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1004 THE LEADER. [Saturday,
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DOCTOR FORBES WINS LOW OS INSAKITX". Let...
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3OOKS ON OUR TABLE. The Steam-Engine, it...
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/t*L, Hi I ^DlIE i^lri0* ^
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PERICLES. Has anybody, not a commentator...
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The first novelty of thes season at the ...
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
Additionally, when viewing full transcripts, extracted text may not be in the same order as the original document.
Revelations Oia Slave-Trader. Lievelatio...
gether we dislike the book . We dislike it as professing to be a history , and yet not carrying its credentials as such , on the production of which alone can it expect to pass ; and we dislike it as an instance of a low kind of literature , which the cheap system of publication—making publishers the purvej ^ ors and creators of literary ware , instead of its carriers and vendors —seems to be foisting in upon us . " Wanted a story , of which 20 , 000 copies shall sell in a month—very much after this pattern , sir—and with a good deal of the nigger and whiplash element in it "—this is the kind of destination that Literature seems to be drifting to .
1004 The Leader. [Saturday,
1004 THE LEADER . [ Saturday ,
Doctor Forbes Wins Low Os Insakitx". Let...
DOCTOR FORBES WINS LOW OS INSAKITX " . Lettsonian Lectures on Insanity . By Forbes " Wlnslow $ MLD ., D . O . L . Churchill . On t '\ e amalgamation of the London Medical , a " nd the Westminster Societies , in the year 1850 , the Council , in acknowledgment of the many important obligations owed by the parent society to the late Dr . Lettsom , established two lectureships , intended to be held annually by a physician and a . surgeon , who were to be entitled the " Lettsomian Professors of Medicine and Surgery . " The first nominated of these two professors were Dr . Owen Rees and Mr . Guthrie . For the second year , the choice fell on Dr . Forbes Winslow and Mr . Hancock . The lectures then delivered by Dr . Wmslow , on Insanity , were first published in the Lancet , and in the Journal of Psychological Medicine ; and have been since reprinted in a permanent form in the volume now under notice . We must be allowed to state at the outset
that we belong ; to the unprofessional class of Dr . Winslow ' s readers ; and that our only object in selecting these very interesting and remarkable lectures for review , is to hel p in establishing their claims to the attention of a wider audience than the medical audience to which they were originally addressed . Criticism is , in our case , entirely out of the question ; if we succeed in arriving at a just appreciation of the value of this volume to the public , we shall have done the only good service to it that lies within empower . ' The main position assumed by Dr . Winslow , and defended against opj > onents with remarkable vigour and clearness , is that insanity proceeds , more or less directly , from some physical disease of the brain—that it is to he treated by physical remedies—and that it is more likely to be curable by
jjixysivai nu . au . * jj Au . uj . iij ; uicaiia . xuG uppusiits lueor ^—wuo ulA j ° e lernieu the metaphysical theory—is that insanity is a disease of the mind , or , in other words , is a condition of spiritual disorganisation , which may be treated by moral remedies , but which is in general beyond the reach of any purely physical process of cure . In opposition to this theory , and in defence of his own idea , Dr . Winslow has to offer , 1 st , the results of his own great experience ; and , 2 ndly , deductions from the conflicting experiences , and somewhat contradictory testimonies of others ., Speaking as lay readers , with great diffidence , we may be allowed to say that Dr . Winslow has , to our apprehension , proved his theory to be generally , but not universally , true . Indeed , he himself somewhat qualifies his own assertion on this point . At page 54 , he describes himself as " amazed that there could ever have existed the shadow of a doubt as to the physical origin of insanity . " At page 58 , he speaks of the " bodily affection" as being , " in nine cases out of ten , the cause of the mental irregularity . " So far as we are qualified tb
form an opinion from the data supplied by the author , and from those metaphysical speculations which , vague and uncertain as they are , must and ¦ will connect themselves with the subject of Insanity , we are disposed to think that the qualified assertion , " nine cases out of ten , " is not qualified enough . We differ from Dr . Winslow—even on the metaphysical grounds which are open to us as to him—with great distrust of ourselves ; but we do differ from him- We are fully persuaded of the tenableness of his theory within certain limits , and of its immense importance to humanity ; but we venture to think that he is inclined to carry it a little too far . We refrain from stating the reasons that have led us to this conclusion , thinking it of most importance to the interests of our readers to occupy the space at our disposal in doing all the justice that wo can to Dr . Winslow ' a book .
