The well balanced temperament, the _temperamentum temperatum_, of the ancients is an ideal condition in which there is in fact no temperament, all the organs of the body being perfectly in harmony, and exhibiting no preponderance of one over the other. Many persons approximate this condition, but it is difficult to find one in which it is so nearly attained as to make the proper cla.s.sification of his temperament under the above heads a difficult matter. However desirable such a condition may be from a purely physiological standpoint, the fact remains that all great and powerful natures, the men who have been the leaders in the battles of literature, art, science and war itself, have had well defined and p.r.o.nounced temperamental conditions of organization.

We have now fully demonstrated that in his scientific delineation of character the professional phrenologist depends upon something more than mere configuration of skull. The great modifying conditions of health, quality and temperament in every case give us the foundation of the character. It will be seen, some medical authorities to the contrary, notwithstanding, that the science of Phrenology has a firm basis on the established principles and known facts of Physiology and Anatomy.

Bearing these facts in mind we will now proceed to the discussion of the scientific principles governing the phrenological examination of

SIZE AND CONFIGURATION OF BRAIN, or the theory of the localization in different organs of the brain of the corresponding faculties of the mind.

THE BRAIN is the key-board of the body. It is an error to claim that it is the exclusive organ of intelligence. The brain performs substantially the same function for the body which the key-board does for the piano, or which the central office of the telephone system performs for its various subscribers.

Magnetism received from the exterior of the body is transmitted to the brain where it produces a result. This result in turn is transmitted to various portions of the body. Properly, therefore, intelligence is distributed over the entire body and the amount of intelligence which any individual possesses will be found to be in exact proportion to the size and quality of his body and the perfect adaptation, cooperation and adjustment of its parts.

The brain is an oval ma.s.s of soft tissue which completely fills the internal cavity of the skull. It is composed of two substances, a white fibrous substance which forms the internal portion and a gray, cortical tissue which forms the external layer. This gray substance lies in folds or convolutions, the furrows or sulci, dipping deeply into the interior of the brain.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Brain with Skull Removed.]

It is found by dissection that the brain of an intellectual man exhibits a larger number of convolutions than one of small intellectual calibre, and that the convolutions are deeper and the layer of gray substance thicker, and in consequence of the increase in number and depth of convolutions there is a wider expanse of surface as well, for the distribution of gray matter. Hence the relative proportion of gray matter in different brains has come to be regarded by physiologists as a test of mental power. Many idiots have large and well formed brains but the convolutions are shallow and few and the gray matter small in quant.i.ty and extent of surface. Physicians often ask me how I can estimate the relative quant.i.ty of gray matter in a living head without cutting into it. I refer them to the study of quality and temperament which I have clearly expounded in this lecture. Do you ever find hickory leaves growing on a pine tree? Show me the bark of a tree and I'll tell you the quality of the wood within; show me the skin, the hair, the eyes of a man and I'll tell you the quality of every organ in his body as well as the quality of the brain. I recently astonished the superintendent of an insane asylum by pointing out to him that the quality of the hair, the eyes and the skin of idiots was essentially different from the quality of those of more highly endowed persons, and could be told in the dark by a person of educated sensibilities. The quality and texture of the brain being determined, the next step is the consideration of its size.

Other things being equal in all natural objects, size is the measure of power. By the term "other things" in relation to the brain, we mean temperament, quality and health. This simple principle explains why a great many people who carry large heads are endowed with but little intellectual power. Their heads are filled with "sawdust," in other words, a brain of poor quality, supported by a feeble body, or vitiated by excessive temperamental conditions.

Men who carry small and misshapen heads are often brilliant in certain directions, and this limited brilliancy in special lines causes them to be spoken of by superficial observers as men of great ability and apparent exceptions to the phrenological rule. The fact remains, however, that in no case is comprehensive greatness ever exhibited in a head of small dimensions.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Small Head. Brilliant in Observation, Deficient in Reflection.]

