PHYSIOLOGICAL KNOWLEDGE. to each other their thoughts and feelings, through the mediuir of natural or artificial language. These are great marks of distinction, and, considered in a general point of view, amply suffice to divide the two great classes of animated beings; and while some animals exhibit individual powers in higher perfection, man stands far their superior, not only in combin- ing in his own person all the senses and faculties which they possess, but in being endowed with moral and intellectual powers which are denied to them, and which at once place him at the head of the living creation, and constitute him a moral, religious, intelligent, and responsible being. So numerous and important are the various organs of which the human frame is composed, and so closely are they linked with each other in their action, that, in treating of them, it is difficult or rather impossible to follow any arrangement which shall not involve considerable repetition, or which shall admit of every statement being at first fully understood. On the pre- sent occasion, however, a systematic mode of proceeding is not essential, my object being merely to communicate a general knowledge of a few of the more important functions, partly with a view to the direct practical purposes to which such in- formation may be applied, and partly for the sake of rousing public attention to the necessity of including this branch of science in every plan of what is called a liberal education. Let it not be said that knowledge of this description is super- fluous to the unprofessional reader; for society groans under the load of suffering inflicted by causes susceptible of removal, but left in operation in consequence of our unacquaintance with our own structure, and of the relations of the different parts of the system to each other, and to external objects. Every medical man must have felt and lamented the ignorance so generally prevalent in regard to the simplest functions of the animal system, and the consequent absence of the judicious co-operation of friends in the care and cure of the sick. From unacquaintance with the commonest facts in physiology, or in- capability of appreciating their importance, men, of much good sense in every other respect, not only subject themselves un- wittingly to the active causes of disease,* but give their sanc- * Intellect is surprised, and benevolence regrets, that men distinguished for their Bagacity and talents in other respects, and having a vast fund of knowledge on other subjects, should be so utterly destitute of physiological knowledge as uncon- sciously to violate the great laws of life and health, becloud their intellects, and USEFULNESS OF PHYSIOLOGICAL KNOWLEDGE. 25 tion to laws and practices destructive equally to life and to mo- rality, and which, if they saw them in their true light, they would shrink from countenancing in the slightest degree. For proof of this I need only refer to the evidence on the Factories' Regulation Bill, which lately occupied so much of public attention. The law then in operation authorized the working of children between the years of eight and sixteen, in the close-heated atmosphere of a cotton-mill, for twelve hours a-day; and as a great boon, no children are now employed under nine years of age, while between that and fourteen the period of daily labour is not to exceed eight hours. Had our legislators been instructed in anatomy and physiology so far as to obtain even the most general notion of the constitution of the human body, and had they been aware of the intimate de- pendence of the mind on the condition of the bodily organization, they would at once have perceived the destructive tendency of the former system of labour and confinement, and the utter even shorten their days ! This evil is greatly increased by the religious notions of the day. Pious men, good men, in endeavouring, like Noah, to " walk with God," incur sickness, pain, and even death, by disobeying these physical laws, and then ascribe all their sufferings to the merciful chastisement of their Heavenly Father, and cultivate resignation to the Divine will. One of our first duties is the preser- vation of health, and the violation of the physical laws is one of the greatest of- fences we can commit. Even piety herself is materially affected by the tone and condition of the body, the state of the health, &c. We cannot exercise even the moral faculties aright without obeying the laws of physiology. They lay at the very foundation of both talents and moral purity. These pious sinners, while thus suffering the penalties of violated physical law, little realise that what they call providence is punishment, and that, with all their prayers upon their head, with all their zeal in the cause of religion, and efforts to convert men, they themselves actually commit sins against their crwn natures, and of course against their God, quite as great as the intemperate, the debauchee, the Sabbath-breaker, the profane swearer, and those they are trying to reform. Religion, as it is now preached and practiced, is indirectly instrumental in causing one very serious evil, viz: that of neglecting the laws of physiology,—the relations of this world,—the conditions of health and life,—for praying and attending meetings, and spreading the Gospel. Not that these last should be left undone, but that the other should be attended to. Indeed, they are the most essential; because no one can obey the moral laws with- out first obeying the physical. Can a drunkard be converted whilst under the influence of liquor 1 But, why not t Solely because his physiology is disordered. The first thing to be done in order to convert him, is to rectify his physiology—to put his body into a proper state ; and this will so affect his mind as to put it also into the proper state for receiving religious impressions. " First make the tree" (the physiology) " good, and the fruit" (or the moral and intellectual manifesta- tions) " will be good also." The same principle holds true of the intellectual powers. Obedience of the laws of physiology, is the first step to greatness, and yet men know more about al- most every thing else than about these laws. 3 26 USEFULNESS CF PHYSIOLOGICAL KNOWLEDGE. impossibility of combining with it that moral and intellectual cultivation which is so imperatively required.* Instead of ob- jecting to the limitation when it was proposed, they would have looked forward with dread to the physical and moral degra- dation which the system then in operation was fast effecting in the multitudes under its influence; and their only doubt would have been, whether even eight hours' labour in a close atmosphere was not too much for undeveloped children. The evidence in the printed report to the House of Commons is said to have been partially got up ; but granting that it was so, it nevertheless contains a multitude of facts so entirely in ac- cordance with the soundest and best understood principles in physiology, and which no counter-evidence can rebut, that one can only lament the ignorance which prevented many able \nd benevolent but prejudiced men from perceiving its true character, and yielding at once to the imperious dictates of na- ture and of duty. That there were great difficulties in the way of every, alteration is quite true ; but surely no question of mere gain to any or to every class ought to be allowed to stand for ever in the way, when the lives and happiness of multitudes of our fellow creatures, and the tranquillity and real prosperity of the country are at stake. Unless we begin somewhere, how can any improvement ever be accomplished 1 Another instance of the dangers of ignorance lately present- ed itself. In the Edinburgh Advertiser of 1st March, 1833, we are informed that " a distressing occurrence was discovered on Wednesday forenoon, on board the Magnus Troil, Shetland Trader, Captain Ganson, lying at Leith. The master and mate, who are brothers, went as usual on Tuesday night to sleep in the cabin of the vessel, but not appearing at the customary hour in the morning, the crew thought they had merely slept be- yond their time. A little time having elapsed, they were re- peatedly called, but no answer being returned, one of the men went into the cabin, where he found the two brothers almost dead through suffocation. It is thought they had shut the com- panion and sky-lights so close, that they had during the night exhausted the whole of the vital air necessary for respiration, con- tained in their confined situation. Medical aid was procured, and hopes are entertained of their recovery. Both were much * Let those who send their children to school very early, or to a confining or laborious trade or occupation, learn a lesson of wisdom from the principle here stated. USEFULNESS OF PHYSIOLOGICAL KNOWLEDGE. 27 respected." Captain Ganson, however, did not recover, but died convulsed on the following morning.* Since the publication of the preceding statement, doubts have been entertained whether the catastrophe resulted simply from confined air, or from the stove not having been extin- guished, or from impure air proceeding from the bilge water. But as all agree that the accident could not have happened if there had been a proper supply of fresh air from without, it matters little from which of these sources the impure air was derived; for it is quite certain that had Captain Ganson and his brother possessed the slightest acquaintance with the na- ture of the atmosphere, and the relation of its elements to the function of respiration, they would have seen too clearly the danger of shutting themselves up in a confined space, ever to have risked their lives in the way they did. A constant sup- ply of pure air is indispensable to the formation of proper blood * Better sleep in the open air, than in a small unventilated cabin or room of any description In travelling on canals or steamboats, we invariably obtain a birth near the door, or else by a window which we can open, preferring a current of cold air to a close atmosphere. In 1840, on the eastern shore of Maryland, we heard of a gentleman in Annapolis, Maryland, who slept, winter and summer, storm or wind, with his window hoisted clear up ; and on inquiring into the state of his health, found it better than that of any other man in the city. At the south, houses are very open, which is unquestionably more favourable to health than very warm houses. Nor are the modern ingenious contrivances of stoves, especially of coal stoves, any improvement over a wood fire in an open fire-place, but rather curses to those that use them. The fact is, that"in a perfectly healthy state of the body, the animal heat is abundantly sufficient to counteract any degree of cold experi- enced, at least in our atmosphere; for the colder the air, the more oxygen it con- tains, and this creates a proportion of natural heat, which is infinitely superior to all the stoves in Christendom. Mankind really need very little fire. Brought up in the coldest portion of New-York, on the high lands between the Susquehannah, Oswego, and Genesee Rivers, (Cohocton, Steuben county, N. Y.) and in an open log-house, we know from our experience and the observation of others, that the best way to keep warm is to excite the circulation. In a cold day, men actually suffer less when exercising in the open air, than before a hot fire, with one side shivering and the other burning, or even in a room heated by a stove. The fact is, that men dress too warm, sleep too warm, and keep their rooms too warm. Fire burns out the oxygen of the atmosphere, in which its vital proper- ties consist; and dressing too warm, keeps the perspiration of the system confined in the clothes, which interrupts the healthy action of the skin, prevents the escape of waste matter, corrupts the blood, and engenders disease. The stock and collar are also injurious for the same reason. The neck should be open, so as to allow the confined air to escape, and admit fresh air to supply its place, and thereby give ventilation to the system. Shut up from the air, how soon we die; and in proportion as we exclude fresh air, or rather the oxygen of the air, from us, whe- ther internally or externally, whether by burning it out by heating our rooms, or exclude it from our bodies by superabundant clothing, we hasten death. 28 USEFULNESS OF PHYSIOLOGICAL KNOWLEDGF. in the lungs, and consequently to the preservation of life and the well-being of the whole body; but formerly, when this condition was as little known or regarded as it was by Captain Ganson, many persons were shut up together in small ill-ven- tilated rooms in schools, jails, and hospitals, and the natural result was a degree of mortality from fevers, and other diseases, which, now that the laws of respiration are better known and more attended to, is never heard of. From the same hurtful absence of knowledge, a law exists, or lately existed, in France, by which infants must be taken within a very short time after being born to the office of the Maire, if it is wished to have their births registered. But there is another and higher law, made by the Creator, with which this enactment is at variance ; and that law renders the infant incapable of bearing exposure to a low temperature without injury. The result is, that in winter, especially in places where the Maire resides at a distance, and where consequently the exposure is increased, a greater mortality takes place than is observed among infants placed under more favourable cir cumstances. Had the nature of the living functions been ge nerally understood by the framers of such a law, it is obvious that it could never have been enacted, for to have done so knowingly would have been in substance to legalise infanti- cide. One additional example may be given. It is well under- stood among professional men, that in speaking, singing, and playing on wind instruments, the lungs are called into play as powerfully as in-running or any other species of severe mus- cular exercise. From not adverting to this fact, a strongly constituted individual, who brought on spitting of blood by bodily labour to which he had not been accustomed, conceived himself perfectly safe and even cautious, when he gave up the spade, and confined himself to talking a great.deal, which he did daily to numerous visitors in explanation of favourite views then occupying all his thoughts. The consequence was, that the prescribed treatment was without effect, and a fatal illness was brought on. When the action of the lungs was subse- quently explained to this individual, he saw at once the error into which he had fallen, and lamented the ignorance which had led to ft, but too late to deriv, any advantage from his knowledge. We are constantly meeting with anomalies in practical life, USEFULNESS OF PHYSIOLOGICAL KNOWLEDGE. 29 in the case of individuals little accustomed, when in health, to observe or to reflect on the influence of external circumstances, and modes of life, in disturbing the action of the various ani mal functions, but at the same time easily and deeply im- pressed by all extraordinary occurrences affecting them. Thus when any one is taken ill, his relatives or friends become ex- tremely anxious to have his room properly, ventilated; his body clothes frequently changed and carefully aired; his food pro- perly regulated in quantity and quality; his skin cleaned and refreshed ; his mind amused and tranquillized; his sleep sound and undisturbed; and his body duly exercised;—and they state as the reason of all this care, and most justly, that pure air, cleanliness, attention to diet, cheerfulness, regular exer- cise, and sound sleep, are all highly conducive to health. And yet such is the inconsistency attendant on ignorance, that the patient is no sooner restored, than both he and his guar- dians are often found to become as careless and indifferent in regard to all the laws of health, as if these were entirely with- out influence, and their future breach or observance could in no way affect him! Just as if it were not better by a rational exercise of judgement to preserve health when we have it, than first to lose it, and then pay the penalty in suffering and danger, as an indispensable preliminary to its subsequent re- storation ! One cause of such anomalous conduct, is the dangerous and prevalent fallacy of supposing that, because glaring mischief does not instantly follow every breach of an organic law, no harm has been done. Thus, what is more common than tc hear a dyspeptic invalid, who seeks to gratify his palate, say, that vegetables, for example, or pastry, or heavy puddings, do not disagree with him, as he eat them on such a day, and felt no inconvenience from them 1 and the same in regard to late hours, heated rooms, insufficient clothing, and all other sources of bad health, every one of which will, in like manner, be de- fended by some patient or other, on the ground that he expe- rienced no injury from them on a certain specified occasion; while all, when the rule is not directly applied to themselves, will readily admit that such things are, and must be, very gene- rally hurtful. Happy would it often be for suffering man could he see be- forehand the modicum of punishment which his multiplied aberrations from the laws of physiology are sure to bring upon 3* 30 GRADUAL' ORIGIN OF BAD HEALTH. him. But as, in the great majority of instances, the breach of the law is limited in extent, and becomes serious only by the frequency of its repetition ; so is the punishment gradual in its infliction, and slow in manifesting its accumulated effect; and this very gradation, and the distance of time at which the full effect is produced, are the reasons why man in his ignorance so often fails to trace'the connection between his conduct in life and hi* broken health. But the connection subsists although he does not regard it, and the accumulated consequences come upon him when he least expects them. Thus, pure air is essential to the full enjoyment of health; and reason says, that every degree of vitiation must necessarily be proportionally hurtful, till we arrive at that degree at which, from its excess, the continuance of life becomes impossible. When we state this fact to a delicately constituted female, who is fond of frequenting heated rooms, or crowded parties, theatres, or churches, and call her attention to the hurtful con- sequences which she must inflict on herself by inhaling the vitiated air of such assemblies, her answer invariably is, that the closeness and heat are very disagreeable, but that they rarely injure her :—By which she can only mean, that a single exposure to them does not always cause an illness serious enough to send her to bed, or excite acute pain ; although both results are admitted sometimes to have followed. An intel- ligent observer, however, has no difficulty in perceiving that they do hurt her, and that although the effect of each exposure to their influence is so gradual as not to arrest attention, it is not the less progressive and influential in producing and main- taining that general delicacy of health by which she is charac- terized, and from which no medical treatment can relieve her so long as its causes are left in active operation. The debility so generally complained of in spring by invalids and persons of a delicate constitution, and which renders that season of the year so formidable in prospect, and in reality so fatal, seems in numerous instances to result more from the ac- cumulated effects of neglect during the preceding winter months, than from any thing directly inherent in the season itself. At the commencement of winter, such persons feel comparatively strong from the beneficial exposure to the open air, light, and exercise, which they enjoyed during the summer and aui umnal months. But in proportion as they are deprived of these advantages by the advance of winter, and are subject- GRADUAL ORIGIN OF BAD HEALTH. 31 ed f) the evil consequences of confinement, deficient exercise, cold damp air, and deprivation of the stimulus of light, the stamina of the constitution become impaired, and debility and relaxation begin to be felt, and make progress from day to day, till on the arrival of spring they have reached their maximum, and then either give rise to positive disease, or again gradually disappear at the return of the invigorating influence of longer and warmer days. Where, however, pulmonary disease or any unusual susceptibility pre-exists, this principal will not apply; for in such cases, the east winds prevalent in spring are directly injurious. If the above view be correct, it is obvious that, in most cases, the hurtful cause is not, as is commonly supposed, so much any positive quality of the season, as the accumulated mass of the winter influences then reaching their maximum ; and this is not perceived, only because the effect from day to day, al- thoughly perfectly real, is too small to attract notice, while the aggregate result of the many days composing winter is striking enough. The fact that those who deny themselves the delight of late parties and crowded rooms, and are sufficiently robust to undergo the necessary exposure in winter, suffer much less in spring, seems to corroborate the above explanation. We must not suppose, then, that because a single excess of any kind does not produce a direct attack of disease, it is there- fore necessarily harmless; for it is only when the noxious agent is very powerful indeed, that its deleterious influence on the system becomes instantly sensible. In the great majority of situations to which man is exposed in social life, it is the continued or the reiterated application of less powerful causes which gradually, and often imperceptibly, unless to the vigi- lant eye, effects the change, and ruins the constitution before danger is dreamt of; and hence, the great mass of human ail- ments is of slow growth, and slow progress, and admits only of a slow cure. Whereas those which are suddenly induced by violent causes, are urgent in their nature and rapid in their course. And yet so little are we accustomed to trace diseased action to its true causes, and to distinguish between the essen- tial and the accidental in the list of consequences, that, as al- ready observed, if no glaring mischief has followed any parti- cular piactice, within at most twenty-four hours, nine out of ten individuals will be found to have come to the conclusion 32 CAUSES OF BAD HEALTH. that it is perfectly harmless, even where it is capable of de- monstration that the reverse is the fact. The benevolence and wisdom of this arrangement are very conspicuous. There are many casual influences from the agency of which man will never be able entirely to protect himself. If they are speedily withdrawn from him, the slight disorder which they produce quickly ceases, and health re- mains essentially undisturbed. But, if they be left in opera- tion for a considerable length of time, the derangement which they excite gradually and slowly increases, till at last a state of disease becomes established, which requires an equally long or longer period, and a steady observance of the laws of health, for its removal. Such is the history of the rise and progress of most of the ail- ments which afflict the human family, and the source of the grand distinction between acute and chronic diseases. We are apt to wonder that a severe disease like inflammation should run its course in a few days, while dyspeptic and nervous ail- ments require months for their cure. But our wonder is dimin- ished when we attend to the fact, that the one generally dates its rise from a strong cause applied within perhaps a few hours or a few days; while the others are the slow and gradual re- sults of months of previous anxiety or neglect of dietetic rules and exercise, during which the ailment was maturing unno- ticed and unsuspected. Had the real state of the matter been early perceived, and the causes been removed, the dyspeptic and the nervous invalids would have regained health and se- renity in proportionally little time, and with proportionally little suffering. In such cases, Nature kindly allows some lati- tude of action free of serious penalty, as if on purpose to pro- tect us from being hurt by such occasional exposure as we are necessarily subjected to by the ordinary vicissitudes of life ; but it is always on condition of returning to obedience the moment the necessity is over. If we presume on the indulgence being permanent, the evil accumulates and health is destroyed; but if we return in time to the right path, little inconvenience re- sults. Where, however, the injurious influences are of a more energetic kind, equal latitude of exposure is obviously incom- patible with safety. Were they not to enforce immediate no- tice, our corporeal organs might be irrecoverably altered by disease before we took the alarm, and it is therefore the purest benevolence to attach immediate suffering to them, in order to CAUSES OF BAD HEALTH. 33 insure that instant attention which alone can stay the rapidity of their progress. In chronic or slowly arising diseases, then, the separation 01 the effect from its cause is only apparent and not real, and in practice it is essential to keep this in .mind. A fit of insanity, for example, is often said to have come on without any cause, when, on minuter examination, causes can be easily traced operating through many previous months, only not of so vio- lent a nature as to have at once upset reason, and the same will be found to hold in almost all those slow and insidious illnesses which so often baffle our best efforts; and although at present we cannot always discover their true origin, it is clear that we shall ultimately succeed much better if we be- lieve them to have causes which may be found out, than if we regard them as mysteries which no study or attention can ever explain. It is this apparent but unreal separation of the effect from its cause, which has given rise to the variety of opinions enter- tained in regard to the qualities of the same agents, and which has, perhaps, tended more than any thing else to discourage rational regard to the means of preserving health; and yet this very variety is a proof at once of the absence of sound views of our own nature, and of the urgent necessity of possessing them. In society, accordingly, nothing is more common than to hear the most opposite opinions expressed in regard to the evils or advantages of particular kinds of clothing, food, and exercise. One person will affirm, with perfect sincerity, that flannel is pernicious, because it irritates the skin, and uniformly causes an eruption over the whole body; and that linen or cotton is an excellent article of dress, because it produces no such con- sequences. Another will tell us, with equal truth, that flannel is a capital thing, because it is pleasant to the feeling, and af- fords protection from cold and rheumatism, which linen does not. One will affirm that a long walk or violent muscular ex- ercise is an excellent tonic, because it gives a keen appetite, and a vivacity and alertness which are delightful. But another will declare that a long walk or severe exercise is exceedingly injurious and debilitating, because it destroys his appetite, and unfits him for exertion of mind or body, and always gives him headach. One will, in like manner, praise vegetables as the best diet, and another animal food as infinitely superior, and so on through the whole range of the physical objects which 34 EVILS ARISING FROM IGNORANCE OF PHYSIOLOGY. act upon the human frame; and the natural consequence of these apparent anomalies and contradictions is, that, when in health, we come practically to look upon the effects of air, food, exercise, and dress, as very much matters of chance, sub- ject to no fixed'rule, and therefore little worth attending to, except when carried to palpable extremes, or in the cure ot Q1S62LSG In this way, man, instead of being able to protect his chil- dren by the results of his own experience in his journey through life, goes on from generation to generation, groping a little. then seeing a little, and then groping again, till he arrives, of- ten prematurely, at the end of his existence, when he stumbles into his grave, leaving his posterity to pass unaided through the same series of experiments, and arrive at the same termi- nation, as himself. This unnatural result must arise either from the laws which regulate the animal functions and the operations of external objects being variable and ever changing, or from the condi- tions of the living body on which they act being different in different persons, or in the same person at different ages or seasons; and it is not difficult to determine to which of these it is to be ascribed. It cannot be the first, for the laws of nature are invariable and unbending. The food which to- day nourishes and sustains the body, and which to-morrow, when sickness is present, raises the pulse and excites the heart to febrile action, has not altered its qualities or changed its relation to the healthy body. It is the state of the body that has changed, and caused the apparent discrepancy of ef- fect. In judging, therefore, of the propriety, advantages, or evils of exercise, food, and clothing, we must take into consi- deration not only the kind of exercise, the kind of food, and the kind of clothing, but also the age, health, and kind of con- stitution of the individual who uses them, and adapt each to the degree in which it is required; and then we may rest as- sured that many of our difficulties will vanish, and certainty and consistency come proportionally into view. Were the intelligent classes of society better acquainted with the functions of the human body, and the laws by which they are regulated, many of these anomalies in practice would dis- appear; the sources of much suffering would be dried up, and the happiness of the community at large be essentially pro- moted. Medical men would no longer be consulted so exclu- EVILS ARISING FROM IGNORANCE OF PHYSIOLOGY. 35 sively for the cure of disease, but would als.) be called upon to advise regarding the best means of strengthening the constitu- tion, from an early period, against any accidental or hereditary susceptibility which might be ascertained to exist. More at- tention would be paid to the preservation of health than is at present practicable,* and the medical man would then be able to advise, with increased effect, because he would be propor- tionally well understood, and his counsel, in so far at least as it was based on accurate observation and a right application of principles, would be perceived to be, not a mere human opin- ion, but in reality an exposition of the will and intentions of a beneficent Creator, and would therefore be felt as carrying with it an authority to which, as the mere dictum of a fallible fellow- creature, it can never be considered as entitled. It is true that as yet medicine has been turned to little ac- ;ount in the way of directly promoting the physical and men- tal welfare of man. But the day is perhaps not far distant, when, in consequence of the improvements both in professional and in general education, now in progress, a degree of interest will become attached to this application of its doctrines far sur- passing what those who have not reflected on the subject will be able to imagine as justly belonging to it, but by no means exceeding that which it truly deserves. The practical importance of physiological knowledge in the training and education of the young, has been overlooked chiefly, I think, from the unnatural separation of the different branches of medical science from each other by its cultivators and teachers, and the exclusive devotion of each to his own favourite department. The Anatomist, for example, teaches * This point is a most important one. The old adage, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure," should form the pole star of every man's conduct in regard to health. To preserve health, is easy : to restore it, difficult and often impossible. Nearly every invalid, now burdened with disease, shut out from most of the pleasures of life, and oppressed with an intolerable load of both mental and physical suffering, and doomed to enter an early grave, by taking proper pains to preserve their health, might have lived a long, happy, and useful life, instead of one short and painful. Were we to give the most important direction we know of to the voung, we would say to them preserve health. Hence in our work on Phrenology and Phy- siology, we began by urging the necessity, and pointing out the means, of preserving the health, and invigorating the body and brain. The fact is, as we there stated, there should be a distinct profession to lecture upon, and give advice in relation to this most important subject. 36 EVILS OF IGNORANCE. structure, and structure only, and refers to the Physiologist for an account of the uses to which it is subservient; and the Phy- siologist, on the other hand, expounds functions, but scarcely touches upon the instruments by which they are executed. The consequence is, that the student often becomes disgusted with what he considers dry anatomical details, when perhaps nothing would interest him more deeply were the purposes which the structure fulfils in the animal economy taught to him at the same time. Many, in like manner, fail to take any pleasure in the study of physiology, who would be truly de- lighted to hear the truths of which it treats expounded in con- nection with peculiarities of organization, and with more fre- quent reference to their practical applications. The Anatomist and Physiologist err, in short, in limiting themselves too exclu- sively to their own particular pursuits, and devoting too little attention to the relations which these bear to each other and to the great unit,—the living being, of which they form a part. So far, indeed, has this separation been carried, and so inju- rious is the habit thence arising of contemplating objects under the narrowest point of view, that very lately an able teacher of physiology, in his public lectures, ridiculed the very notion of laying down general rules for the preservation of health, and imagined that he had set the matter entirely at rest by the simple assertion that variety is advantageous, and affirming that, therefore, uniformity of obedience to any rules must be pre- judical,*—as if it were not of the very essence of general laws to be modified in their operation and results by the circum- stances under which they act; and as if, because of such modifications, their influence might with safety be entirely •leglected. The result of this erroneous system is, as already hinted, that the young practitioner is educated without having made himself sufficiently familiar with the conditions on which the healthy action of the animal economy depends, or having even rightly appreciated the importance of such knowledge ; and that, consequently, in common with his patient, he sometimes unwittingly allows the operation of morbid causes to go on without interference, where, by a timely warning on his part, * This teacher must have had small causality, and so have all who advo- cate a similar doctrine, or think attention to the laws of health most use- less or injurious. WHAT GOOD HEALTH IS. 37 serious illness might have been averted ; or unconsciously per- mits the gradual ripening of hereditary tendencies into active disease, which rational precautions, early resorted to, might have kept in subjection throughout a long period of exist- ence. Some practitioners, I am aware, object to unprofessional per- sons attempting to make themselves acquainted with the struc- ture or functions of the human body, and, in practice, think it best never to give any explanation to the patient of the princi- ples on which it is proposed to conduct the treatment. But, generally speaking, it will be found that the cheerful co-ope- ration of the patient is never so effectually secured as by ad dressing his understanding, and giving him an intelligible in- terest in what is proposed for his relief. In acute diseases, of course, explanation of any kind is often precluded. Here the professional man must act, and act with decision. But the great majority of ailments are of a chronic character, in the cure of which the steady co-operation of the patient is almost indispensable. And even when the malady is acute, the pa- tient will submit to severe measures much more readily when ordered by an adviser who has been in the habit of addressing his reason when opportunity occurred, than when prescribed by one who has always followed the system of dictation. So far from the rational care of health being justly charge- able with the imputation of selfishness, so often ignorantly thrown out against it, there is nothing which tends so much to relieve society from the burden of miseries not its own, as each individual taking such care of his constitution as shall enable him to cope successfully with the duties and difficulties of the situation in which he is placed. No man is so thoroughly selfish as he who, in the ardent pursuit of pleasure or of profit, heedlessly exposes his life to the hazard of a die, regardless of the suffering which he may entail upon those who depend on him for support. In the abstract, we all admit that the enjoy- ment of health is the first of earthly blessings, and that with- out it all others may be lavished in vain ; and yet it has been quaintly asked, " WTho is he that values health at the rote it is worth ? Not he that hath it; he reckons it among the common ordinary enjoyments, and takes as little notice of it, or less re- gards it, than his long-worn clothes ; perhaps more careful of his garments, remembering their price; but thinks his health costs him nothing, and coming at so easy a rate, values it accord- 38 WHAT BAD HEALTH IS. ingly, and hath little regard to keep it: is never truly sensi- ble of what he enjoyed until he finds the want of it by sickness; then health, above ail things, is earnestlv desired and wished for." In proportion, however, as we consider the matter with that ttention which its importance really deserves, we shall be- come anxious rather to take care of health when we have it, than first to lose it, and then exert ourselves to recover it. Such was evidently the feeling which elicited the following remarks from the same clear-sighted author. " You that have health," says he, " and know not how to prize it, I'll tell you what it is, that you may love it better, put a higher value upon it, and endeavour to preserve it with a more serious, stricter observance and tuition. u Health is that which makes your meat and drink both sa- voury and pleasant, else Nature's injunction of eating and drink- ing were a hard task and slavish custom. " Health is that which makes your bed easy and your sleep refreshing ; that revives your strength with the rising sun, and makes you cheerful at the light of another day ; 'tis that which fills up the hollow and uneven places of your carcass, and makes your body plump and comely ; 'tis that which dress- eth you up in Nature's richest attire, and adorns your face with her choicest colours. " 'Tis that which makes exercise a sport, and walking abroad the enjoyment of your liberty. " 'Tis that which makes fertile and increaseth the natural endowments of your mind, and preserves them long from decay, makes your wit acute, and your memory retentive. " 'Tis that which supports the fragility of a corruptible body, and preserves the verdure, vigour, and beauty of youth. " 'Tis that which makes the soul take delight in her mansion sporting herself at the casements of your eyes. " 'Tis that which makes pleasure to be pleasure, and delights delightful, without which you can solace yourself in nothino- of terrene felicities or enjoyments." But " now take a view of yourself when health has turned its back upon you, and deserts your company ; see then how the scene is changed, how you are robbed and spoiled of all your comforts and enjoyments. " Sleep that was stretched out from evening to the fair bright day, is now broken into pieces, and subdivided, not worth the LAWS OF HEALTH. 39 accounting; the night that before seemed short is now too long, and the downy bed presseth hard against the bones. " Exercise is now toy ling, and walking abroad the carrying of a burthen. " The eye that flasht as lightning is now like the opacous body of a thick cloud; that rolled from east to west, swifter than a celestial orb, is now tired and weary with standing still; —that penetrated the centre of another microcosm, hath lost its planetary influence, and is become obtuse and dull," &c. If such, then, be a true picture of the opposite conditions of health and disease, what stronger inducements can any one require to give him an interest in the " study and observance of Nature's institutions," seeing that they are the only means by which " the beloved ends and wished-for enjoyments," can be attained, and that we " may as likely keep or acquire riches by prodigality, as preserve health and obtain long life by intem- perance, inordinate passions, a noxious air, and such like inju- rious customs, ways, and manner of living1?"* * Maynwaringe on the Method and Means of Health, 1683. CHAPTER II. STRUCTURE AND FUNCTIONS OF THE SKIN. The Skin—composed of three layers—The Cuticle—its structure and uses.—The Mucous Coat—the seat of colour.—The True Skin—its structure—the seat of perspiration—its nature—consequences of suppressed perspiration.—Sympathy between the Skin and other organs.—The Skin a regulator of Animal Heat.— The seat of absorption.—Touch and Sensation.—Connexion between the Skin and Nervous System. K In selecting the subjects of the following essays, I shall, as hinted in the .preface, be guided partly by the intrinsic impor- tance of the functions of which they treat to the well-being of the animal economy ; and partly by the comparative ignorance which prevails in regard to them. Hitherto the digestive func- tions have formed the most prominent topic of popular disqui- sition, and a great mass of information"has, from time to time, been laid before the public, with a view to induce greater at- tention to the regulation of diet and regimen; and the action of digestive disorder in deranging the general health and modi- fying the progress of disease, has also been sedulously pointed out. But there are other organs and functions, of nearly equal interest, which have been much less attended to than they deserve, and with which the general reader is very little fami- liar. Among these the Skin, the Muscles, the Bones, the Lungs, and the Nervous System, may be mentioned as most worthy of notice, and I shall accordingly endeavour to give such an account of them in succession, as will be both intelli- gible and of direct practical utility to every one. I shall com- mence with an explanation of the structure and functions of the Skin. The sin is that membranous covering which is spread over the whole surface of the body, and which serves to bind to- STRUCTURE OF THE CUTICLE. 41 gether and to protect from injury, the subjacent and more deli- cate textures. In different animals, and at different parts of the body, it assumes different appearances. It is smooth, soft, and delicate in youth, and in females ; firmer and more resisting in middle age and in males; flabby and wrinkled in old age and after disease; puckered or disposed in folds in places that admit of extensive flection, as over the finger-joints, and in the palm of the hand; and thick and horny where it is subjected to the influence of pressure, as in the soles of the feet. The structure of the skin, like that of every other part of the aninml frame, displays the most striking proofs of the tran- scendent wisdom and beneficence of its great Creator. Though simple in appearance and design, it is a compound of many elements, and the seat of as great a variety of functions. It is composed of three layers of membrane, viz. the thin scarf-skin or cuticle, the mucous coat, and the thick true skin, as it is call ed, which immediately encompasses the body. These distinc- tions should be kept in view ; for, as it is a general law of the animal economy that every part has a use or function peculiar to itself, the various uses of the compound can be understood only by attending to those of the simple elements. The epidermis, cuticle, or scarf-skin, is the outermost of the three layers, and is that which is raised in blisters. It is a thin continuous and insensible membrane, has no perceptible blood- vessels or nerves, and consequently neither bleeds nor feels pain when cut or abraded. Being homogeneous in structure, it is supposed by many to be merely an exudation of albumi- nous mucus; and although depressions are obvious on its sur- face, and exhalation and absorption are proved to be carried on through its substance, it is still in dispute whether it be ac- tually porous or not. Probability is in favour of the affirma- tive, and the circumstance of the pores not being visible, is no proof of the contrary: for the cuticle is so elastic, that it may be perforated by a needle, and yet the hole not be discernible even under the microscope. The question is, however, one of little moment, provided it be remembered that its texture, whether perforated or not, is such as to admit of exhalation and absorption taking place through its substance. The structure of the cuticle is in admirable harmony with its uses. Placed as an insensible intermedium between external objects and the delicate nervous expansion on the surface of the subjacent true skin, it serves as a physical defence against 42 USES OF THE CUTICLE. friction; and while, by impeding evaporation, it preserves the true skin in that soft and moist state which is essential to its utility, it also, by impeding absorption, enables man to expose himself without injury to the action of numerous agents, which, but for its protection, would immediately be absorbed, and cause the speedy destruction of health and life. This is re- markably exemplified in several trades, where the workman is unavoidably exposed to an atmosphere loaded with metallic and poisonous vapours, or obliged to handle poisonous sub- stances ; and where, without the obstruction of the cuticle, the evils to which he is subjected would be aggravated a hundred fold. Being destitute of nerves, the cuticle is not hurt by the direct contact of external bodies, and being very thin, it blunts without impairing the distinctness of the impression made on the nerves of sensation. The necessity of this latter provision becomes very obvious, when the cuticle is abraded or removed by vesication. The surface below is then found to be too ten- der and irritable for the exercise of touch, and conveys to the mind scarcely any other sensation than that of pain. For the same reason, those parts of the skin which are most exposed to pressure and friction, such as the palms of the hands and soles of the feet, are provided with a thicker cuticle to de- fend them from injury. The greater thickness of the cuticle in such situations is manifestly the intentional work of the Creator, for it is perceptible even at birth, before use can have exercised any influence. Indeed, were the tender skin not so protected, every violent contraction of the hand upon a rough and hard surface, and every step made on uneven ground, would cause pain, and disable us for exertion. By another beneficent provision, calculated to afford increased protection according to the necessities of the individual, it hap- pens that, when a part is much used, the cuticle coverino- it becomes thicker and thicker within certain limits, till in ex- treme cases it becomes as thick, hard, and resisting as horn. It is this thickening of the epidermis on the lady's finger that alone enables her to wield with impunity that important in- strument the needle. And it is the same thickening that fits the blacksmith and the mason, the stone-breaker and the boatman, to ply their trades, without that painful blistering which the young apprentice or unaccustomed labourer so regularly under- goes, and which must have continued to recur for ever, had the cuticle been organized with bloodvessels and nerves, or not STRUCTURE AND USES OF THE MUCOUS COAT. 43 subjected to this law of becoming thicker wherever increased protection is required. Another modification of the cuticle to suit a modification of circumstances, is that observed in the nails. These belong to the cuticle, and separate with it; and, like it, they have nei- ther bloodvessels nor nerves, and may be cut or bruised with- out pain. When the hand or foot is macerated in water, the nails and the cuticle show their identity of organization, by se- parating together from the dermis or true skin below. The nails, like the cuticle, serve chiefly to protect, the subjacent parts from injury; and accordingly, in those lower animals whose manner of life subjects their feet to continual pressure, and requires no nice exercise of touch, Nature has provided horny and resisting hoofs for their protection, instead of merely a thickened epidermis. To produce thickening of the cuticle, exercise must be gra- dual, and not too severe. If, for example, a person takes a very long walk, rows a boat, or makes use of a heavy hammer, for a few hours, without having been accustomed to such an effort, there is no time for the cuticle to thicken, and defend itself from the unusual friction. The parts below, being inad- equately protected, become irritated and inflamed, and throw out a quantity of watery fluid or serum on their surface, which raises up the cuticle in blisters, and by making it painful to continue the pressure, obliges the person to desist from an ex- ercise which, if continued, would evidently soon alter the structure of the sentient nervous filaments, and for ever unfit them for their proper uses : So that even in this result, benefi- cence and wisdom are prominently displayed. Immediately beneath the scarf-skin, and between it and the true skin, is the mucous coat, rete mucosum, or mucous network, which is remarkable chiefly as being the seat of the colouring matter of the skin. It is seen with difficulty on dissection ex- cept in Negroes, in whom it is thick. It is exceedingly attenu- ated in albinos, and is in fact thick in proportion to the depth of colour. It is destitute of bloodvessels and nerves, but, like the epidermis, is permeable by other bodies. The colouring matter is said to be the same as that of the blood; Davy and Blumenbach, however, regard it as carbon. From all that is known Tegarding the mucous coat, it may be viewed generally as merely a thin soft covering, placed between the outer and the inner skin, to protect the nerves and vessels of 44 STRUCTURE OF THE TRUE SKIN. the latter, and give them their requisite softness and pliancy. Being of a dark colour in the Negro, it has been supposed to diminish the heating influence of the sun's rays in tropical climates by the higher radiating power which is possessed by a black than by a light surface ; but there is reason to doubt the soundness of the theory at least, for black is well known to excel in absorbing, as well as in radiating, heat; and late ex- periments on the coast of Africa seem to show, that the temper- ature of the Negro is actually about two degrees higher than that of the European under the same circumstances. The mucous coat is the seat of the beautiful and variegated colouring observed in the skins of many fishes and other animals, in which it has often a high and almost metallic splendour. The third or inmost layer, called the true skin, cutis, dermis, or corion, constitutes the chief thickness of the skin, and is by far the most important of the three, both in structure and functions. Unlike the cuticle and mucous coat, which are homogeneous in their whole extent, and apparently without organization, the true skin, or simply, as we shall sometimes call it for bre- vity's sake, the skin, is very delicately organized, and endowed with the principle of life in a very high degree. Not only is it the beautiful and efficacious protector of the subjacent struc- tures, but it is the seat of sensation and of touch, and the in- strument of a very important exhalation, viz. perspiration, the right condition or disturbance of which is a most powerful agent in the preservation or subversion of the general health. The dermis is a dense, firm, and resistant tissue, possessed of great extensibility and elasticity, and of a colour more or less red in proportion to the quantity of blood it receives and contains. Its looser internal surface, which is united to the cellular mem- brane in which the fat is deposited, presents a great number of cells or cavities, which penetrate obliquely into the substance, and towards the external surface of the skin, and also contain fatty matter. These areolae or cells are larger on some parts of the body than on others: they are very small on the back of the hand and foot, the forehead, and other places where fat is never deposited and the skin has much tenuity; while they are large in the palm of the hand and sole of the foot, where the skin is consequently thicker and fat abounds. These cells are traversed by innumerable bloodvessels and filaments of nerves,—the latter passing through to be ramified on the outer PURPOSES OF THE TRUE SKIN. 45 surface of the skin, where they show themselves in the form of numerous small papillae or points, which are very visible on the surface of the tongue, and on the fingers and palm of the hand. These papilla? constitute the true organs of touch and sensation, and are therefore most thickly planted where these senses are most acute. The true skin is so abundantly supplied with blood and nervous power, that, for practical purposes, it may almost be regarded axs composed of vessels and nerves alone ; and it is important to notice this fact. The universal and equal redness of the skin in blushing is itself a proof of great vasculority; but a still stronger consists in our being unable to direct the point of the finest needle into any spot without puncturing a vessel and drawing blood. The same test proves the equal abun- dance of nervous filaments in the skin ; for not a point can be punctured without transfixing a nerve and causing pain,—and it is well known that, in surgical operations and accidental wounds, the chief pain is always in the skin, because it is profuse- ly supplied with nerves of sensation on purpose to serve as an instrument of feeling. From these examples, it is plain that the skin may be truly considered as a network of bloodvessels and nerves of the finest conceivable texture ; and, taking the vast extent of its whole surface (estimated to exceed in a man of average size 2500 square inches) into account, we can easily understand how these minute ramifications may really consti- tute a larger mass of nervous matter than what is contained in the original trunks of the nerves from which they are in- correctly said to arise, and also how so large a proportion of the whole blood may be circulating through the skin at one time. To understand the important purposes of the true skin, we must distinguish between its constituent parts, and consider it, in virtue of each of them,—1st, As an exhalant of waste mat- ter from the system; 2dly, As a joint regulator of the heat of the body ; 3dly, As an agent of absorption; and, 4thly, As the seat of sensation and touch. Besides performing the mechanical office of a shield to the parts beneath, the skin is admirably fitted, by the great supply of blood which it receives, for its use as a secreting and excret- ing organ. The whole animal system is in a state of constant decay and renovation ; and while the stomach and alimentary 46 INSENSIBLE PERSPIRATION. canal take in new materials, the skin forms one of the princi- pal outlets or channels by which the old, altered, or useless particles are eliminated from the body; and hence, as all the secretions and excretions are derived directly from the circulat- ing blood, the skin obviously requires a supply large in propor- tion to the extent of its function. Every one knows that the skin perspires, and that checked perspiration is a powerful cause of disease and death ; but few have any just notion of the real ex- tent and influence of this exhalation such as we shall attempt to exhibit it. When the body is overheated by exercise in warm weather, a copious sweat soon breaks out, which, by evaporating and so carrying off the superfluous heat, produces an agreeable feeling of coolness and refreshment.* This is the higher and more obvious degree of the function of exhalation ; but, in the ordinary state, the skin is constantly giving out a large quantity of waste materials by what is called insensible perspiration, a process which is of great importance to the pre- servation of health, and which is called insensible, because the exhalation, being in the form of vapour, and carried off by the surrounding air, is invisible to the eye; but its presence may often be made manifest, even to the sight, by the near approach of a dry cool mirror, on the surface of which it will soon be con- densed so as to become visible. Many attempts have been made to estimate accurately the amount of exhaled matter carried off through the skin; but so many difficulties stand in the way of obtaining precise results, and the difference in different constitutions, and even in the same person at different times, is so great, that we must be satisfied with an approximation to the truth. Sanctorius, who care- fully weighed himself, his food, and his excretions, in a balance, every day for thirty years, came to the conclusion that/ve out of every eight pounds of substances taken into the system pass- ed out of it again by the skin, leaving only three to pass off by the bowels, the lungs, and the kidneys. The celebrated La- voisier and M. Seguin, afterwards entered on the same field of inquiry, and with greater success, as they were the first to distinguish between the cutaneous and pulmonary exhalations. M. Seguin shut himself up in a bag of glazed taffetas, which was tied over his head and provided with a hole, the edges oi which were glued to his lips with a mixture of turpentine and • The effect of evaporation in reducing temperature is explained more fully on p. 54. INSENSIBLE PERSPIRATION. 47 pitch, so that the pulmonary exhalation might be thrown out- wards, and the cutaneous alone be retained in the bag. He first weighed himself and the bag in a very nice balance, at the beginning of the experiment; then at the end of it, when he had become lighter in proportion to the quantity of the ex- halation thrown out by the breathing ; and, lastly, he weighed himself out of the bag, to ascertain how much weight he had lost in all; and by subtracting the loss occasioned by the lungs, the remainder of course exhibited the amount carried off by the skin. He attended minutely also to the collateral circum- stances of diet, temperature, &c.; and allowance being made for these, the results at which he arrived were the following:— The largest quantity of insensible perspiration from the lungs and skin together, amounted to thirty-two grains per minute ; three ounces and a quarter per hour; or five pounds per day. Of this, the cutaneous constituted three-fourths or sixty ounces in twenty-four hours. The smallest quantity observed, amount- ed to eleven grains per minute, or one pound eleven and a half ounces in twenty-four hours, of which the skin furnished about twenty ounces. The medium or average amount was eighteen grains a minute, of which eleven were from the skin, making the cutaneous perspiration in twenty-four hours about thirty-three ounces. WThen the extent of surface which the skin presents is considered, these results do not seem extravagant. But even admitting that there may be some unperceived source of fallacy in the experiments, and that the quantity is not so great as is here stated, still, after making every allowance, enough remains to demonstrate that exhalation is a very im- portant function of the skin. And although the precise amount of perspiration may be disputed, the greater number of ob- servers agree that the cutaneous exhalation is more abundant k than the united excretions of both bowels and kidneys, and that, according as the weather becomes warmer or colder, the skin and kidneys alternate in the proportions of work which they severally perform ; most passing off by the skin in warm weather, and by the kidneys in cold. The quantity exhaled increases, after meals, during sleep, in dry warm weather, and by friction or whatever stimulates the skin; and diminishes when digestion is impaired, and in a moist atmosphere. What we have considered relates only to the insensible per- spiration. That which is caused by great heat or severe exer- cise, is evolved in much greater quantity ; and by accumulnt- 48 SENSIBLE PERSPIRATION. ing at the surface, it becomes visible, and forms sweat. In this way, a robust man may lose two or three pounds' weight in the course of one hour's severe exertion; and if this be sud- denly checked, the consequences in certain states of the sys- tem are often of the most serious description. When the sur- face" of the body is chilled by cold, the bloodvessels of the skin become contracted in their diameter, and hinder the free en- trance of the red particles of the blood, which are therefore of necessity collected and retained in greater quantity in the in- ternal organs, where the heat varies very little. The skin con- sequently becomes pale, and its papillae contract, forming by their erectiou what is called the goose's skin. In this state it becomes less fit for its uses; the sense of touch can no longer nicely discriminate the qualities of bodies, and a cut or bruise may be received with comparatively little pain. From the op- pression of too much blood, the internal parts, on the other hand, work heavily: the mental organs are weakened, sleepi- ness is induced, respiration is oppressed, the circulation lan- guishes, and digestion ceases; and if the cold be very intense the vital functions are at last extinguished without pain, and without a struggle. This is a picture of the extreme degree; but the same causes which, in an aggravated form, occasion death, produce, when applied in a minor degree, effects equally certain, although not equally marked or speedy in their ap- pearance. According to Thenard, the cutaneous exhalation is com- posed of a large quantity of water and a small portion of acetic acid, of muriates of soda and potass, of an earthy phosphate, a little oxide of iron, and some animal matter: but Berzelius considers the acid as lactic, and not the acetic. Some carbonic acid and »oily matter also are excreted. It is probable, how- ever, that the composition of the perspiration varies both at different ages and on different parts of the skin, as is presuma- ble from the peculiarity of odour which it exhales in some situ- ations. The arm-pits, the groins, the forehead, the hands, and the feet, perspire most readily, and for this purpose re- ceive a proportionally larger supply of blood. Every thing tends to show that perspiration is a direct product of a vital process, and not a mere exudation of watery particles through the pores of the skin. Taking even the lowest estimate of Lavoisier, we find the skin endowed with the important charge of removing from the NATURE OF PERSPIRATION. 49 system about twenty ounces of waste matter every twenty-four hours; and when we consider that the quantity not only is great but is sent forth in so divided a state as to be invisible to the eye, and that the whole of it is given out by the very mi- nute ramifications of the bloodvessels of the skin, we perceive at once why these are so extremely numerous that a pin's point cannot touch any spot without piercing them ; and we see an ample reason why, independently of the impression made through the medium of the nervous system, checked perspira- tion should prove so detrimental to health,—because for every twenty-four hours during which such a state continues, we must either have twenty ounces of useless and hurtful matter accumulating in the body, or have some of the other organs of excretion grievously overtasked, which obviously cannot hap- pen without disturbing their regularity and well-being. People know the fact, and wonder that it should be so, that cold applied to the skin, or continued exposure in a cold day, often produces a bowel complaint, a severe cold in the chest, or inflammation of some internal organ :* But were they taught, as they ought to be, the structure and uses of their own bodies, they would rather wonder that it did not always produce one of these effects. In tracing the connexion between suppressed perspiration and the production of individual diseases, we shall find that * Colds are probably the most prolific cause of disease existing, and the next is probably disordered digestion. To these two causes, most diseases may be traced; but colds are the most prolific, and cause a large portion of our fevers, consumptions, scrofula, brain fevers, croup, &c. Hence to prevent them, is most important to health, as is also their speedy cure. By proper attention, they may usually be prevented, but the most efficient means of this prevention is frequent ablutions in cold water, which, by keep- ing the skin clean and active, and increasing -the heat on the surface of the body, enables the system to resist that contraction of the pores which con- stitutes a cold. To consumptive patients, and scrofulous children, no reme- dy is more efficacious, no preventive equally so, though friction is scarcely less beneficial. Their disease is caused by the blood's retiring from the sur- face and limbs to the heart, there to oppress the lungs and fever the brain. If those who are predisposed to consumption would but avoid taking cold, they would be in no danger; and those who are not thus predisposed, need to be on their guard; for many of them are often taken down with a cold, and are soon wasted by consumption. We have no doubt that by operating on the poles of the lungs, (see Jour- nal department, page 82,) accompanied with appropriate internal remedies, there will soon be discovered a sure cure for this formidable disease. 5 3t* ^y which a violent and rapid expiration takes place, with a force sufficient to hurry the mucus or other foreign body along with it; just as pease are discharged by boys with much force through short tubes by a sudden effort of blowing. Thus, a check given to perspiration, by diminishing the quantity of blood previously circulating on the surface, naturally leads very often to increased expectoration and cough, or, in other words, to common cold. The lungs excrete, as already noticed, and as we shall after- wards more fully see, a large proportion of waste materials from the system ; and the kidneys, the liver, and the bowels, have in so far a similar office. In consequence of this alliance with the skin, these parts are more intimately connected with each other in healthy and diseased action than with other or- gans. But it is a general law, that whenever an organ is un- usually delicate, it will be affected by any cause of disease more easily than those which are sound : so that, if the ner- vous system, for example, be weaker than other parts, a chill will be more likely to disturb its health than that of the lungs, which are supposed, in this instance, to be constitutionally stronger; or, if the muscular and fibrous organizations be un- usually susceptible of disturbance, either from previous illness or from natural predisposition, they will be the first to suffer, and rheumatism will ensue ; and so on. And hence the utility to the physician of an intimate acquaintance with the previous habits and constitutions of his patients, and the advantage of adapting the remedies to the nature of the cause, when it can be discovered, as well as to the disease itself. A bowel com- plaint, for instance, may arise from over-eating as well as from a check to perspiration; but although the thing to be cured is the same, the means of cure ought obviously to be different. In the one instance, an emetic or laxative to carry off the of- fending cause, and in fne other a diaphoretic to open the skin, will be the most rational and efficacious remedies. Facts like 52 RECIPROCAL ACTION BETWEEN THE SKIN these expose well the glaring ignorance and effrontery of the quack, who affirms that his one remedy will cure every form of disease. Were the public not equally ignorant with himself, their credulity would cease to afford to his presumption the rich field in which it now revels. The close sympathy between the skin and the stomach and bowels has often been noticed, and it is now well understood that most of the obstinate eruptions which appear on the face and rest of the surface, owe their origin to disorders of the di- gestive organs, and are most successfully cured by treatment directed to the internal disease. Even among the lower animals, the sympathy between the two is so marked as to have arrested attention. Thus, in speaking of the horse, Delabere Blaine says, " by a well-known consent of parts between the skin and alimentary canal in general, but between the first passages and the stomach in particular, it follows, in almost every in- stance, that when one of these becomes affected, the other takes on a sympathetic derangement also, and the condition is then morbid throughout. From close observation and the ac- cumulation of numerous facts, I am disposed to think, that so perfect is this sympathetic consent between these two distant parts or organs, that they change the order of attack as circum- stances occur. Thus, when the skin is primarily affected, the stomach becomes secondarily so, and vice versa," so that " a sudden check to the natural or acquired heat of the body, par- ticularly if aggravated by the evaporation of a perspiring state," as often brings on disease of some internal organ, as if the cause were applied directly to the organ itself.* In noticing this connexion between the suppression of per spiration and the appearance of internal disease, I do not mean to affirm that the effect is produced by the physical transfer- ence of the suppressed exhalation to the internal organ. In many instances, the chief impression seems to be made on the nervous system; and the manner in which it gives rise to the resulting disease is often extremely obscure. Our knowledge of the animal functions is, indeed, still so imperfect, that we daily meet with many occurrences of which no explanation can be given. But it is nevertheless of high utility to make known the fact, that a connexion does exist between two orders of phenomena, as it calls attention to thejr more accurate obser- • Blaine's Outlines of the Veterinary Art. Third edition, p. 65. KND OTHER ORGANS. 53 vation, and leads to the adoption of useful practical rules, even when their mode of operation is not understood. Nothing, in- deed, can be more delusive than the rash application of merely physical laws to the explanation of the phenomena of living beings. Vitality is a principle superior to, and in continual warfare with, the laws which regulate the actions of inanimate bodies; and it is only after life has become extinct that these laws regain the mastery, and lead to the rapid decomposition of the animal machine. In studying the functions of the hu- man body, therefore, we must be careful not to hurry to con- clusions, before taking time to examine the influence of the vital principle in modifying the expected results.* It is in consequence of the sympathy and reciprocity of ac- tion existing between the skin and the internal organs that burns and even scalds of no very great extent prove fatal, by inducing internal, generally intestinal, inflammation. By dis- ordering or disorganizing a large nervous and exhaling surface, an extensive burn causes not only a violent nervous commo- tion, but a continued partial suspension of an important excre- tion ; and, when death ensues at some distance of time, it is almost always in consequence of inflammation being excited in the bowels or sympathizing organ. So intimate, indeed, is this connexion, that some surgeons of great experience, such as the late Baron Dupuytren, of the Hotel Dieu, while they point to internal inflammation as in such cases the general cause of death, doubt if recovery ever takes place, when more than one-eighth of the surface of the body is severely burnt. And whether this estimate be correct or not, the facts from which it is drawn clearly demonstrate the importance of the relation subsisting betwixt the skin and the other excreting organs. In some constitutions, a singular enough sympathy exists between the skin and the bowels. Dr. A. T. Thomson, in his work on Materia Medica (p. 42), mentions that he is acquaint- ed with a clergyman who cannot bear the skin to be sponged with vinegar and water or any diluted acid, without suffering * After the corresponding sheets of the first edition were printed, I met with some excellent practical remarks on the sympathy between the skin and the thoracic and abdominal viscera, in Dr. James Johnson's " Trea- tise on Derangements of the Liver, Internal Organs, and Nervous System," published some years ago. They deserve every attention on the part of the profession, as showing how affections of different organs influence each other. 54 RECIPROCAL ACTION BETWEEN THE SKIN spasm and violent griping of the bowels. The reverse opera- tion of this sympathy is exemplified in the frequent production of nettle-rash and other eruptions on the skin, by shell-fish and other substances taken into the stomach. Dr. Thomson tells us, that the late Dr. Gregory could not eat the smallest portion of the white of an egg, without experiencing an attack of an eruption like nettle-rash. According to the same author, even strawberries have been known to cause fainting, followed by a petechial efflorescence of the skin. We have seen that the insensible perspiration removes from the system, without trouble and without consciousness, a large quantity of useless materials, and at the same time keeps the skin soft and moist, and thereby fits it for the performance of its functions as the organ of an external sense. In addition to these purposes, the Creator has, in his omniscience and fore- sight, and with that regard to simplicity of means which beto- kens a profoundness of thought inconceivable to us, superadded another, scarcely less important, and which is in some degree implied in the former; I mean the proper regulation of the bodily heat. It is well known that, in the polar regions and in the torrid zone, under every variety of circumstances, the human body retains nearly the same temperature, however dif- ferent may be that of the air by which.it is surrounded. This is a property peculiar to life, and, in consequence of it, even vegetables have a power of modifying their own temperature, though in a much more limited degree. Without this power of adaptation, it is obvious that man must have been chained for life to the climate which gave him birth, and even then have suffered constantly from the change of seasons ; whereas, by possessing it, he can retain life in a temperature sufficiently cold to freeze mercury, and is able for a time to sustain, un- harmed, a heat more than sufficient to boil water, or even to bake meat. Witness the wintering of Captain Parry and his companions in the Polar Regions; and the experiments of Blagoen, Sir Joseph Banks, and others, who remained for many minutes in a room heated to 260°, or about 50° above the tem- perature of boiling water. The chief agents in this wonderful adaptation of man to his external situation, are undoubtedly the skin and the lungs, in both of which the power is intimate- y connected with the condition of their respective exhalations. But it is of the skin alone, as an agent in reducing animal heat, that we are at present to speak. THE SKIN A REGULATOR OF ANIMAL HEAT. 55 The sources of animal heat are not yet demonstrably ascer- tained ; but that it is constantly generated and constantly ex- pended has been long known ; and if any considerable dispro- portion occurs between these processes, it is at the immediate risk of health. During repose, or passive exercise, such as rid- ing in a carriage or sailing, the surplus heat is readily carried off by the insensible perspiration from the lungs and skin, and by the contact of the colder air; but when the amount of heat generated is increased, as during active exercise, an increased expenditure becomes immediately necessary: this is effected by the skin and lungs being excited to higher action; by the latter sending out the respired air loaded with vapour, and the former exhaling its fluid so rapidly as to form a sweat. Accord- ingly, we find that in cold countries, and in frosty weather, the exhalation from the skin is reduced to a very moderate amount, the superabundant heat being rapidly carried off* by contact with a cooler air ; and that, in warm climates, where the heat is not carried off in this way, the surface is constantly bedewed with perspiration, and a corresponding appetite exists for liquids by which the perspiration may be kept up to a suffi- cient degree. Every one must have experienced the grateful effects of this provision, in passing from the dry, restless, and burning heat, like that of fever, to the soft and pleasant cool- ness which follows the breaking out of the sweat. Attention to the order of events affords the requisite know- ledge of the means employed for carrying off the increased heat which is produced when a person is exposed to a warm air and powerful sun, or engaged in severe exercise. At first, the body is actually felt to be warmer, the skin becomes dry and hot, and the unpleasant sensation of heat is soon at its maximum. By-and-by, a slight moisture is perceived on the surface, followed by an immediate increase of comfort. In a short time afterwards this moisture passes into free and copious perspiration; and if the heat or exertion be still kept up, the sweat becomes profuse, and drops from the body or wets the clothes which envelope it. A decrease of animal heat una- voidably accompanies this, because, independently of any vital action contributing to this effect, as is most probable, the mere physical evaporation of so much fluid is itself sufficient to carry off a large quantity of caloric. The curious experiments of Edwards tend to show that evaporation is really the only means required for reducing animal heat to its proper degree j 56 THE SKIN A REGULATOR OF ANIMAL HEAT. but the results obtained by him require to be confirmed, and the experiments varied and carried farther, before the inquiry can be considered as completed. The sagacity of Franklin led him to the first discovery of the use of perspiration in reducing the heat of the body, and to point out the analogy subsisting between this process and that of the evaporation of water from a rough porous surface, so constantly resorted to in the East and West Indies, and other warm countries, as an efficacious means of reducing the temperature of the air in rooms, and of wine and other drinks, much below that of the surrounding atmosphere. The quantity of fluid evaporated from the skin during profuse sweat, so far exceeds that given out during the highest insensible perspiration, that two pounds in weight have been lost by this means in a couple of hours—an amount evi- dently sufficient to carry off the largest quantity of superflu- ous animal heat which can ever be present. In the perform- ance of this function, the skin is, indeed, assisted by the ex- halation from the lungs; but* as both act on the same prin- ciple, the explanation is not affected by this circumstance. In very warm weather, the dog is- always seen with the tongue lolling out of his mouth, and copiously covered with frothy secretion. This is merely another modification of the means used for reducing animal heat. The dog perspires very little from the skin, and the copious exhalation from the mouth is the expedient resorted to by Nature for supplying its place. Bearing in mind the preceding explanation of the functions of the skin, the reader will peruse with interest the following remarks from Dr. Thomson's work,* formerly quoted :—u Dr. Davy, in his Travels in Ceylon, states, from his personal ob- servation, that on first landing in a tropical climate, the stan- dard heat of the body of a European is raised two or three de- grees, and febrile symptoms occur, which require temperance, the avoiding every cause of excitement of the vascular system, and the use of aperient medicines. All authors, and indeed every observing person, who has visited the torrid zone, agree that with the languor and exhaustion resulting from the high temperature of the atmosphere, there is a greatly increased mobility of the nervous system. The action of the cutaneous vessels amounts to disease, and produces that eczematous or ve- sicular eruption of the skin, known by the name of prickly * P. 66. CUTANEOUS ABSORPTION. 57 heat, which occurs in Europeans who visit the West Indies, on their first landing. On the other hand, this function of the skin is so much weakened, almost paralyzed, when the climate from which a person is passing is dry and bracing, and that into which he has passed is humid and relaxing, that conges- tions of blood take place in the larger vessels, the body becomes susceptible of the least impression of marshy exhalations, and agues and similar diseases are produced." We shall now be able to understand why in summer we suf- fer most from heat in what is called moist close weather, when no air is stirring ; and why warm climates that are at the same time moist, are proverbially the most unwholesome. The chief reason is the diminished evaporation from the skin, which such a condition of the atmosphere produces, partially shutting up the natural outlet of the superfluous heat of the body; and as it at the same time checks the exit of the waste matter which ought to be thrown out, and which is known to be as injurious to the system as an active poison taken into the body from without, the hurtful consequences of such weather and cli- mates, and the fevers, dysenteries, and colds, to which they give rise, are partly accounted for. A moist state of the atmos phere is also favourable to absorption, and hence, if noxious effluvia are at the time floating in the air, they are more easily received into the system. It is on this account that night air is so unwholesome, particularly in malaria districts, which are loaded with moisture and miasma or marsh poison; for, when the air is dry as well as hot, free evaporation takes place, and absorption is almost null, so that little or no inconvenience is felt, and health often remains uninjured. Delaroche has estab- lished this point conclusively by experiment. He exposed animals to a very high temperature in a dry air, and found them to sustain no mischief; but when he exposed them in an atmosphere saturated with moisture, to a heat only a few de- grees above that of their own bodies, and greatly lower than in the former instance, they very soon died. Here we see also the reason why, in ague and other fevers, the suffering, rest- lessness, and excitement of the hot stage, can never be abated till the sweat begins to flow, after which they rapidly subside; and why the remedies which, when given in the hot stage, added to the excitement and distress, may now be productive of the best effects. The function next to be noticed, viz. Absorption, is in some 58 CUTANEOUS ABSORPTION. measure the opposite of the last. By its instrumentality, sub- stances placed in contact with the skin are taken up and car- ried into the general circulation, either to be appropriated to some new purpose, or to be thrown out of the body. In the vaccination of children to protect them from small- pox, we have a familiar example of the process of absorption. A small quantity of cow-pox matter is inserted under the cuti- cle on the surface of the true skin, and there left. In a short time it is acted upon, and taken into the system by the absorb- ent vessels. In like manner, mercurial preparations rubbed on the skin for the cure of liver complaint, are absorbed, and af- fect the constitution precisely as when received into the sto- mach. Many even of the common laxatives, such as rhubarb and croton oil, have of late been successfully administered in the same way, and the rapid absorption of poisons from bites of rabid animals and wounds in dissection through the same channel, is familiar to every one. It is from the active princi- ple of the Spanish flies used in blisters being taken up by the cutaneous absorbents, that irritation of the kidneys and urinary organs so often attends the employment of that re- medy. The process of absorption is carried on by vessels fitted for the purpose, which are the*ice named absorbent vessels, or sim- ply absorbents. In the skin they are so exceedingly small and numerous, that, when injected with mercury, the surface is said by Dr. Gordon to resemble a sheet of silver. In health they are of too small a size to admit the red particles of the blood, and hence, from their contents being nearly transparent, they are sometimes named lymphatics. Some ascribe great importance, and others very little, to cu- taneous absorption. In some diseases, such as diabetes, in which, occasionally for weeks in succession, the urinary dis- charge exceeds, by many ounces daily, the whole quantity of food and drink, without the body losing proportionally in weight, we can account for the system being sustained only by supposing moisture to be extensively absorbed from the air by the skin and lungs. The ancients, indeed, believed that, when food could not be retained in the stomach, a person might be nourished by placing him in a bath of strong soup or milk; but recent experiments serve to show that, in such cir- cumstances, absorption is too trifling in amount for any such result. Some indeed deny that any absorption would take CUTANEOUS ABSORPTION. 59 place at all, because it is observed as a general fact that the body does not gain in weight by immersion in a warm bath. But the inference is not well founded, for occasionally weight is gained; and even when it is not, as much water must have been absorbed as would make up the loss sustained during im- mersion by perspiration, which is believed to go on more rapidly in warm water than in the open air. That animals absorb copiously when immersed in water, has been amply proved by Dr. Edwards and other physiologists. Dr. Edwards selected lizards as the subjects of experiment, because he regarded their scaly skins as unfavourable for ab- sorption. After reducing the bulk of a lizard by several day's exposure to a dry air, he immersed its tail and hind legs in water, and found that absorption took place to such an extent as to restore the original plumpness of all parts of the body. The same result attended a variety of other trials, so that the fact does not admit of doubt. In man, absorption from the surface is greatly retarded by the intervention of the cuticle; and it is universally admitted that when this obstacle is re- moved, the process goes on with great vigour. Thus arsenic applied to cancerous sores, and strong solutions of opium to extensive burns in children, have been absorbed in quantities sufficient to poison the patients. • Colic in its severest forms has followed similar external applications of the salts of lead. Mercury, also, in the form of fumigation, has often been used where rapid action was required, because in the state of vapour it is very speedily taken up by the cutaneous ab- sorbents. It is quite certain, then, that the skin does absorb. The only doubt is as to what extent the cuticle operates in prevent- ing or modifying that action. When friction accompanies the external application, the cuticle, as we see exemplified in the use of mercurial and other liniments, is not an efficient obsta- cle. But when friction is not resorted to, and the substance applied is of a mild unirritating nature, such as oil, it may re- main in contact with the skin for a long time, without being taken into the system in appreciable quantities. If, however, it is irritating, like Spanish flies, absorption speedily begins, and is carried on through the cuticle, as is proved by the ef- fects produced on the urinary organs. When the perspiration is brought to the surface of the skin, and confined there either by injudicious clothing or by want of 60 CUTANEOUS ABSORPTION. cleanliness, there is much reason to suppose that its residual parts are again absorbed, and act on the system as a poison of greater or less power, according to its quantity and degree of concentration, thereby producing fever, inflammation, and even death itself; for it is established by observation, that concen- trated animal effluvia form a very energetic poison. The fatal consequences which have repeatedly followed the use of a close water-proof dress by sportmen and others, and the heat and uneasy restlessness which speedily ensue where proper venti- lation is thus prevented, seem explicable on some such prin- ciple.* It is believed by many, that marsh miasmata and other poi- sons are absorbed by the skin as well as by the lungs, and Bichat considered the fact as established in regard to the efflu via of dissecting rooms. There are many reasons for concur- ring in this belief. The plague, for instance, is much more readily communicated by contact than by any other means, and this can happen only through the medium of absorption. Besides, it is observed that those who work with oil and other greasy substances which obstruct the pores of the skin, often escape the contagion when all around them suffer. Flannel and warm clothing, in like manner, which have been proved to be extremely useful in preserving those who are unavoida bly exposed to the action of malaria and of epidemic influences, manifestly act chiefly by protecting the skin. A late writer on the Malaria of Rome strongly advocates this opinion, and ex- presses his conviction that the ancient Romans suffered less from it, chiefly because they were always enveloped in warm * Guided by the light of this principle, we have long believed that most people dress too warmly, and especially children over four years old.. Every observer must have noticed the inexpressible delight experienced by children when undressed, and the great reluctance with which they allow clothes to be put upon them. Franklin mentions the great pleasure as well as the great usefulness derived from the " air bath." There is a something in the atmosphere which, brought in contact with the skin, is most grateful, which shows this contact to be highly beneficial. Wearing stocks is detri- mental, because it prevents the rise and escape of the air confined about the body, which interrupts the introduction of fresh air; thereby weaken- ing the tone and vigor of the body. By accustoming ourselves to wear less clothing, we would soon be enabled to feel as comfortable, and do as well, if not better, with little as with much; which would allow bodily ventila- tion, and produce a natural animal heat. This is infinitely superior to all the kinds and degrees of artificial heat ever produced. CUTANEOUS ABSORPTION. 