CARRIER PIGEON.

the siege of Leyden, in 1675. The garrison were, by means of the information thus conveyed to them, induced to stand out, till the enemy, despairing of reducing the place, withdrew. On the siege being raised, the Prince of Orange ordered that the pigeons, which had rendered such essential service, should be maintained at the public expense, and that at their death they should be embalmed and preserved in the town house, as a perpetual token of gratitude.

"In the East, the employment of pigeons for the conveyance of letters, is still very common; particularly in Syria, Arabia, and Egypt. They are also employed in several parts of Europe, but rather for the purposes of amusement, than for objects of great utility.

"The diligence and speed, with which these feathered messengers wing their course, is extraordinary. From the instant of their liberation, their flight is directed through the clouds, at an immense height to the place of their destination. They are believed to dart onwards in a straight line, and never to descend, except when at a loss for breath, and then they are to be seen commonly at dawn of day, lying on their backs on the ground, with their bills open, sucking in with hasty avidity the dew of the morning. Of their speed, the instances related, are almost incredible.

"Some years ago, a gentleman sent a carrier pigeon from London, by the stage coach, to his friend in Edmundsbury, together with a note, desiring that the pigeon, two days after the arrival there, might be thrown up, precisely when the town clock struck nine in the morning. This was done accordingly, and the pigeon arrived in London, and flew to the Bull Inn in Bishopgate street, into the loft, and was there shown at half an hour past eleven o'clock, having flown seventytwo miles in two hours and a half.

"It is through the attachment of the animals to the place of their birth, and particularly to the spot where they have brought up their young, that they are thus rendered useful to mankind.

"When a young one flies very hard at home, and is come to its full strength, it is carried in a basket, or otherwise, about half a mile from home, and then turned out; after this it is carried a mile, then two, four, eight, ten, twenty, &c., till at length it will return from the furthermost parts of the country."

11*

PRESERVATION OF HEALTH.

PART III.

PRESERVATION OF HEALTH, &c.

Every one is liable to suffering, either from accident or disease. Yet, it is certain that a large proportion of the accidents which occur, as well as many of the diseases which afflict mankind, are the result of carelessness and neglect. Less haste, or a little more forethought, would often save a bone from being broken; and a little more attention to diet, air, exercise, cleanliness, moderation in drink, needless exposure, &c. &c., would frequently prevent dangerous and protracted illness, and especially those chronic diseases, which, if less immediately dangerous, occasion suffering and distress, perhaps through life.

Yet, it is nevertheless true, that accidents and diseases will sometimes occur. They will occur suddenly and unexpectedly. A physician may not be within immediate call; and before he can be summoned, life may have become extinct, or the foundation laid for months of debility and suffering.

Such calamities, it cannot be doubted, might not unfrequently be prevented, by a little knowledge of the human frame, and of a few simple medicines, or expedients easily comprehended; almost always at hand, and which every person of common understanding may administer and apply.

Without, therefore, infringing upon the province of the regularly bred physician, or appearing to advocate empyricism, the editor believes an article devoted to the prevention of diseases and accidents, and the management of the latter more especially, which shall be divested of the technical language of the profession-may be useful to those families, for which this work is designed.

It is needless to say that a regular treatise on surgery and practice is not here attempted. Such an attempt would justly subject the conductor of this work to ridicule; nor will it fall within the object and scope of this part of the work to sanction "nursery gossip"-nor to countenance and spread abroad the "mendacious reports of nostrum. makers and venders." But rather to select such hints on the subject of preserving the health, and to recommend such remedies for certain accidents as have been furnished by enlightened experience, and which are safe and useful in the hands of the professionally unlearned.

Hence, it will be obvious, that this article is not designed for the critically learned. Should such an one-to use the language employed in an admirable work of a similar character, and written by a distinguished physician-" cast his eye on these pages, he will here learn, this book was written for the unlearned; and he will also learn that a handkerchief tied loosely round a man's leg above a wounded and bleeding artery, and a stick twisted into it, will as effectually save life as a surgeon's turniquet-and many other such things. He will therefore please to spare this little work, for the sake of him whose house is far removed from the surgeon, and who has no money to pay the physician."

