Imágenes de páginas
PDF
EPUB

the contexture of his arguments is not sufficiently close; and the art of transposition is not possessed by him with so much accuracy as to make his conceptions seem to rise naturally one after the other. The following passage in one of his speeches will enable us to estimate both the man and the speaker, as it furnishes a criterion for judging of the difficult art of speaking about one's self, or the "art d'egoiser," which was a term used by the less modern authors of France. M. Roy, the reporter of the Commission of the Budget, having censured the proceedings of the bank, M. Laffitte, who was then governor of that establishment, replied to him, and thus retorted on the speaker for insinuations that appeared to him to be personal "I am not a contractor, and my fortune which is purely commercial, does not owe its origin, or its further progress, to speculations, in which the premium of risk is comprised in the state of the original bargains -I owe it to the honorable industry of forty years, and to a spirit of fairdealing, which causes every man to believe that he may rely on my good faith and integrity."

As a public man, M. Laffitte is a friend to liberty; and being a fosterchild of the revolution, he will always feel for it a sort of filial piety. In his private capacity he is generous, benevolent, and humane; faithful in his friendships, and easy and engaging with his occasional acquaintance. In other respects, his vanity is excessive, and he carries it to the extreme; so that flattery, however gross it may be, is eagerly swallowed by him on every occasion. Behold him, any evening, at one of his grand balls, where the most select society of Paris is collect

ed around him, of those most distinguished for rank, talents, importance, and property, to the number of two or three thousand. He there resembles a king receiving the homage of his subjects, rather than the master of a house that seems eager to give a kind and hospitable reception to his guests. This degree of stiffness is rather inexplicable, because the habits of M. Laffitte are simple, and amidst the gorgeous glare that surrounds him, he frequently betrays symptoms of his originally humble condition, and narrow economy and thrift. Thus, on these evenings of parade, he frequently takes a sponge in his hand to wipe off the water that flows down from the panes of glass, so that it may not spoil his fine mouldings, and the elegant gilding of his windows. But what are these little weaknesses compared with the many valuable qualities with which they are attended? As he possesses an immense fortune, it may be asserted that no man knows better than M. Laffitte to make a good use of it.

His purse is always open to the wretched and unfortunate. He has relieved the indigence of the family of Ney, by giving his only daughter in marriage to the eldest son of that Marshal. He has also relieved his proscribed countrymen; and those especially who have taken refuge at London, have received ten thousand livres as gratuities of his bounty. In short, he is the natural protector of all industrious enterprises, of all useful talents, and all sufferers under unmerited misfortune; and there is scarcely a single useful enterprise, or benevolent society in France, to which M. Laffitte has not contributed either by his influence, his counsels, or his purse.

THE BEAUTY OF WOMEN-AN EASTERN APOLOGUE.

BY THE ETTRICK SHEPHERD.

AND Sadac said unto Ismael, the son of Berar, "wherein consists thy great happiness? Of all the men I ever beheld thou seemest to me to

have the least cause of rejoicing, since thou hast lost a limb, an eye, and a hand, and moreover thou art poor, and hast none of the enjoyments of life."

And Ismael said, "O my prince, it is because thou hast not learned to discern wherein the enjoyment of life consists. Thou hast not learned, like thy servant, to be pleased with mankind as they are, and with events as they occur; and, when evil befalleth thee, to be thankful that it is not worse. When I lost one of my limbs, fighting in the camp of my father, I thanked Allah that I had not lost them both. When I lost an eye, fighting in my own cause, I conquered my inveterate enemy, and rejoicing said-I shall see the clearer with the eye that is left. And when I lost an arm, fighting under thee in the great battle of Bahara, in which the pride of Persia sank before our might, the men who bound up my wound said unto me-Ismael, thou art sorely wounded and lame besides; retire thou into the tent. But I refused, and said-I have one hand left, and with it will I fight for my prince until I fall, or the battle be gained. We conquered, and I rejoiced. I know of no man who has more reason to be thankful to God and our prophet than poor Ismael, the son of Berar."

"I cannot for my life perceive wherein it consists," said Sadac, “unless it be in deprivations, which are contrary in their nature to happiness. Tell me one of the chief enjoyments of the heart."

And Ismael said, "The highest enjoyment of which my frail nature is capable, has been in the endearments of one beloved object-in the society of Abra, my beloved wife, my only spouse, and the darling of my heart. She has proved to me the light of my soul, my crown of rejoicing, my stay and comfort in affliction, and the affectionate sharer in all my joys and sorrows. Ismael, the son of Berar, has had no earthly felicity that can be compared with the love and society of that beautiful, blessed, and divine creature."

And Sadac marvelled exceedingly, and he said, "I have thirty and six wives, and seventy and two concubines, the most beautiful women in

the world. They are all pure and without blemish; arrayed in the silken gauze of Cashmere, covered over with jewels and perfumes, and all ready to bestow their smiles and favors on the son of Azor; yet, instead of being my chief joy, from them proceed my greatest earthly plagues and torments. O Ismael, bring thy Abra before me, that I may look upon that beauty which is sufficient to confer such happiness on the possessor."