Large size of brain, accompanied with robust health, high quality and good temperamental conditions, gives the highest phase of powerful mentality and comprehensive greatness. Small size of brain, with poor health, low quality and erratic temperamental conditions gives the lowest form of mentality and const.i.tutional inferiority. Between these two extremes we may find every conceivable modification and form of human character according to the various combinations of normal and abnormal conditions.

Size of brain then is a measure of power when judged by an enlightened understanding of physiological, anatomical and pathological conditions.

The phrenologist goes one step farther and a.s.serts that size of brain in any particular region, judged by the same standards of comparison, is an indication of local power.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Criminal.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Philosopher.]

Every portion of the body is created for a specific function. You never see with your ears, you do not taste with your eyes, you do not walk with your teeth. There is no waste in nature. Every part has its special duty to perform. The part of the brain which lies in front of the ears has a different function from that which lies behind them. The parietal lobes of the brain are not placed in the skull for the same purposes which the frontal and occipital lobes represent. Every fibre has its function, every convolution its purpose. All that remains for us to do is to compare known forms of heads and note the coincidence of character exhibited by similar developments and the divergences of character accompanying diverse developments. In the past century these observations have been sufficiently successful to locate the general functions of the external portions of the brain which are situated so that observation and comparison are possible. Forty-two general organs are now located with definite certainty, and these have been subdivided with sufficient accuracy so that there are over one hundred localized centres of cerebral development which can be accurately measured and their mental power determined to the advantage of the individual and the benefit of society at large.

The brain is double. It is divided into two hemispheres by the _falx cerebri_, a part.i.tion which follows the middle line of the skull. Each hemisphere contains one organ pertaining to each faculty of the mind.

The size of each organ is estimated, not by feeling for b.u.mps or depressions, but by measuring the length of the fibres of the brain from their common center in the _medulla oblongata_, at the head of the spinal column, and at a point equi-distant from the ears in the interior of the head. From this common centre the fibres of the brain range horizontally and upward in all directions like the branches of a tree.

Development of brain fibre laterally gives a wide head, longitudinally, from the _medulla oblongata_ to the forehead and to the occiput, a long head. Development upward raises the crown; and I have in my collection skulls which show by actual measurement a relative difference of over three inches in development of brain fibre to certain localities of brain surface. Viewed in the light of these facts and principles as here expounded, the phrenological position is established, and the childish objections of those who sneer at this beautiful science, fall crumbling to the dust. The last great fact to be considered is this: Exercise of any portion of the body develops it, enlarges it and adds to its strength. Disuse weakens, paralyzes and ultimately destroys. This rule applies to all parts of the body, and to the brain more particularly because the nervous tissue of which the brain is composed is more rapidly used up and renewed than any other portion of the body and hence more susceptible to change. Phrenology solves all problems of education and enables every individual to develop a symmetrical and well formed brain, and with it a harmonious character, by pointing out those portions that are deficient and those that are strong, and thus enabling him to secure a really well trained mind.

By memorizing the different organs and their functions, particularly those in which you are marked as excessive or deficient, and by practicing the observation of your daily conduct and learning to a.n.a.lyze it phrenologically, _i. e._, to note those occasions when deficient faculties have failed to act, and when predominating faculties have caused you to act hastily or contrary to good judgment, you will soon become painfully aware of your true faults, and by a conscientious action of reason and exercise of self-control will be able to correct them. In the same manner predominating talents may be tested and proved and you will rejoice in the birth of new aspirations, hopes and impulses, in a word you may be, by means of this science, placed in full command of your mental powers and learn to control and direct them as the skillful engineer controls and directs his locomotive.

Concede the fact that these differences in form, quality, temperament and health mean anything, and all that we claim for Phrenology follows logically and as a matter of course. In the light of this demonstration of known facts, it follows that character can be read, and if read, then it can be a.s.signed to the position of its best usefulness in the profession, trade or avocation suitable to the employment of the talents demonstrated to exist. If Phrenology gives the index to your character, as we have proved it does, then it also forms the key to the solution of the problem of matrimony by describing the character which will harmonize with yours in congenial companionship, financial success and the improvement of offspring. It likewise is a trusty guide in the formation of business relations as partners, employers or employees, and directs us in the choice of a.s.sociates, teachers or companions in social life. It gives to the anxious parent the knowledge of inherited and acquired talents in cherished darlings of the household, and in every relation of life; at every moment of existence it is an advantage, a comfort, an a.s.sistance, a thing of beauty and a joy forever.

