CHAPTER V.

RATIONALE OF PHYSICAL FUNCTIONS AND MENTAL FACULTIES AND THEIR SIGNS IN THE FACE.

Whether the soul be air or fire, I know not; nor am I ashamed, as some men are, in cases where I am ignorant, to own that I am so."-CICERO.

"It will be understood by the word Mind we do not designate the intellectual operations only But the word Mind has a broader, deeper signification; it includes all sensations, all volition, and all thought; it means the whole Psychical Life. And this psychical lif has no one special centre; it belongs to the whole and animates the whole."-GEORGE HENRY LEWES.

T

HE plan of this system of physiognomy would be incomplete were I to omit the rationale, or theory, of the action of the several organs and systems of functions comprised in the human body, and which assist in producing the various social, moral, and mental phenomena observed in the actions of the individual, and which collectively I term Mind. Many philosophers have endeavored to ascertain the basis of mind; and by mind I mean that class of phenomena called reason, sentiment, mental operations, morality, the emotions, the passions, such as anger, jealousy, fear, hope, love, friendship, etc.

The action of these is generally considered to be the result of brain- or will power, with which the interior organs of the body have little or nothing to do. Theologians teach us that the influences prompting many of the emotional states, such as anger, hatred, revenge, jealousy, and the like, are created by a spirit denominated a "devil." The acceptance of this theory would end all further inquiry on the subject. My observations do not corroborate their explanation of these phenomena, and I am consequently forced to bring against this view the Scotch verdict of "not proven." My theory of the passions, so-called, will be found in the chapter on "Theories of Certain Traits," and the face read scientifically will corroborate this theory.

Many diverse methods of ascertaining the basis of mind. have been employed in all ages, yet without satisfactory results. Philosophers both in ancient and modern times have pursued the method of sitting in judgment upon their own mental states, and have analyzed their mental processes, in order to give a rationale

of mind. These observations have been made without reference to bodily conditions by treating of the mind as an entity, something almost separate from the body, and not co-operating with it, but acting in concert with another entity denominated a "soul.” This view of mind has met with popular acceptance for ages, and to this day the most crude, hazy, and uncertain idea of the location and construction of the mind is prevalent even in the most cultivated circles. So vague and indistinct is the understanding in regard to mind that for two thousand years the words "soul" and "mind" have been used synonymously. A reference to the literature of the past will show that this nomenclature was popular among all classes of writers. Since the wonderful invention of mechanical instruments which the last century has witnessed, the instrumentalities essential to experiment in all departments of study have been increased; hence it is that men have been enabled to commence anew, and with improved implements, the investi gation of mind on a more scientific basis than that formerly employed by the old-time philosophers. Experiment has been followed by demonstration, until now the best anatomists and physicians-especially those having charge of the insane, the feeble-minded, the defective and the criminal classes-have become more enlightened on the subject of mind and its sources and seats. Their experience has led them to take a more comprehensive and practical view of mind, and one less imaginary and sentimental than those promulgated by ancient faiths and philosophers.

Phrenology appeared early in the present century and did a great work in breaking up the idea that mind was a unit, which was one of the fundamental errors of the old school of philosophy. Yet phrenology, radical, daring, and progressive as it was compared to the then existing theories, was in its basilar construction erro neous. The theory that mind was composed of many separate parts, each having a "local habitation and a name," was an innovation and a step forward; but when it took the ground that mind is shut up in the brain, and held it a prisoner there, and that all mental powers proceed from that source and are confined to that locality, it formulated an error, of which its founders were not, of course, aware. They did a good work in their day, according to their best light, and the world is the better for it; but modern science reflects sufficient light of a more advanced character; hence

Phrenologists are bound by all laws of truth and science to advance with the age, and give a more scientific explanation of mind, and connect their theory and observations with the entire nervous system and visceral organization. (Lewes.)

