108 



THE CHRISTIAN PHILOSOPHER. 



burn with a brilliancy that dazzles the eyes 

 that a piece of charcoal may be made to burn 

 with a white and splendid light, which is infe 

 rior only to the solar rays and that the diamond 

 is nothing more than carbon in a crystallized 

 state, and differs only in a slight degree from a 

 bit of common charcoal ? Who could have sur 

 mised, that a substance would be discovered, of 

 such a degree of levity, as would have power 

 sufficient to buoy up a number of men to the up 

 per parts of the atmosphere, and enable them to 

 swim, in safety, above the regions of the clouds ? 

 These are only specimens of still more brilliant 

 discoveries which will, doubtless, be brought to 

 light by the researches of future generations. 

 We have reason to believe, that the investiga 

 tions of this science will, in due time, enable us 

 to counteract most of the diseases incident to the 

 human frame ; and to prevent many of those fatal 

 accidents to which mankind are now exposed. 

 Davy s safety lamp has already preserved many 

 individuals from destruction, when working in 

 coal mines ; and thousands, in after ages, will 

 be indebted to this discovery, for security from 

 the dreadful explosions of hydrogen gas. And, 

 we trust, that the period is not far distant, when 

 specific antidotes to the diseases peculiar to the 

 different trades and occupations in which man 

 kind are employed will be discovered ; and the 

 health arid vigour of the mass of society be pre 

 served unimpaired, amidst all the processes in 

 which they may be engaged. In fine, the rapid 

 progress of chyrnical discovery carries forward 

 our views to a period, when man, having tho 

 roughly explored the powers of nature, and sub 

 jected them, in some measure, to his control, will 

 be enabled to ward off most of those physical 

 evils with which he is now annoyed, and to 

 raise himself, in some degree, to the dignity and 

 happiness he enjoyed before moral evil had shed 

 its baleful influence on our terrestrial system. 

 Such a period corresponds to many of the de 

 scriptions contained in the Sacred Oracles of the 

 millenial state of the church; when social, do 

 mestic, moral, and intellectual improvement shall 

 be carried to the utmost perfection which our 

 sublunary station will permit ; when wars shall 

 cease; when the knowledge of Jehovah shall 

 cover the earth ; when every man shall sit under 

 his vine and fig-tree, without being exposed to 

 the least alarm ; and when there shall be nothing 

 to hurt nor destroy throughout the church of the 

 living God. And, therefore, we ought to con 

 sider the various discoveries and improvements 

 now going forward in this and other departments 

 of science, as preparing the way for the introduc 

 tion of this long-expected and auspicious era. 



ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY. 



The general object of both these sciences is 

 o investigate and describe the structure and 



economy of the animal frame. Anatomy di- 

 sects dead bodies, physiology investigates the 

 functions of those that are living. The former 

 examines the fluids, muscles, viscera, and all the 

 other parts of the human body, in a state of rest , 

 the latter considers them in a state of action. 



The parts of the human body have been dis 

 tinguished into two different kinds solids and 

 fluids. The solid parts are bones, cartilages, 

 ligaments, muscles, tendons, membranes, nerves, 

 arteries, veins, hair, nails, and ducts, or fine tu 

 bular vessels of various kinds. Of these solid 

 parts, the following compound organs consist , 

 the brain and cerebellum; the lungs; the heart, 

 the stomach; the liver; the. spleen; ihe pancreas; 

 ihe glands ; the kidneys ; the intestines ; the me 

 sentery ; the larynx ; and the organs of sense 

 the eyes, ears, nose, and tongue. The fluid parts 

 are, the saliva, or spittle, phlegm, serum, the 

 chyle, blood, bile, milk, lympha, urine, the pan 

 creatic juice, arid the aqueous humour of the eyes. 

 The human body is divided into three great ca-* 

 vities the head; the thorax, or breast ; and the 

 abdomen, or belly. The head is formed of the 

 bones of the cranium, and encloses the brain 

 and cerebellum. The thorax is composed of the 

 vertebrae of the back, the sternum, and true ribs ; 

 and contains the heart, the pericardium, the 

 breast, and the lungs. The abdomen is separated 

 from the thorax by means of the diaphragm, 

 which is a fleshy and membranous substance, 

 composed, for the most part, of muscular fibres. 

 This cavity is formed by the lumbar vertebrae, 

 the os sacrum, the ossa innominata, the false 

 ribs, the peritonaeum, and a variety of muscles. 

 It encloses the stomach, intestines, omentum, or 

 caul, the liver, pancreas, spleen, kidrieyt, and 

 urinary bladder. Without attempting any tech 

 nical description of these different pars, which 

 could convey no accurate ideas to a general 

 reader, I shall merely state two or three facts in 

 relation to the system of bones, muscles, and 

 blood-vessels, as specimens of the wonderful struc 

 ture of our bodily frame. 



The Bones may be regarded as the prop-work 

 or basis on which the human body is constructed. 

 They bear the same relation to the animal sys 

 tem, as the wood-work to a building. They give 

 shape and firmness to the body ; they support its 

 various parts, arid prevent it from sinking by its 

 own weight ; they serve as levers for the muscles 

 to act upon, and to defend the brain, the heart, 

 the lungs, and other vital parts, from external in 

 jury. Of the bones, some are hollow, and filled 

 with marrow ; others are solid throughout ; some 

 are very small * others very large ; some are 

 round, and others flat ; some are plane, and 

 others convex or concave ; and all these several 

 forms pro requisite for the situations they oc 

 cupy, and the respective functions they have to 

 perform. The spine, or back-bonp, consists of 24 

 vertebrae, or small bones connected together by 



