The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1871-06-13
THE MYSTERY OF LIFE.
The Physical Nature of Vital Energy:
By L1oNE 9. BEALE,, y. B.. F. R. g.,
Professor Of Pathological Anatomy In Kings
College: Physician to Klnq's Collage HOSPITAL,

The Physical Nature of Vital Energy:
BY LIONEL 9. BEALE, y. B.. F. R. s.,
Professor Of Pathological Anatomy In Kings
College, Physician to Kings College Hospital,
DC.
The conviction that it is "only by recognizing
the physical nature of vital energy that We can
ever hope to establish therapeutics on a frp
| and sound basis" has perhaps led DR.. Terrier
TO express himself rather decidedly against
some views which l ventured TO put forward
some years ago, but which I am readyto give
up as soon as convincing evidence Shall be ad-
If Dr. Terrier will explain what is meant by
s.molecular organization" and molecular
machinery" he will serve the cause he has at
heart far better than by attacking me; for, as
he must have gathered from many OF my re-
marks, I am quite as anxious for light as any
particulars the .'living" resembles and differs
fromIlhe ''non.living." l am quite ready to
admit,that one living thing Is only some other
living thing, or dead thing, or non-llVing thing,
"variously modified 'snnder sundry circuni-
Stances by ''subtle influence" but should
certainly like 10 have the meaning OF these
very. comprehensive phrases explained. a
man may be said to be but duls ~''variously
modided;' but consider what is comprised in
the stv~arfously modified" And perhaps 1 may
be permitted TO ask why. If tis right to attrib-
ute the marvellous phenomena OF nutrition TO
subtle influences, am j to be condemned pc
cause / prefer 10 employ professionally the
simple term ''life,' - OF vitality or vital
power??" -.
II is possible the molecular. machinery"
| may be discovered, but At PRESENT. 10 absolute
ly unknown. 1t has never been seen, and no
one has yet told is what 1t looks like even m
his imagination. Blt yet must admit 6fat IL
Is possible such machinery may Be beyond the
microscopic limit. Tie imagination OF highly
gifted persons may be able to conceive the
structure and mode ~ofac,lon of the molecular
machinery of the existence OF which they, arei
perfectly certain, although 1t has not yet been
rendered evident even TO their sense. Nay,~l
| will admit further, that O sufficient Intelligence
| might be able TO predict from the properties OF
! It's component parts tile character which the
offspring of any given pltce OF MOLECULAR
| machinery will assume after.it has continued
to grow aud multiply, say, for q thousand years.
But do such suggestion enable lis 10 unraVei
the mystery OF the life OF even the simplest
Ching now alive, OF. to determine 10 what par
t.ticliars q living particle differs from the same
particle dead, or why O portion OF o mass OF
! living matter moves upwards as we'll as down
| wards, oriu what manner It takes up non-llYlnS
matter, and communicates TO lnl5 us own
| properties, and divides Into separate portions,
every one Of which possesses equsl powers ass
due to the properties Of the molecular machin-'
! cry which has long been know0 10 exist IN the
imaginalionS OF highly gifled persons; and, al
though as yet no one has succeeded IN actuaiiy
producing such machinery artificially, the e-
| ioRts of philosophers tend towards such a con-
summation" But surely no observer, no
| worker al science will feei satisfied Will sucu
statements US these; and a few will probably
| agree with me in thinking that, although IL De
Elm q sense unphilosophical, 1t is neither incon-
| sistent nor absurd to entertain The oplnlon
that the vital phenomena OF living matter
which. was derived from pre-exisLng living
matter Is due to u peculiar power; alCneu9n at
the same lime / object 10 accept the view tDat
tire action OF q steam engine, which was not
produced by a ~pre-eXisting Steam engine, is
due to a ''steam engine principlei' and con-
fese it appears to me. very extraordinary that
many advocates Of The physical theory Oh li1s
cannot be convinced that the analogy they
draw between o machine, which does not
make itself, OF grow, or multiplying nrnS
matter. which seems to do oil these things, Is
so very slight.as to be beyond every limit e1-
cent that oil the fancy. Ii those who support
the view which DR.. Ferrler so strongly aaVo-
Gates could explain by physics and chemistry
{a) the movements, th) the growth, ana ,lel
ofany organism In this world, they might have
some excuse for the very positive statements
they make about the physical theory. Of life.
PEOPLE are beginning 10 doubt whether,
after all, living things are really 80 IKE ma,
chimes, and crystals. anu physica. pases, anu
complex albuminold matters IN o state OF raplu
chemical change, as they have been ied,to be-
lIeve them to. be: And people are aso begin,
ming 10 doubt II those who have spoken SO
positively on the physical side really know
much more than any one else knows about
the nature of life, although, rom their very
decided manner, It was natural 10 believe
they possessed very peculiar and perfect
knowledge of the subject. Whether The
physical theory OF life would s.sr,n have d re-
slenyhts" thai have been made against 1t, IT.
some other course had been pursued. isemat-
ter Of opinion; but it is quite certain RI Got That some aas
modifying l6em still further. Those who have
watched for ten minutes; under q high magni-
fsing power, the varied Movements . 7i1I1a OF OH liVi ing
question of the nutrition of that living mat
Ter, viii not easily be brought to believe that
sucn phenomena are due to physical NJ and alc chem en-
servers l9rcases daily.-Brltish Medical Jour-
nal.