The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1914-03-02
NEW LIGHT ON
"BOBBY" BURNS.

Kansas City Star: 1t has taken al
corning the cerebral development of
Robert Burns to become generally
known, says the Literary Digest. A
writer in the London Sphere refers al
most t~imorously to the fact that early
IN the nineteenth century, in the year
that Jean Armour, Burns widow, died,
the family of Robert Burn gave their
consent to having a east made of the
skull OF the poet, dead thirty-eight
years previously. The science of phren-
ology had just hen been interesting
Scotch physicians, and a paper was
drawn up containing the results of the
chronological examination of Burns
skull. with drawings of the cast. 1t is
thur Keith now examines, beginning
with some CONGRATULATIONS about the
present method of drawing conclusions
from physiological aspects, and using a
tone almost deprecatory in fear that
the sensibilities of Burns worshippers
Will be hurt by what may be regarded
as an unreverential way Of treating the
poets physical remains:
Most of US have lost faith in the
size of head or expanse of brow as an
index of mental ability. Our specula-
tions along such lines have been up
set by our daily experience. We place
our trust, rather, in the eye, the mouth,
the expression, the manner in which
the countenance lights up. Burns had
an eye; I never say such anotnsr eye
Scott. Had Sir Walter shared DR..
George Combe's prediction for the
study of heads l am quite certain he
brain vas quite as remarkable as his
eye. In recent years Miss Lee and
| Professor Pearson have invented a
fairly accurate method of calculating
sions of the skull. Their method in
| dicates that Burns had a brain meas
uring 1920 cubic centtmeters-1,50 500
cubic centimeters being the size OF
| brain for an average Scotchman. The
| great size of the head gives a key to
| the emark made by Sir Walter Scott,
! viz: His countenance was more mass
i've than it looks in any Of this por-
THAT he was a Scot of Scots goes
without saying. Racial mixture is just
as marked north of the Tweed as south
Of It; from John q Groat,s to Lands
assign Burns with some degree Of cer-
tainty to any of the known racial ele-
ments? Beyond doubt we can. Recent
| researches by the professor Of anatomy
| in the university Of Glasgow provide
us with the materials for solving the
problem. A few years ago Professor
! Bryce undertook a systematic examine
ton of certain ancient cairns In the
| island of Abraham island which Burns
| must have scanned many a time from
his native Ayrshire shore. In the very
| oldest of these cairns Professor Bryce
| recovered skulls of the same type, al
most of the same size, as that or Burns.
| In these cairns were found only WORK
| ed fiints; those long and large heaoed
people lived in Arran before the use of
metals lac reached Scotland--a date
which we may safely assign to a per-
iod of about 1000 B. G. We know that
! Walter Campbell, the poets ancestor,
who settled in Kincardine and adopted
| the name of Burmese, came from Ar
gyll; his mother. Agnes Brown. was
an Ayrshire wornan On both sides the
| poet came Of the stock which is native
to that part of Scotland in which Al