"Children born of healthy parents, and belonging to a strong stock, always bring into the world a system formed by nature to resist the causes of disease; while children of delicate, sickly parents, are overpowered by the least unfavourable circumstance.

"Longevity depends more on innate constitution, than on the skill of the physician. Is it not then astonishing that this knowledge, as a practical piece of information, is not taught and disseminated among young people? Indeed, it ought to be familiarly and generally known. Even the unthinking must perceive that the enjoyments of life are rendered impossible, when diseases make their ravages in a family; and that love for the most part ceases, when poverty takes up its abode in the house. "There are many examples on record, of certain feelings or intellectual faculties being inherent in whole families. Now if it be ascertained that the hereditary condition of the brain is the cause, there is a great additional motive to be careful in the choice of a partner in marriage. No person of sense can be indifferent about having selfish or benevolent, stupid or intelligent, children.

"But it is said that men of great talents often have children of little understanding, and that, in large families there are individuals of very different capacities.

"As long as eminent men are married to partners of inferior capacities, the qualities of the offspring must be uncertain. The condition of the mother is not valued as it ought to be, and yet it is a common observation that boys resemble their mother, and girls their father, and that men of great talents almost always descend from intelligent mothers. The physical education of both sexes deserves the greatest attention, and it is unpardonable to neglect that of girls.

"The degeneration of man is certain in families who intermarry among themselves. Uncles and wives, or first cousins, or cousins who commit this error for several generations, have no children, or their progeny is feeble in constitution of both mind and body.

"It is indeed a pity that the laws of hereditary descent are so much neglected, whilst, by attending to them, not only the condition of single families, but of whole nations, might be improved beyond imagination, in figure, stature, complexion, health, talents, and moral feelings.

"It is probable,' says Dr. Rush, 'that the qualities of body and mind in parents, which produce genius in children, may be fixed and regulated; and it is possible the time may come, when we shall be able to predict with certainty the intellectual character of children, by knowing the specific nature of the different intellectual faculties of their parents.'

"Three successive generations appear to be necessary to produce an effectual change, be it for health or disease. According to the laws of creation, therefore, it is said that 'the Lord visits those who hate him (those who do not submit to his laws) to the third and fourth generation; namely, by their hereditary dispositions.

"Such causes as produce what is called the old age of nations, deserve to be remarked. Luxury belongs to them, and its influence, if continued during several generations, weakens body and mind, not only of families, but of whole nations.

"The Greeks, as appears from their customs, philosophy, and legislation, had particularly in view the beauty and vigour of the human constitution. As we,' says Plutarch, 'are anxious to have dogs and horses from a good breed, why should we marry the daughters of bad parents?' Plato speaks against marriages between relations. He, as well as Solon and Aristotle, considered also the age at which it was best to marry. The ancient philosophers commonly fixed it between eighteen and

twenty-four for a woman, and between thirty and thirty-six for a man. It is often the case that women who marry when very young, and bear a numerous family, become early victims to an exhausted constitution. "It may be said that these considerations can never become practical rules of conduct for society at large. In the actual situation of things, perhaps this is true. But we must also admit that the laws of the Creator will not change to gratify our fancy. If we will not submit to his dictates, we have no right to complain of being punished by unavoidable, though disagreeable results.

"Christian principles are not sufficiently exercised in society; yet it is not, on this account, considered superfluous to teach them; and he who loves mankind, will wish for their promulgation. Now the laws of hereditary descent are in the same situation.

"The Supreme Being gave us understanding that we might perceive these laws; and having perceived them, it is our first duty to obey them as His dictates; and having done so, we may then, and not till then, expect His blessing to attend us. The special obedience to the natural laws of hereditary descent is an indispensable condition to the improvement of mankind; and nothing but ignorance, superstition, and prejudice, can oppose it."

We subjoin a few facts on this subject at the present time, and shall add others, as may be convenient. It happens, in the instances we now offer, that the inheritance of talent depended more on the maternal than the paternal side. It is a prevailing opinion, that this is generally the case, though it may be very questionable whether the laws of hereditary descent operate more effectively in the one case than in the other. Facts only can settle the question. The following cases present a variety, comprehending philosophers, poets, historians, and orators.

