THE RISE OF PATHOLOGY 261 



this field is based on experimental research con- 

 ducted in animals. By physiological research in 

 animals we have gained a profounder knowledge 

 of the functions of the nervous system, of the pro- 

 cess of repair in tissues, of the functions of the 

 various glands, of the processes of digestion and 

 functions of the heart and of the circulatory and 

 respiratory systems. Modern medicine and sur- 

 gery are largely based on the knowledge gained in 

 physiological laboratories. 



The rise of pathology to the rank of a science 

 is comparatively recent. The physiologist having 

 paved the way by giving us a sound knowledge of 

 many of the functions of the body in health, medical 

 men were better prepared to gain an insight into 

 the processes of disease, for it is with these pro- 

 cesses that pathology deals, besides the cause of 

 disease and its effects. The earlier work on pa- 

 thology concerned itself mainly with the naked eye 

 appearances presented by the organs of those that 

 had died of disease. The anatomical and patho- 

 logical examination of the bodies of the dead was 

 frequently conducted with difficulty and in the 

 face of opposition from the hand of the law and 

 public opinion which forbade any tampering with 

 the human cadaver. Consequently these examina- 

 tions were usually made in secret on exhumed 

 bodies and no records were kept. At most a few 

 favoured pupils of the early pathologist gathered 

 a smattering of knowledge from the hurried obser- 



