USES OF THE CUTICLE. 33 



cuticle is abraded or removed by vesication. The 

 surface below is then found to be too tender and 

 irritable for the exercise of touch, and conveys to 

 the mind scarcely any other sensation than that of 

 pain. For the same reason, those parts of the skin 

 which are most exposed to pressure and friction, 

 such as the palms of the hands and soles of the feet, 

 are provided with a thicker cuticle to defend them 

 from injury. 



The greater thickness of the cuticle in such situa- 

 tions is manifestly the intentional work of the Cre- 

 ator, for it is perceptible even at birth, before use 

 can have exercised any influence. Indeed, were 

 the tender skin not so protected, every violent con- 

 traction of the hand upon a rough and hard surface, 

 and every step made on uneven ground, would cause 

 pain, and disable us for exertion. 



By another beneficent provision, calculated to af- 

 ford increased protection according to the necessi- 

 ties of the individual, it happens that, when a part is 

 much used, the cuticle covering it becomes thicker 

 and thicker within certain limits, till in extreme 

 cases it becomes as thick, hard, and resisting as 

 horn. It is this thickening of the epidermis on the 

 lady's finger that alone enables her to wield with 

 impunity that important instrument the needle. 

 And it is the same thickening that fits the black- 

 smith and the mason, the stone-breaker and the 

 boatman, to ply their trades, without that painful 

 blistering which the young apprentice or unaccus- 

 tomed labourer so regularly undergoes, and which 

 must have continued to recur for ever, had the cuti- 

 cle been organized with blood-vessels and nerves, or 

 not subjected to this law of becoming thicker wher- 

 ever increased protection is required. 



Another modification of the cuticle to suit a modi- 

 fication of circumstances is that observed in the 

 nails. These belong to the scarf-skin, and separate 

 with it ; and, like it, they have neither blood-vessels 