61 woollen dresses. This opinion, he says, is justfied by the ob- servation, that since the period at which the use of woollen clothing came again into vogue, intermittent fevers have very sensibly diminished in Rome. Even in the warmest weather the shepherds are now clothed in sheep-skins. Brocchi, who experimented extensively on the subject, obtained a quantity of putrid matter from the unwholesome air, and came to the con- clusion, that it penetrated by the pores of the skin rather than by the lungs. Brocchi ascribes the immunity of the sheep and cattle, which pasture night and day in the Campagna, to the protection afforded them by their wool.* These remarks de- serve the serious attention of observers,—particularly as, ac- cording to Patissier, similar means have been found effectual in preserving the health of labourers digging and excavating drains and canals in marshy grounds, where, previously to the employment of these precautions, the mortality from fever was very considerable. It is a general law, that every organ acts with increased en- ergy when excited by its own stimulus ; and the application of this law to the different functions of the skin, may help to re- move some of our difficulties. The skin exhales most in a warm dry atmosphere, because the latter dissolves and carries off the secretion, as fast as it is produced; and the same con- dition is unfavourable to absorption, because nothing is present upon which the absorbents of the skin can act. In a moist at- mosphere, on the other hand, the absorbents meet with theii appropriate stimulus, and act powerfully; while exhalation ia greatly diminished, because the air can no longer carry off the perspiration so freely. Apparently from this extensive absorp- tion, we find the inhabitants of marshy and humid districts re- markable for the predominance of the lymphatic system, as has long been remarked of the Dutch; and, as malaria pre- vails chiefly in situations and seasons in which the air is loaded with moisture, and is most energetic at periods when absorp- tion is most active and moisture is at its maximum, the proba- bility of its being received into the system chiefly by cutaneous absorption is greatly increased, and the propriety of endeavour- ing to protect ourselves from its influence by warm woollen clothing becomes more striking. In the army and navy, ac- cordingly, where practical experience is most followed, the utmost attention is now paid to enforcing the use of flannel * Edin. Phil. Journ. January, 1833. 62 TOUCH AND SENSATION. and sufficient clothing, as protection against fever, dysentery, and other diseases, particularly in unhealthy climates. In the prevention of cholera, flannel was decidedly useful. From the above exposition of the laws of absorption, and from the facts referred to at page 56, may it not be feasibly in- ferred, that the efficacy of great heat in preventing contagion from the plague, is partly owing to the consequent dryness of the atmosphere no longer presenting the requisite stimulus to the absorbents, but, on the contrary, powerfully exciting the action of the exhalants 1 Damp directly stimulates the absorb- ents, and hence may arise its hurtfulness as a vehicle. The system, too, it is well known, is peculiarly susceptible of infec- tion, when the stomach has been for some time empty, as be- fore breakfast. May not this be accounted for by the then greater activity of absorption 1 From grouping all the constituent parts of the skin into one whole, and perceiving so many operations connected with that tegument, some may be apt to suppose it an exception to the principle laid down, that no single part can execute more than a single direct function. In reality, however, it is only by tak- ing the guidance of this principle that we can extricate our- selves from the apparent confusion. We have already seen that exhalation and absorption are each connected with dis- tinct textures in the skin. On further examination, we shall find the office of Touch and Sensation intrusted exclusively to another constituent part, the nervous; for, in serving as the instrument of feeling, the skin acts in no other way than by affording a suitable surface for the distribution and protection of the nerves which receive and transmit to the brain and mind the impressions made on them by external bodies. In this respect the skin resembles the other organs of sense, in all of which the nerve is the true instrument of the sense ; the eye, the ear, the nose, and the skin, being simply structures fitted to bring the nerve into relation with the qualities of colour, sound, smell, roughness, and smoothness, by w/iich they are respectively affected;—and they differ from each other, because sound dif- fers from colour, colour from smell, and smell from roughness or smoothness; and because sound or colour can be taken cog- nizance of by its own nerve, only when the latter is provided with an apparatus fit to be acted upon by the vibrations of the air, or by the rays of light. In every instance, it is the exter - TOUCH AND SENSATION. 63 nal object acting upon a nerve which gives rise to the impres- sion received from the organs of sense. Every part of the skin, however remote, is provided with filaments from the nerves of sensation, in order that we may become immediately sensible of the presence and action of ex- ternal bodies. If any part were destitute of this property, its texture and vitality might be destroyed without our being con- scious of the fact; whereas, in consequence of this provision of sensitive nerves, no object can touch the skin without our be- ing instantly made aware of its presence and properties. A case described by Dr. Yelloly, in the third volume of the Me- dico-Chirurgical Transactions, illustrates in a striking manner the great utility of these nerves in warning us of danger. " The patient's hands," says Dr. Yelloly, "up to the wrists, and the feet half-way up the legs, are perfectly insensible to any species of injury, as cutting, pinching, scratching or burn- ing. . . He accidentally put one of his feet, some time ago, into boiling water, but was no otherwise aware of the high temper- ature than by finding the whole surface a complete blister on re- moving it." While, however, sensation is common to the whole surface of the body, there are parts of the skin more immediately des- tined by Nature for the exercise of Touch, and for the better appreciation of all the qualities of which it is cognizant. Such are the hands and tongue in man, the proboscis in the elephant, the tail in some of the monkey tribes, and the tentacula in fishes. Now, in accordance with the explanation given of the dependence of sensation upon nervous endowment, it is re- markable that all the parts destined for this special exercise of Touch, receive the most abundant supply of sensitive nerves. Thus the nerves going to the hand and arm, the most perfect instruments of Touch and Sensation in man, are at their dorsal roots five times larger than those which are destined for its motion; and, in like manner, the nerve supplying the tactile extremity of the proboscis of the elephant, exceeds in size the united volume of all its muscular nerves. On the other hand, in animals covered with hair or feathers, whose Touch and Sensation are comparatively defective, the muscular nerves far exceed in size those of sensation; and wherever Nature has endowed any particular part with high sensitive powers, she is invariably found to have distributed to that part, and to it alone, a proportionally higher nervous endowment. In man, the in- 64 TOUCH AND SENSATION. numerable nervous papillae destined for the exercise of Touch, may be distinctly seen in parallel irregular rows on the fingers and palm of the hand, and every body knows how acute the sense is in these parts. In fishes, on the other hand, no ner- vous papillae can be detected on the surface of the skin; but many of them have tentacula or projections generally about the mouth, for the special purpose of exercising Touch, and these are always plentifully supplied with branches from the fifth pair of nerves. The nervous tissue of the skin is thus not only an important instrument for receiving and conveying to the mind accurate impressions in regard to the properties of external objects, but it is even essential to our continued existence. The pain which is caused by injuries is no doubt very disagreeable, but in its uses it is a positive blessing, in warning us against the danger, and even certain destruction, which would speedily overtake us if we had no such monitor at hand. If we had no nerves on the surface to communicate to us a lively impression of cold, we might inadvertently remain inactive in a temperature which would not only suspend perspiration, but benumb the powers of life; or we might, as we have already seen, approach so near the fire or boiling fluids, as to have the organization de- stroyed before we knew: Whereas, by the kind interposition of the nerves, we cannot, when perspiring freely, be exposed to the cold air without an unpleasant sensation being expe- rienced, impelling us to attend to our safety, and to keep up our heat either by additional clothing or by active exercise. When both the nervous and the vascular parts of the skin are in healthy action, a pleasant soft warmth is felt over the body, which is in itself a delight, and which gives to the mind a lightness and hilarity, or pleasant consciousness of active existence, the very opposite of the low and languid depression which so generally accompanies continued defective action in the skin, and which forms a marked feature in many nervous affections. For the due exercise of Sensation, the nerves must be in a proper state of health. If, for example, the cuticle protecting the nervous papillae be abraded, or removed by vesication, the naked nerves are too powerfully stimulated by the contact of external bodies, and, instead of receiving and transmitting the usual impressions of heat, cold, and configuration, they com- municate scarcely any feeling except that of pain ; while, if the TOUCH AND SENSATION. 65 cuticle become thickened by hard labour, the impression made on the nerves is proportionally lessened, and little information is conveyed by them to the mind. A due supply of arterial blood is another requisite for the ac- tion of the nerves of sensation. If they be deprived of this, as by exposing the body to a degree of cold sufficient to drive the blood from the surface, the nerves become almost insensible, and severe wounds may be received in this state without the individual being conscious of the accident, or feeling the slight- est pain. For the same reason, severe cold, after a certain time, ceases to be painful, and death ensues like deep sleep and without suffering. But when a frozen limb is thawed, and the returning circulation begins to set the nerves in action, suf- fering forthwith commences, and the overaction is in danger of leading to inflammation. The same phenomena, in an in- ferior degree, must be familiar to every one, in the prickling and tingling so commonly complained of on heating cold hands or feet too rapidly at a good fire,—symptoms which arise from the return of the blood stimulating the nerves to undue action. It is the nervous tissue of the skin which takes cognizance of the temperature of the bodies by which we are surrounded, and imparts to the mind the sensation of warmth and coldness. In the healthy state, the sensation is a correct index of the real temperature; but, in disease, we often complain of cold and shivering when the skin is positively warmer than natural. In this way, people whose digestion is weak and circulation feeble, complain habitually of cold, and of cold feet, where others, differently constituted, experience no such sensations. Exercise disipates this feeling and increases heat, by exciting the circulation of the blood, throwing more of it to the surface, and thereby increasing the action of the cutaneous vessels and nerves.* * One leading principle in our work on " Phrenology applied to Educa- tion and Self-Improvement," is the doctrine of balance of parts—a doctrine shown to be necessary as regards the temperaments, as well as the phreno- logical organs. This result is arrived at here, yet the principle is not clearly stated ; nor do we remember to have seen it stated or applied either to the several physical functions, or to the mental powers. We regard this principle as embodying one of the most important laws of our being. Applied to the temperaments and physical functions, it unfolds the leading condition of health, long life, and animal enjoyment, which depend upon the proportionate exercise of each function, and applied to the phrenology 66 TOUCH AND SENSATION. Some mental emotions operate upon the skin, and impair if? functions much in the same way as cold. Grief, fear, and the depressing passions, by diminishing the afflux of arterial blood, render the skin pale, and at the same time diminish perspira- tion and nervous action; while rage, and other violent pas- sions, by augmenting the afflux of blood, elevate the temper- ature of the surface, and give rise to the red flush, fulness, and tension so characteristic of excitement. Sometimes, in- deed, the effect of mental emotions on the skin is so great as to induce disease. In speaking of impetigo, Dr. Bateman al- ludes to two gentlemen in whom the eruption arose from " great alarm and agitation of mind ;" and adds, that he " wit nessed some time ago the extraordinary influence of mental alarm on the cutaneous circulation, in a poor woman who be- came a patient of the Public Dispensary. A sudden universal anasarca (dropsy under the skin) followed, in one night, the shock occasioned by the loss of a small sum of money, which was all she possessed."* Facts like these establish a connec- tion between the brain and nervous system and the skin, which it is important not to overlook.! cal organs, it discloses the true condition of intellectual and moral perfec- tion. Of course, we cannot here illustrate, nor even state it, but only allude to it. It will be found stated and illustrated in our work on " Phre- nology applied to Temperance," and also to "Education and Self-Im- provement," both of which are founded exclusively upon it. [Ed. Am. ed.] * Bateman on Cutaneous Diseases, p. 150. f This connection is much more intimate and reciprocal than most per- sons imagine; and hence, cleanliness of the skin, as well as its healthy and vigorous action, are indispensable alike to moral purity and intellectual vigour. Vicious persons are always filthy in their persons, and " vice versa;" and one of the first steps to moral elevation is physical ablution, We have no doubt but those frequent washings in water required in the Old Testa- ment as necessary in order to obtain moral cleanliness, were founded in this principle, or at least adapted to it by the Framer of both. To keep the skin clean, is as important as to keep the stomach filled. Every day, or at least every other day, the whole body should be washed just as we wash the face, and after one becomes a little accustomed to it, he will feel as unwilling to relinquish it, as he does to be deprived of the refreshing and invigorating custom of frequently washing his hands and face; for in proportion as the whole body is larger than the face the influence of that custom when applied to it, is greater in renovating and strengthening all its functions. It is really surprising that ablution and bathing are not more practiced in this country, especially upon children, not only as a means of preventing colds, consumptions, &c, but also as being conducive to moral TOUCH AND SENSATION. 67 The reverse influence which the condition of thf nervous matter distributed over the surface of the body exeits on the rest of the system is also well known, and is exemplified in the effects of exposure to intense cold. The first sensation of chill excited in the nerves of the skin is quickly succeeded by that of numbness and insensibility ; and if the exposure be continued, the impression is speedily communicated to the brain, and con- fusion of mind, followed ultimately by the extinction of life, comes on. When, on the other hand, as in tropical climates, the surface is relaxed by excessive heat, the brain speedily par- ticipates in the relaxation, and the mind is unfitted for sustain- ed or vigorous action. Invalids and literary men often suffer severely from excess of action in the brain, and deficiency of activity in the nerves of the skin and remoter organs. The nervous stimulus, which is essential to digestion and to the health and warmth of the skin, cannot be provided when the brain is too exclusively ex- ercised in thinking or feeling; and for want of this stimulus, the tone of the digestive and cutaneous organs is greatly re- duced,—the surface of the body becomes cold, shrunk, and uncomfortable,—and the individual is subject to annoyance and painful sensations from trifles which formerly gave plea- sure. Bad digestion and deficient warmth of surface are thus proverbially complained of among literary and sedentary per- sons, and can be removed only by exciting the nerves and vascular functions of the skin, and diminishing those of the brain.* Such are the direct and important uses of the skin. But in addition to the parts already noticed, there are numerous small follicles or glands contained in its substance, more abundant where hairs are implanted, and in the vicinity of the orifices of natural canals, than in other regions, but existing in all elevation and intellectual improvement. We invariably commence every day devoted to writing, with bathing ; and from experience recommend this practice, especially to literary men: and if your child is feverous and irrita- ble, wash it, (but, if in cold water, do it quickly,) and follow with vigorous friction so as to produce the glow of re-action, and you will thereby gene- rally improve his temper. * That is, by securing that balance of circulation and function alluded to in our note on p. 65. The literary and sedentary should bear this princi- ple in mind, because their cure, as well as their physical and intellectual salvation, depend mainly upon it. 68 TOUCH AND SENSATION. parts except the palms of the hands, and soles of the feet. They are about the size of a millet seed, and the skin which contains them is thin, reflected on itself and very vascular. Their cavities are filled with an oily humour, and each opens by an orifice at the external surface of the skin. It is this oily matter which prevents water from penetrating easily and re- laxing the cuticle, and the absence of which, when it has been removed by the soda used in washing clothes, allows the skin of the hands and fingers to assume that wrinkled and shrivelled appearance common among washer-women. CHAPTER III. HEALTH OF THE SKIN, AND ITS INFLUENCE ON THE GENERAL SYSTEM. Mortality in Infancy from Cold.,—Animal heat lowest at that age.—Too little and too much clothing equally bad.—Rules for dress.—Advantages of flannel in pre- venting disease.—Ventilation of beds and clothing.—Influence of light.—Im- portance of ablution and bathing.—Cold, tepid, and warm bath.—Sponging with diluted vineger.—Friction of the Skin.—Vapour bath, and warm bath, useful in preventing and curing nervous diseases and liability to cold.—Sailing and riding useful by acting on the skin. As it is only in its useful applications to the improvement and happiness of man that knowledge truly becomes power, I proceed, in accordance with this principle, to point out some of the advantages derivable from the information which I have attempted to communicate. It appears from the London Bills of Mortality, that between a fourth and a fifth of all the infants baptized die within the first two years of their existence. This extraordinary result is not a part of the Creator's designs; it does not occur in the lower animals, and must have causes capable of removal. One of these, to speak only of what relates to the present inquiry, is unquestionably the inadequate protection afforded, especially among the poorer classes, to the new-born infant, against the effects of the great and sudden transition which it makes in passing at once from a high and almost unvarying temperature in the mother's womb, to one greatly inferior and constantly liable to change. At birth the skin is delicate, extremely vas- cular, and highly susceptible of impressions, so much so that cases have occurred in which a leech bite has caused a fatal hemorrhage. The circulation is, in fact, cutaneous; for the lungs, the stomach, the liver, and the kidneys, are as yet new- 70 MORTALITY IN INFANCY FROM COLD. Iy brought into activity, and feeble in their functions. If the injant, then, be rashly exposed to a cold atmosphere, the mass of blood previously circulating on the surface of the body is immediately driven inwards by the contraction of the cutaneous vessels, and by overstimulating the internal organs, gives rise to bowel complaints, inflammation, croup, or convulsions, which sooner or later extinguish life. This shows the inexpressible folly of those who bathe infants daily in cold water even in winter, and freely expose them to the open air, or to currents from open doors or windows, with a view to harden their con- stitutions ; since it is quite certain that no more effectual means could be resorted to in the earlier months of life, to undermine the general health, and entail future disease on the unhappy subjects of the experiments.* This hurtful practice has perhaps arisen in some degree from the prevalent error of supposing that infants have naturally a great power of generating heat and resisting cold. That the very opposite is the fact, has been established by the experiments of Dr. Milne Edwards, which show that " the power of produc- ing heat in warm-blooded animals is at its minimum at birth, and increases successively to adult age" and that young animals instead of being warmer than adults, are generally a degree or two colder, and part with their heat more readily. In ten healthy infants, from two hours to a few days old, the mean temperature was observed by Dr. Edwards to be only 94.55° Fahr., that of adults being 97° or 98°; and in a seven months' child, three hours after birth, he found the temperature so low as 89.6°, although the child was well clothed and near a good fire. That exposure to cold is really so injurious in infancy, is unhappily proved by a multitude of facts. In France, as already * The practice prevails in many parts of our country, of immersing in- fants at birth in cold water. Though our parents subjected all their chil- dren to this process, still we were too young to remember the effect it had upon us; but there is one rule which may be laid down as invariable, and that is, that when cold bathing produces re-action, and is followed by a glow upon the skin, it is beneficial, whether in infancy, old age, or sickness; but when it leaves the skin cold, and the person chilly, its influence is most detrimental. We believe the practice of washing new-born infants is uni- versal, yet we doubt whether it is usually done with sufficient dispatch. The first crying of the infant is generally shrill and clear, but after wash- ing, it is often hoarse. Let nurses pay special attention to this subject, and thereby preserve the health of children, and save themselves much trouble in nursing. [Ed. Am. ed.] TOO LITTLE AND TOO MUCH CLOTHING EQUALLY BAD. 71 alluded to in the first Chapter, it is the custom to carry every infant, within the first few days of its existence, to the office of the Maire, that its birth may be registered. Suspecting that the exposure consequent upon such a practice must be perni- cious to health, especially in winter, and where the distance is great, Dr. Edwards was induced to consult the returns made to the Minister of the Interior, from which he found that the proportion of deaths within a very limited period after birth, was much greater in winter than in summer, and in the north- ern than in the southern departments; and on further inquiry, he discovered that the mortality was greater in parishes where the inhabitants were scattered at a distance from the Maire, than where they were congregated near him : so that the number of deaths in infancy seemed to be influenced by the de- gree and duration of the exposure to the cold air. What more striking proof than this can be required of the evils arising from the ignorance of legislators in regard to the constitution of the human body] No man who understands physiology could ever have sanctioned a law, the practical effect of which is to consign annually so many victims to an untimely grave. Many parents, from over-anxiety to avoid one form of evil, run blindfold into another scarcely less pernicious, and not only envelope infants in innumerable folds of warm clothing, but keep them confined'to very hot and close rooms. It would h6 well for them to recollect, however, that extremes are always hurtful, and that the constitution may be enfeebled, and dis- ease induced, by too much heat and clothing, and too close an atmosphere, as effectually as by cold and currents of air. The skin thus opened and relaxed perspires too easily, and is readi- ly affected by the slightest variations of temperature ; whence arise colds and other ailments, which it is their chief intention to guard against; and the internal organs, being at the same time deprived of their fair proportion of blood, become enfee- bled, and afford inadequate nournishment and support to the rest of the body. The insensible perspiration being composed of a large quan- tity of water, which passes off in the form of invisible vapour, and of various salts and animal matter, a portion of which re- mains adherent to the skin, the removal of this residue by washing becomes an indispensable condition of health, the ob- servance of which, particularly in early life, when waste and nutrition are both very active, prevents the appearance of cu- 72 RULES FOR DRESS. taneous and other diseases common in infancy. Not only, therefore, is daily washing of the body required at that age, but a frequent change of clothing is essential, and every thing in the shape of dress ought to be loose and easy, both to allow free circulation through the vessels, and to permit the insensi- ble perspiration to have a free exit, instead of being confined to and absorbed by the clothes, and held in contact with the skin, as often happens, till it gives rise to irritation. In youth the skin is still delicate in texture, and the seat of extensive exhalation and acute sensation, but it is at the same time more vigorous in constitution than it was during infancy; and the several animal functions being now more equally ba- lanced, it is less susceptible of disorder from external causes, and can endure with impunity changes of temperature which, at either an earlier or more advanced age, would have proved highly injurious. The activity and restless energy of youth keep up a free and equal circulation even in the remotest parts of the body, and this free circulation in its turn maintains an equality of temperature in them all. Cold bathing and lighter clothing may now be resorted to with a rational prospect of advantage ; but when, from a weak constitution or unusual sus- ceptibility, the skin is not endowed with sufficient vitality to ori- ginate the necessary re-action, which alone renders these safe and proper,—when they produce an abiding sense of chillness, however slight in degree,—we may rest assured that mischief will inevi- tably follow at a greater or shorter distance of time. Many young persons of both sexes are in the habit of going about in winter and in cold weather with a dress light and airy enough for a northern summer, and they think it manly and becoming to do so; but those who are not very strongly constituted suffer a se- vere penalty for their folly. The necessary effect of deficient circulation and vitality in the skin, is, as we formerly saw, to throw a disproportionate mass of blood inwards ; and when this condition exists, insufficient clothing perpetuates the evil, until internal disease is generated, and health irrecoverably lost. Insufficient clothing not only exposes the wearer to all the risk of sudden changes of temperature, but it is still more dan- gerous (because in a degree less marked, and therefore less apt to excite attention till the evil be incurred), in that form which, while it is warm enough to guard the body against extreme cold, is inadequate to preserve the skin at its natural heat. Many youths, particularly females, and those whose occupa- RULES FOR DRESS. 73 lions are sedentary, pass days, and weeks, and months, with- out ever experiencing the pleasing glow and warmth of a healthy skin, and are habitually complaining of chillness of the surface, cold feet, and other symptoms of deficient cuta- neous circulation. Their suffering, unfortunately, does not stop here, for the unequal distribution of the blood oppresses the internal organs, and too often, by insensible degrees, lays the foundation of tubercles in the lungs, and other maladies which show themselves only when arrived at an incurable stage. Young persons of a consumptive habit will generally be found to complain of this increased sensibility to cold, even before they become subject to those slight catarrhal attacks which are so often the immediate precursors or rather the first stages, of pulmonary consumption. All who value health, and have common sense and resolution, will therefore take warning from signs like these, and never rest till equilibrium of action be restored. For effecting this purpose, warm cloth- ing, exercise in the open air, sponging with vinegar and water, the warm bath, regular friction with a flesh brush or hair^glove, and great cleanliness, are excellently adapted. But while sufficiency of clothing is attended to, excessive wrapping up must be as carefully avoided. Great differences in the power of generating heat and resisting cold exist in differ- ent individuals, and it would be absurd to apply the same rules to those who never feel cold, as to those who are peculiarly sensitive. The former*iay be benefited by cold bathing and degrees of exposure which would be fatal to the latter. The rule is, therefore, not to dress in an invariable way in all cases, but to put on clothing in kind and quantity sufficient in the in- dividual case to protect the body effectually from an abiding sen- sation of. cold, however slight. Warmth, however, ought not to be sought for in clothing alone.* The Creator has made exer- cise essential as a means ; and if we neglect this, and seek it in clothing alone, we act at the risk, or rather with the cer- tainty, of weakening the body, relaxing the surface, and ren- dering the system extremely susceptible of injury from the slightest accidental exposures, or variations of temperature and moisture. Many good constitutions are thus ruined, and many nervous and pulmonary complaints brought on, to em- * Our author should have added, that this natural heat produced by ex- ercise is infinitely superior to all artificial warmth. [Ed. Am. ed.] 74 WHY WET AND COLD FEET ARE INJURIOUS. bitter existence, and to reduce the sufferer to the level of a hot- house plant. Female dress errs in one important particular, even when unexceptionable in material and quantity. From the tightness with which it is made to fit on the upper part of the body, not only is the insensible perspiration injudiciously and hurtfully confined, but that free play between the dress and the skin, which is so beneficial in gently stimulating the latter by fric- tion at every movement of the body, is altogether prevented, and the action of the cutaneous nerves and vessels, and conse- quently the heat generated, rendered less than that which would result from the same dress more loosely worn. Every part and every function are thus linked so closely with the rest, that we can neither act wrong as regards one organ without all suffering, nor act rightly without all sharing in the benefit. We can now appreciate the manner in which wet and cold feet are so prolific of internal disease, and the cruelty of fitting up schools and similar places without making adequate provi- sion for the welfare of their young occupants. The circum- stances in which wet and cold feet are most apt to cause dis- ease, are those where the person remains inactive, and where, consequently, there is nothing to counterbalance the unequal flow of blood which then takes place towards the internal parts: for it is well known that a person in ordinary health may walk about or work in the open air with wet feet for hours together without injury, provided he put on dry stockings and shoes immediately on coming home. It is therefore not the mere state of wetness that causes the evil, but the check to perspira- tion and the unequal distribution of blood to which the accom- panying coldness gives rise. I am acquainted with an instance in which a robust and healthy tradesman, by incautiously standing in the sea, when in a state of profuse perspiration, for five minutes, in repairing a stearri-boat, brought on severe con- stitutional disturbance, followed by pulmonary disease, which confined him to the house during the whole of four winters. Nineteen years have now elapsed since the cause was applied, but although his health is gradually improving, he still suffers from cough and breathlessness, and is very susceptible of cold and illness from every trifling exposure. This person instantly shifted himself on coming out of the water, which at the time he had been lead to believe was a sufficient precaution. But ADVANTAGES OK FLANNEL. 75 had he known something of his bodily constitution, he would have seen the danger before he exposed himself to it, and would have escaped the heavy penalty which his ignorance brought upon him.* The advantages of wearing flannel next the skin are easily explicable on the principles expounded above. Being a bad conductor of heat, flannel prevents that of the animal economy from being quickly dissipated, and protects the body in a con- siderable degree from the injurious influence of sudden external changes. From its presenting a rough and uneven though soft surface to the skin, every movement of the body in labour or in exercise, gives, by the consequent friction, a gentle stimu- lus to the cutaneous vessels and nerves, which assists their ac- tion, and maintains their functions in health; and, being at the same time of a loose and porous texture, flannel is capable of absorbing the cutaneous exhalations to a larger extent than any other material in common use. In some very delicate constitutions, it proves even too irritating to the skin, and in hot climates sometimes excites too great a flow of perspiration. In the former case, fine fleecy hosiery, and in the latter cotton, will in general be easily endured, and will greatly conduce to the preservation of health. Many are in the custom of wait- ing till winter has fairly set in before beginning to wear flan- nel. This is a great error in a variable climate like ours, espe- cially wThen the constitution is not robust. It is during the sudden changes from heat to cold, which are so common in au- tumn, before the frame has got inured to the reduction of tempera- ture, that protection is most wanted, and flannel is most useful. The advantages of flannel as a preservative from disease in * In order to enforce the importance of this point, the reader will doubt- less excuse our giving an incident which occurred to ourself. In Novem- ber, 1832, after walking about five miles, and becoming warm, we came to a ferry across a wide but shallow stream ; but the boat being on the other side, and the wind strong, we were unable to make our call for the boat heard. It being nearly dark, we took off our shoes and stockings, and waded across, not once thinking that health as firm as ours, could be in- jured. We caught a severe cold, which settled upon our lungs, and was rivited there by our attendance upon a singing school until the spring, when we found ourself in a rapid decline from weak lungs, from which we have never finally recovered. Young people should bear in mind, that a single imprudent exposure of health, or a single act of overstraining, may prove fatal to their health and physical enjoyments for life, by subjectutg them to a lingering disease, or to an untimely death. [Ed. Am. ed.] 76 ADVANTAGES OF FLANNEL. warm as well as in cold climates, are now so well understood, that in the army and navy its use is cogently, and with great propriety, insisted on. Sir George Ballingal, in his valuable Lectures on Military Surgery (p. 92.) has some very judicious remarks on the influence of warm clothing in preserving the health of soldiejrs. After adducing the testimony of Sir James Macgrigor, to show that in the Peninsula the best clothed regi- ments were generally the most healthy, Sir George mentions, that, when in India, he had himself a striking proof of the utility of flannel in checking the progress of a most aggravated form of dysentery in the second battalion of the Royals. Cap- tain Murray, also, late of H. M. S. Valorous, told me that he was so strongly impressed from former experience with a sense of the efficacy of the protection afforded by the constant use of flannel next the skin, that when, on his arrival in England in December, 1823, after two years' service amid the icebergs on the coast of Labrador, the ship was ordered to sail immedi- ately for the West Indies, he directed the purser to draw two extra flannel shirts and pairs of drawers for each man, and in- stituted a regular daily inspection to see that they were worn. These precautions were followed by the happiest result. He proceeded to his station with a crew of 150 men; visited al- most every island in the West Indies, and many of the ports in the Gulf of Mexico; and, notwithstanding the sudden tran- sition from extreme climates, returned to England without the loss of a single man, or having any sick on board on his arrival. It would be going too far to ascribe this excellent state of health solely to the use of flannel; but there can be little doubt that this was an important element in Captain Murray's success. Far, however, from trusting to it alone, Captain Murray was as careful in guarding against other sources of disease as against variations in temperature ; and with this view every precaution was at the same time used, by lighting stoves between decks and scrubbing with hot sand, to insure the most thorough dry- ness, and proper means were put in practice to promote cheer- fulness among the men. When in command of the Recruit gun-brig, which lay about nine weeks at Vera Cruz, the same means preserved the health of his crew, when the other ships of war anchored around him lost from twenty to fifty men each. That the superior health enjoyed by the crew of the Valor- ous was attributable chiefly to the means employed by their VENTILATION OF BEDS AND CLOTHING. 7/ humane and intelligent commander, is shown by the analogy of the Recruit; for although constant communication was kept up between this vessel and the ships in which sickness pre- vailed, and all were exposed to the same external causes of disease, yet no case of sickness occurred on board of it. Facts like these are truly instructive, by proving that man possesses much power of protecting himself from injury, when he has re- ceived the necessary instruction, and chooses to adapt his con- duct to circumstances. The exhalation from the skin being so constant and exten- sive, the bad effects of it when confined, suggest another rule of conduct, viz. that of frequently changing and airing the clothes, so as to free them from every impurity. In the case of flannel, for example, which imbibes perspiration very read- ily, it is an excellent plan, instead of wearing the same for several successive days, either to change it very frequently, or to make use of two sets of flannel, each being worn and aired by turns, on every alternate day. A frequent change, how- ever, is certainly the preferable practice.* For the same rea- son, a practice common in Italy merits universal adoption. Instead of beds being made up in the morning, the moment they are vacated, and while still saturated with nocturnal ex- halations, which, before morning, even become sensible to smell in a bed-room, the bed-clothes are thrown over the backs of chairs, the matresses shaken up, and the window thrown open for the greater part of the day, so as to secure a thorough and cleansing ventilation. This practice, so consonant to rea- son, imparts a freshness which is peculiarly grateful and con- ducive to sleep, and its real value maybe inferred from the well-known fact, that the opposite practice, carried to an ex- treme—as in the dwellings of the poor, where three or four beds are often huddled up with all their impurities in a small room—is a fruitful source of fever and bad health, even where there is no deficiency of nourishment or of ventilation during the day. In the abodes of the poor Irish residing in Edinburgh, I have seen bedding for fourteen persons spread over one floor not exceeding twelve feet square: when morning came, the In this country, the idea prevails extensively, that flannel worn next to the skin need not be washed oftener than once in two weeks. The remarks of our author abundantly refute this absurd custom. Nor should a parti- cle of clothes worn in the day be retained on the person at^ight, and "vice versa." [Ed. Am. ed."\ 78 IMPORTANCE OF ABLUTION AND BATHING beds were huddled above one another to make sitting room dur- ing the day, and at night where again laid down, charged with accumulated exhalations. If fever were not to appear in such circumstances, it would be indeed marvellous; and we ought to learn from this, that if the extreme be so injurious, the lesser degree implied in the prevalent practice cannot be wholesome, and ought, therefore, not to be retained when it can be so easily done away with. The salutary influence of the solar light as a stimulus to the skin has been much overlooked, and yet it must be obvious to every one, after a moment's reflection. Those who live in mines or dark caves, and who are rarely exposed to the light of day, present a pale relaxed sallowness of skin, which con- trasts with the ruddy freshness of country people and others living much in the open air. The inhabitants of towns may be known by the light colour and delicacy of skin which con- finement induces. Part of the effect is owing, no doubt, to the agency of the external air, in the constitution of which the skin seems to produce changes analogous to those which take place in the lungs during respiration; but much is also attri- butable to deprivation of the stimulus of light. Even vegeta- bles become pale, watery, and feeble in the dark; and, in like manner, men who work during the night and sleep during the day, never present the vigorous look of health which distin- guishes well fed day labourers. The squalid paleness and de- pression of the poor population resident in the dark lanes of large and crowded cities, show the necessity of consulting the wants of nature more than is generally done, when erecting new streets and manufactories, and providing play-ground for the .young.* x" When the saline and animal elements left by the perspira- tion are not duly removed by washing or bathing, they at last obstruct the pores and irritate the skin. And it is apparently for this reason that, in the eastern and warmer countries, where perspiration is very copious, ablution and bathing have assumed the rank and importance of religious observances. Those who are in the habit of using the flesh-brush daily, are at first sur- * We are fully persuaded, that twelve hours of the twenty-four are not too much to be spent in the open air; and that two are the least that is consistent with health and happiness. The difference in our feelings before and after we gjp into the fresh air, will illustrate the importance of this subject. [Ed. Am. ed.~\ IMPORTANCE OF ABLUTION AND BATHING. 79 prised at the quantity of white dry scurf which it brings off; and those who take a warm bath for half an hour at long in- tervals, cannot have failed to notice the great amount of impu- rities which it removes, and the grateful feeling of comfort which its use imparts. The warm, tepid, cold, or shower bath, as a means of preserving health, ought to be in as common use as a change of apparel, for it is equally a measure of necessary cleanliness. Many, no doubt, neglect this, and enjoy health notwithstanding; but many, very many, suffer from its omis- sion, and even the former would be benefited by employing it. The perception of this truth is gradually extending, and baths are now to be found in fifty places for one in which they could be obtained twenty years ago. Even yet, however, we are far behind our continental neighbours in this respect. They justly consider the bath as a necessary of life, while we still regard it as a luxury. I believe that I am within the truth when I say that in one hospital in Paris, a greater number of baths have been administered to the poor during the last year, than to the whole working population of Great Britain during the last ten years. When we consider the importance of the exhaling functions performed by the skin, the extent to which ablution and bath- ing of every description are neglected in charitable institutions, in seminaries for the young, and even by many persons who consider themselves as patterns of cleanliness, is almost incre- dible. Mr. Stuart, in speaking of the North Americans, re- marks, that " the practice of travellers washing at the doors, or in the porticos or stoops, or at the wells of taverns and hotels once a day, is most prejudicial to health; the ablution of the body, which ought never to be neglected, at least twice a day in a hot climate, being altogether inconsistent with it." " In fact," he adds, " I have found it more difficult, in travelling in the United States, to procure a liberal supply of water at all times of the day and night in my bed-chamber, than to obtain any other necessary. A supply for washing the face and hands once a day seems all that is thought requisite."* But bad as this is, I fear that numbers of sensible people may be found much nearer home, who limit their ablutions to the visible parts of their persons, and would even express surprise if told that more than this is necessary to health. Certain it is, that many never • Three Years in America, vol. ii. p. 440. 80 COLD, TEPID, AND WARM BATHS. wash their bodies unless they happen to be at sea-bathing quarters in summer, or are oppressed with heat, when they will resort to bathing as a means of comfort, but without think- ing at all of its efficacy as a means of cleanliness in preserving health. In many public charities and schools, in like manner, bathing or ablution is never thought of as a proper or practicable thing, except for the sick; and yet it is obviously of great im- portance to every one, especially to the young.* For general use, the tepid or warm bath seems to me much more suitable than the cold bath, especially in winter, and for those who are not robust and full of animal heat. Where the constitution is not sufficiently vigorous to secure reaction after the cold bath, as indicated by a warm glow over the surface, its use inevitably does harm. A vast number of persons are in this condition; while, on the contrary, there are few indeed who did not derive evident advantage from the regular use of the tepid bath, and still fewer who are hurt by it. Where the health is good, and the bodily powers are suffi- ciently vigorous, the cold bath during summer, and the shower bath in winter, may serve every purpose required from them. But it should never be forgotten, that they are too powerful in their agency to be used with safety by every one, especially in cold weather. In proportion as cold bathing is influential in the restoration of health when judiciously used, it is hurtful when resorted to without discrimination; and invalids therefore ought never to have recourse to it without the sanction of their professional advisers. Even where cold bathing is likely to be of service, when ju- diciously employed, much mischief often results from prolong- ing the immersion too long, or from resorting to it when the vital powers are too languid to admit of the necessary reaction —before breakfast for example, or after fatigue. For this rea- son, many persons derive much benefit from bathing early in * While revising these pages, a friend has mentioned to me a case strik- ingly illustrative of the necessity of attending to the condition of the skin, and of the sympathy -subsisting between it and the bowels. A lady, who is in other respects very cleanly in her habits, has never been accustomed to the use of the bath, or to general ablution of any kind, and in consequence the action of the skin is very imperfect. As a substitute, however, for its exhalation, sr^je has all her life been affected with bowel complaint, which no treatment directed to the bowels has been able to remove. It is probable that the natural course of the exhalation could not now be restored. COLD, TEPID, AND WARM BATHS. 81 the forenoon, who, when they bathe in the morning before taking any sustenance, do not speedily recover their natural heat and elasticity of feeling. For those who are not robust, daily sponging of the body with cold water and vinegar, or with salt water,* is the best substitute for the cold bath, and may be resorted to with safety and advantage in most states of the system; especially when care is taken to excite in the surface, by subsequent friction with the flesh-brush or hair-glove, the healthy glow of reaction. It then becomes an excellent preservative from the effects of changeable weather. When, however, a continued sensation of coldness or chill is perceptible over the body, sponging ought not to be persisted in : dry friction, aided by the tepid bath, is then greatly preferable, and often proves highly serviceable in keeping up the due action of the skin. For habitual use, the tepid or warm bath is certainly the safest and most valuable, especially during the autumn, win- ter, and spring, and for invalids. A temperature ranging from 85° to 98°, according to the state of the individual, is the most suitable ; and the duration of the immersion may vary from fif- teen minutes to an hour or more, according to circumstances. As a general rule, the water ought simply to be warm enough to feel pleasant without giving a positive sensation of heat; the degree at which this happens varies considerably according to the constitution and to the state of health at the time. Some- times, when the generation of animal heat is great, a bath at 95° will be felt disagreeably warm and relaxing; while, at an- other time, when the animal heat is produced in deficient quantity, the same temperature will cause a chilly sensation. The rule, then, is to avoid equally the positive impressions of heat and of cold, and to seek the agreeble medium. A bath of the latter description is the reverse of relaxing; it gives a cheerful tone and activity to all the functions, and may be used every day, or on alternate days, for fifteen or twenty minutes, with much advantage. A person of sound health and strength may take a bath at any time, except immediately after meals. But the best time for valetudinarians is in the forenoon or evening, two or three * There is a property in salt, which, when it is diluted and applied to the skin, is highly beneficial, by stimulating it. Hence, in part, the advantage of sea-bathing, which, on more occasions than one, has restored us from debility to vigorous health. Let all trv it who are able. [Ed. Am. ed.] 82 WARM AND VAPOUR BATH. hours after a moderate meal, when the system is invigorated by food, but not opppressed by the labour of digestion. When the bath is delayed till five or six hours after eating, delicate people sometimes become faint under its operation, and, from the absence of reaction, are rather weakened by the relaxation it then induces. As a general rule, active exertion ought to be avoided for an hour or two after using the warm or tepid bath ; and, unless we wish to induce perspiration, it ought not to be taken immediately before going to bed; or if it is, it ought to be merely tepid, and not of too long du- ration. These rules apply of course only to persons in an ordinary state of health. If organic disease, headach, feverishness, con- stipation, or other ailment exist, bathing ought never to be employed without medical advice. When the stomach is dis- ordered by bile, it also generally disagrees. But that it is a safe and valuable preservative of health in ordinary circum- stances, and an active remedy in disease, is most certain. In- stead of being dangerous by causing liability to cold, it is, when well managed, so much the reverse, that the author of these pages has used it much and successfully for the express pur- pose of diminishing such liability, both in himself and in others in whom the chest is delicate.* In his own instance, in parti- cular, he is conscious of having derived much advantage from its regular employment, especially in the colder months of the year, during which he has uniformly found himself most effec- * Our own experience touching this subject, is scarcely less conclusive evidence of its utility in that respect. We have long accustomed ourself to allow but few days to pass without washing the whole body in cold wa- ter, and, although constitutionally predisposed to colds and consumption, we have taken but two colds in the space of six years, both of which were taken after we had omitted the practice of washing for several weeks, (on account of the inconvenience attending it,) and at the same time sleeping in a damp room. We regard bathing, and especially in the cold water bath, (when the constitution is sufficiently vigorous to produce reaction,) as almost a specific both in preventing and curing colds. Persons who are constitutionally consumptive, might generally be saved by this practice; and so may the children of consumptive parents, as also nervous and pre- cocious children, whose chests are narrow, and heads too much for their bodies. To those who take little exercise, the bath will be of special ser- vice, by in part supplying its deficiency in promoting circulation. [Ed. Am. ed.] WARM AND VAPOUR BATH. 83 tually strengthened against the impression of cold, by repeat- ing the bath at shorter intervals than usual.* In many manufactories, where warm water is always ob tainable, it would be of very great advantage to have a few baths erected for the use of the operatives. Not only would these be useful in promoting health and cleanliness, but they would, by their refreshing and soothing influence, diminish the craving for stimulus which leads so many to the gin-shop; and, at the same time, calm the irritability of mind so apt to be induced by excessive labour. WThere the trade is dirty, as many trades necessarily are, it is needless to say how con- ducive to health and comfort a tepid bath would be on quitting it for the day.f On the Continent, the vapour and hot air-baths are had re- course to, both as a means of health and in the cure of disease, to a vastly greater extent than they are in this country. Their use is attended by the very best effects, particularly in chronic ailments, and where the water-bath is felt to be oppressive by its weight; and there can be no question that their action is chiefly on the skin, and through its medium on the nervous system. As a means of determining the blood to the surface, promoting cutaneous exhalation, and equalizing the circulation, they are second to no remedy now in use ; and consequently, in a variety of affections which the encouragement of these processes is calculated to relieve, they may be employed with every prospect of advantage. The prevalent fear of catching cold, which deters many from using the vapour-bath, even more than from warm bathing, is founded on a false analogy between its effects and those of profuse perspiration from exer- * I am delighted to find my opinion of the value of the bath, in the pre- vention of pulmonary disease, and indeed the whole practical doctrines of the present chapter, corroborated by the authority of Dr. James Clark, in his admirable work on Consumption and Scrofula,—a work well deserving the attention of parents and others interested in the health of the young, and especially of those who are delicately constituted. f Since the publication of the third edition in February, 1835, I have heard with great satisfaction that the above recommendation has been acted upon in several manufactories, in which the waste warm water from fhe steam engine is made use of at a very trifling expense. At the Caledonian Pottery in Glasgow, the Messrs. Murray have fitted up comfortable baths, to which the whole of their work-people, with their wives and families, amounting in all to several hundreds, have weekly access. I trust that ere long their excellent example will be extensively followed. 84 VAPOUR-BATH. cise or illness. The latter weakens the body, and, by dimin ishing the power of reaction, renders it susceptible of injury from sudden changes of temperature. But the effect of the va- pour-bath properly administered is very different. When not too warm or too long continued, it increases instead of exhaust- ing the strength, and, by exciting the vital action of the skin, gives rise to a power of reaction which enables it to resist cold better than before. This I have heard many patients remark; and the fact is well exemplified in Russia and the north of Eu- rope, where, in the depth of winter, it is not uncommon for the natives to rush out of a vapour-bath and roll themselves in the snow, and be refreshed by doing so; whereas, were they to attempt such a practice after severe perspiration from exercise, they would inevitably suffer. It is the previous stimulus given to the skin by the vapour-bath which is the real safeguard against the coldness of the snow. Common experience affords another illustration of the same principle. If, in a cold winter day, we chance to sit for some time in a room imperfectly warmed, and feel in consequence a sensation of chillness over the body, we are much more likely to catch cold on going out, than if we had been sitting in a room comfortably warm. In the latter case, the cutaneous cir- culation and nervous action go on vigorously; heat is freely generated, and the vital action of the skin is in its full force. Tfce change to a lower temperature, if accompanied with exer- cise to keep up vitality, is then felt to be bracing and stimulat- ing rather than disagreeable. But it is widely different when the surface is already chilled before going out. The vitality of the skin being diminished, reaction cannot follow additional exposure; the circulation leaves the surface and becomes still more internal; and if weakness exist in the throat or chest, cold is the almost certain result. Many suffer from ignorance of this principle. The vapour-bath is thus calculated to be extensively useful, both as a preservative and as a remedial agent. Many a cold and many a rheumatic attack arising from checked perspira- tion or long exposure to the weather, might be nipped in the bud by its timely use. In chronic affections, not only of the skin itself, but of the internal organs with which the skin most closely sympathizes, as the stomach and intestines, the judi- cious application of the vapour-bath is productive of great re- lief. Even in chronic pulmonary complaints, it is, according WARM BATH BENEFICIAL. 85 to the continental physicians, not only safe, but very service- able ; particularly in those affections of the mucous memorane which resemble consumption in so many of their symptoms. Like all powerful remedies, however, the vapour-bath must be administered with proper regard to the condition and circum- stances of the individual; and care must be taken to have the feet sufficiently warm during its use. If, from an irregular dis- tribution of the steam, the feet be left cold, headach and flush- ing are almost sure to follow. It happens occasionally, either from some peculiarity of constitution, or from some unusual condition of the skin, indicated by great dryness and a liability to erysipelatous and scaly eruptions, that the moisture of the water or vapour- bath is at first rather prejudicial and unpleasant, and becomes grateful only in proportion as the skin regains its healthy state. In such cases the warm air-bath is said to be remark- ably successful, and it is gaining ground very rapidly in the metropolis. Although the preceding remarks apply specially to the skm considered as an exhalant, yet most of them are equally appli- cable to it when viewed as the seat of an important nervous function. For so intimately and beautifully are all the parts of the frame connected with each other, that what is really good for one, rarely if ever fails to be beneficial to the rest. Thus while exercise, adequate clothing, the bath, friction, and cleanliness, are very efficacious in promoting the insensible perspiration and equalizing the circulation, they are almost equally influential in promoting the vital action of the innu- merable nervous filaments ramified on the skin, and the tone of which is as essential as that of the bloodvessels to the proper discharge of the cutaneous functions. In the large and afflict- ing class of Nervous and Mental diseases, attention to the skin becomes therefore almost a sine qua non of successful treatment. As a preservative, too, it is influential. In most nervous ail- ments, languor and inaction of the skin show themselves si- multaneously with the earliest dawn of mental uneasiness, and often attract notice before the morbid feelings of the mind have acquired either permanence or strength. At this early period, the use of the bath will frequently prove very efficacious in re- storing health. Many imagine the tepid and warm bath to be weakening, but experience shows that they are so only when abused. 86 WARM BATH BENEFICIAL. When not too warm, and not prolonged beyond 15 or 20 mi- nutes, the tepid bath may be employed daily with advantage and perfect safety by persons in health ; while invalids, whose condition requires its use, are often strengthened by a much longer and equally frequent immersion. I have seen it resort- ed to for an hour daily, for months in succession, by nervous invalids, with much benefit to health and strength; and in France it is employed to a much greater extent. At the vast hospital of Salpetriere at Paris, and also at Charenton, M. Esquirol has, for many years, directed it to be extensively used for two, three, and even five or six hours a day, and with ex- cellent effect. When I visited the hospital for the insane at Charenton, and M. Esquirol's admirable private asylum at Ivry, in September 1831, that gentleman spoke to me in very strong terms of the benefits resulting from the practice, and declared that he had ever found it, when used with ordinary prudence, a safe and valuable remedy ; and that, in reality, it failed to do* good in some cases more from the patient remaining in it too short a time, than from its want of power to relieve. In the Medico-Chirurgical Reviews for January and April, 1833, a very interesting outline is given of an article published in the Revue Medicate, illustrative of the efficacy of the tepid bath and the affusion of cooler water on the head during the last few minutes of immersion, in the cure of a variety of nerv- ous and head affections of considerable obstinacy and severity. Dr. Johnson, the editor of the Review, adds his testimony to the success of the practice, and the results obtained agree en- tirely with my own experience ; but, as these papers relate to the treatment of disease, it would be out of place to do more here than recommend them to the attention of the professional reader. I may mention, however, that Dr. Recamier frequently orders the bath to be repeated two, three, or even four times in a day. So little reality is there in its supposed debilitating effect. I notice these facts to show that attention to the health of ihe skin is really influential in preserving the tone of the nerv- ous system, and in contributing to mental and bodily comfort, and not for the purpose of inducing persons in bad health to have recourse to the bath of their own accord, which they ought never to do, as they may chance to suffer from using it unsea- CONNECTION BETWEEN THE SKIN AND THE LUNGS. 87 sonably. No rules of universal application can be laid down. and this is not the place for a professional disquisition. If the bath cannot be had at all places, soap and water may be obtained everywhere, and have no apology for neglecting the skin ; or, as already mentioned, if the constitution be deli- cate, water and vinegar, or water and salt, used daily, form an excellent and safe means of cleansing and gently stimulating the skin: to the invalid they are highly beneficial, when the nature of the indisposition does not render them improper. A rough and rather coarse towel is a very useful auxiliary in such ablutions. Few of those who have steadiness enough to keep up the action of the skin by the above means, and to avoid strong exciting causes, will ever suffer from colds, sore throats, or similar complaints ; while, as a means of restoring health, they are often incalculably serviceable. If one-tenth of the persevering attention and labour bestowed to so much purpose in rubbing down and currying the skins of horses, were be- stowed by the human race in keeping themselves in good con- dition, and a little attention were paid to diet and clothing,— colds, nervous diseases, and stomach complaints, would cease to form so large an item in the catalogue of human miseries. Man studies the nature of other animals, and adapts his con- duct to their constitution ; himself alone he continues ignorant of and neglects.* He considers himself as a being of a supe- rior order, and not subject to the laws of organization which regulate the functions of the inferior animals ; but this conclu- sion is the result of ignorance and pride, and not a just infer- ence from the premises on which it is ostensibly founded. The writer of these remarks has, unfortunately for himself, had extensive experience, in his own person, of the connection between the state of the skin and the health of the lungs; and can, therefore, speak with some confidence as to the accuracy of his observations, and the benefit to be derived from attend- ing to the condition of the skin in chronic pulmonary com- plaints. Many affections of a consumptive character are pre- ceded or begin by deficiency of vital action in the skin and ex- tremities, and a consequent feeling of coldness in the feet and on the surface, and susceptibility of catarrhal affections from apparently inadequate causes, often long before any pressing • One cause of this neglect, will be found alluded to in our note on p. 24. Our moral teachers are certainly delinquent on thi9 point. [En Am. ed.] 88 CONNECTION BETWEEN THE SKIN symptom, directly connected with the lungs, occurs to attract notice. In this state, means systematically directed to restor- ing the cutaneous circulation will frequently be successful in warding off consumption; and, even when the disease is form- ed, the same means will help to prolong life and relieve suf- fering, while they will go far to effect a cure in those chronic affections of the bronchial membrane, which stimulate consump- tion, and are sometimes undistinguishable from it, and which, when mismanaged, are equally fatal. The two remedies which enjoy the oldest and most general reputation in the successful treatment of pulmonary and con- sumptive disease, have this quality in common, that both owe much of their influence to their exciting the cutaneous func- tions, and equalizing the circulation. I allude to sailing, and riding on horseback. Many authors speak of both in the high- est terms, and Sydenham is well known to have considered the latter as almost a specific. Dr. Rush, of Philadelphia, too, extols it with nearly equal force. Of late, a regular course of emetics has been very strongly recommended in the early stages of consumption, and apparently on good grounds. In hooping-cough, chronic catarrh, and other obstinate pulmonary affections, they have also been long in vogue, both with the vulgar and with the profession. So far as my observation goes, all of these remedial means are productive of advantage, chiefly in proportion as they determine the blood to the sur- face, which squeamishness, sea-sickness, and riding all do in a powerful manner. Riding seems to have this effect, partly from the bodily exercise giving general vigour to the circula- tion, and partly from the continued gentle friction between the skin and the clothes stimulating the cutaneous vessels and nerves. This latter effect is of more importance than many believe. Those, accordingly, who are proof against sea-sick- ness, derive least benefit from a voyage ; while those who suf- fer under it long, are compensated by the amelioration which it induces in the more serious malady. The writer of these remarks became ill in the month of January, 1820, and soon presented many of the symptoms of pulmonary consumption. In spite of the best advice, he continued losing ground till the month of July, when he went by sea to London, on his way to the south of France; but, finding himself unable for the jour- ney, he was obliged to return from London, ajso by sea. Be- ing extremely liable to sea-sickness, he was squeamish or sick AND THE LUNGS. 89 during the whole of both voyages—so much so, as to be in a state of gentle perspiration for a great part of the time. After this he became sensible, for the first time, of a slight improve- ment in his health and strength, and of a diminution of febrile excitement. Some weeks afterwards, he embarked for the Mediterranean, and encountered a succession of storms for the first four weeks, two of which were spent, in the month of November, in the Bay of Biscay, in a very heavy sea. For more than three weeks he was generally very sick, and always in a state of nausea; and during the whole time, although his bed was repeatedly partially wetted by salt water, and the weather cold, the flow of the blood towards the skin was so powerful as to keep it generally warm, always moist, and often wet with perspiration, forced out by retching and nausea. The result was, that, on entering the Mediterranean at the end of a month, and there meeting fine weather, he found himself, though still more reduced in flesh and very weak, in every other respect decidedly improved; and, on his arrival in Italy, at the end of seven weeks, recovery fairly commenced, after about ten months' illness; and, by great care, it went on with little interruption, till the summer of 1821, when he returned home. To carry on what was so well begun, riding on horseback in the country was resorted to, and that exercise was found to excite the skin so beneficially, as to keep it always pleasantly warm, and generally bedewed with moisture, even to the ex- tremities of the toes; and in proportion to this effect, was the advantage derived from it, in relieving the chest, increasing the strength, and improving the appetite. A second winter was spent in the south with equal benefit; and in the summer of 1822, riding was resumed at home, and the health continued to improve. The excitement given to the skin by riding was sufficient to keep the feet warm, and to prevent even consi- derable changes of temperature from being felt, and rain was not more regarded, although special attention was of course paid to taking off damp or wet clothes the moment the ride was at an end. Strength increased so much under this plan, com- bined with sponging, friction, and other means, that it was persevered in through the very severe winter of 1822-3, with the best effects. For nine years thereafter the health con- tinued good, under the usual exposure of professional life; but in 1831 it again gave way, and pulmonary symptoms of a suspi* 90 SKIN NOT TO BE EXCLUSIVELY ATTENDED TO. cious character once more made their appearance. The same system was pursued, and the same results have again followed the invigoration of the cutaneous functions and of the general health, by a sea-voyage, horseback exercise, and the regular use of the bath. These, as formerly, have proved beneficial in proportion to their influence in keeping up warmth and mois- ture of the surface and extremities. In thus insisting upon the advantages of maintaining the healthy action of the skin, I must not be supposed to ascribe the whole benefit to that circumstance alone. So beautifully ia the animal economy constituted, that, as I have already re- peatedly had occasion to observe, it is impossible to use rational means for the invigoration of one organ or function, without good being done to all; and so closely are the various parts allied to each other, that, to describe fully the functions and sympathies of any one, we would require to make the circle of the whole. From this appears the fallacy of those who select the derangements of any one organ, as the origin and source of all existing diseases. Some functions are no doubt more im- portant, and their disorders exercise a wider influence over the general health, than others; but no one who knows the struc- ture of the human body and the relations of its parts, or has carefully observed the phenomena of disease, can be satisfied with such exclusive reasoning. The stomach, the bowels, the liver, and the nervous system, have each had their patrons, and the derangement of each has been specially held out as the grand fountain of human misery. Each doctrine, too, has been demonstrated, by cases and cures, to be superior to all the rest, and each has proved successful in its turn, where the others had been tried and failed. Far, however, from proving the propriety of exclusiveness in favour of any one organ, such facts, rightly considered, demonstrate the reverse, and show that suc- cessful practice requires views and remedies founded on a care- ful examination of every function ; and afford a strong presump- tion that the man who traces every disease to the liver, the stomach, or the nerves, will be at least as often strikingly wrong as strikingly right. In saying, therefore, that attention to the state of the skin is influential in preserving and restoring health, I wish to repre- sent it as an important but by no means exclusive condition, and to ascribe to the means used for invigorating its functions SKIN NOT TO BE EXCLUSIVELY ATTENDED TO. 91 their due share of action upon other organs and functions. Sailing, for example, is useful in pulmonary complaints, not only because its accompanying nausea causes a healthful flow of blood from the internal parts to the surface, but because the gentle and constant exercise, occasioned by the movement of the ship, is admirably adapted to a debilitated state of the sys- tem, when other exercise cannot be taken without hurrying the breathing or inducing fatigue—and because pure, fresh, bracing air is of infinite importance in all, and especially in pulmonary affections. Attention to the skin, therefore, must never be considered for a moment as superseding attention to the other functions. That were a pernicious mistake. It must be regarded as a part only, though an important part, of a ra- tional and consistent treatment; and its efficacy will often de- pend, in no small degree, on the care which is taken to support its effects by a scrupulous attention to the necessities of the rest of the system. I have often had occasion to remark the powerful influence which free perspiration from natural causes has in relieving acidity in the stomach and promoting digestion, and the fact that acidity is most prevalent when the skin is most inactive ; and have thereby been lead to prescribe with advantage the frequent use of the tepid and vapour bath in. calculous and other complaints arising from excess of acid. In accordance with the same principle, Lord Byron is found noting in his journal (28th March, 1814,) that after having, when pre- viously very unwell, " sparred with Jackson ad sudorem," he felt " much better in health than for many days," and re- marking, that " the more violent the fatigue the better his spirits for the rest of the day,"* and this too at a time when he waz deriving little relief from his favourite remedies, abstinence and soda water. These results seem to corroborate the doctrine of M. Donn6> that in the healthy state an acid humour is secreted from the whole surface of the skin, while the mucus secreted. from the digestive canal is everywhere, except in the sto- mach, of an alkaline nature. I have often noticed that acidity in the stomach was much relieved by free action of * Doubtless ninety-nine in every hundred have often experienced similar. effects from the same cause, and so will the other one of the hundred also. if he is not too indolent to take sufficient exercise. [Ed. Am. ed "" 92 SKIN NOT TO BE EXCLUSIVELY ATTENDED TO. the skin, particularly in gouty habits, after the use of the warm bath. On the other hand, the season of the year at which I have always heard most complaints of acidity was towards the end of autumn, w)aen the colder weather was beginning to diminish perspiration and change the balance of the circulation. These facts, if correctly observed, go far to corroborate the accuracy of M. Donne's views. The subject, however, still remains obscure, but its importance entitles it to the most careful examination. CHAPTER IV. NATURE OF THE MUSCULAR SYSTEM. Muscles.—Their structure, attachment, and conditions of action —Necessity of arterial blood, and of nervous influence.—Illustrations.—Muscles act by alter* nate contraction and relaxation___Fatigue consequent on continuing the same attitude explained.—Injuries of Spine from neglect of this law, and from seden- tary occupations in school.—The mind ought to be engaged in exercise as well as the body.—Superiority of cheerful play and amusing games.—A dull walk the least useful exercise.—Influences of mental stimulus illustrated by exam- ples.—Exercise to be proportioned to strength.—Laws of exercise. Having examined the nature and uses of the skin, we may next proceed to consider the important system of organs, lying almost immediately under it, viz. the muscles, which, although in constant activity during our waking hours, and of indispen-" sable necessity to man in every movement which he makes, are perhaps less familiarly known than almost any other part of the body. As the study of the muscular system involves an exposition of the principles which ought to regulate exercise, it can scarcely fail to excite the attention of the general reader, and especially of those who, as parerits or teachers, are inter- ested in the education of the young. " The muscles are those distinct and compact bundles of fleshy fibres which are found on animals immediately on re- moving the skin and subjacent fat; and which, although per- haps not known to all under their generic or scientific name, are familiar to every one as constituting the red fleshy part of meat. Every muscle or separate bundle of fleshy substance, is com- posed of innumerable small fibres or threads, each separated from, and at the same time loosely connected with, the others, by a sheath of cellular membrane enveloping it, but which is 94 STRUCTURE AND ATTACHMENTS OF MUSCLES. so thin as not to obscure the colour of the fibre, or attract no tice unless specially looked for. Each muscle is in its turn separated from the neighbouring muscles by thicker layers or sheaths of the same membrane, in some of the cells of which fat is deposited, especially where the interval, between the mus- cles is considerable; and hence the elegantly rounded form of the limbs, which, without this fat, would present the rigid, sharp, and prominent outline which we see occasionally in strong per- sons of a spare habit of body. From the loose texture of the connecting cellular membrance, the muscles enjoy perfect free- dom of motion during life, and admit of being easily separated from each other after death, either by the knife, or by simply tearing the cellular tissue. Muscles, speaking generally, may be divided into three parts, of which the middle fleshy portion, called the belly, is the most conspicuous and important. The other two are the opposite ends, commonly called the origin and insertion of the muscle. The belly is the bulky and fleshy part, by the contraction or shortening of the fibres of which, the two ends are brought nearer to each other, while the belly itself swells out in a lat- eral direction. When we attempt to lift a heavy weight in the hand, or to overcome any resistance, the muscles which bend the arm may be seen and felt to start out rigid and well de- fined in their whole extent, while their extremities tend pow- erfully to approach each other, and of course to carry along with them the bones to which they are attached. In conse- The figure represents the bones of the arm and hand, having all the soft parts dissected off except one muscle O B I, of which the function is to bend the arm. O the origin of the muscle. B the belly. I the inser- tion. T T the tendons. S the shoulder-joint. E the elbow. When the belly contracts, the lower extremity of the muscle I, is brought nearer to the origin or fixed point O, and by thus bending the arm at the elbow-joint, raises up the weight W placed in the hand STRUCTURE AND ATTACHMENTS OF MUSCLES. 95 juence of this tendency, if a weight be unexpectedly knocked out of the hand before we have time to obviate the result, the muscles, having then no resistance to overcome, will contract violently, and throw the hand up with a sudden jerk. Volun- tary motion is, in fact, effected by the contraction of muscles acting upon and changing the relative positions of the bones or solid support of the system, and therefore almost all mus- cles are attached to one bone by their origin, and to another by their insertion; the former being merely the fixed extremity, towards which the opposite and more moveable end, called the insertion, is carried by the shortening of the intervening belly of the muscle. If the muscles are in general attached to bones, it may be asked,—How can the bones, which present comparatively so small a surface, afford space enough for the attachments of muscles which are -so much larger, and which even appear in successive layers above each other 1 This difficulty is obviated in two ways. In the first place, the heads and other parts of bones to which muscles are attached, are enlarged so as to pre- sent a greater surface than the body of the bone, and form what are called processes, for the express purpose of affording greater room; and, secondly, instead of all the fleshy fibres of a muscle being prolonged to its points of attachment at the bone, they, with a few exceptions, terminate gradually, as they pro- ceed from the belly, in a white shining tendon, of a much smaller size than the muscle, but of great strength, which is inserted into the bone. These tendons, or sinews as they are occasionally named, conduce greatly to symmetry, elegance and freedom of motion; and may be traced under the skin on the back of the hand, and in the very powerful specimen at the heel, called the tendon of Achilles. The hamstrings are another obvious example, and may be easily felt becoming tight when an effort is made to bend the knee. There are a few muscles not attached to bones by either extremity, and also a few which have no tendons. Those which surround the eye- brows, the mouth, the gullet, and some of the other natural passages, are of the former description; as is also the heart. Some of the muscles of the trunk have no tendons, but these are few in number, and may at present be considered excep- tions to the general rule. In man, and in most the animals with which we are familiar, the muscles are of a red colour. This, however, depends en 96 NATURE OF MUSCLES. tirely on the blood which they contain ; for so far is the colour from being essential to their constitution, that it may be de- stroyed by washing out the blood which produces it, the muscu- lar substance remaining in other respects unchanged.' Hence the colour of the muscles varies with that of the blood—is dark where it is dark, pale where it is pale, and white where it is white. The true characteristic of muscular fibres is contrac- tility, or the power of shortening their substance on the applica tion of stimuli, and again relaxing when the stimulus is with drawn. The direction in which the fleshy fibres run, determines the direction of the motion effected by their contraction. In some muscles the fibres are nearly parallel, and consequently act in a straight line. In others they run obliquely, producing a cor- responding obliquity of motion; while in others they are dis- posed like feathers in relation to a quill, and are therefore styled penniform. A few are circularly disposed round open- ings, and contract towards a common centre, like the mouth of a purse closed by its strings. When the direction varies, it is always to effect a particular kind of action. Remarkable con- trivances appear for this end; one muscle of the lower jaw, for example, is divided into two distinct fleshy bellies by an inter- mediate thin strong tendon, which passes through and plays in a pulley adapted for its reception : its two portions being by this means enabled to operate with full effect almost at right angles to each other. A similar arrangement is found in the trochlearis or pulley-muscle of the eyeball; and modifications of a different kind -occur in other muscles, as in those of fche fingers and toes, wherever a particular object is to be ac- complished. The chief purpose of the muscles is obviously to enable us 'o carry into effect the various resolutions and designs—or voli- tions, as they are termed by philosophers,—which have been formed by the mind. But while fulfilling this grand object, their active exercise is at the same time highly conducive to the well-being of many other important functions. By mus- cular contraction, the blood is gently assisted in its course through the smaller vessels and more distant parts of the body, and its undue accumulation in the internal organs is prevented. The important processes of digestion, respfration, secretion, absorption, and nutrition are promoted, and the health of the whole body immediatelv influenced. The mind itself is exhi- CONDITIONS OF MUSCULAR ACTION. 97 larated or depresssed by the proper or improper use of muscular exercise ; and it thus becomes a point of no slight importance to establish general principles by which that exercise may be regulated. The first requisite for healthy and vigorous muscular action, is the possession of strong and healthy muscular fibres. In every part of the animal economy, the muscles are proportion- ate in size and structure to the efforts required from them; and it is a law of nature, that whenever a muscle is called into fre- quent use, its fibres increase in thickness within certain limits, and become capable of acting with greater force and readiness; and that, on the other hand, when a muscle is little used, its volume and power decrease in a corresponding degree. When in a state of activity, the quantity of blood which muscles re- ceive is considerably increased; and, in consequence, those which are much exercised become of a deeper red colour than / those which are less used. The reason of this will be evident, when we recollect that to every organ of the body arterial blood is an indispensable stimulus, and that its supply is, dur- ing health, always proportioned to the extent and energy of the action. When any part, therefore, is stinted of its usual quantity of blood, it very soon becomes weakened and at last loses its power of action, although every other condition re- quired for its performance may remain unimpaired. It is the infringement of this condition that entails so much misery upon our young manufacturing population, and even upon many of the inmates of our boarding-schools. Wasted by excessive labour, long confinement, and miserable diet, the mus- cular system is stinted in growth and weakened in structure ; and the blood, impoverished by insufficiency of nourishing food and by a vitiated atmosphere, is no longer capable of repairing the waste consequent upon exercise, or of affording a healthy stimulus to the vessels and nerves which animate the muscles. Languor, debility, and exhaustion of mind, necessarily follow; and the individual is left susceptible of no stimulus but that of ardent spirits or of excited and reck- less passion.* * This subject forcibly illustrates the necessity of rest and exercise to the young, and especially during growtk. We have long regarded the practice of placing children either in school or in stores, or at any mechani- cal occupation, especially if of a sedentary kind, and even to hard labour 9 98 CONDITIONS OF MUSCULAR ACTION. In youth not only must the waste of materials be replaced, but an excess of nourishment must be provided, to admit of the continued growth which is the chief function of our earlier years. If this be denied, the development of the bodily organs often receives a check which no subsequent treatment can remedy, and a foundation is laid for diseases of debility which after- wards embitter and endanger life. From pretty extensive in- quiry, I am satisfied that in boarding-schools, especially for females, this important principal is often disregarded; while the conductors are at the same time without the least suspicion of the evil they are producing, and even take credit to themselves for only checking sensual appetites, and promoting temper- ance in eating as well as in drinking. Youth requires the best and most nutricious food, and such ought regularly to be pro- vided. Weak broth, twice-cooked hashes, and quantities of vegetables and watery milk, are not sufficient sustenance for a young and growing frame. Can we be surprised that, with such a diet, worm-powders and stomachic medicines are in constant demand, and that even with the assistance of these, the girl shoots up thin, pale and fleshless? Let it not be sup- posed that I wish to make a god of the belly : my object is the reverse of this, and I am sure that no better means can be used to effect it, than to give a sufficiency (not an excess) of whole- some and nourishing food, which alone will satisfy the stomach, and obviate the constant craving which is a frequent and pain- ful concomitant of deficiency of food. Let it be considered how soon, in cases of shipwreck for example, men previously well fed are wasted away by bodily labour, when deprived of a full allowance of food, and it will not be difficult to form some conception of the importance of this condition to the well-being of the muscular system.