Nov. 18, 1881.] 



KNOWLEDGE 



59 



I have long watchrd with interest the results of Professor 

 I'Vrricr's labours in the cause of )iunianity, and a few words upon 

 tliG nature of Lis experiments may not bo out of place hero. 



Physiolofry is, coni|iarativeIy speaking, a new science. Before 

 the discovery of tlie circulation of the blood, physicians were little 

 bettor than charlatans. Many of tlie early jihilosophers were mere 

 dreamers ; they made little or no advancement in tiie natural 

 sciences, but their extravagant ideas influenced civilised nations for 

 nearly twenty centuries. Aristotelianism and peripatetic dogmas 

 hindvrtd the progress of science. When tho great Bacon an>se 

 giant-like, amidst the chaos of hypotheses and Iruitloss doctrine, 

 and laid the foundations of the inductive and experimental philo- 

 sophy, then a new era commenced, and scientific progress followed. 



There is no subject in physiology more attractive than the study 

 of the human brain ; that wondertul and complex organ has occu- 

 pied the attention of philosophers in all ages, but little light has 

 been th^o^vll upon its functions until recently. Several physiolo- 

 gists of the seventeenth, eighteenth, and early part of the present 

 oentur}', wa.sted a deal of their time in fruitless searches after tho 

 exact seat of the soul. Some held that the soul was equally 

 diffused through every part of the body. Descartes maintained 

 that it is in the pineal gland of the brain, and Borri asseited that 

 in the brain is formed a certain very subtle, fragrant juice, which 

 is the princijial sent or residence of the soul, and that the subtlety 

 and fineness of the soul depended on the temperature of this 

 liquor, rather than on the structure of the brain. Now, all these 

 fanciful theories were very interesting lo read, but they did not 

 beneBt mankind, and it was not until Flourens cf)mmcnccd his 

 experiments upon the brains of animals that any definite knowledge 

 of tl'.e functions of the cerebral organ was arrived at. 



A woithy follower in the footsteps of tho French physiologist is 

 Dr. David Ferrier. The work of the latter on the " Functions of the 

 Brain " has been justly described as " marking tho end of an old 

 era and the beginning of a new one in cerebral physiolog}'.'* In 

 briefly summing up the results of Dr. Ferricr's experiments on tho 

 brains of animals, I wish to direct attention to the localisation of 

 two or threo of the cerebral functions as demonsti*ated by the 

 learned professor. The upper end of the Fissure of Sylvius, called 

 tlie angi>!ar gyrus, is the centre of tho sense of sight. When that 

 part of the cerebral substance is destroyed, the sense of vision is 

 gone in the opposite eye, though all the other souses remain, and an 

 animal can hoar, and smell, and taste, and touch, and perform every 

 voluntary action as before. " It is a remarkable fact," says Dr. 

 Ferrier — and let it comfort you, oh ye anti-vivisectionists — "that tho 

 brain is unsusceptible to every kind of irritation except electricity. 

 Yoa may out and cauterise the brain without exciting sensation, al- 

 though it is the organ of feeling. This we have learnt from experi- 

 ments and the testimony of men who have had their brains injured." 

 In another convolution of the brain, called the temporo-sphenoidal 

 lobe, Dr. Ferrier found the centre of tho sense of hearing — from 

 the lower extremity of the lobe i»roceeds a large tract or process 

 which is called the olfactory tract. When this part of the brain is 

 destroyed, the sense of smell is abolished. All these discoveries 

 explain certain facts which have been observed in connection with 

 disease. Of course, I have only selected a few of the many illus- 

 trations of the Professor's experiments, and it only remains for me 

 to point out the vital importance of such discoveries to the medical 

 profession, and, I may add, to all who are suffering, or likely to 

 suffer, from cerebral disease. It is impossible to experiment upon 

 the- human subject. There is no alternati\e bnt to practise upon 

 the living animal, if an accurate knowledge of the functions of that 

 important organ is to be gained. 



Surely, when the facts are known, few will accuse tho Doctor of 

 wanton cruelty. All his experiments are made for the benefit of 

 suffering humanity and the advancement of science. To conclude, 

 in the Professor's own words : — " You may rest assured of this, 

 that every addition to our knowledge of the brain will inevitably 

 lead to a better appreciation, and more succossfid ])revention and 

 treatment of a large, and it is to be feared, rapidly-increasing class 

 of distressing diseases of the brain and nervous system, which, 

 even to those best acquainted with them, aro still involved in pro- 

 found obscurity." 



W. L. 



A. PLANET'S MOVEMENT.S.-TUE TIDES. 



[30] — In looking over the first number of Knowledge, I find on 

 page 13 tho following — for an explanation of which I shall feci 

 thankful. 



