The sun., 1881-01-23
A FEAST or AID THE sKSsEs

Unalloyed pleasure has been sought in
vain by men OF every age mo rose without
thorn" hos its corresponding proverb in the
| language OF every country The unthinking
accept this principle rs an unaterable necessity
OF life; the truly phllosophic. bv investigation
| and analysis should seek tho cause. and. dis
| covering tho cause. should devise the remedy.
| In the caso OF the rose and tho thorn. tho
| trouble is that two inharmonious sensations
| commingle. Tho delicious odor OF the rose 10
mot at the nerve centres by the pain from the in
| cautious finger. Tho pleasure Is not unalloyed.
| But lot us suggest to great contemporary in
tellccts new line OF thought. investigation. dis
covery. invention. and action. leading pos
sibly to n realization OF what the unphilosophio
and unprogressive now hold to be impossible.
| 1t has long been known that all sound IL
| vibration. Each tone of tho musical scale has
| It's own length OF wave and velocity OF vibration.
| So. also. is each color OF the spectrum mere
vibration. with its own length OF wave and rate
| OF velocity. although many times more rapid
than the vibrations which produce sound. That
the loss cultivate1-scienti1cally speaking
senses Of smell and taste are also responsive to
appropriate vibrations cannot now be said to DO
truth established by science. Tho known
facts. however. point that way.
1t is strange TINT SO little attention Is given to
| the laws governing tho sense OF taste. Other
| wise careful writer's not infrequenty refer to
the tongue or to tho palate as the organ OF taste.
| This is like attributng the affections to the
| organ OF the circulation OF tho blood. A very
slight experiment will convince the reader.
Let him take an object OF which the taste is
| familiar, but not too pungent and place the
snine in the open mouth upon the tongue. a
slight sensation only will be perceived. Re-
| move the object aud allow the slight sensation
| to pass away; then press the object to the roof
| OF the mouth. not touching 1t with tho tongue.
| Again only a slight sensation can be noticed.
| Now place the same object upon the tongue aud
| press 1t against the roof OF the mouth In such
manner that full contact with both tho tongue
and the roof Of the mouth is secured. 1t will at
once be perceived that physical properties OF
tho object are developing. analogous TO the de-
velopment OF electricity in a Galvanic pile of
alternate plates OF copper and zinc Tho re-
| sulting impression upon the sense OF taste 10
far greater and many times moro than double
the faint impressions previously produced
| through tho tongue aud the roof Of the mouth
| separately.
This little experiment docs not prove. to the
degree Of absolute demonstration. that taste re-
suits from vibration. hut II indicates the probn-
blity OF that theory. 1t should not be forgotten
that tho vibratory theory OF light was announced
as probable many years before it could be fully
| demonstrated. Many years OF patient study
may bs required to demonstrate the great truth
| that here ngain Nature is uniform. and that i'm
| prcssions upon any and all the senses are pro-
duced by vibration alone-each vibration being
| appropriate to tho sense concerned.
practical utilization OF this grand principle
OF uniformity will enable us to control and reg
ulate the sources OF sensation. preventing the
jarring interierences now common. and caus-
ing the senses to cooperate toward an harmo-
nious result. Such cooperation OF impressions
might be called the concord Of the senses. or
aesthetic harmony.
There can De no confusion OF language from
this general application of term hitherto used
In respect to q single sense. that OF hear
ing. Harmony and melody aro In reality but
the laws OF proportion. They govern one kind
OF vibration as well as another. Prof Elisha
Gray long ago seized on this truth and practi-
cally applied 1t in his Harmonic Telegraph sys-
tenn. Mr.. Edison's experiments at Menlo Park
In 1879. when he tried to send through his SON.
sitiye chalk telephone the odors OF assafGtida
bi-sulDhide OF carbon. and other objects giving
forth strong scents. we're not equally successful
But we have already in the electric light the CO.
| operation OF the vibrations OF electricity and
light In the telephone the cooperation OF those
OF electricity and sound. and in the wonderful
photophone the concerted action OF all three.
On the full adaptation OF the principle to prac-
tlcal life We may confidently rely.
The various systems OF vibrations affecting
the different senses will ultimately DO meas
ured. The rates OF vibration pertaining to
odors and taste will all BIZ noted. classified. and
arranged In their proper order. thus establish
in, . y.,.,i. R,,h.,,o. ou ,ha ,la, ~ ,ho,
III" "oia ''Suo''o" W" 'Ho p'"u Vi 'a"s
monument oil human industry and wisdom. tho
Aatsrla Msdica As the latter contains an ac-
o,ra,a a,o,a,,ant -, ,ha na,,rs ya,ia,i.o and
eu'a,e s'n. .1 y, 'I' nr;.a "uu
medical properties OF vast number OF objects
used in medicine SO the former would record
,ha aLin1 mi oh.r.,,ar a, sayor.l innra..i,no
the k'ha anu o"arae'er VI soFofal ihpfossiohs
produced by the things enumerated.
From the elevated plateau OF knowsdge thus
| :, =, -, -,
acquired the prhctcai cohlroi ana regulation OF
the senses would be only q matter OF detail.
Unalloyed SENSATIONS could be secured each
| =, a., - Ill. ..,,i- a, -, A., ~
OF the senses oeIn. suppiieu from lhe proper