Dec. 23, 1886] 



NA TURE 



187 



that two nerve-systems do exist — the one for organic, and the 

 other for animal, life. These two, however, are not separate 

 and distinct, but form part< of the same central nervous system. 

 Looking at this diagram of the upper cervical region of the cord, 

 we see that the voluntary striped muscles may be divided into 

 two groups, according to their nerve-supply, viz. a group sup- 

 plied by the anterior (4), and one by the lateral horn of nerve- 

 cells (3), and we know also that these two groups of nerve-cells 

 separate from one another more and more as we pass into the 

 brain region. So that we find for the muscles of the face a dis- 

 tinct separation of two groups, viz. (l) those which move the 

 eyes and the tongue — these are supplied by nerves which arise 

 from the continuation of the anterior horns ; and (2) the muscles 

 of expression and mastication, the nerves of which arise from 

 the continuation of the lateral horn ; and remembering how the 

 smile, the laugh, and the snarl, as well as the action of swallow- 



FlG. 2. 



ing, are at the bottom only modified respiratory movements, we 

 see that Charles Bell was not so far wrong when he inserted a 

 lateral or respiratory S)'stem of nerves in between the anterior 

 and posterior roots. This insertion is actually to be seen at the 

 upper part of the cervical cord (Fig. 2) where a separate nerve 

 is formed by elements which arise laterally, known as the spinal 

 accessory ; and what is most striking is this fact, th.at in this 

 region the fine medullated fibres (2 in Fig.) are found only in 

 connection with these lateral motor nerves, and not with the 

 anterior motor, so that not only do these lateral or respiratory 

 tracts supply special muscles with motor ners-es, but these motor 

 nerves have a closer relationship to the visceral nerves than other 

 motor nerves. What is true of the upper cervical region is true 

 also of the medulla oblongata. Here, again, the visceral fine 

 medullated nerves are closely connected with the motor fibres 

 which arise from the lateral horn, e.g. the chorda tympani and 

 the facial. Undoubtedly this particular group of muscles has 

 some closer relationship to the viscera than other tnink muscles, 



and that relationship is explained immediately if we can accept 

 and extend van Wijhe's investigations, viz. that in the cranial 

 region the muscles which are supplied by the third, fourth, 

 sixth, and twelfth cranial nerves are derived from the myotonies, 

 while the muscles supplied by the seventh and fifth cranial 

 nerves are derived from the lateral plates of mesoblast. 



In fact we may look upon the body as composed of two parts 

 — an outside or somatic part, and an inside or splanchnic part. 

 Each part has its own system of voluntary muscles ; each part 

 is supplied by nerves arranged on the same plan, viz. a 

 ganglionated and non-ganglionated portion ; and each part has 

 its own individual centres of action, the inside portion of the 

 gray matter of the spinal cord containing the centres for the 

 splanchnic roots (2, 3, 5, in Fig. l), i.e. the centres of organic 

 life ; the outlying horns the centres for the somatic roots 

 (I and 4), i.e. centres for the animal life. It is a strange 

 and suggestive fact that these two sets of centres are not 

 arranged symmetrically along the spinal axis, but that two 

 great breaks occur in which the centres of organic life 

 fall into the background in comparison to those of animal 

 life. These two great breaks correspond to the origin of 

 the nerves for the legs and arms, and suggest that the 

 formation of the limbs in the originally symmetrical ancestor 

 of the Vertebrata — i.e. the large outgrowth of somatic elements 

 in two definite portions of the body — caused of necessity a corre- 

 sponding increase in the centres for animal life, while there was 

 no necessity for a corresponding increase in the centres for or- 

 ganic life. The oldest part of us is undoubtedly the vital part ; 

 those organs and their nervous system by which the mere act of 

 existence is carried on. With these two there may have been 

 originally a symmetrically segmental arrangement of locomotor 

 organs. Such symmetry, however, went for good when it was 

 found more convenient to concentrate the locomotor machinery 

 into the anterior and posterior extremities, and with the asym- 

 metrical arrangement of the locomotor organs disappeared also 

 the symmetry of the central nervous system. This correspond- 

 ence between the plan of the central nervous system and the 

 development of the extremities is, to my mind, strongly in favour 

 of the view which I have put before you to-night. In conclu- 

 sion, I thank you for the kindness with which you have listened 

 to me, and hope that I have succeeded in convincing you that 

 Bichaf's teaching of an independent sympathetic system is finally 

 dead. 



SCIENTIFIC SERIALS 

 Revue cT Authropologie, troisieme serie, tome i, 1886, Paris. 

 — On the colour of the eyes and hair in different parts of France, 

 by M. Topinard. This paper will form the introduction to a 

 comprehensive work, in which the author proposes to consider 

 the various methods followed in other countries in collecting the 

 necessary data for determining the racial significance of these 

 physical characteristics. In France, where good charts of 

 stature have been drawn up for the several departments, no statis- 

 tical observations have been made in regard to the colour of the 

 skin, eyes, and hair. This M. Topinard considers at length, 

 both in its significance as a racial characteristic, and in regard 

 to the modifications which it undergoes at various ages, and 

 from different local surroundings. In considering the more or 

 less typical series of colour, the writer draws attention to the 

 extreme rarity in Europe of greenish eyes. In Germany, 

 Prof. Virchow states that, among 6,000,000 persons, green eyes 

 were noted only in six cases. Chinese annals record, however, 

 that green eyes are met with in parts of Asia ; and Pallas notes a 

 similar fact in regard to Siberia. In concluding his exhaustive 

 resume of what has been done in other countries, M. Topinard 

 states that he has addressed letters to the members of the French 

 Association for the Promotion of Science, begging their co- 

 operation in the collection of the necessary data for drawin i up 

 statistical tables of the relative proportion of the different shades 

 of colour of the eyes and hair in various parts of France. — 

 Illyrian anthropology, by Dr. R. Zampa. The author, who is 

 well known for his able contributions to the ethnography of 

 Italy, ha^ turned his attention to the anthropological character of 

 the Illyrian races, who occupied the South Danubi.an and other 

 eastern trans-Alpine Lands, to which tradition points as the 

 original home of the earliest settlers of the Adriatic provinces of 

 central and lower Italy. Dr. Zampa denies that the lUyrians 

 were ever a homogeneous race, and he points out that while 

 those of the north retained through the ages the character of 



