CONTENTS OF No. XII, 1. The Constitution of Man considered in relation to external ob- 2. Essays on Phrenology; or, an Inquiry into the principles and utility of the System of Drs. Gall and Spurzheim, and into the objec- 1. Outlines of Geology. By W. Thomas Brande, F. R. S. 2. An introduction to Geology, comprising the elements of that science in its present advanced state, &c. By Robert Bakewell. 3. A New System of Geology, in which the great revolutions of the earth and animated nature are reconciled at once to modern science and sacred history. By Andrew Ure, M. D. 4. Outline of the Course of Geological Lectures given in Yale Col- Memoires historiques et secrets de l'Impératrice Josephine Marie- Rose Tascher de la Pagerie, premiere epouse de Napoléon; Bona- parte; ouvrage oruè de huit gravures, portrait et fac simile, plus, l'in- terieur de la main de l'homme extraordinaire, &c. Par Mile. M. A. Histoire de la Literature Grecque profane depuis son origine jusq'à la prise de Constantinople par les Turcs. Par M. Schoell. V. SOCIAL LIFE OF ENGLAND AND FRANCE, A Comparative View of the Social Life of England and France, from the Restoration of Charles II. to the French Revolution. By 1. Message of the President of the United States, in relation to the Survey of a Route for a Canal between the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean; with the Report of the Board of Internal Im- provement on the contemplated Canal between the Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico, with a general Map annexed to it. 2. Map of Florida, constructed principally from authentic docu 2. Martin, heir at law and devisee of Fairfax v. Hunter's lessee. Vol. i. Reports of Cases argued and adjudged in the Supreme Court of the United States, February Term, 1816. By Henry Wheaton. 3. New Views of the Constitution of the United States. By John Taylor, of Caroline, Virginia. 4. Cohens v. Virginia. Vol. vi. Reports of Cases adjudged in the Supreme Court, February Term, 1821. By Henry Wheaton. 5. Hunter v. Martin, devisee of Fairfax. Vol. iv. Reports of Cases argued and determined in the Supreme Court of Appeals of Virginia. VIII. GRIESBACH'S NEW TESTAMENT, 1. Novum Testamentum Græcè. Textum ad fidem Codicum Ver- sionum et Patrum recensuit, et Lectionis Varietatem adjecit D. Jo. 2. Remarks upon the Systematical Classification of Manuscripts adopted by Griesbach in his edition of the New Testament. By the 3 An Inquiry into the Integrity of the Greek Vulgate, or Receiv- ed Text of the New Testament; in which the Greek Manuscripts are newly classed, the integrity of the authorized text vindicated, and the various readings traced to their origin. By the Rev. Frede- SOUTHERN REVIEW. NO. XII. NOVEMBER, 1830. ART. 1.-1. The Constitution of Man considered in relation to external objects. By GEORGE COMBE. Edinburgh. 1818. 2. Essays on Phrenology; or, an Inquiry into the principles and utility of the System of Drs. Gall and Spurzheim, and into the objections made against it. By GEORGE COMBE. Edinburgh. SHAKSPEARE has divided human life into seven ages, and given, in a few poetical lines, a highly graphic sketch of the physical progress, from puling infancy, to drivelling dotage. But neither poet nor philosopher has, hitherto, so far as we are aware, described minutely the gradations of intellectual existence, deterred perhaps by the difficulty of fixing the everchanging impressions of the varying passions and emotions which from time to time stamp their peculiarities upon the character and conduct. To know man as he is; to measure all his powers; to estimate fully his capacities, we must begin by tracing the first lines of mental developement, we should watch the soul as it buds forth in the earliest spring-time of being, then closely observing its modes and degrees of expansion, we should note the withering of its petals, the fading away of its brilliant colouring, and linger over the last exhalations of its departing fragrance. We do not propose at present to attempt a task of such delicacy, but will merely employ the brief space allotted to us, in sketching a few of the most prominent features of the mind as they display themselves at the several successive periods of life; leaving it to more attentive and able observers to fill up the extensive outline. VOL. VI. NO. 12. 