Clifton College Scientific Society. 29 



perfectly harmless, and do not show any tendency either to do 

 harm to others, or to injure themselves. Notwithstanding their 

 dumbness, they will assail the unfortunate traveller with a con- 

 tinual chattering of inarticulate sounds, every now and then 

 showing their pockets, or kissing their hands to liim. 



They remain usually quite quiet until they have caught his eye, 

 but as soon as that is fixed on their own, they commence making 

 signs of all descriptions, and grinning (it can hardly be called laugh- 

 ing, or even smiling) with an expression as if they were greatly 

 pleased or amused by his presence. The sounds that these cretins 

 emit in such circumstances are sometimes almost unearthly ; 

 sometimes resembling a thick and husky laugh, choked in the very 

 utterance. 



It seems strange, that in the very places where Nature seems to 

 have employed her vast powers and enormous resources in creating 

 scenes to delight the eye of man, human nature should appear 

 conspicuous in its most pitiable and degraded form ! Cretinism, 

 and goitre, therefore, as well, are found to be most prevalent in the 

 very finest valleys of the Alps. The cause of the occurrence of 

 goitre in these beautiful localities is entirely unknown ; but one 

 thing is certain, that whatever may turn out to be the cause of 

 goitre, cretinism will be found to be distinctly referable to the 

 same cause. They are both incurable ; for though the iodine 

 which I said had been useful in certain cases has a good elfect, 

 yet it is a dangerous remedy, and one which requires great skill 

 to be properly administered. Neither is it infallible in its action, 

 for cases have been known in which it seemed that iodine exer- 

 cised no effect whatever on the tumour. Moreover, when a youth 

 is taken far away from his home, the affecting cause, whatever that 

 cause may be, has undoubtedly been removed also, so that shoidd 

 the tumour not grow bigger, nor the cretin still continue to lose 

 his reason, yet the removal from home cannot be termed a cure, 

 but merely a taking away of the cause, which, if left, would further 

 increase the complaint. Goitre becomes in many cases hereditary, 

 but I do not know that the same thing occurs with cretinism. 

 Another method that was proposed to get rid of the tumour was 

 to excise it. But so vascular is the swelling, that this is next to 

 impossible. For the greater veins are out of their proper places, 

 and the smaller ones are so well interwoven and mixed up to- 

 gether, that he would be indeed a bold doctor who would under- 

 take to make a deep incision into the tumour. 



These diseases affect both men and women, but in some places, 

 especially on the north of the Alps, women are afflicted with them 

 to a much greater extent than men. At Domo d'Ossola, the 

 contrary is the case. They are not foand in elevated situations. 



