fathers of biology
TRANSCRIPT
-
8/4/2019 Fathers of Biology
1/48
The Project Gutenberg EBook of Fathers of Biology, by Charles McRae
This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and withalmost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away orre-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License includedwith this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
Title: Fathers of Biology
Author: Charles McRae
Release Date: January 29, 2008 [EBook #24456]
Language: English
Character set encoding: UTF-8
*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK FATHERS OF BIOLOGY ***
Produced by Bryan Ness, Stephen Blundell and the OnlineDistributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (Thisfile was produced from images generously made availableby The Internet Archive/American Libraries.)
FATHERS OF BIOLOGY
BYCHARLES McRAE, M.A., F.L.S.
FORMERLY SCHOLAR OF EXETER COLLEGE, OXFORD
PERCIVAL & CO._KING STREET, COVENT GARDEN_LONDON1890
Transcriber's Note:
Minor typographical errors have been corrected without note. Archaicand variant spellings remain as originally printed. Greek textappears as originally printed.
-
8/4/2019 Fathers of Biology
2/48
PREFACE.
It is hoped that the account given, in the following pages, of the livesof five great naturalists may not be found devoid of interest. The workof each one of them marked a definite advance in the science of Biology.
There is often among students of anatomy and physiology a tendency toimagine that the facts with which they are now being made familiar haveall been established by recent observation and experiment. But even theslight knowledge of the history of Biology, which may be obtained from aperusal of this little book, will show that, so far from such being thecase, this branch of science is of venerable antiquity. And, further, ifin the place of this misconception a desire is aroused in the reader fora fuller acquaintance with the writings of the early anatomists thechief aim of the author will have been fulfilled.
CONTENTS.
PAGE
HIPPOCRATES 1
ARISTOTLE 19
GALEN 45
VESALIUS 63
HARVEY 83
HIPPOCRATES.
_HIPPOCRATES._
Owing to the lapse of centuries, very little is known with certainty ofthe life of Hippocrates, who was called with affectionate veneration byhis successors "the divine old man," and who has been justly known toposterity as "the Father of Medicine."
He was probably born about 470 B.C., and, according to all accounts,appears to have reached the advanced age of ninety years or more. Hemust, therefore, have lived during a period of Greek history which wascharacterized by great intellectual activity; for he had, as hiscontemporaries, Pericles the famous statesman; the poets schylus,
Sophocles, Euripides, Aristophanes, and Pindar; the philosopherSocrates, with his disciples Xenophon and Plato; the historiansHerodotus and Thucydides; and Phidias the unrivalled sculptor.
-
8/4/2019 Fathers of Biology
3/48
In the island of Cos, where he was born, stood one of the mostcelebrated of the temples of sculapius, and in this temple--because hewas descended from the Asclepiad--Hippocrates inherited from hisforefathers an important position. Among the Asclepiads the habit ofphysical observation, and even manual training in dissection, wereimparted traditionally from father to son from the earliest years, thus
serving as a preparation for medical practice when there were no writtentreatises to study.[1]
Although Hippocrates at first studied medicine under his father, he hadafterwards for his teachers Gorgias and Democritus, both of classicfame, and Herodicus, who is known as the first person who appliedgymnastic exercises to the cure of diseases.
The Asclepions, or temples of health, were erected in various parts ofGreece as receptacles for invalids, who were in the habit of resortingto them to seek the assistance of the god. These temples were mostlysituated in the neighbourhood of medicinal springs, and each devotee at
his entrance was made to undergo a regular course of bathing andpurification. Probably his diet was also carefully attended to, and atthe same time his imagination was worked upon by music and religiousceremonies. On his departure, the restored patient usually showed hisgratitude by presenting to the temple votive tablets setting forth thecircumstances of his peculiar case. The value of these to men about toenter on medical studies can be readily understood; and it was to suchtreasures of recorded observations--collected during severalgenerations--that Hippocrates had access from the commencement of hiscareer.
Owing to the peculiar constitution of the Asclepions, medical andpriestly pursuits had, before the time of Hippocrates, become combined;
and, consequently, although rational means were to a certain extentapplied to the cure of diseases, the more common practice was to resortchiefly to superstitious modes of working upon the imagination. It isnot surprising, therefore, to find that every sickness, especiallyepidemics and plagues, were attributed to the anger of some offendedgod, and that penance and supplications often took the place of personaland domestic cleanliness, fresh air, and light.
