190 POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



after a careful examination by a competent physician, that his con- 

 dition would warrant a prolonged and severe muscular eifort, the 

 result on the moral and bodily habits of a certain class of young men 

 would be superior to any persuasive or semireligious method that the 

 world has yet premonstrated. 



What has been said concerning poisoning by the non-elimina- 

 tion of effete products refers also to the nerves and the brain. As 

 the muscles work faster, so do the central nerve cells which send 

 the stimulating impulses to these muscles. These latter cells be- 

 come fatigued sooner than the muscles. This is a grand feature of 

 physiologic economy, for, did not this condition exist, the muscle 

 would be worked to an irreparable point. The muscular differences 

 noted in individuals are in reality the difference in the nerve cells, the 

 action of the muscle indicating the activity of the central nervous 

 system. When the muscles are being exercised the nerve cells are 

 being exercised, and the effect of exercise on the nerve cells indi- 

 rectly determines the muscular activity. 



It is the general impression among athletes that exhaustion and 

 " loss of wind " is due to the inability to consume sufficient oxygen 

 and exhale rapidly enough carbon dioxide. When the muscle is 

 moving rapidly and forcibly it is true that it demands more oxygen, 

 and gives off to the blood more carbon dioxide than when at rest. 

 When a man is running as fast as he can make his limbs move he is 

 able to keep up the pace but for a short distance unless, like the 

 hunted hare, he runs to his death. On account of the forced, vigor- 

 ous, and rapid muscular action in this case, the poisonous materials 

 are thrown into the blood, to be carried to all parts of the body — 

 muscles, nerves, brain. The heart is affected by this poison through 

 the nerve cells controlling that organ; the muscles of respiration are 

 similarly disturbed. The panting, distressed efforts of breathing, 

 sidelong tumbling, anhelation, and final semiconsciousness of the 

 hunted stag or hare are a good example of acute auto-intoxication 

 ending in death. This latter deplorable condition is not unknown 

 among the annals of human strife for athletic honors, even with our 

 present advanced knowledge of physiology. 



One of the main " clearing houses " of the body, by which the 

 blood is cleared constantly of all its poison, is the liver. The minute 

 cells of this organ each have their own individual work to perform in 

 transforming the toxic material into harmless substances. The cells 

 of this " clearing house " are delicate little organs, and will not stand 

 abuse.* All habits having a tendency to cause dyspepsia — eating 



* Experience and investigation lead the writer to believe periodical inebriety to be a 

 symptom of periodical insanity brought about by the accumulation of toxic substances in 



