The sun., 1901-02-12

easily become persuaded of the wonder
ful elIieacy Of some new discovery that
is reputed to have the power to put oil
the inevitable end of life. In the dark
ages il was said that the blood of the
young possessed the power to reJuvenate
the old. Many hideous crime was
done because of this tradition. Inc
blood had to be taken from the living,
md for the sake of deciepit old tyrants
many a Young, healthy individual was
sled almost to death.
Needless to say all was in vain. There
| s n fixed limit to human life. All ami
| nal life is subject 10 the same biological
laws. The most immutable of these
| is that the animal lives normally about
five times the period that 1t takes FOR
Its frame to reach its physical matu-
lity. Tor man this is about twenty years.
| The ordinary limit Of human life Is
therefore one hundred years. Very few
people pass it and never By many years.
Most OF the tabled lives of one hundred
and twenty and one hundred and forty
wears are pure invention, or the result
Of mistakes in computation.
The existence OF this well-known law
has not kept some of the scientific men,
even OF our own day, from seriously tax
ing up-usually it mGst be said i'll their
Idotage--somc new measure that 1t was
lassured would lengthen life far beyond
Its usual term. Brown-Sequard, for
instance, was distinguished medical in
ycstigator, who had done some of the
best scientific work of the century on
both sides Of the Atlantic. Yet even he
was led into the error Of announcing that
he had an elixir vitae, yeritable foun.
tain of youth.
He was old and had tried it on him.
elf with great success, so he claimed
, There seemed to lie no possible room
or doubt. AT the very time he sale
hat he felt new life in his veins III.
French colleagues were smiling at hi
lecrepitude. Hope made his spirits
+ young and for the moment they influenced
his bodily condition SO that he lost tht
ceiling of his age. Material change there
was none
Many an old man took the Brown-Se
) luard injections and was confident tha
S ie was made younger. But il was all /
lelusion. due to thu slggpstiyeness Of agt
that is, to its wonderful facrlty of feel
ng better when il takes something tha
ught on theoretic grounds to do i
j ;ocd.
i Attestation OF the personal benefit
lcrived from a remedy ought, It woul
eem. to make it clear that the remed,
i really valuable. Oliver Wendell IIol
r nes once pointed out how easy it is t
q ollect abundant facts to prove anythint
whatsoever. He added that eNalte,
wisdom, immaculate honesty and vas
General requirements are not enough
). 0 prevent a man from having the mos
primitive ideas upon subjects that ar
ot connected with his usual lines Q
hought, and especially froW not havin
he most bolIndless crcdulity in mat
! crs connected with medicine"
y We have recently had another rejuycr
z ting medicine presented to us. @
y curse there are honest men and tru
d testify to its marvellous youth-recallin
lowers. Glycero-pho,p Of sodiur
i will, however, undoubtedly share III
u 'ate of previous reviewers of you'll
le Nothing will put of the day of fate,
Id Homer said some 5000 years ago. w
must wear ont inevitably in about Il
= ears. Most Of us will wear ont muc
Il ooner, because there have been accident
ie lcre and there through life to our il
Il ernal machinery. The high pressure {
$ modern city life particularly wears /
ut before our allotted time. In Franc
he average age Of tlose who live outSiG
II Paris is onc-ilfth more than that
he inhabitants of the gay capital.
Length of life is dependent on the vita
ty of the original living material til;
uttered into our composition. If v
'ome. from long lived race we sha
~ Earring accidents. have length of day
Il the family record shows Il short-livt
postly orr hopes for long life are n
t9st il failihe futile. The angel Of Ii
Sirds mp the clock Of individual tim
Nd Il will run the length Of days th
he original energy communicated to
IL astS, There is no rpwindin;. here helo'
No more oilng Of the works by drua
lowever potent, will replace the ener;
Is # the vital spring within whose for
S failing. Drugs may serve to make {
unning easier, and so save the htmt
70 imcpi"cr from stopping before its spri
all mroilcd. They cannot do MOI
rhe young nav die; the old must die
rs, Dr. Jtmas J. Walsh.