Lord Bacon: his mother was daughter to Sir Anthony Cooke; she was skilled in many languages, and translated and wrote several works, which displayed superior learning, acuteness, and taste.-Hume, the historian, mentions his mother, daughter of Sir D. Falconet, (President of the College of Justice,) as a woman of singular merit; and who, although in the prime of her life, devoted herself entirely to his education.-R. B. Sheridan: his mother was a woman of more than ordinary abilities. It was writing a pamphlet in his defence, which first introduced her to Mr. Sheridan, her husband. She also wrote a novel, highly praised by Johnson.-Schiller, the German poet: his mother was an amiable woman; had great relish for the beauties of nature, and was passionately fond of music and poetry. Schiller was her favourite child.-Goethe thus speaks of his parents: I inherited from my father a certain sort of eloquence, calculated to enforce my doctrines on my auditors; and from my mother, I derived the faculty of representing all that the imagination can conceive, with energy and vivacity.-Lord Erskine's mother was a woman of superior talent and discernment, and it was through her advice that he betook himself to the bar.-Thompson, the poet: his mother is represented as a woman of uncommon natural endowment, possessed of every social and domestic virtue, with a warmth and vivacity of imagination scarcely inferior to her son.Boerhaave's mother acquired a knowledge of medicine, not often found in females.-The mother of Sir Walter Scott was a woman of great accomplishments and virtue; possessed refined taste, and wrote poetry at an early age.

Mr. Grimes in Albany, N. Y.-In the first volume of the Journal, we had occasion to present favourable notices of this gentleman's labours in

behalf of phrenology, at Buffalo, N. Y., and Wheeling, Va. It appears that he has recently visited Albany, N. Y., and been quite successful in presenting the claims of the science to its citizens. We find in the Albany Argus of Dec. 4, the following statement in relation to the reception of Mr. G.'s lectures:

"At the close of Mr. Grimes's lectures in the chapel of the Albany Female Academy, the class organised, by appointing Charles D. Townsend, M. D., chairman, and Thomas W. Olcott, Esq., secretary; whereupon Henry Green, M. D., introduced the following resolutions, which were unanimously adopted.

"Resolved, That we have listened with exciting interest to the lectures of Mr. Grimes, president of the Phrenological Society of Buffalo, on the science of phrenology.

"Resolved, That we believe Mr. Grimes has made new and important discoveries in phrenology; that his arrangement of the brain into three classes of organs, viz. the ipseal, social, and intellectual, together with their subdivision, into ranges and groups, is founded in nature, the anatomy of the brain, and the natural gradation of animals, as they rise in the scale of being.

"Resolved, That we are forced to believe that phrenology, as taught by Mr. Grimes, may be learned by persons of ordinary intelligence and observation, so as to be useful to them in their every day intercourse with society; that it is destined to improve our race, remodel the present mode of education, become useful in legislation, and in the government of children in families and schools.

Resolved, That we not only esteem it a duty, but regard it a pleasure, to encourage talents, genius, and enterprise, wherever we discover them, and in whatever pursuit, if the object and effect is the improvement of mankind; that we regard Mr. Grimes as possessing the highest order of intellect as original in his observations and deductions, and as destined to fill a distinguished place in the scientific world.

"Resolved, That we confidently recommend Mr. Grimes to the attention of our fellow-citizens in different sections of our extended country, believing they will find him an accomplished lecturer, a close, accurate, forcible reasoner, and inimitable in his illustrations of the science he so triumphantly advocates.

"Resolved, That Henry Green, M. D., and Professor M'Kee, of the Albany Female Academy, be a committee to present a copy of these resolutions to Mr. Grimes, and request their publication in the daily papers of the city.

"CHARLES D. TOWNSEND, M. D., Chairman.

"THOMAS W. OLCOTT, Esq., Secretary."

The late Dr. Godman a Phrenologist.-Dr. Sewall, in his Eulogy on the Character of Dr. Godman, says of him, and deservedly, too, "it was his accurate knowledge of anatomy and physiology, and his uncommon power of teaching these branches of medicine, which gave him his strongest claims to our regard as a man of science." And again-" He always came to his subject as an investigator of facts; the zeal with which he sought information from this source (original observation) may be learned from a single incident, that in investigating the habits of the shrew-mole, he walked many hundred miles." Now this same Dr. Godman says, "As a general rule, it is safe to infer that the opponents of Gall and Spurzheim do not understand the exact nature of the case against which they dispute. At least no man, who ever set himself

honestly to work to examine the subject fairly, has remained in opposition." And in another place he speaks of "the renowned, the indefatigable, the undefeated Gall." And again he says, "This is the foundation upon which the doctrines of Gall and Spurzheim rest-purely upon observation-and this is the reason why these doctrines have so triumphantly outlived all the misrepresentations and violence of opposition."

Pathological Fact.-The Public Ledger of this city contained, Nov. 27th, 1839, the following statement on phrenology. We have enquired into the particulars of the case, and would state, that our readers may rely upon the correctness of the facts as detailed below.

