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 so-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 : 



