les. To complete the
proof of heredity in this case, Morel adds that the mother had a child
while the father was confined in the asylum, and that this child
exhibited no signs of degeneracy. Statistics show that multitudes of
human beings are born with a destiny against which they have neither the
will nor the power to contend; they groan under the worst of all
tyrannies, the tyranny of a bad organization, which is theirs by
inheritance. We may represent the tendencies of the anterior portion of
the brain by Fig. 79. The functional exercise of the anterior and
superior portions of the cerebrum is _disintegrating_ and
_devitalizing_, while the anterior and inferior portions coincide with
mental and physical derangement, unless counteracted by opposing forces.
It is therefore evident that in any organization, upon which is entailed
a perverted or excessive action of this portion of the cerebrum, the
tendencies are NON-VITAL, _i.e._, unfavorable to fertility and physical
health.
If the antagonizing regions are well developed, the tendencies are
favorable to life.
/ SANITY,
The volitive organs promote { TEMPERANCE,
\ HARDIHOOD.
/ NUTRITION,
The animal organs tend to { RESTORATION,
\ CONSERVATION.
/ SECRETION,
The basilar faculties instigate { CIRCULATION,
\ VITALITY.
/ ENERGY,
The combined action of these { HEALTH,
faculties express \ REPRODUCTION.
[Illustration: Fig. 79]
If this portion of the brain indicates a full development, we say of
such a temperament that it is VITAL, because the functions of its
nerve-centers are favorable to evolution. As degeneration observes
conditions, so endurance and development conform to certain laws, and it
is the duty of all truthful inquirers, who believe not only in the
progress of human intelligence, but in physical improvement from
generation to generation, to ascertain and comply with these essential
conditions. When the anterior and middle lobes of the brain are fully
developed at their inferior surfaces, it is regarded as an insane
temperament, _i.e._ containing the germs of mental and bodily
derangement.
How shall we distinguish the combination of organic elements, i
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