Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1873-05-30

No. II.


The second lecture of the University
course was delivered in the College Chapel,
on the 2lst., by DR.. King, of the Medical
Department. His subject, as announced,
Nothing New Under the Sun; or, Man in
Art and God in Man. gave little clue to
his subject The lecture was a clear and
interesting description Of the ways in which
man, in his most famous arts and inven-
tions, has but initiated at a distance the
wonderful handiwork of God in the human
body
Promising that investigation and research
have shown that many inventions of man,
supposed to be modern, had been antici-
pated centuries ago, by man, as, for in
stance, the Chinese made wooden hams long
before the Yankees did wooden nutmegs,
the lecturer went on to show that the di-
vine inventor and architect of the human
body. had long anticipated man, in his
highest achievements.
Thus the wonderful perfection achieved
bv man in musical instruments falls far
short of the perfection # that most Won
derful organ, the human ,oice, which gives,
bv slight changes Of the larynx, over Riae
thousand moduations, and adds the charm
of expression which no other instrument can
equal.
The optician, in the construction of his
telescopes and contrivances TO avoid spheri-
cal and chromatic alteration, but initiates
the lenses and machinery of the human eye.
The photographer sensitive plate IS but
feeble imitation of the retina, whose sensi-
tive surface receives and transmits an i'm
& oi.fn.f1
hillionth part Of minute. while the brain
preserves them, in the memory, as in 4
photograph album.
In architecture, the art of the dome
builder eliminated in the ellipSOid dome of
ST. Peters, but long before the praises of
God were sung in the ellipsoid dome Of the
human skull In the decoration Of our
buildings. the highest efforts of the art of
man are put to shame by the decoration of
the human body as illustrated in the beauty
of woman beauty which has its uses, as
without the magnetism OF woman smile
the race would have become extinct.
Studying the circulation of the blood I'M
der the microscope. We find the red and
white corpuscles travelling along the veins
like the cars on our roads. or boats on the
canals-some going faster than others, like
the express trains, some stopping here and
there to leave iron, salt, sulphur, &c, in
different portions ofthe body. If we ask
where Is the counterpart Of the locomotive,
the human organism is itself a locomotive,
with its steam puff, its cony ersion of food
taking the place oGJueD into force; and
improving on the locomotive engine in that
it consumes its own smoke.
Our systems Of water mains and pipes but
initiate the arterial system in the body, and
tho Ix-rp no Tho wood p
ments copy the tessellated structure Of the
epithelial cells The nerves are the tele-
graphs Of the system. We rightly honor
the names of Henry and of Morse; but 1t
has taken the race SIX thousand years TO
initiate with our wires and railway switches
the process BY which notice that crumb of
bread has got out of its proper course IN
the throat, Is telegraphed to the brain, and
the order returned by which the stray
morsel is switched back into the right track.
But why. We hear it asked. could not this
organism. 50 wonderfully contriyed, have
been arranged 50 rs to run without disease?
Shall the thing formed ask of its maker,
Why hast thou made me thus Disease Is
not a misfortune or mistake. Il l. a boon
to law-breaking race. 1t Is but the re
action Of the organism against some broken
law The man, formed for active cxertion,
who chooses TO lead instead the sluggish
life of the frog OF snake. Will have his lungs
riddled with holes. ike those of the frog,
or will he reduced to one lung. like the
snake. Without such reduction he would
die from the over stimulation OF the blood
50 when an artery Is obstructed the heart
becomes enlarged, to furnish more power,
and we call the enlargement disease. But
it serves to prolong life and stamps the seal
of perfection on the body.
In conclusion. the lecturer said that if
a. Shakespeare -aSs. there are tongues in
trees and sermons in stones, what Is there
not in this human body. which ], IN itself
an encyclopaedia of nature. Would you
rival Wren. IN architecture. study the
architecture OF the bones of man. Would
You cut from marble a Dying Gladiator or
Greek Slave, study the elements of beauty
in the human form Would You improve
upon the orchestra or the organ, study the
vocal organs Would you make continents
clasp hands. and equator the globe with
tclegrapla. watch the working OF the ncr-
yous system. You can study law. divinity
and political economy in this republic of
living cells Yet do Your best there will be
nothing new in an You DO, and your best
works of art viii still be eclip~el by the
wonderful work Of the Divine Creator.
The lecture abonndei in instructive de-
-cripti0n~ Of tie anatomy of the yarl1usor-
gans alluded 10. which were made clear by
reference 20 numerous diagrams and enlarg-
ed sketches showing the structure of the
parts. Ii was highly interesting through
out. AMI was listened TO with close and
ratified attention by an intelligent au-
die.7ce. which filed the Chapel.
Tie ann al convention of the Sunday
S..t.,ol. I'm RI, counties Of Franklin ana