* on a farm, as most pernicious; because it expends the energies required for their growth and formation, in manual labour, thereby preventing that full development which is indispensable in after life. This course might aptly be compared to killing the goose that laid the golden egg every day, so as to get it still faster; which cut off the daily supply without getting even the small pittance in advance for which it was done. Though labour is better than idleness, yet pleasurable exercise, is far better than either. [Ed. Am. ed.] * We have long been of the opinion, that adults in this country con sume from one-third to an half more food than nature requires. Still, this is less the case whh children and youth while growing, to whom alone the author applies his remarks. [Ed. Am. ed.] CONDITIONS OF MUSCULAR ACTION. 99 Something more than mere muscle, however, is required for the production of regulated or voluntary motion. The muscle itself, though perfect in strength and in structure, would other- wise remain inert. A stimulus is required to excite it to acti- vity, and to direct its contraction ; and this stimulus is convey- ed to it by the nerves. As we write, the muscles which move the fingers and guide the pen obviously follow the commands of the will; and the moment the will is withdrawn, they cease to operate. If the will be feeble and undecided, the mus- cular movements will be equally weak and irresolute ; whereas, if the mind be powerfully excited, and the will energetic, strength, rapidity, and decision will equally characterise all the movements of the body. Under the intense excitement and headlong fury of madness, the muscular action of an other wise feeble man acquires a force often exceeding all our powers of controul. It will be at once perceived from this description, that in effecting voluntary motion, we must have in operation, first, The brain, or organ of mind, as the source of the will; secondly, The nerves, which convey the intimations of the will to the muscles; and, thirdly, The muscles themselves, by whose contractile powers motion is produced. It will be understood, also, why the number and size of the nerves distributed to a muscle, are in proportion, not simply to its volume, but to the variety, frequency, and vivacity of the movements required from it; and why some small muscles employed in many com- binations, are therefore supplied with a greater variety of nerves than others double their size, but with more simple functions. Muscular power is (other circumstances being equal), pro- portioned to the size of the muscle ; but it often happens, that great power is required, where bulk of muscle would be incon- venient or cumbersome. In such cases, the muscle is supplied with an increased endowment of nervous filaments, which compensate, by the strength of stimulus, for what it wants in bulk of fibre. Many birds, for example, require great muscular power to sustain them in their long and rapid flights through the air, and owe its possession chiefly to the strong stimulus im- parted to moderate-sized muscles by large nerves, which add extremely little to their weight; whereas, had the greater power been obtainable only from an augmentation of fleshy fibres, the consequent addition of weight would, from the 100 INFUENCE OF NERVES greatly increased difficulty the animal must have felt in raising and sustaining itself in the air, have gone far to counterbalance any advantage gained on the side of power. But in fishes, which float without effort in their own element, size produces no such inconvenience, and their strength, accordingly, is made to depend more on the volume of the muscle than on its nervous endowment,—showing a beautiful adaptation to the mode of life and wants of the animal. As voluntary motion depends as much on nervous stimulus as on muscular agency, it happens, that whatever interrupts the action of the nerves, puts a stop to motion as effectually as if the muscular fibre itself were divided. Injuries and diseases of the brain, whence the will emanates, are well known to be accompanied with palsy, or want of power in the muscles, although in their own structure the latter remain sound. Sleep and narcotics, too, suspend voluntary motion, solely in conse- quence of their action on the nervous system. Ardent spirits, in like manner, disturb the regularity of muscular action in no other way than by previously disordering the brain ; and hence the unsteady gait and faltering elocution of a semi-intoxicated person are sometimes removed in an instant by some powerful mental impression being sud- denly made, sufficient to restore the brain to its natural state, and thereby to give unity and steadiness to the nervous im- pulse proceeding from it to the muscles. For the same reason, although the brain and muscles be perfectly sound, yet if the communication between them be im- paired or destroyed by the compression or division of the nerves, the muscles cease to act. The muscles of the human body are upwards of 400 in number, and form se- veral layers lying over each other. That some conception may be formed of their arrangement and distribution, the super- ficial layer, or that which appears imme- diately on removing the skin, is repre- sented in the annexed wood-cut, taken ON MUSCULAR ACTION. 101 from a little volume entitled " The Physician," published by the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge. To under- stand the uses of the various muscles, the reader has only to bear in mind that the object of muscular contraction is simply to bring the two ends of the muscle, and the parts to which they are attached, nearer to each other,—the more moveable being always carried towards the more fixed point. Thus when the sterno-mastoid muscle f g contracts, its extremities approximate, and the head, being the moveable point, is pulled down and turned to one side. This may be easily seen in the living subject, the muscle being not less conspicuous than beautiful in its outline. Again, when the powerful rectus or straight muscle b on the front of the thigh contracts with force, as in the act of kicking, its lower end attached to the knee-pan and leg, tends to approximate to the upper or more fixed point, and pulls the leg strongly forwards. This occurs also in walk- ing. But when the sartorius or tailors' muscle c is put in action, its course being oblique, the movement of the leg is no longer in a straight line, but in a cross direction, like that in which tailors sit; and hence the name sartorius. Another variety of effect occurs, when, as in the rectus or straight muscle of the belly i i, sometimes one end and some- times both are the fixed points. When the lower end is fixed, the muscle bends the body forward, and pulls down the bones of the chest. When, as more rarely happens, the lower end is the moveable point, the effect is to bring forward and raise the pelvis and inferior extremities; and, when both ends are rendered immoveable, the contraction of the muscle tends to compress and diminish the size of the cavity of the belly, and thus not only assists the natural evacuations, but co-operates in the function of respiration. In contemplating this arrangement, it is impossible not to be struck with the consummate skill with which every act of every organ is turned to account. When the chest is expanded by a full inspiration, the bowels are pushed downwards and forwards to make way for the lungs; when the air is again ex- pelled, and the cavity of the chest diminished, the very mus- cles Hi, which effect this by pulling down the ribs, contract upon the bowels also,—pushing them upwards and inwards, as can be plainly perceived by any one who attends to his own breathing. By this contrivance, a gentle and constant impulse is given to the stomach and bowels, which is of great import- 102 INFLUENCE OF NERVES ance to them in contributing to digestion and in propelling their contents; and one cause of the costiveness with which seden- tary people are so habitually annoyed, is the diminution of this natural motion in consequence of bodily inactivity. From the preceding exposition, the action of the muscles a, k, I, which bend the arm and forearm, will be easily under- stood, and some notion may be formed of the innumerable combinations into which a system composed of upwards of 400 piece's may be thrown, in effecting all the movements required from the human frame. In some of the operations in which we engage, nearly the whole, and in others only a part, of the muscles are thrown into action at one time. The simultane- ousness of action which obtains in such instances,—which oc- curs in almost every act of life, however simple,—and without which no dictate of the will could be harmoniously and suc- cessfully obeyed,—depends solely on the distribution and con- nections of the nerves which animate the muscles. Every in- dividual fibre of every muscle is supplied with nervous fila- ments, and different fibres of the same muscle are indebted for the simultaneousness of their excitement to the connection established between each of them by these filaments. Where ever many muscles combine to execute an important move- ment, they are uniformly found to be provided with, and con- nected by, branches from the same system of nerves ; as, with- out this means, simultaneousness and harmony of action could not be insured. Thus the muscles which cover the upper part of the chest co-operate in the voluntary movements of the arm, and at the same time in the respiratory movements of the chest; but these, being two distinct purposes, require different combinations of the muscles among themselves. To effect these combinations, two sets of nerves are provided, as has been shown by Sir Charles Bell; the one regulating the respi- ratory, and the other the purely voluntary movements of the muscles. This is the true reason why the same muscle some- times receives nerves from two or three different quarters ; a cir- cumstance which, before the principle was discovered, and when all nerves were considered alike, was altogether inex- plicable, and seemed a work of mere supererogation. The influence of the nervous agency may be still farther illustrated. When the trunk of a muscular nerve is irritated by the contact of an external body, or by the electric spark, the muscles which it supplies instantly contract, but without NATURE OF MUSCULAR ACTION. 103 either harmony or permanency of motion: the contraction is like the violent and ill-regulated start of convulsion. It is the influence of the brain and mind in the equal diffusion of the required stimulus to each muscle, in the exact proportion need- ful, that characterises healthy and sustained voluntary motion, as opposed to the irregular convulsive start. Nothing can be more wonderful than the accuracy with which, in the most de- licate movements, this stimulus is adjusted and apportioned to such a variety of parts, particularly where practice, or in other words education, has rendered the combination of powers easy and certain. Not to mention the more obvious and graceful movements of dancing, fencing, and riding, we discover, in the management of the hand and fingers by engravers, sculp- tors, watch-makers, jugglers, and other artists and meohanics, a minute accuracy of muscular adjustment to effect a given end, which is the more surprising the more we consider the compli- cated means by which it is effected. In consequence of the co-operation of both nerve and mus- cular fibre being required to effect motion, excess of action in each is followed by results peculiar to itself. If the nerves preponderate, either constitutionally or from over-exercise,— as they are apt to do in highly nervous temperaments,—their excessive irritability renders them liable to be unduly excited by ordinary stimuli; and hence, as in hysteric and nervous fe- males, a proneness to sudden starts, cramps, and convulsions, from causes which would scarcely affect an individual differently constituted. Such persons have little muscular power, except under excitement; they then become capable of great efforts of short duration, but sink proportionally low when the stimu- lus is past. If, on the other hand, the muscles predominate, as in athletic strong-built men, the nervous system is generally dull and little susceptible of excitement, and the muscles which it animates are consequently little prone to the rapid and viva- cious action that accompanies the predominance of the nervous functions. Great strength and capability of bodily labour are then the characteristics. Great muscular power and intense nervous action are rarely conjoined* in the same individual; but, when they do happen • The opinion generally prevails, that to unite the two is next to an im- possibility. This is by no means the case. The physical and mental per- fection of man requires the union of the two, and his nature is adapted to 104 NATURE OF MUSCULAR ACTION. to meet, they constitute a perfect genius for muscular exertion, and enable their possessor to perform feats of strength and agility, which appear marvellous to those who are deficient in either condition.* The most successful wrestlers and gladia- tors among the ancients seem to have owed their superiority chiefly to the possession of both endowments in a high degree ; and among the moderns, the most remarkable combination of the two qualities is exhibited by some of our harlequins, clowns, rope-dancers, and equestrian pet formers, and also by those who display their strength and power of equilibrium in balancing wheels, ladders, or other heavy bodies, on the chin ; and whose performances require from the small muscles of the jaw and neck, a force of contraction which, when reduced to calcula- tion, almost exceeds belief. Belzoni combined both conditions in a high degree. From the general resemblance which characterizes the dif- ferent nerves, a similarity in function was long ascribed to them all, and no explanation could be given why one muscle sometimes received filaments from a variety of nervous trunks. Recently, however, the labours of Sir Charles Bell, Mayo, Ma- gendie, and Bellingeri have clearly established that in such cases each nerve serves a distinct purpose, in combining the this union. The means of securing it, are two fold ; first, the proper con- ditions on the part of the parents,—that is, the union of these two in them; and, secondly, the cultivation of each on the part of the child and the man. And most persons are capable of uniting the two in a degree now unknown. The means of securing this union, will be found in our work on " Education and Self-Improvement," p. 13-33. [Ed. Am. ed.] * As we observed in our note on p. 65, this doctrine of a balance of Temperaments; that is, the equal development of each of the three great functions of life, namely, nutrition, muscular power, and nervous energy, is probably as important as any law of the animal economy. It will enable the person possessing these endowments to perform wonders, intellectually as well as physically. The physical capacity of the moderns is greatly in- ferior to that of the ancients, because they cultivated this quality; and equal cultivation by the moderns will give them also equal physical capa- city. We should cultivate loth, and our reward would be uninterrupted health, great physical enjoyment, and the highest mental and moral en- dowments of which our nature is susceptable; which, doubtless, would far exceed what has yet been enjoyed by mortals. Our idea of both the phy- sical and the mental capacities of man, is most exalted, and the object of our work on Education is to show how to bring out all the faculties and energies of the body and the mind in the highest and most perfect degree. FEd. Am. ed.] NATURE OF MUSCULAR ACTION. 105 movements of the particular muscles with those of others ne- cessary to effect a given end,—and that without this additional nerve such a combination could not have been produced. The muscular nerves must not be confounded with those which we have seen ramified on the skin for the purposes of sensation. The former are provided for the purposes of motion and not of feeling, and hence muscles may be cut or injured with little pain, compared to what is felt by the skin. Weariness is the sensation recognised by one set of muscular nerves. So uniformly is a separate instrument provided for every ad- ditional function, that there is strong reason to regard the mus- cular nerves, although running in one sheath, as in reality double, and performing distinct functions. Sir Charles Bell has the merit of this discovery, if such it shall ultimately prove to be. In his work on the Nervous System, he endeavours to show, that one set of nervous fibres conveys the mandate from the brain to the muscle, and excites the contraction; and that another conveys from the muscle to the brain a peculiar sense of the state or degree of contraction of the muscle, by which we are enabled to judge of the amount of stimulus necessary to accomplish the end desired, and which is obviously an indis- pensable piece of information to the mind in regulating the movements of the body. Sir Charles has shown that many of the sensations supposed to be derived from the sense of touch and the skin, arise from the muscular sense, and are wholly imperceptible to the skin, without the co-operation of muscular contraction. " The muscles have two nerves," says Sir Charles, " which fact has not hitherto been noticed, because they are commonly bound up together. But whenever the nerves, as about the head, go in a separate course, we find that there is a sensitive nerve and a motor nerve distributed to the muscular fibre, and we have reason to conclude that those branches of the spinal nerves which go to the muscles, consist of a motor and a sensi- tive filament. u It has been supposed hitherto, that the office of a muscular nerve is only to carry out the mandate of the will, and to excite the muscle to action, but this betrays a very inaccurate know- ledge of the action of the muscular system; for, before the mus- cular system can be controlled under the influence of the will, there must be consciousness or knowledge of the condition of the muscle. 106 NATURE OF MUSCULAR ACTION. " When we admit that the various conditions of the muscle must be estimated or perceived, in order to be under the due control of the will, the natural question arises, Is that nerve which carries out the mandate of the will capable of conveying, at the same moment, an impression retrograde to the course of that influence which is going from the brain to the muscle 1 If we had no facts in anatomy to proceed upon, still reason* would declare to us that the same filament of a nerve could not convey a motion, of whatever nature that motion may be, whether vibration or motion of spirits, in opposite directions at the same moment of time. "I find that, to the full operation of the muscular power, two distinct filaments of nerves are necessary, and that a circle is established between the. sensorium and the muscle ; that one filament or single nerve carries the influence of the will to- wards the muscle, which nerve has no power to convey an im- pression backwards to the brain; and that another nerve con- nects the muscle with the brain, and, acting as a sentient nerve, conveys the impression of the condition of the muscle to the mind, but has no operation in a direction outwards from the brain towards the muscle, and does not therefore excite the muscle, however irritated."! This consciousness of the state of the muscles, or muscular sense, as it may be truly called, is of great importance both to man and to animals, as it is necessarily by information thence derived, that every subsequent exertion is directed and appor- tioned in intensity to the effort required to be made. If we had no such sense, the delicate and well directed touches of the engraver, painter, and sculptor, or of the ingenious mechanic-, would be at the mercy of hazard; and a single disproportioned * There is great danger in depending upon "reason''' alone. Recent discoveries render it highly probable that there are other conductors of sensation than the nerves; that, in short, there are magnetic conductors, or rather currents, running along the course of the nerves, and imparting to them that vital property on which their efficiency depends. These con- ductors are invisible to the naked eye, as is also the vital property convey- ed. Magnetism renders it probable that the vital spirit, or the life, of all animals, consists of this magnetic property. Unquestionably new light will soon be thrown from this quarter upon the laws and properties of living bodies. Still, the nerves alluded to in the text, may exist. We only make these remarks to apprise the reader, that these phenomena may bo accounted for in another way. [Ed. Am. ed.] f Bell's Anatomy, seventh edition, vol. ii. p. 372. NATURE OF MUSCULAR ACTION. 107 movement might ruin the successful labour of months, suppos- ing success to be in reality compatible with chance. Without this sen,se, man could not deliberately proportion the muscular efforts to his real wants; and, even in walking, his gait would be unsteady and insecure, because there would be no harmony between effort and resistance. The loss of equilibrium, and the concussion and disturbance of the system consequent on taking a false step, as it is called, are a specimen of what we would always be subject to without the guidance of the mus cular sense. When we imagine we have one step more of a stair to descend than really exists, we are placed nearly in the same circumstances as if we had no muscular sense to direct the extent of our intended movement; because, misled by an erroneous impression, we make an effort grievously unsuited to the occasion ; and yet so habitually are we protected from this error by the assistance of the sense alluded to, and so little are we conscious of its operation, that it is only after mature reflection that we perceive the necessity of its exist- ence. In chewing our food, in turning the eye towards an object looked at, in raising the hand to the mouth, and, in fact, in every variety of muscular movement which we perform, we are guided by the muscular sense in proportioning the effort to the resistance to be overcome ; and, where this harmony is destroyed by disease, the extent of the service rendered us be- comes more apparent. The shake of the arm and hand which we see in drunkards,* and their consequent incapability of car- rying the morsel directly to the mouth, are examples of what would be of daily occurrence, unless we were directed and as- sisted by a muscular sense. Life and the nervous stimulus are essential to muscular power. Separated from the body, and deprived of both, the muscle which formerly contracted with a power equal to 100 pounds, would be torn asunder by a weight of ten. This fact is of itself sufficient to give a tolerable notion of the extent to which muscular contraction depends on other causes than the mere structure of the fleshy fibres; for that structure continues unaltered for some time after death, and after the nervous com- munication has been suspended—and yet how feeble is the power of resistance which the muscle then possesses ! * And also in tea and coffee topers, and often in tobacco eaters and smokers. [Ed. Am. edit.] 108 EVILS RESULTING FROM INACTIVITY The required movement having been once effected by the nervous impulse stimulating the muscular fibre to contraction, relaxation speedily follows, and is in its turn succeedad by a fresh contraction proportioned to the object in view. Muscu- lar action, therefore, consists properly in alternate contraction and relaxation if the fleshy fibres. A state of permanent contraction is both unnatural and impossible; and, accordingly, the most fatiguing muscular employment to which a man can be sub- jected, is that of remaining immoveable in any given attitude. To an unreflecting person it may seem a very easy and plea- sant service to stand for half a day in the attitude of an Apollo or a Gladiator, as a model to a statuary; but, on trying it, he will find, to his astonishment, that stone-breaking or the tread- ♦ mill are pastimes in comparison: in the one case, the muscles which preserve the attitude are kept incessantly on the strain; while in the other, they enjoy that play and variety of motion for which they were destined by nature. We may easily put the fact to the test, by attempting to hold the arm extended at a right angle to the body for the short space of ten minutes. He whose muscles, if indeed capable of the exertion, do not feel sore with fatigue at the end of that time, may think him- self peculiarly fortunate in being blessed with a powerful con- stitution. The principle just stated explains very obviously the weari- ness, debility, and injury to health, which invariably follow forced confinement to one position or to one limited variety of movement, as is often witnessed in the education of young fe- males. Alternate contraction and relaxation, or, in other words, exercise of the muscles which support the trunk of the body, are the only means which, according to the Creator's laws, are conducive to muscular developement, and by which bodily strength and vigour can be secured. Instead of pro- moting such exercise, however, the prevailing system of female education places the muscles of the trunk, in particular, under the most unfavourable circumstances, and renders their exer- cise nearly impossible. Left to its own weight, the body would fall to the ground, in obedience to the ordinary law of gravita- tion : in sitting and standing, therefore, as well as in walking, the position is preserved only by active muscular exertion. But if we confine ourselves to one attitude, such as that of sit- ting erect upon a chair—or, what is still worse, on benches without backs, as is the common practice in schools,—it is ob- OF THE MUSCULAR SYSTEM. 109 vious that we place the muscles which support the spine and trunk in the very disadvantageous position of permanent in- stead of alternate contraction ; which we have seen to be in reality more fatiguing and debilitating to them than severe labour. Girls thus restrained daily for many successive hours, invariably suffer—being deprived of the sports and exercise after school-hours, which strengthen the muscles of boys, and enable them to withstand the oppression. The muscles being thus enfeebled, the girls either lean over insensibly to one side, and thus contract curvature of the spine ; or, their weakness being perceived, they are forthwith cased in stiffer and stronger stays—that support being sought for in steel and whalebone, which Nature intended they should obtain from the bones and muscles of their own bodies. The patient, finding the main- tenance of an erect carriage (the grand object for which all the suffering is inflicted) thus rendered more easy, at first welcomes the stays, and, like her teacher, fancies them highly useful. Speedily, however, their effects show them to be the reverse of beneficial. The same want of varied motion, which was the prime cause of the muscular weakness, is still farther aggra- vated by the tight pressure of the stays interrupting the play of the muscles, and rendering them in a few months more powerless than ever. In spite, however, of the weariness and mischief which result from it, the same system is persevered in ; and, during the short time allotted to that nominal exer- cise, the formal walk, the body is left almost as motionless as before, and only the legs are called into activity. The natural consequences of this treatment are, debility of the body, curva- ture of the spine, impaired digestion, and, from the diminished tone of all the animal and vital functions, general ill health;— and yet, while we thus set Nature and her laws at defiance, we presume to express surprise at the prevalence of female defor- mity and disease! It would be easy, were it required, to prove that the picture here drawn is not overcharged. A single instance, from a note appended by Dr. Forbes to an excellent treatise on " Physical Education," by Dr. Barlow of Bath, will suffice. After copy- ing the programme of a boarding-school for young ladies, which exhibits only one hour's exercise, consisting of a walk, arm in arm on the high road, and that only when the weather is fine at the particular hour allotted to it, in contrast with nine hours at school or tasks, and three and a half at optional studies or 110 EVILS RESULTING FROM INACTIVITY. work,—Dr. Forbes adds:—" That the practical results of such an astounding regimen are by no means overdrawn in the pre- ceding pages, is sufficiently evinced by the following fact, a fact which, we will venture to say, may be verified by inspec- tion of thousands of boarding-schools in this country. We lately visited in a large town a boarding-school containing forty girls ; and we learnt on close and accurate inquiry, that there was not one of the girls who had been at the school two years (and the majority had been as long,) that toas not more or less crooked ! Our patient was in this predicament; and we could perceive (what all may perceive who meet that most melancholy of all processions,—a boarding-school of young ladies in their walk) that all her companions were pallid, sallow, and listless. We can assert, on the same authority of personal observation, and on an extensive scale, that scarcely a single girl (more especially of the middle classes) that has been at a boarding-school for two or three years returns home with unimpaired health; and for the truth of the assertion, we may appeal to every candid father whose daughters have been placed in this situation."* Dr. Barlow justly remarks, that the superintendents of such schools cannot generally be blamed for indifference about the welfare of their pupils; that most of them are extremely anx- ious to do their utmost to improve those under their charge ; and that it is ignorance alone which misleads them as to the proper means; he might have adverted also to the ignorance of parents, who insist on so many hours a-day being dedicated to the study of accomplishments for which their children have neither taste, capacity, nor use. From similar ignorance, the young girls in a public hospital in this country used to be shut up in the hall and school-room during play-hours from Novem- ber till March, and no romping or noise,—in other words, no real play, relaxation, or exercise—allowed ; and in 1830-31, from fear of typhus fever, they were seldom, if ever out of doors, except at church, from November to April—than which a more efficient method of infringing the laws of health could scarcely have been devised.f Here, too, the object was unquestionably * Cyclopaedia of Practicable Medicine, Article Physical Education, vol. i. p. 698. f I have long maintained that schools are in themselves injurious, and particularly so to young children. I believe they do vastly more injury than good: the cause of which is fully explained above. I contend that instead oi confining children within doors at all for the purpose of learning, OF THE MUSCULAR SYSTEM. Ill benevolent,* but the method was radically bad ; and, in con- sequence, a great deal of sickness prevailed. The reality of the mischief done in this way, was forcibly pointed out by Mr. Carmichael of Dublin, in his excellent " Essay on the Nature of Scrofula," published so long ago as 1810, and which contains many valuable practical truths, which were then little known and coolly received, but to which great importance is now generally attached. In noticing the want of exercise as a cause of scrofula, Mr. Carmichael men- tions, that in St. Thomas's Parochial School, seven out of twenty- four girls were affected with that disease during the preceding summer, owing to their exercise, having been entirely interrupt- ed, first, by the flooding of the play-ground by heavy rains, and subsequently by the mistress having received orders " to keep the children perpetually within doors at their school-books. In a very short time after " this cruel and impolitic injunction" was acted upon, scrofula began to make its appearance, and after- wards affected nearly a third of their number : although none of them had the disease when admitted, and there was no fault of diet or other cause to which it could be ascribed. Mr. Car- michael adds that, in the Bethesda School of the same city (Dublin), six out of thirty girls, fed in the best possible man- ner, and free from the disease on their admission, were badly affected with it during the same summer. In these cases it evi- dently arose from their having neither yard nor play-ground attached to the institution, in consequence of which " the chil- dren were necessitated to remain either in their school or bed- rooms during play hours." On ascertaining this fact, Mr. Car- parents should be the tutors of their children, and that too when they are on foot. The mind is always more active when the body is in motion. The way is, for parents to teach their children while at their play, by attracting their voluntary and eager attention to interesting examples and illustrations which their parents desire to impress upon their minds. Our views on this subject will be found at large in our work on " Phrenology applied to Education and Self-Improvement,'1'' published in connection with the Jour- nal. A careful perusal of them is respectfully solicited. [Ed. Am. Ed.] * This is a striking illustration of the importance of regulating benevo lence by intellect. Thousands of parents and teachers, in doing what they think for the best, actually ruin their children both in mind and body; lite- rally " killing them with kindness." So also in regard to piety. Reason, enlightened by knowledge, should predominate, and all our feelings and actions be guided by the lights of intellect to ensure moral excellence and permanent happiness. [Ed. Am. ed.] 112 ADVANTAGE OF COMBINING MENTAL michael remonstrated with the governors, and the evil no long- er exists; but the circumstance itself affords an instructive ex- ample of the extent of misery which may arise, not from the institutions of Nature, as we are so apt to affirm, but from sheer ignorance on our own part of what these institutions are. Mr. Carmichael adduces other facts of a striking nature, for which I must refer to the work itself, to show the needless suffering which is still inflicted on thousands by the sedentary and unvaried occupations which follow each other for hours in succession in many of our schools, and I agree with him that it is high time that a sound physiology should step in to root out all such erroneous and hurtful practices. Taken in connection with the long confinement, the custom of causing the young to sit on benches without any support to the back, and without any variety of motion, cannot be too soon exploded. If the muscles of the spine were strengthened by the exercise which they require, but which is so generally denied,—and if the school employments were varied or interrupted at reasonable intervals, to admit of change of position and of motion,—no- thing could be better adapted for giving an easy and erect car- riage than seats without backs, because the play of the muscles necessary for preserving the erect position would give them activity and vigour;—and, accordingly, the want is scarcely, if at all, felt in infant schools, for the very reason that such variety of motion is, in them, carefully provided for. But it is a gross misconception to suppose that the same good result will follow the absence of support, when the muscles are weak- ened by constant straining and want of play. The incessant and fidgetty restlessness observable after the second or third hour of comman school confinement, shows the earnest call of Nature for a little wholesome exercise ; and the quiet that en- sues when it is granted, indicates clearly enough that the rest- lessness springs even more from bodily than from mental wea- riness. It is, in fact, a degree of what we all feel when kept long standing on our feet, or sitting at a desk. We become weary and uneasy from the continued strain on the same mus- cles, and feel at once relieved by a walk, a drive, or any change whatever. The same principle explains the fatigue so often complained of, as experienced in " shopping," or in an exhibition-room. We saunter about till the muscles become sore from the fatigue of being always in the same attitude, and we are refreshed by a walk or a dance, or anything which alters WITH MUSCULAR EXERCISE. 113 the position. The same languor of the muscles is felt after witnessing a pantomime, or other continuous spectacle, by which we are induced to keep the neck for a long time in a constrained and unvaried position. Children with thin bodies, weak muscles, and large heads, sometimes suffer much by be- ing taken to church, and, that due respect may be shown to the sanctity of the place, not allowed by their parents to lean their heads on the board, or on the arm of the person sitting next them, so as to support themselves more easily. Instead, therefore, of so many successive hours being devoted to study and to books, the employments of the young ought to be varied and interrupted by proper intervals of cheerful and exhilarating exercise, such as is derived from games of dex- terity, which demand the co-operation and society of compan- ions, or from some kind of manual labour in which skill and ingenuity are required, such as carpentry, turning, or garden- ing. This is infinitely preferable to the solemn processions which are so often substituted for exercise, and which are hurt- ful, inasmuch as they delude parents and teachers into the no- tion that they constitute in reality that which they only coun- terfeit and supersede. We have already seen what an impor- tant part the mental stimulus and nervous impulse perform, in exciting, sustaining, and directing muscular activity; and ob- servation proves that muscular contraction becomes relatively difficult and inefficient, when the mind, which directs it, is languid, or absorbed by other employments. The playful gamboling and varied movements which are so characteristic of the young of all animals, man not excepted, and which are at once so pleasing and so beneficial, show that, to render it be- neficial in its fullest extent, Nature requires amusement and spvightliness of mind to be combined with, and be the source of, muscular exercise ; and that, when deprived of this health- ful condition, it is a mere evasion of her law, and is not follow- ed by a tithe of the advantages resulting from its real fulfilment. The buoyancy of spirit and comparative independence en- joyed by boys when out of school, prevent them suffering so much from this cause as girls do; but the injury inflicted on both is the more unpardonable, on account of the ease with which it might be entirely avoided. In some infant schools which have no play-ground attached to them, the ne- cessity of frequent and playful muscular exercise in the open 10* 114 ADVANTAGE OF COMBINING MENTAL air is shamefully disregarded, to the great injury of the poor children confined in them. Facts illustrative of the influence of mental, co-operating with and aiding muscular, activity, must be familiar to every one; but as the principle on which they depend is not suffi- ciently attended to, I shall add a few additional remarks. Every body knows how wearisome and disagreeable it is to saunter along, without having some object to attain; and how listless and unprofitable a walk taken against the inclination and merely for exercise is, compared to the same exertion made in pursuit of an object on which we are intent. The difference is simply, that, in the former case, the muscles are obliged to work without that full nervous impulse which na- ture had decreed to be essential to their healthy and energetic action; and that, in the latter, the nervous impulse is in full and harmonious operation. The great superiority of active sports, botanical and geological excursions, gardening and turning, as means of exercise, over mere measured movements, is referable to the same principle. Every kind of youthful play and mechanical operation interests and excites the mind, as well as occupies the body; and by thus placing the muscles in the best position for wholesome and beneficial exertion, en- ables them to act without fatigue, for a length of time which, if occupied in mere walking for exercise/would utterly exhaust their powers. The elastic spring, bright eye, and cheerful glow of beings thus excited, form a perfect contrast to the spiritless and inani- mate aspect of many of our boarding-school processions; and the results in point of health and activity are not less different. So influential, indeed, is the nervous stimulus, that examples have occurred of strong mental emotions having instantaneously given life and vigour to paralytic limbs. This has happened in cases of shipwrecks, fires, and sea-fights, and shows how in- dispensable it is to have the mind engaged and interested along with the muscles. Many a person who feels ready to drop from fatigue, after a merely mechanical walk, would have no diffi- culty in subsequently undergoing much continuous exertion in active play or in dancing; and it is absurd, therefore, to say that exercise is not beneficial, when in reality proper exercise has not been tried. The amount of bodily exertion of which soldiers are capable, is well known to be prodigiously increased by the mental sti- WITH MUSCULAR EXERCISE. 115 mulus of pursuit, of fighting, or of victory. In the retreat of the French from Moscow, for example, when no enemy was near, the soldiers became depressed in courage and enfeebled in body, and nearly sank to the earth through exhaustion and cold ; but no sooner did the report of the Russian guns sound in their ears, or the gleam of hostile bayonets flash in their eyes, than new life seemed to pervade them, and they wielded powerfully the arms which, a few moments before, they could scarcely drag along the ground. No sooner, however, was the enemy repulsed, and the nervous stimulus which animated their muscles withdrawn, than their feebleness returned. Dr. Sparrman, in like manner, after describing the fatigue and ex haustion which he and his party endured in their travels at the Cape, adds,—u yet, what even now appears to me a matter of wonder is, that as soon as we got a glimpse of the game, all this, languor left us in an instant." On the principle already men- tioned, this result is perfectly natural, and in strict harmony with what we observe in sportsmen, cricketers, golfers, skaters, and others, who, moved by a mental aim, are able to undergo a much greater amount of bodily labour than men of stronger muscular frames, actuated by no excitement of mind or vigor- ous nervous impulse. I have heard an intelligent engineer remark the astonishment often felt by country people, at find- nig him and his town companions, although more slightly made, withstand the fatigues and exposure of a day's survey- ing better than themselves; but, said he, they overlooked the fact, that our employment gives to the mind as well as to the body, a stimulus which they were entirely without, as their only object was to afford us bodily aid, when required, in drag- ging the chains or carrying our instruments.—The conversa- tion of a friend is, in the same way, a powerful alleviator of the fatigue of walking.* The same important principle was implied in the advice which the Spectator tells us was given by a physician to one * In choosing our occupation or profession, the principle illustrated above should never be lost sight of; because, when we like the occupation in which we are engaged, the mind as well as the body is impelled to action by a natural stimulus, and we are enabled to accomplish vastly more labour without fatigue than we otherwise could; besides, there is a constant flow of pleasure experienced in that occupation. To secure these desirable re- sults, our occupation should be chosen in harmony with our phrenological developements [Ed. Am. ed.] 116 EFFECTS OF EXERCISE ON THE MUSCLES. of the eastern kings, when he brought him a racket, and told him that the remedy was concealed in the handle, and could act upon him only by passing into the palms of his hands when engaged in playing with it—and that as soon as perspiration was induced, he might desist for the time, as that would be a proof of the medicine being received into the general system. The effect, we are told, was marvellous; and, looking to the principle just stated, to the cheerful nervous stimulus arising from the confident expectation of a cure, and to the consequent advantages of exercise thus judiciously managed, we have no reason to doubt that the fable is in perfect accordance with nature. The Story of an Englishman who conceived himself so ill as to be unable to stir, but who was prevailed upon by his medi- cal advisers to go down from London to consult an eminent physician at Inverness who did not exist, may serve as an other illustration. The stimulus of expecting the means of cure from the northern luminary, was sufficient to enable the patient not only to bear, but to reap benefit from, the exertion of making the journey down; and his wrath at finding no such person at Inverness, and perceiving that he had been tricked, sustained him in returning, so that on his arrival at home he was nearly cured. Hence also the superiority of battledore and shuttlecock, and similar games, which require society and some mental stimulus, over listless exercise. It is, in fact, a positive misnomer to call a solemn procession exercise. Nature will not be cheated; and the healthful results of complete cheerful ex- ertion will never be obtained where the nervous impulse which animates the muscles is denied. It must not, however, be supposed, that a walk simply for the sake of exercise, can never be beneficial. If a person be thoroughly satisfied that exercise is requisite, and perfectly willing, or rather desirous, to obey the call which demands it, he is from that very circumstance in a fit. state for deriving be- nefit from it, because the desire then becomes a sufficient nerv- ous impulse, and one in perfect harmony with the muscular action. It is only where a person goes to walk, either from a sense of duty or at the command of another, but against his own inclination, that exercise is comparatively useless.* * From my own experience 1 can state, that walks are highly beneficial even though taken merely for exercise; but, the charm thrown around EFFECTS OF EXERCISE ON THE MUSCLES. 117 The advantages of combining harmonious mental excite- ment with muscular activity, have not escaped the sagacity of the late Dr. Armstrong, who thus notices them in his frequently reprinted Poem on the Art of Preserving Health, but without giving the physiological explanation:—. —--------------------In whatever you sweat Indulge your taste. Some love the manly toils, The tennis some, and some the graceful dance ;* Others more hardy range the purple heath, Or naked stubble, where, from field to field, The sounding covies urge their lab'ring flight, Eager amid the rising cloud to pour The gun's unerring thunder; and there are Whom still the mead of the green archer charm. He chooses best whose labour entertains His vacant fancy most; The toil you hate Fatigues you soon, and scarce improves tour limbs. Book III. This constitution of Nature, whereby a mental impulse is re- quired to direct and excite muscular action, points to the pro- priety of teaching the young to observe and examine the quali- ties and arrangements of external objects. The most pleasing and healthful exercise may be thus secured,'and every step be made to add to useful knowledge and to individual enjoyment. to make them so, is the delight experienced in the surrounding scenery, the beautiful park,—or, the opportunity they afford for reflection. Thus the muscular action is aided by a mental impulse, and both the mind and the body are brought into agreeable and healthful exercise together. Still, this is only in illustration of the truth of the principle stated by our author. [Ed. Am. ed.] * Many good people consider dancing a most pernicious practice. But it is nevertheless a more beneficial exercise or recreation than almost any other in use. It is, moreover, so pleasurable that the practice cannot be broken up. Young people will continue to dance, and therefore the efforts of the religious should be turned to improving the associations connected with this beneficial amusement, rather than to the abolition of the custom itself. We are fully of opinion, that country balls, and probably city balls loo, are highly injurious, not on account of the dancing, but on account of the modes of dress, drinking wine, and other improper customs connected with them. Do away the evils too generally connected with it, but let the good remain; and let our city belles, and village exquisites, who, being too good to work, and therefore take but little exercise, suffering all the con- sequences attending inaction,«have at least this exercise, unassociated with the disreputable or injurious customs of fashion. [Ed. Am. ed.] 118 EFFECTS OF EXERCISE ON THE MUSCLES. The botanist, the geologist, and the natural historian, expe- rience pleasures in their walks and rambles, of which, from disuse of their eyes and observing powers, the multitude is de- prived. This truth is acted upon by many teachers in Ger- many. In our own country, too, it is beginning to be felt, and one of the professed objects of Infant education is to correct the omission. It must not, however, be supposed that any kind of mental activity will give the necessary stimulus to muscular action, and that, in walking, it will do equally well to read a book or carry on a train of abstract thinking, as to seek the ne- cessary nervous stimulus in picking up plants, hammering rocks, or engaging in games. This were a great mistake ; for in such cases the nervous impulse is opposed rather than favourable to muscular action. Ready and pleasant mental activity, like that which accompanies easy conversation with a friend, is indeed beneficial by diffusing a gentle stimulus over the nervous system; and it may be laid down as a genera] rule that any agreeable employment of the mind that does not require a considerable effort of attention adds to the advantages of muscular exercise : but wherever the mind is absorbed in reading or in abstract speculation, the muscles are drained as it were of their nervous energy by reason of the great exhaus- tion of it by the brain ; the active will to set them in motion is proportionally weakened, and their action is reduced to that inanimate kind I have already condemned as almost useless. For true and beneficial exercise, there must in cases where the mind is seriously occupied, be harmony of action between the moving power and the part to be moved. The will and the mus- cles must be both directed to the same end at the same time, other- wise the effect will be imperfect. The force exerted by strong muscles, animated by strong nervous impulse or will, is prodi- giously greater than when the impulse is weak; and as man was made not to do two things well at once, but to direct his whole powers to the one thing he is performing at the time, he has ever excelled most when he has followed this law of his nature. When a physician urges the necessity of exercise, it is very usual for him to be told by persons of an indolent or sedentary habit, that even a short walk fatigues them so much as to ren- der them unfit for every thing for some days after, and that they are never so well as when allowed^ to remain in the house. But if, in perfect reliance on the regularity of the Creator's EFFECTS OF EXERCISE ON THE MUSCLES. 119 laws, we seek out the cause of this apparent exception, we shall almost uniformly find, that instead of beginning with a degree of exertion proportioned to the weakened state of the system, such persons have (under the notion that it was not worth while to go out for a short time) forced their muscles, already weakened by inactivity and confinement, to perform a walk to which only regularly exercised muscles were adequate. The amount of exertion which is always followed by exhaustion ' is thus, through mere impatience and ignorance, substituted for that lesser degree which always gives strength; and be- cause the former is followed by headach and debility, it is ar- gued that the latter also must be prejudicial! Many sensible people delude themselves by such puerile plausibilities as this; and it is only by the diffusion of a knowledge of the laws of exercise as part of a useful education, that individuals can be enabled to avoid such mistakes. The effects of exercise upon the organs employed are very remarkable, and useful to be known. When any living part is called into activity, the processes of waste and renovation, which are incessantly going on in every part of the body, pro- ceed with greater rapidity, and in due proportion to each other. At the same time the vessels and nerves become excited to higher action, and the supply of arterial or nutritive blood and of nervous energy become greater. When the active ex- ercise ceases, the excitement thus given to the vital functions subsides, and the vessels and nerves return at length to their original state. If the exercise be resumed frequently, and at moderate inter- vals, the increased action of the bloodvessels and nerves be- comes more permanent, and does not sink to the same low de- gree as formerly; nutrition rather exceeds waste, and the part gains consequently in size, vigour, and activity. But if the ex- ercise be resumed too often, or be carried too far, so as to fa- tigue and exhaust the vital powers of the part, the results be- come reversed : waste then exceeds nutrition, and a loss of vo- lume and power takes place, accompanied with a painful sense of exhaustion and fatigue. When, on the other hand, exer- cise is altogether refrained from, the vital functions decay from the want of their requisite stimulus; little blood is sent to the part, and nutrition and strength fail in equal proportion. A limb which has been long in disuse becomes weak and shrivel- led from this cause, and its muscles present an unusual pale- 120 RULES FOR MUSCULAR EXERCISE. ness and flabbiness, strongly contrasting with the florid redness and rigid fulness of the muscles of a well exercised limb. Even sensation gives faithful notice of these changes, and therefore serves as a guide to exercise. vVhen muscular em- ployment is neglected, the body becomes weak, dull, and unfit for powerful efforts, and all the functions languish. When ex- ercise is taken regularly and in due proportion, a grateful sense of activity and comfort prevails, and we feel ourselves fit for every duty, both mental and bodily. Lastly, when we are subjected to excessive exertion, a painful sense of weariness and exhaustion ensues, which is not relieved by rest, and which for a long time prevents sleep. A person who has greatly over-fatigued himself in walking, for example, is feeble and restless; and, on lying down, either cannot sleep at all, and rises in the morning weak in body and languid in mind, or has uneasy and disturbed sleep till the exhaustion is partially re- covered from, after which he may enjoy sound refreshing repose. / From this exposition of the effects of exercise in its different stages, it becomes easy to deduce rules applicable to all, for promoting the healthy development of the muscular system, and to trace the errors by which indolent people are accustom- ed to maintain that exercise is hurtful to their constitutions. The second stage of exercise, or that in which, by its frequency, moderation, and regularity, nutrition and vigour are preserved at their highest pitch, is of course to be aimed at; but the quantity of exercise which corresponds to it, must vary according to the constitution and previous habits of the individual, as is well exemplified in training for pedestrian feats, for the ring, and for racing. The assertion made by many, that exercise hurts them, arises entirely from overlooking this circumstance. A person, accustomed to daily activity, will feel invigorated by a walk of four or five miles in the open air, whereas the same distance will weaken another, who has not been in the habit of walking at all." But instead of inferring from this, a? is often done, that exercise in the open air is positively hurt- ful to the latter, reason and experience coincide in telling us, that he has erred only in over-tasking the powers of his system, and that to acquire strength and activity, he ought to have be- gun with one mile, and to have gradually extended his walk in proportion as the muscles became invigorated by the in- creased nutrition consequent on well regulated exercise A MENTAL AND MUSCULAR EXERCISE. 121 person recovering from fever begins by walking across his room perhaps ten times a day, and gradually extends to twenty or thirty times, till he gains strength to go into the open air. On going out, a walk of ten minutes proves sufficient for him at first; but by degrees his strength and flesh increase, and his exercise is prolonged till he arrives at his usual standard. Such is the order Nature ; but many sedentary people have no patience for such slow progress, and when urged to take exer- cise, they grudge the trouble of going out for a short time, and ihink that, if a walk of half a mile does them good, one of a whole mile will do more ; and when they suffer from the error, rhey shelter their ignorance under the general assumption that exercise does not agree with them! And the same persons who argue thus, would think themselves entitled to laugh at the Irishman, who, finding himself relieved by five pills taken at night, inferred that he would necessarily be cured if he took the whole boxful at once, and on doing so narrowly escaped with his life. From these principles it follows, first, that, to be beneficial, exercise ought always to be proportioned to the strength and constitution, and not carried beyond the point, easily discover- able by experience, at which waste begins to succeed nutrition, and exhaustion to take the place of strength; secondly, that it ought to be regularly resumed after a sufficient interval of rest, in order to insure the permanence of the healthy impulse given to the vital powers of the muscular system; and, lastly, that it is of the utmost consequence to join with it a mental and nervous stimulus. Those who go out only once in four or five days, are always, at work but never advancing; for the in- creased action induced by the previous exercise, has fully sub- sided long before the succeeding effort is begun; and so far as increased nutrition, strength, and greater aptitude for exertion are concerned, no progress whatever is made. 11 CHAPTER V. EFFECTS OF, AND RULES FOR, MUSCULAR EXERCISE. Effects of Muscular Exercise on the principal functions of the body explained.— Shampooing a substitute for exercise.—Evils of deficient exercise.—Best time for taking exercise.—Always to be taken in the open air.—Different kinds— Walking— Riding—Dancing — Gymnastics — Fencing— Shuttlecock — Reading aloud.—Case illustrative of the principles of exercise.—Involuntary Muscles. We have seen that exercise is necessary for developing and improving the health of the muscular system; but it still re- mains for us to explain how it acts in imparting tone and strength to the rest of the body, and to mention the circum- stances by which its employment ought to be regulated. Man being intended for a life of activity, all his functions are constituted by Nature to fit him for this object, and they never go on so successfully as when his external situation is such as to demand the regular exercise of all his orgaws. It is, accord- ingly, curious to observe the admirable manner in which each is linked in its action and sympathies with the rest. When the muscular system, for example, is duly exercised, increased action in its vessels and nerves takes place, as already ob- served ; but the effect is not by any means limited to the mere organs of motion. The principal bloodvessels in all parts of the body lie embedded among muscles, both for the protection and for the aid which the latter afford them. Every contrac- tion of the muscles compresses and lessens the diameter of the vessels; and as the blood contained in them cannot retrograde in its course, it is propelled in the arteries from the heart to- wards the extreme parts, and in the veins from the latter to- wards the heart, with greater force and velocity than before. BENEFICIAL EFFECTS OF MUSCULAR EXERCISE. 123 This will be better understood on examining the annexed engraving of the bloodvessels of the arm, copied from Fyfe's Anatomy. The letters A, B, C, D, E, represent the principal muscles of the arm, and F, G, H, I, K, M, N, those of the forearm; though, as the preparation is dried, and the muscles consequently much shrunk, they do not appear in their natural situation. The letters in italics point out the humeral artery, which is seen dividing at the elbow into two branches. The-one called the radial artery passes on the outer side of the forearm towards the thumb, and is the branch in which the pulse is generally felt; the other called the ulnar, passes along the inner side of the forearm. In the natural state, these bloodvessels are covered and protected in almost their whole course by the adjacent muscles. In conse- quence of this position, the muscles cannot con- tract without at the same time compressing the bloodvessels, and propelling their contents; for, as we saw in a former chapter, the muscles swell out laterally at every con- traction. The assistance afforded to the circulation of the blood by this arrangement is familiarly exemplified in the operation of bloodletting from the arm. WTien the blood stops or flows slowly, it is customary to put a ball or other hard body into the hand of the patient, and desire him to squeeze and turn it round. The utility of this depends simply on the muscles of the arm compressing the interjacent bloodvessels and forcing onwards the current of the contained blood by their successive contractions. Muscular action is, indeed, one of the powers provided for effecting a regular circulation; and hence when its assistance is neglected, as it is by those who take no active exercise, the blood begins to flow less freely, till at last it finds some difficulty in returning against the law of gravitation from the lower extremities, which then gradually swell. People engaged for years in sedentary professions, are thus very sub- ject to varicose or dilated veins, and swelled feet. The chain of connection among all the living functions is nowhere more visible than in this relation between muscular exercise and the circulation of the blood. Motion requires the presence of arterial blood, and, in the case of the muscles, the 124 EFFECTS OF MUSCULAR EXERCISE. very circumstance of their being active favours the circulation and increases the supply. This increase, in its turn, enables the parts to which it is sent to act with greater energy and ef- fect, and the augmented action is attended by corresponding waste and exhalation, and proportionate nutrition of the parts. To replenish the blood thus exhausted of its nutritive prin- ciple, a greater quantity of food is required; and, to prompt us to attend to this condition, the appetite becomes keener and more imperative, and the power of digestion proportionally vigorous. The food taken is more speedily converted into chyle, and its absorption from the surface of the intestines and transmission into the circulating current more rapid. That the blood so improved may be properly and quickly animalised in the laboratory of the lungs, respiration becomes deeper and more frequent, thus admitting a larger quantity of air and freer circulation through them than before; and the blood in this way renewed and re-endowed with the pabulum of life, im- parts fresh nutriment and vigour to all the organs of the body, and fits them for that active exertion which the proper dis- charge of his duties imperatively requires from every member of the human race. Considered in this point of view, the hurried breathing and quickened circulation, of which we are so apt to complain when engaged in muscular exercise, instead of being evils, are, in fact, the beneficent means by which we become fitted to continue the exertion. Without a more than usually rapid flow of blood to the part in use, the necessary stimulus to its vessels and nerves could not take place, and its action could not be sustained. But were the bloodvessels not so situated among the muscles as to have their contents propelled more quickly by the compression to which every muscular contrac- tion necessarily subjects them, it is obvious that no increase of circulation could take place. And if respiration, on the other hand, were not to be accelerated, so as to oxygenate the venous blood more quickly as it arrived at the lungs, it is ob- vious that the requisite stimulus must again have failed ; as, in that case, the blood must either have accumulated in the lungs and caused death, or have passed through them imper- fectly prepared, and extinguished life more slowly, but not less certainly, It is from this effect of muscular compression in promoting the flow of blood through the arteries and veins, that shampoo- EVILS OF DEFICIENT EXERCISE. 125 ing, which consists in a kind of kneading of the flesh, is so successfully resorted to in the warm climates of the east, and among the richer class of invalids in our own country, as a substitute for active exercise. Shampooing furnishes from without that impulse to the circulation which the Creator has destined it to receive from active muscular exertion; 'and the principle of its action being the same, we cannot wonder that it should prove indisputably useful in promoting circulation, strength, and nutrition, in cases where active exercise cannot be enjoyed. Hence also its utility in dispersing indolent swell- ings, in restoring tone to weakened joints, and in the cure of rheumatism. It is a common observation, that sedentary persons are ha- bitually subject to costiveness and its attendant evils. The reason is the same. In the natural state, the contents of the bowels are propelled partly by the successive contractions of the muscles which form the walls of the belly and separate that cavity from the chest, and partly by the contraction of the muscular fibres which constitute an important part of the structure of the intestines themselves. If, however, exercise be refrained from, and the same position be preserved for many hours a day, as in sitting at a desk, the bowels are necessarily deprived of one important source of power; and, thus weak- ened, they are unable to act upon and propel their contents with the same regularity as when assisted by exercise. A slowness of action ensues, which no course of medicine, and scarcely any modification of diet, can overcome, so long as sedentary habits are indulged in; but which also may often be relieved by daily pressing over the region of the abdomen, with a kind of kneading motion, imitating, though feebly, the effects of muscular action. Females suffer much from intesti- nal debility caused by sedentary habits. The evils arising from deficiency of exercise to all the func- tions of the mind and body will now be equally evident and intelligible, for they are the converse of what have seen to be the advantages of adequate exercise. The circulation, from want of stimulus, becomes languid, especially in the extreme vessels; the feebleness of action occasions little waste of ma- terials, and little demand for a new supply; the appetite and digestion consequently become weak,—respuation heavy and imperfect,—and the blood so ill conditioned, that, when dis- tributed through the body, it proves inadequate to communi- 126 BEST TIME FOR TAKING EXERCISE. cate the stimulus requisite for heathy and vigorous action. The concatenation of causes and consequences thus exhibited, cannot fail, when the principle connecting them is perceived, to interest and instruct every thinking mind. The time at which exercise ought to be taken, is of some con- sequence in obtaining from it beneficial results. Those who are in perfect health may engage in it at almost any hour, ex- cept immediately after a full meal; but those who are not ro- bust, ought to confine their hours of exercise within narrower limits. To a person in full vigour, a good walk in the country before breakfast may be highly beneficial and exhilarating; while to an invalid or delicate person, it will prove more detri- mental than useful, and will induce a sense of weariness which will spoil the pleasure of the whole day. Many are deceived by the current poetical praises of the freshness of morning, and hurt themselves in summer by seeking health in untimely pro- menades. In order to prove beneficial, exercise must be resorted to only when the system is sufficiently vigorous to be able to meet it. This is the case after a lapse of from two to four or five hours after a moderate meal, and consequently the forenoon is the best time. If exercise be delayed till some degree of exhaustion from the want of food has occurred, it speedily dis- sipates instead of increases the strength which remains, and impairs rather than promotes digestion. The result is quite natural; for exercise of every kind causes increased action and waste in the organ, and if there be not materials and vigour enough in the general system to keep up that action and sup- ply the waste, nothing but increased debility can reasonably be expected. For the same reason, exercise immediately before meals, un- less of a very gentle description, is injurious, and an interval of rest ought always to intervene. Muscular action causes an afflux of blood and nervous energy to the surface and extremi- ties, and if food be swallowed whenever the activity ceases, and before time has been allowed for a different distribution of the vital powers to take place, the stomach is taken at disad- vantage, and from want of the necessary action in its vessels and nerves, is unable to carry on digestion with success. This is very obviously the case where the exercise has been severe or protracted, and the consequence is so well known, that it is BEST TIME FOR TAKING EXERCISE. 127 an invariable rule in the management of horses, never to feed them immediately after work, but always to allow them an in- terval of rest proportioned to the previous labour. " Eat not," therefore, " until you be fully reduced to that temper and mo- derate heat as when you began, and when the spirits are re- * tired to their proper stations."* Even instinct would lead to this conduct, for appetite revives after repose. Active exercise ought to be equally avoided immediately after a heavy meal. In such circumstances, the functions of the digestive organs are in the highest state of activity; and if the muscular system be then called into considerable action, the withdrawal of the vital stimuli of the blood and nervous in- fluence from the stomach to the extremities, is sufficient almost to stop the digestive process. This is no supposition, but de- monstrated fact; and accordingly, there is a national and marked aversion to active pursuits after a full meal. In a dog, which had hunted for an hour or two directly after eating, di- gestion was found on dissection to have scarcely begun; while in another dog, fed at the same time, and left at home, diges- tion was nearly completed. A mere stroll which requires no exertion, and does not fa- tigue, will not be injurious before or after eating; but exercise beyond this limit is at such times hurtful. All, therefore, whose object is to improve or preserve health, and whose oc- cupations are in their own power, ought to arrange these, so as to observe faithfully this important law, for they will .other- wise deprive themselves of most of the benefits resulting from exercise. When we know that we shall be forced to exertion soon after eating, we ought to make a very moderate meal, in order to avoid setting the stomach and muscles at variance with each other, and exciting feverish disturbance. In travelling by a stage-coach, where no repose is allowed, this precaution is in- valuable. If we eat heartly as appetite suggests, and then enter the coach, restlessness, flushing, and fatigue are inevita- ble ; whereas, by eating sparingly, the journey may be con- tinued for two or three days and nights, with less weariness than is felt during one-fourth of the time under fulMeeding. I observed this when travelling as an invalid on rather low diet, and was surprised to find myself less fatigued at the end of * Maynwaringe, p. 141. 128 BEST TIME FOR TAKING EXERCISE. seventy-two hours, than I had previously been, when in health and living fully, with half the journey; and I have heard the same remark made by others, also from experience. It is the custom in many families and schools, apparently for the purpose of saving time, to take young people out to walk about the close of the day, because there is not light enough to do any thing in the house. Nothing can be more injudicious than this plan—for, in the first place, exercise once a day is very insufficient for the young, and even supposing that it were enough, the air is then more loaded with moisture, colder, and proportionably more unhealthy, than at any other time; and, secondly, the absence of the beneficial stimulus of the solar light, diminishes not a little its invigorating influence. For those, consequently, who are so little out of doors, as the inmates of boarding-schools and children living in towns, and who are all at the period of growth, the very best times of the day ought to be chosen for exercise, particularly as in-door occupations are, after nightfall, more in accordance with the order of nature. By devoting part of the forenoon to exercise, another obvious advantage is gained. If the weather prove unfavourable at an early hour, it may clear up in time to admit of going out later in the day ; whereas, if the afternoon alone be allotted to exer- cise, and the weather then proves bad, the day is altogether lost. In winter, indeed, it is not unusual for girls to be thus confined from Sunday to Sunday, simply because the weather is rainy at the regular hour of going out. When the muscular system is duly exercised in the open air early in the day, the power of mental application is considerably increased; while by delay- ing till late, the efficiency of the whole previous mental labour is diminished by the restless craving for motion which is evinced by the young of all animals, and which, when unsa- tisfied, distracts attention, and leads to idleness in school. It would be well to copy in this respect the practice adopted in the infant schools, where the children are turned out to play a few minutes, as soon as the wandering of mind and restless- ness of body indicate that the one has been too much and the other too liftle exerted. After such an interval, work goes on briskly again, and every one is alive. To render exercise as beneficial as possible, particularly in educating the young, It ought always to be taken in the open air, and to be of a nature to occupy the mind as well as the BEST KINDS OF EXERCISE. 129 body. Gardening, hoeing, social play, and active sports of every kind, cricket, bowls, shuttlecock, the ball, archery, quoits, hide and seek, and similar occupations and recreations well known to the young, are infinitely preferable to regular and unmeaning walks, and tend in a much higher degree to develope and strengthen the bodily frame, and to secure a straight spine and an erect and firm but easy and graceful carriage. A formal walk is odious and useless to many girls who would be delighted and benefited by spending three or four hours a day in spirited exercise and useful employment. Let those mothers, who are afraid to trust to Nature for strengthening and developing the limbs and spines of their daughters, attend to facts, and their fears will vanish. It is notorious that a majority of those girls, who, in opposition to the laws of Nature, are encased in stays, and get insufficient exercise, become deformed; an occurrence which is, on the other hand, comparatively rare in boys, who are left, in con- formity with the designs of Nature, to acquire strength and symmetry from free and unrestricted muscular action. In a seminary for young ladies, for example, containing forty pu pils, it was discovered on examination, by Dr. Forbes, that only two out of those who had been resident in it for two years had straight spines; while out of an equal number of boys, imperfect as their exercise often is, it would be difficult to dis- cover as many whose spines were not straight. Here, then, is ample proof, that stays and absence of exercise, so far from contributing to an elegant carriage, are directly opposed to.its acquisition ; and that the absence of stays and indulgence in ex- ercise, even when not carried so far as the wants of the system require, instead of being hurtful to the spine, contribute pow- erfully to its strength and security. Yet such is the dominion of prejudice and habit, that, with these results meeting our obser- vation in every quarter, we continue to make as great a distinc- tion in the physical education of the two sexes in early life, as if they belonged to different orders of beings, and were con- structed on such opposite principles that what was to benefit the one must necessarily hurt the other. It is true that there are cases of disease in which the use of stays may be benefi- cially resorted to: but so far from sanctioning thftr general employment, such cases are sufficient to prove, that, like every other remedy, they aught to be used only under the di- rection of the medical attendant. 130 DIFFERENT KINDS OF EXERCISE. Were there any real difficulty in determining the best means of developing the body and preventing deformity, the comparison of savage with civilized man would at once remove it. Mr. Henry Marshall, in his late excellent work " On the Enlisting, the Discharging, and the Pensioning of Soldiers," states, that " lateral curvature of the spine is intimately connected with civilized life. In the male sex, it occurs more frequently among boys who study very closely, clerks, and persons who exercise sedentary trades. The agricultural peasant is seldom affected with it, and the tribes of people commonly denominated savage perhaps never. I have had good opportunities of ob- serving the form of the natives of India, and of the Malay islands, and I do not recollect having seen a single case of this deformity among them." P. 21. Mr. Marshall's testimony is strongly supported by an intelligent old author, who, in describing the Caribs 170 years ago, says, in a tone of regret, " They do not swaddle their infants, but leave them to tumble about at liberty in their little hammocks, or on beds of leaves spread on the earth in a corner of their huts; and neverthe- less their limbs do not become crooked, and their whole body is perfectly well made !" And again, " Although the little crea- tures are left to roll about on the ground in a state of nudity, they nevertheless grow marvellously well, and most of them become so robust as to be able to walk without support at six months old."* The naivete of this expression of surprise at the little Caribs grooving marvellously well with the assistance of Nature alone, and without the use of stays and bandages imported from Europe, is extremely amusing, and shows to what extent pre- judice and custom, once established, will continue to prevail, even where we have before our eyes the strongest evidence of their being hurtful. Our excellent author seems never to have allowed the thought to enter his head, that the Europeans produced the deformity by means of swaddling and bandages, and that the Caribs escaped it, simply by avoiding its causes, and giving liberty to both limbs #nd trunk of the body. It is mentioned of the Araucanian Indians, also, in Steven- son's narrative of Twenty Years' Residence in South America, that " the%hildren are never swaddled, nor their bodies con- fined by any tight clothing." " They are allowed to crawl about nearly naked until they can walk." " To the loose * Histoire Naturelle et Morale des Isles Antilles. Rotterdam, 1658. WALKING--PEDESTRIAN EXCURSIONS. 131 clothing," adds Mr. Stevenson, " which the children wear from their infancy, may.doubtless be attributed the total ab- sence of deformity among the Indians."—Vol. i. p. 9, 10. Different kinds of exercise suit different constitutions. The object, of course, is to employ all the muscles of the body, and to strengthen those especially which are too weak ; and hence exercise ought to be often varied, and always adapted to the peculiarities of individuals. Speaking generally, walking agrees well with every body, but as it brings into play chiefly the lower limbs and the muscles of the loins, and affords little scope for the play of the arms and muscles of the chest, it is insufficient of itself to constitute adequate exercise ; and hence the advantage of combining with it movements performed by the upper half of the body, as in rowing a boat, fencing, shut- tle-cock, and many other useful sports. Such exercises have the additional advantage of animating the mind, and, by in- creasing the nervous stimulus, making exertion easy, pleasant, and invigorating. Nature, indeed, has shown her intention that the upper part of the body should always partake in the exercise of the lower, by rendering it impossible for us even to walk gracefully without the arms keeping time, as it were, with the movements of the legs. Pedestrian excursions, in pursuit of mineralogical or botani- cal specimens, or in search of scenery, combine in their results all the advantages which well conducted exercise is capable of yielding, and are much resorted to in the German seminaries, for the purpose of developing the mental and bodily powers. On the Continent generally, more attention is paid to health in the education of the young than with us; and in many insti- tutions a regular system of useful manual occupation is substi- tuted for mere play, and with decided advantage. For not only is the physical organization thereby strengthened and develop- ed, but the mental energy and dignity of character are increased, and the mind becomes better fitted for independent action. Among the ancients the training and invigoration of the body formed a leading object in education; but physical strength having become of less importance in war since the invention of gunpowder, the moderns have too generally restricted their attention to the direct improvement of the mind. In summer, walking excursions to the Highlands of Scotland are common among the youth of our cities, and when propor- 132 EXAMPLES OF VIOLENT EXERCISE. tioned in extent to the constitution and previous habits of the individual, nothing can be more advantageous and delightful. But not a season passes in which health is not sacrificed and life lost by young men imprudently exceeding their natural powers, and undertaking journeys for which they are totally unfit. It is no unusual thing for youths, still weak from rapid growth, and perhaps accustomed to the desk, to set out in high spirits at the rate of twenty-five or thirty miles a day, on a walking excursion, and (in consequence of carrying exercise, for days in succession, to the third degree, or that in which waste exceeds nutrition) to come home so much worn out and debilitated that they never recover. Young soldiers, whose growth is scarcely finished, are well known to die in great numbers, when exposed to long and heavy marches, particu- larly when food is at the same time scanty. Violent exercise is not less pernicious, and, as well remarked by Dr. Johnson, " it did great harm even when nations were more in a state of nature than they now are. Galen, in his discourse on Thrasi- bulus, inveighs against the athletic practices of the gymna- sium. A smart walk of a mile is to a valetudinarian, what a furious wrestle would be to an athletic. If we trace those dreadful aneurismal affections of the heart and arteries in early life, we shall find their origins in violent exercise or sudden over-exertion, in nine cases out of ten, where age and ossi- fication are not concerned."* Even a single day of excessive fatigue will sometimes suffice to interrupt growth and. produce permanent bad health; and I know one instance of a young man, who brought on a severe illness and permanent debility, by sudden return to hard exercise for a single day, although some years before he had been accustomed to every species of muscular exertion in running, leaping, and swimming. Many young men hurry on the premature development of con- sumption by excessive fatigue during the shooting season, in cases where, by prudent management, they might have es- caped it for years, if not altogether. The principle already laid down, if not exceeding the point at which exercise pro- motes nutrition and increases strength, will serve as a safe guide on all occasions, and indicate the rate at which it may be ex- tended. Old sportsmen know the rule by experience, and generally prepare themselves for the moors by several weeks * Johnson on Derangement of the Liver, &c. p. 129. EXAMPLES OF VIOLENT EXERCISE. ' 133 of previous training. The science and judgment which fox- hunters display in preparing their horses for their future exer- tions in coursing are well known, and might be still more use- fully applied by their riders to the training of their own families. Since the above remarks appeared in the third edition of this volume, I have had occasion to examine carefully two young gentlemen, who, during their attendance at Cambridge, were in the habit of using very violent and continued exertion in rowing. In the one the muscles of the arm and upper part of the chest were of an almost unnatural size and hardness from excess of nutrition, while the rest of the body was only moderately developed. In the other there was no such dis- proportion, but there was a liability to palpitations and severe pain in the region of the heart, which, he said, were first brought on by excessive exertion. On cautioning him against the probable consequences of continuing such trials of strength as occurred during their frequent boat races, he told me, that in looking back to his own companions at College, he could name several dead within the last four years whose lives were distinctly ascertained to have been sacrificed in this way,—a fact strikingly corroborating Dr. Johnson's testimony, and which certainly ought to make a salutary impression in the minds of those who, in the pursuit of pleasure, rush so thought- lessly into danger. As the subject is one of much practical importance, I may add another melancholy but instructive example, with which a friend has funished me, of the operation of the principles just inculcated. He says, " A young gentleman, whom I knew, was employed as a clerk in one of the banks in Edinburgh. He was closely confined to his desk during the summer, and towards the end of July, had become weak and emaciated from deficient exercise in the open air. His strength continued to decline till Friday the 12th of August, when he went to shoot on Falkirk Moor. On Friday and Saturday he was much fa- tigued by excessive and unusual exertion, and on Sunday evening was feverish and heated, and perspired very much during the night. In this condition, he rose about three or four o'clock on Monday morning, and returned to Edinburgh on the top of a coach. When he reached home he felt very unwell, but went to the bank. At two o'clock he became so sick as to be unable to sit at his desk. He was then bled by a 134 RIDING ON HORSEBACK. medical gentleman, but without much effect; and after pass- ing three months in a feverish and sleepless condition, he died in the beginning of November. He was previously of a healthy constitution." It is more than probable that this young man's life became a sacrifice to his ignorance of the structure and functions of the human body. Riding is a most salubrious exercise, and, where the lungs are weak, possesses a great advantage over walking, as it does not hurry the breathing. It calls into more equal play all the muscles of the body, and, at the same time, engages the mind in the management of the animal, and exhilarates by the free contact of the air and more rapid change of scene. Even at a walking pace, a gentle but universal and constant action of the muscles is required to preserve the seat, and adapt the rider's position to the movements of the horse, and this kind of muscular action is extremely favourable to the proper and equal circulation of the blood through the extreme vessels, and to the prevention of its undue accumulation in the central or- gans. The gentleness of the action admits of its being kept up without accelerating respiration, and enables a delicate person to reap the combined advantages of the open air and proper exercise, for a much longer period than would other- wise be possible. From the tendency of riding to equalize the circulation, stimulate the skin, and promote the action of the bowels, it is also excellently adapted as an exercise for dyspeptic and nerv- ous invalids. Dancing is a cheerful and useful exercise, but has the dis- advantage of being used within doors, in confined air, and often in dusty rooms and at most unseasonable hours. Practised in the open air, and in the day time, as is common in France, dancing is certainly an invigorating pastime; but in heated rooms, and at late hours, it is the reverse, and often does more harm than good. Gymnastic and callisthenic exercises have been in vogue for some years, for the purpose of promoting muscular and gene- ral growth and strength, but they are now rather sinking in public estimation ; entirely, I believe, from over-looking the necessity of adapting the kind and extent of them not only to the individual constitution, but to the natural structure of the body; the consequence of which has been, that some of the more weakly pupils have been injured by exertions beyond GYMNASTICS. 