My theory or philosophy of mind will be unfolded in this work. It takes the ground

That mind inheres in the entire organism, and that the face read scientifically reveals all the conditions of mind and body; That the brain is the chief mental organ;

That it is also the locality where co-ordination of the motor and sense systems takes place;

That one office of the brain is to assist the voluntary muscles to contract;

That all parts of the body and mind have local representation in the brain;

That the several ganglia and plexuses are mental organs and directly concerned in mental manifestations;

That the entire nervous mechanism as well as the muscles, the skin, the bones and the entire visceral organization are mental, each in its own way and degree, and altogether in their operations make up the sum total of what we call mind;

That every mental faculty has a physiological or anatomical base, and that each mental faculty can be traced directly to its own appropriate base, whether located in a ganglion, a visceral organ, or in the muscular or osseous system;

That the office of the mind is threefold, viz., to produce, first, sensation; second, intelligence or consciousness; third, thought or ideation. All of these three departments of mind are founded upon the sensations felt and the intelligence conveyed by the several parts of the nervous mechanism;

That the entire human structure is essential to the expression of mental effort, and that mentality cannot be excluded from any organ-or function whatever, yet the fact is recognized that some functions contribute more directly than others to mental efforts, each in a different degree and kind;

That the human face, read scientifically, reveals all interior physical powers, as well as all mental states, and is both the proof and result of evolution, and, lastly, proves

That the human organism embodies all of the basilar principles of chemistry, architecture, and mathematics observed in the mineral, vegetable, and animal kingdoms, viz., the laws of gravitation, capillary attraction, color optics, pneumatics, crystallization, acoustics, the mechanical principles cf the several lever powers, the hinge, the valve, the ball-and-socket joint, together with the principles of electricity in the brain and nervous system, and of magnetism in the muscles.

Let it be understood that no attempt is made in this work to connect the mind and soul, and that the term mind, as herein used,

refers to the material mind found organized with the material body. The task of connecting the mind with the soul is left to theologians. My own theories on the subject of the soul I do not offer as scientific. Yet it may not be inappropriate for me to state that it appears to me that one life and principle animates all created things, which seem formed according to a universal plan and design.

My theory will now be unfolded and will show that mind and body are one and indivisible, and cannot be judged as entities; for mind inheres in every atom of the body. All intellectual and moral powers are indebted to physiological organization to exhibit their ability. The office of the mind is threefold, viz., to produce sensation, consciousness, and ideation. The chief organ of sensation is the entire outer skin-covering, together with the so-called "five senses." The visceral organs, together with the bones and muscles of the body, contribute their share of sensation; while the nerves assist in conveying intelligence to the chief mental organ, where sensation is, as George Henry Lewes expresses it, "in some profoundly mysterious manner elaborated into ideas." Wherever there is a ganglion, or plexus, or a branch or filament of the nerves, there we find mentality,-that is to say, sensation,-for the nerves ramify upon every organ and form a net-work over the entire skin-covering of the body. Hence it is that we know that fine, thin-skinned persons and animals are more sensitive and more intelligent than those possessed of thicker and coarser skins. Here, then, is a most convincing proof of the direct relationship between the two extremities of the mind-the brain and the skin. The sooner we discard the idea that mind and morals are shut up in the skull, and instead adopt the truth, that mind and morality are dependent upon physiological formation and exist and are exhibited in every atom of the body, the sooner shall we arrive at the correct basis of mind. We shall then understand that normally organized bodies are more capable of the highest morality and mentality than are defective or diseased ones. The human mind. cannot conceive of anything, not even of a "soul," which does not possess a material form or shape and composed of material of some sort, whether gaseous, ethereal, celestial, or in some manner or of some substance or property which exists and is known already to the human mind; for it is impossible to think or imagine anything with this human material mind that is not material; call it "spiritual" or "divine" or what we may, it is not thinkable in other than material form or substance.

The more recent of the philosophers and writers on the origin of mind-Messrs. Spencer, Lewes, Haeckel, Lindsay, and others—