external world, and convey to the brain, the materials of knowledge; and it is the office of the perceptives to work up the materials into sensations, perceptions, ideas, &c.

Before the organs of perception in the brain were discovered, it was a natural error to ascribe to the eye the power of perceiving colors, distances and forms; to the ear the power of perceiving melody, and to the touch, the power of perceiving weight; but the functions of the external senses being now better understood, they can be deemed only vehicles for impressions. Spurzheim made a distinction between the immediate and mediate functions of the senses. In his chapter on the external senses, be says: “ The spheres of immediate activity of the five senses are very limited; feeling perceives only dryness, moisture and temperature; taste, savours; smell, odours; the ears, sound; and the eyes, light. All the other functions are only mediate."

Now I deny that the eye perceives light-the ear, soundthe smell, odours-the taste, savours-and the touch, moisture, &c. It is, in my opinion, the office of Individuality to perceive light, sound, savours, odours, &c.; the eye receives the light, the retina is impressed, and the optic nerve conveys the impression to the brain, and there Individuality perceives the light, and the organ of Colour perceives the colour, the organ of Form the shape, &c.

TOUCH.-The innumerable branches of the nerves of this sense, proceed from the most minute and remote parts of the body to the brain, conveying impressions of weight, temperature, moisture, &c.

TASTE. The sense of taste is a branch of the fifth pair that proceeds from the tongue to the medulla oblongata, conveying to the brain impressions of the savour of bodies. that come in contact with the tongue, in a state of solution. SMELL.-The organ of smell is the olfactory nerve, which

proceeds in numerous branches from the nasal organ to the brain, and is lost in its substance at the organ of Chemicality; this sense conveys to the brain impressions of odorous particles which are detached from distant bodies and mingled with the air.

HEARING. The auditory nerve is a branch of the seventh pair, called the portio mollis, and proceeds from the internal part of the ear to the medulla oblongata, and conveys the impressions of sound.

SIGHT.-The optic nerve has one extremity in the eye, constituting the retina, and may be traced from the eye to the brain near the medulla oblongata; it conveys impressions of light.

LOWER RANGE OF PERCEPTIVES.

1. INDIVIDUALITY.

"They see, but do not perceive."-Isaiah.

This is the faculty that perceives the impressions that are conveyed by the senses to the brain. It is the first organ of the intellect that acts, and the only one that is immediately and directly acted upon by the senses. Until this has been excited, none of the other intellectual organs can perform their functions. This is the great fundamental organ of the knowledge-relative class, and all the rest are superadditions. It takes notice of individual things and existences -it perceives things in their collective and individual stateit takes cognizance of all that immense class of ideas included under the grammatical term nouns-and it bears precisely the same relation to the other Intellectuals that the noun does to the other parts of speech in grammar. When

this is large and vigorous, all the others are compelled to act their part in proportion to their size; being mere emanations, like so many streams from one grand fountain, their action is dependent upon, and in perfect harmony with it.

However large the nerves of the external senses may be, the impressions which they convey to the brain will excite comparatively little action in the Intellect, if this important inlet to the mind be contracted in its dimensions. This is the first faculty of this class that is manifested by animals after they come into existence; as soon as they begin to use their senses, they also begin to exercise Individuality. The senses and this faculty are co-existent; every animal, however low in the scale of beings, as soon as it manifests the senses, manifests this also. It is the possession of this which may be said to constitute the distinction between the animal and vegetable kingdoms. Vegetables manifest two propensities, viz. Alimentiveness and Amativeness, but they do not manifest in an undoubted manner, any of the Intellectuals, nor do they possess any of the senses; their Alimentive and Amative propensities seem to be guided merely by chemical attraction. I am aware that some philosophers consider vegetables as but a lower order of animals, but even if this be admitted, it affords no argument against these views. The Polypus (Fig. 1.) bears in its external appearance, a striking resemblance to vegetables-like them it manifests but two propensities.

Fixed like a plant to its peculiar spot,

To draw nutrition-propagate-and rot.

But if any thing comes in contact with its limbs, fitted to gratify Alimentiveness, they immediately contract and draw the object into a hollow, which runs the whole length of its trunk, and which answers the purpose both of stomach and belly; all the indigestible parts being expelled again by the same orifice where they entered. They sometimes

swallow a whole fish, (Fig. 2.) and the body being transparent, the form of the fish appears through it.

This is a specimen of the lowest stage of animal existence; but even here we see the sense of touch, and the faculty of Individuality manifested in the most perfect manner, besides the two vegetable propensities.

If we glance at the representation of the base of the brain, we see the organs of these three principal powers,

Individuality, at the centre of the lowest front, Alimentiveness, at the lowest part of the middle, Amativeness, at the lowest back part of the brain. A large Individuality is absolutely necessary to enable one to arrive at eminence in practical life. An artist, however well developed his head may be in other respects, if this organ of general attention, be small, he will be likely to overlook some of the less obvious details of his performance, and when a critic points out an error, he will exclaim-Oh! I did not see that!" and yet perhaps his vision is perfect.

The author, who has it large, uses many nouns. The "Iron bound bucket," by Woodworth, is a beautiful illustration.

"How dear to my heart are the scenes of my childhood,
When fond recollection recalls them to view,
The orchard, the meadow, the deep-tangled wildwood,
And every loved spot which my infancy knew;
The wide-spreading pond, and the mill that stood by it,
The bridge and the rock where the cataract fell,
The cot of my father, the dairy-house nigh it,
And e'en the rude bucket that hung in the well.
That old oaken bucket,

That iron-bound bucket,

That moss-covered bucket that hung in the well.

The ancient physiognomists remarked, that their great men were full at the top of the nose, and all their portraits and busts that have come down to us, show them to have been large in this part, which was evidently mistaken for a part of the nose. I have never yet seen a great general, statesman, mechanic or naturalist, who was very small here. I have seen high, wide and full foreheads, upon persons who were little less than fools, on account of a deficiency in this important organ. Again, I have seen persons with this very large, who were, notwithstanding, perfect idiots, on account of the great deficiency of the reflectives.