which gives him his superiority over the rest of the animal creation, deserves the first attention. The head is, literally, a bony case, apparently formed to contain and protect a soft, complicated, and elaborate substance, which is either the seat of the mental powers, or is closely allied with them; for it seems to be by the peculiarity of this structure, that man exercises his sovereignty over all below, and is capable of directing his powers to all above. In most instances, the superior energies of man are found to bear a certain proportion to the quantity and form of the brain, which exactly fills the hollow part of the cranium. Anatomists have, therefore, considered the form of the skull as indicative of the comparative magnitude of this important organ; but, notwithstanding all their opposite conclusions and conflicting opinions, this is the least known of all the organs of our animal nature. Such have been the diligence and success of modern research, that there is now scarcely a part of the human frame of which the mechanism and utility have not been fully developed. The agency in the economy of life, sustained by the bones, the muscles, and the ligaments, have been distinctly pointed out, and the functions performed by the different viscera clearly explained; but the brain, an organ of the utmost importance, and the one indisputably connected with our very sensitive existence, is so complex in its structure, and incomprehensible in its functions, that it has hitherto baffled all investigation, and still presents nearly a complete 'blank in the rich and cultivated field of knowledge.'

It is generally admitted that the brain is the organ of thought, and the agent by which the soul and body exercise a reciprocal influence upon each other, as it is doubtless subservient to sensation and volition. Many philosophers have also concluded, that it is immediately concerned in all our mental operations, as well as being the instrument by which we feel and act; but how these effects are produced,

has ever eluded the utmost grasp of human intellect. Some have supposed this important part of man to be composed of a congeries of distinct organs, corresponding to the various faculties of the mind; each organ of the one having its appropriate office, and being immediately subservient to some particular function of the other. This supposition occurred to physiologists as early as the reign of Theodosius; but from that time, till a recent period, scarcely any one ventured further than to present a few vague conjectures towards its solution. Even some of the ablest physiologists, among whom were Haller and Van Swieten, considered the organization of the brain too complicated and intricate, and its analysis too difficult, to allow of any hope, that the respective seats of the mental faculties would ever be disco. vered.

Of late, however, a new theory on this subject originated in Germany with Drs. Gall and Spurzheim, and has been widely diffused throughout several other countries. These ingenious speculators laid it down as the foundation of their doctrines, that the faculties with which man is endowed by his Maker are implanted in him at his first formation, and are not the result of the circumstances in which he may afterwards be placed, or of the wants and necessities to which these circumstances may give rise. They also supposed that each function of the mind is exercised by a distinct portion of the brain; and their object was, therefore, to ascertain, if possible, by observation, the correspondence between these separate parts and their respective faculties. But, as the living brain could not be exposed to their inspection, and, from the nature of its substance, much both of its form and texture are lost very soon after death, their only chance of establishing their theory was an attentive and protracted examination of the skull, by which they hoped to ascertain the various shapes and magnitudes of the corresponding parts of the brain, as indicating the intensity of those mental fa

culties and passions, which throw such a diversified light and shade over the wide regions of the intellectual world. Such is the complicated and delicate task which those physiologists, and others who have adopted their views, have imposed upon themselvesa task no less than that of accounting for all the diversities of human intellect by a supposed knowledge of what, in its perfect state, they can never examine-a task which, the more we prosecute, the less is our hope of ever seeing it accomplished; as it seems to involve an acquaintance with the modes of mental operation, or of the connexion between the soul and body, which appears to be too subtle for the very faculties themselves, in their present state, to comprehend.

If the brain may be considered as the seat of the human mind, the countenance has long been regarded as its index. Here, it has been supposed that men's passions and emotions may be read-here all the secret springs of the soul be traced;—but this is to assume a perfection in the external representation of internal feelings, which a thousand circumstances preclude it from attaining; and whoever, therefore, expects to find the secret springs of the mind seated on the tip of the nose, the point of the chin, or even beaming in the most lucid eye, will soon realize the fallacy of his hopes in disappointment. Hogarth, who had certainly studied the subject with a degree of success beyond what most men attain, observes on this point-Nature has afforded us many lines and shapes, to indicate the deficiencies and blemishes of the mind, while there are none that point out the perfections of it, beyond the appearance of common sense and placidity. Deportment, words, and actions, must speak the good, the wise, the witty, and the brave. All that the ancient sculptors could do, notwithstanding their enthusiastic endeavours to raise the character of their gods to aspects of sagacity above human, was to give them features

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of beauty. The God of Wisdom has no more than a handsome manliness.' There is, however, a certain turn of expression in the face, and often a beam of intelligence in the eye, which arrest the attention of the careful observer, and sometimes seems to put us in possession of the speaker's sentiments, before they are clothed in words. The various changes, too, of which the human countenance is susceptible, render it always interesting; the animated brilliancy that sparkles at one moment, and the softened languor that breathes at another, equally excite corresponding motions in the observer's bosom, and create an interest unattached to any other object. The outline of the human face approaches the beautiful figure of an oval, in which variety is most completely blended with simplicity; and the effect is heightened by the gradual diminution of the curve from the broad arch of the forehead to the more contracted one of the chin. The prominence of this feature, in conjunction with the lips, gives a finish and a peculiarity to the human countenance. But it is the eye which imparts life, expression, and animation, to the whole: this is the grand inlet through which images of distant objects flow into the mind. View the work of the painter before the whole is completed;-let it be most exquisitely worked before the eye is pencilled on the canvas, how dull, how vacant is the whole without this 'living crystal!' Such is the admirable adaptation of this organ to the varied and multiplied wants of man, that those who have merely imperfect notions of its structure and properties, can scarcely be ignorant of the wisdom and contrivance so manifest in its formation. We cannot but admire the elevated position of the eye, whence it can survey a multitude of objects with a single glance. Nor is it less distinguished by the extreme ease with which it turns in every direction, and thus in a manner multiplies itself by the various situations it can assume. The suppleness of the lids, with their natural and or

namental fringe of short hairs, are equally admirable in their formation and design; being adapted to guard the eyes from too powerful impressions of light, to screen them from external injuries, and to aid the power of sleep over all the other faculties. An intimate acquaintance with the mechanism of vision also shows, that the eye is a most perfect optical instrument, on the ground of which, light paints a miniature portrait of every object within the field of vision; among the vast variety of which, it may be safely affirmed, that none exhibits a clearer demonstration of infinite intelligence than the structure of this small organ. To enter into a description of this structure would, however, be inconsistent with the brevity of the present sketch, besides being unintelligible to many of our youthful readers.

As the eye is the organ by which the mind becomes sensible of distant objects, so the ear is that by which it experiences the sensation of sound. The ears being situated in the lateral parts of the head, they are susceptible of impressions from all directions. The progressive pulsations of the atmosphere strike upon the ear, the delicacy of which is such, that it is capable of receiving and conveying to the mind the different characters of which the same tone is susceptible. Thus the flexibility of this organ enables it to receive, with nearly equal ease and certainty, the soft and gentle tones of one instrument, and the vigorous and powerful sounds of another, with the almost infinitely varied accents of the human voice. Still more wonderful, however, is that power by which it is capable of appreciating many different sounds at the same moment of time. In a concert, for example, many instruments and many voices yield at once sounds of various tones and degrees; yet these are readily distinguished from each other by a well formed ear, accustomed to such an assemblage. So admirably, indeed, has Nature adapted this organ to the wants and enjoyments of man, that it