34 It would detain us long, and indeed to little purpose, to enter into the discussion of the hackneyed question, whether the soul or mind be a something superadded to our physical structure, or an essentially constituent portion of that structure; it shall suffice to acknowledge the connexion between them, whether identical or contrasted in their natures, to be so close, and indissoluble, that all attempts to disjoin them, even in imagination, must prove entirely abortive. The music may not reside in the string, but without its vibration there can be no melody. We must take leave, however, to express the opinion, contrary to the doctrines taught by some of the most talented and ingenious writers of the present day, that mental power is not simply the result of physical organization. We readily admit that the hand of the Creator has bound them together inseparably, though not in the relation of cause and effect. Imperfect organization unquestionably implies, always, imperfection of intellect. The one increases and is developed as the other grows and attains strength and maturity, until the two are exhibited in the highest condition of excellence and vigour. It was a debate worthy of the schoolmen and may be set aside with their other lucubrations, at what period the earliest manifestations of soul or thought were given forth by the embryo or infant. At birth, we can scarcely regard the future man as any thing better than a vegetable; nay Alfieri has applied the phrase "Pianta-Uomo," "Plant Man," to the same being even in the adult state. He is sensible, but as far as we can judge, sensible only to painful impressions-hunger, thirst, and fatigue oppress him, and it may be taken as an evil omen of his coming existence that his first felt passion is one of the most uneasy and depressing of all those to which he is to be a prey. He fears. He has entered a scene of suffering and sorrow; to fit him for the avoidance of the causes of evil, he is early gifted with the impulse of terror. Shout near him--he screams alarmed. Seem to let him fall— he throws out his little hands and convulsively catches for support. He is also the subject of desire. The sensation of hunger, if we may use such an expression, is born with him, and he appears to be inspired with a knowledge of the mode by which he is to relieve it-he needs no lesson to teach him how to derive his food from its gentle sources-"the sacred fountains that nourish the human race." The voluntary actions by which he effects this are said to be instinctive, but we have not affixed to this term a meaning sufficiently clear and precise. Is it intended that they are in any sense mechanical? are they, on the other hand, intelligent? or must we resort to the supposition, that they are intermediate, or of a peculiar nature? Actions of this class are even more remarkable among the lower animalsnay, we must not venture to deny their exhibition in the vegetable kingdom. By such an appetency or instructive propensity is it, that plants growing in a dark place seek out and creep to the crevices that admit light, to which they would almost seem to know they owe all their colouring and beauty. It is not to be supposed that the infant is so early capable of aversion, the opposite emotion. He exists but in the present moment-time, past and future, is nothing to him. Aversion looks forward to pain or suffering from some cause which is expected to act, and is therefore dreaded. Desire is only the wish to get rid of present suffering-not mingled in the infant as in the adult, with the anticipation of future enjoyment. He soon becomes susceptible of anger, and does not allow himself meekly to be crossed or hindered of his will, or subjected to any unpleasant operation. He is a despot to his mother and a tyrant to his nurse. Next appear the varying emotions of grief and joy, which alternately becloud and illuminate his countenance. It is true that these feelings are usually transient, and liable to be aroused by slight and almost indefinable causes, but it is also true, that they exhibit in certain temperaments, a scarcely credible degree of violence, if left unrestrained and unmodified by the controlling influence of education. Infants scarcely able to totter, have been known to fall prostrate and apoplectic under the intensity of anger. The whirlwind of rage passes rapidly by, for the most part, and we do not see, thus early, any remains of resentment, or note any purposes of revenge-but sometimes the paroxysm is more lasting, and loud sobs, and long and continued sullenness, bespeak the obstinacy of the evil emotion. The agonies of sorrow and the extacies of joy instantaneously excited, as instantaneously subside, and like the melting clouds of a summer moonlight sky, leave not a trace behind. Through the various stages of childhood, curiosity is perhaps the predominant feeling. Destined to ripen hereafter into the love of knowledge, and to be directed by ambition and experience to the discovery of new worlds, and the elucidation of truths and principles more valuable than worlds themselves, it is now a mere impulse-yet not causeless, not without object. Nothing is known, all is to be learned-but cannot be learned without inquiry. Hence, as I believe, the habit of mimicry, which distinguishes early childhood. The motions and actions of their superiors are imitated to ascertain the result and effect which they are calculated to produce. Afterwards, however, the imitation may be attributed to another motive. They admire a parent or friend, and therefore wish and aim to be like him. From curi |