

ANIMAL PHYSIO: 





I. 



I.MAL J'lIVSIOLOGY. IX. 



: ORGAN OP TASTE. 



portion as sensations or*- I from our mental 



processes, BO arc they more closely linkcil \vit 

 wants. Sensation ha two functions ; ono in to inform the 

 ' M t tho thoughts a-going, and tho other to prompt 

 it for tho well -being of the body, or for tho good of 

 p, which wo should not do, or not do BO well and fittingly, 

 wo were BO prompted. All sensations perform both of 

 .nrtioiH. but they perform them in very different degrees : 

 :lu- rye, of 

 all tho organs of 

 is tho most 



nt caterer to 

 the mind ; but it 

 scarcely prompts 

 directly to any in- 

 stinctive act. It 

 may stir pleasur- 

 able ideas in tho 

 mind, but the sen 

 Rations of sight, 

 of the 



they leave, 



scarcely bo 



culled cither plea- 



suniMo or 'painful. 



Now if we contrast 



with this most in- 



! ual of all 



our senses that 



which is asso- 



l with the 



, we shall 

 find that its rela- 

 tion to these two 

 functions is re- 

 versed. The mind, 

 it is true, discrimi- 

 nates bct\ve> II st n- 

 sations of taste, 

 but it does not 

 dwell upon them, 

 and it cannot 

 readily recall the 

 distinctions to me- 

 mory. If this state- 

 ment should bo 

 thought to be in- 

 correct because 

 gross sensualists 

 may bo said to 

 dwell much upon 

 the gratification of 

 their appetite for 

 meats and wines, 

 it may be an- 

 swered, that they 

 dwell not so much 

 on the distinctive 

 ideas of the sensa- 

 tions, as on the 

 general remem- 

 brance of the gra- 

 tification they caused ; and they dwell on it not as in itself worth 

 entertaining, but as useful knowledge to aid them in repeating 

 tho pleasure at some future time. Few men take delight in 

 dwelling on, or describing the sensations of taste ; but oven an 

 anchorito will own that tho pleasures of this sense are, while 



.1. intense, and quite sufficient to cause ordinary indi- 

 viduals to keep the body well supplied wjth good food, even 

 though the thought of what quantity or quality of aliment ia 



iry never crosses the mind. Tho young, whose tastes 

 have not yet been vitiated, usually eat heartily, with a keen 

 sense of enjoyment while at their meals ; but between these their 

 minds are wholly unoccupied with tho nature or the pleasures 

 of these meals. The contrast drawn above seems fully to bear 

 VOL. L 



I. HUMAN TONGUE. II. TONGUE OF CHIMPANZEE, WITH LARYNX. III. CIRCUJJVALLATE PAPIUJC. 



IV. FUNGIFORM PAPILLA. V. FIUFORM PAPILIJE. 

 Bef. to Nos. in Figs. I. 1. Epiglottis; 2. Mucous follicles. II. 1. Bristle passing into the pouch 



out tho statement that sensations which are good incentives to 

 intellectual action are not good prompters to instinctive action ; 



become pleasurablo or painful. A pleasurable or a painful 

 sight means one which impresses the intellect favourably or not; 

 but an agreeable or disagreeable taste is strictly confined to 

 the sensation iUelf. 



It will bo Bhown, in speaking of the organ of taste, how inti- 

 mately the gratification of this sense is bound up with the 

 necessities of the body. In the meantime, assuming this to be 

 the ease, we remark that, inasmuch as the wants of the mind 



are insatiable, 

 while those of the 

 body 



intimately con- 

 nected with each 

 partake of the 

 nature of these 

 different wants ; 

 hence, while the 

 eye is never satis. 

 f ied with seeing, 

 the gustatory 

 sense is soon 

 cloyed, and the 

 appetite it engen- 

 ders is only inter- 

 mittent. Again, 

 with regard to 

 those sensuous im- 

 pressions which 

 are pleasurable, it 

 would seem that 

 Providence has or- 

 dained that tho 

 pleasure shall be 

 so united to the 

 requirements of 

 the body, as that 

 it shall be impos- 

 sible fully to en- 

 joy the pleasure 

 without supplying 

 the requisites to 

 health and use. On 

 the other hand, no 

 natural necessity 

 can be satisfied 

 without gratifying 



the se--cH. Kvi-n 



our limited under- 

 standing recog- 

 nises that it would 

 be dangerous to 

 entrust men with 

 an animal enjoy- 

 ment wh'-.h is ob- 

 jectless, ^nd which 

 could be con- 

 stantly excited ; 

 for this would bo 

 a bar to all tho 



of the larynx. 



higher aspirations 

 of the soul. Tho 



Divino Wisdom has not only recognised this danger, but has 

 provided against it, by such elaborate contrivances, that the 

 attempt to gratify tho senses irrespective of the ends for which 

 they were given us an attempt sure to prove abortive sooner or 

 later is considered to be not only sensual, but unnatural. 



The preceding remarks are necessary to tho appreciation of 

 some points in the structure and position of tho organ of taste. 

 Tho sense of taste is not of quite so simple a nature as those of 

 sight and hearing, or even of smell. This sense seems to 

 away insensibly on tho one hand into that of ordinary 

 which tho inside of the mouth shares with the whole surface 

 the body ; and on the other, it graduates into another sense, which 

 may be called a sense of relish, which the mouth shares with the 



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