New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1874-03-03
NERVE POWER.

,r7urrY IN AMERICA THAN IN EUROPE, BOTH
IN MEN AND MANIFESTATIONS RELATIONS BE-
TWEEN TIE NERVOUS SYSTEM AND fhE ACTION
or THE HEART-METuODS or CIIECkING CON
vuIsIyE REPORTS, SUCH As COUGHING, a.
-, xocc,sIoNAI CORRESPONDENT OF TIE rRIRUNFl
RosroN March DIR Brown-S6quard delivered
~. second lecture last night 10 a large audience
,o,r. AND GENTLEMEN. In the last lecture ! treu
,Aov several points relating to the force when VIC
,neN 70 exist in nerves. particularly lnsiS'eu On wa"
Ieal the unity Of force in the nervous system es
nv tried 10 show that every nervous action % INC
- Of an expenditure Of nervous force Ihere are "
,g taets however which may be considered as eons'-
ne an objection to that. will mention some VI tneul'
T nrpcipaI one is that know full wen that certain
rr,. of the body may be extremely weak Whhe o'hers
sn strong But that certainly Is no Objection SINCE
:. admit that the communication rs oostrueteu Ne
-, the mart which is weakened aud the rest IL Is
at,-al that there should be dintnutlOn OF Ioree
- mart Besides this, there is something ID the
,s,,ops system az well 10 the muscles 'ha' Per''S
.aeon after an irritation There IS properly VI oel'
on. tssue and muscles especially which We SAY exeits-
hity The exctabty OF the nervous sy stem s entirely
and absolutely independent Of the amount Of nervous
ierce. Perhaps it IL wrong, however, 10 say as
| have lust done. that there IL no dependence
Of one upon the other. There may be dependence IN
this way that the greater amount Of nervous force
,hs lees exeabity there is and rice versa, the greater
The amount Of exctabty The less amount of nervous
force People who have been M people who are nat
uray extremely weak, or those VINO have 1851 good
dealof blood and have been weakened III that way al
other words people who have very little nerve force
arc as y well known, extremely excltabe. They Will
lump 10 a noise and in other ways show nervousness
There a. therefore something quite distinct in these
two thincs-excabity and nerve force. This property
oexctaton il nothing but the power to receive an ex-
citation Persons who are extremely strong, viii not
generally "a moved by excitatOB. They WILL Of course,
crrsrtae the exttatton; they VIII judge what IL Is
~ nv l remain calm unu,r II. While, on the con
,r,v persons whose nervous system is weak ana VINO
have e nerve force viii react under any excitauon,
however slight. without giving to the mind time 70 |
,huk Of what the excitatou is.
Issd IN my last lecture that the nervous force is |
oute different from electricity that is force by itse
hat must add to this statement another one. that the
pervOus system Is more less charged with electricity
All the ume IN health The TIVE forces, electricity anu
nerve power are both present. but not always improper
ton one 70 the other. sometimes there may De an
oppose condition But certainly the nerve force IS not
electricity. as well know that the speed Of the nerve
tor IL only from so to 600 feet IN second While the
srecd electricity as YOU KNOW - thVus1uus anu 1AO
ssDds OF tunes greater.
my frrycE THAT Is EXERTED CFoN TIE NERVES. !
Inos come TO the principal object OF TINS lecture,
winch m PRODUCES subject that must extend one or
tso more ectures-tbat Is. the influence that the /
nervous system upon itself by the force that we
cal, nerve force There kinds OF such influence,
which are absolutely distinct from the other. One
consists the pro uctOn Of the activity, either normal
or morbid; the other consists in the cessation Of the
morbid or normal activity These two great influences
Of nerve force acting upon parts at distance more or
s- great cover almost all the facts relating TO the i'll
aaence az the nervous system upon itself shall TINS
evening enter fBy into the history Of facts which
show that the nervous system can stop the action Of
part Of rs extent An know this subject is OF
comparatively recent discovery and the principal fact
developed j. Tia. which relates 20 the heart The /
brothers Welr.l discovered that the heart per
iecty healthy man may ne stopped suddenly IN ts |
action i1 way which is quite different from !
lst which regards muscles generally. If We I
salyau.ze d muscle that has been less /
10 contraction by current passing to and fro stopping
and passing again so that the muscle is contracting and
relaxing. show you now IN this movement up aud |
exerted by the front Of my armsuppose that this
= acting and pass current the that goes
te muscles thus acting, Immediately the movement
stops; ~ that there Is something similar 10 the
cessation ~ the action OF the heart But the action
stops not because the muscles have stopped acting. on
The contrary, The muscles are acting with wonderful
power, the greatest that they may have under the
OF electricity that passing and the contraction
perfectly fixed so long a. the current passes
not the production Of passive state According 10
discovery the brothers Weber when the Big
IN the that goes the heart, and winch we call the
par vaIm. thus Influenced, the heart stops pass.vey
not actively, ike the muscles OF my arm. The walls Of
the heart remain perfectly faced, perfectly mouonless
from want Of activity. During that time the heart is
bed and by blood reaching 1t, and becomes
Vey much di,tended after short time, 10 does not
rJeCt Tic blood 1t is constantly receiving. There -
therefore, j that stoppage Of the hearts ac-
Ton phenomenon quite peculiar. And II j. !
a phenomenon which implies certain kind Of
sctyty. For although there passive effect obtained
spassivy produced in tue heart there activity Ia
the nerves 10 heart produce that cessation
There influence upon certain parts Of the heart be-
longing % the system, and IL certainly an ac
tyy although 10 consists 10 stopping q movement 10
D. ins you stop the wheel Of carriage by
pushing wedge upder il forciby.
ACTON OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM on THE HEART.
The great agents Of the rhythmical Of the
beart small gaugla, composed OF cells Of gray mat
Ten. They suddenly rendered passive by the
peculiar influence exerted upon them such effect
ha been observed frst by the galvanzation OF the
nerve Of the neck that Il spoke Of and it was aferward
found appear when the medua oblOngata, center
ron which that starts. was galvanized. In ex
psument made by French physiol0 Gst-L galOis-it
was found that the crushing Of the medua oblongata
produced an Of the heart. But he did not dis
cminate between that kind Of cessation and death.
lie thought that death caused by this crushing OF
Tie medUla oOOngsta, and that the heart had ceased
because u lad lost the source OF it, acton When /
took up the question found that simple preklng OF
tie medua OblOngata could produce arrest OF the
bearrs action Ny friend, Prof. Charles Rouget who
Up the question of the mechanism OF the phenomena
BY which an organ arrested in its activity considered
that takes place the heart Is similar 10 other
phenomena which be noted at the time he published
Dis paper. he established this law that all such
phenomeHa-whch shall call the phenomena Of arrest
though ID English they generally called lnhIbitory
phenomena-oeeurred always through the same