82 BOAED OF AGRICULTURE. 



poi-tance, we have no well defined or established directions to 

 aid us, or throw much light upon this topic. It is true that 

 the general fact of resemblance of children to parents has long 

 been admitted ; but then we have no guide or rules whereby 

 every feature and shade of this likeness can be traced out be- 

 tween the ofispring and the parent, or dissimilarity accounted 

 for. While in books and journals there are many admissions 

 that there is, and must be, much truth in this law of resem- 

 blance, you may search medical and other libraries through and 

 through without finding a single treatise or scarcely an essay 

 that discusses this topic in an intelligible manner. But it is 

 an encouraging fact that the most progi'essive men in the 

 medical profession, both in Great Britain and in our ovm. 

 country, are waking up to the truth and importance of this 

 subject, especially as it is manifested in the transmission of 

 disease. A careful inquiry into the diseases of a person's 

 parents and ancestors enables one to understand more dis- 

 tinctly what are his predispositions to particular diseases, and 

 what are constitutional and what are not. 



PHYSIOLOGY IN ITS INFAXCY. 



Some allowance should be made for the want of more defi- 

 nite knowledge on this subject of inheritance when we consider 

 that physiology is really a modern science, and in some of its 

 practical applications it is in its infancy. . It is only a few 

 years since the relation between pure air and the healthy state 

 of the lungs and the blood became known, or the importance 

 of regular exercise of all parts of the body, in order to main- 

 tain good health. The relations which the physical system, 

 with its various organs, sustains to education and religious 

 culture, are as yet very imperfectly understood. So is the 

 application of sanitary laws to public welfare ; also to the pre- 

 vention of disease and the preservation of human life. ,The 

 community has not as yet begun to realize the great advan- 

 tages to be derived from a knowledge of this science in the 

 promotion of human comfort, health and happiness. When 

 its principles are brought into application in every-day life 

 practically in all their bearings, it will be difficult to find 

 language' strong enough to express all its beneficial results. 

 Especially will its advantages be conspicuous in the early care 