135 their strength, and discredit has thus been brought upon the system. It is certain, indeed, that some of the common gym- nastic exercises are altogether unnatural and at variance with the design of the bodily organization; and that others are fit only for robust and healthy boys, and not at all for improving those who are delicately constituted, and who stand most in need of a well planned training. It is impossible to enter mi- nutely into this subject at present, but the best guide we can have is to follow the footsteps of Nature, and, before adopting any exercise, to consider whether it is in harmony with the mode of action assigned by the Creator to the parts which are to perform it.* If it be so, we may proceed with perfect con- fidence that it will not only improve the health, but add to the freedom, elegance, precision, and strength of our movements; whereas if it be opposed to the obvious intention of the Crea- tor, we may rest assured that no good can accrue from it. If, for example, we examine the various attitudes and mo- tions of the body which occur in fencing, dancing, swimming, shuttlecock-playing, and some of the better class of gymnastic exercises, we find that they are not less graceful and beneficial to the young who engage in them, than pleasing to those by whom they are witnessed,—just because they are in perfect harmony with Nature, or, in other words, with the structure and mode of action of the joints, ligaments, and muscles by which they are executed. But it is far otherwise with some of the anomalous exercises which were at one time so fashiona- ble, and which are not yet extinct in schools and gymnasia, •and which seem to have for their chief object the conversion of future men and women into foresters, firemen, or savages, rather than into beings who are to continue to have the use of stairs, ladders, carriages, steam-boats, and the other conve- niences of civilized life. It is no doubt a good thing for a boy * After all, there is no permanent exercise equal to manual labour, and labour for ourselves. We then feel that we are attaining a useful end, the fruits of which we shall reap. The mind is interested, and the opportunity thereby afforded for thinking is excellent. I verily believe that no other occupation is equal to that of agriculture, either for imparting physical strength, or for improving and expanding the intellect. It calls not one particular set of muscles into action to the neglect of others, (thereby in<- juring both,) but brings them all into nearly equal action; besides, re- quiring the exercise of nearly all the phrenological faculties. To leave the farm for the desk, and especially a city desk, savors of folly, unless the motive that prompts this step is powerful. 136 GYMNASTICS. to be able to climb up a perpendicular pole or a slippery rope, when no other means.present themselves of attaining an im- portant object at its upper end; and it is an equally good thing for a young lady to be able to sustain her own weight hanging by one or both hands, when there is no possibility of resting her feet on terra firma ; and where boys and girls are strong enough to take pleasure in such amusements, there is no great reason to hinder them, provided they are impelled to them, not by emulation or any secondary motive which may lead to over-exertion, but by the pure love of the exercise itself. In all ordinary circumstances, those only who are vigorously constituted will attempt them, and, if left to them- selves, will be sure to desist before any harm can be done. But the case is entirely altered when such extraordinary evo- lutions are not only encouraged but taught to all indiscrimi- nately, whether they be strong or weak, resolute or timid. We have only to reflect for a moment on the structure of the shoulder joint, and on the sphere of action of the muscles sur- rounding it, to perceive at once that the position of the one and the strain upon the other, caused by the exercises alluded to, are so forced and unnatural as to exclude the possibility of the Creator having intended either to be practised except upon occasions of urgent necessity, and to discover how preposter- ous it is, therefore, to make them a subject of general instruc- tion. Nay, the very violence of the effort required to sustain the body when hanging by the hands is far beyond that mode- rate exertion which adds to nutrition and to strength; and in delicate subjects it may even induce relaxation and stretching" of the ligaments and bloodvessels, and thus, as in the case of the young men at Cambridge, lay the foundation for future and fatal disease. The same remarks apply to a common practice of making the pupils slide down an inclined plane resting on the hands alone, by which unnatural effort the shoulders are pushed half way up the neck, and the wrists, arms, and chest severely tried. But in these and other similar evolutions, it requires only to look at the dragging and distor- tion which they produce, and which form such a painful con- trast to the ease and grace of all natural motions and attitudes, to perceive that they are out of the order of Nature, and that neither health nor elegance can result from them. I am aware that these exercises are said to stretch the spine and to remedy its deformities; but it would be quite as sound FENCING--DUMB-BELLS. 137 logic to maintain, that, because a broken leg requires to be tied up with splints and bandages, therefore the best way to strength- en a sound leg must be to bandage it also; as to infer, that, because a few diseased spines require to be stretched, therefore all healthy spines must also derive benefit from the same pro- cess,—although, in the latter case, it is obvious to reason that the stretching will be much likelier to put the bones out of their places than to fix them more firmly in those which they already occupy. It is not by such extravagant means that a soldier-like carriage is obtained in the army, and yet there the uniformity of result—the erect and steady gait—is scarcely less remarkable than the discordant materials and variety of slouch- ing and awkward attitudes out of which it is formed by perse- verance in a rational system of drilling. In the selecting of exercises for the young, then, we should not be misled by a vain desire of surmounting difficulties and performing feats at the serious risk of inducing aneurism or rupture, but rather endeavour to strengthen the body by active amusements, which shall call the social and moral feelings and intellect into play at the same time, and by the practice of such gymnastic evolutions only as tend to improve and give tone to the natural action of the moving powers. And in en- deavouring to attain this object, we should be always careful to avoid great fatigue, and to modify the kind, degree, and du- ration of the exercise, so as to produce the desired results of in- creased nutrition and strength; and to remember that the point at which these results are to be obtained, is not the same in any two individuals, and can be discovered only by experience and careful observation. For giving strength to the chest, fencing is a good exercise for boys, and what is called the club exercise for females; but the above limit ought never to be exceeded, as it often is, by measuring the length of a lesson by the hour-hand of a clock, instead of its effects on the constitution. Shuttlecock, as an exercise which calls into play the muscles of the chest, trunk, and arms, is also very beneficial, and would be still more so were it transferred to the open air. After a little practice it can be played with the left as easily as with the right hand and is, therefore, very useful in preventing curvature and giv- ing vigour to the spine in females. It is an excellent plan to play with battledore in each hand, and to strike with them alternately. The play called the graces is also well adapted 12 r 138 READING ALOUD. for expanding the chest, and giving strength to the muscles of the back, and has the advantage of being practicable in the open air. Dumb-bells are less in repute than they were some years ago, but when they are not too heavy, and the various move- ments gone through are not too eccentric or difficult, they are very useful. They do harm occasionally from their weight being disproportioned to the weak frames which use them; in which case they pull down the shoulders by dint of mere drag- ging. When this or any other exercise is resorted to in the house, the windows ought to be thrown open, so as to make the nearest possible approach to the external air. Reading aloud and recitation are more useful and invigorat- ing muscular exercises than is generally imagined, at least when managed with due regard to the natural powers of the individual, so as to avoid effort and fatigue. Both require the varied activity of most of the muscles of the trunk to a degree of which few are conscious, till their attention is turned to it. In forming and undulating the voice, not only the chest but also the diaphragm and abdominal muscles are in constant ac- tion, and communicate to the stomach and bowels a healthy and agreeable stimulus; and consequently, where the voice is raised and elocution rapid, as in many kinds of public speak- ing, the muscular effort comes to be even more fatiguing than the mental, especially to those who are unaccustomed to it, and hence the copious perspiration and bodily exhaus- tion of popular orators and preachers. When care is taken, however, not to carry reading aloud or reciting so far at one time as to excite the least sensation of soreness or fatigue in the chest, and it is duly repeated, it is extremely useful in developing and giving tone to the organs of respiration, and * I have been struck for years with the fact, that delivering an animated public lecture affords quite as much physical exertion, and is as promo- tive of digestion, as a rapid walk of equal length, and hence often resort to it as a means of health. The idea that public speaking is injurious in itself, is utterly groundless. On the contrary, it promotes health. Clergy- men, however, who speak three or more times on the Sabbath, and take but little exercise during the week, often are injured by it, simply because each effort is too violent, or too long continued, and the time between the weekly efforts entirely too long. And then, most speakers strain and over- exert themselves, particularly in the throat, by forming the voice with the bronchial organs mainly, and not employing also the muscles of the dia- phragm, and also by pitching the voice on too high a key. [Ed. Am. ed.] DIFFERENT KINDS OF EXERCISE. 139 to the general system.* To the invigorating effects of this kind of exercise, the celebrated and lamented Cuvier was in the habit of ascribing his own exemption from consump- tion, to which, at the time of his appointment to a Profes- sorship, it was believed he would otherwise have fallen a sacrifice. The exercise of lecturing gradually strengthened his lungs and improved his health so much that he was never afterwards threatened with any serious pulmonary disease.* But of course this happy result followed only because the ex- ertion of lecturing was not too great for the then existing con- dition of his lungs. Had the delicacy of which he complained been farther advanced, the fatigue of lecturing would only have accelerated his fate; and this must never be lost sight of in practically applying the rules of exercise. It appears, then, from the foregoing remarks, that the most perfect of all exercises are those sports which combine free play of all the muscles of the body, mental excitement, and the unrestrained use of the voice; and to such sports, accord- ingly, are the young so instinctively addicted, that nothing but the strictest vigilance and fear of punishment can deter them from engaging in them the moment the restraint of school is at end. Many parents, absorbed in their own pur- suits, forgetful of their own former experience, and ignorant that such are the benevolent dictates of Nature, abhor these wholesome outpourings of the juvenile voice, and lay restric- tions upon their children, which, by preventing the full de- velopment of the lungs and muscles, inflict permanent injury upon them in the very point where in this climate parents are most anxious- to protect them. In accordance with this, we find that what are called wild romping boys or girls, or those who break through all such restrictions, often turn out the strongest and healthiest; while those who submit generally become more delicate as they grow older. Enough has, I trust, been said to enable any rational parent * In my work on " Phrenology applied to Education and Self-Improve- ment," at p. 21, will be found similar remarks in reference to myself, and reading aloud prescribed as a means of strengthening weak lungs, and obviating a tendency to consumption. There is no doubt but that, if I had not commenced speaking in public, and examining in private, I should long ago have died of this complaint; and I find its habitual practice, if not indispensable in order to arrest the progress of this consumptive ten- dency, at least highly beneficial to health, and a powerful strengthener of the lungs. [Ed. Am. Ed.] 140 CASE OF EXCESSIVE EXERCISE. or teacher to determine the fitness of the different kinds of muscular exercise, and to adapt the time, manner, and degree of each to every individual under his care ; but before taking leave of the subject, and with a view to impress the more deeply upon the mind of the reader the practical importance of the principles inculcated in the preceding pages, I cannot refrain from subjoining a case which affords an extremely ap- posite illustration of almost every one of them. The particu- lars were furnished to me by a young friend who was allowed to peruse the manuscript of these pages, and who, as himself the subject of the case, was struck with the perfect accord- ance between his own experience and the doctrines here ex- pounded. It is proper to keep in view, that, at the time of his experiment, my friend was about seventeen years of age, and growing rapidly. I shall use nearly his own words. After having passed the winter, closely engaged in a seden- tary profession, and unaccustomed to much exercise, he was induced by the beauty of returning spring to dedicate a day to seeking enjoyment in a country excursion; and for that pur- pose set off one morning in the month of May, without pre- vious preparation, to walk to Haddington by way of North Berwick,—a distance of 34 miles. Being at the time entirely unacquainted with physiology, he was not aware that the power of exerting the muscles depended in any degree upon the previous mode of life, but thought that if a man were once able to walk thirty miles, he must necessarily continue to possess the same power, under all circumstances, while youth and health remained. The nervous stimulus arising from his escape from the desk, and from the expected delights of the excursion, carried him briskly and pleasantly over the •'-, ground for the first twelve miles, but then naturally began to decrease. Unfortunately, the next part of the road lay through a*4ull, monotonous, and sandy tract, presenting no object of interest to the mind, and no variety of any description; so thatKthe mental stimulus, already greatly impaired in inten- sity, became still weaker. Being alone his intellect and feel- ings could not be excited by the pleasure of companionship and conversation: weariness consequently increased at every step ; and long before his arrival at North Berwick (25 miles) 11 every vestige of enjoyment had disappeared, time seemed to move at a marvellously tardy pace, and every mile appeared doubled in length." CASE OF EXCESSIVE EXERCISE. 141 Not being aware that excessive exercise without a succeed- ing period of repose is unfavourable to digestion, and having a lively recollection of the pleasure and refreshment consequent upon eating a good dinner with an appetite whetted by a pro- per degree of bodily labour in the open air, he looked forward with confidence to some recompence and consolation for his toils when dinner should make its appearance. In this, how- ever, he was doubly disappointed; for from having started with too light a breakfast, and walked so far, his digestive or- gans were, in common with every part of his system, so much impaired, that he looked upon the viands placed before him almost without appetite; and as they were in themselves not remarkably nutritive or digestible, he infringed still further that condition of muscular action which consists in a full sup- ply of nourishing arterial blood, made from plenty of nutritious food,—a condition which I have stated to be essential, espe- cially in youth and during growth. After a rest of two hours, and taking a moderate allowance of wine, which, however, he says, " seemed to have lost its ancient virtue of imparting cheerfulness to the human heart," he set out to complete the remaining nine miles to Hadding- ton. The country was more beautiful and varied, but the charms of nature had, by this time, lost all attractions, for our pedestrian was " now wholly occupied in counting the tedious miles yet to be traversed, and in making a pious vow that this pleasure excursion, though not the first, should certainly be the last in his life." Being reduced to the utmost degree of ex- haustion, it required an extraordinary.effort to persevere ; but at last he arrived at Haddington, in a state of exquisite misery. Unable to read frorti fatigue, and having nobody to converse with, he sought refuge in bed at an early hour, in the expec- tation that " tired Nature's sweet restorer, balmy sleep," would visit his couch suad bring him relief. But in accordance with what is mentic&ed on page 120, he tossed and tumbled inces- santly till four in the morning, a period of seven hours, after which sleep ame on. Next day my youthful friend returned home in the atage-coach, wiser at least, if not happier, for his pleasure exsursion; and now makes the observation, that if he had been instructed in the least degree in the nature of the human constitution, he would never for a moment have enter- tained an expectation of enjoyment from a proceeding so utterly in defiance of all the laws of exercise, as that of which 142 INVOLUNTARY MUSCLES. he reaped the unpalatable fruits. He adds justly, that the number of young men who suffer in a similar way is by no means small, and that he has reason to be thankful that he has not, like some of his companions, carried his transgression so far as permanently to injure health, or even sacrifice life. My aim being practical utility, I have said nothing in this place on the subject of what are called the Involuntary Mus- cles, or those over which the will has no power, in contradis- tinction to the Voluntary, or those which obey the direction of the will. Most of the involuntary muscles are the agents of important vital functions, which are carried on by them uncon- sciously to ourselves, and which it would have been danger- ous to leave under our control. The chief of them is the heart. which goes on in one unvarying round of alternate contraction and relaxation, from the commencement till the close of ex- istence. The next in importance are those connected with respiration, which, like the heart, continue to act by night and by day for the whole period of a long life, without weariness and without interruption. The muscular fibres of the stomach, bowels, and other viscera, are excellent examples of the same class; and the beneficence of Providence in withdrawing them from our control cannot be sufficiently admired. Had the ac- tion of the heart and respiratory muscles depended on the will as that of the muscles of locomotion does, the circulation of the blood and the process of breathing would both have ceased whenever sleep or any other cause overcame the power of at- tention, and life would in consequence have been extinguished. From the different constitution of the voluntary and involun- tary muscles, it is clear that the former were designed for alter- nate activity and repose. Had it so pleased the Creator, He could as easily have rendered the one set of muscles incapable of fatigue, as he has actually rendered the other; but then the powers of man would not have been in harmony with the pur- pose of his existence. Incessant muscular activity would not only have been incompatible with the highest human enjoy- ment,—that arising from the gratification of the moral and in- tellectual faculties,—but it would have lacked objects on which to expend itself usefully, and, unguided by intellect, would only have served to overturn and destroy the best provisions of Nature for our happiness. CHAPTER VI. THE BONES, THEIR STRUCTURE, USES, AND CONDITIONS OF HEALTH. The bones essential to motion, and to the security of the vital organs.—The Ske- leton.—Bones are composed of animal and of earthy matter.—The animal part the seat of their vitality.—The proportions between these vary at different pe- riods of life.—Vessels, Nerves, life, growth, and decay of bones.—Advantages of their vitality and insensibility.—Their adaptation to contained parts.—Condi- tions of health.—Necessity of exercise. The hardness, strength, and insensibility, which form the distinguishing properties of healthy bones, fit them in a re- markable degree for serving as a basis of support to the softer and more active textures of the body. By their means, the human frame is enabled to unite the most finished symmetry of form, with the most perfect freedom of motion and security to life. Some of the bones, such as those which compose the skull and the socket for the eye, are designed exclusively for the protection of important organs contained within them. But by far the greater number are constructed with a direct reference to voluntary motion, and serve only incidentally the purposes of protection. In proportion to the variety of movements which any piece of mechanism is required to perform, its component parts^must be numerous and varied. Considered in this light, the animal frame is the most wonderful of all combinations of machinery. No production of art can be compared with it for the multi- plicity and nicety of its evolutions; and yet all these are exe- cuted simply by muscular power, acting upon the bones or other parts, and changing their relative positions. The incalculable variety of movements required from man, 144 DESCRIPTION OF THE SKELETON. is the reason why the bones composing the skeleton are so nu- merous, and each so admirably connected with the others by articulations, constructed so as to admit of precisely that kind of motion which the animal requires from it, and of no other. The advantages of this arrangement are not less obvious than admirable. Had the osseous frame-work consisted of one en- tire piece, not only would man and animals have been incapa- ble of motion, but every external shock would have been com- municated undiminished to the whole system. Whereas, by the division of its parts, and by the interposition of elastic car- tilages and ligaments at the joints, free and extensive motion is secured, and the impetus of every external shock is deadened in its force and diffused over the body, in the same way as, to a person riding in a carriage, the jolt of the wheel passing over a stone is diminished by being equally diffused over the whole vehicle, in consequence of the elasticity of the springs. The safety imparted by this arrangement to the delicate and important vital organs, is apt to be lost sight of, from the very smoothness with which it enables us to move along, but it will be perceived if we reflect on the shock given to the whole sys- tem by taking a single false step in going up or down stairs. The parts have then no time to adapt themselves to the exi- gencies of the moment, and to put the proper springs in play for the equal distribution of the impetus. Death has been oc- casioned by accidents of this kind. The fabric resulting from the connection of all these pieces in their natural order of arrangement, is called the Skeleton. When the connection is maintained by means of the ligaments which bound the pieces together during life, the whole is call- ed a natural skeleton; but if the place of the ligaments be supplied by wires, the skeleton is then said to be artificial. The bones entering into the composition of the human skele- ton, exceed 200 in number. Each is separated from, but inti- mately connected with, the rest; and of a shape, size, and construction in exact harmony with the kind and extent of motion which it is destined to exercise. Dry and uninviting as such a subject may seem at first sight, there are found nevertheless, on close examination, many points of inquiry both interesting and instructive, to which I shall briefly advert. The great divisions of the skeleton recognised by anatomists are the head, trunk, and extremities. The first is well known; the second includes the two great cavities, the thorax or chest, DESCRIPTION OF THE SKELETON. 145 and the abdomen or belly ;• and the third comprises the arms and legs, or upper and lower extremities. Each of these presents a structure beautifully adapted to the purposes for which it is destined. The head consists of the skull and bones of the face. The skull affords complete pro- tection to the brain from all ordinary accidents, and also to the organs of hearing, seeing, smelling, and tasting. Protection and not motion being the sole object of its construction, the numerous bones of which it is composed are joined to each other, not by moveable joints like other bones, but by a kind of dovetailing, which combines the solidity of continuous struc- ture with the advantages which their separation gives in facili- tating growth, and interrupting the extension to all, of the in- juries inflicted on one. The trunk, as will be seen from the annexed cut, consists of the spine a a, the ribs r r, the sternum x, and the pelvis s *. 146 DESCRIPTION OF THE SKELETON. The spine, vertebral column, or back-bone a a, which sup- ports all the upper parts, is a very remarkable piece of me- chanism. It is composed in all of twenty-four separate bones, called vertebra, from the Latin word vertere to turn, as the body turns upon them as on a pivot. Of these, seven, called cervical vertebrae, belong to the neck; twelve, connected with the ribs, and called dorsal, to the back; and five, called lum- bar, to the loins.. The base of the column rests on the sacrum w, which is closely compacted between the bones of the pelvis s s. The vertebrae are firmly bound to each other in such a way as to admit of flexion and extension and a certain degree of rotation, while, by their solidity and firm attachment to each other, great strength is secured. Some conception of this strength may be formed, when we consider the enormous loads which some athletic men are able to carry on their shoulders, or raise in their hands; the whole weight of which is necessa- rily borne by the vertebras of the loins. As the space occupied by the abdomen gives large outward dimensions to this region of the body, it is only upon reflection that we perceive that the whole force exerted by the human frame in its most strenu- ous efforts centres in the bony column we are now examining. While the smooth or rounded forepart or body of the verte- brae affords support to the superincumbent parts, the project- ing ridge behind, and rugged processes at the sides, combine with it to form a large tube or canal, extending from the top to the bottom of the column, and in which the spinal marrow is contained and protected. Between each of the vertebrae a thick compressible cushion of cartilage and ligament is inter- posed, which serves the triple purpose of uniting the bones to each other, of diminishing and diffusing shocks received in walking or leaping, and of admitting a greater extent of mo- tion than if the bones were in more immediate contact. The ribs r r, twelve in number on each side, are attached by their heads to the spine, and by their other (cartilaginous) extremities to the sternum or breast-bone x. The seven upper- most are called true ribs, because each of them is connected directly with the sternum, by means of a separate cartilage. The five lower ribs are called false, because one or two of them are loose at one end, and the cartilages of the rest run into each other, instead of being separately prolonged to the breast-bone. The use of the ribs is to form the cavity of the chest for,-tlje reception and protection of the lungs, heart, and DESCRIPTION OF THE SKELETON. 147 great bloodvessels, and to assist in respiration by their alternate rising and falling. This action enlarges and diminishes by turns the size of the chest and the capacity of the lungs. The pelvis s s, is formed by the broad flat bones which sup- port the bowels, and serve for the articulation of the thigh. A general notion of their appearance and uses may be obtained from inspection of the cut, which, however, does not represent with perfect accuracy the minuter structure. The bones of the upper extremities are, the scapula or shoul- der-blade ; the clavicle or collar-bone y ; the humerus or arm- bone b ; the radius d, and ulna e, or bones of the forearm; and the small carpal and metacarpal bones f and phalanges g, form- ing the wrist, hand, and fingers. The scapula is the broad flat bone lying at the upper part of the back, familiarly known as the shoulder-blade, and so trou- blesome to many young ladies by its unseemly projection. It serves to connect the arm with the trunk of the body, and gives origin to many of the muscles by which the former is put in motion. The collar-bone y, extends from the breast-bone out- wards to the scapula. Its chief use is to prevent the arms from falling forward in front of the body; and hence it is want- ing in the lower animals, whose superior extremities are much closer to each other than those of man. The humerus or arm-bone b is adapted by a kind of ball and socket joint to a corresponding surface in the scapula, and hence enjoys great latitude of motion, and, from the shallow- ness of the receptacle, is somewhat liable to dislocation. The radius and ulna d e constituting the forearm, are connected with the humerus by a hinge-like joint, which admits readily of flexion and extension, but not of rotation; and as the arti- culation is of a peculiar construction, it is rarely dislocated. The movements of pronation and supination, or turning round the hand, are effected, not by the elbow joint, but by the ra- dius d moving upon the ulna e, by means of joints formed for this purpose. The wrist and finger-joints are too complicated to admit of explanation here. The lower extremities consist of the osfemoris or thigh-bone i ; the patella or knee-pan I; the tibia m, and fibula n, or leg bones; and the tarsal and metatarsal bones o, and phalanges p, composing the ancle, foot, and toes. The thigh-bone i is articulated by means of a large round head deeply sunk into a corresponding hollow in the pelvis at 148 COMPOSITION OF BONES. h ; freedom of motion being thus combined with great secur ity. The thigh may be moved backwards and forwards as in walk- ing ; and also outwards and inwards, as when sitting on horse- back, or with the legs crossed. The socket being much deeper than that of the shoulder-joint, the thigh-bone has not the same range of motion as the humerus, but it has proportionally greater security. The patella or knee-pan I is well known. It is a small bone constituting the projection of the knee. It increases the power of the muscles which extend the leg, and protects the front of the knee-joint. The tibia m. is the principal bone of the leg, and is the only one articulated with that of the thigh. Its lower end forms the projection at the inner ancle. The fibula n is the long slender bone at the outer side of the leg, the lower end of which forms the outer ancle. The tibia and fibula both contribute to the formation of the ancle-joint, which, like that of the knee, is almost limited to flexion and extension. The tarsal bones constituting the foot display an admirable mechanism, but without plates any description of them would be unintelligible. My present aim being practical utility, I shall, therefore, pass over these details, and rather lay before the reader several considerations of a more general and directly useful nature. Bones consist of two kinds of substances, viz. those of an animal, and those of an earthy, nature. To the former be- longs every thing connected with the life and growth of bones, and to the latter the hardness and power of resistance by which they are characterised. The animal portion of bones constitutes, according to the analysis of Berzelius, about 32. 17 per cent, of their substance, and consists chiefly of albumen, gelatine, cellular membrane, bloodvessels, nerves, and absorbents. Of the remaining 67 per cent, of earthy matter, nearly 52 parts consist of phosphate, and 11 of carbonate, of lime. The relative proportions of the animal and earthy constituents vary, however, according to the period of life. In infancy, the animal portion greatly predo- minates, and consequently the bones are at that age compara- tively soft, yielding, and elastic. In middle life, the portions are more equally balanced, and while the bones thereby ac- quire greatJprdhess and solidity, they still preserve some elas- ticity. Infold age, on the contrary, when the earthy constitu* GROWTH OF BONES. 149 ents predominate, they become dry, brittle, and comparatively lifeless. If a bone be subjected for a time to the action of muriatic acid, the earthy portion is gradually decomposed, and a carti- laginous-looking substance of the exact shape and size of the bone is procured, which is in reality its animal constituent. If, on the other hand, the bone be subjected to the action of fire, which decomposes and dissipates the animal elements, but scarcely affects the earths, a white, light, easily crumbled mass, of the shape and appearance of the original bone, is pro- cured, which is simply the earthy part of bone, deprived of its connecting membrane. The latter is called the animal constituent of the bone, because it is the product of animal life, and does not exist in nature, except in the system of ani- mals; and the former is called the earthy constituent, because it may and does exist in nature, without relation to life. A very important purpose is served by the different propor- tions which the animal elements of bone bear to the earthy, at different ages. In early youth when much strength is not wanted, as the body is never exposed to severe efforts, but when a great growth of bone is required to complete the de- velopment of the human frame, the animal or living part of the bone is observed to preponderate. But in middle life, when growth is finished, and the powers of resistance are at their maximum, and when nutrition is required only to repair waste, a larger proportion of the solid or earthy, and a small- er proportion of the vital constituents, become necessary. In old age, again, when the wants of the system are re- versed, and when positive diminution of existing masses is required to put the frame into harmony with the shrunk mus- cles and feebler powers of life, the absorbent vessels carry away more of the vital matter, leaving chiefly the earthy, which, being less susceptible of change, requires scarcely any support from within; and hence the brittle and compact hard- ness of the bones, and their little capability of uniting when fracture happens at an advanced period of life. At birth many of the bones are, properly speaking, of a car- tilaginous nature. As ossification advances, the cartilage is re- moved by the absorbents, and its place supplied by a kind of cellular membrance, in the interstices of which the earthy particles are deposited; the two forming, by their union, the homogeneous whole called Bone. Although, therefore, it is to 150 ADVANTAGES OF VITALITY IN BONES. the softer material alone that vital properties essentially belong, it is usual to speak of the life, the vessels, and the nerves of bones, as if life belonged equally to the earthy and animal portions. This is correct enough in reality, because the union between the earthy and animal tissues is always the product of life ; and the parts thus united are, to all intents and purposes, living parts. To carry on the processes of waste and renovation, by which every living structure is distinguished, all parts of the body are provided, 1st, with arteries conveying to them red or nutri- tive blood ; 2dly, with exhalants, by which the new matter is deposited, and which are believed to be the minute termina- tions of the arteries; 3dly, with veins by which the blood is carried back to the heart; 4thly, with absorbent vessels, which take up and carry away the waste particles to be thrown out of the system; and, lastly, with nerves to supply all these vessels and the organs on which they are distributed, with that nervous energy which is essential to their vitality, and to their connection with other parts of the system. The bones, insen- sible as they may seem, possess all these attributes of living and organized parts. They are all provided with bloodvessels, with nerves, and with exhaling and absorbing vessels; and they are constantly undergoing the same process of decay and of renovation, to which all" atljer living parts are subjected. That bones are provided wilh bloodvessels, is shown by the fact, that anatomists are able to trace these vessels into their substance, and to inject those of a young subject with wax, so minutely as to make the bones appear of a lively red colour. That they are provided also with nerves, is evident, both from dissection and from the effects of injuries and disease. A healthy bone may be cut or sawn across without causing pain, but when the same bone becomes inflamed, the most excruci- ating torture is felt. And, as sensation is the exclusive attri- bute of the nervous system, this fact alone would authorize us to assume their existence, even although nervous fibres could not be traced entering the osseous substance. That the substance of the bones is continually undergoing a change, and that, while the old particles are withdrawn by ab- sorbents, new particles are constantly deposited by the nutri- ent or exhalant vessels, is abundantly proved by the often re- peated experiments of Duhamel. If madder be mixed with the food of fowls for a few days, and the fowls be then killed, the ADVANTAGES OF VITALITY IN BONES. 151 colouring matter deposited by the nutrient vessels will invaria- bly be found to have dyed the bones of a deep red; and if the madder be withdrawn, the bones will then be found to be less and less red in proportion to the length of time which has been allowed to elapse—evidently showing that waste and renova- tion are constantly going on. It may be thought that bones are, in their very essence, so hard and durable, as to render any such supply of nourish- ment and change of parts altogether unnecessary. But if we look for a moment to the advantages consequent upon this or- der of things, we shall see abundant cause to reject such an opinion. It is only by means of the processes of growth and renewal that the bones can adapt themselves to the wants and state of the system. If the bones were not endowed with the principle of life, the stature of the infant must have been that of the fu- ture man. Or even supposing the osseous system to have grown to maturity, and then remained unchanged, the withered form of old age would necessarily have been oppressed and overcome by the large and massive bones which the vigorous muscles of manhood alone can easily put in motion. Had the bones been created unsusceptible of internal change and un- endowed with life, it is obvious that, when broken by accident, they must have remained for ever disunited, and therefore an incumbrance instead of an assistance to the animal. But, from possessing bloodvessels of their own to supply them with nourishment, and nerves to give power of action to those blood- vessels, the very irritation of the broken end is made to serve the purpose of increasing the vital powers of the injured parts and producing that excitement which is necessary for the for- mation of a new bond of union, and for filling up the gap that would otherwise have remained. In a state of health, the bones are insensible to pain ; and here also the most provident benevolence appears. For, sur- rounded as they are by the softer and more sensitive parts, these afford them ample protection, while their insensibility enables them to act, for any length of time, without weariness or pain. But when a severe accident occurs to break them asunder, or destroy their texture, pain then becomes their kindest guardian, and the surest promoter of their recovery. In such circumstances, indeed, nothing can be more truly be- nevolent than pain. It accompanies that inflammation and 152 INCREASE AND DIMINUTION OF BONES. vascular activity, without which the work of reunion of the broken part cannot be accomplished; and is the means of se- curing the repose and quietude which are essential to the exact adaptation of the parts to each other, and which can be effect- ed only by causing great pain to follow even the slightest mo- tion. Of such utility is inflammation on these occasions, that when, as sometimes happens, the requisite degree of it, from want of nervous sensibility in the part, does not take place, and the bone remains ununited for many weeks, surgeons are in the habit of using violence to produce the necessary stimu- lus. In this case, they either rub the broken ends rudely against each other, or introduce an instrument between them, by which pain and irritation may be excited ; and then reunion is accomplished. On the other hand, if pain did not guard the limb from motion when the process of recovery is going on, the union would be incessantly disturbed by every heedless and unavoidable start altering the relative position of the parts. This, also, is occasionally exemplified in practice. Looking at these facts, it is impossible not to admire the wisdom and the benevolence manifested in the adaptation of the structure of bones in every particular to the circumstances and occur- rences of life. Another advantage arising from the vitality of bones, is their susceptibility of change without injury to life. Thus it frequently happens, that, in infancy, water collects within the head in considerable quantity: but, in consequence of the law that the form of the skull accommodates itself to the form and dimensions of its soft contents, the bones yield to the pressure from within, become larger, and, by forming a larger cavity, permit the brain to execute its functions, and life to go on ;* whereas had the skull been incapable of undergoing change, death would have to a certainty ensued. The skull owes this power of adaptation entirely to its possessing vessels and nerves, and to its undergoing a constant decay and renewal, like the other parts of the system. The same phenomena are exhibited by the bones of the chest. When tumours arise, or collections of fluid take place within that cavity, there is a constant effort on the part of na- * This important physiological principle obviates the objection that the exercise of the organs cannot cause their enlargement, because prevented by the hardness of the skull. [Ed. Am. edit.] K CONDITIONS OF HEALTH IN BONES. 153 ture to take advantage of this constitution of the bones, and to cause them so to expand as to save the lungs and heart from hurtful pressure, and allow respiration and circulation to go on unimpaired. In the opposite circumstances of diminished volume of the soft contents of the cavities, the same law enables the bone to decrease in a corresponding proportion, and, consequently, to continue the protection which it affords to its contained organs. Thus, were the bone to remain unaltered, when, in cases of disease and in old age, the brain diminishes in size, the cavity of the skull would be only partially, filled, and the brain, so far from being protected, would be jolted backwards and forwards, upwards and downwards, by every motion of the head or body, till its structure should be utterly destroyed, and life itself ex- tinguished. To those who are unacquainted with the laws of nutrition of organized bodies, and who are accustomed to notice the hard and unyielding nature of bone, without having any adequate perception of the particular uses of the adaptation of the hard to the soft parts, this adaptation may seem strange and impro- bable ; but a little consideration will satisfy every one that it could not have been otherwise. In infancy, when the lungs are imperfectly developed, the chest is narrow, flat, and confined, and the ribs almost in close juxtaposition. In youth and in middle age, when force and activity require fulness and vigour of respiration, the lungs en- large, and to give them scope, the chest becomes full, broad, and capacious. In old age, again, when the season of active exertion is over, and the strength decays, the broad shoulders and capacious chest of manhood gradually disappear, and a totally different form occupies its place. Now, at all these pe- riods, the bones are the parts which, by their alteration, serve as an index of the changes going on within; and, on this large scale, the difference in their form is so great that it must be obvious to all. Where the whole of the soft contents of a bony cavity in- crease in size, as happens in the case of water in the head, the result is, as already mentioned, an expansion from interstitial growth of the osseous covering. But where the tumour or pressure is limited to a small part, a process of a different kind often takes place, which also has the preservation of life for its object, and which is accomplished by another of the natural 154 CONDITIONS OF HEALTH IN BONES. actions—absorption. WThen a bone, say of four inches square, is required gradually to expand itself, so as to protect a surface of six inches, or of double the extent, this is accomplished by the gradual removal of the old, and the deposition of new and additional particles, on, as it were, a new and enlarged mould. But in the other case, where the pressure is very limited— where, for instance, a small tumour developes itself on the surface of the brain, which, if allowed to grow Avithin unyield- ing walls, would soon cause death by pressure on the brain— the ordinary process of absorption becomes greatly excited, and gradually eats away the whole thickness of the bone over the tumour, which then protrudes externally, and relieves the brain within from pressure, which would have been fatal to it. I have already stated, that, besides a large proportion of earthy matter, which gives to them dryness and hardness, bones contain a large quantity of animal matter, which is es- sential to their constitution. In early life, this cartilaginous matter preponderates, and the bones are consequently less heavy, more pliable and elastic, and possessed of greater vi- tality. In old age, again, the earthy parts predominate, and with them fragility, insensibility, and a lower degree of life. It is from this difference, that bones broken in youth reunite in one-third of the time necessary for their reunion in advanced life. In some unhealthy states of the system, the proportion of earthy matter is greatly diminished, and in some parts it is even altogether removed. The bones become soft, compressi- ble, and incapable of affording protection or support to the other parts, to such a degree that instances have occurred, in which the lower extremities could be twisted behind, as if made of wire. A slighter degree of the same affection is com- mon in weak, rickety children; and hence the deformity of limbs, so often occurring from absolute insufficiency of the bones to support the weight of the body. The practical application to be made of our knowledge of the constitution of the bones, as parts of our animal frame, and as governed by the ordinary organic laws, will now be obvious. Their health we have seen to depend on the regular supply of nourishment .by fch^e bloodvessels, on a due supply of nervous energy by the nerves, and on a due balance between the ac- tion of the nutrient and absorbent or removing vessels. To CONDITIONS OF HEALTH IN BONES. 155 the steady fulfilment of these conditions, therefore, we are bound to attend. It is a common fault to consider the study of an organ or function complete, when we have viewed it on all sides as an isolated part, without regarding its external relations as consti- tuting an essential portion of its history. Thus, although we examine the structure and functions of the heart, and see that it is a muscle, and that its office is to contract, our knowledge is incomplete, if we do not go still further, and see that blood is the stimulant which causes the contractile power to act. And in like manner with the eye, whose relations to light are as essential a part of its constitution as the transparency of its membranes, or the convexity of its lens. Now, in the case of the bones we are apt to describe their hardness, their mobility, and other qualities, without sufficiently adverting to the fact, that, being organs of support and resistance, the frequent and regular performance of a full but not excessive amount of their duties, is as essential to their well being as blood is to the heart, air to the lungs, or light to the eyes. And, accordingly, when that condition is not fulfilled, the bones become feeble, dis- eased, and unfit for their functions, just as the softer parts of the body do. In practice, it is of the utmost importance to be fully aware of this fact. It is familiar to the professional mind, that a part deprived of that exercise or action which nature destined it to fulfil, be- comes weakened, diminishes in size, and at last shrivels and, alters so much in appearance, as not to be recognisable. ThUs, if an artery—the large artery which supplies the arm with blood, for example—be tied, and the flow of blood obstructed, a change of structure immediately begins, and goes on pro- gressively, till at the end of a few weeks, what was formerly a hollow elastic tube, presents the appearance of a ligamentous inelastic cord. A muscle condemned to inaction, is speedily reduced to half its original bulk; and, if long unexercised, at last loses entirely its power of contraction and muscular ap- pearance. The same rule holds with all other parts of the system, and, in an especial manner, even with the hard and apparently unalterable fabric of the bones. It is ascertained by extensive experience, that complete inaction, besides di- minishing the size of bone, injures its structure so much as to deprive it of hardness, and render it susceptible of being cut with a knife. Now, what is strongly marked in the extreme 156 CONDITIONS OF HEALTH IN BONES. case is not less active, although it may be less palpably appa rent, in cases where there is great, though not total, depri- vation of exercise ; and here is seen one cause of the bad health, crooked spines, and deformed figures, of which the ha- bitual restraint and condemnation to attitude in modern edu- cation, lay so wide-spreading and so deep a foundation,—evils which could never stand for a moment before knowledge or reason. The bones are the solid frame-work of the body ; and unless they be duly exercised in actual motion, they, like the muscles which move them, suffer and decay in virtue of that universal law which requires the exercise of voluntary organs as the condition of their well being—as the stimulus necessary to their efficient existence. One great requisite, then, for the development and health of the osseous system, is adequate exercise. But wherever matter is the subject, action implies waste of materials, and unless this waste be made up by proportionate supplies, exer- cise leads to speedy decay, such as we see take place where the exertion has been carried beyond the proper limits, and occasioned a waste beyond what any supply can compensate. A second requisite for the proper state of the bones, therefore, is a sufficient amount of nourishment to counteract the waste now alluded to. In early youth, in particular, when every part teems with life and activity, and is almost hourly acquiring an increase of dimensions, the nutrient system is in a state of unceasing and powerful action, and a rich and abundant supply of food is in- dispensable to health. Nature points out this fact, in the keen and vigorous appetite and strong powers of digestion, which every healthy child uniformly manifests. To put ourselves in accordance with the intention of Nature, at this period of life, it is therefore absolutely necessary to supply in abundance wholesome and nourishing food. The non-fulfilment of this condition, so often seen in times of distress among the labour- ing classes, gives rise to that tumid softness, and consequent weakness of the bones and soft parts, which is known by the name of rickets; and which, if it continue till maturity, i. e. during the years of active nutrition and growth, invariably leads to distortion and deformity. The effect of exercise in causing the waste of the active or- gans, is well illustrated by the comparative absence of waste when they are unemployed. Inaction implies almost stagna- CONDITIONS OF HEALTH IN BONES. 157 tion, and is always attended by diminution of the vital func- tions ; as is exemplified in the extreme degree, in hybernating animals, which pass months in sleep without food, and almost without breathing,—and also in frogs found alive in stones and trees, where they must have been dormant for a great number of years. Inactive parts, then, require little nutrition, be- cause there is little expenditure ; and they require little force or energy, because it would be not only useless but detrimen- tal to them. By a law of the constitution, manifestly arranged with rela- tion to this principle, when any part of the system is active, it attracts to itself, by the simple stimulus of that activity, an in- creased supply of blood and nervous energy. The former re- pairs the waste of substance which action produces, and the latter gives an increased tone in harmony with the greater call made on its powers. If the exercise is momentary and is not repeated, the extraordinary flow of blood soon disappears, and the nervous power falls to the usual standard : But if it is continued for a time, and is recurred to at regular intervals, a more active nutrition is established; a permanently greater supply of blood enters the vessels, even during the intervals of inaction; and an increase of development takes place, at- tended with increased facility and vigour of function. If, again, any part is not duly exercised, there is no local stimulus to attract a large supply of blood or abundant flow of the nervous fluid ; there is no activity of nutrition, no perfec- tion of development, and no vigour of function. And hence, in partial exercise, there is always predominance of some part over others; the one too strong, the other too feeble. In the muscular system, the arms of a blacksmith contrasted with those of a dancing-master, are a sufficient illustration. This law of increased afflux of fluids and increased nutrition to exercised parts, and of diminished afflux and nutrition to in- active parts, is not only highly important in its practical con- sequences, but in exact and obvious accordance with the plain- est principles of reason. By this benevolent arrangement, parts acting strongly receive large supplies, and parts doing nothing are left in the state of weakness befitting the demands made upon them. To every one who sees the principle, it must appear the height of folly to expect great nutrition and ^reat energy to follow inaction, and vice versa ; and yet this is what is, in ignorance, daily looked for by mankind at large. 158 CONDITIONS OF HEALTH IN BONES. This law of exercise, as influencing nutrition and function, is universal in its application, and applies to the osseous as much as to any other system. If the bones are duly exercised, then active nutrition goes on, and they acquire dimensions, strength, and solidity. If they are not exercised, the stimulus required for the supply of blood to them becomes insufficient; imperfect nutrition takes place ; and debility, softness, and un- fitness for duty follow in the train. This cause of defective formation is most active and most commonly seen in the bones of the spine in growing girls, who are denied free exercise in that part; and the consequent weakness in the bones and car- tilages, as well as in the muscles, is a very frequent cause of the swollen joints and curvature in the bones of the limbs in young people, which no subsequent care can ever remove. The beneficial effects of exercise and diet in imparting so- lidity to the bones, have not escaped the observation of trainers and veterinary surgeons. Sir John Sinclair expressly men- tions that the bones of persons trained become, in a remarka- ble degree, harder and tougher, and less liable to be injured by blows or accidents.* Delabere Blaine, also, in speaking of the deposit of earthy matter, and the consequent consolida- tion of the bones of the horse being hastened by anything that permanently quickens the circulation through them, adds, that Nature gives to young animals a playful disposition for the purpose of " increasing the flow of blood, and occasioning a more free deposit of the earthy particles."—" The earthy de- posit," he continues, " is usually proportioned to the wants of the animal; it is thus most perfect in those whose exertions are most considerable ; in the full bred horse, therefore, the bones will be found more solid than in the bulky lower bred varieties." But from this very circumstance, when the ani- mal is subjected to premature exertion, the consolidation of the bones becomes complete before their softer portion has in- creased to its full dimensions, and hence " horses early and hard worked never arrive at their full size."f Testimony of this kind ought to be of great weight, as based, not on theory, but on the broad and well-marked experience of practical men. It must be observed, however, that defective nutrition may arise from other causes than inadequate exercise; but even * Code of Health, 5th edit. Appendix, p. 35. f Blaine's Outlines of the Veterinary Art. Third edition, p. 93. CONDITIONS OF HEALTH IN BONES. 159 then, the consequences attending it are analogous in their na- ture. Among the poor it often arises from deficiency of whole- some food, and from damp dark habitations; among the rich, from feeble digestive and assimilating powers, and pampering in diet; and also from errors in clothing, and neglect of suffi- cient ventilation, and due exposure to the open air. Rickets, softness of the bones, and white swelling, are accordingly ob- served to be almost confined to children belonging to one or other of these classes. To understand more clearly the relative uses of bones and muscles, we may be allowed to use a comparison, although, like all other comparisons, it presents many points of differ- ence. The bones are to the body what the masts and spars are to a ship ; they give support and the power of resistance : and the muscles are to the bones what the ropes are to the masts and spars. It is to the muscles that the bones are indebted for the preservation or change of their relative position. If the bones or masts are too feeble in proportion to the weight which they are required to sustain, then a deviation from their shape or position takes place ; and, on the other hand, if the muscles or ropes are not sufficiently strong and well braced, then insufficiency of support must necessarily result. Early infancy affords an instance of both imperfections; the bones being infirm, and the muscles small and destitute of true fleshy fibres. The diseased state, called mollities ossium, or softness of the bones, is an instance of what may be called a weak mast of the body, which must yield if its muscles be strongly drawn. The state of muscular debility consequent on fever and many acute diseases, or even on sudden fright, is, on the other hand, an instance of the inability of the bones alone to preserve an attitude, or execute motion, when the muscular system is weakened by disease. These differences merit attention. In the regular order of Nature, the maturity and perfection of all organs and functions are attained at the precise time at which each is required. The bones of the infant are soft, vas- cular, cartilaginous, full of life, and vigorous in growth; but having no energetic motions to perform, they possess little power of solid resistance. In accordance with this condition of the bones, the muscles which move them are small, gelatin- ous, imperfectly fibrous, and incapable of powerful contraction. If the bones had been made solid and heavy from the begin- ning they would not only have been inert and cumbrous 160 CONDITIONS OF HEALTH IN BONES. masses, destitute of muscles to put them in motion, but, from being less vascular and less alive, could not have grown with the rapidity necessary to adapt themselves to the growth of the other parts of the system. If, on the other hand, power- ful muscles had existed from the first, they would have served only to twist the soft and yielding bones into fantastic shapes. Or, if both solid bones and strong muscles had been given from birth, then a complete power of locomotion would have been the result, which, from the absence of intellect and of know- ledge of the external world to direct it, would have led to in- cessant evils, if not to speedy destruction. But as things are arranged, the most profound wisdom and the purest benevo- lence show themselves in the beautiful adaptation of all the parts and functions to each other and to one common end. Knowledge of the condition of the bones at different periods of life, is not without its practical uses,—particularly in regu- lating our treatment of children. Some fond parents, disre- garding the fact that the bones are comparatively soft and plia- ble in infancy, and in their haste to see the little obiects walk without support, are continually soliciting attempts at standing or walking, long before the bones have acquired sufficient power of resistance, and the muscles sufficient power of con- traction, to cope with the laws of gravitation. The natural consequence is a curvature of the bone, which yields just like an elastic stick bending under a weight. The two ends ap- proach nearer to each other than they ought to do ; and to ac- commodate themselves to the change, the muscles become shorter on one side, and perhaps longer on the other, each losing part of its efficiency in the unnatural change which it undergoes. From this view, it will be seen how hurtful leading-strings must be. In the first place, by their mechanical force, they compress the chest and impede respiration; and, in the second, by preventing the body from falling to the ground, or rather by preserving an upright position, they cause more of the weight to fall on the bones of the spine and lower extremities, than these parts are fitted to carry. From this noxious prac- tice, flatness of the chest, confined lungs, distorted spine, and deformed legs, too often originate. The impropriety of an indiscriminate use of dumb-bells in early life, will also be easily understood. If the weight of these be disproportioned to the strength of the bones, it is ob- #• CONDITIONS OF HEALTH IN BONES. 161 vious that we must produce the same kind of evil as by prema- ture attempts to walk, viz. yielding of the bones, and stretch- ing and relaxation of their connecting ligaments. If, again, they be disproportionate to the muscular power, their effect will be to exhaust instead of increasing the strength of the body. From the exposition I have given of the laws of exercise, as affecting the muscular and osseous systems, the absurdity of expecting to strengthen either the one or the other by the use of stays, or by lying for hours on a horizontal or inclined plane, will be abundantly manifest. There is no royal road to health and strength, and no method by which, while exercise is dis- pensed with, its advantages can be obtained. In the intervals between exercise, reclining on a plane is very useful in de- licate fast growing girls; but it should be resorted to, only when the feeling of fatigue exists either from previous exercise, or from mere sitting up. As soon, however, as this feeling is entirely recovered from, it ought to be discontinued, and never employed for hours and days in succession, without reference to previous weariness, as it often is on the false notion of its being conducive to strength. In this chapter, as well as that on the muscles, I have dwelt perhaps too long on the principles by which exercise ought to be regulated; but as the subject is little understood by those who have the direction of youth, and is of paramount import- ance, I am inclined to hope that the tediousness of repetition may be forgiven, if clearness and conviction are obtained. * CHAPTER VII. ' THE LUNGS—THIER FUNCTIONS—AND HEALTH. Arterial and venous blood.—Circulation of the blood.—Respiration - Situation and structure of the lungs—their air-cells, and bloodvessels.—Pulrnanary exha- lation and absorption.—Conditions of healthy action in the lungs.—influence of hereditary predisposition—of wholesome food, and good digestion—of the free expansion of the lungs—of exercise of the muscles and voice—ol cheerfulness and of depression of mind—of pure air and ventilation.—Vitiation of the air by breathing—extent and nature of the vitiation—examples of death produced by heat—impurity—its influence in destroying health—illustrations.—Want of ven- tilation in public halls, churches, schools, and houses—necessity ror the scien- tific regulation of ventilation—disease from ill regulated ventilation—means of ventilation—effects of vitiated air on the animal economy.—-Respiration the source of animal heat—Causes of deficient generation of heat.—Means of strength- ening the lungs and chest.—Direct and indirect exercise of the lungs.—Benefi- cial effects of, and rules for pulmonary exercise.—Precautions to be observed in diseases of the lungs, and in persons predisposed to consumption, particu- larly at puberty. We come next to treat of the lungs and of the function which they perform; but, in order to be clearly understood, I must premise a few observations on the circulation of the blood. The blood circulating through the body is of two different kinds; the one red or arterial, and the other dark or venous blood. The former alone is capable of affording nourishment and of supporting life. It is distributed from the left side of the heart all over the body, by means of a great artery or bloodvessel called the aorta, which sub-divides in its course, and ultimately terminates in myriads of very minute ramifica- tions closely interwoven with, and in reality constituting a large portion of, the texture of every living part. On reaching this extreme point of its course, the blood passes into equally minute ramifications of the veins, which, in their turn, gradu- ally coalesce and form larger and larger trunks, till they at last terminate in two large veins, by which the whole current ARTERIAL AND VENOUS BLOOD. 163 of the venous blood is brought back in a direction contrary to that of the blood in the arteries, and poured into the right side of the heart. On examining the quality of the blood in these two systems of vessels, it is found to have undergone a great change in its passage from the one to the other. The florid hue which distinguished it in the arteries has disappeared, and given place to the dark colour characteristic of venous blood. Its properties, too, have changed, and it is now no longer capa- ble of sustaining life. Two conditions are essential to the re-conversion of venous into arterial blood, and to the restoration of its vital properties. The first is an adequate provision of new materials from the food, to supply the place of those which have been expended in nu- trition ; and the second is the free exposure of the venous blood to the atmospheric air. The first condition is fulfilled by the chyle or nutrient prin- ciple of the food being regularly poured into the venous blood, just before it reaches the right side of the heart; and the se- cond, by the very important process of respiration, which takes place in the air-cells of the lungs, and which it is our present object to explain. The venous blood, having arrived at the right side of the heart, is propelled by the contraction of that organ into a large artery, leading directly, by separate branches, to the two lungs, and hence called the pulmonary artery.* In the innumerable branches of this artery expanding themselves throughout the substance of the lungs, the dark blood is subjected to the con- tact of the air inhaled in breathing; and a change in the com- position both of the blood and of the inhaled air takes place, in consequence of which the former is found to have re-as- sumed its florid or arterial hue, and to have regained its power of supporting life. The blood then enters minute venous ramifications, which gradually coalesce into larger branches, and at last terminate in four large trunks in the left side of the heart; whence the blood in its arterial form is again distributed * Taking the nature of the blood for our guide, the pulmonary artery ought to be named the pulmonary vein, for it contains venous blood. But, from its structure and office in regard to the right side of the heart resem- bling those of the arteries, it has been called an artery. The pulmonary veins, or vessels which return the blood from the lungs to the left side of the heart, on the other hand, contain arterial blood, although named veins. To prevent confusion, it is necessary to advert to this source of ambiguity. 164 RESPIRATION—THE LUNGS. over the body, to pursue the same course and undergo the same changes as before. There are thus two distinct circulations, each carried on by its own system of vessels: The one, from the left side of the heart to every part of the body, and back to the right side ; and the other, from the right side of the heart to the two lungs, and back to the left. The former has for its object nutrition and the maintenance of life; and the latter the restoration of the deteriorated blood, and the animalization or assimilation of the chyle from which that fluid is formed. As the food cannot become a part of the living animal, or the venous blood regain its lost properties, until they have un- dergone the requisite changes in the air-cells of the lungs, the function of respiration, by which these are affected, is one of pre-eminent importance in the animal economy, and well de- serves the most careful examination. The term respiration is frequently restricted to the mere inhalation and expiration of air from the lungs; but more generally it is employed to de- signate the whole series of phenomena which occurs in these organs. The word sanguification and aeration of the blood are other forms of expression occasionally used to denote that part of the process in which the blood, by exposure to the action of the air, passes from the venous to the arterial state; and, as the chyle does not become assimilated to the blood until it has passed through the lungs, the term sanguification or blood- making is not unaptly applied. The quantity and quality of the blood have a most direct and material influence upon the condition of every part of the body. If the quantity sent to the arm, for example, be diminished by tying the artery through which it is conveyed, the arm, being then imperfectly nourished, wastes away, and does not regain its plumpness till the full supply of blood be restored. In like manner, when the quality of that fluid is impaired by deficiency of food, bad digestion, impure air, or imperfect sanguification in the lungs, the body and all its functions become more or less disordered. Thus, in consumption, death takes place chiefly in consequence of respiration not being sufficiently per- fect to admit of the formation of proper blood in the lungs. A knowledge of the structure and functions of the lungs, and of the conditions favourable to their healthy action, is therefore very important; for on their welfare depends that of every organ of the body. And when we recollect, that, in the SITUATION OF THE LUNGS. 165 British Isles alone, above fifty thousarid persons fall victims annually to pulmonary consumption, and that these are chiefly among the young and most gifted, we cannot but feel deeply interested in obtaining some acquaintance with the organiza- tion which is the seat of that affection, and with the conditions most conducive to the due performance of its functions, and the preservation of its health. The exposure of the blood to the action of the air, seems to be indispensable to every variety of animated creatures. In man and the more perfect of the lower animals, it is carried on in the lungs, the structure of which is admirably adapted for the purpose. In many animals, however, the requisite action is affected without the intervention of lungs. In fishes, for example, which live in a dense medium, and do not breathe, the blood circulates through the gills, which, from being con- stantly and directly in contact with the water, are more acces- sible than lungs would be to the action of the air which the water contains, and much better adapted to the medium in which fishes live. In worms, and many similar animals, on the other hand, no distinct organ is set apart for the purpose, but the aeration of the blood takes place at the surface of the body, by means of pores in the skin, called spiracula, specially adapted to this end, and which cannot be shut up or obstructed any more than the lungs or gills, without inducing death. So necessary, indeed, is atmospheric air to the vitality of the blood, in all classes of animals, that its abstraction inevitably proves fatal; and a fish can no more live in water deprived of air, than a man could do in an atmosphere devoid of oxygen. And thus the fish requires a renewal of air, and perishes when it is denied, exactly as man does in similar circumstances. In man the lungs are those large, light, spongy bodies, which, along with the heart, completely fill the cavity of the chest. They vary much in size in different persons, and as the chest is formed for their protection, we find it either large and capacious, or the reverse, according to the size of the lungs. Their position relatively to the other viscera may be under- stood on reference to the subjoined wood-cut, which represents the various organs of the chest and belly, as they appear on removing the integuments, breast-bone, and part of the ribs. The sketch is rather rude, but it will serve the purpose. The letters R L and L L mark the right and left lungs, with the heart H lying between them, but chiefly on the left side. V 166 STRUCTURE OF THE LUNGS—AIR-CELLS. is not a very accurate representation of the large bloodvessels going to the head, neck, and superior extremities. Livr. is the liver, lying in the abdomen, or belly, and separated from the chest by the arched fleshy partition D D, called the diaphragm, or midriff. The stomach appears on the other side, marked Htm. but both it and the liver are removed a little from their natural situation. G is the gall-bladder. Ill are the various parts of the intestinal canal, through which the food is passed on its way from the stomach, by means of what is called the peristaltic or vermicular motion of the bowels, one circle of fibres narrowing after another, so as to propel its contents slowly but steadity, and resembling, in some degree, the con- traction of a common worm. The substance of the lungs consists of bronchial tubes, air- cells, bloodvessels, nerves, and cellular membrane, or paren- chyma. The first are merely continuations and sub-divisions of the windpipe, and serve to convey the external air to the air-cells of the lungs. The air-cells constitute the chief part of the pulmonary tissue, and are in one sense the terminations of the smaller branches of the bronchial tubes. When fully •PULMONARY EXHALATION AND ABSORPTION. 167 distended, they are so numerous as in appearance to constitute almost the whole lung. They are of various sizes, from the 20th to the 100th of an inch in diameter, and are lined with an exceedingly fine thin membrane, on which the minute ca- pillary branches of the pulmonary arteries and veins are co- piously ramified; and it is while circulating in the small ves- sels of this membrane, and there exposed to the air, that the blood undergoes the change from the venous to the arterial state. So prodigiously numerous are these air-cells, that the aggregate extent of their lining membrane, in man, has been computed to exceed a surface of 20,000 square inches. It may be thought that the interposition of such a membrane must have the effect of preventing any action of the air upon the blood. But in addition to the proof to the contrary drawn from observation, it has been ascertained by experiment, that even the thick and firm texture of bladder is insufficient to prevent the occurrence of the change; venous blood confined in a bladder speedily acquiring a florid red colour, like that of arterial blood. Bloodvessels necessarily form a large constituent portion of the substance of the lungs. Besides the arteries and veins which the lungs possess in common with other parts for the purposes of nutrition, they have, as we have seen, the large pulmonary arteries and veins, dividing every where through their substance into innumerable branches, conveying the whole blood of the body to and from the air-cells, and there fore of a magnitude proportioned to the quantity of blood which is destined to pass through them. These two tissues, air-tubes and bloodvessels, together with the loose cellular texture or network which binds them toge- ther, called parenchyma, form the principal part of the struc- ture of the lungs. But the latter, like all other organs, are provided also with nerves, without the active co-operation of which, in supplying the requisite nervous stimulus, their spe- cial functions, and consequently life itself, would speedily cease. Every one must have remarked the copious exhalation of moisture which takes place in breathing, and which presents a striking analogy to the exhalation from the surface of the skin. In the former, as in the latter instance, the exhalation is carried on by the innumerable minute capillary vessels, in which the small arterial branches terminate in the air-cells. 168 INFLUENCE OF HEREDITARY CONSTITUTION.* Pulmonary exhalation is in fact one of the chief outlets of waste matter from the system; and the air which we breathe is thus vitiated, not only by the subtraction of its oxygen, and the addition of carbonic acid, but also by animal effluvia with which it is loaded when returned from the lungs. In some in- dividuals, this last source of impurity is so powerful, as to ren- der their vicinity offensive and even insupportable to the by- standers, and it is its presence which gives the disagreeable sickening smell to crowded rooms. Absorption, in like manner, takes place from the lining mem- brane of the lungs, as we have seen it do in the skin. When a person breathes an atmosphere loaded with fumes of spirits, of tobacco, of turpentine, or of any other volatile substance, a portion of the fumes is taken up by the absorbing vessels of the lungs, and carried into the system, and there produces pre cisely the same effects as if introduced into the stomach : dogs, for example, have been killed by being made to inhale the fumes of prussic acid for a few minutes. The lungs thus be- come a ready inlet to contagion, miasmata, and other poison- ous influences diffused through the air which we breathe. From this general explanation of the structure and uses of the lungs, it will be obvious that several conditions, which it is our interest specially to know and observe, are essential to the healthy performance of the important function of respiration. First among these we may rank a healthy original formation of the lungs. No fact in medicine is better established than that which proves the hereditary transmission from parents to children of a constitutional liability to pulmonary disease, and especially to consumption; yet no condition is less attended to in forming matrimonial engagements. The children of scro- fulous and consumptive parents are generally precocious, and their minds being early matured, they engage early in the bu- siness of life, and often enter the marriage state before their bodily frame has had time to consolidate. For a few years, every thing seems to go on prosperously, and a numerous fa- mily gathers around them. All at once, however, even while youth remains, their physical powers begin to give way, and they drop prematurely into the grave, exhausted by consump- tion, and leaving children behind them, destined in all proba- bility either to be cut off as they approach maturity, or to run through the same delusive but fatal career as that of the pa- rents from whom they derived their existence. INFLUENCE OF HEREDITARY CONSTITUTION. 169 Many examples of this kind might be pointed out among the higher classes of society, who are not restrained from fol- lowing their predominant inclinations by any necessity of seek- ing subsistence in professional pursuits. And many instances might be referred to, in which no regard was shown to the manifest existence of the same disposition in the family of either parent, and in which, consequently, the married state was embittered either by barrenness, which is then the most favourable result, or by the prevalence of disease and deli- cacy in the progeny. It may not be easy to enforce upon the young and inexperienced the requisite degree of attention to these circumstances ; but surely education, especially when backed by example, might do much, if the young were pro- perly instructed at an early period in the leading facts and principles of the human constitution. Where there are heredi tary precocity and delicacy of frame, marriage, instead of being hastened, ought invariably to be delayed at least till the full- est maturity and consolidation of the system; otherwise the consequences will be equally unhappy for the individual and for his progeny. During growth, and for a considerable time afterwards, the constitution is still imperfect even in healthy subjects, and wants the enduring strength which it acquires in mature age, and the possession Of which marks the period which nature has fixed for the exercise of the functions of pro- duction. Many young people of both sexes fall sacrifices to early marriages, who might have withstood the ordinary risks of life, and lived together in happiness, if they had delayed their union for a few years, and allowed time for the consolida- tion of their constitutions. I have urged this point strongly, because hereditary predis position is, avowedly and beyond all doubt, the most frequent source of the more serious forms of pulmonary disease, and it would be worse than folly to allow past and painful experience to go for nothing. Medical men have much in their power in preventing such violations of the laws of the Creator, at least where they are regarded, as they always ought to be, as the friends not less than the professional advisers of the family. As connected with this subject, I may mention that Dr. Clark has the merit of having drawn attention to the important fact, that a state of impaired health in the parent, whether constitutional or acquired, and particularly if caused by imper- fect digestion and assimilation, is as productive of a tendency 170 OF WHOLESOME FOOD AND GOOD DIGESTION. to scrofula and consumption in the children as if it had de- scended by hereditary transmission. If parents in general were duly impressed with the truth and bearing of this fact, many of them might be induced, on account of their children, to take that rational care of their own health which they seem to be incapable of doing for its OAvn sake. The Second requisite to the well-being of the lungs, and to the free and salutary exercise of respiration, is a due supply of rich and healthy blood. When, from defective food, or im paired digestion, the blood is impoverished in quality, and ren dered unfit for adequate nutrition, the lungs speedily suffer, and that often to a fatal extent. So certain is this fact, that, in the lower animals, tubercles (the cause of incurable con- sumption) can be produced in the lungs to almost any extent, by withholding a sufficiency of nourishing food. The same cir- cumstances operate to a lamentable extent among the poorly fed population of our manufacturing towns; whereas it is pro- verbial that butchers—a class of men who eat animal food twice or thrice a day, and live much in the open air,—are al most exempt from pulmonary consumption. Among the high er classes, again, the blood is impoverished, and the lungs are injured, not from want of food, but from want of the power of adequately digesting it; and hence we find in every treatise on consumption a section devoted specially to u,dyspeptic phthisis," as it is called, or simply "consumption from bad digestion." The late hours, heavy meals, and deficient exercise, which are so generally complained of, but still so regularly adhered to in society, are the chief sources of the evils to which we are now alluding. Thirdly.—The free and easy expansion of the chest is ob- viously indispensable to the full play and dilatation of the lungs : whatever impedes it, either in dress or in position, is pre- judicial to health; and, on the other hand, whatever favours the free expansion of the chest, equally promotes the healthy fulfilment of the respiratory functions. Stays, corsets, and tight waist-bands, operate most injuriously, by compressing the thoracic cavity, and impeding the due dilatation of the lungs; and, in many instances, they give rise to consumption. I have seen one case, in which the liver was actually indented by the excessive pressure, and long continued bad health and ulti- mately death were the results. In allusion to this subject, Mr. Thackrah mentions, that men can exhale at one effort OF THE FREE EXPANSION OF THE LUNGS. 171 from six to ten pints of air, whereas, in women, the average is only from two to four pints. In ten females, about 18£ years of age, belonging to a flax-mill, and " who were labouring un- der no disease," Mr. Thackrah found the average to be only three and a half pints, while, in young men of the same age, it amounted to six pints.* Some allowance is to be made for the naturally smaller capacity of the lungs in females than in males, but Mr. Thackrah is satisfied that the above remarkable difference " is attributable chiefly to the lacing of the chest."f Having, however, discussed this matter when treating of the muscular system, it is unnecessary to enlarge on it again, fur- ther than to remark, that the constrained motionless attitudes enforced upon young females in the course of education, are very unfavourable to the play of the lungs, and to the full de- velopment of the chest. The admirable harmony established by the Creator between the various constituent parts of the animal frame, renders it impossible to pay regard to or infringe the conditions required for the health of any one, without all the rest participating in the benefit or injury. Thus, while cheerful exercise in the open air, and in the society of equals, is directly arid eminently conducive to the well-being of the muscular system, the ad- vantage does not stop there; the beneficent Creator having kindly so ordered it, that the same exercise shall be scarcely less advantageous to the important function of respiration. Active exercise calls the lungs into play, favours their expan- sion, promotes the circulation of the blood through their sub- stance, and leads to their complete and healthy development. The same end is greatly facilitated by that free and vigorous exercise of the voice, which so uniformly accompanies and en- ivens the sports of the young, and which doubles the benefits lerived from them considered as an exercise. The excitement of the social and moral feelings which children experience while engaged in play, is another powerful tonic, the influence of which on the general health ought not to be overlooked; * The evils of tight lacing, as here presented, are cogent, but might be greatly extended. I consider the evil so alarming, that I have prepared, and shall soon publish, a small work on this subject, of some twenty pages, illustrated by four steel engravings, showing the natural position of the in- ternal organs, and the distortions produced by this worse than foolish fashion. [Ed. Am. edit.] f Thackrah on Employments as affecting Health and Longevity, p. 95 172 OF PURE AIR AND VENTILATION. for the nervous influence is as indispensible to the right per- formance of respiration, as it is to the action of the muscles or to the digestion of food. This latter principle explains the reason why the depressing passions predispose to pulmonary consumption, a fact which has been remarked from a very early period. When the mind is in a state of depression, the whole nervous system becomes enfeebled ; the stimulus to the other organs, on which so much of their vital power depends, is impaired; and a general want of tone pervades the system, rendering the principal organs of the body, and the lungs among the rest, unusually susceptible of disease. Here, again, we may perceive the beautiful adap- tation of all the functions to each other, and the exquisite har- mony of design existing between the different parts of the body. It is curious indeed to trace the relations in which the ani- mal functions stand to each other. Grief, sorrow, fear, and other depressing passions of the mind, diminish the activity of the circulation, impair respiration, lower vitality, and conse- quently render the organization more than usually susceptible of diseases arising from diminished action. Anger, joy, and the other exhilarating passions, on the other hand, stimulate the circulation, quicken respiration, increase the vital powers, and create a proneness to inflammatory or excited action. At first sight, it may seem strange that such should be the results of different kinds of mental emotion. On examination, how- ever, we perceive evident design in the arrangement. The tendency of grief, despondency, and sorrow, is to produce me- ditative inaction. These emotions require no exercise of the bodily powers and no unusual expenditure of vital energy; but rather the reverse. This, it will be observed, is a condition incompatible with a quick supply of blood, or a high degree of respiration; for if these were conjoined, they would only give rise to an amount of bodily activity at variance with the ab- sorbed and concentrated state of the mind. The nature of the exciting passions, again, is to impel us vigorously to action ; but action cannot be sustained without a full supply of highly oxygenated blood, and hence a very manifest reason for the quick respiration and accelerated circulation which attend mental excitement. Great depression of mind thus leads na- turally to imperfect respiration, a more sluggish flow of blood, and the various diseases of diminished vitality; while great VITIATION OF THE AIR BY BREATHING. 