But Ismael said, "Shouldst thou covet and take her from me, thy servant's chief happiness in this world would be extinct."

But Sadac swore unto him, that though he admired her ever so much, yet would he not deprive him of what he held so dear. "For I have sufficiency of female beauty already," added he; "which when thou seest thou shalt acknowledge." And he led the lame Ismael away to the apartments of the women, and caused every one of them, amounting to more than a hundred, to pass by before him, and to unveil themselves. They were all beautiful as roses, for from beyond the river, and fair of complexion. And Sadac said, “Thou seest how lovely they are; wouldst thou not exchange thine Abra for any of these ?"

they were

And Ismael answered and said, "No, prince; I would not exchange my Abra for any of these, nor for all, beautiful though they are, which I deny not, though thou shouldst add the wealth of Cathema to boot.”

And Sadac marvelled greatly, and said, "O Ismael, let me see this wonder of my dominions, whose beauty, single and alone, can ravish and delight a man, and render him completely happy from year to year." And Ismael did as his prince and ruler commanded, and he brought his wife, and she stood before Sadac the son of Azor. And Sadac said, "Is this thy wife, even thy beloved Abra ?"

And Ismael said, "It is."

And Sadac lost all power, and fell from his seat down upon the floor of his pavilion; but it was not with love

for the wife of Ismael, but with laughter at the style of her beauty. For the woman was old and homely in the extreme, with a broad brown face, and gray eyes of a heavy and mild lustre. And the servants of Sadac tried to lift him up and set him on his seat, but they could not, for he had no power either to rise or to support himself thereon; and they said one to another, "What shall we do for Sadac, the son of Azor, our lord!"

And Sadac laughed seven days and seven nights at the beauty of Abra, the wife of Ismael.

And it came to pass after these days that he called Ismael unto him, and said, "O Ismael, son of Berar, how hast thou mocked me by asserting thy happiness with thy Abra, in derision of all the beauty in my harem, collected from the great river Euphrates even to the borders of Media, for my pleasure and happiness, which all that beauty has yet failed to produce!" And Ismael said, "Far be it from me to mock my prince, or to tell him any word that is not downright truth. I agree with him, that without beauty there can be no happiness with wo-

man; but of female beauty there are many kinds and degrees; as many as in the whole range of nature besides. There is one beauty of the flowers of the field, another of the storms of heaven, and another of the sun shining in all his glory and strength. So in woman there is one beauty of the skin, and another of the soul; but the one is as superior to the other, as the sun shining in his glory and strength is to the short-lived and fading flowers of the valley. Thou, O Sadac, seekest only for selfish gratification, deeming that there happiness is to be found. How certain the event that thou wert to be disappointed! So shall all those be who expect to find true happiness in the pleasures of sense and the vanities of time. But I have sought and found a union of souls that began in youth, has strengthened with age, and will continue to improve and brighten for ever and ever."

And Sadac went home into his house heavy and concerned, and he said unto himself, "I would instantly go in search of that union of souls if I wist what it was."

[blocks in formation]

ESSAYS ON PHYSIOLOGY, OR THE LAWS OF ORGANIC LIFE.*

ESSAY III. ON THE POWERS BY WHICH THE OPERATIONS OF THE ORGANIC FRAME ARE

CARRIED ON.

We have stated, that every organized the sensibility of each part, or organ, body is endowed with that principle, is peculiar to itself; that is, although to which we have given the term sen- sensibility is universally diffused sibility; and we would now, in conti- throughout every part of the frame, nuance of the subject, observe, that yet each possessing only its own pecu

[blocks in formation]

liarly modified sensibility, lives, feels and moves, after its own way. Thus, for instance, stimuli which affect one organ, produce no impression on others; as the eye is insensible to sound, the ear to light. Still, although the sensibility of all the organs is thus modified, and peculiar to themselves, the whole conjunctively work together to one common end,-their mutual preservation and improvement, and the preservation of the individual.

With regard to contractility, which may be said uniformly to accompany sensibility, there is one modification which I have hitherto omitted to mention, a modification, which organs in a healthy state never exhibit, when influenced by their natural and proper stimuli, namely, contractility at the same time involuntary and sentient, or perceived, that is to say, an action which occurs independent of the will, over which the will has no power, and of which we have at the same time complete perception; as in the example of an electric shock, which, as every one knows, will produce powerful muscular contractions, perfectly involuntary, of which, however, we are as perfectly aware. Voluntary and perceived contractility attends upon, or is associated with, percipient sensibility; or, as it may be termed, perceptibility. Involuntary and insensible contractility is associated with latent sensibility.