In this lecture, ladies and gentlemen, I have demonstrated the theory of Phrenology. To-morrow night and on each of the succeeding nights of this course, I shall give you practical applications. To-morrow night I shall lecture on the "Choice of Professions and Trades," ill.u.s.trating to you the qualities that insure success in Law, Medicine, the Ministry, Journalism and Teaching, in Manufacturing and the various Mechanical Trades, as well as the qualifications for Commercial Life in its various departments, wholesale and retail. I shall follow with my celebrated lecture on Matrimony, in which I shall expound the principles upon which a correct marriage may be consummated, securing amiable a.s.sociation, perfect offspring and financial success, after which I shall separate the s.e.xes and continue the subject of matrimony in its physiological relations, under the head of "s.e.xual and Creative Science."

[Ill.u.s.tration: The Phrenological Location of Faculties and Organs of the Brain.]

Choice of Professions and Trades,

OR

HOW TO BECOME RICH.

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN:

Every young man and woman of reasonable intelligence is, or ought to be, possessed of a laudable ambition to be self-sustaining. To win a competency, to secure the necessities, to have even the luxuries of life, is perfectly praiseworthy, provided they are obtained in a legitimate manner. Every rational man seeks the occupation, trade or profession which ensures the profitable employment of his best talents, and the science which discloses to the youth at the beginning of his education what those talents are and how they may be developed to perfection in early manhood, and in what profession, trade or occupation he will display the greatest ability, confers upon him the greatest favor within the gift of knowledge, from a financial standpoint. That Phrenology does this, and more, it is the purpose of this lecture to show.

The world is apt to measure a man's success by the amount of money he acc.u.mulates. That is properly one element of success, but it is not all.

The real criteria of a man's success in business are, 1st, the volume and quality of his work; 2d, the compensation he receives for it; and 3d, the pleasure he derives from it.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Pugilist. Illegitimate.]

Business is legitimate or illegitimate. A legitimate business contributes to the welfare of society, as well as to the support of the individual who follows it. The cobbler who mends shoes and the genius who builds a steamship are equally legitimate, though one contributes only to the comfort of a country neighborhood and the other promotes the welfare of a continent. Both may be successful within the limits of widely different capacities. An illegitimate business promotes temporarily the financial interests of the individual at the expense of the health, morals and wealth of the public. In my public and private examinations I have directed thousands of young men and women into channels of legitimate business. The fact is, there is such a tremendous demand for skilled labor in all departments of legitimate employment that it is difficult to find material to fill it. We hear much of the warfare between capital and labor, and strikes frequently paralyze the channels of legitimate trade, but the cause of the difficulty lies not in any real or imaginary conflict between capital and labor. The solution lies in the fact that every branch of legitimate labor is burdened with incompetent workmen, men who are in wrong occupations, who were never intended by nature for such work as the branches of trade they infest, and the skilled workmen are obliged to carry the load; while capital is often in the hands of those unfit to be trusted with its use, who manipulate it merely as the instrument of oppression and wrong, until the social discord is produced. If men were all graded to their proper vocations, if capital were entrusted only to those of financial skill, and labor, in its various departments, a.s.signed to those of proper qualifications, every man would be employed at a fair remuneration, and the burden of pauperism would fall from the backs of our skilled workmen. There are too many men in the learned professions who would do better at the forge and on the farm. There are preachers who ought to be blacksmiths, and lawyers who would look better and feel better hoeing potatoes. There are those at the anvil and the plow who can succeed better in literature and art.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Lawyer.]

Young man, it is infinitely more to your credit to be a successful blacksmith, if that is in accordance with your endowment, respected by everybody within a radius of twenty miles because you can shoe a horse better than anybody else, than it is to be starving in an attic as a briefless lawyer, or lounging about the country as a minister of the gospel, eating yellow-legged chicken at the expense of the sisters, when you have no ability to preach.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Minister.]

