68 HEARING AND TOUCH. 



him or not. Then, as to the knowledge which is 

 obtained of the object of immediate (even pretty 

 smart) touching, the absurdity of it is well ex- 

 posed by Butler in these lines, 



" Some have been beaten till they know 

 What wood the cudgel's of, by the blow ; 

 Or kick'd until they can tell whether 

 A shoe be Spanish or neat leather." 



There are many proofs of a very close resemblance 

 between hearing and instantaneous touching. A 

 sound which grates on the ear-, produces a tremu- 

 lous motion in the whole body, and the instances 

 of " setting the teeth on edge ;" that is, irritating 

 the sensitive substance which lines their sockets, by 

 whetting scythes and sharpening saws, or crushing 

 cinders under the foot, are quite familiar. Hogarth, 

 whose philosophy was as true to nature as his 

 painting, never was more happy than in the dis- 

 cord of " villanous noises," by which the " Enraged 

 Musician" is tortured to his very finger ends, and 

 would have appeared so down to the toes, too, if 

 it had suited the painter to bring them into view. 

 This coincidence of sound and touch is worth 

 knowing and attending to ; not only that we may 

 observe nature readily and pleasantly, but that we 

 may, in some instances, do it safely. If a timid 

 man stands high upon an insecure footing, the 

 kindly admonition to " hold on," if given too 

 hastily or too loudly, is the most likely means of 

 tumbling him down ; and on that principle, they, 

 who have not familiarized themselves to sudden 

 sounds, so as to distinguish the impression on the 

 ear from an impression on any other part of the 

 body, cannot go safely to those places where na- 



