370 Mr. G. Newport on the Reciprocal Relation 



tion to the fact, that in spite of the general analogies which exist 

 between the plants of these formations and those which at pre- 

 sent live in the temperate regions, not one species appears to be 

 identical, at least with any plant now growing in Europe ; and if, 

 in some rare cases, complete identities appear to exist, it is be- 

 tween these fossil plants and American species. Thus the flora 

 of Europe, even in the most recent geological epoch, was very 

 different from the existing European flora. 



XXXII. — On the Reciprocal Relation of the Vital and Physical 

 Forces. By George Newport, F.R.S., F.L.S.* 



The published Report of the Meeting of the British Association 

 for the Advancement of Science, held at Birmingham in Septem- 

 ber 1849, contains an abstract of a paper by Dr. Fowler, F.R.S., 

 with the following title : " If Vitality be a Force having correla- 

 tions with the Forces, Chemical Affinities, Motion, Heat, Light, 

 Electricity, Magnetism, Gravity, so ably shown by Professor Grove 

 to be modifications of one and the same force ? " 



From this abstract it appears that Dr. Fowler regards the vital 

 forces as having not only reciprocal relations among themselves, 

 but also with the physical forces ; — that the vital forces are, in 

 the expressive term employed by Mr. Grove with regard to the 

 physical forces, ^^ mutually correlated," and are convertible the 

 one into the other. Dr. Fowler gives the following illustrations 

 in support of the view : — " The change of temperature to which 

 the infant is necessarily exposed at its birth, the heat going ra- 

 pidly out of it, excites the motion necessary for inspiration. 

 This gives the oxygen of the air access to the carbon of the 

 blood by endosmosis. This again to animal heat. From that 

 electricity may be obtained, and from electricity, by an appro- 

 priate coil, magnetism. Gravity the infant acquires by its growth, 

 and can counteract by its muscular contractility. It may be 

 said that an infant affords no evidence of the production of the 

 forces, light, electricity, and magnetism, but the experiments of 

 Dr. Faraday have demonstrated that all these may be produced by 

 the vitality of the Gymnotus, and rendered palpable to our sight 

 and feeling." Dr. Fowler then further instances the production 

 of light by fire-flies, glow-worms, and some marine animals, and 

 afterwards remarks : — " That mind and vitality reciprocally ex- 

 cite and depress each other must be obvious to all who are atten- 

 tive to their daily feelings ; and all conversant with surgical prac- 

 tice must be aware of the difference in healing of wounds in a 



* Read at a Meeting of the British Association, August 1850. 



