The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1889-01-12
COLLECTION OF BRAINS.
An Assortment Which Has Been Gath
cred By q Doctor.

An Assortment Which Has Been Gath
cred By q Doctor.
The finest collection of brains O
all classes and kinds in this coun
try is the property of Dr.. E. c
Spitzka. The top floor of his resi-
dence, at 712 Lexington avenue, ha
been converted into a light and we'll
ventilated laboratory. and here 1
World reporter was allowed to ex
examine some of the many speci
mems and ask questions.
DR.. Spitzka was the physician
who examined Guiteau as to hi:
sanity before his trial, and who dis
sected his brain after he was hanged
A portion of Guiteau't brain is now
in his possession. When it was
mentioned to DR.. Spitzka that many
people still believed Guiteau to have
been a victim Of insanity, he stated
that insanity was impossible in
Guiteau's case, and was proved af
terward by dissecting his brain. By
way of demonstration DR.. Spitzka
exhibited a couple of malformed
brains. The first one is that of an
insane person who was hanged fo1
murder, the other is the brain of a
young girl who witnessed railroad
accident at White Plains some
ago, in which her mother was run
over and killed by the cars. The
shock unbalanced her mind, and
she was insane till death came to
her relief. Both of these brains are
lopsided or crooked. One side OF
each is enlarged, and the spinal cord
is seemingly misplaced. The brain
being unbalanced" the mind of
each was unbalanced in proportion.
Guiteau's brain had no such defects,
and was in a healthy condition
not single trace of insanity was
found.
The brain of the late lamented
Mr.. Crowley of Central Park is in
a hardening preparation at present.
1t will be put through three or four
other solutions after being taken
from this one, and when sufficiently
hard will be sliced and put between
sheets of glass. Afterwards the glass
will be stained and made trans
parent, ready for microscopic use.
DR.. Spitzka has about 10000 speci-
mems for microscopic use that have
been hardened and prepared in this
manner. The mOnstrous brain OF
the elephant that was shot at the
Park for viciousness some time ago
is here. Next to the whale the ele-
phant has the largest known brain
The brain of this elephant weighed
several pounds. A noticeable fea-
ture about the brain of the elephant
is the comparative enlargement of
the convolutions which controlled
the motion of the trunk, and which
in man enables him to turn up his
nose.
Singular things are sometimes
left by dying friends to those who
to mourn them. A we'll
known and celebrated physician
who died short time ago willed to
DR.. Spitzka his brain. The doctor
reverently looked at the brain of
his brother physician as he spoke
of this strange bequest. A COM
panion brain to this is that of a
former New York Assemblyman.
There is considerable difference in
the construction of these brains,
that of the physician being the more
finely convoluted. A row of glass
Jars contains brains of different an
imals, from the lowest orders to
those of the chlmpanzee, which
stands next to that of man. These
Jars are placed OH marble shelf
at one side of the laboratory, and
are in systematic order according
to the intelligence of the animal
whose brain each contains. Snakes
tiny brains, alligators' brains with
out regard for the size of its mouth,
nature has endowed the alligator
With an exceedingly small brain),
lrmadillos' brains, sea lions, dol
Dhins, whales hyenas, lions, tigers,
eopards, bears, civet cats, Chin
panzees, orang- otangs, and various
other specimens of the monkey
tribe, even down to the midget, have
heir intelligent standing recorded
here. One noticeable thing about
his arrangement is that the part
IF the brain which contains the
sense of smelling is highly devel-
oped in the lowest orders, gradually
decreasing as intelligence increases,
md in man is scarcely perceptible.
rhe brain of women stands at the
1ead, being heavier than that OF
nan. However, a woman's brain
has less power of application. The
,rain of the negro is of an inferior
ype. ~,
Among the microscopic collec-
ion was a specimen of the brain OF
, woman who had died of alchol-
SIN. Alcohol had been used by
Ter to such an extent that the tine
white coating which surrounds the
title nerve fibres-as a wire is
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