From this view, we may easily satisfy ourselves of the existence of two modes of feeling, and of two sorts of motion, a sensibility, by virtue of which certain parts send to the brain the impressions they receive, to be there objects of consciousness, and by which we are aware of our own existence, as well as that of the natural world around us; and a different mode of sensibility, belonging to all organs without exception, and which are all that some possess. These are adapted and sufficient for the exercise of the functions of nutrition, and by means of which the organs appropriated to this purpose are kept in action, and preserved in their natural state.

There are also two kinds of contractility, the one in virtue of which certain organs, obedient to the will, exercise the contractions which it determines; the other, independent of the will, and which manifests itself by actions, of which we have no more intimation than we have of the impressions by which they are determined. This latter modification of sensibility and contractility, is that which we see manifested by vegetable life, and which many species, as the sensitive plant, the fly-trap, and others, so remarkably exhibit.

The latent sensibility, however associated to animal life, at least in the higher orders, differs considerably in one of its characters from that of the vegetable world, viz. the power it has of being altered and modified by circumstances, and of elevating itself to perception; and we would observe, that when organs endowed with this species of sensibility become the subjects of disease, they assume a new character, and manifest a percipient sensibility-often acute to the highest degree. The stomach, for example, when in health, possesses no conscious perception of the presence of natural food, which, when that organ is suffering under inflammation, produces the most intense pain.

On the contrary, we find that percipient sensibility may be altered by habit, (with reason termed second nature,) and degenerate into the latent: so that what before was felt, and even occasioned pain or uneasiness, ceases at length to communicate sensation. Sensibility and contractility, which offer very considerable shades of modification and difference in different individuals, according to age, sex, temperament, &c., have been by physiologists not unaptly compared to a fluid flowing from a given source, which may be exhausted and replenished, drained and consumed, distributed equally or unequally, or occasionally even concentrated in peculiar parts.

In childhood and youth, these two properties are in the greatest activity

and perfection; but as age advances, they diminish more and more rapidly till death. The liveliness and frequency of impressions quickly wear out, and exhaust the sensibility; and in organs, as, for instance, the muscles that have been long exercised, contractility shares the same fate, and rest and repose are necessary, as it were, for their refreshment, when the properties are again restored to their natural energy.

Under particular circumstances, sensibility appears to forsake every part of the system, and to become as it were concentrated in one part or organ; the rest appearing at the same time almost totally deprived of it. For instance, if any part be suffering acute pain, or agony,—and uneasiness or pain of a more moderate degree be inflicted in another part,-this, (which otherwise would have been felt as irksome,) during the continuance of the more violent, will not be regarded, or even noticed. During sleep, percipient sensibility and voluntary contraction are in some measure suspended; and this suspension is either more or less complete, according to the healthy soundness of the repose.

In the inhabitants of the warm climates of the south, it is observed, that sensibility is more lively, and more easily excited, than in those of more cold and northern regions. In the natives of Italy and Spain, and especially of Africa, we find a sensibility irritable to the highest degree in the latter, it often happens that the slightest wounds produce convulsions, locked jaw, and death; which are of comparatively unfrequent occurrence in these northern climates, as sequels to trifling injuries, and then only in persons of a morbidly irritable constitution.

When the muscular powers are more than usually developed, the nervous powers, if I may use the expression, appear to suffer a proportionate diminution; that is, there appears to exist a kind of opposition between the force of muscular contraction and the sensibility of the nerves. Hence it is observed, that those whose athletic

force is immense, are sluggish in their motions and in their intellects, and with difficulty roused to active exertion of any kind; they are, for the most part, but slightly affected by ordinary impressions. It seems as if an extra degree of stimulus were required to rouse the slumbering energy of the muscular powers, which, when once roused, and not till then, display the extent of their efficacy.

sen

The sensibility which the higher orders of animals possess, depends, as we have before stated, upon the nerves, and is in fact a property connected with them, and essentially inseparable from their nature; but those animals which possess no distinct nervous system, or rather perhaps in whose contexture distinct nerves have not been discovered, appear at once endowed with sibility (latent,) and its companion, contractility, in all their parts and organs; throughout the structure of which it would seem that they were essentially diffused; and indeed in these orders of beings, the two properties just mentioned are so blended, that the separate existence of each as a distinct principle, cannot be conceived or understood, except as abstract qualities.

Percipient sensibility or perceptibility, is the power which certain nerves possess of receiving an impression, and of transmitting it to the brain, and the impression thus received is termed a sensation. This we have stated before; but it may be asked, Is it proved that the nerves are the organs of sensation? or that they do transmit impressions to the brain? For the proof of this, we can appeal to observations and numberless experiments: it is found, for example, that if any principal nerve be divided, or even compressed, the part or organ over which such nerve is distributed, becomes at once insensible. Thus, if the optic nerve be injured, loss of vision is the consequence ;-if the spinal cord be hurt, the limbs below the injury become paralyzed ;-if the brain be suffering pressure, either

« AnteriorContinuar »