RULES FOR THE PRESERVATION OF HEALTH.

SECTION. I.

RULES AND HINTS FOR THE PRESERVATION OF LIFE AND HEALTH, &C.

RULES OF SIR R. PHILIPS.-1. Rise early, and never sit up late. 2. Wash the whole body every morning with cold water, by means of a large sponge, and rub it dry with a rough towel, or scrub the whole body for ten or fifteen minutes with flesh brushes.

3. Drink water generally, and avoid excess of spirits, wine, and fermented liquors.

4. Keep the body open by the free use of the syringe, and remove superior obstructions by aperient pills.

5. Sleep in a room which has free access to the open air.

6. Keep the head cool by washing it when necessary with cold water, and abate feverish and inflammatory symptoms when they arise, by persevering stillness.

7. Correct symptoms of plethora and indigestion, by eating and drinking less, per diem for a few days.

8. Never eat a hearty supper, especially of animal food; and drink wine, spirits, and beer, if these are necessary, only after dinner.

RULES of DR. BOERHAAVE.-The following were the simple and unerring directions of this great man for the preservation of health; they contained the sum and substance of his vast professional knowledge during a long and useful life:-"Keep the feet warm; the head cool; and the body open." If these were generally attended to, the physician's aid would seldom be required.

EXPERIENCE OF HOWARD.-We give the following account of Mr. Howard's experience, which was furnished by him to a friend, as containing suggestions of a most important and valuable sort; and which, if adopted by many of the dyspeptics of the day, would go farther toward their restoration to a healthful state of body and mind, than the most learned prescriptions of the most celebrated doctors.

"A more 'puny whipster' than myself, in the days of my youth, was never seen. I could not walk out in the evening, without being wrapped up: I could not put on my linen without its being aired: I was, politely speaking, enfeebled enough to have delicate nerves, and was, occasionally troubled with a very genteel hectic. To be serious, I am convinced that whatever enfeebles the body debilitates the mind, and renders both unfit for those exertions, which are of such use to us all as social beings. I therefore entered upon a reform of my constitution, and have succeeded in such a degree, that I have neither had a cough, cold, the vapors, nor any more alarming disorder, since I surmounted the seasoning. Prior to this, I used to be a miserable dependant on wind and weather; a little too much of the one, or a slight inclemency of the other, would postpone, and frequently prevent, not only my

DIRECTIONS FOR THE PRESERVATION OF HEALTH.

amusements, but my duties: or, if pressed by my affections, or by the necessity of affairs, I did venture forth in despite of the elements, the consequences were equally absurd and incommodious, not seldom afflictive. I muffled up even to my nostrils; a crack in the glass of my chaise was sufficient to distress me; a sudden slope of the wheels to the right or left, set me a trembling; a jolt seemed like a dislocation, and the sight of a bank or a precipice, near which my horse or carriage was to pass, would disorder me so much, that I would order the driver to stop, that I might get out and walk by the difficult places. Mulled wines, spirituous cordials, and large fires, were to comfort me, and to keep out the cold, as it is called, at every stage, and if I felt the least damp in my feet, or other parts of my body, dry stockings, linen, &c. were to be instantly put on; the perils of the day were to be baffled by something taken hot on going to bed; and before I pursued my journey, the next morning, a dram was to be swallowed, in order to fortify the stomach. In a word, I lived, moved, and had my being so much by rule, that the slightest deviation was a disease.

"Every man must, in these cases, be his own physician. He must prescribe for, and practise on, himself. I did this by a very simple, but as you will think, a very severe regimen, namely, by denying myself almost every thing in which I had long indulged. But as it is always harder to get rid of a bad habit, than to contract it, I entered on my reform gradually; that is to say, I began to diminish my usual indulgences by degrees. I found that a heavy meal, or a hearty one, as it is termed, and a cheerful glass, that is, one more than does you good, made me incapable, or at least, disinclined to any useful exertions for some time after dinner hours; and if the dilutive powers of tea assisted the work of a disturbed digestion, so far as to restore my faculties, a luxurious supper came in so close upon it, that I was fit for nothing but dissipation, till I went to a luxurious bed, where I finished the enervating practices, by sleeping eight, ten, and sometimes a dozen hours on the stretch. You will not wonder that I rose the next morning with the solids relaxed, the juices thickened, and the constitution weakened.

