THE CEREBRUM 135 



skull was supposed to indicate an extra cerebral develop- 

 ment beneath, and if a special merit or failing coexisted 

 in the individual the notable feature of the brain was held 

 to be responsible for it. This summary statement is 

 scarcely just to the pioneers in phrenology, for they did 

 not commit themselves until they had a great mass of 

 data. They published large books, conducted periodicals, 

 and even had museums in which the comparative study of 

 human skulls was carried on. 



A cursory glance at their later writings shows how dis- 

 ingenuous they became. They showed an unrivaled skill 

 in getting around difficulties. A certain protuberance 

 was held to indicate a certain propensity, but its occa- 

 sional absence from a subject in whom that propensity 

 was well marked did not cause them any trouble. In 

 such a case they said that the subdivision of the brain 

 under discussion had been worn down by excessive 

 activity. This would seem to require a plasticity of the 

 cranial bones beyond that commonly observed. When 

 external measurements were made upon the forehead it 

 was somewhat hard to allow for the variable extent of 

 the frontal sinuses, cavities which occur in that bone, 

 but they did not fret themselves about that. 



Phrenology lost the respect of conscientious men of 

 science before the middle of the century. The prevalent 

 feeling was one of skepticism regarding all claims for 

 localization of function in the cerebrum. When, after an 

 interval, new ideas concerning the connection of particular 

 properties with particular regions began to be advanced, 

 it was in a totally different spirit from that of the old 

 teachings. The new localization was of the control of 

 bodily functions and only guardedly extended to the 

 problems of the mental life. The return to the belief 

 that the cerebrum is not all alike may be said to date 

 from 1870. It made headway rapidly for about twenty- 

 five years and has been followed by another reaction, so 

 that present-day writing on the subject is cautious and 

 conservative. 