Apart from the ^ results of experience on which the author bases his theory—results which we must leave the reader to ascertain from perusal of the Lectures themselves — -the strong , the impregnable point of Dr . Winslow ' s position lies inthe fact that the result of exclusive and inveterate belief in the purely spiritual character of Insanity has been to discourage the use of physically remedial measures . One chance for the insane—and , no matter how remote it may be considered , it is still a chance—has thus been denied them in more cases we fear than can ever be reckoned up . " The spiritual doctrine , " as Dr . Winslow well remarks , "has naturally led to the conclusion—false in theory and destructive in practice—that for the alleviation and cure of tho spiritual malady spiritual remedies were the most important and essential . The clergyman instead of tho physician was therefore
summoned to the bedside of tho insane , and tho Bible and Prayer-book displaced the physical remedies prescribed for the cure of the cerebral disorder . " Such are the necessary and most mischievous results of a too exclusive . and dogmatic belief in tho possibility of the immaterial mind being diseased apart from all derangement of the material brain , w ith whiolv it is closely and indissolubly associated . Tho wide-spread influence of this belief is , wo think , easily to bo accounted for . Nothing can bo much more galling to our human prido than to be forced to admit that tho refined spiritual part of ua can , qvon in this life , bo ever utterly at tho mercy of tho gross bodily part . Who can think , without some humiliation , that the poetry of Shakspenre and
the discoveries of Newton , depended upon tho healthy condition ova system of nerves and of a collection of nervous matter which a child might imprison in the compass of a toy-box P Tho more thought of this is a wound indirectly indicted oh every man ' s pride . Tho practical euro for that wound is to bu found in tho fact ; , that the philosophical and xnodical deductions to be drawn from the mo 3 fc absolute belief in tho power of tho body over the mind ., suggest now hopes for the alleviation of tho most awlul affliction that enn bofal mankind . In these words—after making due allowances for honest excess of enthusiasm in tho speaker—what consolation exists for tho most miserable of all our follow-croafcuros ! W I now epoak , " auya Dr . Winslow , " from a somewhat enlarged experience , from
much anxious consideration of the matter , and I have no hesitation in affirming that , if brought within the sphere of medical treatment in the earlier stages , or even within a few months of the attack , insanity , unless the result of severe physical injury to the head , or connected with a peculiar conformation of chest and cranium , and an hereditary diathesis , is as easily curable as any other form of ' bodily disease for the treatment of which we apply ike resources of our art " The citation of this remarkable passage will be enough of itself , we think , to show that Dr . Winslow ' s volume has the strongest claims to the attention of readers in general . The lectures , in virtue of their treatment , as well as of their subject , are fitted to interest others besides medical men . In the excellent first Discourse on the " Psychological Vocation of the Physician "
and in the third lecture on " Medico-Legal Evidence in Cases of Insanity , " as well as in the lecture on the Medical Treatment of Insanity " ( to which the necessity of economising space has obliged us exclusively to devote ourselves ) , there are passages full of instruction and interest for intelligent readers of all professions and degrees . We can honestly say of this book that it ought to be widely read , because it is eminently calculated to be widely useful ; and "we cannot close it without expressing our hearty approval of the moderation , the frankness , and the modesty of tone which distinguish it from the first page to the last . Dr . Winslow has given to the world the results of long study and great experience , in a manner which does honour to himself and to the noble profession to which he belongs .
3ooks On Our Table. The Steam-Engine, It...
