The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1855-07-11
The Length of Human Life. Z.

The Length OF Human Iafe
An article in the last number Of Black
woods 4Mago=ine, on the above subject,
holds out the idea that the age of man K
should be one hundred years instead of n
Ithree-score and ten. The author says,
I" We dot simply die; we usually kill our
selves. Our habits, our passions, our
anxieties of body and mind, these shorten 2
our lives, and prevent us from reaching
| the natural limit of human existence"
| Gluttony, he asserts, destroys more lives
than Incorporate drinking, and yet, 7"it
is the fashion to restrict the term sobriety :
to the moderate use of liquors. Asober .
life no doubt implies moderation in all {
things-in eating, drinking, and in thes =
enjoyment of all the pleasures of life.st
But although we have read and heard
much of moderation in eating and drink-sa
ing, the difficulty has always arisen in our q
minds respecting the true standard of -
moderation. What is it? who willade-e
fine it? The standard suitable. for one is a
not for another. No man can doubt for
a moment the benefits of moderation
temperance in all things. But no man
can or should set up his own standard for
his neighbor And yet it may trnly be !.
said, that general rules for temperance
may be set down, which, if followed, would
be of immense benefit; such as 'snot to
eat so much as will unfit the mind for its
usual exertions; or so much as will make :
the body heavy and torpid j Nor to pass
hastily from one extreme of living 70
another, but to change slowly and cautious
ly, to eat plain and wholesome food, and
to proportion its quantity to the temper
ament, the age, and strength, of the eater.
:, Not to allow the appetite for food or drink
to regulate the quantity to be taken, but
experience, void of sensual desire" These
rules, if followed, will tend to- promote I
health, and thus lead to a greater length
of days and years in mans existence; still
there is natural period for man to exist
and neither food, drink, nor .sobriety can
place him beyond that. We find that,
! each species of animal has its boundary
of life, and so has man. Heshas his in-a
fancy youth, middle age, old age, and
then comes the winding sheet and the.
. narroao house. But how long does, his
existence last2 how many years .encircle
5 his natural lifel These are important
questions. We find that thirty years is
considered to be q generation; that iSss
the whole world is re-peopled every thirty
years with new race and q like number
, departs from it in that period. But no
person considers thirty years as the natu-t
}, raj term of mans life-seventy years be-
ing generally set down as that limit. A.
:, book, however, recently published in Paris,
. by NJ Flourens, which has created no.
: small sensation in that city, places old
!, age at eighty-f years, and the complete,
9 natural life of man about century He
!. places first manhood between As ana 60,
and second manhood from that to seventy,
: instead of old age at that period. We
! are inclined to accept his view Of tho
e flquestion as the most correct one. Button
the naturalist, entertained such an opinion.
n The rule of life laid down by him is, that
: : animals live from six to seven times the
number of years required to complete their
growth, such as the horse, which COM
lpletes its growth at four years, lives from 90
: twenty-four years, and man who takes
: eighteen years to reach his full growth
may live more than hundred years,
: There are but few men who live to q hun
. drcd years, and just as few horses that
!. live to twenty ty-four, but that affords no
, reason why many men, and almost all men
! of a sound constitution. may not live for
$ century. The table of NJ. Flourcns
. relating to life is as follows:
n Man grows for 30 years, and lives 80 or 90
o The camel "a 40
i The horse E... %
: The OK q" Is or 90
a The dog !" 10 or Ia
! This is somewhat different from Button,
y but he sets it down as fixed rule that.
e all the larger animals live about FIVE times
Il longer than the time required for their
!, ELL scx, e