173 excitement induces full respiration, quickened circulation, and the various diseases of exalted vitality. These principles show the paramount importance, in the treatment of disease, of care- fully regulating the mental state of the patient, according to the object we have in view.* A fourth essential condition of healthy respiration remains to be noticed, viz. a regular supply of pure fresh air, without which the requisite changes in the constitution of the blood as it passes through the lungs, cannot be effected. To enable the reader to appreciate this condition, we must premise some re- marks on the nature of the changes alluded to. Atmospheric air consists of about 78 per cent, of nitrogen or azotic gas, 21 per cent, of oxygen, and not quite 1 per cent. of carbonic acid or fixed air; and such is its constitution when taken into the lungs in the act of breathing. When it is ex- pelled from them, however, its composition is found to be greatly altered. The quantity of nitrogen remains nearly the same, but eight or eight and a half per cent, of the oxygen or vital air have disappeared, and been replaced by an equal amount of carbonic acid. In addition to these changes, the expired air is loaded with moisture. Simultaneously with these occurrences, the blood collected from the veins, which enters the lungs of a dark colour and unfit for the support of life, * This text forcibly illustrates the vast importance of our placing our- selves in favourable and agreeable circumstances in life', as well as of hav- ing contented minds. Men rush head-long into business, contract debts, and embarrass and involve themselves, thinking only how they can get along without breaking, and little realizing how much being in debt, being afraid of meeting a creditor, or having a note protested, or being unable punctually to fulfil an engagement, injures their health, and saps their con- stitutions. An unhappy marriage, jeolousy, being the subject of scandal, Sec. are equally injurious. To all young people, who have yet fo form their associations, and make their bed for life, this principle speaks with great force, saying :— " Do NOT GET IN DEBT; PAT CASH FOR ALL YOU BUT. " Marry agreeably, or not at all; and then make the best of it. " Do not involve yourself in perplexing business, or care of any kind, but try to enjoy life, about your house, garden, office, business, &c. Arrange all the little affairs of life so as to enjoy them. And when any thing of an unpleasant character occurs, make the best of it, and dread it as little as possible." Following this advice, will not only prolong your days, but greatly aug- ment your happiness while you live. [Ed. Am. ed] 174 EXTENT AND NATURE OF THE VITIATION. assumes a florid red hue, and-acquires the power of supporting life. It is not easy to offer a satisfactory explanation of the pro- cesses by which these changes are effected in the lungs. Ac- cording to one view, the carbonic acid contained in expired air is formed by the secretion of carbon from the venous blood in its passage through the lungs, this immediately uniting with the oxygen of the air, and forming carbonic acid, in which shape it is then thrown out in expiration. According to the other view, the carbonic acid exists in, and is separated from, the venous blood in the state of acid, and the oxygen which disappears is absorbed into the circulating current. The for- mer explanation was long almost universally received, but Dr. Edwards has lately advanced very strong grounds for adopting the latter. Whatever may be the true theory, all physiologists are agreed as to the fact that the arterialization of the blood in the lungs is essentially dependent on the supply of oxygen con- tained in the air which we breathe, and that air is fit or unfit for respiration in exact proportion as its quantity of oxygen ap- proaches to, or differs from, that contained in pure air. If, con- sequently, we attempt to breathe nitrogen, hydrogen, or any other gas not containing oxygen, the result will be speedy suf- focation : while if we breathe air containing a too high propor- tion of oxygen, the vital powers will speedily suffer from ex- cess of stimulus.. From oxygen being thus essential to life and respiration, it is often called vital air, in contradistinction to those gasses which are incapable of supporting life. We can now appreciate the importance of a due supply of fresh air wherever living beings are congregated. In man, the rate of vitiation produced by breathing, and the relative im- portance of ventilation, may easily be estimated. An indivi- dual is ascertained to breathe, on an average, from 14 to 20 times in a minute, and to inhale from 15 to 40 cubic inches of air at each inspiration. Sir H. Davy and others rate the quan- tity so low as from 13 to 17 inches; but most observers agree with Dr. Menzies, who experimented with great care, in esti- mating it at 40 inches. The quantity, however, varies much in different individuals. Even taking the consumption of air at 20 inches, as a very low estimation, and rating the number of inspirations at 15, it appears that, in the space of one minute, no less than 300 cubic inches of air are required for the respiration of a single DEATH PRODUCED BY VITIATED AIR. 175 person. In the same space of time, 24 cubic inches of oxygen disappear, and are replaced by an equal amount of carbonic acid; so that, in the course of an hour, one pair of lungs will, at a low estimate, vitiate the air by the subtraction of no less than 1440 cubic inches of oxygen, and the addition of an equal number of carbonic acid, thus constituting a source of impurity which cannot be safely overlooked. The fatal effects of breathing highly vitiated air may easily be made the subject of experiment. When a mouse is con- fined in a large and tight glass-jar full of air, it seems for a short time to experience no inconvenience; but in proportion as the consumption of oxygen and the exhalation of carbonic acid proceed, it begins to show symptoms of uneasiness, and to pant in its breathing, as if struggling for air; and in a few hours it dies, convulsed exactly as if drowned or strangulated. The same results follow the deprivation or vitiation of air in man and in all animated beings; and in hanging, death results not from dislocation of the neck, as is often supposed, but simply because the interruption of the breathing prevents the necessary changes from taking place in the constitution of the blood. The horrible fate of the 146 Englishmen who were shut up in the Black Hole of Calcutta in 1756, is strikingly illustrative of the destructive consequences of an inadequate supply of air. The whole of them were thrust into a confined place, 18 feet square. There were only two very small windows by which air could be admitted, and as both of these were on the same side, ventilation was utterly impossible. Scarcely was the door shut upon the prisoners, when their sufferings commenced, and in a short time a delirious and mortal struggle ensued to get near the windows. Within four hours, those who survived lay in the silence of apoplectic stupor ; and at the end of six hours, ninety-six were relieved by death! In the morning, when the door were opened, 23 only were found alive, many of whom were subsequently cut off by putrid fever, caused by the dreadful effluvia and corruption of the air. But, it may be said, such a catastrophe as the above could happen only among a barbarous and ignorant people. One would think so, and yet such is the ignorance prevailing among ourselves, that more than one parallel to it can be pointed out even in our own history. Of two instances to which I allude, one has lately been published in the Life of Crabbe the Poet. 176 EXAMPLES. When ten or eleven years of age, Crabbe was sent to a school at' Bungay. " Soon after his arrival he had a very narrow escape. He and several of his school-fellows were punished for playing at soldiers, by being put into a large dog-kennel, known by the terrible name of the ( Black Hole,'—George was the first that entered; and the place being crammed full with offenders, the atmosphere soon became pestilentially close. The poor boy in vain shrieked that he was about to be suffocated. At last in despair, he bit the lad next to him violently in the hand,—' Crabbe is dying—Crabbe is dying,' roared the suffer er; and the sentinel at length opened the door, and allowed the boys to rush out into the air. My father said, ' A minute more and I must have died.' "* The other instance is recorded in Walpole's Letters, and is the more memorable, because it was the pure result of brutal igno- rance, and not at all of cruelty or design. " There has been lately," says Walpole, " the most shocking scene of murder imaginable: a parcel of drunken constables took it into their heads to put the laws in execution against disorderly persons, and so took up every person they met, till they had collected five or six and twenty, all of whom they thrust into St. Mar tin's round-house, where they kept them all night with doors and windows closed. The poor creatures, who could not stir or breathe, screamed as long as they had any breath left, beg ging at least for water ; one poor wretch said she was worth eighteen pence, and would gladly give it for a draught of wa- ter, but in vain! So well did they keep them there, that in the morning, four were found stifled to death; two died soon after, and a dozen more are in a shocking way. In short, it is horrid to think what the poor creatures suffered; several of them were beggars, who, from having no lodging, were neces- sarily found on the street, and others honest labouring women. One of the dead was a poor washer-woman, big with child, who was returning home late from washing. One of the con- stables is taken, and others absconded; but I question if any of them will suffer death : though the greatest criminals in this town are the officers of justice ; there is no tyranny they do not exercise, no villany of which they do not partake. These same men, the same night, broke into a bagnio in Co vent Gar- den, and took up Jack Spencer, Mr. Stewart, and Lord George * Crabbe's Life by his Son, p. 17. EXAMPLES. 177 Graham, and would have put them in the round-house with the poor women, if they had not been worth more than eighteen fence.* These melancholy examples ought not to be lost upon us. If the results arising from extreme vitiation of the air be so ap- palling, we may rest assured that those arising from every minor degree, although they may be less obvious, are not less certain in their operation. It is, indeed, readily admitted in the ab- stract, that a constant supply of pure air is indispensable to the healthy performance of respiration ; but if we inquire how far this condition is attended to by mankind at large, we shall have no reason to think the present warning unnecessary. I have already noticed (at p. 26) the case of Captain Ganson, who was suffocated in the cabin of the Magnus Troil in Leith Harbour, on 1st March, 1833, and whose brother was recovered with great difficulty from a state of stupor, induced apparently by an insufficient supply of respirable air. To these instances another may be added from the Globe newspaper of 1st April, in which it is mentioned that the Captain and mate of the French Chasse-maree Royaliste lost their lives from suffocation, in the harbour of Jersey, in a precisely similar way. In both vessels, the cabin was very small, and the door having been carefully shut, the access of fresh air was completely prevented. It has been said that cases like these are of rare occurrence, and arise only from extremely vitiated air; but there is, as we have seen, reason to believe that they occur more frequently than has been supposed ; and if they have happened already, where is the security that they will not occur again, if we do not bestir ourselves to remove the ignorance in which they originated 1 I do not mean to say, that in all of the above instances the fatal results were attributable exclusively to vitiation of the air by breathing. Fixed air may have been disengaged also from some other source ; but the deteriorating influence of respira- tion, where no ventilation is possible, cannot be doubted. Ac cording to Dr. Bostock's estimate, an average sized man con- sumes about 45,000 cubic inches of oxygen, and gives out about 40,000 of carbonic acid in 24 hours, or 18,750 of oxygen, and 16,666 of carbonic acid in ten hours, which is nearly the time during which the sufferers had remained in the cabin be- • Walpole's Letters, 1833. 178 VITIATED AIR DESTRUCTIVE OF HEALTH. fore they were found. As they were two in number, the quan- tity of oxygen which would have been required for their con- sumption was of course equal to 37,500 cubic inches, while the carbonic acid given out would amount to upwards of 32,000 inches—a source of impurity which, added to the constant ex- halation of waste matter and animal effluvia from the lungs, was manifestly quite equal to the production of the serious con- sequences which ensued from it, and which no one, properly acquainted with the conditions essential to healthy respiration, would ever have willingly encountered. Even supposing that the cause of death was some disengagement of gas within the vessel, it is still certain that, had the means of ventilation been adequately provided, this gas would have been so much diluted, and so quickly dispersed, that it would have been compara- tively innocuous. The best and most experienced medical officers of the army and navy, are always the most earnest in insisting on thorough ventilation as a chief preservative of health, and as indispensa- ble for the recovery of the sick. Sir George Ballingall recurs to it frequently, and shows the importance attached to it by Sir John Pringle, Dr. Jackson, Sir Gilbert Blane, and others of equally high authority. Sir John Pringle speaks of hospitals being, in his day, the causes of much sickness, and of frequent deaths, " on account of the bad air, and other inconveniences attending them;" and Dr. Jackson, in insisting on "height of roof as a property of great importance in a house appropri- ated to the reception of the sick of armies," adds as the reason, that " the air being contaminated by the breathings of a crowd of people in a confined space, disease is originated, and mor- tality is multiplied to an extraordinary extent. It was often proved in the history of the late war, that more human life was destroyed by accumulating sick men in -low and ill ventilated apartments, than by leaving them exposed, in severe and inclement weather, at the side of a hedge or common dike."* In the same volume (p. 114), the reader will find anotVer example not less painful than instructive of the evils arising, first, from crowding together a greater number of human beings than the air of the apartment can sustain, and, secondly, from the tctal neglect of scientific rules in effecting ventilation. In the summer of 1811, a low typhoid fever broke out in the 4th * Ballingall's Letters, p. 178. EXAMPLES. 179 battalion of the Royals, then quartered in Stirling Castle. In many instances, violent inflammation of the lungs supervened, and the result of the two diseases was generally fatal. On in- vestigating the circumstances of this fever, it was found that rooms of 21 feet by 18 were occupied by sixty men, and that others of 31 feet by 21 were occupied by seventy-two men! To prevent suffocation the windows were kept open all night, so that the men were exposed at once to strong currents of cold air, and to " the heated and concentrated animal effluvia neces- sarily existing in such crowded apartments; thus subjecting them to the combined effects of typhus fever and of pneumonic inflammation. In the less crowded apartments of the same barrack no instances of fever occurred." The men who were directly in the way of the current of cold air, were of course those who suffered from inflammation. Mr. Carmichael justly regards impure air as one of the most powerful causes of scrofula, and accounts for the extreme pre- valence of the disease in the Dublin House of Industry at the time he wrote (1809), by mentioning, that in one ward of moderate height, sixty feet by eighteen, there were thirty- eight beds, each containing three children, or more than one hundred in all! The matron told Mr. Carmichael, that " there is no enduring the air of this anartment when the doors are first thrown open in the morning; and that it is in vain to raise any of the windows, as those children who happen to be inconve- nienced by the cold close them as soon as they have an oppor- tunity. The air they breathe in the day is little better : many are confined to the apartments they sleep in, or crowded to the number of several hundreds in the school-room."* Can any one read this account, and wonder at the prevalence of scrofula under such circumstances ! In the preface to the present work, I have expressed an opinion that the attention of the professional student is by far too little directed to the acquisition of an accurate acquaintance with the laws and conditions of health, as in reality one of the most directly useful branches of knowledge which he can at- tain. A stronger proof of the truth of this proposition cannot be desired, than the simple statement of the above facts. If the medical officers, then in charge of the sick at Stirling Cas- tle, had been as intimately conversant with the conditions re- * Carmichael's Essay on the Nature of Scrofula. Dublin, 1810. 180 VITIATED AIR DESTRUCTIVE OF HEALTH. quired for the healthy performance of the living functions, and as deeply impressed with the importance of preventing disease, they were qualified to conduct its treatment when once excited, it is impossible that such causes could have been allowed to come into play, or to remain a single hour undetected and un- moved. When the Professorship of Military Surgery was first established in the University of Edinburgh, it was contended by many that attendance on its lectures would be a hardship on the student rather than a benefit, as Uu; information to be obtained from them was already communicated in the ordinary courses on surgery. But when I state that one of the main pur- poses of the professorship is to teach the means of preserving the health and efficiency of soldiers under every vicissitude of garrison, tent, and field, the reader, instead of thinking its es- tablishment superfluous, will rather be disposed to agree with me in regretting that no analogous course of instruction, having a reference to the exigencies of civil life, is provided for those who are destined for the not less important duties of private practice. Many would gladly avail themselves of such an op- portunity, if it once existed. That the due renovation of the air which we breathe is really influential in protecting us against the inroads of disease, may be inferred also from instances of an opposite kind,—those in which health has been preserved apparently through its agen- cy, even in the midst of pestilence. In preventing contagion from fever, a constant circulation of air is known to be the most effectual means; and Sir Walter Scott, in describing the old Tolbooth or prison of Edinburgh, or " Heart of Mid-Lothian," mentions that, "gloomy and dismal as it was, the situation in the centre of the High Street rendered it so particularly well aired, that, when the plague laid waste the city in 1645, it affect- ed none within these melancholy precincts ;"* and yet, in other respects, a jail was precisely the place where it might have been expected to prevail with the greatest virulence. An equally striking example of the beneficial influence of fresh air is mentioned in a memoir by the late Dr. Joseph Clarke of Dublin, read before one of the meetings of the British Associa- tion, at Edinburgh, in September, 1834. The memoir con- sisted of an abstract of a Registry kept in the Lying-in Hospi- tal, Dublin, from 1758 to the end of 1833; from which it ap- * Heart of Mid-Lothian, vol. i. chap. 6. Note. EXAMPLES. 181 peared, " that, in 1781, every sixth child died within nine days after birth of convulsive disease, and that, after means of thorough ventilation had been adopted, the mortality of in- fants, in five succeeding years, was reduced to nearly one in twenty."* Facts like these are very conclusive. m Many writers have been at pains to point out the actual oc- currence of the evils which sound physiology would lead us to anticipate from frequently breathing impure air. Among others, Mr. Thackrah, in his excellent little work on the effects of trades and professions on health, expresses himself very strong- ly, and specially notices that dyspeptic symptoms are often the first indications of the commencing disease, and that the lungs suffer only after the digestive system has been for a time disordered. It may not be easy to explain why the stomach and bowels should suffer even sooner than the lungs them- selves, from a cause which seems exclusively directed to the latter; but observation substantiates the fact, and it is one of much interest in enabling us to trace to their true sources, many of the forms of bad health prevalent in the middle ranks of life. Although, however, the first effects are so often referable to the stomach, the lungs and general system sooner or later be- come implicated. An individual possessing a strong constitu- tion may indeed withstand the bad consequences of occasion- ally breathing an impure atmosphere, but even he will suffer for a time. He will not experience the same amount of mis- chief from it as the invalid, but will be perfectly conscious of a temporary feeling of discomfort, the very purpose of which is, like pain from a burn, to impel him to shun the danger, and seek relief in a purer air. The comparative harmlessness of a single exposure is the circumstance which blinds us to the mag- nitude of the ultimate result, and makes us fancy ourselves safe and prudent, when every day i| surely, though impercep- tibly, adding to the sum of the mischief. But let any one who doubts the importance of this condition of health watch the dyspeptic, the pulmonary, or the nervous invalid, through a season devoted to attendance on crowded parties and public amusements, and he will find the frequency of headachs, colds, and other fits of illness, increase in exact proportion to * Report of proceedings of the British Association, in Edin. Phil. Jour. for Oct 1834, p. 416. 182 IMPURE AIR A CAUSE OF INSIDIOUS DISEASES. the accumulated exposure, till, at the end of spring, a general debility has been induced, which imperatively demands a ces- sation of festivity, and a change of scene and air. This debil- ity is often erroneously ascribed to the unwholesome influence of sprin*L—a season extolled by the poets, not as a cause of relaxation and feebleness, biit as the dispenser of renovated life and vigor to all created beings. It is in vain to warn such persons beforehand that Nature is always consistent, and that if bad air be really unfit for healthy respiration, it must be detrimental to them, and to all who breathe it; and that its ill effects are not less real because at first gradual and unperceived in their approach. They know too little of the animal economy and of nature's laws, and are too much devoted to their own object, to be impressed by cau- tions of this kind ; and, in looking forward to the ball-room or crowded evening party, few of them will believe that any pos- sible connection can exist between breathing its vitiated atmos- phere, and the headachs, indigestion, and cutaneous eruptions which so frequently follow, and to be delivered from which they would sacrifice almost every other enjoyment. If it be said that nobody will be troubled with all this trifling care, and that thousands who expose themselves in every way, nevertheless enjoy good health and a long life, I can only an- swer that this is true ; but that an infinitely greater proportion pass through life as habitual invalids, and scarcely know, from experience, what a day of good health really is. The late dis- cussions on the Factory Bill have demonstrated, by an unas- sailable mass of evidence, that many circumstances, rarely con- sidered as injurious, because they have no immediate effect in suddenly destroying life by acute diseases, have nevertheless a marked influence in slowly undermining health and shorten- ing human existence. There are trades, for example, at which workmen may labour for fifteen or twenty years, without having been a month confined by disease during all that time, and which are therefore said to be healthy trades ; and vet, when the investigation is pursued a little farther, it is found that the general health is so steadily, although imperceptibly, encroached upon, that scarcely a single workman survives his fortieth or fiftieth year. It is this insidious influence of impure air to which I am anx- ious to direct attention. So. long as delicacy is the rule, and robust health the exception, especially among females, and so IMPURE AIR A CAUSE OF INSIDIOUS DISEASE. 183 long as nearly one-fourth of the annual deaths in Great Britain are caused by consumption alone, it will be difficult to per- suade any rational and instructed mind that every cause of dis- ease is already removed, and that farther care is superfluous. My own conviction on the contrary is, that, by proper care, and a stricter observance of the laws of the animal economy, on the part of the parents and guardians of the young, the de- velopment of the disease might be prevented in a large propor- tion of the number, and that even the robust would enjoy health in a higher degree and with increased security. It is an instructive proof of this, that those who have directed their chief attention to training either man or animals, for athletic exercises or the race-course, have been led by observation to attach the utmost importance to pure air. The late Sir John Sinclair was at pains to collect the rules followed by Jackson, the celebrated trainer, and others of the same profession, and he tells us that, by all of them, the necessity of pure air is uniformly insisted upon. Sir John adds, that the same condi- tion was deemed so essential by the ancients, that the Roman Athletae established their principal schools at Capua and Ra- venna, as enjoying the most pure and healthy air in all Italy; and that, in the training of race-horses, and even of game-cocks, the most sedulous attention is paid to the purity of the air in which they live. The necessity for adequate ventilation is nowhere more ur- gent than in many of our manufactories, where, from the length of time (varying from 10 to 17 hours a day) during which the operatives are exposed to the evils of impure air, a great sacri- fice of health and happiness is constantly going on. In refer- ence to this cause, Dr. Clarke mentions the striking fact, that among the fork-grinders of Sheffield, those resident in the country, and subjected to a more free circulation of air, live, on an average, eight years longer than those resident in towns. In both, the irritating cause and the habits of life are the same, but the rooms in which the country workmen carry on their labours, are larger and much better ventilated. The latter live on an average, forty years, while their town companions are cut off between the ages of twenty-eight and thirty-two* I may add, that the dust floating in the air in cotton manufacto- ries and spinning-mills, and produced in many trades, is a very * Cyclopaedia of Practical Medicine, Part xxii. p. 312. 184 DEFICIENT VENTILATION IN PUBLIC HALLS. serious aggravation of the evil, as all foreign bodies thus in- haled into the lungs produce irritation in their structure, and sooner or later lead to the development of fatal pulmonary disease. Striking, however, as these and innumerable other facts of a similar nature are, we still remain so blind to the instructions of experience, until we acquire a knowfedge of the principles which give it value, that we go on, especially in towns, con- structing our houses in utter defiance of scientific rules. The public rooms which can be easily ventilated at any time,— which are in fact ventilated by the constant opening and shut- ting of the door, and by the draught of the chimney,—and in which, therefore, large dimensions are less necessary for salu- brity, are always the most spacious and airy. The bed-rooms, on the other hand, in which, from the doors being shut, and from there being no current of air in the whole seven or eight hours during which they are occupied, the vitiation of the air is the greatest, and in which, consequently, size is most re- quired,—are uniformly the smallest and most confined ; and, as if this source of impurity were not sufficient, we still farther reduce the already too limited space, by surrounding the bed closely with curtains, for the express purpose of preventing ventilation, and keeping us enveloped in the same heated at- mosphere. Can any thing be imagined more directly at va- riance than this with the fundamental laws of respiration 1 Or could such practices ever have been resorted to, had the nature of the human constitution been regarded before they were adopted'? In this respect we are more humane towards the lower animals than towards our own species ; for, notwithstand- ing all the refinements of civilization, we have not yet aggra- vated the want of ventilation in the stable or the cow-house, by adding curtains to the individual stalls of the inmates. So little, indeed, are we taught to think of the nature and wants of the human constitution, that in Edinburgh, and al- most every large town, we have instances of large public Tooms, capable of holding from 800 to 1000 persons, built with- in these few years, without any means of adequate ventilation being provided, and apparently without the subject having ever cost the architect a thought! When these rooms are crowded and the meeting lasts for some hours, especially if it be in winter, the consequences are sufficiently marked. Either such a multitude must be subjected to all the evils of a con- DEFICIENT VENTILATION IN HOUSES OF PARLIAMENT. 185 taminated and unwholesome atmosphere, or they must be par- tially relieved by opening the windows, and allowing a con- tinued stream of cold air to pour down upon the heated bodies of those who are near them, till the latter are thoroughly chill- ed, and perhaps fatal illness is induced : a*nd unfortunately, even at such a price, the relief is only partial; for the windows being all on one side of the room, and not extending much above half-way to the ceiling, complete ventilation is imprac- ticable. This neglect is glaringly the result of ignorance, and could never have happened, had either of the architects or their employers known the laws of the human constitution; and yet it is still doubted whether it be prudent or right to teach the intelligent portion of the community any knowledge of the structure and uses of their own organs ! These remarks have been fully verified since they were first printed. During the last winter an unusual number of courses of popular lectures were given in Edinburgh, many of which were very fully attended. From the utter impossibility of safe ventilation, those courses which were most crowded, were ac- cessible only at such an expense of health and suffering on the part of their less robust auditors, as served to neutralize, in a great measure, the advantages which might otherwise have been de- rived from them. Several of my own friends were compelled to discontinue their attendance, while others persevered, al- though at the certain cost of a severe headach. This nuisance is the more to be regretted, as it has arisen solely from the architects and the public not having been sufficiently alive to the importance of that prime necessary of life—pure air; and not at all from any difficulty of obtaining it which could not at the first have been easily overcome.* No where, perhaps, have the evils arising from deficient ven- tilation been experienced in greater intensity than in the two Houses of Parliament, and more particularly in the House of Commons, where, from the great number of both members and * In summing up the evils of imperfect ventilation, our author has omit- ted one item of no small account, namely, that the absence of fresh air in- duces a stupor upon the minds of both speakers and hearers, by which the pleasure and advantage derived from the subject presented, are materially diminished. Ventilation should be secured, not only in order that the health of both speaker and listener may not suffer, but in order that the in- tellect of both may be clear and effective, and their feelings more vivid and intense. [Ed. Am. ed.] 186 DEFICIENT VENTILATION IN CHURCHES AND SCHc. strangers generally in attendance, the length of the sittings, the small size of the apartment, and the vitiating effect of the lights, the air is rendered so impure, that few, indeed, are able to withstand its poisonous influence for many weeks. The ef- fects of this vitiation gave rise to loud complaints during the busy and memorable session of 1835, when the importance of the interests at stake, and the equal balancing of parties, occa- sioned an unusually close attendance and very lengthened sit- tings. The lives of several of the members were sacrificed in consequence of it, and the health of many more, even the most robust among them, was very seriously impaired. The evil. however, at last attracted the attention of Parliament so forci- bly, that there is every reason to hope that special care will be taken to guard against its occurrence in the construction of the new edifice. It will, in truth, be a disgrace to the country, and to the scientific talent with which it abounds, if so vital a defect be not entirely and permanently remedied. In dwelling houses lighted by gas, the frequent renewal of the air acquires increased importance. A single gas-burner will consume more oxygen, and produce more carbonic acid to deteriorate the atmosphere of a room, than six or eight candles. If, therefore, where several burners are used, no provision be made for the escape of the corrupted air, and for the introduc- tion of pure air from without, the health will necessarily suffer. A ventilator placed over the burners, like an inverted funnel, and opening into the chimney, is an efficient and easy remedy for the former evil; and a small tube forming a communica- tion between the external air and the room, would supply fresh air, where necessary. The tube might be made to pass, like a distiller's worm, through a vessel containing hot wrater, by which means the air might be heated in very cold weather, before being thrown into the room, and thus the danger arising from cold draughts and inequalities of temperature be avoided. Many of our churches and schools are extremely ill venti- lated; and accordingly it is observed, that fainting and hys terics occur in churches much more frequently in the afternoon than in the forenoon, because the air is then in its maximum of vitiation. Indeed, it is imposible to look around us in a crowded church/towards the close of the service, without per- ceiving the effects of deficient air in the expression of the fea- tures of every one present. Either a relaxed sallow paleness of the surface, or the hectic flush of fever, is observable; and, DEFICIENT VENTILATION IN HOUSES, CHURCHES, &C. 187 as the *ecessary accompaniment, a sensation of mental and bodily lassitude is felt, which is immediately relieved by getting into the open air. I have seen churches frequented by upwards of a thousand people, in which, during winter, not only no means of ventila- tion are employed during service, but even during the interval between the forenoon and afternoon services, the windows are kept as carefully closed as if deadly contagion lay outside, watching for an opportunity to enter by the first open chink— and where, consequently, the congregation must inhale, for two or three hours of the afternoon, an exceedingly corrupted air, and suffer the penalty in headachs, colds, and bilious and nervous attacks. Few of our schools are well regulated in this respect. It is now several years since, on the occasion of a visit to one of the classes of a great public seminary, my attention was first strong- ly attracted to the injury resulting to the mental and bodily functions from the inhalation of impure air. About 150 boys were assembled in one large room, where they had been al- ready confined nearly an hour and a half, when I entered. The windows were partly open ; but, notwithstanding this, the change from the fresh atmosphere outside to the close contami- nated air within, was exceedingly obvious, and most certainly was not without its effect on the mind itself, accompanied as it was with a sensation of fulness in the forehead, and slight headach. The boys, with every motive to activity that an ex- cellent system and an enthusiastic teacher could bestow, pre- sented an aspect of weariness and fatigue which the mental stimulus they were under could not overcome, and which recalled forcibly sensations long bygone, which I had expe- rienced to a woful extent when seated on the benches of the same school. These observations stirred up a train of reflections; and, when I called to mind the freshness and alacrity with which when at school, our morning .operations were carried on, the gradual approach to languor and yawning which took place as the day advanced, and the almost instant resuscitation of the whole energies of mind and body that ensued on our dismissal, I could not help thinking that, even after making every ne- cessary deduction for the mental fatigue of the lessons and the inaction of body, a great deal of the comparative listlessness and indifference was owing to the continued inhalation of an 188 DEFICIENT VENTILATION IN HOUSES, air too much vitiated to be able to afford the requisite ^.imulus to the blood, on which last condition the efficiency of the brain so essentially depends.* This became the more probable, on recollecting the pleasing excitement occasionally experienced for a few moments, from the rush of fresh air which took place when the door was opened to admit some casual visitor.f In-, deed, on referring to the symptoms induced by breathing car- bonic acid gas or fixed air, it is impossible not to perceive that the headach, languor, and debility consequent on confinement in an ill ventilated apartment, or in air vitiated by many peo- ple, are nothing but minor degrees of the same process of poi- soning which ensues on immersion in fixed air. Of this latter state, " great heaviness in the head, tingling in the ears, troubled sight, a great inclination to sleep, diminution of strength, and falling down, are stated by Orfila as the chief symptoms,:}: and every one knows how closely these resemble what is felt in crowded halls. * In view of the principle exhibited in the preceding note, what consum- mate folly is it to attempt to teach children and youth in a confined atmos- phere. The main object of teaching should be, to facilitate the action, and augment the power, of the brain; yet, the absence of fresh air, retards that very mental action sought to be obtained; besides, being often carried to so fearful an extent, ^permanently to injure the tone and texture of the brain. This is one ground, among others, on which I object to a large school of children or youth. Their very natures require a great amount of fresh air; more than can well be obtained where there are many toge ther. I advocate the peripatetic method of teaching children and youth— that of giving them practical instruction while on foot, and in the open air. In our method of teaching the young, we are infinitely behind the an- cients. [Ed. Am. edit.] f The accuracy of the above remarks has been strikingly confirmed since the appearance of the first edition, by an intelligent teacher in Edinburgh, who, in compliance with my advice, pays much attention to ventilation, and turns out his pupils to play in the open air for ten minutes at the end of the first hour. During this time the doors and windows are thrown open, and the air completely renewed. The effect of this proceeding was a marked increase in the mental activity and attention of the pupils, greater pleasure and success in the exercises, and a striking diminution in the number of absentees from sickness. The latter effect was so marked, that some of the parents observed the improved health of their children, without being aware, to what it was due. Since the publication of the second edition, an almost identical instance has been published in a very favourable review of the present volume in the Quarterly Journal of Education for October. 1834. X Toxicologic, ii. 422. CHURCHES AND SCHOOLS. 189 Another instance of the noxious influence of vitiated air, which made a very strong impression on my mind, was during a three hours' service in a crowded country church, in a warm Sunday of July. The windows were all shut, and in conse- quence the open door was of little use in purifying the atmos- phere, which was unusually contaminated, not only by the re- spiration and animal effluvia proceeding from so many people, but by their very abundant perspiration, excited by the heat and confinement. Few of the lower classes, either in town and country, extend their cleanliness beyond the washing of the hands and face. Hence the cutaneous exudation, in such persons, is characterized by a strong and nauseous smell, which, when concentrated, as it was on this occasion, becomes abso- lutely overpowering. Accordingly, at the conclusion of the service, there was heard one general buzz of complaint of head- ach, sickness, and oppression ; and the reality of the suffering was amply testified by the pale and wearied appearance even of the most robust. One of the evils of ignorance is, that we often sin and suffer the punishment, without being aware that we are sinning, and that it is in our power to escape the suffering by avoiding the sin. For many generations, mankind have experienced the evil results of deficient ventilation, especially in towns,* and suffered the penalty of delicate health, headachs, fevers, con- sumptions, and cutaneous and nervous diseases; and yet, from ignorance of the true nature and importance of the function of respiration, and of the great consumption of air in its perform- ance, architects have gone on planning and constructing edifices, without bestowing a thought on the means of supplying them with fresh air, although animal life cannot be carried on with- out it; and, while ingenuity and science have been taxed to the uttermost to secure a proper supply of water, the admission of pure air, though far more essential, has been left to steal in like a thief in the night, through any hole by which it can find an entrance. In constructing hospitals, indeed, ventilation * I cannot believe that man was ever designed or adapted to live so com- pactly as he does in our cities. This is only one—and a great one it is— of the evils inflicted by flocking into cities. The open country, and even the rugged mountain, renders its inhabitants infinitely more happy than they can be in the city, though the former afford but a scanty subsistance, and the latter often enable its inhabitants to roll in wealth and revel in arti- ficial luxury. [Ed. Am. edit.] 190 MEANS OF EFFICIENT VENTILATION. has been thought of, because a notion is prevalent that the sick require fresh air, and cannot recover without it; but it seems not to have been perceived, that what is indispensable for the recovery of the sick, may be not less advantageous in preserv- ing from sickness those who are well. Were a general know- ledge of the structure of man to constitute a regular part of a liberal education, such inconsistencies as this would soon dis- appear, and the scientific architect would speedily'devise the best means for supplying our houses with pure air, as the engi- neer has already supplied them with pure water. The truth of the preceding remarks is strongly confirmed by the recent experience of the highly respectable establishment by which this volume is printed. For years the workmen em- ployed in it were exposed to the full influence of the vitiated air arising in printing-houses from the nature of the materials, the presence of many persons in the same room, and the nu- merous lights required, especially in winter, the whole of which combined formed an atmosphere sickening and oppressive to those unaccustomed to it, but of the true nature of which, those habitually exposed to it received a much fainter impression. On the attention of the partners being drawn to the importance of pure air to bodily health and mental activity, they became anxious to effect a thorough ventilation of their own premises. The plan resorted to was simple, viz. opening a hole of six or eight inches square into a disused chimney at each end of the principal apartments, the upper edge of it being on a level with the ceiling. The warm vitiated air naturally ascends, and having the benefit of the draught through the chimney, is readily carried up, and a good ventilation thus established. The consequent improvement in the comfort and working power of the men is, I understand, not less remarkable than the difference in comfort and freshness to a stranger entering from the open air. The same simple plan has been adopted in the printing office of the Scotsman newspaper, and I have been told by one of the proprietors, that there the workmen are now as little exhausted by two or three hours of extra labour, as they were before with their ordinary exertion. But in ad- mitting an abundant supply of fresh air, especially into hos- pitals, care must be taken that it do not form currents which may be prejudicial to the persons within. A writer in the Lan- cet, of 29th December, 1832, after narrating the case of a pa- tient who was carried off by pleurisy, while under treatment MEANS OF EFFICIENT VENTILATION. 191 by Dr. Elliotson, in St. Thomas's Hospital, for disease of the pylorus, gives his opinion, that the pleurisy "was most likely occasioned by the extreme draughts of this ward'. There is a great current of air in the ward, and I have seen many persons in it suffer very much indeed." In a note, it is added, " The number of patients who are thus carried off yearly, forms a start- ling list to be laid before the eyes of the Governors of this Insti- tution. Such results are shamefully frequent." I have already noticed the occurrence of pneumonic inflammation from the same causes in the garrison at Stirling Castle, and it is to be feared that there are still many hospitals as much in need of improvement in this respect as St. Thomas's. As a contrast to the above case, it is gratifying to observe the care which has been taken to effect a thorough and safe ventilation in fitting up the new surgical wards of the Edin- burgh Infirmary, which may serve as a model of what ought to be done not only with all public edifices, but I may add with all private dwellings. In these wards fresh air is introduced by large circular openings in the floor, and the vitiated air es- capes by similar openings in the roof. The apparatus is so constructed as to admit of the air being heated in winter before it enters the ward, by which means all danger from cold currents is prevented. Since the first publication of these pages, my attention has been kindly drawn, by Mr. Robert Cadell, bookseller in this city, to the still more efficient and wholesome method of warm- ing and ventilating houses and buildings, at present in use in his own extensive establishment, and which was first invented by Mr. Perkins. The apparatus consists simply of a furnace in the lowest part of the building, and of a continuous iron pipe, about an inch in diameter, filled with water and of a length sufficient to make it extend through all the apartments in which heat is wanted, and return to the point from which it started. The pipe is thus properly a circle, and has no end. The portion of it surrounded by the fire of the furnace becomes first heated, the water in it expands, and this, being specifi- cally lighter than the colder water in the descending branch, begins to ascend, and continues to do so as its temperature rises. A regular current of ascending hot water and descend- ing cooler water, is thus established ; and all that is required to heat any apartment is to have a quantity of the ascending pipe in it proportioned in length to the space to be heated. In ^ 192 VITIATED AIR DESTRUCTIVE OF HEALTH. ordinary rooms, this is done by having part of it coiled up in the usual fire-place ; but in large halls the pipe is carried round the edge of the floor, so as to diffuse the heat more equally over its most distant parts. From the small size of the pipe, and the distance to which it is carried in large establishments, like that of Mr. Cadell, there may seem at first sight an impossibility that it should be able to furnish an adequate supply of heat. But experience shows that it is greatly more than adequate to this purpose. When I visited Mr. Cadell's premises, I was struck with the genial and pleasant heat which pervaded every part of them, although there is only one furnace for the whole five stories. I was not less struck with the total absence of the empy- reumatic odour and parched dryness so generally characteristic of heated air. By Mr. Perkins' apparatus, ventilation can be carried, with safety, to any extent which may be required. All that is ne- cessary is to have the cold air from without conveyed into the lower part of the ornamental metal-box or stove, in which the coils of pipe are contained, and to have proper apertures at the top of the box, to allow the warm air to escape into the room. To permit the vitiated air to get out, openings are left in the ceiling of the room or hall; and, by having stop-cocks placed on both, the entrance of warm external air, and the issue of vitiated air, or, in other words, ventilation, can be regulated at pleasure, without any risk, either from draughts or from the en- trance of cold damp air, such as prevails in this climate during the winter months. The efficacy, economy, safety, and agreeableness of warm- ing by the above plan can scarcely be overrated, particularly in large buildings, hospitals, and places liable to fire. The pipes may be conveyed through rooms full of paper or other inflammable materials without the possibility of accident; and, the apparatus being once fitted up, lobbies and every part of a house can be comfortably heated with as little trouble as a sin- gle room. This too is of much consequence, because numer- ous colds are caused by passing frequently from warm rooms to cool lobbies and bed-rooms, without any additional clothing. The Russians, and other northern nations, owe their compara- tive exemption from consumption partly to the whole interior of their houses being of a comfortable and uniform temperature, and partly to their warm clothing; and, so long as our modes SOURCES OF ANIMAL HEAT. 193 of heating and ventilation remain so imperfect, and diseases of the chest continue so prevalent among us, we ought never to lose sight of the relation of cause and effect, subsisting between the two circumstances, or relax in our endeavours to obviate the latter by the rectification of the former. In the third chapter, I pointed out the necessity of protect- ing the skin by suitable clothing, and mentioned the intimate relation which subsists between its functions and those of the lungs. We have now to consider this subject a little farther, as regards the origin and regulation of the animal heat. The true sources of animal heat are still imperfectly known, and any discussion concerning them would be too abstract for the present volume. Its regular production, however, is an essential condition of life. If the human body did not possess within itself the power of generating heat, so as to maintain nearly an equality of temperature in all climates, it could not long exist. In winter, especially in the northern regions, the blood would speedily be converted into a solid mass, and life be extinguished, if no provision existed for replacing the caloric withdrawn from the system by the cold air surrounding it. In most parts of the globe, the heat of the atmosphere is, even in summer, inferior to that of the human body, and consequently a loss of caloric is always going on, which must be made up in some way, otherwise disease and death would speedily ensue. In cholera a very remarkable diminution of heat occurs, and a return to the natural temperature is an indispensable step to- wards recovery. The relation between the production of animal heat and the condition of the respiratory functions, is the most direct and remarkable. In general, other conditions being alike, the quantity of heat generated is in proportion to the size and vigour of the lungs; and, when these are impaired, its production is diminished. Hence many persons with imperfectly developed lungs, and a predisposition to consumption, complain habitually of coldness of the surface and feet; and many who were pre- viously in good health, become more and more sensible to cold, in proportion as the approach of disease weakens the functions of the lungs. I have noticed this increasd sensibility to cold, as a precursor of chronic pulmonary disease, both in myself and in others, before any other very obvious symptoms had ap- peared, and think I have seen its farther progress arrested by the timely use of proper means, where much greater difficulty 194 CONNECTION BETWEEN RESPIRATION would have been experienced, had the warning not been at- tended to. The generation of heat in the living system being so imme- diately connected with the lungs, we find the temperature highest in those animals which possess them in the greatest perfection, namely, birds. In many species, the internal heat exceeds that of man by twenty or thirty degrees; while that of man exceeds, to as great an extent, the heat of such of the inferior animals as are remarkable for imperfect organs of respi- ration. The next condition affecting the production of animal heat, is the co-operation of the nervous system. If the mind be de • pressed by grief, tormented by anxiety, or absorbed in seden- tary meditation, all the bodily functions become weakened, the circulation languishes, the breathing becomes slow and scarcely perceptible, digestion is ill performed, and coldness of the extremities ensues. If, on the other hand, the mind and nervous system be stimulated by cheerful exertion and agreea- ble emotions, a pleasant glow pervades the frame, and exter- nal cold is much more easily resisted. The quantity and quaiity of the food, and state of the diges- tive functions, are also important conditions. The enormous quantity of stimulating animal food, such as fat and oil, required for the support of life under exposure to the intense cold of the polar regions, as mentioned by Franklin, Parry, and Richard- son, is an appropriate example. The proposition will, indeed, be readily assented to, when the reader considers that a due supply of well-formed chyle is necessary to restore the nour- ishing properties of the blood, and that if, in consequence either of insufficient food or of a weak digestion, this be rendered im- possible, all the animal functions—among others, the produc- tion of heat—must unavoidably be impaired. This is the reason why cold is felt most severely in the morning before breakfast, and why coldness of the feet and chillness of the surface are so generally complained of in indigestion and bil- ious complaints. Every bod}T knows that exercise favours and indolence ob- structs, the development of animal heat. Exercise produces its effects by the general stimulus which it gives directly to the respiratory and circulating systems, and indirectly to the nerv- ous and digestive functions. In attempting, therefore, to increase the power of resistance AND ANIMAL HEAT. 195 to cold in the human body, we ought to take into account all the conditions which favour the generation of heat. Observa- tion proves that the degree of cold required to overcome the in- ternal generating power, and to extinguish life, varies in the same individual at different times; and therefore our protect- ing measures also ought to be varied according to the state of the constitution, the vigour of the respiratory and digestive functions, the kind and quantity of food, and the amount of exercise. When the food is inadequate, and the mind depress- ed, the system resists the impression of cold with great difficul- ty ; and even in Scotland, where the temperature is rarely very low, scarcely a winter passes without several instances of death from exposure occurring in ill-fed and ill-clothed individuals, even when the thermometer is above the freezing point. This happens usually when a high wind aids the rapid abstrac- tion of heat. Well-fed guards of coaches, on the other hand, are remarkable examples of the power of withstanding low temperatures in very exposed situations, where the animal functions are in a state of vigour. The recent Arctic ex- peditions under Parry, Lyon, and Ross afford similar instances. Having already, when treating of the skin, sufficiently ex- plained the principles on which clothing ought to be adjusted, it is unnecessary to recur to its utility as a means of regulating the temperature of the human body. If the use of suitable clothing is found insufficient to keep the body warm, we may in- fer with certainty, although no other sign of bad health has appeared, that some internal cause exists, affecting and impair- ing one or other of the sources of animal heat already men- tioned, and that till the special cause be discovered and re- moved, the evil itself will continue undiminished. A not un- frequent cause of suffering from cold during the day in delicate parsons is, the common practice of sleeping on very soft feather- beds, in which the body sinks so deep as to be almost sur- rounded by feathers. The undue warmth thence arising, re- laxes the surface of the body, weakens the action of the skin, and thus renders the individual unusually susceptible of the impression of cold when exposed out of doors. When a feather- bed is used, it ought to be so well stuffed as to afford ample resistance to the weight of the body.* * That feather beds are in such general use, is a matter of perfect sur- prise. Disagreeable to the smell, especially in warm weather, and confess- 196 CONNECTION BETWEEN RESPIRATION ANL ANIMAL HEAT. In winter, young people often suffer from being daily con. fined for many hours in succession, without exercise, in rooms insufficiently heated. This is a constant subject of complaint in large academies and boarding-schools, where economy in fuel is carried to its utmost limits. Nothing tends more than this to lower the general standard of health, and prepare the individual for the future inroads of insidious diseases. In scro- fulous children especially, in whom the evolution of heat is rarely energetic, the evil is one of great magnitude; for the chilblains, colds, and headachs, more immediately complained of, are often its least important consequences. It is far from my wish to recommend that the young of either sex should be brought up in the relaxing atmosphere of overheated rooms. On the contrary, comfortable warmth ought in every instance, to be drawn chiefly from its legitimate sources,, free respiration in a pure air, abundant exercise out of doors, vigorous diges- tion, and an actively employed mind. If these conditions be observed, little fire will be required to supply warmth to the young. But if, as often happens, these be neglected, and the generation of animal heat be thereby reduced too low, we must either allow the mischief to go on increasing, or afford adequate warmth from without. It is in vain to think of rendering young creatures hardy by subjecting them to the continued influence of a low and chilling temperature. A few may escape, but the majority will certainly suffer. In the heating of rooms and public halls, it is proper to be on our guard against rendering the air too dry, a condition which is hurtful in causing too rapid evaporation from the whole line of the air-passages, as well as from the surface of the body, and which is apt to produce considerable irritability in the system at large. On the Continent, where stoves are much in use, a vessel containing water is commonly placed in a sand-bath on the top, that moisture may be generated quickly or slowly, according to the degree of heat, and dif- fused through the top atmosphere. In such of our halls as are warmed by heated air or stoves, some plan of this sort ought to be adopted. Having thus examined the chief conditions required for edly unhealthy, why are they so universally employed 1 The matress is certainly more wholesome, as well as more agreeable to those who -habit- uate themselves to them. [Ed. Am. edit.] EXERCISE OF THE LUNGS. 197 nealthy respiration, it only remains for me to throw out a few practical hints in regard to what may be called the education of the lungs, or the means by which their development may be favoured, and their functions improved in tone and extent. Most of these means have been already noticed at some length, and the only important one which still claims our attention is the exercise of the lungs. Judicious exercise of the lungs is one of the most efficacious means which we can employ for promoting their development, and warding off their diseases. In this respect the organs of respiration closely resemble the muscles and all other organ- ized parts. They are made to be used, and if they are left in habitual inactivity, their strength and health are unavoidably impaired ; while, if their exercise be ill-timed or excessive, dis- ease will as certainly follow. The lungs may be exercised indirectly by such kinds of bodily or muscular exertion as require quicker and deeper breathing; and directly by the employment of the voice in speaking, reading aloud, crying, or singing. In general both ought to be conjoined. But where the chief object is to im- prove the lungs, those kinds which have a tendency to expand the chest, and call the organs of respiration into play, ought to be especially preferred. Rowing a boat, fencing, quoits, shut- tlecock, and the proper use of the skipping-rope, dumb-bells. and gymnastics, are of this description. All of them emplov actively the muscles of the chest and trunk, and excite the lungs themselves to freer and fuller expansion. Climbing up hill is, for the same reason, an exercise of high utility in giving tone and freedom to the pulmonary functions. Where, either from hereditary predisposition or accidental causes, the chest is unusually weak, every effort should be made, from infancy upwards, to favour the growth and strength of the lungs, by the habitual use of such of the above-mention- ed exercises as can most easily be practised. The earlier they are resorted to and the more steadily they are pursued, the more certainly will their beneficial results be experienced. In their employment, the principles explained in the chapter on the Muscles ought to be adhered to. Habitual exercise in a hilly country, and the frequent ascent of aclivities, especially in pursuit of an object, are well known to have a powerful effect in improving the wind and strengthen- ng the lungs; which is just another way of saying that they 198 EXERCISE OF THE LUNGS. increase the capacy of the chest, promote free circulation through the pulmonary vessels, and lead to the more complete oxygenation of the blood. Hence the vigorous appetite, the increased muscular power, and the cheerfulness of mind so commonly felt by the invalid on his removal to the mountains, are not to be wondered at. I was myself sensible of advant- age from this kind of exercise during a Highland excursion. The necessity of frequent and deep inspirations, and the stimu- lus thus given to the general and pulmonary circulation, had an obvious effect in increasing the capacity of the lungs and the power of bearing exertion without fatigua Even when I was wearied, the fatigue went off much sooner than after a walk of equal length on the level road, and was unattended with the languor which generally accompanied the latter. In fact, the most agreeable feeling which I experienced during the whole time was while resting after undergoing, in the ascent of a hill, a degree of exertion sufficient to accelerate the breathing, and bring out a considerable quantity of perspiration. A light- ness and activity of mind, and freedom about the chest, which I never felt to the same extent at any other time, followed such excursions, and made the fatigue comparatively light. Before such practices, however, can be resorted to with ad- vantage, or even with safety, there must be nothing in the shape of active disease existing. If there be, the adoption of such exercise will, in all probability, occasion the most serious injury. This also I experienced in my own case, as, for many months at an early stage of convalescence, going up a stair, ascending the most gentle aclivity, or speaking aloud for a few minutes, was equally fatiguing and hurtful, and often brought on cough, and occasionally a slight spitting of blood. All that time, riding on horseback, which exercises the body without hurrying the breathing, was especially useful. The advant- age of these exercises in giving tone and capacity to the lungs, where debility rather than disease is complained of, is shown in their being uniformly resorted to in preparing for the race- course and for the field. The true sportsman puts himself in training as well as his dog or his horse, and fits himself for the moors by regular excursions previous to the 12th of August. By so doing he improves his wind and increases his muscular strength to a remarkable extent in a very short time. When no active pulmonary disease exists, these exercises may, with the best effects, be frequently carried so far as to in- EXERCISE OF THE LUNGS. 199 duce free perspiration; only great care ought to be taken im- mediately after, to rub the surface of the body thoroughly dry, and to change the dress. It is quite ascertained that, with these precautions, perspiration from exercise is the reverse of debilitating. It equalizes and gently stimulates the circulation, relieves the internal organs, improves digestion, and invigor- ates the skin. Jackson testifies strongly to these results, when he declares that the severe exercise undergone in training, not only improves the lungs, but always renders the skin " quite clear, even though formerly subject to eruptions."* These as- sertions are, of course, to be received as the statements of a man partial to his own art; but they are in accordance with expe- rience, and with the laws of the animal functions, so far as these are known. They, therefore, merit the consideration of professional men, and of those whose features are often dis- figured by eruptions which they find it difficult to remove by any kind of medicine. I need hardly say, that, when wishing to favour the develop- ment of the lungs, we ought to be scrupulous in avoiding such positions of the body as hinder their full expansion. Tailors, shoemakers, clerks at a writing-desk, and the like, are unfa- vourably situated in this respect, as their bent position con- strains the chest, and impedes the breathing and circulation. Direct exercise of the lungs in practising deep inspiration, speaking, reciting, singing, and playing on wind instruments, is very influential for good or for evil, according as it is indulg- ed in with or without due reference to the constitution of the individual. If it is properly managed and persevered in, par- ticularly before the frame has become consolidated, nothing tends more to expand the chest, and give tone and health to the important organs contained in it; but if either ill-timed, or carried to excess, nothing can be more detrimental. As a pre- ventive measure, Dr. Clark is in the habit of recommending the full expansion of the chest in the following manner. " We desire the young person, while standing, to throw his arms and shoulders back, and, while in this position, to inhale slowly as much air as he can, and repeat this exercise at short intervals, several times in succession ; when this can be done in the open air, it is most desirable, a double advantage being thus obtain- ed from the practice. Some exercise of this kind should be * Sir John Sinclair's Code of Health, 5th edition. Appendix, p. 37. 200 EXERCISE OF THE LUNGS. adopted daily by all young persons, more especially by those* whose chests are narrow or deformed, and should be slowly and gradually increased^"* In this recommendation I heartily concur. For the same reason, even the crying and sobbing of children contribute to their future health, unless they are caused by dis- ease, and carried to a very unusual extent. The loud laugh and noisy exclamations attending the sports of the young, have an evident relation to the same beneficial end; and ought therefore to be encouraged instead of being repressed, as they are often sought to be, by those who, forgetting that they them- selves were once young,' seek in childhood the gravity and de- corum of more advanced age. I have already noticed, at page 135, an instance on a large scale, in which the inmates of an institution were, for the purpose of preserving their health, shut up within the limits of their hall for six months, and not allowed to indulge in any noisy and romping sports. The aim of the directors was undoubtedly the purest benevolence, but, from their want of knowledge, their object was defeated, and the arrangement itself became the instrument of evil. j Beneficial as the direct exercise of the lungs is thus shown to be in strengthening the chest, its influence extends still far- ther. If we examine the position of the lungs as represented in the figure on page 166, Ave shall see, that when fully inflated, they must necessarily push downwards and flatten the movable arch of the diaphragm D D, by which they are separated from the belly or abdomen. This alteration, however, canno/ take place without the diaphragm in its turn pushing down the liver, stomach, and bowels, which it accordingly does, causing them to project forwards and outwards. But no sooner are the lungs fully inflated, than the contained air is again thrown out. The lungs diminish in size, the diaphragm rises, and with it all the contents of the abdomen return to their former position. The whole digestive apparatus is thus subjected to a continual pressure and change of place ; and the stimulus thence arising is in truth essential to the healthy performance of the digestive functions, and is one of the means arranged by the Creator for the purpose. Consequently, if the lungs be rarely called into active exercise, not only do they suffer, but an important aid to digestion being withdrawn, the stomach and bowels also become * Clark on Consumption and Scrofula, p. 298. EXERCISE OF THE LUNGS DURING DISEASE. 201 weakened, and indigestion and costiveness make their appear- ance. I have already alluded to this subject in the chapter on muscular exercise ; but the principle will now be better under- stood with the aid of the figure. After this exposition I need hardly say that the loud and dis- tinct speaking enforced in many public schools is productive of much good to the young, and that the occasional songs in which all are required to join in the Infant Schools and other institutions are much to be commended. Let any one who doubts their efficacy as exercises of the lungs, attend to what passes in his own body on reading aloud a single paragraph, and he will find not only that deep inspirations and full expi- rations are encouraged, but that a considerable impulse is com- municated to the bowels, affording a marked contrast to the slight breathing and quiescent posture of those whose voices never rise above a whisper. Reading aloud, public speaking, and lecturing, are excellent exercises for developing the lungs and the chest. But, as they require some exertion, they ought to be indulged in with pru- dence, and with constant reference to the constitution and health of the individual. The reviewer of a former edition of the present volume (himself a lecturer), in noticing this part of the book, adds the following testimony:—" We know our- selves, from personal experience, that, often when preparing to go to lecture, a languor has crept upon us, inducing an un- willingness to exert ourselves. We have gone,—the lecture has commenced,—the mind was called into action,—a perspi- ration broke forth on the brow,—the circulation was equalized, —ar?'T ■ at the conclusion of the lecture, the languor was gone." Hence he recommends "reading to one's family in the even- ing," u an excellent practice, and one tending much to sweeten Sv ^al life."* When early resorted to, and steadily persevered in, such exercises are very useful in warding off disease, and communicating strength to an important function. But when begun suddenly, and carried to excess by persons « with weak lungs, they are more directly injurious than almost any other cause. It is not uncommon for young divines to de- vote themselves to preaching, without any preparation for the effort which it requires, and To experience, in consequence, pains in the chest, spitting of blood, and other dangerous forms * London Medical and Surgical Journal, No. 134, p. 107. 202 EXERCISE OF THE LUNGS DURING DISEASE. of disease, which often extinguish their brightest prospects in the morning of life. Sacrifices of this kind are the more to be . lamented, because it is probable that, by a well planned sys- tem of gradual preparation, many who fall victims might find in their profession even a source of safety. The late illustrious Cuvier, as was mentioned at page 139, is considered to have been saved from an early death, by his ap- pointment to a professorship leading him to the moderate and regular exercise of his lungs in teaching—a practice which soon removed the delicacy of chest to which he was subject, and enabled him to pass uninjured through a long life of active business. Other examples of the same kind might be men- tioned. But it is important to observe, that in all of them the exercise was at all times, accurately proportioned to the exist- ing state of the lungs. Had active disease existed, or the ex- ertion required been beyond what the lungs were fully able to bear, the effect would have been, not to improve health, but to destroy life; and this condition of accurate relation between the amount of exercise and the state of the organization must never for a moment be overlooked. With a little care, how- ever, the point at which direct exercise of the lungs ought to stop may easily be determined by observing its effects. The same principle leads to another obvious rule : When disease of any kind exists in the chest, exercise of the lungs in speaking, reading, and singing, and also in ordinary muscular exertion, ought either to be entirely refrained from, or strictly regulated by professional advice. When a joint is sore or in- flamed, we know that motion impedes its recovery. When the eye is affected, we, for a similar reason, shut out the light; and when the stomach is disordered, we have respect to its condition, and become more careful about diet. The lungs demand a treatment founded on the same general principle. If they are inflamed, they must be exercised as little as possi- ble, otherwise mischief will ensue. Hence, in a common cold . of any severity, silence, which is the absence of direct pulmo- nary exercise, ought to be preserved, and will, in truth, be its own reward. In severe cases, and in acute inflammations of the chest, this rule is of the greatest importance. It is com- mon to meet with patients whoxannot speak three words with- out exciting a fit of coughing, and who, notwithstanding, can- not be persuaded that speaking retards their recovery. In like manner, of spitting of blood, and in the early stage of tubercu- EXERCISE OF THE LUNGS AS A REMEDY. 203 lar consumption, when the breathing cannot be excited with- out direct mischief, it is often difficult to convince the patient of the necessity of silence. He perhaps does not feel pain on at- tempting to speak, and says that " it merely raises a short tickling cough, which is nothing." But if he persists, dearly bought experience will teach him his error, and dispose him to regret, as did a lamented friend of the author, that a few weeks out of the years which he had dedicated to the study of the classics had not been devoted to the acquisition of some little knowledge of the structure and functions of his own body. In the instance alluded to, after spitting of blood had been induced by severe bodily labour, the patient continued talking almost the whole day to the visitors and inmates of a large public es- tablishment, and believed himself all the time to be very care- ful, as he said he was no longer exerting his body. When the error was pointed out, and the mechanism of the lungs explain- ed to him, he deeply bewailed the ignorance which had al- lowed him to act in a manner so pernicious. All violent exercise ought, for similar reasons, to be refrained from, during at least the active stages of cold. Every thing which hurries the breathing, whether walking fast, ascending an acclivity, or reading aloud, has the same effect on the diseased lungs that motion of the bone has on an inflamed joint. It seems to me, that many people hurt themselves much more by the active exercise they take during a severe cold than by the mere exposure to the weather. It is well known, that a per- son, when suffering from cold, may go out for a short time even in an open carriage more safely than on foot; and there is much reason to believe, that it is the absence of active exertion of the lungs in the former case, which makes the exposure less hurtful. After all active disease has been subdued, or when nothing but delicacy remains, the adequate exercise of the lungs is one of the best means of promoting effectual recovery. Those pa- rents, therefore, act most erroneously who, in their apprehen- sive anxiety for the protection of their delicate children, scru- pulously prohibit them from every kind of exercise which re- quires the least effort, and shut them up from the open air dur- ing winter, with the false hope of thereby warding off colds and protecting their lungs. I have seen the greatest delicacy of constitution thus engendered, especially where an undue quantity of warm clothing was at the same time employ- 204 PREVENTION OF DISEASE IN THE LUNGS. ed. When tested by the principles above explained, such conduct is found to be as ill adapted as possible to the end in view, and utterly at variance with the laws of the animal economy. Considering the delicacy and extent of the lining membrane of the lungs, and the ready access to it which the external air has, it cannot be a matter of surprise that sudden or great changes in its temperature or constitution should often operate injuriously on the lungs, and be the means of inducing not only colds but more serious disease. Hence, especially in delicate subjects, the obvious propriety of diminishing the risk of sud- den transitions, by breathing through several folds of woollen fabric or silk when obliged to pass from a warm room to the cold external air, or to breathe a cold or damp air for a length of time. The cold air becomes partially heated and deprived of its moisture in passing through such a medium, and the pro- tection thus afforded is so marked, that few who have tried the precaution will ever afterwards neglect it. Perhaps the most important time in the life of a person born with a predisposition to consumption is that of puberty, com- prising from the commencement of rapid growth to the full consolidation of the system, about or after the twenty-fourth year. In most young people, the transition from adolescence to maturity is so rapid, that for two or three years all the ani- mal powers are tasked to enable nutrition to keep pace with growth, and a corresponding debility of both body and mind is often observed to co-exist, indicating in the clearest manner the necessity of a temporary remission from such studies and occupations as require much mental exertion or confinement within doors.* The development and health of the physical system ought then to be almost exclusively attended to; and when the body has acquired its solidity, the mental faculties will again become active. I have seen instances where a knowledge of the latter fact afforded substantial consolation to young men who, while their bodies were growing rapidly, were apt to become despondent, on account of the unusual sluggish- ness and inefficiency of their intellectual powers. In the course of a few years, when growth and consolidation were completed, the brain vigorously resumed its functions. * This principle exposes the pernicious practice of keeping children and youth confined to hard work. I say, let them not be required to do much till they are nearly twenty years old. ^Ed. Am. edit.] PREVENTION OF DISEASE IN THE LUNGS. 205 In such circumstances, relaxation from study, residence in the country, exercise in the open air. plenty of food, and free- dom from care, will often do immense good, if sufficiently per- sisted in, and go far to protect the careful patient against the future invasion of consumption. Whereas, if, under the mis- taken notion that such precautionary measures are a waste of time, a delicate growing youth is allowed to continue at his studies or his desk till disease has actually commenced, the dis- appointed parent may discover that it is too late to take alarm when health is gone. A good deal of observation has satisfied me, that too little attention is paid to the preservation of health at this critical period of life, and that, by proper management during the transition from adolescence to maturity, many might be saved who now fall victims. Dr. Clark, in the excellent treatise al- ready referred to, strongly advocates the same view, and his remarks cannot be too earnestly recommended to both profes- sional and general notice. Mr. Marshall has taken some pains to point out the disad- vantages laboured under by very young recruits from their be- ing neglectful of health, and ignorant how to take care of themselves. In common life the same disadvantages result from the same causes. The young being left in entire igno- rance of the structure and uses of the different organs of their own bodies, and without experience of the evils of exposure, heedlessly give way to their predominant inclinations, and rash- ly subject themselves to the operation of morbid causes, which, had they been instructed, they might easily have avoided. The consequence is, that the body being weak at that age from the rapidity of growth and want of consolidation, external causes act with double energy, and lay the foundation of consumption, or other forms of disease, without any means being used to counteract their influence ; and that a greater mortality takes place during the few years of adolescence, than at an earlier or more advanced period of life. A late writer, who has bestowed infinite pains on the inves- tigation of the laws of mortality, describes the period between seventeen and twenty-four years of age in the male sex, as "one of restlessness, toil, and danger; the human faculties are then exercised to the utmost, and life is more freely ex- pended than at any other season. Inflammatory diseases, of- ten of fatal termination, are most prevalent for both sexes dur« 206 PREVENTION OF DISEASE IN THE LUNGS. ing this period."* The accuracy of these statements is incon- trovertibly established by a reference to the bills of mortality. It appears, for example, from the Count Chabrol's Statistical Researches of the City of Paris and Department of the Seine, that, in 1819, the total mortality was 22,445, of whom 10,865 were males, and 11,580 were females. Of this number there died— Males. Females. Between the ages of 10 and 15, . 198 238 ----------------15 " 20, . 420 391 ----------------20 " 25, . 815 650 ----------------25 " 30, . ^ 374 567 Showing a remarkable increase in the number of deaths be- tween 15 and 20 over those between 10 and 15, and again an- other increase of nearly double in those between 20 and 25 over those between 25 and 30. In the females, from circum- stances not now to be explained, the period of increased mor- tality extends to nearly 30 years of age. Similar results appear for other years. In 1820, the total deaths were 22,218, of whom 10,584 were males, and 11,634 females. Of this number there died— Males. Females. Between the ages of 10 and 15, . 172 223 ----------------15 " 20, . 396 303 ----------------20 " 25, . 749 590 ----------------25 " 30, . 381 524 And in 1821, we have a total of 22,648, of whom 11,167 were males, and 11,481 females. Of this number there died— Males. Females. Between the ages of 10 and 15, . 209 236 ----------------15 " 20, . 367 337 ----------------20 " 25, . 776 556 ---------------25 " 30, . 405 560 These tables, confirmed by others drawn up with equal accu- racy, place in a striking point of view the dangers of the state of transition from youth to manhood, and the necessity of at- tempting, by early instruction and timely prudence, to protect the young against the numerous causes of disease which then come into active and fatal operation. They ought also to serve * On the Natural and Mathematical Laws concerning Population, Vitality, and Mortality. By Fran is Corbaux. P. 92. PREVENTION OF DISEASE IN THE LUNGS. 207 as a warning to those, who, in the spring-time of life, are in- clined to trust implicitly for their safety to the strength of a good constitution, and to despise the prudence which dictates , the avoidance of unnecessary exposure. The experience de- rived from the limited observation of one man may be set aside as undeserving of trust; but when the unvarying results exhi- bited to us are deduced from the changes in nearly a million of people, it is impossible to ascribe them to chance, or to deny their bearing on ourselves. Many invaluable practical truths will, ere long, be furnished to the world by the statistical re searches now in progress. The earlier maximum of mortality in the male sex, especially in cities, is explicable by the fact, that it is at the approach of manhood, when both mind and body are in a state of transi- tion, that dissipation is most indulged in, and presses with its deadliest force. Many delicate youths are carried off, who would have escaped without injury, if they could have been persuaded to act with prudence during these two or three criti cal years. Many, I am constrained to say, first learn the means of their destruction in boarding-schools, and places of public resort, and that often when no mischief is suspected by their respectable teachers. On this topic, however, the non- professional character of the present work precludes me from entering into details. Before quitting this important subject, I may add another word of advice, in regard to those who are predisposed to con- sumption or weakness of chest. As soon as active growth commences, permanent benefit may be derived from removal, for a few years, to a milder and less variable climate. Many who are sent abroad only to die painfully in a foreign land, in the noonday of life, might have lived for years in the enjoy- ment of health and usefulness, had they been sent abroad be- fore the appearance of disease, instead of after its unequivocal commencement. The previous delicacy, whence the suscep- tibility to colds and pulmonary affections arises, ought to at- tract the earliest attention, and excite the most persevering ef- forts for its removal. If it be allowed to make progress till consumption has commenced, medicine may come armed with its most powerful remedies, and directed by the most consum- mate skill; but it will too often come in vain. The rage which now prevails for mere intellectual education, and the utter neg- lect of the bodily health to which it leads, is too often carried 208 PREVENTION OF DISEASE IN THE LUNGS. so far as to be a curse rather than a blessing; and till its fury be moderated by an increase of good sense in the parents, great mischief must, I fear, continue to ensue. 