The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1893-08-22
THE HUMAN SKIN.
Its GFo1t Extent In tho Individu2l-How
Il Feeds the Nerves and Brain.

It Feeds the Nerves and Brain.
The skin is the containant of a man,
holds the reins of control over all
things within the body, and is q barrier
against the reception of injuries from
| without. He who makes speciality OF
dermatology has printed in the parch-
ment of the epidermis every disease
that assails the patient, and if he read
Alright can from that open book clearly
tell the progress of the otherwise I'M
seen enemy. There is no more favora-
| BILE vantage ground for the physician
than the ultimate enveloping mem
brane of the body Other specialties,
| as that of the eye, or the ear, the
throat or the stomach, give knowledge
of a part OF the system, and inferen-
italy of the entire man, but the skin
in its deviations from health tells in
every n1inutest particular of the state
| of the patient Gently knocking at
the very outermost door of the cuticle,
or the most external portions of the
skin, we enter through one Of the
pores of which it is estimated one
hundred and twenty-five thousand
can be covered by one grain of sand.
Place over the body of man of ordi-
nary size grains of sand so that the
skin is wholly covered; count now these
| grains and multiply this by $4,000,
and see the enormous stomach through
which the nerves obtain their supplies
of richest food. These animated pores,
constantly drinking the purest constit-
| uents of the atmosphere, send these
nectars to the cortical cells of the
brain as food sufficiently refined to
| serve the kings table. Within the
brain these anbrosial feasts are fur
ther examined and formed into nerves.
Stupendous process! These pores, sit
uated in the outermost parts of the
body, Gull from the air the sweetest
essences of flowers. The invigorating,
invisible soul of the newlymown grass
carries its dainty supplies to the build
ing up of the nerve fiber, and thou
sands of foods to show that man lives
not by bread alone, are drawn in
through these minute pores that have
their bed in the insensa te cuticle.
Covering the pores are lamell9, or
scales yielding themselves to every re-
duties imposed upon the scales of the
cuticle define their character, and as is
the papillary substance beneath, SO they
are hard or soft, moist or dry, elastic
or unyielding. Here, alone, can our
vast storehouse of therapeutic appE-
ances find abundant indications for the
treatment Of any disease within the
body. The only portion of the body
that in health is devoid Of sensation
and gives itself absolutely to the duty
of serving other parts, affords from it's
character full information as to the Sc
lection of the appropriate remedy. This
willing slave is outermost boundary Of
the deepest atom of the body. 1t is
alpha, of which that is the omega. and
all intermediates are photographed
upon its liant face. Beneath the cuti-
Gle is the rete mucosum. The better to
describe the several layers composing
the skin, reference will now be made
to the .papilliary substance, or the CUTS,
that lies next beneath the rete muco-
sum. The body of the man is the house
he occupies-the skin is the wall of
that house. The rough uncovered laths
throughout the interior of the house,
with insterstices and projecting sur
faces, are as the sensitive papillary
substances Over these laths the plas-
ter is applied to give smooth surface,
as the rete is applied over the papille.
And upon this plaster the highly pol
ished. hard and nonsensitive glazing is
made to protect the plaster and the
laths beneath, as the cuticle protects
the rete. The rete is the portion in
which the coloring matter resides, and
as is its color SO is the color of the cuti-
Gle, but beneath this rete all men are
alike, white. Hence, too, the pores of
the second class arise and empty them
selves at the open doors of the scaly
cuticle, giving forth vast quantities of
Sanctorian perspiration.
The QUITS. or papillary substance, is
the true skin. Here resides the sense
of touch, and here the arteries begin
their formation. 1t is the birthplace
OF the heart, to which each globule of
blood is in the desire to flow as to its
own home and place of freedom. The
papilla open and shut with power sim
liar TO that of the armature and alter
nately invite and reject, with the law
OF action and reaction, the flow of !
blood. In this cults is placed the great |
system of drainage tubes, the sewers OF !
the body through which the internal !
organs. the membranes of these organs, |
the muscles and the layers of fat send |
forth their sweats, their dirt and the |
grosser portion of the blood. Useless |
qualities rush out through these canals !
at times, as in violent exercise Of the |
body IN great deluges, carrying in their |
inpetuosity of flow pure essences of |
nerve fiber, to the destruction of the |
strength of the man in many diseases |
In health the scaly door in the cuticle |
acts as if double-hinged, and opens in
ward with the same power of action |
with which it had previously opened !
outward This reciprocal action per-
mits the return to the system of the |
purest portions of the previously eXuded |
sweat Here again arises a multitude |
of indications for the selection of the !
remedy.-Rufus Choate. NJ. D., in |
Southern Journal OF Homeopathy.
His Regret.
The two tramps had been wandering /
about from back door to back door in a
useless search for a bite, as almost |
every place they visited was closed for