134 THE LAWS OF ORGANIC 



of blood, and thereby lessening the proportion 

 exposed to the air in the lungs, according to the 

 views developed in the first chapter. 



CXLI. The diminution of the temperature of 

 animals is less injurious in very early than in ad- 

 vanced life, because it is found that at the former 

 period they sooner regain their accustomed stand- 

 ard of heat. In speaking of this, Dr EDWARDS ob- 

 serves, "Nous voyons que c'est a mesure que la fa- 

 culte de developper la chaleur s'accroit que la fa- 

 culte de supporter Tabaissement de la temperature 

 du corps diminue."* After these observations, he 

 alludes to the necessity of such a law with respect 

 to those animals which are forced to leave their 

 young in search of food. The necessity of such a 

 provision in the constitution of the young is evi- 

 dent ; but the simple statement of this is no ap- 

 proach towards an explanation of the principles on 

 which it depends. The faculty of bearing a dimi- 

 nution of temperature is not regulated by the con- 

 dition lie states, viz. the power of generating heat. 

 I have already shown, in the previous tables, that 

 infants, in general, have a superior temperature 

 to adults ; and that rabbits vary little, if at all, 

 at different ages, if exposed to a medium tempe- 

 rature. The truth of this I have proved by di- 

 rect experiment ; and therefore it is inadmissible 

 to suppose that young animals suffer less than 

 adults from the action of cold because they ge- 



* Dr EDWARDS, p. 242. 



