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KIDD'S LONDON JOURNAL. 



hazard, like you, gentlemen poets, some perilous 

 leaps. In setting out I shall create only irritable 

 vessels; then I add nerves and the hermaphro- 

 dite nature; then Beings who merit something 

 better, who can unite, and look around upon the 

 world by the organs of sense. I make' an ar- 

 rangement of powers and instruments, and divide 

 them according to my pleasure ; I create insects, 

 birds, fishes, mammalia. I make lap-dogs for 

 your ladies, and horses for your beaux ; and for 

 myself, Men- — that is to say, fools and philoso- 

 phers, poets and historians, theologians and 

 naturalists. I end then with Man, as Moses 

 told you long before. I give you the language of 

 signs, or natural language, that you may amuse 

 yourselves, and that if any mute should be found, 

 there may be for him one other language besides 

 that of speech. I assure you, that, although no 

 one has thought of acknowledging it, I have 

 not been able to effect this, but by putting in 

 communication, in a strange manner, your body, 

 and your muscles with your cerebral organs. 



The first section of the second part being here 

 finished, I ought to beg my readers to examine 

 all that I have said, so that they may be more 

 convinced of the truth of my first principles, 

 which I have explained in a superficial manner; 

 but I think that he who is so blind as not to see 

 by the light of the sun, will not do better by the 

 additional light of a candle. 



The second section contains various subjects. 



1 . Of National Heads. 



Here I agree in some measure with Helvetius, 

 whom I have heretofore contradicted. I shall, 

 perhaps, fallout withBlumenbach, Camper, and 

 Soemmering, although I gladly confess that I am 

 not certain respecting it. You may nevertheless 

 perceive, why some of our brethren cannot count 

 more than three, — why others cannot conceive 

 the difference between mewn and tuum, — why 

 lasting peace among men will be always but a 

 dream. 



2. Of the difference between the Heads of Men 

 and Women. 



That which I could say on this subject must 

 remain entre nous. We know very well that the 

 heads of the women are difficult to unravel. 



3. On Physiognomy. 



I shall show here that I am nothing less than 

 a physiognomist. I rather think, that the wise 

 men have baptized the child before it was born ; 

 they call me craniologist, and the science which 

 I discovered, craniology; but, in the first place, 

 all learned words displease me; next, this is not 

 one applicable to my profession, nor one which 

 really designates it. 



The object of my researches is the Brain. 

 The cranium is only a faithful cast of the external 

 surface of the brain, and is consequently but a 

 minor part of the principal object. This title 

 then is as inapplicable as would be that of maker 

 of rhymes to a poet. 



Lastly, I cite several examples to give to my 

 readers something to examine, so that they may 

 judge, not by principles alone, but also by facts, 



how much they can hope from the effect of these 

 discoveries. You know, without doubt, my dear 

 friend, how much strictness I observe in my 

 comparisons. 



If, for example, I do not find in good horse, 

 the same signification as in good dog, and if I do 

 not find in this the same as in good cook, or good 

 philosopher, and if it is not in the same relation 

 to each of these individuals, — the sign or word is 

 of no value to me ; for I admit no exceptions in 

 the works of nature. 



Finally, I would warn my disciples against a 

 rash use of my doctrine, by pointing out many 

 of its difficulties. On the other hand, I shall 

 get rid of many doubters 



Allow me, at present, to touch upon two 

 important defects in my work. First, it would 

 have been my duty and my interest to conform 

 more to the spirit of the age ; I ought to have 

 maintained, that we could absolutely ascertain 

 by the form of the skull and the head, all the 

 faculties and all the propensities, without excep- 

 tion ; I ought to have given more isolated expe- 

 riments, as being a hundred times repeated; I 

 ought to have made of the whole, one speculative 

 study, and not to submit my doctrine, as I have 

 done, to so many investigations and comparisons; 

 I should not ask of the world so much prepar- 

 atory knowledge and perseverance; I ought to 

 have mounted Parnassus upon Pegasus, and not 

 upon a tortoise. Where is the charm or the 

 interest of a science, so hard to acquire? The 

 premature sentences which have been pro- 

 nounced, the jokes and squibs which have been 

 let off at my expense, even before my intention or 

 my object was known, prove that men do not wait 

 for research, in order to draw their conclusions. 



I remark, in the second place, I have not suffi- 

 ciently appreciated the a priori — that is to say, 

 the philosophy which is to be founded upon the 

 a priori. I have had the weakness in this, to 

 judge others by myself; for that which I have 

 considered as well established by my logic, I 

 have invariably found incomplete or erroneous. 

 It was always difficult for me to reason soundly 

 upon the experiments which I make, as well as 

 upon those made by others, although I am per- 

 suaded that I can collect truths only on the 

 highway of experience. It is possible neverthe- 

 less, very possible, that others may have a more 

 favorable organisation than I have, to arrive at 

 knowledge a priori-, but you will do me the 

 justice not to insist upon my entering the lists 

 with other arms than my own. 



In 1796, Dr. Gall commenced giving courses 

 of Lectures at Vienna. Several of his hearers, 

 as well as others, who had never heard him lec- 

 ture, published notices of his doctrines, and 

 have represented them with greater or less ex- 

 actness. Among the better class, the following 

 deserve to be noticed : — 

 Froriep. — Who has printed an Exposition of 



the Doctrine of Dr. Gall.— 3rd Edition, 1802. 

 Martens. — " Quelque chose sur la Physiogno- 



mie." — Leipzic, 1802. 

 Walther, — " Exposition critique de la Doc- 

 trine de Gall, avec quelques Particularites 

 concernant son Auteur." — Zurich, 1802. 



