46 THE INTERNAL SECRETIONS—1920 
interlocking of their functions has been fully estab- 
lished. Since 1858 it has been shown that there is a 
distinct relationship between the thymus gland and the 
testes, removal of the thymus hastening a maturity 
and development of the testes, and removal of the 
testes causing a persistent growth of the thymus 
(4). The relationship between the ovaries and the 
growth of the mammary glands, the ovaries and the 
thyroid, the thyroid and the parathyroids, the pituitary 
body and the mammary glands has merely demon- 
strated that endocrine dependence does not cease with 
any two individuals or sets of glands, but that all of 
them are more or less interrelated. This fact has 
demonstrated the clinical importance of augmenting 
any depletion or derangement of certain endocrine 
organs with other associated secretions. 
While resting an overworked organ by adding its 
pabulum artificially, it is also equally necessary to en- 
courage the organ to further secretion. This stimulus 
not only comes from replenishment through its own 
pabulum, but is augmented by the other secretions 
which have independent but none the less related ac- 
tions. Only in this way can a true balance of func- 
tion be secured. In other words, there evidently is a 
hormonic exchange of stimuli between all glands as 
well as an “autohormonic” stimulation. When this in- 
terhormonic balance is as it should be, and the rela- 
tions between the endocrine organs are correct, there 
is a feeling of well-being even when go-called vital 
organs may be diseased. Thus in pulmonary tuber- 
culosis, when there is a good endocrine balance, the 
patient has a hopeful and normal attitude towards life 
in general; while in individuals with low blood pres- 
sure, resulting from adrenal depletion, the patient feels 
hopeless. This was generally true following the late 
influenza epidemic. To illustrate the above, the fol- 
lowing case comes to mind: 
