Year: 1873

THE BRAIN AND THE PRESENT SCIENTIFIC AS


PECrs OF PHRENoL0GY.


Prof B. G. Wilder of Cornell University
delivered the second lecture in the fifth annual course
OF scientific lectures before the American Institute In
the large hall Of the Cooper Union last evening His
subject was "Thc Brain and the Present Scientific Az
pect OF Phrenology" and copiously illustrated by
a large and choice collection OF diagrams. well a. a
number skulls and casts, which were frequently re-
ferred to.


THE LECTURE.


There is a story, at once comic and pathetic. OF
not very bright boy whose skull was cracked by An
accident allow the escape OF some OF ts con-
tents; he begged that portion might DE sent at
once his schoomaster who often told him that ne had
no brains. Most of sufficiently well convinced
that we without waiting for an accident TO
reveal their existence and yet few indeed ever see
the brains OF other people, and none too many have any
clear conception Of the appearance, the structure, and
the properties OF that There are several reasons
for the lack Of popular knowledge respecting the oran
Fust Ii very soft organ soft. In fact that De-
fore its structure well understood Button spoke Oi
brains mucous substance of no great Importance"
Second The extraction Of brain from the skull s Dy
easy matter that IL, for the anaomst the
butcher 1t true cracks the skull Of COW or hog at
blow, and out falls the brain and specimen so OBJ
tanned may answer for general examination OF tho
larger organs but In order to obtain entire brain,
untorn. and lacking neither the oactory obes, tho
hypophsis pitutary body the roots requires
hour of time, several Instruments consider
able skill. and good deal Of patience aside from the
actual labor Of saving open the SKULL and with most
animals the operation is even more difficult and tedious
than upon the human body.


Third: The brain once obtained. must be soon exam
ned or preserved and hardened by long and expensive
processes SO that the cost Of collection OF brains Is
too great for even most public institutions.


Fourth. The brain substance consists OF cells and
xphi ich N uQaideu
the microscope yet cleared up all its mysteries
And finally. as If these natural hnderances were not
enough the old anatomsts fenced in the parts OF the
brain with the most anciful and prodigous titles Ger
ebrum is well enough the cerebellum being only one
eighth large, has longer name, while mednlla OBJ
longata. hippocampus minor. tubercua quadrgemina,
processus cerebeo ad testes and tier tertio ad ven
tculum quartum represent such Insignificant parts OF
the brain TO suggest suspicion that the nomencis
ture was established upon other principle than that
of an inverse between the size Of an organ and tho
length OF its title.


A POPULAR SCIENCE.


AT any rate these fearful names sumbn blocks 10
the student and almost perfect hndeanee To popular
knowledge OF the brain doubt this peases the ghosts
OF old anatomical fathers and is equally agreeable to
many present day. both in and out OF the profession
with whom Latin is synonym for learning and ponder
osty of wordtfor profundity of wisdom. But a. de-
yout believer in the gospel Of education hold that
"the knowledge ofithe human body belongs TO every
man. woman and child, and has more necessary con-
nection with physc than with art industry philosophy,
divinity or any of the other occupations that we do III
the body aud by the body" and shall therefore do
what can upon the present occasion TO give some ae-
countiof the brain that shall beiintelgibelto ALL


OF course q single lecture will not permit complete
account Of so complicated organ n all its relations
will therefore merely aude to the general structure
OF the brain in and animals, TO its microscopic
appearance and chemical compositon TO the properties
of its tissues the Office of the brain In directing
and the various bodily operations and dwell
chiefly upon the brain in respect to that which distn
guishes it from all other organs of the body namely, s
function as the OF consciousness, and in some
way concerned mental manifestations. My reasonsfor
speaking thus guardedy and to manyiof hearers no
doubt, unsatisfactory, will appear by-and-by but In
presenting it is better not TO affirm things upon
which there is wide diversity Of opinion.


The brain forms the enlarged anterior (or In man the
upper end Of the spinal cord and the cord Is con-
tained within the canal off thepinal column OF back
bone so the brain is contained within the skull This
general description will apply to all vertebrated animals
with one exception, the little tshike creatures which
will pass among the audience. The little creatures are
rare on our coasts nearly 100 Of them nave just
come the Mediterranean through the kindness or
one Of my students.


AMPHIoXUs LANCEoLATUs.


E.1