CHAP. xvi. THE NEGLECT OF PHRENOLOGY. 163 



brain, but was taught nothing of its functions, of which 

 the lecturer had declared that nothing was known. But 

 when Dr. Spurzheim dissected, Combe tells us that he at 

 once saw how " inexpressibly superior " was his method, 

 in showing its detailed structure; while he saw at the 

 same time that the reviewer had displayed profound 

 ignorance, and had been guilty of gross misrepresenta- 

 tion. He therefore attended Spurzheim's second course 

 of lectures, and was so impressed that he determined to 

 observe and study for himself. He at once ordered 

 from London a collection of casts of the skulls of men of 

 known mental peculiarities artists, writers, workers, 

 criminals, etc.; but when they arrived, the differences 

 looked so slight that he thought he should never be able 

 to determine the peculiarities which, on Dr. Spurzheim's 

 theory, were so important, and therefore determined to 

 put them aside and trouble no more about them. But 

 their arrival was known to some of his friends, and num- 

 bers of persons called asking to see them, and begging 

 him to explain their phrenological peculiarities. He 

 was thus forced to observe them more carefully; and as 

 he showed them to each fresh visitor he began to see that 

 there were large differences between them, and that 

 these differences corresponded to the differences of their 

 known characters, according to the position of the organs 

 as determined by Gall and Spurzheim. He thus ob- 

 tained confidence in his powers of observation, and there- 

 fore determined to go on with the study. He began to 

 observe the heads of all his friends and clients, and found 

 that these usually "confirmed the experience already 

 gained. This gave him confidence; and for three years 

 he went on studying both the heads of living persons and 



