190 ProceediiKjs of the Royal Society of Victoria. 



driven entirely through the mouth ; that is to say, that the 

 palate is probably pressed firmly back against the pharynx 

 so as to completely cut oft communication with the nose. 

 The peculiar noise made in sneezing is probably pi'oduced by 

 the impact of the imprisoned air on the back of the hard 

 palate, combined with certain modification of the shape of 

 the mouth produced by movements of the tongue and lips. 

 In coughing, on the other hand, it would seem that the com- 

 munication between the nose and throat is not necessarily 

 cut off, and that the air sometimes passes through the nose 

 as well as the mouth, and that special movements of the lips 

 and tongue are certainly" different, if not absent altogether. 

 The mouth is generally opened more widely in coughing, and 

 the noise produced by a cough is very different from that 

 produced in sneezing. The one is lar^'ngeal in the main, the 

 other is chiefly buccal. 



It is possible that the glottis has nothing to <lo with 

 sneezing, and that the ob.struction is entirely pharyngeal. 

 If, however, there is a closed glottis, it is probable that the 

 mode in which it is opened in the two cases is somewhat 

 different. Coughing has, at all events, sometimes a definite 

 object to serve. It serves for the removal of irritating 

 particles from the air passages, and it is quite likely that the 

 glottis may be differently disposed in sneezing. Hence the 

 absence of glottic noise in sneezing. The statement that the 

 blast of air in sneezing is driven through the nose has 

 originated, I think, in the following manner: — The observa- 

 tions have been necessarily almost entirely personal, and as 

 usual the introspective method, if the term can be used in 

 this sense, has again proved fallacious. When people sneeze, 

 they feel first a profound irritation in the anterior part of 

 the nose. If this persists, there follow .some long and deep 

 inspirations, then a violent expiratory effort with po.ssible 

 closure of the glottis or some part of the pharynx ; the 

 obstruction is suddenly overcome, and the air expelled 

 through the mouth with the characteristic noise. Usually 

 there follows almost immediately a gush of watery fluid 

 from the nose, which is evidence of increased secretion. 



Now, putting these facts together, those who first described 

 the process of sneezing, confused as usual inference and fact. 

 They knew that coughing, at all events, served the one 

 purpose of removing foreign bodies from the air passages. 

 They inferred justly or unjustly that sneezing was adapted 

 to remove foreign bodies from the anterior portion of tlie 



