Smyrna times., 1860-02-09

DiferenCe between Vital and PhYSlcal
Strength.
In the present day Of admiration for pAysi-
cal strength, it is worth while to call attention
to the other kind OF superiority, that of rare
and finer ritaltty ofSyStem. An English med
zeal essay thus dscourses upoR it
Great power OF exertion is quite consistent
with extreme deiIcacy. and with the presence
OF, or al least wltk The pre.dIspositon to organ
ic disease. Napoleon was perhaps capable of
undergoing, and did, in fact, undergo greater
fsUgues than almost any other man who ever
lived yet his digestion was always most deli
cate, and very easily deranged, whilst he died
Of an hereditary organic disease at the sge of
fity-fye. 1t is also singular thing that great
power Of exerton in one diraction does not al
ways imply it's existence in another. Many
men can 60 through extraordinary muscular
labor, and put up with all sorts of exposure and
hardship, who are quite unequal to continuous
exertIon of the eyes, the brain and the nerves;
ard the converse occasionally holds good as
well. Long lite and continued good health are
ly depend upon a sort of balance and propor-
ton between powers which are inconsiderable
10 themselves. 1t seems a sort of perversion
ofierms to speak of person who keeps on liy-
ing feebIy and quietIy-nore like vegetable
thaa man-for eighty years, as being stronger
tran one who dies worn out at sixty by extreme
labor, or even by long continued and long re-
tsled disease.
The difiulty Of saying what is meant by
physical strength, lies in the difficulty of dis
tnguishing between the mechanical, and what
for want of a better word, must be called the
vital powers of the body. Look upon the body
as a machine-and the broken arm, the tuber-
ces in the lungs, and the cancer in the liver,
prevent you from calling it strong; but if it
goes on acting for years, and wonderfully re-
covering itselfagain and again from the catas-
irophe which these defects tend to produce,
there must be a strong something somewhere.
What is that something! The whole bject
ID one of endless wonder and curiosity, but it is
we'll deserving of far more notice than it has
usually recelved-if for no other reason, at
least Tor the sake of illustrating the crudity of
the common notions about phy slcal strength
which al! sorts Of popular writer's are coutInu-
ally preaching. We cannot here do more than
hInt at very few of the endless varieties of
what is called constitution winch would re-
quirs examination by any one who really wish
ed 10 understand the subject. The power OF
supporting hardship is one obvious form Of
strength. but this power is by no means uni
vsrsally associated with great muscular force
and not uncommonly co.exists with excessive
delicacy of orga nizatiOn in many important par
fIculars. DIR. Kane was wonderful instancG
ofthis. Though professional sailor, he never
went 10 sea without suffering from sea-sickness
and he suffered under both disease Of the hear
and chronic rheumatism; yet he underwear
suferings in the Arctic Seas under which the
strongest men, especially trained to endure sucl
hardships, sickened aud died. Ia great catas
trophss-such as wrecks, sieges, and the re
tfeats of defeated armies-the finer men d
aot by any means endure hardship best. and tn
most delicate women will occasionally g
through more than any one else."
Female Statu-quo- Society.
AS a counter influence 10 the " Woman
Rights Convention" or with the purpose {
keeping the female virtues of hoursekeepin
and economy in statu-quO, society has bee
turned in New York under the title of III
Hearth Stone Club. The correspodent of th
Charleston Mercury says:
. "One cannot repress smile at the lud
crOus simplicity Of some of the subjects th
are grsvely discussed at their weekly meeting
One week the all.absorbing topic is pumpk
pies, and how to make and cook them. A
other week the engrossing theme is i" "codi
balls" Elaborate essays are read on the Ii
of the bottle in nursing,' taking up and pu
ting down carpets removing stains from
gloves and hundred other tiny domestic