164 ANSWERS TO PRACTICAL QUESTIONS 



20. If a person is plunged under water, will any enter 

 his lungs ? 



No. The epiglottis will close involuntarily, and prevent the 

 admission of water. 



21. Are bed- curtains healthful ? 



No. They prevent the free circulation of the air, and con- 

 fine the waste products thrown off from the body. 



22. Why do some persons take " short breaths " after a 

 meal? 



The distention of the stomach prevents the free action of 

 the lungs. If such persons arc not given to gluttony, the lungs 

 are small or the other organs misplaced. 



23. What is the special value of public parks ? 



They bring fresh air, nunshine, green grass and trees 

 within the reach of all. They are truly the "breathing-holes 

 of a city." They arc thus of incalculable benefit both on ac- 

 count of their sanitary and moral influence. 



24:. Can a person become used fo bad air,, so that it ivill 

 not injure Jiini ? 



The system may come to endure without complaint, but, 

 sooner or later, it never fails to inflict full punishment for the 

 infraction of nature's laws. 



25. Why do ive gape when tec arc sleepy ? 



(See Question 15.) 



The stretching of the nerves may perhaps serve to restore 

 the equilibrium of the nervous influence, disturbed by the at- 

 tention being fixed during the day upon some absorbing occu- 

 pation. 



26. Is a fashionable waist a model of art in sculpture 

 or painting ? 



The Venus of Milo, in the Louvre at Paris, is the beau- 

 ideal of symmetry and beauty, yet the form indicates not a 

 "wasp-waist," but the full, free, flowing outlines of nature. 

 The sculptor and painter in copying the human figure can 

 make no improvement on its Divine Maker. 



