The magnetic organization of the human system, and its application to the cure of chronic diseases / abridged from the works of the late Henry Hall Sherwood by H.H. Sherwood's successor William Larned.

  • Sherwood, H. H. (Henry Hall)
Date:
1850
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Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The magnetic organization of the human system, and its application to the cure of chronic diseases / abridged from the works of the late Henry Hall Sherwood by H.H. Sherwood's successor William Larned. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the National Library of Medicine (U.S.), through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the National Library of Medicine (U.S.)

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    excretions from the skin and serous membranes are more or less acid, and those from the mucous or internal membranes more or less alkaline.* They are sometimes so strongly acid and alkaline as to excite the atten- tion of the most common observer. The acid is found to be the muria- tic, and the alkali is found to be soda and muriate of soda, or common salt. The acids and alkalies, which possess directly opposite qualities, and have at the same time the strongest affinities for each other, are universally diffused in the earth, as well as in the vegetable and animal kingdoms. Now it is satisfactorily ascertained from repeated experi- ments, that each of these different kinds of matter gives out constantly an innate and different kind of magnetic or electric force, the alkaline or positive matter giving out the negative force, and the acid or negative matter giving out the positive force. The positive matter then, on the internal surfaces of the body and organs, is constantly giving out thft tive force, and the negative matter on the external surfaces of the body and organs the positive force. On a further examination of the human structure, we find four hundred and thirty-six muscles of differ- ent forms, disposed in different ways, for the purpose of producing mo- tion. We know that they are formed for this purpose, for we can see that some of them expand, and others contract, when we move the body and limbs. Now it is a remarkable fact, that every one of these four hundred and thirty-six muscles, which thus produce motion in different parts ol the body, is covered with a membrane, the outer surface of which has a serous, and the inner side a mucous surface ; hence these membranes are called muco-serous membranes. All these different surfaces, then, like those of the skin and membranes of other parts of the body, are covered with different kinds of matter, presenting together immense sur- faces, from which constantly issue two forces of different kinds. The reader who has seen a common galvanic battery, cannot fail to observe that this arrangement of surfaces corresponds with that of the different metallic surfaces of the battery. He will also notice, that these forces, thus maintained on these membranous surfaces, exactly correspond with those necessarily maintained on different surfaces of the battery. The two forces are conducted from the two metallic sur- faces to the poles of the battery by two metallic wires, and if we can now find conductors to convey the forces from the skin and different mem- branous surfaces to poles, the resemblance will be complete and satis- factory. In pursuing this object we first find numerous minute threads, called nerves, penetrating the little glands of the skin, surfaces and mucous membranes, and every fibre of a muscle. On tracing these nerves, we see them uniting together and increasing in size in proportion to the dis- tance from these surfaces, and at length conjoining with the spinal cord. The spinal cord is formed into four columns, united first with a broad base, and then with the brain. These forces are therefore conducted from the skin and membranous surfaces, and concentrated in the brain to form poles, or a motive power » For a corroboration of Dr. Sherwood's statements upon these points, we would refer to an interesting account of the experiments and conclusions of M. Donne, contained in the Medico-Chirurgical Review, for Jan., 1837.