of the Royal Academy of Paris, for 1824. 309 
fallopian tube which leads from the tympanum to the back of 
the nostril or fauces. M. Flourens in a previous investiga- 
tion, endeavoured to ascertain what part of the organ of hear- 
ing should be considered most essential to the perfection of 
the sense. Pigeons were made the subject of experiment; birds 
having the ear enveloped in a delicate cellular structure easily 
removed. He destroyed the meatus auditorius, the first bones, 
and the tympanum, without destroying the sense; the stapes 
was then removed, and hearing was sensibly injured; merely 
raising this bone from its situation, and then replacing it al- 
ternately diminished and re-established the faculty; on re- 
moving the semicircular canals much more remarkable phee- 
nomena were observed ; not only the animal continued to hear, 
but the impression of sound became painful, the slightest noise 
produced severe agitation, and its head was moved horizontally 
from right to left, with remarkable violence, which did not 
cease till perfect rest was obtained, and re-commenced when 
the animal attempted to move. Exposure of the vestibule, 
and destruction of part of the nervous pulp contained within 
it, did not entirely destroy hearing: to effect this, the total re- 
moval of the whole of the pulp and the nervous expansions 
continuous with it was necessary, the animal remaining deaf 
although the rest of the ear was untouched. The author con- 
cludes, that the pulp in the vestibule is the essential part of 
the organ, and that it is in fact, as shown by Scarpa and Cuvier, 
the only part existing in inferior animals; so that we may con- 
sider the other parts of the organ as serving to give to this 
sense the different degrees of perfection, which characterize it 
in the higher classes of animals. - 
We have given the above report at full length, not so much 
on account of the value of the information communicated, as 
to put our readers in possession of the opinion entertained by 
the highest literary tribunal in France respecting those expe- 
riments which have latterly so much attracted the attention of 
physiologists. We do not however, by any means, consider 
that’those experimenters have settled the respective questions 
which they profess to decide, but look upon their labours as 
little more than so much argument in favour of pursuing the 
investigation; in which light it is to be hoped that the authors 
themselves view the subject. With respect to the experiments 
of M. Majendie, to determine the nerve to which we are in- 
debted for the sense of smell, they must be admitted to be in- 
conclusive, if not altogether fallacious, as we hope to be able 
to demonstrate in another place.— Dublin Phil. Journ. 
ACTION 