1 cannot dismiss this subject without again referring the • reader to Dr. Clark's work on Consumption and Scrofula, aa affording, I may almost say for the first time, a comprehensive, philosophical, and practical view of the causes, nature, and treatment of consumption. The able author has not, it is true, greatly extended our power over that fatal disease in its most advanced periods, but he has done more to throw light upon its causes, to obviate its development, and to arrest it in its inci- pient stages, than any writer with whose works I am ac- quainted. CHAPTER VIII. NERVOUS SYSTEM AND MENTAL FACULTIES. Nervous System. Structure of the brain. The brain the organ of mind and seat of sensation. Connection between the mind and brain. Conditions of health in the brain. Influence of hereditary constitution—of the blood. Effects of imper- fectly oxygenated blood. Exercise of the brain and mind. Effects of mental inactivity—exemplified in the deaf and dumb. Mental inactivity a cause of nervous disease. Exemplified in retired officers, merchants, and others—in fe- males of the middle and higher ranks. Effects of mental activity on the brain. Effects of excessive mental activity—Exemplified in precocious children—in youth—in hard students—in early and middle life, case of Sir Humphrey Davy —in advanced life, case of Sir Walter Scott—A cause of insanity. Effects of over activity of mind on health, cases of Gretry, Weber, and others. In man and the higher orders of animals, the nervous sys- tem is composed of, 1st, the brain; 2d, the spinal marrow; and, 3d, the nerves. But, on the present occasion, it will be necessary to confine our remarks chiefly to the brain; and, even regarding it, to offer observations only on such points as all are agreed upon, and the general reader can easily compre- hend. The brain is that large organized mass which, along with its enveloping membranes, completely fills the cavity of the skull. It is the seat of thought, of feeling and of consciousness, and the centre towards which all impressions made on the nerves distributed over the body are conveyed, and from which the commands of the will are transmitted to put the various parts in motion. The structure of the brain is so complicated, that lessfis known of its true nature than of that of almost any other organ. It would therefore be entirely out of place to attempt to describe it here, farther than by stating generally its principle divisions. On sawing off the top of the skull, and removing the firm tough 210 STRUCTURE OF THE BRAIN. membrane called dura mater (hard mother), which adheres closely to its concave surface, the cerebrum or brain proper pre- sents itself, marked on the surface with a great variety of un- dulating windings or convolutions, and extending, from the fore to the back part of the head, somewhat in the form of an ellipse. In the annexed wood-cut, the convolutions are represented as seen on the base of the brain. In the middle line from G to G, there is, on the upper aspect of the brain, a deep cleft or fissure, separating it, in its whole length, into two halves, or hemispheres as they are called. Into this cleft dips a tight stiff membrane, resembling a scythe in shape, and hence called xhefalx (scythe), or, sometimes, from its being a mere fold of the dura mater, the falciform (scythe-like) process of the dura mater. From its dipping down between the two halves of the brain, the chief purpose of this membrane seems to be to re- lieve the one side from the pressure of the other, when the head is reclining to either side. Each half or hemisphere of the brain is, in its turn, divided, —but in a less marked way, as the divisions are observable only on its inferior surface,—into three portions, called, from their situations, the anterior, middle, and posterior lobes, each occupying nearly a third of the whole length of the brain. The anterior lobe, being the portion lying above the dotted line E E, occupies the forehead; the middle is all the portion lying between the two transverse lines E E and F F, above STRUCTURE OF THE BRAIN. 211 and a little in front of the ears ; and the posterior lobe is that portion lying below the transverse line F F, and corresponding to the back part of the head. Beneath the posterior lobe, a strong fold of the dura mater, called the tentorium, is extended horizontally to support and separate it from the cerebellum A A, or little brain, lying below it. The cerebellum forms the last great division of the con- tents of the skull. Its surface is marked by convolutions, dif- fering, however, in size and appearance from those observed in the brain. Adhering to the surface of the convolutions, and consequent ly dipping down into and lining the sulci or furrows between them, another membrane of finer texture and greater vascular- ity, called pia mater, is found. The bloodvessels going to the brain branch out so extensively on the pia mater, that, when a little inflamed, it seems to constitute a perfect vascular net- work. This minute sub-division is probably of use in prevent- ing the blood from being impelled with too great force against the delicate tissue of the brain. A third covering, called the arachnoid membrane, from its fineness resembling that of a spider's web, is interposed be- tween the other two, and is frequently the seat of disease. On examining the convolutions in different brains they are found to vary a good deal in size, depth, and general appear- ance. In the various regions of the same brain they are also different, but preserve the same general aspect. Thus they are always small and numerous in the anterior lobe, larger and deeper in the middle, and still larger in the posterior. The thick cord or root C, springing from the base of the brain, is named the medullu oblongata, or oblong portion of the spinal marrow, which is continued downwards, and fills the cavity of the spine or back-bone. At one time the brain has been re- garded as proceeding from, and at another as giving rise to, the spinal marrow ; but, in reality, the two are merely connected, and neither grows from the other. The false analogy of a stem growing from a root has led to this abuse of language. The small round filaments or cords seen to proceed from the sides of the medulla oblongata, and from near the base of the brain, are various nerves of sensation and motion, some of them going to the organs of sense, and others to the skin and mus- 212 THE BRAIN THE ORGAN OF MIND. rior lobe, is the olfactory nerve, or nerve of smell, going to the nose. The round thick nerve 4 4, near the roots of the former, is the optic nerve, or nerve of vision, going to the eye. That marked b is the motor nerve, which supplies the muscles of the eye-ball. A little farther back, the fifth pair C, is seen to isr sue apparently from the arch D, called Pons Varolii or bridge of Varolius. It is a large compound nerve, and divides into three branches, which are ramified on almost all the parts con- nected with the head and face, and the upper and under jaw. It comprehends nerves of both sensation and motion, and one branch of it ramified on the tongue is the nerve of taste. Other branches supply and give sensibility to the teeth, glands, and skin. The seventh or auditory nerve e, is distributed on the internal ear, and serves for hearing. The eighth or pneumogas- tric nerve d, sends filaments to the windpipe, lungs, heart, and stomach, and is one of great importance in the production of the voice and respiration. It also influences the action of the heart, and the process of digestion. Such are the principal nerves more immediately connected with the brain, but which it is impossible to describe more mi- nutely here. Those which supply the trunk of the body and the extremities, issue chiefly from the spinal marrow; but they also must, for the present, be passed over in silence, that we may return to the consideration of the brain. The brain receives an unusually large supply of blood, in comparison with the rest of the body; but the nature of its cir- culation, although a very interesting subject of study, being only indirectly connected with our present purpose, cannot now be discussed. Most physiologists are agreed that the different parts of the brain perform distinct functions, and that these functions are the highest and most important in the animal economy ; but there is great discrepancy of opinion as to what the function of each part is, and as to the best mode of removing the ob- scurity in which the subject is involved. It would be useless to examine here the merits of the respective theories and modes of inquiry, as the attempt would lead us too far from the practical aim of the work. Suffice it to say, that all physiolo- gists and philosophers regard the brain as the organ of mind ; that most of them consider it as an aggregate of the parts, each charged with a specific function ; and that a large majority re- gard the anterior lobe as more immediately the seat of the in- \ CONNECTION BETWEEN THE MIND AND BRAIN. 213 tellectual faculties.* Farther, by nearly universal consent, the brain is held to be also the seat of the passions and moral feel- ings of our nature, as well as of consciousness and every other mental act, and to be the chief source of that nervous influence which is indispensible to the vitality and action of every organ of the body. There are so few exceptions to the general belief of these propositions, that I consider myself fairly entitled to hold them as established. Many animals possess individual senses or instincts in great- er perfection than man, but there is not one which can be com- pared with him in the number and range of its faculties; and, as a necessary consequence, there is not one which approaches him in the development and perfection of its nervous system. No organ can execute more than a single function ; and, ac- cordingly, even the Edinburgh Review (which has evinced great hostility to some of the above views)* admits, that, exact- ly in proportion as we ascend in the scale of creation, and the animal acquires a sense, a power, or an instinct, do its nerves multiply, and " its brain improve in structure and augment in volume; each addition being marked by some addition or amplifica- tion of the powers of the animal, until in man we behold it pos- sessing some parts of which animals are destitute, and wanting none which they possess," so that, " we are enabled to associate every faculty which gives superiority, with some addition to the nervous mass, even from the smallest indications of sensation and will, up to the highest degree of sensibility, judgment, and ex- pression, "f It is extremely important to bear in mind this constant rela- tion between mental power and development of brain. It not only explains why capacities and dispositions are so different, but shows incontrovertibly that the cultivation of the.moral and intellectual faculties can be successfully carried on only by acting in obedience to the laws of organization, and associating * In speaking of the cerebral lobes being the place " where all the sen- sations take a distinct form, and leave durable impressions," Cuvier adds, " L'anatomie comparee en offre une autre confirmation dans la proportion constante du volume de ces lobes avec le degre d'intelligence des Animaux."* __Vide Report to the Institute on Flourens' Experiments in 1822. * Comparative anatomy establishes one other principle, namely, that the volume or size of these lobes bears a uniform proportion to the intelligence of the animals. [Ed. Am. edit.] f Edinburgh Review, No. rf;iv. p. 442-3. 214 CONNECTION BETWEEN THE MIND AND BRAIN. together those faculties, the organs of which are simultaneously progressive in their growth. When, in infancy, for example, the intellectual powers are feeble and inactive, this arises solely from the inaptitude of a still imperfect brain ; but, in propor- tion as the latter advances towards its mature state, the mental faculties also become vigorous and active.—In like manner, when we engage in intense thought so long as to induce con- fusion of mind and headach, these results follow solely be- cause the brain has been overtasked, and its action carried be- yond the limits of health. Every mental operation, in fact, takes place in subjection to the laws of organization; and it is worse than useless for us to attempt'to disjoin that which an allwise Creator has connected together. It is a law, for in- stance, that alternate periods of activity and repose conduce to the strength and development of every organ, and to the easy performance of its function, and that excess in either direction is alike hurtful in its consequences. If, therefore, in our anx- iety for the advancement of a child in a favourite pursuit, we urge it to incessant and unvaried exertion of the same kind, for many hours a day, we violate this law in neglecting the necessary intervals of rest, and thus run the risk of injuring the health of the brain, and entirely defeating our object. And, on the contrary, if we withdraw the child altogether from the pursuit, for weeks or months at a time, as happens during the vacation of a school, we violate the organic law again, in de- priving the faculties of their necessary exercise, and thus run the risk of sacrificing the improvement already gained, and of diminishing the mental power.* In neither case is the brain exercised in conformity with the organic laws, and consequent- ly we look in vain for the same amount of improvement which would have followed their fulfilment; and yet, so far is the phy- siology of the brain from being considered as the only sound basis on which the science of education can rest, that very few teachers or moralists are aware that the organic laws have any connection with the operations of mind, and still fewer have ever thought of adapting their practice to the dictates of these laws ; although no truth in education or philosophy can be more clearly proved, or more beneficially applied, than that on which I am now insisting. * The inference is clear, that we should have no more vacation in study or mental discipline than we do in eating; nor shall we need it, provided we properly alternate rest and mental exertion. [Ed. Am. edit.] CONNECTION BETWEEN THE MIND AND BRAIN. 215 It has been said, in answer to the above proposition, that a month's vacation and idleness in the country, after ten or eleven months spent at schools in town, is beneficial in in- creasing the aptitude for mental exertion. This is true, but it is in reality no exception to what I have stated. According to the present system of education, intellectual cultivation and school tasks are pushed so far as to impair health and injure the constitution; and after ten months of this unwholesome discipline, the vigour of mind and readiness of application are so much diminished, that the school is regarded with loathing, and the vacation is longed for with all the ardour of an exile panting for his home. If a young person, in this unnatural sit- uation, be sent to the country to enjoy exercise and play in the open air for two months without opening a book, there cannot be a doubt that he will return better disposed for his lessons, and more able to keep pace with his companions, than if he had continued to receive daily instruction at school dur- ing .all that time. This result, however, will follow simply be- cause his health, which had been impaired by confinement and over-tasking, will now be restored by country air, idleness, and exercise ; and his brain will have regained its lost tone, and be able to manifest the mental faculties with greater vigour. But it does not by any means follow from this circumstance, that, if the brain and mind be always duly exercised according to their strength and the laws of Nature, a month or two of idleness will then be advantageous. As well might we say that because two or three weeks of bodily inaction may be rel- ished after many months of exhaustion from hard labour, there- fore a long interval of inactivity will be equally agreeable to a person who is getting daily no more exercise than enough. In the one case as in the other, the absence of exertion so far from being desirable would be not less hurtful than irksome to the individual; and if a healthy young person were so situated, idleness would be so unpleasant to him, that he would devise active occupation of some kind or other for himself. This dis- tinction must not be lost sight of. In thus treating of the brain as the indispensable instrument or organ of the mental faculties, I must not be understood as representing mind and brain to be one and the same thing. I mean only that the brain is necessarily engaged in every intel- lectual and moral operation, exactly as the eye is in every act of vision; and that, as the mind cannot see without the mter- 216 INFLUENCE OF HEREDITARY CONSTITUTION. vention of the eye, so neither can it think or feel, during life, except through the instrumentality of the brain. Consequently, it would be as reasonable and logical to infer from the former proposition that the eye is the mind, or the mind the eye, as to infer from the latter, that the brain is the mind, or the mind the brain. It requires, however, to be distinctly understood, that activity of mind and activity of brain are not only inseparable, but, that so long as life remains, the mental operations are directly influenced by the condition of the brain. If, by the excessive use of stimulants, the brain be highly excited, the mind will be disturbed in an equal degree, as is exemplified every day in the phenomena of intoxication; and if, on the other hand, the mind be suddenly roused by violent passions, the vessels of the brain will instantly take on increased action, redness will suffuse the face, and the cerebral excitement will show itself in characters as legible as if produced by a physical oause. The mind and brain being thus so closely associated during 3ife, that the former acts in strict obedience to the laws which regulate the latter, it becomes an object of primary importance in education to discover what these laws are, that we may yield them willing obedience, and escape the numerous evils consequent on their violation. To this inquiry the following pages shall be devoted. The brain being a part of the animal system, and subject to the same general laws as the other organs, the reader will not be surprised'that I should, as in the case of the lungs, state a sound original constitution as the first condition of its healthy action. If the brain possess from birth a freedom from all hereditary taints and imperfections, and have acquired no un- usual susceptibility from injudicious treatment in infancy, it will withstand a great deal in after life, before its health will give way. But if, on the other hand, either it inherit deficien- cies, or if early mismanagement have subsequently detailed up- on it an unusual proneness to morbid action, it will give way under circumstances which would otherwise have been per- fectly innocuous; and, accordingly, it may be truly said that the most powerful of all the causes which predispose to nerv- ous and mental disease, is the transmission of a hereditary ten- dency from parents to children, producing in the latter an un- ON THE FUTURE HEALTH OF THE BRAIN. 217 usual liability to the maladies under which the parents have laboured. Even where the defect in the parent is merely some pecu- liarity of disposition or temper, amounting perhaps to eccen- tricity, it is astonishing how clearly its influence on some one or other of the progeny may often be traced, and how com- pletely a constitutional bias of this description may interfere with a man's happiness or success in life. I have seen instan- ces in which it pervaded every member of a family, and others in which it affected only one or two. When the original ec- centricity is on the mother's side, and she is gifted with much force of character, the evil extends more widely among the children than when it is on the father's side. Where both pa- rents are descended from trainted families, the progeny is of course more deeply affected than where one of them is from a pure stock; and seemingly for this reason, hereditary predis- position is a more usual cause of nervous disease in the higher classes, who intermarry much wim each other, than in the lower, who have a wider choice. Unhappily, it is not merely as a cause of disease that here- ditary predisposition is to be dreaded. The obstacles which it throws in the way of permanent recovery", are even more for- midable, and can never be entirely removed. Safety is to be found only in avoiding the perpetuation of the mischief; and, therefore, if two persons, each naturally of an excitable and delicate nervous temperament, choose to unite for life, they have themselves to blame for the concentrated influence of similar tendencies in destroying the health of their offspring, and subjecting them to all the miseries of nervous disease, madness, or melancholy. Even where no hereditary defect exists, the state of the mo- ther during pregnancy has an influence on the mental charac- ter and health of the offspring of which few parents have any adequate conception. In my work on Mental Derangement, I referred, in proof of this fact, to the testimony of M. Esquirol, whose talent, general accuracy, and extensive experience, give great weight to all his well-considered opinions. It is often, he says, in the maternal womb that we are to look for the true cause, not only of imbecility, but also of the different kinds of mania. During the agitated periods of the French revolution, many ladies then pregnant, and whose minds were kept con- stantly on the stretch by the anxiety and alarm inseparable 218 INFLUENCE OF HEREDITARY CONSTITUTION. from the epoch in which they lived, and whose nervous sys- tems were thereby rendered irritable in the highest degree com- patible with sanity, were afterwards delivered of infants whose brains and nervous systems had been affected to such a 'degree by the state of their parent, that, in future life, as children they were subject to spasms, convulsions, and other nervous affec- tions, and in youth to imbecility or dementia almost without any existing cause.* The extent to which the temporary state of the mother during gestation may influence the whole future life of the child, may be conceived from a single fact recorded by the same author. A pregnant woman, otherwise healthy, was greatly alarmed and terrified by the threats of her husband, when in a state of intoxication. She was afterwards delivered, at the usual time, of a very delicate child. The child had, however, been so much affected by its mother's agitation, that, up to the age of eighteen, it continued subject to panic terrors, and then became completely maniacal. The nervous timidity of James VI., so ludicrou^y exhibited by Sir Walter Scott in the Fortunes of Nigel, is said to have had a similar origin. I have myself seen several instances of the same kind, and among others one of a young lady, whose extreme nervous sensibility was partly attributable to prolonged excitement and alarm in her mother, who, when pregnant with her, spent se- veral days half immersed in water during a storm at sea, and in the hourly expectation of shipwreck and death. Dr. Caldwell, too, the able and philanthropic advocate of an improved system of physical, moral, and intellectual education in America, is very urgent in enforcing rational care during the period of gestation on the part of every mother, who values the future health and happiness of her progeny. Among other things he insists on the necessity of mothers taking more exer- cise in the open air than they usually do; and cautions them against allowing a feeling of false delicacy to keep them con- fined in their rooms for weeks or months.f For the same rea- son the mind ought to be kept free from gloom or anxiety, and * In my recent visit to Canada, I observed that children born about the time of the patriot outbreak there, not only had larger Combativeness, De- structiveness, and Firmness, but many of them were more irritable and subject to paroxysms, especially of violent anger and uncontrolable rage. [Ed. Am. edit] f Thoughts on Physical Education by Charles Caldwell, M. D. Bos- ton, 1833. INFLUENCE OF THE BLOOD ON THE BRAIN. 219 in that state of cheerful activity which results from the proper exercise of the moral and social feelings and intellect. But if seclusion and depression be hurtful to the unborn progeny, thoughtless dissipation, late hours, dancing, waltzing, and rough exercise on horseback, irritability of temper and peevish- ness of disposition, are not less injurious. Hence the Margra- vine of Anspach most justly remarks, that " when a female is likely to become a mother, she ought to be doubly careful of her temper, and, in particular, to indulge no ideas that are not cheerful, and no sentiments that are not kind. Such is the connection between the mind and body, that the features of the face are moulded commonly into an expression of the in- ternal disposition; and is it not natural to think that an infant, before it is born, may be affected by the temper of its mother?"* —Memoirs, vol. ii. chap. viii. The second condition required for the health of the brain, is a due supply of properly oxygenated blood. The effects of slight differences in the quality of the blood are not easily re- cognised, but, when extreme, they are too obvious* to be over- looked. If the stimulus of arterial blood be altogether with- drawn, the brain ceases to act, and sensibility and conscious- ness become extinct. Thus, when fixed air is inhaled, the blood circulating through the lungs does not undergo that pro- cess of oxygenation which is essential to life ; and as it is in this state unfit to excite or support the action of the brain, the mental functions become impaired, and death speedily closes the scene. If, on the other hand, the blood be too highly oxy- genated, as by breathing oxygen gas instead of common air, the brain is too much stimulated, and an intensity of action, bordering on inflammation, takes place, which also soon ter- minates in death. Such are the consequences of the two extremes; but the slighter variations in the state of the blood have equally sure, although less palpable effects. If its vitality be impaired by breathing an atmosphere so much vitiated as to be insufficient to produce the proper degree of oxygenation, the blood then * These few hints to mothers are excellent, yet brief in proportion to the importance of the subject. In my work on " Hereditary Descent," to be published in Vol. V. of the Am. Phren. Journal, I shall present an array of hereditary facts which will hardly fail to open the eyes of mothers to the importance of this subject, and at the same time, give them practical di" rections to govern them in this situation. [Ed. Am. edit.] 220 EFFECTS OF IMPERFECTLY OXYGENATED BLOOD. affords an imperfect stimulus to the brain ; and, as a necessary consequence, languor and inactivity of the mental and nervous functions ensue, and a tendency to headach, syncope, or hys- teria, makes its appearance. This is seen every day in the list- lessness and apathy prevalent in crowded and ill-ventilated schools ; and in the headachs and liability to fainting which are so sure to attack persons of a delicate habit in the contami- nated atmospheres of crowded theatres, churches, and assem- blies. It is seen less strikingly, but more permanently, in the irritable and sensitive condition of the inmates of cotton-manu- factories and public hospitals. In these instances, the opera- tion of the principle cannot be disputed, for the languor and nervous debility consequent on confinement in ill-ventilated apartments, or in air vitiated by the breath of many people, are neither more nor less than minor degrees of the same pro- cess of poisoning to which I have formerly alluded. It is not real debility which produces them ; for egress to the open air almost instantly restores activity and vigour to both mind and body, unless the exposure has been very long, in which case more time is required to re-establish the exhausted powers of the brain. A good deal of observation has convinced me, that the transmission of imperfectly oxygenated blood to the brain, is greatly more influential in the production of nervous disease and delicacy of constitution, than is commonly imagined ; and I am delighted to see the same truth so powerfully insisted on by Mr. Thackrah, from extensive experience in the manufac- turing district about Leeds. Having, however, dwelt on this subject in the preceding chapter, I need not repeat the obser- vations already made.* Although, in delicate constitutions, the health of the brain and nervous system is often impaired by inadequate nutrition, and a due supply of nourishing food is therefore indispensable to their wellbeing; yet, as this condition is implied in the pre- * The intelligent teacher to whom I have already alluded, as acting on the above views, by turning his pupils out to play, and throwing open the door and windows for ten minutes at the end of the first hour's confine- ment, assures me that the difference between the languor and little power of sustained attention exhibited under the old system, and the activity shown under the new, is very marked, and that the interval of relaxation is time most profitably spent both to his pupils and to himself, as they return to work with new life. Its influence on the health of his pupils has been already noticed. EXERCISE OF THE MIND AND BRAIN. 221 ceding, and its separate consideration would lead us too far from our main object, I shall not dwell upon it here. I shall merely state, that starvation often affects the brain so much as to produce ferocious delirium, and that in the Milanese, a species of insanity arising from defective nourishment, is very preva- lent, and is easily cured by the nourishing diet provided in the hospitals to which the patients are sent. I have seen the men- tal functions weakened, and the brain disordered, by the same cause—inadequate nutritien—at the period of rapid growth. This defective nutrition, however, it must be observed, does not ■ always depend on want of proper food. On the contrary, it is often the result, among the higher classes, of too much or too stimulating food over-exciting and ultimately impairing the di- gestive powers. The proneness to morbid excitement in the brain, induced by insufficient food, is one cause why, in times of public distress, the lower orders are so apt to resort to vio- lence to remove the sources of their discontent. The third condition of health in the brain and nervous sys- tem, and that to which it is my chief object in the present chapter to direct attention, is the regular exercise of their respective functions, according to the laws already so fre- quently referred to, and so fully explained in a preceding part of this work.* The brain, being an organized part, is subject, in so far as regards its exercise, to precisely the same laws as the other or- gans of the body. If it be doomed to inactivity, its health decays, and the mental operations and feelings, as a necessary consequence, become dull, feeble, and slow. If it be duly exercised, after regular intervals of repose, the mind acquires readiness and strength; and, lastly, if it be over-tasked, in either the force or the duration of its activity, its functions be- come impaired, and irritability and disease take the place of health and vigor. The consequences of inadequate exercise may be first ex- plained. We have seen that, by disuse, muscles become emaciated, bone softens, bloodvessels are obliterated, and nerves lose their characteristic structure. The brain is no exception to this general rule. Of it also the tone is impaired by permanent in- activity, and it becomes less fit to manifest the mental powers * See Chapter iv. p. 119, and also p. 156. 222 EFFECTS OF MENTAL INACTIVITY. with readiness and energy. Nor will this surprise any re- flecting person, who considers that the brain, as a part of the same animal system, is nourished by the same blood, and re- gulated by the same vital laws, as the muscles, bones, and nerves. It is the weakening and depressing effect upon the brain of the withdrawal of the stimulus necessary for its healthy exer- cise, which renders solitary confinement so severe a punish- ment even to the most daring minds f and it is a lower degree of the same cause, which renders continuous seclusion from society so injurious to both mental and bodily soundness, and which often renders the situation of governesses one of misery and bad health, even where every kindness is meant to be shown towards them. In many families, especially in the higher ranks, the governess lives so secluded, that she is as much out of society as if she were placed in solitary confine- ment. She is too much above the domestics to make compan- ions of them, and too much below her employers to be treated by them either with confidence or as their equal. With feel- ings as acute, interests as dear to her, and a judgment as sound as those of any of the persons who scarcely notice her exist- ence, she is denied every opportunity of gratifying the first or expressing the last, merely because she is u only the govern- ess ;" as if governesses were not made of the same flesh and blood, and sent into the world by the same Creator, as their more fortunate employers. It is, I believe, beyond question, that much unhappiness, and not unfrequently madness itself, are unintentionally caused by this cold and inconsiderate treatment. For the same reason, those who are cut off from social converse by any bodily infirmity, often become discontented and mo- rose in spite of every resolution to the contrary. The feelings and faculties of the mind, which had formerly full play in their intercourse with their fellow-creatures, have no longer scope for sufficient exercise, and the almost inevitable result is irri- tability and weakness in the corresponding parts of the brain. This fact is particularly observed among the deaf and blind, in whom, from their being precluded from a full paiticipation in the same sources of interest as their more favoured brethren, irritability, weakness of mind, and idiocy, are known to be much more prevalent than among other classes of people. In the Dictionnaire de Medecine (vol. xx. p. 87), Andral gives a description of the deaf and dumb, every word of which bears a EFFECTS OF MENTAL INACTIVITY. 223 direct reference to the above principle; and a nearly similar account has been lately given of the blind by an equally intel- ligent observer. " The deaf and dumb," says Andral, " pre- sents, in his intelligence, character, and the development of his passions, certain modifications which depend on his state of isolation in the midst of society. He remains habitually in a state of half childishness, is very credulous, but, like the savage, remains free from many of the prejudices acquired in society. In him the tender feelings are not deep; he appears susceptible neither of strong attachment nor of lively gratitude ; pity moves him feebly; he has little emulation, few enjoy- ments and few desires. This is what is commonly observed in the deaf and dumb, but the picture is far from being of univer- sal application; some, more happily endowed, are remarkable for the great development of their intellectual and moral na- ture, but others, on the contrary, remain immersed in complete idiocy." Andral adds, that we must not infer from this, that the deaf and dumb are therefore constitutionally inferior in mind to other men. " Their powers are not developed, because they live isolated from society : place them, by some means or other, in relation with their fellow-men, and they will become their equals." This is the cause of the rapid brightening up of both mind and features, which is so often observed in blind or deaf children, when transferred from home to public institu- tions, and there taught the means of converse with their fel- lows. In these instructive instances, the whole change is from a state of inactivity of the mind and brain to that of their whole- some and regular exercise. The truth of these remarks has since been confirmed by an admirable letter on deafness, from the pen of Miss H. Martineau, which appeared in Tait's Maga- zine for April, 1834. Miss Martineau cautions her fellow-suf- ferers against indulging in seclusion from society, fox the very reason I have just stated. The letter is full of sound practical observations, and does infinite credit to the moral courage and talent of its author. Keeping the above principle in view, we shall not be sur- prised to find that non-exercise of the brain and nervous system, or, in other words, inactivity of intellect and of feeling, is a very frequent predisposing cause of every form of nervous dis- ease. For demonstrative evidence of this position, we" have only to look at the numerous victims to be found among fe- males of the middle and higher ranks, who have no call to ex 224 NERVOUS DISEASE FROM MENTAL INACTIVITY. ertion in gaining the means of subsistence, and no objects of interest on which to exercise their mental faculties, and who consequently sink into a state of mental sloth and nervous weakness, which not only deprives them of much enjoyment. but lays them open to suffering, both of mind and body, from the slightest causes. If we look abroad upon society, we shall find innumerable examples of mental and nervous debility from this cause. When a person of some mental capacity is confined for a long time to an unvarying round of employment, which affords neither scope nor stimulus for one half of his faculties, and, from want of education or society, has no external resources,—his metal powers, for want of exercise to keep up due vitality in their cerebral organs, become blunted, and his perceptions slow and dull,—and he feels any unusual subjects of thought as disagreeable and painful intrusions. The intellect and feel- ings not being provided with interests external to themselves, must either become inactive and weak, or work upon them- selves and become diseased. In the former case, the mind be- comes apathetic, and possesses no ground of sympathy with its fellow creatures ; in the latter, it becomes unduly sensitive, and shrinks within itself and its own limited circle, as its only protection against every trifling intrusion. A desire to continue. an unvaried round of life takes strong possession of the mind; because to come forth into society requires an exertion of facul- ties which have been long dormant, and cannot be awakened without pain, and which are felt to be feeble when called into action. In such a state, home and its immediate interests be- come not only the centre, which they ought to be, but also the boundary of life, and the mind, originally constituted to em- brace a much wider sphere, is thus shorn of its powers, and the tone of mental and bodily health is lowered, till a total inapti- tude for the business of life and the ordinary intercourse of so- ciety comes on, and often increases till it becomes a positive malady. Such are the effects of inactivity on the tone of the brain. But let the situation of such persons be changed : bring them, for instance, from the listlessness of retirement to the business and bustle of a town,—give them a variety of imperative em- ployments,—and place them in society, so as to supply to their cerebral- organs that extent of exercise which gives health and vivacity of action;—and, in a few months, the change pro- NERVOUS DISEASE FROM MENTAL INACTIVITY. 22b duced will be surprising. Health, animation, and acuteness, will take the place of former insipidity and dullness. In such instances it would be absurd to suppose that it is the mind itself which becomes heavy and feeble, and again revives into energy by these changes in external circumstances : the effects arise entirely from changes in the state of the brain ; and the mental manifestations and the bodily health have been improved solely by the improvement of its condition. Examples of this kind are not rare among retired officers, annuitants, merchants, and other persons living on certain in- comes, without fixed occupations to interest them; and a cu- rious enough instance occurred lately in a young military offi- cer, who spent three years in Canada, commanding a small detachment, in a remote station, where he was completely se- parated from all society of his own rank. During all that period, he spent his time in sauntering, shooting, or fishing, without that excitement to his various faculties which is afford- ed by the society of equals. The consequence of this compul- sory mental apathy, and the corresponding inactivity of brain, was, that, on returning to England, his nervous system had become so weak and irritable, that, although by nature fond of society, he feared to meet even with the members of his own fa- mily, and for many weeks would never venture to walk out to take necessary exercise except in the dark. And it was only at the end of several months that the renewed stimulus of so- ciety and employment restored the tone of his nervous sys- tem so far as to allow him to regain his natural character of mind, and to return to his former habits of life. In this pre- disposed state of the system, a very slight cause would obvi- ously have sufficed to convert the depression into absolute de- rangement. But, as mentioned above, the most frequent victims of this kind of predisposition are females of the middle and higher ranks, especially those of a nervous constitution, and good na- tural abilities; but who, from ill-directed education, possess nothing more solid than mere accomplishments, and have no materials of thought, and no regular or imperative occupations to excite interest or demand attention. Such persons have lite- rally nothing on which to expend half the nervous energy which nature has bestowed on them for better purposes. They have nothing to excite and exercise the brain—nothing to eli- cit activity ; their own feelings and personal interests neces- 15 226 EXMPLIFIED IN RETIRED OFFICERS AND OTHERS. sarily constitute the grand objects of their contemplation ; these are brooded over till the mental energies become impaired, false ideas of existence and of Providence spring up in the mind, the fancy is haunted by strange impressions, and every trifle which relates to self is exaggerated into an object of im- mense importance. The brain, having almost no imployment, becomes weak, and the mental manifestations are enfeebled in proportion; so that a person of good endowments, thus treated, will often not only exhibit somewhat of the imbecility of a fool, but gradually become irritable, peevish, and discontented, and open to the attack of every form of nervous disease and of derangement from causes which, under different circumstances, would never have disturbed her for a moment. Persons so situ- ated too often fly for relief to opium or drinking. That the liability of such persons to melancholy, hysteria, hypochondriasis, and other varieties of mental disease, really depends on a state of irritability of brain, induced by imper- fect exercise, is proved by the vast and rapid improvement we often witness in consequence of the sudden supervention of oc- currences which excite and employ the mental powers and their cerebral organs. Nothing is more usual than to see a nervous young lady, who for years had been unfit for any thing while ease and indolence were her portion, deriving the utmost advantage from apparent misfortunes, which throw her upon her own resources, and force her to exert her utmost, energies to maintain a respectable station in society. Where, as in such circumstances, the mental faculties and brain, the intellect and moral and social feelings, are blessed with a stimulus to act,— the weakness, the tremors, and the apprehensions, which for- merly seemed an inborn part of herself, disappear as if by en- chantment, and strength, vigour, and happiness take their place ; solely because now God's law is fulfilled, and the brain, with which He has connected the mind, is supplied with that healthful stimulus and exercise which He ordained to be indispensable to its healthy existence. The same principle explains the conversion which often occurs of a timid, sen- sitive, and nervous young lady, into a fum-minded and healthy matron. An additional illustration, and I venture upon it because the principle is an important one in the production of many dis- tressing forms of disease, will be found in the case of a man of mature age and of active habits, who has devoted his life to MENTAL ACTIVITY OF FEMALES. 227 the toils of business, and whose hours of enjoyment have been few and short. Suppose such a person to retire to the country in search of repose, and to have no deep moral, religious, or philosophical pursuits to occupy his attention, and keep up the active exercise of his brain,—this organ will lose its health, and the inevitable result will be ennui, weariness of life, despon- dency, or some other variety of nervous disease.* One great evil attending the absence of some imperative employment or object of interest to exercise the mind and brain, is the tendency which it generates to waste the mental ener- gies on every trifling occurrence which presents itself, and to seek relief in the momentary excitement of any sensation, however unworthy. Not only does painful instability of pur- pose and interest arise from this cause, especially among fe- males, but, by degrees, enjoyment is sought for more from the indulgence of the sensual appetites of eating and drinking, than from any higher occupation ; till at last the habit of gor- mandizing is established, and quantities of food and wine are daily swallowed, which add disease to indolence, and oppress both mind and body. Patients labouring under this form of in- disposition complain much of debility, and of the exhaustion left by every effort. It is common to hear them defending the excesses which they commit, by affirming, that with less sup- port they would die of weakness * but the plea, though plausi- ble, is utterly groundless. No doubt, they may feel stronger after a good dinner and a few classes of wine, but the strength is that of feverish excitement and the subsequent languor is proportionally great. Ere long, too, the power of mental ap- plication gives way; the digestive organs fail under the task imposed upon them ; and headach, flushing, sickness, and bil- ious attacks ensue in such rapid succession, that life at last be- comes a state of habitual indisposition. The best remedy for these evils is to create occupation to interest the mind, and give that wholesome exercise to the brain which its constitution requires. Unless this can be done, the services of the physician will be available only so long as their novelty continues a source of excitement; and then, in * It may be proper to state, that several of the preceding pages hare been taken, with little alteration, from my " Observations on Mental De- rangement," published some time ago. But as that work is designed more for the profession than for the general reader, I have thought it necessary to repeat them here. 228 EFFECTS OF MENTAL ACTIVITY ON THE BRAIN. all probability, he will be discharged to make way for another who will, in his turn, be dismissed to give place to a third. The principle on which this is done is perfectly sound, and, in such cases, no sensible physician will take it amiss that his as- sistance is declined. The error lies in the patient seeking the necessary mental stimulus in a change of attendance, instead of in salutary occupation. But there cannot be a doubt, that where the patient is either unable or unwilling to seek recovery from engaging in proper employment, the mere change of physician is often of temporary service. The evils arising from excessive or ill-timed exercise of the brain, or any of its parts, are numerous and equally in accord- ance with the ordinary laws physiology. When we use the eye too long or in too bright a light it becomes bloodshot, and the increased action of its vessels and nerves gives rise to a sensation of fatigue and pain requiring us to desist. If we turn away the eye, the irritation gradually subsides, and the healthy state returns; but if we continue to look intently, or resume our employment before the eye has regained its natural state by repose, the irritation at last becomes permanent, and disease, followed by weakness of sight or even blindness, may ensue ; as often happens to glass-blowers, smiths, and others, who are obliged to work in an intense light. Precisely analogous phenomena occur when, from intense mental excitement, the brain is kept long in a state of exces- sive activity. The only difference is, that we can always see what happens in the eye, but rarely what takes place in the brain. Occasionally, however, cases of fracture of the skull occur, in which, from part of the bone being removed, we can see the quickened circulation in the vessels of the brain as easily as in those of the eye. Sir Astley Cooper had a young gentleman brought to him who had lost a portion of his skull just above the eyebrow. " On examining the head," says Sir Astley, "I distinctly saw the pulsation of the brain was regu- lar and slow ; but at this time he was agitated by some oppo- sition to his wishes, and directly the blood was sent with increased force to the brain, the pulsation became frequent and violent; if therefore," continued Sir Astley, u you omit to keep the mind free from, agitation, your other means will be unavailing" in the EFFECTS OF MENTAL ACTIVITY ON THE BRAIN. 229 treatment of injuries of the brain.* A still more remarkable case is mentioned by Dr. Caldwell, as having occurred to Dr. Peirquin, in the hospital of Montpelier, in 1821. " The sub- ject of it was a female at the age of 26, who had lost a large portion of her scalp, skull-bone and dura mater, in a neglected attack of lues venerea. A corresponding portion of her brain was consequently bare, and subject to inspection. When she was in a dreamless sleep, her brain was motionless, and lay within the cranium. When her sleep was imperfect and she was agitated by dreams, her brain moved and protruded without the cranium, forming cerebral hernia. In vivid dreams, reported as such by herself, the protrusion was considerable; and when she was perfectly awake, especially if engaged in active thought, or sprightly conversation, it was still greater."f This protrusion arose of course from the greater quantity of blood sent to the brain during its activity, than when it was quiet; and if the case be accurately reported, it is certainly one of the most in- Rresting on record. In alluding to this subject, Dr. Caldwell remarks, that, if it were " possible, without doing an injury to other parts, to aug- ment the constant afflux of healthy arterial blood to the brain, the mental operations would be invigorated by it. I state this opinion confidently, because we often witness its verification. When a public speaker is flushed and heated in debate, his mind works more freely and powerfully than at any other time. Why 1 Because his brain is in better tune. What has thus suddenly improved its condition 1 An increased current of blood into it, produced by the excitement of its own increased action. That the blood does, on such occasions, flow more co- piously into the brain, no one can doubt who is at all acquaint- ed with the cerebral sensations which the orator himself expe- riences at the time, or who witnesses the unusual fulness and flush of his countenance, the dewiness, flashing, and protru- sion of his eye, and the throbbing of his temporal and carotid arteries. It is well known, that, while intensely engaged in a memorable debate last winter in Washington, a distinguished senator became so giddy, by the inordinate rushing of blood into his brain, that he was obliged to sit down, and the senate adjourned to give him time to recover. And, more recently, a new member of the House of Representatives fell while speak- * See Sir A. Cooper's Lect. on Surg, by Tyrrel, vol. i. p. 279. \ Annals of Phrenology, No. i. p. 37.—Boston, 1833 230 EFFECTS OF MENTAL ACTIVITY ON THE BRAIN ing, and suddenly expired from the same cause. A member of the law class of Transylvania, moreover, experienced, a few weeks ago, a convulsive affection from a congestion of blood in the head, induced by excessive excitement of the brain in the ardour of debate."* f In many instances, indeed, the increased circulation in the brain, attendant on high mental excitement, reveals itself by its effects when least expected, and leaves traces after death which are but too legible. How many pub- lic men, like Whitbread, Romilly, Castlereagh, and Canning, urged on by ambition or natural eagerness of mind, have been suddenly arrested in their career, by the inordinate action of the brain induced by incessant toil! And how many more have had their mental power for ever impaired by similar ex- cess ! When tasked beyond its strength, the eye becomes in- sensible to light, and no longer conveys any impressions to the mind. In like manner, the brain, when much exhausted, be- comes incapable of thought, and consciousness is almost lost in a feeling of utter confusion. At anytime of life, excessive and continued mental exertion is hurtful; but in infancy and early youth, when the structure of the brain is still immature and delicate, permanent mischief is more easily inflicted by injudicious treatment than at any subsequent period; and, in this respect, the analogy is com- plete between the brain and the other parts of the body, as we have already seen exemplified in the injurious effects of pre- mature exercise of the bones and muscles. Scrofulous and rickety children are the most usual sufferers in this way. They are generally remarkable for large heads, great precocity of un- derstanding, and small delicate bodies. But, in such instances, the great size of the brain and the acuteness of mind are the results of morbid growth ; and, even with the best management, the child passes the first years of its life constantly on the brink of active disease. Instead, however, of trying to repress its mental activity, the fond parents, misled by the early promise of genius, too often excite it still farther, by unceasing cultiva- tion and the never-failing stimulus of emulation and praise; and, finding its progress, for a time, equal to their warmest * Caldwell's Thoughts on Physical Education, p. 114. f Ezekiel Webster, brother of Daniel Webster, while delivering one of the most powerful speeches on record, at Concord, N. H., swooned and expired, from over exercise and consequent congestion of the brain. He was regarded as superior in ability even to Daniel Webster. [Ed. Am. edit.] EXEMPLIFIED IN PRECOCIOUS CHILDREN. 231 wishes, they look forward with ecstasy to the day when its talents will break forth, and shed a lustre on its name. But in exact proportion as the picture becomes brighter to their fancy, the probability of its being realized becomes less; for the brain, worn out by premature exertion, either becomes diseased or loses its tone, leaving the mental powers slow and depressed for the remainder of life. The expected prodigy is thus ultimately and easily outstripped in the social race by many whose dull outset promised him an easy victory. Taking for our guide the necessities of the constitution, it will be obvious that the modes of treatment commonly resorted to ought to be reversed, and that, instead of straining to the uttermost the already irritable powers of the precocious child, and leaving his dull competitor to ripen at leisure, a systematic attempt ought to be made, from early infancy, to rouse to ac- tion the languid faculties of the latter, while no pains ought to be spared to moderate and give tone to the activity of the former. Instead of this, however, the prematurely intelli- gent child is generally sent to school, and tasked with lessons at an unusually early age ; while the healthy but more back- ward boy, who requires to be stimulated, is kept at home in idleness, perhaps for two or three years longer, merely on ac- count of his backwardness. A double error is here commit- ted, and the consequences to the clever boy is frequently the permanent loss both of health and of his envied superiority of intellect. In speaking of children of this description, Dr. Brigham, in an excellent little work on the influence of mental excitement on health, lately published in America, says, " Dangerous forms of scrofulous disease among children have repeatedly %llen under my observation, for which I could not account in any other way, than by supposing that the brain had been exer- cised at the expense of other parts of the system, and at a time of life when nature is endeavouring to perfect all the organs of the body; and after the disease commenced, I have seen with grief the influence of the same cause in retarding or pre- venting recovery. I have seen several affecting and melan- choly instances of children five or six years of age, lingering & while with diseases from which those less gifted readily recover, and at last dying, notwithstanding the utmost efforts to restore them. During their sickness they constantly manifested a passion for books and mental excitement, and were admired 232 EFFECTS OF EXCESSIVE MENTAL ACTIVITY for the maturity of their minds. The chance for the recovery of such precocious children is, in my opinion, small, when attack- ed by disease ; and several medical men have informed me, that their own observations had led them to form the same opinion, and have remarked, that in two cases of sickness, if one of the patients was a child of superior and highly cul- tivated mental powers, and the other one equally sick, but whose mind had not been excited by study, they should feel less confident of the recovery of the former than of the latter. This mental precocity results from an unnatural de- velopment of one organ of the body at the expense of the con- stitution." (p. 45.)* Dr. Brigham justly remarks, that it is ignorance in the pa- rents which leads to the too early and excessive cultivation of the minds of children, especially those who are precocious and delicate ; but from the examples which he gives, and the gene- ral bearing of his admonitions, the error of commencing sys- tematic education too soon, and stimulating the infant mind too highly, seems to be decidedly more prevalent in the United States than in this country. Among the " children's books" in the United States, many are announced as purposely prepared " for children from two to three years old !" and among others are " Infant Manuals" for Botany, Geometry, and Astronomy !! That mode of teaching is considered the best which forces on the infant mind at the most rapid rate, without regard to health or any other consideration. Dr. Brigham adds from personal observation, that, in many families, children under three years of age are not only required to commit to memory many verses, texts of Scripture and sto- ries, but are often sent to the ordinary schools for six hours a day. Few children are kept back later than the age of four. At home, too, they are induced by all sorts of excitement to learn additional tasks or peruse juvenile books and magazines, till the nervous system becomes enfeebled and the health broken. " I have myself," he continues, u seen many chil- dren who are supposed to possess almost miraculous mental powers, experiencing these effects and sinking under them. Some of them died early, when but six or eight years of age, but manifested to the last a maturity of understanding which * Remarks on the Influence of Mental Cultivation and Mental Excite raent upon Health. By Amariah Brigham, M. D. Boston, 1833. EXEMPLIFIED IN PRECOCIOUS CHILDREN. 233 only increased the agony of separation. Their minds, like some of the fairest flowers, were' no sooner blown than blasted;' others have grown up to manhood, but with feeble bodies and a disordered nervous system, which subjected them to hypochondriasis, dyspep- sia, and all the protean forms of nervous disease; " others of the class of early prodigies, exhibit in manhood but small mental pow- ers, and are the mere passive instruments of those who, in early life, were accounted far their inferiors," (lib. cit. p. 59.) In well conducted Infant Schools, these evils are carefully guarded against. In this country children are not generally sent to school so early; but education is still too much restricted to the exclusive exercise of the mental powers, to the neglect of the physical, and, in the in- stance of delicate children, is pushed on too rapidly. I lately wit- nessed the fate of one of these early prodigies, and the circum- stances were exactly such as those above described. The prema- turely developed intellect was admired, and constantly stimulated by injudicious praise, and by daily exhibition to every visitor who chanced to call. Entertaining books were thrown in the way, reading by the fireside encouraged; play and exercise neglected; the diet allowed to be full and heating, and the appetite pampered by every delicacy. The results were the speedy deterioration of a weak constitution, a high degree of nervous sensibility, deranged digestion, disordered bowels, defective nutrition, and, lastly, death, at the veiy time when the interest excited by the mental precocity was at its height. Such, however, is the ignorance of parents on all physiological subjects, that when one of these infant prodigies dies from erroneous treatment, it is not unusual to publish a memoir of his life, that other parents may see by what means such transcendent qualities were called forth. Dr. Brigham refers to a memoir of this kind, in which the history of John Mooney Mead, aged four years and eleven months, is narrated as approved of by " several judicious persons—ministers and others, all of whom united in the request that it might be published, and all agreed in the opinion, that a knowledge of the manner in which the child was treated, together with the results, would be profitable both to parents and children, and a benefit to the cause of education." This infantine philosopher was " taught hymns before he could speak plainly;" " reasoned with" and constantly instructed until his last illness, which, " with- 234 EFFECTS OF EXCESSIVE MENTAL ACTIVITY out any assignable cause" put on a violent and unexpected form, and carried him off. As a warning not to force education too soon or too fast, this case may be truly " profitable both to parents and children;" but, as an example to be followed, it assuredly cannot be too strongly or loudly condemned. Infant schools, however, in which physical health and moral training are duly attended to, are excellent institutions. Such are those established and regulated on the plan of the benevolent Wilderspin, whose exertions have gone so far to demonstrate the importance of early infant training. But I regret to say that many schools lately opened under the same name have scarcely any one sound principle in action, and threaten to do more injury to the children by forced and injudicious intellec- tual cultivation and close confinement than will be easily remedied even by the best management in after life. I know some schools consisting of a single small apartment. without any play-ground, and with very imperfect means of ventilation, where upwards of 150 children are crowded together for four or five hours a day, with no free access to the open air,—no adequate muscular or pul- monary exercise,—no mental recreation worthy of the name,—no systematic cultivation of the moral and social feelings in actual in- tercourse with each other,—and where, with a few intervals of rest, an occasional march round the room, and a frequent change of sub- ject, the time is consumed in intellectual tasks, to the almost com- plete exclusion of every thing else. Schools of this description cannot be too strongly denounced as fraught with mischief to the young, and as flagrant abuses of a most valuable principle. But in thus censuring what is radically wrong, we must be careful not to go to the other extreme, and, like Cobbett, condemn as bad that which is so only in its abuses. A well regulated Infant School is an instrument of great power in improving and humaniz- ing mankind.* In youth, too, much mischief is done by the long daily periods of * Many of my readers will be glad to learn that Dr. Brigham's little work has lately been reprinted in this country in a very cheap form, under the care of Dr. Macnish of Glasgow, who is already well known as a very able and successful writer, and who has enriched his edition with a num- ber of excellent notes. Dr. Caldwell's "Thoughts on Physical Educa- tion," are also in the same course of republication. Both works contain facts and principles of great interest to every parent and teacher, and are calculated to be highly useful in advancing the cause of rational edu- cation. EXEMPLIFIED IN YOUTH. 235 attendance at school, and the continued application of mind, which the ordinary system of education requires. The law of exercise, that long sustained action exhausts the vital powers of an organ, applies, I cannot too often repeat, as well to the brain as to the muscles; and hence the necessity of varying the occupations of the young, and allowing frequent intervals of active exercise in the open air, instead of enforcing the continued confinement now so common. This exclusive attention to the mental culture fails, as might be expected, even in its essential object; for experience shows that, with a rational distribution of employment and exercise, a child will make greater progress than in double the time employed in continuous mental exertion. If the human being were made up of nothing but a brain and nervous system, it would be very well to content ourselves with sedentary pursuits, and to confine our- selves entirely to the mind. But when observation tells us that we have numerous other important organs of motion, sanguification, digestion, circulation, and nutrition, all demanding exercise in the open air as essential both to their own health and to that of the nervous system, it is worse than folly to shut our eyes to the truth, and to act as if we could, by denying it, alter the constitution of nature, and thereby escape the consequences of our misconduct. Reason and experience being thus set at nought by both parents and teachers, in the management of children, young people natu- rally grow up with the notion that no such influences as the laws Df organization exist, and that they may follow any course of life which inclination leads them to prefer, without injury to health, provided they avoid what is called dissipation. It is owing to this ignorance, that we find young men of a studious or literary habit, enter heedlessly upon an amount of mental exertion, unalleviated by bodily exercise or intervals of repose, which is quite incompati- ble with the continued enjoyment of a sound mind in a sound body. Such, however, is the effect of the total neglect of all instruction in the laws of the organic frame during early education, that it be- comes almost impossible to warn an ardent student against the dan- gers to which he is exposing himself, and nothing but actual expe- rience will convince him of the truth. I have seen several instances of almost total incapacity for future useful exertion, brought on by long protracted and severe study, in subjects whose talents, under a better system of cultivation, would have raised them to that emi- 236 EXCESSIVE MENTAL ACTIVITY nence, the injudicious pursuit of which had defeated their own ob- ject, and ruined their general health. Two of these persons made the remark, that early instruction in the structure and laws of the animal economy, such as that which I am now attempting to com- municate, might have saved them. Both meant well, and erred from ignorance more than headstrong zeal. In the first number of the " American Annals of Education," the reader will find an instructive article on the necessity of combining bodily with mental exercise. " For twenty years and more," says the writer, in reference to what had taken place in an American seminary, " the unnatural union of sedentary with studious habits, contracted by the monastic system, has been killing in the middle age. The Register of Education shows, in one year, 120 deaths. Examine into the particular cases, and these will be found the un- doubted effects of sedentary habits. Look at one name there. He had valuable gifts, perfected by two years' academic, four years' col- legiate, and three years' theological studies. He preached, gave much promise, and then died of a stomach disease. He contracted it when a student. He did not alternate bodily with mental labour, or he had lived and been a blessing to the church. When he entered on his studies, he was growing into full size and strength. He sat down till his muscles dwindled, his digestion became disordered, his chest contracted, his lungs congested, and his head liable to periodical pains. He sat four years in college, and three years in theological application. Look at him now. He has gained much useful know- ledge, and has improved his talents; he has lost his health. The duties of his mind and heart were done, and faithfully so; but those of his body were left undone. Three hundred and seventy-five mus- cles, organs of motion, have been, robbed of their appropriate action for nine or ten years, and now they have become, alike with the rest of his frame, the prey of near one hundred and fifty diseased and irritable nerves."—"Look at another case. Exposure inci- dent to the parson or missionary has developed the disease in his chest, planted there while fitting himself for usefulness. He con- tracted a sedentary, while he was gaining a studious habit. That which he sows that also shall he reap. The east winds gave him colds; a pulpit effort causes hoarseness and cough, oppression and pain. He becomes alarmed and nervous. His views of usefulness begin to be limited. He must now go by direction, and not so much tc labour where otherwise he would have been most wanted, as to EXEMPLIFIED IN YOUTH. 237 nurse his broken constitution. He soon adds to the number of mys- terious proridences,—to the number of innocent victims, rather, of cultivating the mind and heart, at the unnecessary and sinful ex- pense of the body,—to the number of loud calls to alternate mental and corporeal action daily, for the reciprocal sanity and vigour of both body and mind." To remedy these evils, and introduce a better system of training, so as to make bodily health and mental and rational education go hand and hand, an establishment called the Manual Labour Acade- my was opened near Philadelphia in 1829, and has already proved the soundness of its principles by the success of its results. The usual branches of study in classical schools, with the addition of the Bible, are pursued ; and the " hours of recreation are employed in useful bodily labe-yr, such as will exercise their skill, make them dexterous, establish their health and strength, enable each to defray his own expenses, and fit him for the vicissitudes of life." From this systematic union of bodily labour in gardening, farming, car- pentry, and other work, with the usual academic studies, many com- forts are said to have arisen. The health of the inmates has been uninterrupted, except in a few who were ill when received; and, at the date of the report in 1830, " every invalid remaining there had been restored to health." Young men thus trained to practical obedience to the organic laws, are much less likely to run into ex- cess in after life, than those who have been left in ignorance of the constitution of their own bodies. " When thought shall need no brain," the Report continues, " and nearly four hundred organs of motion shall cease to constitute the principal portion of the human body, then may the student dispense with muscular exertion ;" but, till then, let him beware what he does, and, looking to the laws which the Creator has established for his guidance, seek his happi- ness, not in denying their existence, but in yielding them willing nnd cheerful obedience. De Fellenberg has done much at his agricultural school near Berne, to adapt the physical and mental education of the lower orders to their situation in society, and it would be well were his methods better known and more practised in this country. In early and middle life, fever, with an unusual degree of cerebral disorder, is a common consequence of the excessive and continued excitement of the brain, which is brought on by severe study, unre- mitted mental exertion, anxiety, and watching. Some very marked 238 EXCESSIVE MENTAL ACTIVITY cases of this kind have come under my observation ; but that of Sir Humphrey Davy is so strikingly illustrative of the dangers alluded to, that I cannot do better than lay it before the reader. In Novem- ber, 1807, Sir Humphrey Davy was seized with very severe fever, in consequence of the excitement and fatigue which he underwent when engaged in the researches which led to his splendid discovery of the alkaline metals. " The laboratory of the Institution was crowded with persons of every rank and description; and Davy, as may be readily supposed, was kept in a continued state of excite- ment throughout the day. This circumstance co-operating with the effects of the fatigue he had previously undergone, produced a most severe fit of illness, which, for a time, caused an awful pause in his researches, broke the thread of his pursuits, and turned his reflections into different channels." Davy ascribed his illness to contagion caught in experimenting on the fumigation of hospitals. " Upon conversing, however, with Dr. Babbington, who, with Dr. Frank, attended Davy throughout this illness, he assured me that there was not the slightest ground for this opinion, and that the fever was evidently the effect of fatigue and an over-excited brain. The reader will not feel much hesitation in believing this statement, when he is made acquainted with the habits of Davy at this period. His intellectual exertions were of the most injurious kind, and yet, unlike the philosophers of old, he sought not to fortify himself by habits of temperance." " Such was his great celebrity at this pe- riod of his career, that persons of the highest rank contended for the honour of his company at dinner, and he did not possess suffi- cient resolution to resist the gratification thus afforded, although it generally happened that his pursuits in the laboratory were not suspended until the appointed dinner hour had passed. On his return in the evening, he resumed his chemical labours, and com- monly continued them till three or four o'clock in the morning, and yet the servants of the establishment not unfrequently found that he had risen before them." Such was the alarming state of his health, that for many weeks his physician regularly visited him four times in the day ; and the housekeeper, Mrs. Greenwood, ne- ver retired to bed except one night during eleven weeks. In the latter part of his illness " he was reduced to the extreme of weak- ness, and his mind participated in the debility of his body."* Instances sometimes occur of persons exhausted by anxiety and • Paris's Life of Sir H. Davy, p. 183. IN ADVANCED LIFE--SIR W. SCOTT. 239 long attendance on others, being themselves attacked by fever, and dying, more from the unfavourable state to which previous exhaus- lion had reduced them, than from the intensity of the fever itself. Nervous disease from excessive mental labour, and exaltation of feeling, sometimes shows itself in another form. From the want of proper intervals of rest, the vascular excitement of the brain, which always accompanies activity of the mind, has never time to subside, and a restless irritability of temper and disposition comes on, attended with sleeplessness and anxiety, for which no external cause can be assigned. The symptoms gradually become aggra- vated, the digestive functions give way, nutrition is impaired, and a sense of wretchedness is constantly present, which often leads to attempts at suicide. While all this is going on, however, the pa- tient will talk, or transact business, with perfect propriety and accuracy, and no stranger could tell that any thing ails him. But in his intercourse with his intimate friends or physician, the havoc made upon the mind becomes apparent; and, if not speedily arrest- ed, it soon terminates according to the constitution and circum- stances of the individual case, in derangement, palsy, apoplexy, fever, suicide, or permanent weakness. As age advances, moderation in mental exertion becomes still more necessary than in early or mature years. Scipion Pinel, in adverting to the evil consequences of excessive moral or intellectual excitement, acutely remarks, that although in youth and manhood the wear of the brain thus induced may be repaired, no such salutary result follows over-exertion in the decline of life; " what is lost then is lost for ever. At that period, we must learn to wait for what the brain is willing to give, and allow it to work at its own time; to attempt to force it is to weaken it to no purpose ; it becomes excited and quickly exhausted when forced to vigorous thinking."—" Men of exalted intellect perish by their brains, and such is the noble end of those whose genius procures for them that immortality which so many ardently desire."* Who can peruse these lines without the fate of Scott instantly occurring to his mind as a practical illustration of their truth ? In the vigour of manhood, few ever wrote so much, or with greater ease. But when, on the verge of old age, adversity forced him to unparalleled exertion, the organic waste could no longer be repair- ed, and perseverance only " weakened the brain to no purpose," • Physiologie de l'Homme Aliene, p. 177. 240 INSANITY CAUSED BY EXCESSIVE STUDY. till morbid irritability became the substitute of healthy power, and he perished by that brain which had served him so faithfully and so efficiently, but which could no longer perform with safety the gi- gantic efforts which he continued to demand from it. Where a predisposition to insanity exists, the cerebral excitement induced by excessive activity of mind often leads to disease. Ex- amples of this kind abound in the works of authors. Pinel men- tions several. One of them is the case of a young man distin- guished for his talents and his profound knowledge of chemistry, who was occupied with a discovery which he hoped would lead him to fortune and distinction. To effect it the sooner, he resolved to shut himself up in his laboratory for several successive days; and, the better to banish sleep and to raise himself to the level of his labours, he prepared a variety of stimulants. A singing girl shared his retreat; he drank spirits, smelled frequently odoriferous substances, and sprinkled the room with eau de Cologne. The combined action of all these means, added to the heat of his furnace, caused such a degree of cerebral excitement, that, at the end of eight days, the most furious delirium took place, followed by a re- gular attack of mania. If any thing can demonstrate the mutual influence of Nmind and brain, it is surely a case like this,—a case which it is impossible to read without perceiving how easily the cerebral affection might have been of the violent inflammatory cha- racter, which terminates after a few days, in fife or in death: or of the febrile character, that lasts of one or two months, and leaves the mind for ever reduced in tone and vigour. It is well remarked by Tissot, that the disorders produced by the efforts of the mind, fall soonest upon such as are incessantly en- gaged in the contemplation of the same object. In this case, he adds, there is only one part of the sensorium (brain) acted upon, and that is kept always on the stretch : it is not relieved by the action of the other parts, and therefore is sooner fatigued and injured ; the same rule holding with the brain as with the muscles, that the exercise, which, if divided among the different parts of which it is composed, will strengthen them, will, if confined to a few, exhaust and impair them. Boerhaave himself, after a long period of intense thinking, suffered six weeks from excitement of the brain, bordering on madness, and characterised by that want of sleep, irritability, and indifference to ordinary interests, which so often ap- pear as the harbengers of insanity. The number of literary and public men, students and persons in HEALTH RUINED BY EXCESSIVE APPLICATION. 241 business, who do themselves irreparable injury in this way, is so great, that few of my readers who have had experience of the world will be at a loss for examples even among their own ac- quaintances. In addition to Davy, Scott, and others, already men- tioned, Sir Isaac Newton may be referred to, as it is now certain that his mind was for a time disordered by excessive application, and there is much reason to believe that he never altogether re- covered from the shock. The more limited the sphere of talent, the greater the danger of the brain being over-exercised, par- ticularly where the temperament is quick and irritable; and hence the frequency of nervous affections in musicians, and others of susceptible minds who dedicate their lives to the exclusive cultivation of their arts. It is said that Gretry not only ruined his own health, but lost three highly gifted and beautiful daugh- ters in succession, from over-excitement of the nervous system thus induced; and there can be no doubt that the melancholy fate of Weber was greatly hastened by intense application. He con- tinued deeply engaged in musical composition long after his health was undermined; and, even when the hand of death was almost upon him, his avocations pressed so heavily that he could not help exclaiming, " Would that I were a tailor, for then I should have a Sunday's holiday /" The philanthropic physician will rather be inclined to exclaim, " Would that mankind would study their bodily structure and functions, and thus learn to preserve longer the health and existence of those whose genius is the source of so many pleasures to the world at large !" So little, however, is this close connection of the mind with the brain generally understood, even among educated people, that instances are constantly occurring of the health of the nerv- ous system being ruined by excessive application of mind, with- out the sufferer in the least suspecting the true cause of his ail- ments. This fact is well exemplified in the pages of a very sound and able American writer, who says, " I once knew a young Christian, who resolved that he would pass the whole day in prayer. But very soon he became exhausted and weary. He, however, persevered through the whole day, with the exception of a few necessary interruptions; and when night came, he felt a deadness and exhaustion of feeling, which he unhappily mistook for spiritual desertion."* I need scarcely add, that no * Jacob's Young Christian, 2d Edinburgh edition, p. 231. 16 242 GRETRY--WEBER—AND OTHER EXAMPLES. one at all acquainted with the laws under which God has placed the functions of the human body, could ever have expected His blessing to attend so flagrant a violation of His designs, or have felt surprise at the apparent spiritual desertion increasing in exact proportion to the excess of the bodily fatigue. Cases like that of the young Christian show, in a strong light, the evils arising from confining ourselves too exclusively to the word, and neglecting the study of the works, of God, as if the latter were quite of a second- ary character, and did not proceed from the same infallible source; whereas it is only by duly investigating the laws of God, as ope- rating in the varied works of creation, that we become enabled rightly to interpret and to apply to our conduct what is revealed in His word. CHAPTER IX. RULES FOR MENTAL EXERCISE. nules for the proper exercise of the mind and brain. Mind not to be tasked im- mediately after a meal. Best time for mental exertion. Importance of regular- ity in mental employment. Repetition of mental act indispensable to im- provement of mind. Effects of repetition illustrated in moral and intellectual training. Every faculty to be employed directly on its own objects. Illustra- tion. Direct exercise of the moral faculties. Best means of exciting the mo- ral sentiments. Errors in ordinary moral education, and in boarding-schools. Use of philosophy of mind in conducting education. Influence of the brain and nervous system on the general health. Exemplified in ordinary life, and in the army. The depressing emotions destructive of health. Influence of the cheerful emotions in preserving and restoring health. Sir H. Davy's cure of palsy by the application of a thermometer explained. Examples at the siege of Breda—in the army and navy, and on the northern expedition. Having thus pointed out the evils arising both from inade- quate and from excessive mental exertion, it remains for me to direct attention to some of the rules which ought to guide us in the proper exercise of the brain. It seems to be a law of the animal economy, that two classes of functions cannot be called into vigorous action at the same time, without one or other, or both, sooner or later sustaining injury. Hence the important rule, never to enter upon con- tinued mental exertion, or to rouse deep feeling, immediately after a full meal,* as the activity of the brain i3 sure to inter- fere with that of the stomach, and disorder its functions. Even in a perfectly healthy person, unwelcome news, sudden anx- iety, or mental excitement, occurring after eating, will put * I doubt very much the propriety of eating so much that vigorous thinking or feeling will prove injurious. By eating less, men can think and feel more. [Ed. Am. edit.] 244 MENTAL EXSRTION BAD AFTER A MEAL. an entire stop to digestion, and cause the stomach to loathe at the sight of food. In accordance with this, we learn by experience, that the worst forms of indigestion and nervous depression, are those which arise from excessive application of mind, or turmoil of feeling, conjoined with unrestrained in- dulgence in the pleasures of the table. In such circumstan- ces, the stomach and brain react upon and distuib each other, till all the horrors of nervous disease make their unwelcome appearance, and render life miserable. Literary men and hard students know this fact from sad experience ; but, as they are not aware of the incompatibility of the two processes of active thinking and active digestion going on at the same time, it is extremely difficult to give them a sense of their danger, and to convince them that an hour or an hour and a half after a meal is more profitably spent in easy relaxation than in the labour of composition. As regards the lower ani- mals, indeed, we are careful enough to observe this organic law; for we do not allow our horses or dogs to be actively exercised till digestion is in some degree completed. It may be said that mechanics, labourers, and others, hurry away to work immediately after meals without any apparent injury; and that, in the United States, the practice of hastily swallowing dinner and instantly returning to business is al- most universal. My answer to this objection is simply, that experience proves the fact that digestion goes on better when exertion is refrained from and repose is enjoyed ; and that he tendency to sleep and inactivity which besets most animals after a full meal shows repose to be, in such circumstances, the intention of nature. It must be observed also, that the bad effects of immediate exertion are not among those which ensue instantly, or are felt from day to day. They may show themselves only at the end of months or years, when the in- fluence has, as it were, accumulated by repetition. Although, therefore, the system possesses a certain power of resistance, and many persons seem to escape even for years, it cannot be doubted that opposition to the law of nature will eventually prove injurious. The extreme prevalence of dyspeptic com- plaints and of insanity among the Americans, is doubtless partly owing to the very practice which is supposed by some to be harmless to them. Dr. Caldwell of Lexington, who has devoted much time and talent to the diffusion of sound BEST TIME FOR MENTAL APPLICATION. 245 knowledge and the improvement of the race, and whose opportu- nities of observation have been very extensive, expressly states, that « dyspepsia and madness prevail more extensively in the United States than among the people of any other nation. Of the amount of our dyspeptics," he says, « no estimate can be formed; but it is immense. Whether we inquire in cities, towns, villages, or country places, among the rich, the poor, or those in moderate circumstances, we find dyspepsia more or less prevalent throughout the land."* It is clear from this testimony, that the people of the United States form no excep- tion to the general law of Nature. The time best adapted for mental exertion falls next to be considered. Nature has allotted the darkness of night for re- pose, and for the restoration, by sleep, of the exhausted ener- gies of mind and body. If study or composition be ardently engaged in towards that period of the day, the increased action in the brain which always accompanies activity of mind re- quires a long time to subside; and, if the individual be at all of an irritable habit of body, he will be sleepless for hours after going to bed, or perhaps be tormented by unpleasant dreams. If, notwithstanding, the practice be continued, the want of re- freshing repose will ultimately induce a state of morbid irrita- bility of the nervous system, not far distant from insanity. It is therefore of great advantage to engage in severer studies early in the day, and devote two or three of the hours which precede bedtime, to lighter reading, music, or amusing conver- sation. The vascular excitement previously induced in the head by study has then time to subside, and sound refreshing sleep is much more certainly obtained. This rule is of great consequence to those who are obliged to undergo much mental labour, and it wili be found that many of our most prolific wri- ters—of those especially who write much and yet preserve their health,—are among those who have, either from knowledge or from inclination, devoted their mornings to study and their evenings to relaxation.! Such was Sir Walter Scott's distri- bution of his time, and such I know to be that of one of our ablest living writers. • Caldwell's Discourse on Physical Education, p. 87. t I kive practiced writing nights considerably, but have found it most rnjuriou3. On the other hand, I have found, that giving myself a little time to become quiet before retiring, is eminently promotive of sleep, and every way beneficial. Ed. Am. edit.] 246 IN THE EMPLOYMENT OF THE MIND. There are, no doubt, individuals so happily constituted, and whose natural sphere is so essentially that of activity, that they are able to think and work, early and late, for years in succes- sion, with very little sleep, and with little regard to diet and regimen; but they are so obviously exceptions to the general rule, that we cannot for a moment hold them up as models for imitation; and even they would enjoy their astonishing gifts with greater security, were they to conform more completely to the laws of their organization. Periodicity, or the tendency to resume the same mode of ac- tion at stated times, is peculiarly the characteristic of the nerv- ous system; and, on this account, regularity is of great conse- quence in exercising the moral and intellectual powers. All nervous diseases have a marked tendency to observe regular periods, and the natural inclination to sleep at the approach of night is but another instance of the same fact. It is this principle of our nature which promotes the formation of what are called habits. If we repeat any kind of mental effort every day at the same hour, we at last find ourselves entering upon it, without premeditation, when the time approaches; and, in like manner, if we arrange our studies in accordance with this law, and take up each regularly in the same order, a natural aptitude is soon produced, which renders application more easy than by taking up the subjects as accident may direct. Nay, the tendency to periodical and associated activity occa- sionally becomes in the course of time so great, that the facul- ties seem to go through their operations almost without con- scious effort, while their facility of action becomes so prodig- iously increased as to give unerring certainty where at first great difficulty was experienced.