Whether a man will be able to do good work, to receive lucrative compensation and to derive pleasure from any occupation, will depend on the amount and kind of sense that he possesses. Phrenology measures the amount of sense displayed by each man's brain, determines the kind and quality of his intelligence, and thus estimates his ability in any given trade or profession.

If the brain were a single organ, every man would have the same kind of sense, and men would differ only in the quality and amount of intelligence. But Phrenology proves that the brain consists of a number of organs, each one representing a different variety of intelligence, a different sense, so that we find men varying in volume of brain and amount of intelligence, in the quality of brain and consequent quality of intelligence; and also in the relative development of the different organs of the brain, showing diversity of character in the kind of intelligence or sense, displayed by different individuals. Thus two men may have the same relative volume of brain, similar in quality, and supported by good const.i.tutions, but widely different in development of the organs of the brain. One may be a gifted orator and astute lawyer, but utterly unable to comprehend colors or use the pencil and brush. The other is a talented artist but so deficient in language that he cannot describe his own pictures. Both are successful in their proper vocations, reverse their positions and ignominious failure is the result in both cases.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Capable.]

To const.i.tute a success in any business a man must have _capacity_, that is, he must have enough of intelligence to meet the demands of the business, and he must have physical strength to support it. A man may have apparently the kind of sense required by a branch of business, and for a time display ability in it, but as the business increases, and its demands become more in volume and intensity, he fails because he has not enough of comprehensive intellect to take it all in. There are also those who have comprehensive greatness of intellect, who are fully capable of understanding all the requirements of a business, but who fail because the body beneath the brain is not sufficient in endurance and nourishment. Dismal failures result, and many useful lives are shortened, because men make the mistake of entering vocations for which they have insufficient mental or physical capacity. A phrenological examination determines beforehand the capacity of the individual and establishes a proper limit, within which he finds success, health, happiness, and the gratification of proper ambition. On the other hand there are many who do not realize how much their capacity is, and consequently remain inert to the great deterioration of body and mind.

Nature demands that every man should use his full capacity, and the phrenological examination which reveals to an individual the extent of his usefulness is a magnificent acquisition to him who acts upon it.

Action is the natural condition of every part of man. Action develops character, strength and health. Inaction results in paralysis and disease. It is vitally essential that every man should find out his capacity and use it all--no more, no less. This, Phrenology enables him to do.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Incapable.]

The question of capacity being thus understood, the next is the quality of organization.

Quality is the inherent grain or texture of the substance. Men differ in quality as much as do the trees of the forest. You do not use the hickory or the oak for the same purposes that you do the pine or the poplar. There are differences also in the grain of metals, in the texture of fabrics. Gold differs essentially from iron as silk does from flax. Men display an infinite variety of quality, from the strong lumberman of the pine forests, with his corded muscles and angular frame, to the delicate young man who presides gracefully over the ribbon counter in the dry goods store.

To ill.u.s.trate this topic of quality: Riding on the cars one day I noticed a gentleman sitting near me and asked him the rather impertinent question, whether he had not been engaged for many years in handling _delicate_ machinery.

"Ah," said he, smiling, "you are a Phrenologist."

"Yes, sir," I replied, "we have evidently sized each other up."

"Now, before I answer your question," said the gentleman, "tell me why you asked about _delicate_ machinery. Several men of your profession have approached me with similar questions about machinery. There is evidently something in my head which betrays that; but tell me why you drew the distinction in favor of delicate machinery?"

"Why, my dear sir," I replied, "you are a delicate piece of machinery yourself. You would not harmonize with anything else. Your bones are small, your eyesight microscopic, your fingers tapering, your touch as delicate as a woman's, your _quality_ is delicate. You are not the man to handle heavy bars of iron, to repair locomotives, or to build threshing machines. I should say, sir, that watches would be about right for you, certainly nothing heavier than sewing machines and type-writers."

"You are quite right, sir," said he, "I have been a watchmaker for twenty years."