ON THE ANIMAL FRAME. 



301 



Tlie animal economy would be adapted to it, 

 like as in the transition from a cold to a waite 

 climate. It may hereafter be found, what length 

 of time is sufficient to adjust the equilibrium, 

 and whether this subject is any way connected 

 with certain diseased states of the body. As 

 far as regards the absolute pressure on the body, 

 and our insensibility of it generally, this question 

 will be met by the argument, that the air within 

 the body, by its elasticity, sustains a con*e- 

 sponding pressure from without; but this only 

 accounts for our alleviation from a small frac- 

 tional part of the whole exterior pressure. The 

 greater part must still be supported by the body ; 

 and we must have recourse to the great incom- 

 pressibility of matter, to account for our insen- 

 sibility of pressure. Canton found that water, 

 pressed by one atmosphere more than ordinary, 

 only exhibited a reduction of 1-2 1740th part 

 of the whole; if the same rate, applied to the 

 compression of the human body, the reduction 

 or compression of the size of a man, 4500 cubic 

 inches, would only be l-6th of a cubic inch, for 

 the weight of an additional atmosphere. Now 

 as the body consists of solids and liquids of 

 almost incompressible matter, and there is only 

 a small part of the volume consisting of elastic 

 fluid that is compressible, no material change 

 of volume can take place, but on the sudden 



