Semi-weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1853-18??, 1855-10-17
From the New York Evening Post.

niuetY OF 0un0reIt years.. daier goes even be-
yond this, and says that man might live not less
than two centuries. But then he must not waste
himself, either with excessive labor or with mental
activity and nervous irritation. Ease is favorable
TO longevity Temperance, cheerfuness, moderate
labor, moderate exercise, and moderate amusement,
and plenty of rest, both mental and bodily, are all
favorable to long life. With these, and supposfhg
that man avoids accidents and malaria his natural
term OF life is more than century.
But few men die of old age. Almost all die of
disappointment passional, mental or bodily toll
accident. The passions kill men sometimes even
suddenly. The common expression "choked with
passion" has little eXaggeration in it; for
though not suddenly fatal, strong passion shortens
life. Strong-bodied often die voung-weak
men live longer than the strong, for the strong
their strength, and the weak have none to use. The
latter take of themselves, the former do not
AS it is with body, so it is with mind and temper
The strong apt to break down, or, like the can
die, to run; the weak burn out. The inferior ami
mails which live, in general, regular and temperate
lives have generally their prescribed term of years.
The horse lives twenty-five years; the OK fifteen to
twenty the lion about twenty the dog ten to twelve;
the rabbit eight; the guineapig six to years.
These numbers all bear similar proportion to the
time the animal takes to grow to its full size
When the cartilag nous parts of the hone become
ossifed the bone ceases to grow. This takes place
in man at about twenty years on the average in the
camel at eight; in the horse at five; in the at
four in the lion at four; in the dog at two in the
cat at eighteen months; in the rabbit at twelve; in
the guinea-pig at seven. Five or six times these
numbers give the term of life; five is pretty near
the average; some animals greatly exceed 1t. But
of all the animals, is the that seldom comes
up to his average. He ought to live hundred
years, according to this physiological law, for five
times twenty are hundred; but instead of that,
he scarcely reaches on the average four times his
growing period, whilst the dog reaches six times;
and the rabbit eight times the standard of meas
urenent. The reason : obvious-man is not only
the most irregular and the most Incorporate, bat
the most laborious and hard-worked of all animals.
He is also the irritable of all animals; and there
is reason to believe, though we cannot tell what
animal secretly feels that than any other ami
NAL cherishes wrath to keep it warm, and con-
sumes himself with the fire of his own secret re-
Elections.
Marvellous stories are told of the longevity of
rocks and fishes in general but yet little
is known of their perous of growth; fishes, how
ever have soft bones, and some of them
cartiiaginous. Tins is favorable growth and con-
sequenty to longevity, for it is when the cartilage
becomes hard in mans bones that he to grow
and old age is characterized 10y dryness and brittle
ness of bone. This fact suggested to enthusiast
years ago that the best mode OF Increasing the
life of man to feed him on substance that would
give softuess to his bones and having examined the
chemical analysis of bone, he to the conclu--
sion that bread WAS about one of the very
ticles of diet that human beings could make Of
He denounced the staff of life with vehemence; any
thing but bread eat turnips potatoes, cabbage,
or boiled cabbage if you prefer them, but don't eat
bread. Even gin and water he preferred TO slice
of quartern loaf; and i'll the sole conversation we
ever had with him he Informed us that he had f,
male patient whom he was feeding on nothing else
except apples and gin. His idea was that by Ger
tain course Of diet would make the human bones
like whalebone, so strong, and yet so pliabe, that
they would be in danger of breaking. It
philosophy in fever, but it had fact as ali fevers
havsRato begin with.
Rdfon aud Halter both maintain that the longcv-
ity of before the deluge is to be scientifically
accounted for Button says that the earth was then
less solid and compact, and all its productions had
less consistency consequently bones were less bony
and more cartiagnous; man could therefore grow
longer time; puberty was later. Hence we find
that the antedluvians began to have and daugh
after they far advanced in life. His num-
bers, however will not work in this argument, for
he wants to make out that one hundred and thirty
years was the period of puberty in those days-in
the face of the fact that EnOch lived siXtyhve years
and begat Methuseah. Seven times the age of pu-
bertY he considers the natural term of life and
EN- times one hundred and thirty will serve his pur
pose very well for aatediluvan, but what can he
do with times siXtytiv but Shrug his shout
ders and give it up? But it is no easy matter to
give up theory so he overlooked the unfavorable
fact, and accepted the favorable one Nevertheless
there may be portion of truth in his notion.
Age is evidently drying up of the texture of
the body--a hardening of its parts. This growing
result of time is perceptibe throughout the frame.
The bones of youth soft, and the flesh of youth
is juicy. Even the very pumpness and hardness of
young flesh is but the Imprisonment of juice. This
uiciness is youthits converse is age audit is
everywhere-from the skin to the bone. The very
amount of age is determined by it. Fat hides it
little, but fat is not juice and therefore it
ergy, it wants elasticity, it is easily tired and has
very little restorative power. 1t is there older
than leanness 1t is sort of concealed age. Fat
people older than they to be, and the X
ercise they take to keep down their fat is wasting to
their strength. They will live longer by following
the example of the good old English gentlemen who
live at home at ease.
Fatigue shortens life but it is not muscular ia
tigue alone, but digestive fatigue also. Philip Cor
moro, who made living study and died upwards
of hundreds years, says that gluttony kills
than plague, or famine. 70 gluttopy add drunk
cnness, and you have two of deaths most success.
full emissares. Perhaps there very few persons
whose term of life is shortened by other
or both of these. Few wise enough to learn by
experience and those who do learn often learn too
late. Even temperate man after long journey
sits down to his supper and glass of grog, and
feeling as. sober after it before it, and withal
very comfortable and jolly with friend, he fancies
another will make him more do him no harm.
So another he takes and he goes to bed as sober
a judge, congratulating himself on mis- prudence in
stopping in good time. But what is the grog about?
1t is great hypocrite, that grog, rather merely
follows the law of its nature, which deceives
only the ignorant and the obdurate. So long tke
grog is merely in the stomach it does harm all
1t lies there just water might lie. 1t mus be ia
ken up by the absorbents of the system before it
takes full effect Is must go into the blood and
scad it. and fire the brain, and this process some
times occupies several hours. Hence the man who
goes to bed sober with two glasses grog often rises
IN no with head he