, 1879-02-14
DIR. .FLlNT'S SKEpTlClSM.
Experiments nu tbs Human 1sntly S1,nke His
1seltuf In thc f'arreiatton Of Forces.
x.,r t;,rk 7to~tf tsb II.

Ezrrr1nenta nu t1,s Human 1sutly Shnke His
1!eltrf In thc Correintton Of Forces.
.yt,r Turk 1,'orfd, Feb. u.
l'lJc trct,lyc.ruunl vi ific Bellevue Hospital
Medical College was crowded with students aht
practitioners at II o'clock yesterday morning.
It wns understood tint Dr.. Austin Flint, dr.,
the Professor oi Physiology, wln' VIA to lecture
On tAnlinal Heat" at Tint hour. would have
something Ut unusual Interest to ant. Dr.. Flint
first alluded briefly to the facts tanItar to every
body, namely, tllat The normal temperature Ut
ihc huu,an body is always 1o5 degEecs Fal.rcf';
hcit, 10 mattor whether tln human animal
pitches lis tent on tie burning sa1tlR of lentraI
Africa or cuts l>lbocr III Labrador; thAt Tie
cyrnNcss 0f the temperature Is niatAtatncd bf
evaporation from tIc sEn whcn The weather. M IL
hot and by natural dctnund fur food containing
fat when ths climase ia culd. II was only
until comparatively recent times, he sail, that
p,ystolOglsts were a1le to explain how animal
hcat was pruduced, amt he tho,'rl!t the simple
theory OF oxidzation, Or combustion, was too
readily accrptcd, Us It failed Ia account LOT al
ot ilsc heat that 10 produced III llytn. bnd!Gs
Nr Flint sa1si that he lal given this subject par
tlculnr atteutiou Tor seVrra! weeks PAST 10 lts
Bearing on tho tllcoEy of the rcuEtc!atton@ @ anl
conservation al tho forcct 11e knew that what
hr wus going TO say wotllA subject Linl to crift-
ys,1l, md even to ridlcutc, perhaps. but that
should not deter him from speaking ms ln11lu
freely ami inacpcnacntly as wab i'Is CUSTOM, =.
lie theory ~ Generally acrepica now OF tie tus-
relation OF forrcs. Many persons hau proved to
tllcr own satisfaction that tla force retlcsateti
Gy lhe fall If pound weight through q. feet
u spare WAS lust sufficient to raise tho temper.
uturc o[ pullnd of water un1 degree: but any
experiment to prove tilat the rise Of the teni'
pe1ature of pound Ut wateF tan aesfst mas
su1t.ient to raise pound weigh: ~ icct Or to
raisu 7.s!.pounl weight onc foot Ind been
| carefully hyui1el.
Dr. Flint then undertook 10 prove that The
coInbtlstIon Of Ill tho food consumed in given
time by nu average man inust ptolnco more
| heat anu lorce than could be accounted Tor u,
| ali tha phenomena OF Clrrulattou, respiration
persprastun, muscular action, &C. Ihe sxpefi,
tncnts Of Dr. Draper, OF this city, had proved
prctty accurately the amount Of heat ptoduced
Dcr ho.,r by tie human body. but Int. tl1t
similar experEfnent-timt Of merely taking
quantity oi mixed fool, about "hat a!1 of.tsnary
man would consume III one DAT. anu onfalas;
heat thut il evolved by thu combustion o. l9o.i
liz llsd uso experius,,tc4 upoh li',lsclf' md he
cited his uc.ebrated experiment. on t!'s
peae.tr!an, Weston. TSl .tooard tavs LEI usst
pss+vs1 ssEs In II Il ssss ssss'3 expsfs"is i.
abuut l}s per cunt Ut tue tcat which should haYe
becn evolved aecor.!fnE TO- tte auntnt1tS t" s o. u
lie salne tinle every ono of tlIebo experiment
had shown tint tts vapor a1ld water thrown .!
fro!n lhs body was " oxee.s u the aaant;'t''t n'',
| WlIlch bud hcctl taken lu' AWst OF. Filu
thought, proved ths theory which ns had con
10 belssse III thoroughly, ,--natnefJ, ths4 waite
was penetrated within thb Tissues Of tho body D.
liz Combination Ut hydrogen ald oxygcn. llavln
proved to his satisfaction tAat water 10 produces
within .l.e buly by the chemical combination u
hydrogen aaul oxygen. Dr.. Flint concluded ti1
III tcyGrs a.Mf such dIseascs - aro acsol1Ipantt'
0y lIyh temperature OF the buuy, fuol conta!s'
Iig ucuty Ut carl,on md hydrogen should =
given. This wuull oe tcedng the aau'e, oat
would save tl!e pat!cnt by preventing lin tfol
being burned up bY tie dlscasc.