The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1880-01-17
Emotions and Nerves.
DR.. VIM. A. Hammond Before the Young
Mems Hebrew Association.
IN. Y. Tribune.l


At the fourth entertainment OF the Young
Mems Hebrew Association, which was given at
Chickering Hall last evening, and was largely
attended, DR.. VIM. A. Hammond delivered
a. lecture upon the 'Nervous System and some
of it's Manifestations"
The nervous system, he first pointed out, ex-
listed in all organic beings, both animal and
vegetable and in fact there was some reason to
suppose, but not very strong one, that even
minerals were possessed Of something anala-
gous to a nervous system, or intelligence, If so
it might be called, which determine their form
at any rate. But these matters he did not in
tend to deal with; his object. being to call at
tention to the nervous system as it exists in
man, and to point out some OF its properties
and manifestations
The nervous system of man, he continued, is
composed of two essentially different elements:
the cells, or gray matter, as it is called, and a
series of tubes or rods by which the action OF
the brain is communicated to every part of the
human frame. In former times it was sup
posed that the mind of man did not have any
verv intimate connection with the brain, but
existed in other portions of the body. This is
seen in our conversation at the present day,
notably when a young man addresses to one OF
the other sex the words 81 love you with all
NV heart Then we read of the .bowels of
compassion" and there were certain people in
the East who believed that the liver was
the seat of the emotions, and there young
man would say to his ladylove, 81 love you
with all my liver"
Wherever one finds these microscopic cells
of gray matter there is mind. Now you under
stand me when say that do not want to put
myself in a false position, to be charged with
uttering hetrodox notions; therefore make
no reference.to the soul. The soul is a matter
of faith. 1t does not matter TO science, but the
soul is matter every man believes what ne
chooses about: which requires no proof what
ever. He takes. it as faith, and it is matter
entirely with his conscience. therefore you
will see from this that hold that the mind
and soul are not the same thing,
The lecturer then spoke OF the faculties Oh
the mind, dividing them into four comprehen-
| sive classes-perception intellect, emotions
| and will He defined each and illustrated
| them with various anecdotes. Whlle on the
| subject of the emotions he remarked that many
| people believed love was the strongest emotion
| or feeling, because many people killed them
| selves for love. But people who followed this
| course became fewer and fewer every
wear; they did not do that sort OF thing as they
| used to do. Times were changed; men and
| women made it more or less business LII
| was sort of partnership, and although love
| or of the same character as it was when he was
| a Young man. And then, too, a great deal OF
the trouble of love was produced by the emo
| ton of anxiety, which was secondary factor
| in the matter Anxiety, produced by causes
other than love had also been known to lead
| people to commit suicide. 1t was more har-
rowing to the mind than any other emotion.
If an individual obtained the mastery OF his
! emotions he would never suffer much from his
intelligence, continued the speaker. A great
| many damaged their minds by an excessive
use of their emotions and every organ OF the
body became disarranged in consequence;
\ hence persons who were engaged in Keen busl-
ness or intellectual conflict suffer from dyspep-
| sia or perhaps some affection ofthe heart They
heard now and then of persons dropping down
| dead, and this was often called by the euphe-
| uistic name of "vlsitation by God." He re-
membered a case in point. A witness who in
his evidence was telling lie, lost confidence in
| his powers of deceiving, and in his e4citemen,
| said, "I hope God strike me dead If it is not
so," and he dropped dead. This was called
| death by the visitation Of God, but it was SIM