3 OOKS ON OUR TABLE . The Steam-Engine , its History and Mechanism : being Descriptions and Illustrations of tlie Statiqipary , Locomotive , and Marine Engine , for" the use of Schools and Students . By Robert Scott Bum . H . Ingram and Co . The Further Adventures of Mr . Verdant Green , an Oxford Undergraduate * By Cuthbert Bede , B . A-. H . Ingrain and Co . Cambridge University Transactions during the Puritan Controversies of the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries . Collected by James Heyvrood , M . P ., & c , and Thomas Wright ; iM . A ., & c . 2 vola . Henry G . Bonn . The Virginia Comedians ; or , Old Days in the Old Dominion . Edited from the M . S . of C . Effingham , Esq . 2 vols . Triibner and Co . Party Leaders .: Sketches of Thomas Jefferson , Alexander Hamilton , Andrew Jackson , Henry Clay , John Randolph , of RoanoTce , including Notices of many other DistinguishedAmerican Statesmen . By J . Gr . Baldwin . Triibuer and Co .
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Pericles. Has Anybody, Not A Commentator...
PERICLES . Has anybody , not a commentator or a critic , ever read Pericles , Frince of Tyre , all through from beginning to end ? To anybody who has , we have nothing to say . To the numerous and intelligent public who have not , we desire to address a few words in reference to the recent resurrection of Pericles at Saduer ' s WeI / LS Theatjre . About the play itself we have not many remarks to nxake . Wise men who are versed in remote dramatic antiquities have discovered that it was only touched up by Shakspeare , who , as we ourselves venture to think , wasted his time and misdirected his genius in having anything to do with it at all . A more tedious , incomprehensible , and barbarous story than the story of Pericles cannot be imagined . Excepting the scene on board ship , and the scene in the last act , in which the father recognises his daughter , the whole play is enveloped in a species of dense
dramatic fog , through which , at rare intervals , burst flashes of magnificent poetry , or touches of wholesome nature , worthy of Shakspeare certaitily , " even if not due to him— -jewels terribly disfigured by the wretched setting in which they are placed—rare flowers , which only serve to make the weeds around them look doublv rank by contrast . Since Pericles was last laid by the stage undertaker in the grave of theatrical oblivion , a hundred years have passed , and in that grave , according to all the better and higher laws of dramatic propriety , he might still have been left undisturbed . Why , then , did Mr . Phelps revive the play ? Because it offered him a chance of astonishing tho public by a wonderful theatrical show . And has he really availed himself of that chance ? He has indeed . Tedious as the play is , we can honestly assure our readers that they will be justified in journeying any
distance through the streets of London to see the manner in which Pcricks is got up . The costumes are among the most brilliant that have been displayed on any stage ; the groupings and processions are striking and picturesque in the best meaning of the words ; and the scenery deserves tho heartiest and most uncompromising praise that we can givo it . Tho painter , Mr . F . Fenton , is a thorough artist . While producing beautiful and striking effects , he never shows himself to be careless or inattentive about details . His scenery is as remarkable for finish as for brilliancy ; and it gains instead of losing , aa we can testify by our own experience , when it is ldokod at through an opera-glass . The wild , lurid , sea-shore scene of the second act is a marvel offline colouring , fine lighting , and perfect illusion ; and tho Teniplo of Diana , in the last act , is , for perspective and distnnce painting , the most finished picture wo have seen on the stage We lay especial stress on the
beauty of tho scenery , because it is tho groat attraction of tho play- » ^ acting is impossible in such a drama as Pericles ; the characters are required to outer ana depart , and utter speeches , but not to act . Mr . Phelps , in tlie part of Pericles , had ono chance (< me , in a five-act play !) of producing an effect , and he seized on it with such extraordinary power , that tho crowded audience rewarded him with a perfect tempest of applause . Miss E . Heraiul must not bo forgotten cither . We arc indebted to her for tho too rare pleasure on the English stage of seeing a really youthful actress in a youthftu part . IIor voice is not strong enough for tho theatre , but she spolco her dialogue prettily and sensibly . Wo should like to huvo an opportunity ot seeing this young lady in a modern character , which -would require her to interest the audience , but not to doclaim before them .
The First Novelty Of Thes Season At The ...
The first novelty of thes season at the Omtmpio Tiieatkm has been ft new farce , adapted , it ia almost unnecessary to say , froux tho French , and presented to tho English stage undor tho titlo of—
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), Oct. 21, 1854, page 20, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_21101854/page/20/
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