1. " The planet Mars, it will be noticed, passes during this month 

 what is called a stationary point ; he is advancing (moving from 

 right to left) till November 17th, after which he retrogrades. But 

 he does not really come to apparent rest, owing to the wide sweep 

 of the loop he forms between his stationary points. Jupiter, Saturn, 



and Neptune are all three retrograding." 1. Do the planets move 

 in their orbits uniformly, or turn backwards and forwards, or how 'f 

 2. What is the cause for this, and is this retrograde motion ])er- 

 formed during each revolution ; if so, how often Y 3. What am I 

 to understand by " Mars not coming to apparent rest, owing to thc^ 

 wide swet'p of the loop ho forms between the stationary points ': " 

 What docs this loop signify ; and is there really such an occurrence 

 as Mars or the other planets coming to a rest, &c. ? 



2. In Ciuillemin's " Ueavcns," page 391, in note by R. A. 1-, I 

 find the following : "If we consider only the dj-namical relations, 

 we find that the jdacc of low-water should be under the moon, and 

 at the opposite part of tlie earth, the place of high-water between 

 these regions." Will you kindly explain how the point of high- 

 water ought not lo be directly under the moon, but at a point at 

 right angles to it ? Zeta. 



[The movements referred to are only the apparent motions of the 

 planet in the heavens. The planets constantly advance in their 

 own orbits. I will take a later opportunity to answer " Zeta " more 

 fully on both subjects. — Eu.J 



WHAT IS THE CAUSE OF GRAVITY ? 



[31] — 1 was glad to see the appearance of a paper like this, giving 

 the views of the best men of to-day about the more interesting 

 things in nature in plain language. As you invite correspondence, 

 permit me to state that, although a toiler who cannot find much time 

 for reading, I take, nevertheless, a very great interest in the study 

 of nature. It gives mo hope and affords me pleasure. And, as you 

 say, it is certainly religious and improves our feelings. As regards 

 myself, I take an especial interest in the law of gravity, not as to 

 how, but as to its cause. I have read that Sir Isaac Newton could 

 not tell. I should feel very grateful if you would give us the 

 various theories that have been given out on this subject, no 

 matter how silly they be, in as short a form as possible. On 

 inquiry, the answer is always "Attraction" — a meaningless 

 word. I have for many years observed every phenomenon 

 resembling tlie action of gravity, and have come to conclusions 

 as to what its cause is, that on careful comparison harmonise 

 with all tho well-known and undoubted fundamental laws of 

 nature. I have read of experiments made and theories submitted 

 that in no way come near the mark, but I may not have reached 

 the right source yet. Experiments to prove gravity are difficult to 

 make because we cannot exclude the earth's gravity from them 

 even for a moment. But, by the help of reason, it can be racide, and 

 even clear to a mind that can comprehend other natural jiheno- 

 mona that can only be seen by the mind's eye. But, as soon as the 

 idea has been grasped, numberless things come to view that 

 resemble the earth's gravity on a smaller scale. " Attrat'tion," as 

 a word, is misleading, for to attract there must be a substance 

 having these impossible qualities of pulling doivn every kind of 

 matter in a vacuum of any substance. 



However, to write my view on this would be months of labour 

 and certain ruin. I merely wanted to suggest how interesting a 

 subject this would be to many more. 



Yours, Ac, F. J. D., " Selest." 



[The subject is, doubtless, most interesting. It is, al.so, ex- 

 ceedingly difficult. Does " Selbst's " theory accord with the de- 

 monstrated fact that the action of gravity is communicated far 

 more rapidly than light travels ? — Ed.] 



PHRENOLOGY.— VECTORS.— INTONING IN SYNAGOGUES. 



[32]— I don't know whether you will consider the following 

 questions worth asking or answering in Knowledge. — 



1. Assuming that phrenology is all wrong, uhat are the causes 

 that determine the shape of the head ? I am myself a sceptic, in 

 the proper sense of tho word : but Lewes' ojiinion, that the brain 

 acts as a whole, and that its functions are not localised, seems to me, 

 a priori, highly improbable. 2. Having lately begun to take great 

 interest in mathematical physics, I read carefully Maxwell's little 

 book on " Matter and Motion." The mode of treatment was almost 

 entirely strange to me ; and what 1 want to know is, whether the 

 new method has any special value : whether any, or what peculiar 

 benefits are gained by the use of vectors in mechanics, as distin- 

 guished from the old geometrical and analytical methods. In any 

 case. Maxwell's treatise wants a good deal of expansion and illustra- 

 tion to make it intelligible to a tyro. 3. My last question, I am 

 afraid, hardly falls within your province, unless you take in omnc 

 srilile ; but it is one to which I have hitherto failed to get an 

 answer. In reading the Scriptures in the Jewish synagogue, a 

 certain intonation is employed. Is this expressed or expressible in 

 the ordinary musical notation, or in any musical notation whatever, 

 and if so, where could it be found ? G. P. 