"To remedy all this, I ate a little less at every meal, and reduced my drink in proportion. It is really wonderful to consider, how impercoptibly a single morsel of animal food, and a tea spoonful of liquor deducted from the usual quantity daily, will restore the mental functions, without any injury to the corporeal-nay, with increase of vigour to both. I brought myself, in the first instance, from dining on many dishes, to dining on a few, and then to being satisfied with one; in like manner, instead of drinking a variety of wines, I made my election of a single sort, and adhered to it alone.

My next business was to eat and drink sparingly of that adopted dish and bottle. My ease, vivacity, health, and spirits augmented. My clothing, &c. underwent a similar reform; the effect of all which is, and has been for many years, that I am neither affected by seeing my carriage dragged up a mountain, or driven down a valley. If an accident happens, I am prepared for it, I mean so far as respects unnecessary terrors; and I am proof against all changes in the atmosphere, wet clothes, damp feet, night air, transitions from heat to cold, and the long train of hypochondria affections."

HINTS TO STUDENTS.

HINTS TO STUDENTS.-Students, more than most persons, are apt to bring upon themselves a train of stomachic and nervous affections, in consequence of an intense application of mind, and neglect of appropriate exercise in the open air. No one, however, can long hope for the enjoyment, either of health or vigor of mind, who is not in the daily habit of exercise abroad. It is important, also, that his study should be large, perfectly dry, and often well ventilated. Great attention should also be paid to position. Students, whether they stand or sit, and by turns they should do both, should maintain an erect posture. Care should be exercised not to press, for any length of time, against a hard substance. The rocking chairs with a leaf, or round table, situated in front of them, and which are often found in our colleges, are highly improper. It is also recommended to students, for the purpose of giving exercise and strength to the lungs, frequently to read and speak loud. But some caution will be necessary, lest the exercise be carried too far. Vociferation should never be indulged. A naturally weak voice may be greatly strengthened by exercise; and even a natural impediment removed, by careful and judicious perseverance. The case of Demosthenes illustrates this. His voice was so weak, and indis- · tinct, that he could be scarcely heard or understood; yet he contrived to remedy both defects, by declaiming, while ascending the brow of a hill or walking amid the noise of the waves along the sea shore.

We must also enter our protest against midnight studies. The late President Dwight, whose experience rendered him perfectly competent to impart advice on this subject, gave it as his opinion, that as a general rule, nothing was gained by any student, by application to his books, after ten o'clock at night. The morning is the season most appropriate to study. It is also the best season for exercise. But both objects may be accomplished by early rising; a point of great importance, both in respect to clearness of mind, health of body, and rapid improvement. But in few things, perhaps, do students fail more than in the kinds of exercise adopted. They should not be those kinds, which are of course violent; nor those' which exercise only particular parts of the body. Great fatigue should be avoided. In general, riding on horseback, walking, or working in the garden, are to be preferred to most other kinds of exercise.

The utility of exercise, however, is often much diminished, by its being taken as exercise. On this point we quote the language of a distinguished writer, as well as student: "A solitary walk, or ride, merely for the sake of exercise, and with no other object to stimulate our progress, as it is of all amusements the dullest, so it is found rather hurtful than advantageous. The mind still meditates in solitude, and the body, at the same time, labours; so that both are exhausted at once, and the student returns to his closet fatigued, dejected, and disappointed. Some little amusement must therefore be contrived, or some business engaged in, which may operate as a loadstone, in attracting us, without being sensible of our own efforts, from our libraries, up the mountain, and along the forest, where health, with all her thousand joys, delights to fix her abode."

With regard to diet, no good reason exists, why the student should deny himself any plain and wholesome food, provided that he eats not to complete satiety. This should always be avoided, as should supper late in the evening.