* In thus acquiring readiness and forming habits, we merely turn to account that organic law which associates increased ap- titude, animation, and vigour, with regular exercise. It is not the soul or abstract principle of mind which is thus changed, * These remarks are curiously confirmed by an anecdote of Silvio Pellico, which I read in the Foreign Quarterly Review, (No. xxii. p. 478), when this sheet was passing through the press. When first imprisoned, Pellico was " allowed the use of a copy of Dante and the Bible. Of the former, he used to commit a canto to memory every day, till at last the exercise be- came so mechanical that it ceased to afford any interruption to the train of melancholy though,." I need scarcely point out the coincidence between this and the remarks in the text. EFFECTS OF REPETITION ILLUSTRATED. 247 but simply the organic medium through which it is destined to act; and when we compare the rapid and easy eloquence of the practised orator with the slow and embarrassed utterance which distinguished him at the outset of his career, we have merely a counterpart, in the organ of mind, of what is effected in the organs of motion, when the easy and graceful move- ments of the practised dancer, writer, or piano-forte player take the place of his earliest and rudest attempts. The necessity of judicious repetition in mental and moral ed- ucation, is in fact too little adverted to, because the principle on which it is effectual has not been understood. To induce facility of action in the organs of the mind, practice is as essen- tial as it is in the organs of motion. The idea or feeling must not only be communicated, but it must be reproduced and re- presented in different forms, till all the faculties concerned in understanding it come to work efficiently together in the con- ception of it, and until a sufficient impression be made upon the organ of mind for the latter to retain it. We often blame ser- vants for not doing a thing every day, because they were once told to do so. The organic laws, however, teach us that we are presumptuous in expecting the formation of a habit from a single act, and that we must reproduce the associated ac- tivity of the requisite faculties many times before the result will certainly follow, just as we must repeat the movement in dancing or skating many times befoie we become master of it. In like manner, we find on turning to a new subject, that, however well we may understand it by one perusal, we do not fully master it, except by dwelling upon it again and again. Repetition is thus necessary to make a durable impression on the brain ; and, according to this principle, it follows, that, in learning a language or science, six successive months of appli- cation will be more effectual in fixing it in the mind, and mak- ing it a part of its furniture, than double or triple the time, if the lessons are interrupted by long intervals. Hence it is a great error to begin any study, and then break off to finish at a later period. The ennui is thus doubled and the success great- ly diminished. The best way is to begin at the proper age, and to persevere till the end is attained. This accustoms the mind to sound exertion, and not to fits of attention. Hence the mischief of long vacations, and hence the evil of beginning studies before the age at which they can be understood, as in 248 EFFECTS OF REPETITION ILLUSTRATED. teaching the abstract rules of grammar to children ; to succeed in which implies in them a power of thinking, and an amount of general knowledge, which they cannot possess. In physical education, we are quite alive to the advantages of repetition and practice. We know that if practice in danc- ing, fencing, skating, and riding be persevered in for a suffi- cient length of time to give the muscles the requisite prompti- tude and harmony of action, the power will be ever afterwards retained, although little called into use ; whereas, if we stop short of this point, we may reiterate practice by fits and starts, without any proportional advancement. The same principle applies equally to the moral and intellectual powers, because these operate by means of material organs. The necessity of being in private what we wish to appear in public, springs from the same rule. If we wish to be polite, just, kind, and sociable, we must habitually act under the in- fluence of the corresponding sentiments in the domestic circle and in every-day life, as well as in the company of strangers and on great occasions. It is the daily practice which gives ready activity to the sentiments, and marks the character. If we indulge in vulgarities of speech and behaviour at home, and put on politeness merely for the reception of strangers, the former will shine through the mask which is intended to hide them; because the habitual association to which the organs and faculties have been accustomed, cannot thus be controlled. As well may we hope to excel in elegant and graceful danc- ing by the daily practice of every awkward attitude. In the one case, as in the other, the organs must not only be associ- ated in action by the command of the will, but also be habitu- ated to the association by the frequency of the practice ; a fact which exposes the ignorant folly of those parents who habitually act with rudeness and caprice towards their chil- dren, and then chide the latter for unpolite behaviour towards strangers. The same principle, of repetition being necessary to make a durable impression on the brain and constitute a mental habit, also explains the manner in which natural endowments are modified by external situation. Taking the average of man- kind, the limits to which this modification may be carried are not narrow. Place a child, for example, of average propensi- ties, sentiments, and intellect, among a class of people— tliieves—in whom the selfish faculties are exclusively exer- DIRECT EXERCISE OF THE FACULTIES. 249 cised ; by whom gain is worshipped as the end of life, and cun- ning and cheating as the means; and among whom is never heard one word of disapprobation or moral indignation against either crime or selfishness; and its lower faculties will be ex- clusively exercised and increased in strength, while the higher will be left unemployed and become weak. A child so situ- ated will consequently not only act as those around him do, but insensibly grow up resembling them in disposition and cha- racter; because, by the law of repetition, the organs of the selfish qualities will have acquired proportionally greater apti- tude and vigour, just as do the muscles of the fencer or dancer. But suppose the same individual placed from infancy in the society of a superiorly endowed moral and intellectual peo- ple ; the moral faculties will then be habitually excited and their organs invigorated by repetition, till a greater aptitude, or, in other words, a higher moral character, will be form- ed. There are, of course, limits set to this modification by the natural endowments of the individual; but where the ori- ginal dispositions are not strongly marked, the range is still a wide one. From this source arise many differences not only of indivi- dual but of national character, and such differences as we ob- serve take place from changes of fortune and condition. The Negro free in Africa differs widely from the Negro subjected to the scourge of the colonist. The same principle is well illustrated by M. Arago in his account of Freycinet's Voyage round the world in 1818-19-20. In speaking of the different results of education in the Isle of France and in the mother country, he observes, that the Pro- fessors, the methods, and the subjects taught, are quite on a par with those of Paris; but that, nevertheless, from the very early maturity of the human being in that climate, the pupils are removed from school so soon that the impression made on their minds is speedily obliterated ; on which occount, he adds, the only really educated and well-informed men to be met with are those who have been sent to France very young, and re- tained there till a later age and more thorough grounding have been attained, after which the risk of losing their acquirements is greatly diminished. The next rule to be observed in the cultivation of the brain and mental faculties, is founded on that law of our constitution 250 EVERY FACULTY TO BE EMPLOYED which directs each organ to be exercised directly upon its own ob- jects, and not merely roused or addressed through the medium of another organ. We have said, that when we wish, for exam- ple, to teach the graceful and rapid evolutions of fencing, we do not content ourselves with merely giving directions; but our chief attention is employed in making the muscles themselves go through the evolutions, till, by frequent repetition and correc- tion, they acquire the requisite quickness and precision of ac- tion : and when we wish to teach music, we do not merely ad- dress the understanding and explain the qualities of sounds, but we train the ear to their attentive discrimination, and the hand to the reproduction of the motions which call them into existence. We follow this plan, because the laws of organiza- tion require direct practice, and we feel instinctively that we can succeed only by obeying them. Now, the purely mental faculties, being connected during life with material organs, are subjected to precisely the same law; and, therefore, if we wish to improve the reasoning powers, we must exercise them regularly in tracing the causes and relations of things. And, in like manner, if our aim is to develope the senti- ments of Attachment, Benevolence, Justice, or Respect, we must exercise each of them directly and for its own sake, other- wise neither it nor its organ will ever acquire promptitude or strength. It ought never to be forgotten, that in education it is the brain, or organ of mind, and not the abstract immaterial prin- ciple, which requires cultivation, and that hence education ope- rates invariably in subjection to the laws of organization. In improving the external senses, we admit this principle readily enough; but whenever we come to the internal faculties of thought and feeling, it is either denied or neglected. With gross inconsistency, we admit that the superior quickness of touch, sight, and hearing, consequent upon judicious exercise, is always referable to increased facility of action in their appro- priate organs; but when we explain, on the same principle, the superior development of the reasoning powers, or the greater warmth of feeling produced by similar exercise in these and other internal faculties, few are inclined to listen to our proposition, or allow to it half the weight or attention which its importance requires, although every fact in philosophy and experience concurs in supporting it. We see the mental pow- ers of feeling and of thought unfolding themselves in finfancy ON ITS OWN OBJECTS. 251 and youth, in exact accordance with the progress of the organ- ization ; we see them perverted or suspended by the sudden inroad of disease, and as suddenly restored; nay, we some- times observe every previous acquirement obliterated from the adult mind by fever or by accident, leaving education to be commenced anew, as if it had never been ; and yet with all these evidences of the organic influence, it is still a novelty in education to propose that the established laws of physiology, as applied to the brain, should be considered as our best and surest, guide ; and scarcely a volume can be pointed out in which it is even hinted that these laws have the slightest influ- ence over mental or moral improvement. Were a general acquaintance with the laws of organization to be held as an indispensable part of a liberal education, we would then be able to inculcate, with tenfold force and success, the necessity of actively exercising every faculty, whether of thought, feeling, or motion, directly on its own objects, and at once to explore the mistake of supposing that any organ or function may be efficiently exercised through the medium of another, and that, to produce high moral feeling, it is sufficient to address ourselves to the intellect alone. The merest savage, following the footsteps of Nature, would pity the philosopher who should seriously assure him that, to cultivate acuteness of hearing or of vision, it was sufficient to be told how to listen or to look. The savage goes more directly and surely to work. If he wants physical strength, agility, and swiftness of foot, he sets himself to develope the muscular system of his child by ample muscular exercise, by constant repetition of the move- ments and acts he wishes him to perform, and by causing him to run, to leap, or to swim; and he rests in well founded hope of accomplishing his purpose. Following the same rule when he seeks acuteness of hearing, he does not merely tell his child how to listen, but he lays him with his ear to the ground, and teaches him, by practice, to distinguish the qualities of sounds. If he wishes him to excel in hunting, in fishing, in lying in ambush, or in scenting the approach of an enemy, he expects to be successful only in proportion as he finds occasion to employ him in the practice of these pursuits. If he wishes to inculcate courage in battle, contempt of pain, endurance of fatigue, obedience to chiefs, or revenge upon enemies, ne chooses the sure way, and cultivates each of these qualities by calling it into direct action on its own objects * and we all know 252 EXERCISE OF EVERY FACULTY the success which the savage meets with in the education thus bestowed.* With this experience before our eyes, then, let us, who pre- tend to superior wisdom and civilization, show ourselves also consistent, and ready to receive instruction from whatever quar- ter it may come. As God has given us bones, and muscles, and bloodvessels, and nerves, for the purpose of being used, let us not despise the gift, but consent at once to turn them to account, and to reap health and vigour as the reward which He has associated with moderate labour. As He has given us lungs to breathe with, and blood to circulate, let us abandon the folly of shutting ourselves up with so little intermission, engaged in motionless study and sedentary occupations,—and consent to inhale copiously and freely that wholesome atmosphere which His benevolence has spread around us. As He has given us appetites and organs of digestion, let us profit by His bounty, and earn their enjoyment by healthful exercise. As He has given us a moral and a social nature, which is invigorated by activity, and impaired by solitude and restraint, let us cultivate good feeling, and act towards each other on principles of kind- ness, justice, forbearance, and mutual assistance ; and, as He has given us intellect, let us exercise it in seeking a knowledge of His works and of His laws, and in tracing out the relation in which we stand towards Him, towards our fellow men, and to- wards the various objects of the external world : and, in perfect faith and sincerity, let us rely upon His promise, that, in so do ing, we shall have a rich reward—a reward a thousand times more pure, more permanent, and more delightful, than we can ever hope to experience in following our own blind devices, regardless of His will and intentions towards us.f * This principle exposes forcibly the utter folly of those who labour hird to acquire a fortune, in order that they may retire. Let me never engage in any occupation from which it is necessary or even desirable to retire.— [Ed. Am. edit.\ f Those of my readers who wish to pursue the inquiry, and to trace the relations in which Man stands to his Creator, to his fellow creatures, to himself, and to the external world, will find a clear and comprehensive guide, in a small volume, entitled, " The Constitution of Man considered in relation to External Objects. By George Combe." In this work, of which upwards of 15,000 copies have got into circulation within the last year, a general view is taken of the human constitution, and of the laws which regulate the organic, moral, and*intellectual nature of man. The sources of most of the evils which afflict the human family are successfully TO BE DIRECT—ILLUSTRATIONS. 253 Shortly after the third edition of this work was published, I had occasion, in the course of conversation with a very in- telligent friend, to express the gratification which I felt on learning, that in two excellent educational establishments just opened in Edinburgh, by associations of the ablest teach- ers of the city, physiology was not only included as an im- portant branch of study, but had proved attractive and inter- esting even to the young ladies, who constituted a large pro- portion of the audience, although, by their previous education, they were as little prepared for the favourable reception of its doctrines as it was possible to conceive any one to be. On being asked why I attached so much importance to physi- ology as a practical science, I stated briefly some of the rea- sons mentioned in these pages. My friend was struck with their force, and wishing to be put in possession of them in a tangible form for a special purpose, requested me to write them out in the form of a letter. I complied with the request, and as an explanation arising out of an individual case often possesses more point and applicability than a more general argument, and the subject is one of immense importance, I shall subjoin the letter entire, although it necessarily involves some repetition of statements ahead)*- given. " My Dear---, Edinburgh, 9th April, 1835. " When we last met, I said that I was much gratified to see the recently formed Association of Teachers ranking physiol- ogy first among the subjects which it was important for them as professional men to be acquainted with—and the reason I gave was the simple fact, that all the moral and intellectual functions stand in the same relation to one part of our organ- ized structure, viz. the brain, as the physical power of motion or exercise does to another, viz. the muscles; that conse- quently to educate the moral or intellectual faculties success- fully, we must have the same constant reference to the laws under which organization acts, as we have in educating the muscles and training them to any of the ordinary exercises of walking, dancing, fencing, or riding; and that hitherto this traced to violations of those laws, and shown to be, to a great extent, within our own control; so that practical usefulness, and not mere speculation, is the characteristic of the volume. 254 IMPORTANCE OF PHYSIOLOGY grand principle had been overlooked, and mai y modes of training the intellect and feelings resorted to, which, being contrary to the laws of organization, could not succeed. " I gave the muscular system as an example, and stated it ag a law of organization, that to keep a part in health and vigour it must be duly and regularly exercised. If it be too little, the blood flows languidly through it, the nervous energy in it is enfeebled, and the part becomes weakened and indis- posed to act without some strong stimulus. If it be too much exercised, its vessels and nerves become feeble and irritable from exhaustion and inability to act with vigour ensues. If it be exercised to a proper extent, the circulation through it becomes animated, it receives more blood, and consequently more nourishment; its nerves act with more tone, and it be- comes stronger, readier for action, and after a time fitted for repose. If, however, the exercise be not resumed after sufficient repose, then weakness of necessity follows as above. " To apply this principle to the exercise of a bodily powei. Suppose that A. B. walks ten or fifteen miles every Monday morning, and during the other six days of the week not at all, and that, finding himself greatly fatigued by the exertion, he roundly asserts that exercise is hurtful—what answer would be made 1 He would be told that as he sowed so had he reap- ed—that as he had infringed all the laws of exercise so had he suffered the punishment due to the infringement: 1st, By walking much farther than his constitution was fit for, he had induced debility from exhaustion ; 2dly, By remaining inactive the other six days, he had induced debility, with indisposition to action, dependent on a sluggish circulation and low tone of vitality. Had he wished to strengthen his muscular system, the laws of exercise required that he should employ his mus- cles to a sufficient degree to increase their tone, and regularly resume the exercise after adequate repose. The very gradual and regular way in which horses are prepared for trre race- course or hunting-field, is an excellent illustration of the im- portance attached to the observance of the law of Nature in training animals. " In training the mental powers, precisely the same prin- ciple ought to guide our efforts, because God has made the mind as dependent on the brain for its action during life, as he has done the power of motion in the muscles; and there- WITH REFERENCE TO EDUCATION. 255 fore we are doubly bound to follow the law which He has given us for our guidance. According to this principle, then, every mental power may be weakened by too little, and also by too much exercise; because the brain, through which it acts, may be left sluggish or be exhausted by excess of exer- tion. In the first case, the mental faculty becomes indisposed to act; and in the second it becomes incapable of acting vigor- ously and steadily. It may be excited to action, but the ac- tion will be irritable, and unsteady, and unprofitable—not permanent, enduring, and available, such as attends the me- dium or right degree of exercise. " To apply this to moral education. It is evident, that, granting the truth of the principle (which can be demon- strated) , every moral feeling which we wish to strengthen and cultivate must be duly, regularly, and systematically ex- ercised before full success can be attained—just as we see done with the intellectual faculties of music, painting, lan- guage, and memory of facts. We have no choice in the mat- ter. Either we must obey the law which God has imposed on our constitution, or we must fail in attaining the moral excellence of which he has made us capable. He has con- nected mind and feeling with organization to fit us for our re- sidence in a material world, and we must either act under its laws or suffer. " Here, then, is the use of teachers being taught this fact. Love of Approbation is a strong and active feeling of the hu- man mind, and it is one to which food is easily administered, and the gratification of which is attended with much pleasure to those who are largely endowed with it. Being a very pro- minent feeling in society, it is perhaps the most regularly and sedulously educated which we have. Before an infant can walk, or speak, or understand, we begin by praising its beau- ty, its shoes, its rattle, or its dress; when it cries, we flatter it to silaoce ; when it speaks, reads, sings, or dances, every one is irPan ecstacy of admiration at its achievement. At school, its vanity is cultivated by places and prizes, and pub- lic exhibitions. At college, emulation ill directed is often its bane. In the world, " fame" is its grand prize. With fe- males, emulation, prizes, flattering and compliment are still more effective. The result of this careful education and sys- tematic exercise of an inferior feeling is manifest in every age, 256 IMPORTANCE OF PHYSIOLOGY and in every rank of life. It predominates every where, How much of character and conduct in public and in private circles springs from the single principle of Love of Approba- tion in its various modifications of emulation, vanity, desire of renown, love of praise, notoriety, or fame ! There is, in truth, scarcely an act of any note in which it does not come in as a primary element.* "It is equally so with the sense of justice or religion 1 Are they called systematically into play in every act which intervenes between the cradle and the grave ? And do we find them constantly referred to as rules of conduct, as we do emulation, fame, glory, and honour 1 And do we find them exercising even a tithe of the influence over human conduct which the other does 1 Far from it; conscience, indeed, is a " still small voice," for its cry is rarely heard, and its voice is easily drowned by less noble sounds. Why is it so 1 The reason is obvious : not being recognised as a primitive faculty connected with an organ of its own, no one thinks that it re- quires regular and systematic exercise to give it strength. Be- ing viewed as an offshoot from intellect, it is said, " Cultivate intellect, and the sense of justice will shift for itself." From this error, parents and teachers not only neglect to educate conscience, or the sentiment of justice, but too often violate its dictates, in the belief that the child has not sense enough to see the violation. Instead of being made a ruling principle in every-day life, it is rarely heard of; and hence from inac- tivity it becomes indisposed to act, because such is the law of its organization. " It is the same with the religious feelings. If these be ac- tively cherished and made to regulate every-day life, their organs acquire readiness and vigour of action, and the feelings become sources of happiness and right conduct. But if their exercise be reserved for the seventh day, and they be laid aside in the intervening six, the law of organizatfcn decreed * The location of this organ by the side of Conscientiousness, shows that the latter faculty should govern the former—that we should rarely praise persons for their beauty, or wealth, or attire, &e. but mainly for their moral excellence. Yet, how grossly is this principle every where violated! I shall soon publish, in the Phrenologicil Journal, an article on the true and false standard of praise, founded on Phrenology. [Ed. Am. edit.] WITH REFERENCE TO EDUCATION. 257 by God is again broken, and from sluggishness indisposition to activity is induced ! The separation of belief from prac- tice, which some inculcate, has misled many, and done infi- nite harm. " From the same principle which requires the regular exer- cise of all the moral and intellectual faculties, it necessarily happens, that, if one or several be greatly cultivated to the exclusion of the rest, all arc apt to suffer. Those which are too constantly in action, are apt to pass into that irritable state of excitement which constitutes an almost morbid craving, and is hurt by indulgence ; while those which are not sufficiently exercised become sluggish and indisposed to act. This is in truth one of the reasons why persons remarkably gifted with partial talent, are rarely equally remarkable for sound general sense or feeling, or for being proportionably happy. Continual activity in the one direction exalts their irritability, diminishes the healthy tone of the system, and leaves in abeyance all the other faculties of the mind, whether moral or intellectual. Hence in some degree the proverbial irritability of poets, artists, musicians, and authors, whose minds are exercised on one set of objects, and whose moral feelings are not brought sufficient- ly into play in the ordinary duties of life. And hence, I may add, the danger of deterioration of character in young people from excessive addiction to one line of pursuit, and the neglect of their other and higher faculties. " In short, in attempting to produce moral excellence in the young, we have no royal road to stride over with seven-league boots. We must just submit to cultivate the sense of Justice, and the sentiments of Veneration and Benevolence, on the same principle as we do musical talent, or muscular power ; and we may be very thankful in having the guarantee of Om- nipotence to assure us of success when we do so. It is a fact which I can explain only by the prevailing neglect of moral education, that, as a general rub*, the sense of Conscientious- ness is m^e active in childhood than mature age. If the sen- timent were properly cultivated, I think it would become pro- portionably stronger instead of weaker."* * See Fowler's Phrenology, p. 38, where, in answering the objection to Phrenology, that it leads to fatalism, the author makes a statement similar to the above, and accounts for it by referring it to its inactivity. [Ed. Am, edit.] 17 258 NECESSITY OF THE DIRECT EXERCISE So little, however, are even educated men familiar with the influence and laws of the organization, that, even in our best directed establishments, as well as in private families, cultiva- tion is still in a great measure confined to intellect alone ; and the direct exercise and training of the moral and religious sen- timents and affections, are rarely thought of as essential to their full and vigorous development. Moral precepts are, no doubt, offered in abundance; but these address themselves chiefly to the intellect. We must not be satisfied with merely exclaiming, " be kind, just, and affectionate," when perhaps at the very moment we are counteracting the effect of the ad- vice by our own opposite conduct. " She told me not to lie," said Guy Rivers in speaking of his mother, " and she set me the example herself by frequently deceiving my father, and teaching me to disobey and deceive him." Conduct like this is more com- mon in real life than is supposed, although generally less fla- grant in degree. Parents and teachers indeed too often forget that the sentiments feel and do not reason, and that, conse- quently, even a stupid child may, by the instinctive operation of its moral nature, at once detect and revolt at the immorality of practices, the true character of which its reason is unable to penetrate or expose. It is one of the most effectual methods of cultivating and exciting the moral sentiments in children, to set before them the manifestations of these in our habitual con- duct. What kind of moral education is that, for instance, which, while the instructress vilifies the physical appetites of hunger and thirst, and preaches disregard of their cravings and of the gratifications of taste, leads her to set down a meal to her boarders, from partaking in which she betrays the strongest desire to escape, on account, of its inferiority to that which is provided for herself and the few at the head of the establish- ment 1 What advances in morality and religion can be ex- pected under the charge of one who says, " Do unto others as you would be done by," and then leaves his dependents to suffer pain, chilblains, and disease, from want of a fire t^varni the room in which they sit, he himself coming into it wWn features flushed by the heat of the blazing fire, which, for weeks, has been provided for his comfort in his own apartment 1 What generosity of feeling can arise from the superintendence of a teacher, who, though liberally paid for the food of her pupils, and with moral precepts on her lips, satisfies the cravings of nature in the long interval between meals, only at the ex- OF THE MORAL FEELINGS. 259 pense of the pence constituting the pocket-money of the scholar 1—the food in this case being denied, not because it is considered improper,—for were that the case, it would be a de- reliction of duty to give it on any terms,—but from sheer mean- ness and cupidity. What kind of moral duties does the parent encourage, who, recommending kindness, openness, and jus- tice, tricks the child into the confession of faults, and then basely punishes it, having previously promised forgiveness 1 And how is openness best encouraged—by practising it in con- duct, or by neglecting it in practice but praising it in words 1 Is it to be cultivated by thrusting suspicions in the face of hon- est intentions 1 And how is justice to be cultivated by a guar- dian who speaks about it, recommends it, and in practice charges each of four pupils the whole fare of a hackney-coach 1 Or what kind of moral education is that which says, Do as I bid you, and I will give you sweetmeats or money, or I will tell your mamma how good you were ; holding out the lowest and most selfish propensities as the motives to moral conduct! Did space permit, I might indeed pursue the whole round of moral and religious duties, and ask similar questions at each. But it is needless. These examples will suffice ; and I give them not as applicable generally either to parents or teachers, but simply as individual instances from among both, which have come within the sphere of my own knowledge, and which bear directly upon the principle under discussion.* If I have here, or elsewhere, spoken too harshly of the er- rors of teachers and conductors of boarding-schools it has been quite unconsciously, for my sole anxiety is to see them, as a class, elevated to that high moral and intellectual position in the scale of society, which those intrusted with so responsible a charge as the education of the young ought unquestionably to occupy. But I have too deep a sense of the mischief done by incompetent persons assuming the duties and responsibili- ties of instructors, without possessing a single preparatory quali- fication,jand with no higher motive than that of having been unfortunate in another calling, to hesitate about condemning practices which I believe to be wrong. For those among them who have fitted themselves in earnest for the duties of their * The fact that nearly all children have very large Imitation, shows why it is that they learn so much more easily and effectually by precept than by example. [Ed. Am. edit. ] 260 PROPER METHOD OF EDUCATING profession, and whose energies are devoted to the welfare of then1 pupils—and there are many such—I entertain the highest respect, and to them none of the censure is meant to apply. Such were the remarks which, in the former editions, I felt it necessary to make on the want of harmony between precept and practice in the moral training of the young in boarding- schools. Since then, my attention has been called to other practices, which are still more reprehensible than those already noticed. One of these is the custom which prevails in many seminaries of retaining, when the pupil leaves the school, the towels, sheets, and even the silver fork and spoon, which each is required to bring along with her at entry. So far, indeed, was this paltry spirit of appropriation carried in one instance, that even a pianoforte, belonging to one of the young ladies, was retained, without leave being either asked or given. In another instance the pupil brought along with her a new ward- robe, in which she and her friends intended that she should keep her own clothes and property. But to her great mortifi- cation it was taken from her the very first day, set up as an ornament in another room, and a single drawer in an old chest given in its place ! It also was left behind as the property of the family. Those who have been long familiar with the existence of the above practice in boarding-schools, or who have themselves acted upon it from habit, without being conscious of any cen- surable meanness, may think I go too far in thus stigmatizing it. But I have never met with any one who, on hearing of it for the first time, hesitated a moment to denounce it as repug- nant to all the higher feelings of our nature, and as peculiarly unbecoming in those whose conduct so directly influences the moral and religious training of the youth confided to their charge. The only excuse which I have ever heard alleged in its favour, even by those who defend it, is that such is the custom, and that as parents are aware of the practice before they send their children to school, there is therefore no immorality in- volved in its continuance. This mode of reasoning, however, is as false and oblique as the proceeding which it is used to sanction; and does not touch the real merits of the question— Whether the retention of the property of the pupil be an open and honourable way of increasing their own gains, or not 1 If it is, then it need not be concealed, but should be plainly and THE MORAL SENTIMENTS. 261 broadly stated in the list of terms. If it is not, but the thing is done merely from long custom, then the sooner it is given up the better: For although indulgence in that which is wrong may blunt the acuteness of the moral perceptions, it can never so far alter the true relations of things, as to render that right and virtuous which was at first wrong and unjust; and, to the essential merits of the question, it signifies little whether the property be detained by the express order of the con- ductors of the school, or by the attachment of ridicule to the pupil who would otherwise take it away. To every delicate mind the one motive to the sacrifice is evitfently as compulsory as the other. Another immoral and disgraceful practice in many semina- ries, is that of exacting from the private teachers employed in them a heavy per centage (amounting in some instances with- in my knowledge to one-half) on the fees which they receive from the pupils. If these fees be fair and reasonable, gross in- justice is obviously done to the teacher by this underhand sys- tem of pillage. If, on the other hand, the teacher be compel- led to increase his demand on the pupil beyond the point of a fair remuneration, on purpose to meet the per centage required of him, then he is made the instrument of a dishonest exaction from others. On either supposition the practice is immoral; and that it is felt to be so even by the parties themselves, is proved by the very concealment with which it is attended. It has also the farther drawback of exposing the conductors to the temptation of employing, not the teachers who are best quali- fied, but those who will give up the largest allowances out of their own gains.* It is no excuse whatever to allege, as is sometimes done, in justification, that without these additions the rate of board re- ceived would afford an inadequate remuneration to the conduc- tors of the boarding-school. This would be an exceedingly good reason for increasing the amount payable by each pupil, but it is none whatever for the perpetration of a gross immo- rality. The education and moral and religious training of the young, ought to be liberally and gratefully paid for. If, there- fore, an erroneous calculation has been made at the outset, and too low an estimate formed of the expenses, the board ought clearly to be increased; but the necessity for such in- • In America, these practices are not common. [Ed. Am. edit.] 262 PROPER METHOD OF EDUCATING crease ought to be openly and honestly stated, and not allowed to stand for ever after as an apology for the continued infliction of a miserable and degrading injustice—an injustice calculated to set at nought all the moral and religious instruction for which chiefly the remuneration is bestowed. To the pocket of the pupil or parent it matters little under what heads the amount is claimed; but to their feelings and character, it is of great importance that no outrage to the common feel- ings of honesty should be mixed up with the conduct of edu- cation.* There are persons who, when proved to be in the wrong, find great comfort to their wounded feelings in the fact of their neighbours or censors being as bad as themselves. To such of my readers as require consolation of this description, I am ready to admit, that men of my own profession are also fallible, and that not very many years ago, physicians participated largely in the profits of their apothecaries, on the very same principle as that on which conductors of schools participate in the gains of the private teachers. But I am happy to say that this practice has been long discontinued, as not less degrading to the parties concerned in it, than injurious to the public ; and all that I wish, in the present instance, is to see their example followed for good as well as for evil. Not to be misunderstood, however, I must add, that the pa- * As the observations in the text are strongly expressed, I think it right to subjoin a few specimens of the charges made in a most respectable school, of which the prospectus is now before me, and which, I think, will amply justify all that I have said. The sums received by the teachers are given on what I believe to be a trust-worthy authority. The pupil is charged per quarter. The teacher And consequent-ly the annu- For receives. al surcharge amounted to. Dancing, : : L.2 2 0 L.l 1 0 L.4 4 0 Drawing, 3 3 0 2 2 0 4 4 0 Singing, 4 4 0 3 3 0 4 4 0 Harp, : 4 4 0 3 3 0 4 4 0 Guitar, : 4 4 0 3 3 0 4 4 0 German, 3 3 0 2 2 0 4 4 0 French, 2 2 0 1 11 G 2 2 0 Writing, &c. 1 1 0 0 10 6 2 2 0 Geography, 1 1 0 010 6 2 2 0 Elocution, 1 1 0 0 10 6 2 2 0 Annual total of surcharge on the > above branches, : : ) L.33 12 0 THE MORAL SENTIMENTS. 263 rents and public are fully as much to blame for these delin- quencies as those who more immediately commit them. If, in society, the teachers and guardians of youth were treated gene- rally with the respect and consideration to which those really qualified for the trust are so amply entitled, and a liberal re- muneration were afforded them in the same spirit of confidence and equality, a higher class of minds would dedicate them- selves to the profession, and qualify themselves by previous preparation for its'duties. Whereas, under the existing system, there is no inducement whatever for any person of superior talent and character, to enter upon a profession which places him in an inferior grade in society to that which the same talents and character, differently employed, would enable him to reach with ease; and hence, with a few honourable excep- tions, those only embark in it who are compelled by the nar- rowness of their circumstances, or the impossibility of finding any other career left open to them. Both parties are thus to blame, and both suffer the consequences of their own errors; the one in being treated with disrespect, and the other in dis- appointment at the miserable results of the expensive educa tion which their children receive. Before leaving this subject, I am anxious to repeat, that I am far from including all boarding-schools in the above cen- sure. There are some in which the practices commented upon are stigmatised and discountenanced; and in alluding to such defects as I know to be still in existence in many of them, my sole object has been to increase their usefulness, by hastening the introduction of such improvements as are essential not less to their own moral respectability and ultimate prosperity than to the lasting advantage of their pupils. In the practical training of the young, it is of consequence to keep in mind that the moral sentiments, in common with the intellect, are dependent on organization for their means of activity during life, and consequently are more successfully cultivated, by being habitually employed in regulating the every-day affairs of life, than by waiting for great occasions on which they may be exercised with unusual vigour. Benevo- lence, no doubt, is vividly excited by the aspect of great mis- ery* and unhappiness, and impels strongly to the relief of the * These scenes generally tend to benumb Benevolence, instead of ina proving it. [Ed. Am. edit.] 264 PROPER METHOD OF EDUCATING suffering object; but this is not its most common or its most useful field. In ordinary life, it finds ample scope in charity to our neighbours, and in contributing to the happiness of our family circle, and of our associates and dependents. Benevo- lence is much better occupied in adding a gleam of enjoyment, in removing little sources of irritation, in promoting concord among relatives, and in other kind offices of a similar nature, than in giving alms indiscriminately to all who demand them, or even in relieving occasional distress, where this is held, as it too often is. to dispense with all obligation to habitual for- bearance and Christian good-will in the private relations of life. But how little is this most important faculty directly at- tended to or cultivated, in the way we see done with the facul- ties necessary for the practice of drawing or music, which, by incessant exercise, procured at a great sacrifice of time, money, and labour, are brought into such a state of activity as ever af ter to enable their possessors to derive delight from their exer- cise, where the talents are possessed in any considerable de gree! And what might we not expect from the systematic training of the higher sentiments on a similar plan, in improv- ing society and exalting the happiness of the race ! But it is evident that the objects of Benevolence are our fellow- creatures; and consequently, if we restrict our intercourse and our sympathies to the limits of our own drawing-rooms, and take no interest in the progress of the race or of the indi- viduals composing it, we leave our best faculties in abeyance, and reap the reward of bodily debility and weakness and mo- notony of mind. Conscientiousness is another moral principle that requires di- rect cultivation, and that rarely receives it. It holds the ba- lance between man and man, and is excited by the present- ment of any difference of right between individuals, of any injustice, or of any temptation offered by the other faculties, which may lead us to encroach on the rights of other men. ft gives a strong sense of duty, with which it is agreeable to act in conformity, but which it is painful and injurious to oppose. It gives weight and force to the impulses of the other senti- ments, and, joined with intellect and the feeling of devotion, gives that faith in the beneficence and equity of the Deity, and in the immutability of all his laws, that forms the strongest en- couragement to virtuous conduct and temporary self-denial. And here again, living in society, engaging in the active duties THE INTELLECTUAL FACULTIES. 265 of life, and acting justly amidst the conflicting interests of others—and not seclusion and privacy—are manifestly intend- ed by the Creator as our proper sphere. I need not follow out this exposition in detail. The pre- ceding illustrations will suffice to explain the principle ; and to exceed this limit would withdraw attention too much from the matters more directly before us. For the same reason that every faculty ought to be exer- cised directly upon its own objects, the exclusive use of book- education as a means of conveying instruction is manifestly unnatural as well as inefficient. If allowed to handle and ex- amine a new object, a child will pursue the investigation with pleasure, and in five minutes will acquire more correct know- ledge than by a whole hour's reading about its qualities with- out seeing it. In the one instance, its perceptive powers are stimulated by the direct presence of the qualities of which they are destined to take cognizance; while, in the other, they are roused only through the imperfect medium of artifi- cial language, and the child has to create the object in his own mind before he can take notice of its qualities. When we recollect the different ideas which the same written language suggests to different mature minds, we may form some conception of the impossibility of a child making progress in this way, and of the weariness and ennui which the thankless effort must always induce; and yet, at the present day, in nineteen out of twenty schools, all the know- ledge that is offered is through the medium of books and lan- guage alone. It is well remarked by M. Duppa, in his excellent little work on the education of the peasantry in England, that " it is the habit of accurately observing the actual nature of ob- jects, as perceivable by the senses, and distinctly marking their differences, which, in after life, renders a man intelli- gent and judicious. There are few whose natural faculties are so dull as to be unable to perceive a distinction when pointed out to them, or when their notice is directed towards it?—for instance, that one thing is long, another short; that one is round, another flat, one green, and another black. But bow few are there who, when minutely questioned, can give a clear or circumstantial description of any object they have been conversant with, or in what particular that object differa 266 INFLUENCE OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM ON HEALTH. from another. And why is this 1 Because they have not the habit of accurate observation of things ; and they have not that habit, because, in modern education, a child's observation, at the moment when all is new and observation most active, is wilfully drawn away from things to the signs of things ; and the boy who might easily have been made to distinguish the na- ture and properties of the different objects around him, has only learned to distinguish one letter from another." (P. 27.) It is but another proof of the harmony of design in all the works of the Creator, that this method of directly cultivating the observing powers cannot be adequately fulfilled without a certain amount of muscular exertion and of daily exposure to the open air, in going about to collect and examine the varied objects of interest with which creation abounds. In other words, we cannot benefit the perceptive faculties, without at the same time benefiting the muscular system and the organs of respiration, circulation, and digestion ; and this grand re- commendation in the eye of reason, viz. pursuing study in the field of nature instead of in books alone, is actually, though not avowedly, the circumstance which retards its adoption in ordinary education. To take the scholar out of the school- room to look at the works of God, is thought to be encour- aging idleness and a love of pleasure, and therefore it is de- nied ! What, therefore, is wanted is a system of education in harmony with the constitution of the human mind, and a mode of life and of occupation which shall give not only full play to the intellectual powers, but also healthy excitement and activity, and a right direction to the moral, religious, and affective feelings. The details of such a system do not fall under the scope of a treatise like this; and I must, for the present, content my- self with the exposition of the general principle.* A serious obstacle to entering upon the regular exertion here recom- mended, requires to be noticed, as it arises from a feeling in the patient against which he cannot be too much on his guard. Where the nervous system is weak, and where it, of course, * Mr. Simpson, in his recent work on " The Necessity of Popular Ed- ucation as a National Object," and in his admirable evidence before the Irish Education Committee of the House of Commons, in August 1835, has filled up the above outline, and very ably shown how the different fa« • INFLUENCE OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM ON HEALTH. 267 requires most to be strengthened, there is often a retiring sen- sitiveness of disposition, leading its possessor rather to avoid than to seek intercourse with society. Feeling the irksome- ness of present exertion, the nervous invalid is apt. to form the secret resolution to live in solitude till the mind shall be- come stronger, and then to seek society when it will no longer be a burden. Unhappily, however, this feeling leads only to delusion, and the wished-for result becomes every day more distant, the longer retirement and indolence are persevered in. It is by activity, and not by repose, that strength is to be acquired. We do not expect to increase bodily strength by lying in bed, but by stirring about; and, in like man- ner, we shall never succeed in strengthening the nervous system by indulging in mental indolence. Many are led astray by the false expectation of acquiring strength without using the natural means from which alone strength can be procured. It may be remarked, that in the preceding pages I have made no allusion to the doctrines of Phrenology. My rea- sons are simply, that, for the object I had in view, a special reference to them was not necessary, and that, in a work written for the general reader and for practical purposes, I was naturally anxious to avoid every contested point. Ac- cordingly, in limiting myself to the statement that different parts of the brain perform different functions, without speci- fying those connected with any particular part, farther than that they are all concerned in the mental operations, I am not venturing beyond what most eminent anatomists and phy- siologists, in the past and present times, have taught before me. My own sentiments on the subject are already before the pub- lic ;* and I am bound to say that every day's experience in- creases my conviction of the truth of Phrenology, and deep- ens my sense of its practical value. Those who desire to pro- culties of the mind may be best called into play. His clear, consistent, and eloquent exposition of what is still wanted to render education effec- tive and available for all classes of society, produced a strong impression on the Committee, and richly deserves the attentive consideration of every one who takes an interest in the improvement of the race. * Vide Observations on Mental Derangement; being an application of the Principles of Phrenology to the elucidation of the Causes, Symptoms, Nature and Treatment of Insanity. 1 vol. post 8vo, 1831. 268 INFLUENCE OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM ON HEALTH. secute the inquiry will find ample assistance in the numerous works* already published, both in this country and in France. The splendid work of Vimont would do honour to any age 01 country. I have already had frequent occasion to notice the direct in fluence exercised by the mind and brain over all the bodily functions, and over the general health. As the subject is an important one, and.has not received all the attention which it deserves, it may be proper, before concluding, to offer a few remarks on it. The nervous fluidf or influence presents many phenomena allied to those of electricity, but its real nature is not yet known. All that can be said is, that it is an influence of a peculiar kind, originating in the brain and nervous system ; and that, like the blood, it is essential to the vital action of every animal organ. When I move the hand in writing, the muscles of the arm are called into play by an influence trans- mitted to them from the brain, by means of the soft white cords called nerves. This stimulus is so indispensable, that, if the communication between the brain and the muscles be cut off, by dividing or tying the nerve, no effort of the mind will longer suffice to excite them to action. In like manner, if the nerves of the lungs and stomach be cut through, so as to interrupt the flow of nervous influence, respiration and di gestion will cease, although in every other respect their re- spective organs remain uninjured. Changes in the quality or amount of the nervous influence transmitted from the brain to any organ, have thus a direct power of modifying its function. If, from a peculiar state of the brain, the nervous influence sent to the stomach be im- paired, the tone of that organ will be also impaired, and di- gestion become imperfect; whereas if, in consequence of pleasing excitement, the nervous stimulus be increased, a cor- responding activity will be communicated to the stomach, and digestion will be facilitated, as is experienced after a dinner in pleasant society. But if, by a violent burst of passion, or grief, the brain be inordinately and disagreeably excited, so * According to his own principles just stated, observation and exami- nation of heads are far better than works. [Ed. Am. edit.] * That fluid is the magnetic fluid. [Ibid.] INFLUENCE OF THE NEUVOUS SYSTEM ON HEALTH. 269 as to send forth a stimulus vitiated in quality, the stomach which receives it will partake in the disorder. Hence the sud- den loathing and sickness so often induced by unexpected bad news, vexation, or alarm. Something analogous to this is still more visibly exhibited in the case of the muscles. If the mind be active and decided, the muscles, receiving a strong stimulus, move with readiness and force ; but if the cerebral activity be impaired by bilious depression, muscular action becomes slow, infirm and indolent; whereas if the brain be excited by strong passion, and the sti- mulus be impetuous, the movements instantly become ener- getic and decided ; and, if the excitement be carried still far- ther, the regulated muscular contraction passes the limits of health, and becomes involuntary and convulsive. As the quality of the nervous influence depends on the con- dition of the brain, that which springs from a brain of which all the parts are in sound and vigorous action is the best. Men- tal indolence and high mental excitement are alike inimical to bodily health; and consequently our great aim ought to be to secure for every mental power, moral as well as intellectual, that equal and regular exercise from which alone the proper nervous stimulus can spring.* It is indeed interesting to observe the various effects of the nervous influence, according to the faculties in predominant action at the time it is produced. If the higher feelings have the ascendency, and the more selfish propensities be merely active enough to give force to the character, without setting the mind at war with itself, the nervous influence is the most grateful and efficient which can be imagined for sustaining the healthy co-operation of the whole body. This result follows, because the Creator evidently designed such a state of mind to be the best and happiest for man himself, and therefore took care to surround him with every motive to induce him to enter into it. If, however, the lower feelings be in great activity, and filled with designs and emotions repulsive to the moral sentiments, * This principle is correct, but to know how to secure the equal and re- gular exercise of any organ is the difficulty. In my book on " Phrenology applied to Education and Self-Improvement," I show in detail how to ex- cite and subdue any organ in ourselves, and also in children—a desideratum in Phrenology and education at least as great as any other. [Ed. Am edit.] 270 INFLUENCE OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM. so that the faculties are ranked in opposition to each other; or if the mind be oppressed with grief, anxiety, or remorse ; the stimulus which it communicates is far from beneficial, being no longer in accordance with the conditions designed by the Cre- ator. It is in such circumstances, accordingly, that bad health is so often seen to arise from the state of the mind, and that suffering is produced which no art can relieve till the primary cause has ceased to exist. The same result follows over exercise of intellect, and inac- tivity of the feelings. From the concentration of vital action in the brain, the stomach and other organs are unprovided with the requisite nervous stimulus, and become impaired in their functions ; and hence the dyspeptic and hypochondriacal sym- toms which so often render life a burden to literary men. Per- sons so situated, when advised to attend to diet, often answer that it is in vain, and that, while at some times nothing can be di- gested, at other times, perhaps within a few hours or days, nothing comes amiss—the power of digestion varying thus quickly, according to their mental condition. Whereas, when indigestion arises from a primary affection of the stomach, the least deviation in the way of indulgence proves injurious. In both instances, attention to diet is beneficial; but in the one it is less rigidly important than in the other. The influence of the brain on the digestive organs is so di- rect, that sickness and vomiting are among the earliest symp- toms of many affections of the head, and of wounds and inju- ries of the brain ; while violent emotions, intense grief, or sudden bad news, sometimes arrest, at once the process of di- gestion, and produce squeamishness or loathing of food, al- though, an instant before, the appetite was keen. Narcotics, the direct action of which is on the brain, have a similar effect on the stomach. The influence of the mind and brain over the action of the heart and lungs is familiar to every one. The sighing, palpi- tation, and fainting, so often witnessed as consequences of emo- tions of the mind, are evidences which nobody can resist. Death itself is not a rare result of such excitement in delicately organized persons. This law of our constitution, whereby the regulated activity of both intellect and feeling is made essential to sound bodily ON THE GENERAL HEALTH. 271 health, seems to me one of the most beautiful arrangements of an all-wise and beneficent Creator. If we shun the society of our fellow-creatures, and shrink from taking a share in the active duties of life, mental indo- lence and physical debility beset our path. But if, by engag- ing in the business of life, and taking an active interest in the advancement of society, we duly exercise our various powers of perception, thought, and feeling, we promote the health of the whole corporeal system, invigorate the mind itself, and at the same time experience the highest mental gratification of which a human being is susceptible,—that of having fulfilled the end and object of our being, in the active discharge of our duties to God, to our fellow-men, and to ourselves. If we neglect our faculties or deprive them of their objects, we weaken the or- ganization, give rise to distressing diseases, and at the same time experience the bitterest feelings that can afflict human nature—ennui and melancholy. The harmony thus shown to exist between the moral and physical world is but another ex- ample of the numerous inducements to that right conduct and activity in pursuing which the Creator has evidently destined us to find terrestrial happiness. The reader will now understand why the state of the mind is so influential in the production and progress of disease. In the army, this principle has often been exemplified in a very striking manner, and on so large a scale as to put its influence beyond a doubt. Sir George Billingall mentions, in his lec- tures on Military Surgery, that the proportion of sick in garri- son in a healthy country, and under favourable circumstances, is about five per cent. ; but that, during a campaign, the usual average is nearer ten per cent. So marked, however, are the preservative effects of cheerfulness and the excitement of suc- cess, that, according to Vaidy, the French army cantoned in Bavaria, after the battle of Austerlitz, had only 100 sick in a division of 8000 men, being little more than one in the hundred. When, on the other hand, an army is subjected to privations, or " is discouraged by defeat or want of confidence in its chiefs," the proportion of sick is " often fearfully increased."* The same principle explains why it is so important for the physician to carry the feelings of the patient along with him in his curative measures. It is well known, for example, that * Medico-Chimrgical Review, No. xxxvi. p. 430. 272 INFLUENCE OF CHEERFULNESS ON HEALTH those who live in constant apprehension of fever, cholera, or other ailment, are generally among its first victims when ex- posed to its causes. The reason is obvious. The depressing nervous influence resulting from the painful activity of the self- ish feelings, affects all the organs of the body, and places them on the brink of disease, even before any external cause is in operation ; and hence the easy inroad which the latter makes when it comes into play. The influence of the state of the mind on health is well exemplified in recruits for the army. According to Mr. Henry Marshall, regret for having enlisted, and separation from friends, make them brood over the inconveniences attending their new mode of life, and their health suffers in consequence. These causes combined with the fatigue of drill and the re- straints of discipline, have so much influence, that " growing lads" frequently fall victims to them. The recruit, if not very robust, " loses that active fortitude which is required to fit him to bear up against difficulties, and falls into a gloomy state of mind, that is soo-t followed by deteriorated bodily health; he loses his appetite, becomes emaciated, a slight cough super venes, and, after frequent admission into hospital, he at last dies of diseased lungs. This is an outline of the history of many a young lad who enlists in the army."* In France, where the conscription is compulsory, and many are of course serving against their will, the agency of depression of mind is still more marked and fatal. In the seven years extend- ing fiom 1820 to 1826, both inclusive, it appears from the re- turns that the French army lost ninety-seven men from pure nostalgia or home sickness, an affection which is rarely fatal in this country. So efficacious, on the other hand, is a more cheerful state of mind, from the more healthful nervous influence which it dif- fuses through the frame, that surprising recoveries occasionally happen, which can be ascribed to no other cause but this. A singular but instructive instance fell under the observation of Sir Humphrey Davy, when, early in life, he was assisting Dr. Beddoes in his experiments on the inhalation of nitrous oxide. Dr. Beddoes having inferred that the oxide must be a specific for palsy, a patient was selected for trial, and placed under the care of Davy. Previously to administering the gas, Davy in- * Marshall on Enlisting and Discharging Soldiers, p. 5. EXAMPLES—SIEGE OF BREDA. 273 serted a small thermometer under the tongue of the patient to ascertain the temperature. The paralytic man, wholly igno- rant of the process to which he was to submit, but, deeply im- pressed by Dr. Beddoes with the certainty of its success, no sooner felt the thermometer between his teeth than he con- cluded the talisman was in operation, and, in a burst of enthu- siasm, declared that he already experienced the effects of its benign influence throughout his whole body. The opportunity was too tempting to be lost. Davy did nothing more, but de- sired his patient to return on the following clay. The same cere- mony was repeated; the same result followed ; and at the end of a fortnight he was dismissed cured,—no remedy of any kind except the thermometer having ever been used.* Quacks profit largely by taking advantage of this principle of our na- ture : and regular practitioners would do well to bestow more pains than they do in assisting their treatment by well directed moral influence. Baglivi was deeply impressed with this sen- timent when he said, " I can scarcely express how much the conversation of the physician influences even the life of his patient, and modifies his complaints. For a physician power- ful in speech, and skilled in addressing the feelings of a pa- tient, adds so much to the power of his remedies, and excites so much confidence in his treatment, as frequently to over- come dangerous diseases with very feeble remedies, which more learned doctors, languid and indifferent in speech, could not have cured with the best remedies that man could pro- duce." Another remarkable instance occurred during the siege of Breda in 1625. When the garrison was on the point of sur- rendering from the ravages of scurvy, a few phials of sham- medicine introduced by the Prince of Orange's orders, as the most valuable and infallible specific, and given in drops as such, produced astonishing effects: "such as had not moved their limbs for months before, were seen walking in the streets sound, straight, and whole ; and many who declared they had been rendered worse by all former remedies, recovered in a few days, to their inexpressible joy."f Every oue, indeed, who has either attended invalids, or been * Paris's Life of Davy, p. 51. f F. V. Mye, He Morbis et Symptomatibus, &c. quoted by Dr. John- ston in his Treatise on Derangements of the Liver, rten or prolong their days, and render life happy or miserable. Of the tre".1. of this remark, the Society of Friends afford a striking exam- ple. Quiet, ordeAy, industrious, and contented, they probably live longer, and enjoy life better than any other class. [Ed. Am. edit.] CHAPTER X. APPLICATION OF THE PRECEDING PRINCIPLES. Causes of bad health. Not always the result of moral or immoral conduct,—nol of accident,—but of the infringement of the laws of organization. Proofs from past history. Diminished mortality from increase of knowledge, and better ful- filment of the conditions of health. The expeditions of Anson and Cook con- trasted. Gratifying results of the sanatory arrangements of Ross, Parry, and Franklin. Pulmonary diseases in the Channel fleet, from ignorance of physio- logy. Rates of mortality in different ages and countries. Causes of late im- provement. Conditions of wealthier and poorer classes compared. Good done by the apprehension of Cholera. Influence of habit. Neglect of organic laws in recruiting service. Examples. The reader will now be prepared to take a correct view of a question on which it especially interests us to have true and precise notions. I allude to the real origin of bad health. On this poult, very vague and contradictory opinions are preva- lent ; and, as our conduct in life must necessarily be closely dependent on our views in regard to this subject, I cannot do better, before concluding, than devote a chapter to its consider- ation. Setting aside, for the present, hereditary tendencies to dis- ease (which must have begun at first with some progenitor, from ordinary causes, and which, therefore, are not really un- connected with the inquiry), bad health may be regarded in one of three different lights: First, As having no necessary connection with our conduct, but as being the result of circum- stances entirely beyond our knowledge and control, and sent by a superintending Providence, not to urge us to more rational care, but to soften our hearts, and warn us from sin ; Secondly, As the result of accident alone, or of external influences which we can appreciate, but from which it is impossible to withdraw ourselves; or, Thirdly, As, in every instance, the result of SOURCES OF BAD HEALTH. 277 the direct infringement of one or more of the laws or conditions decreed by the Creator to be essential to the well-being and activity of every bodily organ, and the knowledge and observ- ance of which are to a great extent within our own power. According as one or other of these views shall be adopted, the most opposite practical results will follow. If the first be received as the truth, and health and sickness be viewed as dispensed without reference to our bodily conduct, but solely as a means of reclaiming us from sin, attention to moral and religious improvement alone will be our best protection, and any attempt to avert bad health, by studying and obeying the laws which regulate the bodily functions, will be entirely use- less.* If, again, the second principle be correct, and disease arise from accident and from influences beyond our control, then neither our moral nor our bodily conduct will avail us as a protection, and our only resource will be humble resigna- tion to the will of God. But if the third be true, and the hu- man frame be constructed by the Creator on principles calcu- lated to carry on life for seventy years, and if de facto a large proportion of the race perish before attaining ten years of age, chiefly from infringing the conditions on which the due per- formance of the various vital functions depends, it then be- comes an object of great interest to us to study the structure of our organs, to discover the laws which regulate their functions, and to yield to those laws that implicit obedience from which alone health can spring. That the strictest observance of the moral laws, and the purest devotion of which human nature is capable, are insuffi- cient to secure health to the body, without a simultaneous ob- servance of the organic laws, is too clearly proved by the in- stances already adduced, and by the history of mankind, to re- quire any demonstration here. The biographies of the pious and excellent furnish abundant examples to the contrary; while the annals of crime afford numerous instances of men of the most depraved characters enjoying unbroken health. If, indeed, the organic conditions be fulfilled, the upright man will enjoy a serenity of health which the criminal can never * The religious world not only deserve no credit, but on the contrary the severest rebuke, for inculcating the doctrine that sickness and death are providential visitations; for they thus divert attention from the true causes, and the only preventive of diseases. [Ed. Am. edit.] 278 SOURCES OF BAD HEALTH. know; but the moral observance alone will not avail him, if he at the same time neglect the organic laws.* In regard to the second proposition, a little reflection will satisfy every intelligent mind, that it is equally untenable, and that disease is not always the result o,f accident or of circum- stances which cannot be modified. There are causes of bad health against which even the most stupid and prejudiced take some precautions, and with success ; and the whole art of me- dicine would be a grosser delusion than ever romancer believed it to be, if health were not influenced by circumstances within our control. All our remedies, and all our attention to diet, clothing, and regimen, are indications of the contrary persua- sion. There are, indeed, agencies from which we shall proba- bly never be able entirely to protect ourselves. Such are va- riations in the state of the atmosphere, epidemic and conta- gious causes, and necessary exposure, in pursuance of higher duties, to known unhealthy influences; but, allowing for all these, ample scope remains, within which man may, by an ex- tension of his knowledge and industry, provide himself with safeguards far beyond what he has ever yet made use of, or has ever dreamed of discovering. The third view, or that which ascribes bad health to the in- fringement of some one or more of the organic laws, thus pre- sents itself as the only one in accordance with observation and past experience ; and, after the full exposition I have already given of the conditions of health of various important organs, I trust that little farther proof of this will be required. At the same time, as the principle is full of practical value, I will take a short review of some facts which go far to establish its accuracy. Considering that the human frame is constructed to endure, in many cases, for sixty, seventy, or eighty years, it must seem extraordinary to a reflecting mind, that, in some situations, one-half of all who are born should die before attaining matu- rity; and that, of 1000 infants born and reared in London, 650 die before the age of ten years. It is impossible to suppose that such a rate of mortality was designed by the Creator as the unavoidable fate of man; for, by the gradual improvement of * I may again refer to " The Constitution of Man" for a consistent and intelligible view of the relation subsisting between the organic and the mo* ral and intellectual laws. INFRINGEMENT OF THE ORGANIC LAWS. 279 society and a closer observance of the organic laws, the pro- portion of deaths in early life has already been greatly re- duced. A hundred years ago, when the pauper infants of London were received and brought up in the workhouses, amidst impure air, crowding, and want of proper food, not above one in twenty-four lived to be an year old; so that out of 2800 annually received into them, 2690 died. But when the conditions of health came to be a little better understood, and an act of Parliament was obtained obliging the parish of- ficers to send the infants to nurse in the country, this frightful mortality was reduced to 450, instead of upwards of 2600 !* Can evidence stronger than thi3 be required to prove that bad health frequently arises from causes which man may often be able to discover and remove, and which, therefore, it is his bounden duty to investigate and avoid by every means which Providence has placed within his reach ? The different rates of mortality in crowded cities and coun- try villages, equally demonstrate the influence of bad air, crowding, and imperfect food, in abridging life. Even in the best managed communities, the number not only of the sick of all ages, but of those who are cut off in early youth, is so prodigious as to show that we are far from having arrived at the maximum of health of which the race is susceptible ; while the advances we have already made, give us every rea- son to hope that, by perseverance and the extension of our knowledge, we may continue to improve for many centuries to come. The progress of knowledge, and the increasing ascendency of reason, have already delivered us from many scourges which were regarded by our forefathers as unavoidable dis- pensations of an inscrutable Providence. In the days of the ancient Romans, their capital and territories were frequently * Were not these 2690 nearly all murdered as effectually as if their throats had been cut ? And are not many of those children who die young at the present day equally murdered, and their deaths attributed to Prmddcnre! How excellent a scape-goat is this same Divine Providence made for the sins of many an over-fond mother who kills her children by kindness—of many a pious sinner, who induces disease and hastens death by infringing the laws of life and health! When will men learn wisdom, and religion cease to be perverted, so as no longer to destroy men both mentally and physically ? [Ed. Am. edit.] 280 KNOWLEDGE HAS DIMINISHED DISEASE. almost depopulated by visitations of plague and pestilence, from which the presen, generation is, by a stricter observance of the conditions of health, entirely exempted. In London, in like manner, the same contempt of cleanliness, ventilation, and comfort, which was so fatal to the Romans, produced similar results, and swept off its thousands and tens of thou- sands, till a fortunate disaster,—the great fire,—came in the place of knowledge, and, by destroying the crowded lanes and other sources of impurity, which man had shown himself so little solicitous to remove, procured for its inhabitants a perfect and permanent immunity from one of the deadliest forms of disease,—and taught them the grand practical truth, that such awful visitations are not wanton inflictions of a vengeful Providence, but the direct consequences of neglect of those conditions by which the various vital functions are regulated, and by conforming to which alone, health can be preserved. Accordingly, by greater attention to proper food, cleanliness, and pure air, London, with its gigantic popula- tion, now flourishes in comparative security, and scarcely feels the ravages of an epidemic which has inflicted a blow on some less fortunate cities, the effects of which will be long remembered. Smallpox is another scourge which annually carried off its thousands, and from which modern science bids fair to protect us; although half a century ago, any one who might have ventured to express such an expectation, would have been ridiculed for his credulity. Even before Jenner's immortal discovery of vaccination, the improvement of medical science consequent on increased knowledge of the structure and func- tions of the human body, had greatly mitigated the fatality of smallpox. Formerly the patients were shut up, loaded with bed-clothes, in heated rooms, from which every particle of fresh air was excluded; and stimulants were administered, as if on purpose to hasten the fate of the sick. But sounder views of the wants of the animal economy at last prevailed; and, by the admission of fresh air, the removal of every thing heating or stimulating, and the administration of cooling drinks and other appropriate remedies, thousands were preserved whose lives would have been lost under the mistaken guidance of the older physicians. So lately as the middle of last century, ague was so preva- CONTRASTS BETWEEN MARITIME EXPEDITIONS. 281 lent in many parts of Britain where it is now never seen, that our ancestors looked upon an attack of it as a kind of neces- sary evil, from which they could never hope to be delivered. In this instance also, farther experience has shown that Provi- dence was not in fault. By draining the land, removing dung- hills, building better homes in better situations, and obtaining better food and warmer clothing, it appears that generations now succeed each other, living on the very same soil, with- out a single case of ague ever occurring, where, a century ago, every man, woman, and child were almost sure to suffer from it at one time or other of their lives; thus again showing how much man may do for the preservation of his health and the improvement of his condition, when his conduct is directed by knowledge and sound principles. If we wish for a still more admirable proof of the same prac- tical truth, we have only to compare the condition of our sea- men in maritime expeditions undertaken a century ago, with their lot in the present day;—the expedition against Cartha- gena, or that of Anson, for instance, with those of Cook, Parry, and Ross ; or the health enjoyed by the crew of the Valorous, with that of the seamen in the other vessels lying in the same harbour."* Anson set sail from England, on 13th September, 1740, in the Centurion, of 60 guns and 400 men; accompanied by the Gloucester, of 50 guns and 300 men; the Pearl, of 40 guns and 250 men ; the Wager, of 28 guns and 160 men; the Tryal sloop, of 8 guns and 100 men, and two victuallers, one of 400, and the other of 200 tons. They had a long run to Madeira, and thence to the coast of Brazil, where they arrived on the 18th of December; but by this time, the crews were remarka- bly sickly, so that many died, and great numbers were confined to their hammocks. The Commodore now ordered, " six air- scuttles to be cut in each ship, to admit more air between the decks," and took other measures to correct the " noisome stench on board," and destroyed the vermin; which nuisances had become " very loathsome;" " and, besides being most intole- rably offensive, they were doubtless, in some sort, productive of the sickness under which we had laboured." Such is the mild language used by the chaplain Mr. Walter, in communicating these frightful truths! On anchoring at St. Catharine's, 80 pa- ♦ Vide, p. 87. 282 EXPEDITIONS OF ANSON AND COOK. dents were sent on shore from the Centurion alone, of whom 28 soon died, and the number of sick increased to 96. Al- though this was nothing compared to what took place after- wards, it is nevertheless worthy of remark; for as yet they had suffered no privations or unusal hardships, except from contrary winds. The causes of disease lay entirely within themselves. After a stormy and tedious navigation of three months round Cape Horn, scurvy carried off 43 more in the month of April. and double that number in May, 1741. Those who remained alive now became more dispirited and melancholy than ever; which " general dejection added to the virulence of the disease, and the mortality increased to a frightful degree." On 9th June, when in sight of Juan Fernandez, the debility of the people was so great, that, 200 being already dead, the lieu- tenant could muster only two quarter-masters and six fore- mast men able for duty in the middle watch; so that, had it not been for the assistance of the officers, servants, &c. they would have been unable to reach the island—to such a condition was the crew of 400 men reduced in the course of a few months! I have noticed the cutting of holes for the admission of air between decks, and the dejection of the men. The narrative proceeds to say, that the Commodore's principal attention was now devoted to getting the sick on shore, as they were dying fast on board, " the distemper being doubtless considerably aug- mented by the stench and filthiness in which they lay ; for few could be spared to look after them, which rendered the ship ex- tremely loathsome between decks." The officers suffered least, as being the best fed and best lodged. Within a year, out of upwards of 1200 men, composing the crews of the squadron, who had sailed from England, only 335 remained. The fate of the Spanish squadron, which sailed nearly at the same time, was still more horrible. The Esperanza, of 50 guns, lost 392 out of 450 men, and the other ships almost as large a proportion. It is true that, in doubling Cape Horn, they en- countered the severest weather and the greatest privations, and that their deplorable fate was aggravated by these causes. But when we look to the conduct of later navigators, in circum- stances equally trying, it is impossible to resist the gratifying conviction, that mortality like this forms no part of the designs of a beneficent Providence • and that, for the best of purposes, EXCELLENT HEALTH IN COOK'S VOYAGES. 283 our safety is placed, to a great extent, within the limits of our own power. The late memorable expeditions of Parry, of Franklin, and more especially of Ross, who, with few resources, spent upwards of four years in the desolate regions of the north, with scarcely any loss of life, are examples pregnant with meaning to all who are interested in the future progress of man. It may be said that the climate and situation of the two par- ties were dissimilar. In some respects, the objection is well founded; but Cook's second voyage round the world, in 1772, affords a parallel presenting so many points of resemblance to that of Anson, that no one can reasonably object to their com- parison. On this occasion, the vessels selected were the Reso- lution, carrying 112 men, and the Adventure, with a crew of 81. Enlightened by former experience, Cook spared no pains to effect his equipment in the completest manner, and to lay in such stores of clothing and provisions as he knew to be use- ful in preserving the health of those under his command. Among these were malt, sour krout, portable broth, sugar, and wheat. Care was taken to expose the men to wet as little as possible, to make them shift themselves after being wet, and to keep their persons, hammocks, bedding, and clothes, perfectly clean and dry. Equal attention was paid to keeping the ship clean and dry between decks ; once or twice a week it was aired with fires; and a fire was also frequently made at the bottom of the well, which was of great use in purifying the air in the lower parts of the ship. To the last precaution too great at- tention cannot be paid; as the least neglect occasions a pu- trid and disagreeable smell below, which nothing but fires can remove. Fresh water, vegetables, and fresh provisions, were also eagerly sought for at every opportunity, and these it was Captain Cook's practice to oblige his people, by his own exam- ple and authority, to make use of. The results of these mea- sures we shall now see. The two ships sailed on 13th July, 1772. Towards the end of August, when they were advancing towards the south, the rain " poured down, not in drops but in streams; and the wind at the same time being variable and rough, the people were obliged to attend so constantly upon the deck, that few of them escaped being completely soaked :" but although rain is a great promoter of sickness in warm climates, the airing by fires between decks, and the other precautions, were so effectual, 284 EXCELLENT HEALTH IN COOK'S VOYAGES. that, on arriving at the Cape of Good Hope, only one man was on the sick list; whereas we have seen that, after a similar voyage, the Centurion arrived on the coast of Brazil with 80 sick, of whom 28 soon died. As we proceed, the contrast be- comes still more striking. On 22d November, Cook sailed from the Cape in search of a southern continent. On the 29th, a violent storm, attended with hail and rain, came on, and caus- ed the loss of most of the live stock on board; and a sudden transition took place from warm and mild to extremely cold and wet weather, which was severely felt by the people. On 10th December they met with islands of ice ; and, from that time till the middle of March, continued their search for land with unremitting diligence, amidst cold, hardships, and dan- gers, such as landsmen can form a very imperfect idea of; and, at last, on 26th March, after being 124 days at sea, during which they had sailed 3660 leagues, they came to anchor in Dusky Bay, New Zealand. "After so long a voyage," says Dr. Kippis, from whose Life of Cook these particulars are taken, " in a high southern latitude, it might certainly have been ex- pected that many of Captain Cook's people would be ill of scurvy. This, however, was not the case. So salutary were the effects of the sweetwort and several articles of provision, and especially of the frequent airings and sweetening of the ship, that there was only one man on board who could be said to be much afflicted with the disease ; and even in that man, it was chiefly occasioned by a bad habit of body, and a complication of other disorders." Can any thing be conceived more demonstrative of the ad- vantages to be derived from investigating and obeying the laws of health, than those splendid results, when contrasted with those on board of the Centurion 1 In the Resolution, cheerful activity, cleanliness, dry pure air, adequate clothing, and a suitable regimen, were found to carry man unscathed through hardships, and exposure which, in the Centurion, were, from neglect of the same protective means, severe enough to sweep off a large proportion of her crew. And, as if on purpose to place the efficacy of these measures beyond a doubt, and to re- move any objection which might be started on the ground of the inferior health of the Centurion's crew originally, it appears, that, in the month of July, 1773, the Adventure had many sick, and twenty of her best men incapable of duty from scurvy and flux, when the Resolution, with a larger crew, had but three EXCELLENT HEALTH IN COOK's VOYAGES. 