"A few days since, Dr. Duffie, in presence of Dr. B. H. Coates, dissected the body of a female who, during her lifetime, had laboured under a peculiar monomania. When on her death bed, she was under the impression that every person who entered the room came with the intention of stealing. This conceit was carried to such an extent, that she even believed that a reverend gentleman, who paid her occasional visits during her illness, never entered the room but with an intention to purloin some of the small articles displayed and placed about the room. She also admitted to the doctor that, though placed far beyond the reach of want and penury, by her very respectable and comfortable sphere in life, yet her own desire to pilfer and purloin from others was so uncontrollable that she, notwithstanding her consciousness of doing wrong, actually could not resist this natural impulse of thieving from others whenever a favourable opportunity presented itself. On dissection of the head, the brain and its covering were ascertained to be greatly inflamed by the examining gentlemen; Dr. Duffie afterwards presented it to Mr. Fowler, the phrenologist, who, on Monday evening, embodied a full description of it into one of his lectures. Secretiveness, combined with Acquisitiveness, was said to be extraordinarily developed on her cranium, which organs, according to the phrenological system, denote a desire to steal. The organ of Benevolence was also largely developed, which is said to act in a kind of restraining manner on the organs already referred to. The brain was exhibited to the audience present at Mr. Fowler's lecture. At the time of her death, she had arrived at the age of thirty-seven years, and was the mother of eight children."

The above fact is only one out of a multitude in confirmation of the science. Mr. Fowler is well known as an excellent practical phrenologist. He has an extensive phrenological cabinet, which, in number, variety, and choiceness of specimens, exceeds, probably, any other in the country, unless it be that in the possession of the Boston Phrenological Society, which is made up chiefly of Dr. Spurzheim's collection. Mr. Fowler is delivering lectures every week through the winter at his rooms, which are well attended, and afford much practical information on the science.

Cerebral Organisation the cause of difference in Religious Views.— It is not our intention to discuss the subject heading this paragraph, though it is one exceedingly interesting in its nature, and vastly important in its application. Our object is merely to call the attention of the public to the fact, and leave it for others, to whom it more appropriately belongs, to investigate the subject. It is gratifying to know that the clergy are beginning to take more rational and correct views of mental science in its connection with theology. There are some excellent

American

remarks on this subject in the October number of the Biblical Repository," from the pen of a distinguished professor in one of our theological seminaries. It will be perceived in the extract which we quote, that the writer lays too much stress on mere temperament, and that, with a knowledge of phrenology, he might have rendered the subject much clearer, as well as more forcible and striking. Keligionists and divines have yet to learn, that difference in cerebral organisation is more frequently and generally the primitive cause of difference in religious views, than they now suspect; and that there even is a more intimate and striking harmony between the principles of phrenology and the essential truths of Christianity, than they or any others have ever yet conceived. Time will verify the truth of this remark, and show that it is not mere assertion.

In accounting for the cause of religious controversy and difference of opinion, this writer speaks as follows:-"It will soothe many agitated minds to reflect that religious disputes, instead of arising always from a want of conscientious regard to the welfare of the church, arise sometimes from so innocent a cause as the different temperaments of individuals. One divine has a phlegmatic temperament, and loves to insist on human passivity; another has a sanguine temperament, and loves to insist on human action and freedom; a third has a melancholic temperament, and is fascinated with the inexplicable mysteries of God's moral system; a fourth has a bilious temperament, and loves to combine the passive and the active, fore-knowledge and free-will. Now the phlegmatic theology, in its exclusive form, is erroneous; the sanguine theology is the same; and the melancholic, when uncombined with others, is unsound; but it is not philosophical to excommunicate men by the hundred and thousand, because they have a nervous tenperament, or a bilious mode of reasoning. They may be all pious, equally so with their opposers, yet all imperfect, and their original prolific sin is, in this regard, a sin of the cerebral system, rather than of the voluntary emotions."

Rev. John Pierpont, of Boston.-The name of this clergyman is doubtless known to most of our readers. He is one of the most eloquent divines in New England, and, as a poet, has few equals in this country. When Dr. Spurzheim was in Boston, Mr. Pierpont attended his lectures, became deeply interested in phrenology, and has since not failed, in various ways, to manifest his interest in the science. During the past season, certain proprietors of his church, taking offence at bis zeal and labours in behalf of the temperance cause, have (in order to effect his dismission) brought sundry charges against him, among which his advocacy of phrenology comes in for a share. His accusers, in the charge, allude to Dr. Spurzheim under the character of an "imported mountebank," &c.; to which Mr. Pierpont eloquently and beautifully replies"Shade of the lamented Spurzbeim! forgive the man who thus dishonours thee. Dishonours thee! No; no man can dishonour any other than himself. Thou wast honoured in thy life as few in this land have been. Thou wast honoured in thy death and thy funeral obsequies as, in this generation, no other man has been. The munificent merchant of Boston, who gave thy bones a resting place in the sacred shades of Mount Auburn, and placed over them that beautiful copy of the tomb of Scipio, was content to cut thy name upon its front as thine only epitaph; feeling that wherever science was honoured, or philanthropy loved, no other could be needed." And again Mr. P. says, "I was a hearer of Dr. Spurzheim, and have since been, and mean again to be, a hearer of the lectures of George Combe. To these two 'imported mountebanks,'