285 men sick, and only one of them from scurvy. This difference in the state of health of the two ships was distinctly traced to the crew of the Adventure having eaten few or no vegetables when in Queen Charlotte's Sound, while, on board of the Re- solution, Cook was most particular in enforcing attention to this part of their dietetic regimen. By this admirable care and unwearied watchfulness on the part of Cook and his officers, the Resolution perfoimed a voy- age of three years and eighteen days, through all climates, from 52° north to 71° south, with the loss of only one man by- disease out of 112! And in his last voyage, so efficaciously were the same means put in practice, that his ship was brought home after an absence of four years, without the loss of a single man by disease ! Lord Nelson is said to have been equally successful, and to have spent three years on the West India station without one life having been lost by dis- ease.* Similar results were obtained by the able commanders of our more recent expeditions to the Northern Regions. The Fury and Hecla were, at one time, no less than twenty-seven months entirely dependent on their own resources, before scurvy began to make its appearance; and at the end of 28i months both ships returned home (in September, 1823,) with the loss of only five men,—a result which, a century ago, could hardly have occur- red and which, even at the present day, is a remarkable indi- cation of the talent and humanity of the officers by whom it was effected. . Nothing in fact, could have been better devised than the means practised in these expeditions to preserve the health of the people ; and did my limits permit it, I might illustrate al- most every principle in this volume by a reference to its actual efficacy as displayed in these voyages. Not only were the con- ditions of health attended to as regarded the skin, the muscles the bones, the lungs, and the digestive organs ; but the health of the all-important nervous system was sedulously provided for by the constant and cheerful occupation of the people in their various duties and amusements; and so judiciously were these planned, that a spirit of life and activity extremely fa- vourable to the preservation of health was constantly kept up, and had, no doubt, great influence in producing tha concord * Sir George Ballingall's Lee. on Milit. Surg. p. 73. 286 PREVALENCE OF DISEASE AT MILBANK. and unity of feeling among them, which were so conspicuous amidst all their privations. If, from these bright examples, we turn to the extraordinary prevalence of disease at the penitentiary of Milbank, in 1823-4, we shall find little reason to congratulate ourselves on the suc- cessful application of scientific principles to the preservation of health in our civil institutions. At the time spoken of, in- tractable affections of the bowels, and other insidious forms of disease, were so general in the penitentiary, that few of the prisoners escaped, and a Parliamentary inquiry into their causes was ordered. Great discrepancy of opinion prevailed, as usual, among the witnesses, from each giving utterance rather to his own impressions than to opinions founded on any philosophi- cal examination of the circumstances. But evidence enough was brought forward to show that several great errors had been committed. In the first place, the penitentiary itself was built, at an enormous expense, in a low damp situation, rather under than above the level of the highest tides in the river, so that ventilation or the supply of dry pure air is always imperfect, and the atmosphere at night is often heavy and damp, as on all low grounds in the neighbourhood of rivers and half covered mud.* To this great and permanent source of debility were added, secondly, a very low and inadequate diet; and, thirdly, the influence of constant mental depression, arising partly, from the local situation of the prisoners, and partly from the mono- tonous confinement and labour under too scanty a supply of food. In such circumstances, it was certainly not wonderful that a low state of health, and latterly scurvy and bowel com- plaints, should make such general havock. That much of the sickness was justly attributable to these causes, is shown by the perfect immunity enjoyed for some years, both by the officers of the penitentiary, and by about thirty of the prisoners, who, from being employed in the kitch- en and offices of the establishment, were less subjected than the rest to the debilitating influence ; and also by the rapid convalescence of almost every one out of 635, on being re- moved to Woolwich and to the Regent's Park, and supplied * To me, it has always been a source of surprise, that building sites are not chosen on more elevated ground, and commanding a better prospect of Burrounding scenery. [Ed. Am. edit.] PREVALENCE OF DISEASE AT THE PENITENTIARY. 287 with a more nourishing diet. On more minute inquiry, indeed, it appeared that, instead of the bad health having begun all at once in 1823, as at first supposed, bowel complaints had been extremely prevalent from the first opening of the penitentiary in 1816, and had continued to be so, though in rather a. less degree, down to that time ; so that the causes, instead of being altogether of sudden origin, must have been inherent in it from the beginning, and only became aggravated by the farther reduction of diet, which took place some months previously, and by the inclemency of the weather. Dr. Latham gives striking evidence of the state of the mind exerting a powerful effect on the health of the prisoners. Speak- ing of the women who were sent on board of one of the hulks at Woolwich, he says, that individuals were pardoned, from time to time, for good conduct, and that recently pardons had become very numerous, as a kind of atonement for the bad health to which they had been subjected. But, as all had nearly an equal claim, " every one pleased herself with believ- ing that she would be the next who would be set at liberty. Whenever, therefore, an individual was pardoned, all the rest were thrown into an agony of the bitterest disappointment, and were at the same time overtaken by disease. It was not a mere nervous or hysterical ailment, but some actual form of real dis- ease, such as they had before suffered, and requiring the strictest medical treatment for its relief."* Examples like these, let it be again and again repeated, show the extent to which health is in our own power, when we choose to fulfil the conditions on which alone it can be obtained. In looking forward to a still greater diminution of disease in the human family, it is cheering to fix attention on what has been already accomplished by the hand of authority. Had the same individuals who circumnavigated the globe with Cook, or braved the northern winters with Ross and Parry, been left for an e'qual number of years to undergo the ordinary vicissitudes of life at home, unrestrained in their inclinations and conduct by the constantly operating and beneficent influence of a supe- rior mind, it is morally certain that disease and death would have made greater havock among them than actually occurred amidst physical privations and sufferings much greater than * Account of the disease lately prevalent at the General Penitentiary, by Dr» Latham, p. 192. 288 NORTHERN EXPEDITIONS. they were likely to have ever encountered at home. This ren- ders obvious the pressing necessity of diffusing widely among society that species of knowledge which has proved beneficial in the hands of those who were fortunate enough to possess it. If human health and happiness be thus effectually promoted by increased attention to the conditions which regulate the vital and animal functions, nothing can be more useful than to com- municate to every intelligent being such a measure of know- ledge as will enable him to do for his own safety and improve- ment that which Government now does for those whose ser- vices it requires. With these successful and cheering results of knowledge, it will be instructive to contrast another instance of the fatal ef- fects of ignorance in a situation where knowledge might have been effectual in preserving life and sparing suffering. I shall take the example from an early publication of Dr. James John- son,* who has devoted no small attention to the subject of health and the causes by which it is affected, and whose work contains much valuable matter connected with hygiene, as well as with the history and cure of disease. In treating of exercise, and the evils of its excess, Dr. Johnson says—" I shall exem- plify this reasoning by an instructive lesson. During the late war, it was observed, that, in its earlier periods, fever, fluxes, and scurvy, made the greatest havock ; while, in its middle and ulterior periods, these diseases almost disappeared, and pneu- monia (inflammation of the lungs), with its too frequent con- sequence, phthisis, became infinitely more prevalent and fatal. The facts were apparent to all, but the causes few could divine. Some of our chemical wiseacres attributed the phneumonic dia- thesis to the lime-juice served out; but this hypothesis need not detain us, for I think a more rational explanation can be offered. As the period of warfare was lengthened out, disci- pline gradually became more perfect, and, at length, attained its acme. Every evolution was now performed with a rapidity and precision that seemed the effect almost of magic. All ma- chinery and apparatus were not only so arranged as to give human power its greatest force and facility of application, but human strength was put to its ultimatum of exertion, and every muscular fibre of the frame called into furious action, during * On the influence of the Atmosphere on the Health and Functions of the Human Frame, &c. 8vo., 2d edition, p. 193. * NEGLECT OF THE LAWS OF PHYSIOLOGY. 289 each manoeuvre of navigation or war. Thus, in exercising the great guns, the heaviest pieces of artillery were made to fly out and in, or wheel round, with almost the celerity of a mus- ket in the hands of a fugleman. The most ponderous anchors were torn from their beds with astonishing velocity ; while the men were often seen lying about the decks breathless and ex- hausted after such ultra-human exertions ! " But reefing and furling sails were still worse. Here, as in all other operations, there was a constant struggle against time. The instant that the word " aloft" was given, the men flew up the shrouds with such agility, that, by the time they were on the yards, the respirations were nearer fifty than fif- teen a minute ! In this state of anhelation they bent across the yards, and exerted every atom of muscular energy in drag- ging up the sails and securing the reef-lines, while the thorax was strained and compressed up against the unyielding wood ! What were the consequences 1 The air-cells were frequently torn; blood extravasated ; and the origins of cough and he- moptoes continually laid. The lungs were now in a proper state for receiving the impression of aerial vicissitudes; and constant exposure to night air, to rain, and every inclemency of the season, soon evolved the long black catalogue of pulmonic and phthisical maladies, which swept off our men in vast num- bers, to the no small surprise of the officers, who could not divine the cause of this new and destructive enemy. " But it was not the lungs alone that suffered here. The central organ of circulation bore a part of the onus, and a host of anomalous and otherwise inexplicable symptoms were pro- duced, which completely puzzled the naval practitioners, who rarely suspected any lesion of the heart. These last af- fections both aggravated, and were in their turn aggravated by, the depressing passions engendered during the long con- finement on ship-board and separation from friends and native home." I need hardly stop to point out to what extent the fatal re- sults above mentioned might have been prevented, had the officers been possessed even of a superficial acquaintance with the laws of respiration and of muscular action. A perusal of the chapters on these subjects will enable the reader to judge for himself, and to determine whether the cause of the destruc- tion was really difficult to be divined ? Dr. Johnson, it may 290 DIMINISHED MORTALITY FROM THE be mentioned, has the Channel and North Sea fleets chiefly in view in his remarks. Increased attention to the organic laws has greatly reduced the annual rate of mortality in Europe, even within the last forty years, and it cannot be supposed that farther improve- ment is impracticable. Dr. Hawkins in his Medical Statistics states, that in 1780 the annual mortality in England and Wales was 1 in 40; in 1790 it was 1 in 45 ; in 1801 it was 1 in 47; in 1811, 1 in .50; and in 1821 it had sunk so low as 1 58. In cities, the diminution is still more remarkable. In London 80 years ago, the annual mortality was 1 in 20; it is now 1 in 40. In Manchester, Glasgow, and other places, a similar improvement has taken place ; but, in some instances, the decrement in the rate of mortality has been so much ex- aggerated, that the deaths are stated at only 1 in 74—a pro- portion which is altogether incredible as occurring imany com- munity. In France the average mortality is 1 in 40; in Austria, 1 in 38; in Russia, 1 in 41; and in the United States, 1 in 40 ; while it is rated by Humboldt at 1 in 30 in South America. In Paris it is rated at 1 in 32. From the greater accuracy with which statistical returns are obtained and preserved in France and on the Continent, and the inadequate means which we have in this country of pro- curing correct tables, as well as the great disparity between the results obtained here and abroad, there is every reason to suspect that, in England, sources of error have been over- looked, and that the rates are consequently too favourable. It is difficult to believe, for example, that with us the rate of mortality can be so low as 1 in 58; when in France, Russia, and Austria, it is ascertained to be so high as 1 in 40, 1 in 41, and 1 in 38. Still, however, the returns, such as they are, show a manifest improvement in the value of life within the last forty years, which can be ascribed only to a greater degree of comfort among the people, and a more skilful treatment of their diseases. The principle which I am advocating is established even by many of the continental returns, which are more trust-worthy than our own. In France, the annual deaths in 1781 were 1 in 29; in 1802, 1 in 30 ; and in 1823, 1 in 40; and in Paris the mortality has diminished, in seventy years, from 1 in 25 PROGRESS OF KNOWLEDGE AND CIVILIZATION. 291 to 1 in 32 : so that, though we neglect altogether the more than doubtful statements as to Manchester and other places, with an annual mortality of only 1 in 60 or 70, evidence enough exists to prove the proposition that health is intimately con- nected with, and dependent, on, man's own conduct; and that when the conditions of health shall be better understood, we may reasonably look for still brighter results. It was very common at one time to eulogize the simple food and hardy habits of the poor and labouring classes as eminent- ly conducive to health, when contrasted with the debilitating effects of the cares and luxuries of the rich. Experience un- fortunately reverses the picture, and shows, by arithmetical arguments, that the excess of work and the privations to which the poor are habitually exposed, produce a much higher rate of mortality among them, especially in seasons of scarcity or commercial depression, than among the richer classes of so- ciety ; and the same thing is further proved by the fact, that in the army and navy the officers almost invariably suffer less than the men from changes of climate, and from the fatigues and calamities of war. In France, the mortality among the infants of the poorer classes is said to be nearly double that oc- curring among those in more affluent circumstances ; while, in the wealthier departments, the average of life is twelve years greater than in those which are poor. In London, according to Dr. Granville's tables, only 542 infants out of every 1000 births among the poor survive their second year; and in Paris, also, the mortality in the quarter inhabited by the working classes, is- nearly double that which occurs among the more wealthy. The influence of impoverished diet, defective cloth- ing, and an unfavourable moral position, is strikingly exhibited among the children of soldiers, of whom, according to Mr. Marshall, only a very small proportion reach the age of man- hood ; most of them being stinted in their growth, scrofulous in constitution, and bad in morals.* If, as seems to be the case, a corresponding disproportion occurs between the rates of mortality in the different classes of society in Great Britain, it suggests some most important con- siderations, the first of which is the simple question, Whether that condition of the lower orders can be regarded as eminently prosperous or natural, which subjects them to be cut off by * Marshall on Enlisting, &c. p. 16. 292 GOOD DONE BY THE APPREHENSION OF CHOLERA. death so many years before the term allotted to those by whom they are employed 1 It also illustrates, strikingly, what I have said about bad health being more frequently the result of gra- dual causes long in unperceived operation, than of any sudden or accidental exposure; and proves that a mode of life or degree of labour is not to be rashly pronounced harmless, merely be- cause its injurious effects are not immediately seen, and be- cause years may elapse before it breaks down the constitution. It is blindness to the existence of this principle which still mis- leads mankind, and renders them insensible to the agency of numerous hurtful influences from which, by a little exertion, they might easily be relieved. Much angry discussion took place a few years ago as to the reality of the mischief inflicted by the protracted and unremit- ted exertion required in our factories and spinning-mills, where an unerring test might easily have been found. If those who contended that the times of labour were not too long for either the children or the adults, could have produced evidence to show that, among operatives, the average of life was equally high as among the apparently more favoured classes, there would have been at once and for ever an end to the argument; while, had the result proved different, the system of labour might justly have been deemed oppressive, in the precise ratio in which the mortality among the operatives exceeded that among their wealthier countrymen. No criterion could be so infallible as the one now proposed ; and if Government posses- sed the means of obtaining accurate returns, it seems to me that the expense of procuring them would be well bestowed, as, whatever might be the result, it could not fail to produce great- er harmony of views and purpose than now unhappily prevails between the different classes of society.* Every thing which tends strongly to call attention to the conditions which influence public and individual health, is cal- culated to do great good to the community. In this point of view, I am disposed to consider the visitation of cholera to the British Isles rather as one of those remarkable instances in which a beneficent Providence brings good out of evil, and con- verts an apparent calamity into a positive blessing, than as the * One leading object of government should be to collect the statistical information so beneficially employed by our author in the preceding and succeeding pages. [Ed. Am. edit.] GOOD DONE BY THE APPREHENSION OF CHOLERA. 293 public scourge which it has been generally proclaimed. True it is that many individuals have perished, and others suffered by it in their affections and in their worldly circumstances; but I question if any thing short of the dread which cholera produced, could have combined all classes so efficiently and ardently in their efforts to discover and remove every thing in the condition of the poor and labouring portions of the commu- nity, which could prove detrimental to health. In the season of apparent danger, not only did the importance of cleanliness, ventilation, warmth, clothing, and nourishment, as preserva- tives of health, become manifest to minds on which nothing else could have made an impression ; but their experienced ef- ficacy gave an impetus to the exertions of the lower orders in their own behalf, which will continue to be productive of good, long after the cause from which it sprung shall be for- gotten. The comparative exemption of the wealthier classes from cholera is, itself, sufficient to show how much it is in the power of man, by the proper exercise of reason in the application of his knowledge, to obviate the dangers to which his health is exposed ; how closely his bodily welfare is dependent on his own conduct and external situation; and how very little, com- paratively, it is the result of circumstances which he cannot contral or modify. In fact, every one who has investigated the subject with attention will readily testify, that, but for the es- tablishment of soup-kitchens, the supplies of warm clothing, and the whitewashing, cleaning, and ventilating of the houses of the poor, before and during the epidemic, a much greater number would have fallen victims to its ravages. And it is consoling to know, that even those who regard such visitations as direct inflictions of a vengeful Providence, and as nowise connected with mere neglect of the laws of health, were, never- theless, not the least active in enforcing and superintending the removal of every external cause of disease, and promoting the comforts and supplying the wants of the needy and desti- tute ; so that, whatever differences in mere belief there might be all parties were content to act as if the Creator had intend- ed the health of the race to depend, in a very high degree, on the care which was taken to fulfil the conditions which He has decreed to be essential to the due action and preservation of the various bodily organs. Many individuals exist, who, from hereditary deficiencies, 294 INFLUENCE OF HABIT. can scarcely attain tolerable health, even with the best care \ and many more are to be met with, who are exposed to bad health from the hurtful nature of the professions in which they are engaged. Many suffer, also, from vicissitudes of the wea- ther, ancfother causes which we may never be able entirely to guard against. But all these united are few, when compared to the number of those whose health is ruined by causes capa- ble of removal or of modification, and to which they are now exposed from ignorance of their nature, from apathy, or from the want of the comforts and necessaries of life. If I have suc- ceeded in calling attention to this important truth, one great object of these pages will be accomplished ; and here I cannot help repeating the remark already made more than once, that. health is more frequently undermined by the gradual operation of constant though disregarded causes, than by any great and mark- ed exposures of an accidental kind, and is consequently more effectually to be preserved by a judicious and steady observ- ance of the organic laws in daily life, than by exclusive atten- tion to any particular function to the neglect of all the rest. It may be said that I allow nothing for the influence of habit in rendering situations and causes comparatively innocuous, which were dangerous at first. It is quite true that the human constitution possesses a power of adapting itself within certain limits to a change of circumstances ; but it is not less true that sudden and extreme changes often destroy health and life be- fore the system can adapt itself to the exigency, and that after making the most ample allowance for this sort of safety, the protection which it affords against the active causes of disease is comparatively trifling. Where the change is sudden, as in passing from a temperate to a tropical climate, or even from very fine to very inconstant weather, the consequences to health are well known to be highly injurious. But where it is gradual and not extreme in degree, as in passing from winter to summer, health is not much endangered, because the system has time to accommo- date itself to its new circumstances. Different organs predomi- nate in activity in different climates and seasons, and time is thus required to admit of the necessary changes taking place without disturbing the general balance of the circulation. In hot countries, for example, the skin predominates greatly in activity in comparison with the kidneys ; whereas, in a cold country, the case is precisely reversed. If, therefore, a sud- * INFLUENCE OF HABIT. 295 den transition be made from the one to the other without due preparation, the rapid change in the distribution of the blood from the surface to the internal organs, or from these to the surface, consequent on such change, is likely to be attended with danger ; although the same change gradually effected would be unattended with any injurious results. If, again, the change be from a healthy situation to one only a little less favourable, the consequences to the system will be also gradual and progressive. No immediate injury to health may be apparent, and the body may be said to adapt itself to the circumstances ; but, in reality, health will be lowered, and life shortened, in exact proportion to the amount of the inju- rious exposure, and the state of the system at the time. Indi- viduals of a peculiar constitution may live long, but the aver- age of health and life will be positively diminished—a fact which shows that the apparent, exception is more a fallacy than a reality, and that, ceteris paribus, the highest health and great- est vigour will always be on the side of those who make the nearest approach to the fulfilment of the organic lavis. It is, therefore, a glaring perversion of logic and reason to infer that we may safely rest satisfied with a limited portion of evil, on the plea that the constitution will adapt itself to its presence. The argument ought to be turned in exactly the opposite direction. If the constitution possesses this power of adaptation to external circumstances, it becomes doubly incum- bent on us to have it always surrounded with beneficial influ- ences; seeing that, when the laws of health shall be ful- filled, the same tendency to adaptation will operate with equal force in permanently ameliorating the constitution. In every point of view, therefore, it is an object of much conse- quence to us, to become acquainted with and to "obey all the laws which regulate the functions of the human body. It would be easy, were it consistent with the limits and pur- pose of the present volume, to show, that although great ad- vances have been made of late years, both in physiological knowledge and its applications to the advancement of human happiness, many of the usages current in society, and many of the practices resorted to in education, are still far from being in harmony with the laws of the human constitution; and that much good may be done by diffusing among the reflecting por- tion of mankind, and especially among the young, more accu- rate notions of the structure and uses of the various bodily or- 296 NEGLECT OF ORGANIC LAWS gans, and of the conditions required for their healthy action. Illustrations in proof of this position, drawn from individual cases, may be cavilled at as incomplete, or regarded as acci- dental coincidences; but. when the principle is exhibited in active operation on a large scale, minor qualifications fall into the shade, and leave the evidence absolutely unassaila- ble. On this account I prefer selecting an example from the records of the army, both as being striking in its features, and as being one in which the public interest is deeply involved. A few years ago, young growing lads were uniformly select- ed for the army in preference to men of a mature age, on the supposition, that, because their habits were not formed, they could be more easily converted into good soldiers, than if taken a few years later. Many officers still entertain and act upon this opinion ; and the period at which, by law, liability to mili- tary service commences in this country, remains fixed at eigh- teen years of age, although it has been raised to twenty by most of the continental governments. Examined physiologically, the practice of enlisting juvenile recruits seems peculiarly irrational. During growth, the con- ditions required for the healthy development of the body are— moderate and healthy exercise, plenty of nourishing food, abun- dance of sleep, and a cheerful state of mind. In making the transition from boyhood to maturity, the equilibrium of action between the different parts of the system is so much disturbed, that, even under the most favourable circumstances, an un- usual susceptibility of disease prevails, which renders that pe- riod of life particularly dangerous. By consulting the statisti- cal tables prepared by Mr. Finlayson, and those of the popu- lation of Paris by Count Chabrol, already referred to, it will be seen, that, in all classes of society, the rate of mortality sud- denly increases from the age of fourteen, when rapid growth may be said to commence, to that of twenty-three, when it is nearly completed. In Paris, for example, the tables for the year 1820 exhibit only 395 deaths as occurring between the ages of 10 and 15 ; whereas those between 15 and 20 amount to no less than 703, being nearly double; while in the five years immediately subsequent, they rise to 1339, and after- wards begin to decrease. Viewing these results in connection with the laws of the ani- mal economy, and bearing in mind that, even in peace, mili- tary service implies broken sleep, separation from friends, and IN SELECTING RECRUITS. 297 occasional exposure to fatigue and privation, we must consider it almost self-evident, that an army composed of young lads at this hazardous period of life must be sickly and inefficient, and that a large portion of the expense and trouble bestowed in en- listing and training them must be entirely thrown away. That such is actually the fact, has unfortunately been too often proved by fatal experience. Mr. Marshall, in the valuable work already quoted, adduces an irresistible mass of evidence to show that, till the growth is completed, it is impossible to form any correct estimate of the probable efficiency of a recruit; as numbers of apparently promising young men are cut off by affections of the chest, and other acute diseases, before attain- ing maturity, and before being exposed to an)*" unusual priva- tions or fatigue. So literally accurate is this statement, that Coche, a high French authority referred to by Mr. Marshall, mentions distinctly, that even in time of peace, when no great hardships are to be encountered, volunteers received into the army at the age of eighteen or twenty, pass two, three, or four years of their period of service (eight years) in hospital, solely from inability to bear up under difficulties which scarcely affect those who are a few years older. If such be the result during peace, I need hardly say that, in time of war, the practice of enlisting very young men must be not less fatal to the recruits than costly to the country. It appears, accordingly, that in the army in Spain, sickness and inefficiency prevailed almost in proportion to the youth and the recent arrival of the soldiers. Sir James MacGrigor cites the 7th Regiment as an illustration, and adds, that between 9th August, 1811, and 20th May, 1812, it lost 246 men; of whom 169 were recruits landed in the preceding June, while only 77 were old soldiers. The original number of this detachment of recruits was 353, so that more than one-half died within the first eleven months. The total number of old soldiers, on the other hand, was 1143, and of them only 77 perished in the same time ! So convinced, indeed, is Sir James of growing " lads being unequal to the harassing duties of the service," that in making calculations for measures in the field, he thinks that 300 men who had served five years would be more effective than 1000 newly arrived, not simply from their greater expe- rience but chiefly from the additional stamina proceeding from maturity.* * Marshall on Enlisting, &c. p. 5. 298 NEGLECT OF ORGANIC LAWS In a note subjoined to the preceding opinion of Sir James MacGrigor, Mr. Marshall says—" Numerous examples might be quoted to show that young lads are much less able to endure the fatigue of marching than men a little more advanced in life. During the winter of 1805, a French army, which was stationed on the coast in the neighbourhood of Boulogne, march- ed about 400 leagues to join the Grand Army before the battle of Austerlitz, which it effected without leaving almost any sick in the hospitals on the route. The men of this army had served two years, and were not under twenty-two years of age. The result of the march of this army may be compared with that of another under different circumstances. In the campaign of the summer of 1809, the troops cantoned in the north of Germany marched to Vienna, but, by the time they arrived at the place of their destination, all the hospitals on the road were filled with sick. More than one-half of the men composing this army were under twenty years of age, the usual levy of conscripts having been anticipated. After the battle of Leipsic, Napoleon made great exertions to recruit his army, and called upon the legisla- tive senate to give him their assistance, to which they showed some reluctance. ' Shame on you !' cried the Emperor, * * * ' I demand a levy of 300,000 men, but J must have grown men; boys serve only to encumber the hospitals and ROAD-SIDES.' " In similar defiance of the laws of physiology, half-grown lads wete at one time preferred for the East India service, on the false supposition that their unconsolidated constitutions would more easily adapt themselves to the climate than those of men already arrived at maturity—a proposition very nearly equivalent to saying, that because a person is already enfee- bled, exposure to the causes of disease will therefore have less effect on him than after his strength shall be restored ! Palpa- bly fallacious as this kind of logic now appears to be, it never- theless reigned for years with undisputed sway, and still has a few stanch supporters. Sir George Ballingall is entitled to the credit of having early and earnestly raised his voice against it, in his work on Fever and Dysentery ; published on his return from India in 1819. His evidence is very striking ; but so slow is the march of reason, that it was only in December, 1829, that an order was issued from the Horse Guards that no recruits under twenty should be received for regiments serving in tropi- IN SELECTING RECRUITS. 299 cal climates; and so late as the )^ear 1826, nearly 15 per cent. of the King's troops in Bengal were under that age. Mr. Marshall also, in touching upon this question, supports his positions by reference to facts of a very conclusive kind, and to authors whose opinions ought to have great weight. Among other evidence, he quotes the register of a regiment employed in the Burmese territory in 1824-5, from which it appears that, in 1824, the ratio of mortality among the young men who went out with the corps was 38 per cent., or 1 in every 2^; while, among the volunteers, who were considera- bly older, the mortality was 17 per cent., or only 1 in 6. In 1825, it was 30.5 per cent., or 1 in 3|, among the younger class, and only 6 per cent., or 1 in 16, among the older. P. 10.* Some other instances might be quoted in proof of the great- est mortality being always among the youngest men ; and I might refer to a regiment mentioned by Dr. Davies, in which, when it was sent out to Bombay, in 1808, there was not a single private above 22 years of age, and in which, out of 550 men, nearly 300 required medical assistance within six weeks after he joined it; but it is unnecessary, as, although indivi- dual officers still prefer young men, government is at last awakened to their unfitness. A vague notion that growing lads do not bear fatigue, is indeed prevalent enough; but I venture to say, that if those by whom the age of enlistment was first determined had been thoroughly acquainted with the laws of physiology, and had possessed a clear perception of the conditions of health)! growth, the practice of receiving recruits at 17 or 18 years of age would never have been sanc- tioned, and the country would have been saved the pain and the expense of sending thousands of young men to u encum- * In availing myself of Mr. Marshall's labours, I may be allowed to ex- press my opinion of the benefit he is conferring by his statistical research- es, not only on the service with which he has been so long and honoura- bly connected, but also on the public at large. There are many practical questions deeply concerning public health, which can be fully elucidated only by such masses of facts being grouped together as shall destroy all minor inequalities, and place the operation of principles prominently in view. But to effect this object with due regard to accuracy, requires an acquaintance with details, an acuteness of observation, and a power of successful generalization, which are rarely found in combination with adequate zeal and industry. It would be very useful if similar researches were instituted in regard to the occurrences in our public hospitals. 300 SELECTION OF RECRUITS. her the hospitals and road-sides" of the Peninsula, or to per- ish under the exhausting influence of a tropical climate.* I have dwelt at some length on this subject, both because the practice which I condemn was lately in full operation, and is even yet not entirely exploded, and because, from the magnitude of its results, and the clearness with which they can be traced to the direct violation of a natural law of the constitution, it affords an instructive example of the evils arising from ignorance of the structure and functions of the human body, and of the aid which might be derived from a general acquaintance with physiology, in preserving health, and promoting the happiness of the race. It was my intention to analyze, in the same way, various other practices in which public or private health is concerned; but I have already so far exceeded the limits originally pro- posed, that I must now draw to a conclusion, and judge, from the reception of the present volume, how far I am right in believing that information of the kind now communicated, will be acceptable or useful to the public.f * This principle applies with equal force to the practice of sending growing young men to colleges and academies. The fact is, that during growth, or till from 20 to 22 years of age, boys and young men should do but little besides recruiting—labouring only for play, and not for service. Let not the energies of the system demanded for growth be directed from their legitimate channel, until growth and consolidation are nearly com- pleted, and then let them commence service. [Ed. Am. edit.] f The foregoing facts and arguments render the inference clear and demonstrative, that health, sickness, and death, are causes and effects— are dependent upon fixed laws, and therefore within the control of man. They prove that by using the proper means—by obeying the lares of life and health—all may be healthy (except perhaps those whose parents are afflicted with disease, and therefore unfit to become parents)—that, there- fore, sickness and death are not providential, or the visitations of God, but the punishments of violated physical laws. Long enough has the pulpit quieted the consciences of the guilty violators of the physical laws, by tell- ing them that the death of children and friends were God's doings, to which they must meekly submit, instead of being criminal. Immense in- jury has been done by the prevalence of this opinion, and by our reli- gious teachers having omitted to inculcate obedience to the physical laws, as constituting one of our first religious duties, while their violation is a sin of a most heinous and flagrant character. Without obeying the .physical laws, it is utterly impossible to obey the moral. Our world can never be reformed morally till it is regenerated physically; and hence a single sermon on physiology will do more good, and convert more souls, than scores of modern homilies. TEd Am. edit.] CHAPTER XI. APPLICATION OF THE PRINCIPLES OF PHYSIOLOGY TO THE MORAL TREATMENT OF NERVOUS DISEASE AND INSANITY. Condition of the nervous and insane too little known. Necessity of improved mo- ral treatment. Use of physiological knowledge in effecting the required im- provements. Principles on which the nervous and insane ought to be treated. Necessity of providing the means of bodily and mental occupation, and humane and intelligent attendants, in asylums. Admission of visitors. Middlesex and Edinburgh pauper asylums contrasted. State of private asylums—M. Esquirol's retreat at Ivry. Conclusion. Having given the reader some notion of the extent to which human health and happiness depend on the fulfilment of the conditions which the Creator has attached to the exercise of the bodily and mental functions, and shown that the direct design of suffering and pain is to lead us to a stricter obedience to the divine institutions, and to moie perfect enjoyment of life, I might now perhaps leave the further application of the doc- trines to the consideration of the reader. But the reception which the first three editions of this volume have met with, gives me fresh confidence in the practical importance of the principles which I have been unfolding, and encourages me to add in the present edition a few remarks on the condition of the nervous and insane,—a class of sufferers who have the strongest claims on our sympathy, and in regard to whom, not- withstanding the numerous channels in which public benevo- lence has of late been so generously flowing, an apathy is still displayed which is not less hurtful than melancholy, and which can proceed only from their real state and wants being too im- perfectly known. If the wretchedness of the nervous invalid has been more 302 CONDITION OF THE NERVOUS AND INSANE. frequently made the subject of mirth and ridicule than of friend- ly regard and rational curative treatment, a still greater sacrifice of health, feeling, and happiness, has been occasioned to the lunatic by the extreme ignorance which prevails in society in regard to the disorders of the nervous system. In the case of the insane, the secluded life which most of them are obliged to lead, separated from kindred and from society, and the dis- graceful prejudices against them which have descended to us almost unimpaired from amidst the superstitions of the darker ages in which they originated, have, in no small degree, con- tributed to this result. Insanity has thus remained one of the few evils which mankind has never ventured to look fairly in the face, with a view to discover its nature, and the means of its prevention and cure. The consequences are, not only that it has been allowed to extend more and more widely, but that the waywardness of conduct, irritability of temper^and caprice of sentiment, which are the first indications of a disordered nervous system, are often resented by the friends as voluntary, and therefore culpable offences ; and indignation or indifference is displayed where, perhaps, rational sympathy and an early perception of the true state of the patient might have led to the prevention of the disease. Similar maltreatment is far from uncommon in cases of what is called nervous—a term which some consider as equivalent to imaginary—disease, but in which, when used to denote a certain class of disorders having their seat in the nervous system, and not in the fancy, an amount of misery and wretchedness is often embodied, of which few who have not either felt it themselves, or witnessed it in some valued friend, can form any adequate conception. In the correction of these evils, little can be effected while the igno- rance in which they arise remains undiminished; and therefore it becomes an imperative duty to allow no opportunity to escape of spreading abroad such information as may help to dissipate the prevailing indifference, and rouse attention to the magni- tude of the existing evils. If the state and management of public and private asylums for the reception of the insane be examined with reference to the conditions of health already explained in treating of the respiratory, muscular, and nervous systems, it cannot fail to strike the reflecting observer, that while in many institutions the most laudable zeal has been shown for the physical health and comfort of the patients, comparatively little has been ac- EMPLOYMENT REQUISITE FOR THE NERVOUS AND INSANE. 303 comphshed, or even attempted, with the direct purpose of cor- recting the morbid action of the brain, and restoring the mental functions. We have now, in most asylums, clean and well- ventilated apartments, baths of various descriptions, abundant supplies of nourishing food, and a better system of classifica- tion ; the furious and the depressed being no longer subjected to each other's influence and soqiety ; and the result has been, that in so far as these important conditions are favourable to the general health, and to that of the nervous system in parti- cular, recovery has been promoted, and personal comfort se- cured. But in so far as regards the systematic employment of what is called active moral treatment, and its adaptation to par- ticular cases, a great deal more remains to be done than has hitherto been considered necessary. This will be apparent on reflecting how extremely influential the regular action of the various feelings, affections, and intellectual powers is on the health of the brain, and how few asylums possess any adequate provision for effecting this most desirable object. If want of occupation, and the absence of objects of interest, be, as we have seen, sufficient to destroy the health of a sound organ, the same causes must be not less influential in retarding the re- covery of one already diseased. Hence it becomes an object of extreme importance in establishments for the insane, and in the social treatment of those suffering from nervous diseases, to provide the necessary means for encouraging the healthy and regular exercise of the various bodily and mental powers ; and for drawing out, as it were, and directing to their proper objects, the various affections, feelings, and intellectual facul- ties,—this being a condition essential, in a higher degree than any other, to the success of our curative measures. Those who have not attended to the subject may be disposed to think that the importance of mental and bodily occupation in cases of insanity and nervous disease, is here exaggerated. But the physiologist who looks to the established law of the animal economy, which decrees regular action of every organic part to be essential to its health, no matter whether that part be bone, muscle, bloodvessel, nerve, or brain, will not fail to bear testimony to the truth of my remarks. The pathological observer also, whose attention is daily called to the miseries and bad health resulting from the total absence of mental occu- pation in those whom fortune has condemned to a life of idle- ness, without having imparted to them that activity of consti- 304 USE OF PHYSIOLOGICAL KNOWLEDGE tution which seeks out objects of interest and makes occupa- tion for itself, will at once acknowledge that a command of the means of healthy mental and bodily exercise would add more to his power over nervous and mental diseases, than any other remedy which art has yet discovered. And yet, in the majority of our asylums, the patients are still merely placed in security and humanely treated, without the least effort being made to afford them occupation of mind or body, or any of the more cheering comforts of sympathy and social intercourse ; and this being the case, can we be surprised that only one-third or one- half recover their reason, or shall we rest contented in imagin- ing that human means can go no farther to alleviate their ca- lamities 1 It is in the treatment of this unhappy class of patients, who are deprived of their dearest enjoyments and of the soothing intercourse and consolations of social and domestic life, that an acquaintance with the laws of health, and the structure and functions of the human body, becomes pre-eminently useful. When, for example, we contemplate the number of the mus- cles, the importance of their functions, and their influence on the circulation and on the general system,—and understand the laws or conditions of their healthy action,—we cannot fail to perceive, that any mode of treatment which does not pro- vide for their exercise in the nervous and the insane, must be radically defective, however kindly and judiciously it may be administered in other respects ; and Ave have thus an unerring standard by which the efficacy of every contrivance used to rouse this class of patients from contemplative inaction to use- ful exertion, may be at all times determined. Hence Ave can have no hesitation in denouncing, as imperfect, every asylum which does not provide for the regular active employment of its inmates, either in their former trades, or in some kind of bodily, and, if possible, useful and imperative exertion. When Ave knoAV the structure, uses, and relations of the skin, and are at the same time aAvare that, in disorders of the mind, its exha- lations and nervous functions are almost always disordered, so much so as often to be accompanied Avith a smell peculiar to mental invalids, it becomes impossible for us longer to overlook the necessity of devoting attention to its condition, and taking steps for its restoration to health as a means of promoting the recovery of the brain. When Ave become acquainted, in like manner, with the functions of the lungs, and the nature of re- IN EFFECTING THE REQUIRED IMPROVEMENTS. 305 epiration, we can scarcely fail to use every exertion to secure free ventilation, and such ample accommodation as shall pre- vent several lunatics from being placed together in a small apartment. And, lastly, when we become impressed with the fact, that the human mind is endowed with affections, moral feelings, and intellectual powers, operating through the me- dium of bodily organs, and requiring for their health regular and free exercise on their respective objects,—and that without this gratified activity they fall into debility and disease,—we can no longer rest contented until every possible means of af- fording occupation to intellect, interest to the feelings, and em- ployment to the body, shall have been resorted to. In fact, till adequate arrangements shall be made in every public and private asylum for effecting these purposes, and till the same principles shall be acted upon in private society, in regard to nervous diseases, it will be only deceiving ourselves, and shut- ting our eyes to the truth, to suppose that Ave have accomplish- ed all that can be done for the recovery and relief of the nerv- ous and insane ; and too much pains cannot be taken to force attention to the defects which still impair the usefulness of many of our best institutions. In making these comments I have no wish either to blame any one, or to overlook the difficulties which stand in the way of such improvements as science and humanity will one day consider indispensable. Adequately trained and qualified mo- ral agents Avill not be easily obtained in such numbers as will be required; nor will money be easily procured to meet the necessary expense. Still, hoAvever sIoav our progress may be, it will begin the sooner, and proceed the faster, if atten- tion be now called to the urgency of the case, and to the leading principles by Avhich farther ameliorations are to be ef- fected. It is a common but most deplorable mistake, to suppose, that because a person is insane, he is insensible to the ordinary feel- ings and affections of humanity, that his reason is blind to the ordinary relations of life and of external nature, and that, con- sequently, it matters little in Avhat language he is addressed, or Avhat demonstrations of feeling are offered to him ; for, in the oreat majority of instances, the mind is only partially dis- ordered, and is as much alive as ever to the perception of in- sult kindness, common sense, and drivelling. And even in those rare instances in Avhich all the faculties seem to be de. 20 306 PRINCIPLES ON WHICH ranged, and in which much irritation and violence frequently exist, kindness, truth, and reason, although at the moment they may seem without effect, rarely fail, when calmly perse- vered in, to produce a salutary impression, and to soothe the patient. It therefore becomes of the utmost conceivable im- portance, in erecting asylums for the insane, to make also spe- cial provision for that systematic moral treatment, which is to the brain and mind what medicine and dietetic regimen are to the stomach, the liver, and the boAvels. It has been said, and I believe not without reason, that keepers of asylums who live, without any variety of intercourse and occupation, exclusively in the company of the insane, are themselves apt to become of unsound mind ; and that of those who escape insanity there are comparatively feAv who do not ultimately acquire the pecu- liar expression of eye which is observable in lunatics. If, then, constant exposure to the society of lunatics be in any case suf- ficient to give rise to madness in a previously healthy mind, it is as clear as the light of day, that the same influence must great- ly retard the recovery of those Avhose minds are already de- ranged; and that, on the same principle, it must be of import- ance to subject the lunatic continually to the restorative influ- ence of the society of healthy and well-regulated minds. Every day brings fresh conviction Avith it, that the more nearly we can approximate our treatment of the insane to that of reasonable be- ings, the more successful shall we be in effecting cures, and the more delightful will the duty becom,e of ministering to the mind diseased. It is hardly necessary to remark, that in these observations on the importance of regulating the moral treatment of the in- sane, I have in view chiefly that numerous class of patients in Avhom the acute stage has been subdued, either by medical aid or by the mere lapse of time. At the very commencement of the disease, a cure may frequently be accomplished by the re- moval of the exciting causes, active medical treatment, and careful superintendence at home. But after this period, much more will be accomplished by judiciously regulating the exer- cise of the mental and bodily functions, than by strictly medi- cal remedies ; and it is consequently chiefly to this stage tha' I now refer. To the nervous invalid the rule is still more ex- tensively applicable. To secure regular and animating exercise of all the mental and bodily functions, as conducive equally to the preservation THE INSANE OUGHT TO BE TREATED. 307 and restoration of mental health, ought then to be our grand aim in the construction and management, of public and pri- vate asylums, and in the treatment of nervous patients. In planning the means of mental and bodily occupation for the insane, Ave should follow, as far as possible, the same rules and principles which are applicable to persons of sound mind. Thus, daily muscular exercise in the open air is essential equal- ly to bodily health and to mental soundness, and is therefore indispensable to both sane and insane. It is more pleasant, more easily persevered in, and also more salubrious to the in- dividual, Avhen it is combined Avith an object calculated not only to occupy the mind, but to impress the patient with the utility of his labours. This latter condition tends greatly to reconcile him to the world, and to soothe his feelings by the consciousness which it imparts to him of not being either a de- graded or a forsaken being. Mere walking or riding, or em- ployment resorted to merely as employment, generally be- comes irksome, and is consequently either speedily given up, or pursued Avith a degree of languor Avhich deprives it of its utility. On this account, mechanical and agricultural pursuits, which interest attention and elicit activity, ought to be pro- vided for in choosing a situation : for experience has demon- strated that, as remedies, such employments cannot be too highly estimated ; and that, Avherever the rank of the patient, or the prejudices of his friends, do not preclude him from engaging in them, they produce the happiest results in pro- moting quiet and sleep, subduing irritation, disposing to per- fect subordination, and, above all, hastening the progress of recovery. Ample extent of ground for the purposes of agriculture and gardening, ought therefore never to be forgotten ; and for those Avho either are fond of mechanics or have been trained to some manual employment, Avorkshops become equally necessary, and have the advantage of contributing to the general expenses of the house. In several establishments Avhere field-labour, gardening, and workshops, have been tried on an extensive scale, the results have been highly satisfactory, not only in the improved habits and comfort of the patients, and in their more speedy and numerous recoveries, but also in the important ad- vantage of economy ; as the labour of the patients has in some asylums gone far to defray their current expenses,—while scarcely a single accident is on record, as having arisen from 308 ADVANTAGE OF EDUCATED ATTENDANTS. an improper use of the liberty allowed them, or of the edged tools put into their hands. Man is so much a social being, and depends so much on the sympathy, esteem, and co-operation of his fellows, that, as one of a body, he will submit cheerfully to tasks and duties, against which, if proposed to him as an individual, or as one of a feAV, he would unhesitatingly rebel. Disease may modify this tendency of the mind, but cannot destroy it; and the prac- tical physician does not fail to avail himself of its power in the management of the insane. Many will at first refuse to work in the fields, in the garden, or in the workshop, particularly if unaccustomed to manual labour, Avho, seeing others do so with cordiality and pleasure, will gradually allow their resolution to give Avay, and ere long become as zealous as they were pre- viously backward. One of the chief advantages of large esta- blishments, is the great facility they afford of turning out num- bers to every kind of employment, so as to subject an indivi- dual, who refuses to exert himself, to all the disadvantages of singularity, which the insane dislike even more than persons of sound mind. Where there is any difficulty in engaging patients of a high- er class in the easier and more agreeable kinds of bodily labour, such as gardening, netting, and basket-making, much good may still be done by engaging them as much as possible in the employments to which they were formerly accustomed. Bil- liards, boAvls, walking, reading, Avriting, and music, are then valuable resources, and may be made to constitute the business of the day; care being always taken to turn the talents of the patient to useful account Avhenever an opportunity occurs, so as to give him as frequently as possible the consciousness of filling his place as a member of society. In the smaller, and especially in private asylums, dedicated to the middle and higher classes of society, the presence of a NUMEROUS BODY OF INTELLIGENT AND EDUCATED ATTENDANTS, is a great desideratum. The patients are too feAV in number to operate on each other by example, and their habits are not in harmony with any manual employments. By placing nume- rous attendants among them, who would act systematically in endeavouring to engage them in useful labour, at first of a very light description, and to rouse them by example and cheerful encouragement, a good deal might be done; but as, in such retreats, the patients are generally persons of a more intelligent ADVANTAGE OF EDUCATED ATTENDANTS. 309 and refined description than in the larger asylums, the attend- ants, to be on a par with them, Avould require to possess pro- portionally higher moral and intellectual qualifications, so as to fit them for being companions and friends, as well as guardians, of the inmates. The expense of providing a sufficient number of qualified persons will long be an obstacle to their being ob- tained ; but if the importance of the provision were once fully appreciated, and its success demonstrated, it can scarcely be doubted that this difficulty would be surmounted. Every year, Ave hear of large legacies being left to lunatic asylums by the benevolent; and if one of these Avere bequeathed to the first public institution that should introduce such a system, we should not have to Avait long to see the example generally folloAved. The wealthier classes are, indeed, directly interested in the ex- periment, as their ranks afford proportionally the greater num- ber of victims; and if the disease Avere once treated on such principles, there would be much less reluctance to seek early advice, and consequently much more success in combating its attacks. Since the former editions of this work appeared, a friend has communicated to me, as confirma,tory of the truth of these remarks, the cases of two patients who, after having been insane and violent for fourteen years, were placed some time ago in the society of a family circle, accustomed to the kind treatment of the insane. Even in these unpromising instances an improvement has taken place. "Every month," says my friend, " I perceive some strength gained by them in acquiring restraining power in the presence of the family. So long as any perceptive power remains, such patients soon discover the difference of being again with intelligent and agreeable com- panions, instead of being subjected to the caprice and authority of an ordinary keeper." Pinel has said that thirty years' experience had taught him, that a striking analogy subsists between the art of educating and training the young and that of managing the insane, as the same principles are applicable to both. Natural activity, unAvearied kindness, tact and firmness, are eminently useful in both situations ; but they are productive of their fullest ad- vantages only Avhen reinforced by an accurate acquaintance with the laAvs Avhich regulate the mutual influence of mind and body, Avith the nature and sphere of the primitive mental powers, and with the methods and objects by which each may 310 ADMISSION OF VISITORS TO LUNATIC ASYLUMS. be soothed into repose or stimulated to activity—in other words, by an intimate knowledge of human nature and of the philoso- phy of mind. But it Avill be asked, What fortunate establishment possesses attendants endoAved Avith such excellent qualifications, and Avhere are such persons to be found by any one Avho wishes to procure their assistance 1 The answer must be, Nowhere ; but it may with equal truth be affirmed, that, as a necessary con- sequence, nowhere is the treatment of insanity so successful as it would be, were such assistants provided in sufficient numbers to mix with and exert a constant and active influence on the patients. In some retreats, an approximation to this desidera- tum is made in the frequent admission of visitors, who, actuated by kindness and intelligence, seek the society of the insane, devote themselves to their relief and comfort, and, by gaining their confidence and showing a sympathy Avith their situation, succeed in dispelling morbid associations, and restoring health and tone to the disordered mind. In these asylums, the pro- portion of cures is proportionally greater than in others appa- rently as Avell regulated, but in which no effort is bestoAved in active moral treatment. In the Connecticut Retreat, this sys- tem has been carried as far as the present state of knowledge will permit, and with the best effects; the proportion of cures in recent cases being nine out of ten of all admitted. At pre- sent, indeed, no amount of funds could command the services of a sufficient number of properly qualified assistants; but, ne- vertheless, it is important that the deficiency be made known, that Ave may make provision for supplying it, and not proceed contented with our present means, as if they Avere already ade quate. The tendency of the human mind is to become accus- tomed to existing defects, and never to think of remedying them, till some accidental occurrence displays their magnitude, and turns attention to further improvements. As matters now stand, the higher classes of lunatics are in one sense the most unfortunate of all. Accustomed at home to the refinements of educated and intelligent society, to the enjoyments arising from change of scene, to horse and carriage exercise, and to the command of numerous sources of interest, they find themselves transported to an asylum Avhere they may no doubt be treated with kindness, but Avhere they are neces- sarily cut off from many of the comforts to which they have been accustomed^ and must encounter prejudices, feelings, and ADMISSION OF VISITORS TO LUNATIC ASYLUMS. 311 modes of thinking and acting, to Avhich they are strangers, and Avith Avhich they can have no sympathy. Being there restricted almost exclusively to the society of keepers, Avho, from their rank, education, and manners, cannot be consider- ed qualified to gain their confidence, or elicit friendly inter- change of sentiment, the patients are, in a great measure, deprived of that beneficial intercourse with sound minds which is indispensable to health, and of the numerous opportunities which such intercourse presents for gradually stirring up new interests, and leading to neAv trains of thought. The medical attendant, indeed, is often the only being to whom patients of this class can freely unburden their minds, and from whom they can seek comfort; but unfortunately, in most establish- ments, his visits are so few and short, that they can scarcely be reckoned as part of an efficient moral regimen. The poorer patients, on the other hand, although too much left to their own society, have still the advantage of being, to a certain extent, in daily communication Avith minds in har- mony Avith their own both in feeling and in intelligence ; as the keepers are always men of the same rank, education, and manners, as themselves. They consequently are less sensi- ble of the change in their situation, and feel less acutely any accidental indignities to which they may be exposed. Experience has already shown that great benefit arises to the insane from the frequent association and sympathy of persons of tact, intelligence, and kindness, Avho feel a real in- terest in the happiness of the patients, and visit them from a wish to soothe and comfort them, and not from mere idle curi- osity. Nothing tends so much as this to break down the for- midable barrier which still separates the disordered in mind from the sympathies of society, and to dispel those sinful pre- judices Avhich brand insanity with the stigma of crime, and impel us to shroud its victims in obscurity and neglect. It may be said, " This is all true, and very proper for medi- cal men to know; but why introduce it into a book intended for the general reader?" My answer is, that I introduce it here purposely, because it is from among the public that the directors and managers of institutions for the reception of the insane are chosen ; and so long as they remain unacquainted Avith the wants of the patients, little can be done to provide t remedy. Medical men may direct, but society must co-ope- 312 EDINBURGH AND MIDDLESEX PAUPER rate, and cheerfully and earnestly take a part in the good work. Besides, there are thousands of Avarm-hearted beings who Avould delight in this very duty, if they only knew how to set about it; and these can be reached only by writings addressed to the general public. That I may not be considered as either too severe in point- ing out existing defects, or too visionary in my conceptions of the improvements required, I shall give a brief outline of the condition of one or two establishments at present in full operation, and leave the reader to form his own conclusions. In Edinburgh, for example, Ave have two institutions for the reception of pauper lunatics; one belonging to the City, and the other attached to the West Church Charity Work- house. That belonging to the city is situated in a part of the town almost surrounded by high buildings and the old town- Avall, which is of great height, and goes far to obstruct the free circulation of air. The buildings themselves were erected many years ago for a projected trading company, and are confined in extent, Ioav in the ceilings, entirely cooped up, and not in any way adapted for the purpose. The usual number of patients is about seventy. From the scanty ac- commodation, there is little or no room for proper classifica- tion, none for workshops of any description, and very little for adequate ventilation or exercise. In the aspect of the place, there is nothing to cheer, to comfort, or to soothe; but, on the contrary, high walls, small windows, and iron bars, appear on every hand. The same remarks apply essen- tially to the West Church Charity Asylum, with the sin- gle exception that it is more open to the air and the light of day. As a contrast to these, Ave may take the Middlesex County Asylum at Hamvell, which I had occasion to visit in May, 1834, and to which I refer in preference to the excellent in- stitutions at Perth, Dundee, and Glasgow, because it is appro- priated exclusively to pauper patients, which the others are not, and is therefore a fairer object of comparison. The Han- well Asylum contains about 600 lunatics. The site on Avhich it is built is elevated, cheerful, dry, and airy, without being exposed; and commands an extensive and enlivening vieAV. The varions apartments are Avell laid out, admirably Avarmed and ventilated, clean, and comfortably furnished. The Avin- ASYLUMS CONTRASTED. 313 dow-frames being of iron instead of wood, there is perfect safety without the appearance of restraint; and every Avliere the ap- partus of government is so little visible, that every one seems as if trusted entirely to his own discretion. Ample provision is also made for due classification, so that none are injured by be- ing placed in contact with those whose state is likely to have a hurtful influence on their feelings. In these respects, the superiority of Hanwell is incontestable. It fulfils almost every condition required for the purpose. Its moral advantages, however, are scarcely less remarkable. In its most humane, intelligent, and experienced resident super- intendents, Sir William and Lady Ellis, Hanwell possesses a distinction Avhich feAV other asylums, for either rich or poor, at present enjoy, but which is of immense importance as the mainspring of the whole moral machinery. Such, indeed, is the influence of their knowledge of human nature, undeviating kindness, and tact in gaining the confidence and affection of the patients, that although the number of bad cases is unusu- ally great (nearly five-sixths being incurable before being sent to Hanwell), order, quiet, and comfort reign throughout; and even among the worst, namely, the idiotic, the furious, and the epileptic, there is an aspect of comparative cheerfulness and confidence, Avhich is the strongest proof of the general sys- tem of treatment being active, kind, discriminating, and judi- cious. Such is the general appearance of the establishment, that I can scarcely imagine a more gratifying spectacle to a hu- mane and intelligent mind, than that Avhich a visit to Hanwell affords. In this opinion I am poAverfully supported by Miss Martineau, who, after repeated visits to the asylum, has given an eloquent testimony to the same effect in Tait's Edinburgh Magazine (June, 1834), in an article which is full of interest, though it errs somewhat in assuming that asylums in general remain in the same deplorable condition which was so com- mon about twenty years ago. In point of fact, a great advance has been made since then, in both public and private establish- ments; and few indeed are now so bad as Miss Martineau de- scribes. IlanAvell ranks, justly, among the foremost; but to place it in its true position, it is not by any means necessary to depreciate the condition of all the rest. I have visited one public establishment since the publication of her letter, to Avhich almost the Avorst of her description was applicable at the 314 EDINBURGH AND MIDDLESEX PAUPER time of my visit. Even in the two great institutions of Bethlem and St. Lukes, the old system is still so far in full force that the patients wander about their courts in hopeless indolence, Avith- out an effort being made, so far as I know, to provide for them systematic employment. The Edinburgh Pauper Asylum, also, is fortunate in having an excellent resident superintendent; but while I most will- ingly give him all the credit to Avhich he is so justly entitled, I must be allowed to add, that an educated professional man, who is acquainted Avith the structure and functions of the hu- man body, and has not only studied human nature as a physi- cian and philosopher, but especially investigated the subject of insanity, possesses qualifications which experience alone can never impart; and it is therefore no disparagement to say, that, in regard to moral management, our asylum is less favourably rircumstanced than that of Hanwell. The almost entire absence of the means of acti\*e employ- ment and healthful exercise in the Edinburgh Asylum, is ano- ther point which contrasts singularly Avith the ample provision of them at Hanwell, and with the aspect of industry by Avhich the latter is characterized. On passing the outer gate, some of the patients are generally to be met with busily employed in keeping the grounds in order. Others are at Avork in their extensive garden, and others, again, in the adjoining fields. On entering the spacious offices attached to the asylum, some are found plying their trades of baker, brewer, and dairyman ; Avhile, in the Avorkshops, numbers are seen engaged in rope- making, tailoring, and basket-making. Nor are the women idle. Many of them are employed in the kitchen, Avashing- house, and laundry ; many in making and mending clothes ; and many more in cleaning, knitting, sewing, and other house- hold duties. No one is forced to work : Avhether he works or not, he is treated with kindness ; but all are requested to Avork. If they obey they are welcomed and encouraged. If they re- fuse, all their little extra comforts, such as tobacco, which are made to depend on their doing something useful as an equiva- lent, are withheld ; and they soon find it to be more agreeable, and more for their own interest, to be industrious than to be idle. In Edinburgh, on the other hand, there is neither sufficient ground for exercise, nor any means of useful bodily employ- ASYLtMS CONTRASTED. 315 ment; anJ, when it is considered that most of the patients are persons haoituated to labour and to the open air, and unpro- vided with resources from Avhich they can derive enjoyment within doors, the deprivations to Avhich they are subjected by confinement assume increased importance. During the vio- lence of the malady, when the patient requires to be confined, and is not composed enough for any quiet occupation, the want of room is less felt. But it is very different when the period of excitement is past, and both mind and body require to be roused to exertion on objects external to themselves. So far from idleness being then either necessary or natural, the bodily energies are often increased and craving for an outlet; and, even in the worst cases, several at least of the mental faculties remain unimpaired, and ready to act when their objects are presented to them. Idleness only aggravates the evil, by throwing the patient back upon his own morbid feelings ; and the ennui to which it then gives rise renders the temper impa- tient, and the confinement intolerable. When a person in health is deprived of active exercise, he generally passes a restless night, or, if he sleeps, he is visited by distressing dreams. The same thing occurs among the in- sane. If their energies do not get scope by day, they become noisy and impatient during the night. At Hanwell, and other similarly managed institutions, employment and exercise in the open air are found by experience to be of great value, even as soporifics, and therefore highly useful in promoting re- covery. In many private asylums, again, defects exist, which ur- gently demand improvement. The rooms are so small, low in the ceiling, and ill-ventilated, that Avhen the presence of an attendant is necessary during the night, the vitiation of the air becomes intolerable, does positive harm to the patient, and is often a source of complaint with the keeper. This is a very serious evil; for the exhalation from the skin and lungs is often extremely offensive in the insane, and its accumulation from confinement in a small apartment becomes not only a source of annoyance but an obstacle to recovery. Cleanliness in per- son and in clothes, also, is too little enforced, and baths aie too sparingly used. Little or no exertion is made to occupy or direct the mind, and no society or amusement of any kind is provided to cheer the tedious hours. Not unfrequently, 316 m. esquirol's retreat at ivry. moreover, patients, still possessed of the greatest acuteness, and the nicest sense of propriety, are habitually addressed as if they were incapable of thinking, and required to be moved or influenced like babies and idiots. I have knoAvn instances in which threats, such as are vulgarly held out to children, have been used towards lunatics whose powers of intellect and delicacy of feeling Avere far above the average of sound minds; and the effect was to induce a flood of tears, from a deep sense of the indignity to which they Avere so rudely subjected. It is a fatal mistake, I must again repeat, to suppose that, because a person is insane, he is therefore insensible to ordinary mo- tives, and may be safely treated as if he could not appreciate either reason or truth, kindness or severity. In general, the fact is the reverse, the sensitiveness to good or bad treatment being greatly increased. The celebrated and benevolent Esquirol has been loud and eloquent in enforcing regard to the feelings, and attention to the real welfare, of the insane ; and in his private establish- ment at Ivry, near Paris, Avhich I had the gratification of visit- ing along with him in September, 1831, he exemplifies almost every*principle on which such an asylum ought to be conduct- ed. The asylum is placed in a beautiful and airy situation, with a pleasant exposure, and its general aspect is that of an inhabited and well kept villa. Four distinct buildings, of am- ple size and elegant appearance, are conveniently distributed through a well laid out and ornamented park of twenty-fi\Te acres, part in garden, part in grass, and part in plantation, with neat walks bordered with flowers running in every direc- tion ; which, it will be observed, is a very handsome provision for thirty or thirty-five patients, to which number he restricts himself. For the troublesome or excited patients, there are two neat one-story buildings, one for males and the other for females, separate from each other, and far removed from those appropriated to the convalescent and tranquil. These one- story tenements open upon and look into spacious grass plots, surrounded on two sides by high Avails, along Avhich covered galleries are made for shelter from the rain and sun ; so that the height of the walls seems as if intended to admit of galle- ries being made, rather than for the purpose of preventing es- cape. The third side is occupied by a plain neat high railing, like that of the Tuilleries garden. To these plots and galleries m. esquirol's retreat at ivry. 317 the patients have access at pleasure ; and most of them prefer coming out at the window, from which they can easily step, no restraint being visible, and nothing of the prison being ap- parent. This degree of harmless freedom tranquillises them amazingly. Each room (neatly and plainly furnished) has beside it a room for a servant—each patient having one—so that ample surveillance is exercised. When a little confirmed in tranquillity, they are alloAved to go out by a back door to a large ornamental walk, shrubbery, and garden, Avith a fine view over a loAver Avail, apparently opening upon the public fields, but in reality perfectly retired. The attendants are more re- fined and gentle in their manners, and better educated, as Avell as naturally more humane and intelligent, than the corres- ponding class of persons in this country. Their number, intel- ligence, and amiable dispositions, are a great advantage both to themselves and to the patients. Being less exclusively con- fined to the society of the insane, they have not that peculiar expression of eye and general appearance Avhich our keepers so often acquire, and Avhich indicate a state in some degree allied to insanity. Esquirol says, that all his English visitors complain of the difficulty of getting any but coarse and igno- rant men for keepers, and wonder hoAv he succeeds ; but the French of all classes are naturally more observant of the kind- nesses of ordinary intercourse, especially with their inferiors. than Ave are, and are habitually more tolerant of the caprices and Aveakncsses of others. The different classes of society thus stand at all times in a more favourable position than Avith us for acquiring an interest in each other, and for becoming friends, or, in other Avoids, for effecting a cure. The importance of this confidence Avas Avell illustrated by an expression of Esquirol's, in speaking of a patient: " At last," he said, " I succeeded in o-aining his confidence, and after that," he added with a signi- cant look, " on va vite a la querison." This, of course, must be received as a general proposition only, but it shoAvs the force of the principle. When tranquillity is secured, the patient is removed to an- other building, and from that to a third, each bringing him nearer and nearer to ordinary life, till, in the third, convales- cents meet, in the character of ladies and gentlemen, at meals, music, billiards, reading, &c, along Avith the family of Dr. Metivier, a nepheAV of Esquirol, who resides there Avith his wife 318 CONCLUSION. and children. There the patients receive their friends, and with them make excursions to the environs, or go to the thea- tre,—or if from the provinces, they go and see the wonders of the capital. They are thus gradually prepared to resume their station in society; and from being treated throughout Avith most considerate kindness, they become attached to the family, and cease to repine at their temporary separation from friends and home.—But not to dAvell too long on this most interest sub- ject, I shall conclude at once by remarking, that it is necessary only to see the different appearance and conduct of the pa- tients in a well contrived and properly regulated asylum, as contrasted Avith one of an opposite character, to perceive at once how influential active moral treatment is in promoting recovery, and how necessary it is to devote more attention than hitherto to this and the other conditions of health in our treat- ment of the insane. In commenting, as I have done, on the defects of the pauper asylum of Edinburgh, I must not be regarded as accusing the managers of neglect or indifference. I am quite aware of their anxiety to better the condition of the patients, and that they have already done more in the way of cure than could have been conceived possible with their imperfect means. But it is on this very account—that the public may be stirred up to pro- vide the necessary funds—that I am so anxious to direct atten- tion to the miserable accommodation ; for I cannot help consi- dering the asylum, in its present state, as a disgrace to the me- tropolis of the country.* * Derangement may be defined the excessive, exalted, or perverted ac- tion of one or more of the phrenological faculties, and the reduction or proper direction of this over-action, constitutes the cure of insanity. In view of this definition, it is evident that many of those who are regarded as perfectly sane, are really insane, at least on one or more subjects. Thus, those who live in continual fear of, they know not what, who apprehend storms, though the sky is cloudless, and are continually desponding and borrowing troubling, are insane in the matter of cautiousness. So those whose hopes are too high, plans chimerical, and calculations visionary and extravagant, are so afflicted with a monomania as to Hope. Mothers, whose Parental Love is very large and active, and who are so excessively tender of their children as actually to " kill them with kindness," (a case of very frequent occurrence,) are deranged in regard to this subject. Others are deranged as regards property ; others, as regards their honour, (e. g., those who fight duels, lace tight, follow the fashions, &c.); others, on religion; others, in regard to love and the other sex; others, on invent- treatment of the insane. 319 mg : and others, on other subjects too numerous to mention. If all luna- tics were sent to the mad-house, it is doubtful whether enough would be left to take care of them, and our prisons, penitentiaries, &c. are only other names for insane hospitals. The treatment bestowed upon these poor unfortunate monomaniacs, is quite as improper as the disease is common. Some of them we cast out of " respectable society;" others are imprisoned; others still are hated; and the derangement of others still is converted into occasions of merriment, and their eccentricities are ridiculed. Instead of this—instead of punish- ing them for their aberrations, we should pity, and try to reform them. This can be done, not by punishment, or opposition, or hatred, or ridicule, but by kindness, and by operating on their intellects. Thus, if a mother has become excessively attached to her children, and injures them by ex- cessive tenderness, instead of reproaching her for this cause, reason with her, and show her how she is spoiling their dispositions or injuring their health. If a man has become crazy under the influence of anger, and bursts into a passion, or seeks revenge, let him not be imprisoned, but let antagonist organs be excited, and his anger be roused as little as possi- ble, till the inflammation which produced this derangement has subsided, To the following means of remedying insanity, let me invite special atten- tion :— 1. The non-exercise of inflamed organs, is the shortest, surest way to re- store them to a natural, healthy state. Thus, if you are deranged in the matter of appetite, fast, eating but one or two meals per day, and employ- ing yourself about other things; and this organ will soon cease its cravings, and resume its healthy, natural function. Hence it is that drunkards can be reformed only by breaking off wholly and at once. Whoever, therefore, finds the action of any of his organs exalted, or unnatural, should indulge this passion as little as may be, and divert his mind by calling other facul- ties into action so as to allow those deranged to become and remain quiescent. 2. But the most efficient means of restoring the diseased organs or an over-active brain to a healthy state, is to keep the body in a cool, healthy condition. Let no stimulants be taken. Let even tea and coffee be aban- doned ; because they stimulate, especially the brain ; and this stimulation will be felt most in those organs already too active. Even meats should generally be discarded; for, they stimulate, especially the animal feelings more than vegetables, milk, or bread-stuffs. Let much sleep be taken, and light, but nourishing food be eaten. Milk, where the stomach will bear it, wtll be found most excellent. Let such also take much recreation and ac- tive exercise, and try to enjoy life as much as possible, and never indulge gloomy or desponding feelings; rise and retire early; and, especially, bathe much; for, this increases the circulation of the skin, and carries off the feverish heat of the system; besides, diverting the circulation from the brain to the skin. To those who belong to families, members of which are predisposed to mental derangement, or have been deranged, these directions apply with redoubled force, and will be found even indispensable. Let the chddren of such families, seldom if ever be sent to school; because, first, they are 320 TREATMENT OF THE INSANE. usually smart enough without it; and, secondly, the cause of derangement is the excessive, or perverted action of one or more of the phrenological or- gans; and attending school is designed to re-augment that very action which is already too great. Let them rather be kept from school and books, and encouraged to play, ride, labour, recreate, or any thing that will divert the blood/rom the head to the muscles and skin, instead of increasing that very cerebral action which causes this disease. Most families that are pre- disposed to insanity, are already too smart, too intellectual. Indeed, this very over-action of the brain which constitutes their superior talents, also causes their tendency to derangement. Nor should those thus predisposed, allow themselves to sit up late at night, or to read or write, or muse much, or to become much excited ; (to which they are very much inclined;) for, this only increases their constitutional tendency to insanity, and exposes them still more to be over-come by it. Tobacco, snuff, wines, all alcoholic and stimulating drinks, even of port-wine, beer, cider, &c, including mus- tards, spices, &c. &c, should be abandoned, and every means used for re- ducing the action of the brain as a whole, or of any of its parts, according as the nature of the case requires; for, let it never be forgotten, that men- tal derangement consists in, and is caused by, the over-action either of the brain as a whole, or else of some of its parts or organs; and, also, that it can be cured only by reducing this over-action, or morbid excitement; and restoring the brain as a whole, or its diseased part or parts, to a healthy ac- tion. Hence, managers of the insane, should be Phrenologists, so that by knowing the deranged function, they may at once know what organ is in- flamed, and thus know exactly to what part of the head to apply the reme- dy, and also the nature of that remedy, namely, something that will reduet the inflammation. [Ed Am. edit.] ,/ /"* \ t