It was Hippocrates who emancipated medicine from the thraldom ofsuperstition, and in this way wrested the practice of his art from themonopoly of the priests. In his treatise on "The Sacred Disease"(possibly epilepsy), he discusses the controverted question whether ornot this disease was an infliction from the gods; and he decidedlymaintains that there is no such a thing as a sacred disease, for alldiseases arise from natural causes, and no one can be ascribed to thegods more than another. He points out that it is simply because thisdisease is unlike other diseases that men have come to regard its causeas divine, and yet it is not really more wonderful than the paroxysmsof fevers and many other diseases not thought sacred. He exposes thecunning of the impostors who pretend to cure men by purifications andspells; "who give themselves out as being excessively religious, and asknowing more than other people;" and he argues that "whoever is able, bypurifications and conjurings, to drive away such an affection, will beable, by other practices, to excite it, and, according to this view, itsdivine nature is entirely done away with." "Neither, truly," he
continues, "do I count it a worthy opinion to hold that the body of aman is polluted by the divinity, the most impure by the most holy; for,were it defiled, or did it suffer from any other thing, it would be like
-
8/4/2019 Fathers of Biology
4/48
to be purified and sanctified rather than polluted by the divinity." Asan additional argument against the cause being divine, he adduces thefact that this disease is hereditary, like other diseases, and that itattacks persons of a peculiar temperament, namely, the phlegmatic, butnot the bilious; and "yet if it were really more divine than theothers," he justly adds, "it ought to befall all alike."
Again, speaking of a disease common among the Scythians, Hippocratesremarks that the people attributed it to a god, but that "to me itappears that such affections are just as much divine as all others are,and that no one disease is either more divine or more human thananother, but that all are alike divine, for that each has its ownnature, and that no one arises without a natural cause."
From this it will be seen that Hippocrates regarded all phenomena as atonce divine and scientifically determinable. In this respect it isinteresting to compare him with one of his most illustriouscontemporaries, namely, with Socrates, who distributed phenomena intotwo classes: one wherein the connection of antecedent and consequent was
invariable and ascertainable by human study, and wherein thereforefuture results were accessible to a well-instructed foresight; theother, which the gods had reserved for themselves and theirunconditional agency, wherein there was no invariable or ascertainablesequence, and where the result could only be foreknown by some omen orprophecy, or other special inspired communication from themselves. Eachof these classes was essentially distinct, and required to be looked atand dealt with in a manner radically incompatible with the other.Physics and astronomy, in the opinion of Socrates, belonged to thedivine class of phenomena in which human research was insane, fruitless,and impious.[2]
Hippocrates divided the causes of diseases into two classes: the one
comprehending the influence of seasons, climates, water, situation, andthe like; the other consisting of such causes as the amount and kind offood and exercise in which each individual indulges. He considered thatwhile heat and cold, moisture and dryness, succeeded one anotherthroughout the year, the human body underwent certain analogous changeswhich influenced the diseases of the period. With regard to the secondclass of causes producing diseases, he attributed many disorders to avicious system of diet, for excessive and defective diet he consideredto be equally injurious.
In his medical doctrines Hippocrates starts with the axiom that the bodyis composed of the four elements--air, earth, fire, and water. Fromthese the four fluids or humours (namely, blood, phlegm, yellow bile,and black bile) are formed. Health is the result of a right conditionand proper proportion of these humours, disease being due to changes intheir quality or distribution. Thus inflammation is regarded as thepassing of blood into parts not previously containing it. In the courseof a disorder proceeding favourably, these humours undergo spontaneouschanges in quality. This process is spoken of as _coction_, and is thesign of returning health, as preparing the way for the expulsion of themorbid matters--a state described as the _crisis_. These crises have atendency to occur at certain periods, which are hence called _criticaldays_. As the critical days answer to the periods of the process ofcoction, they are to be watched with anxiety, and the actual conditionof the patient at these times is to be compared with the state which it
was expected he ought to show. From these observations the physician maypredict the course which the remainder of the disease will probablytake, and derive suggestions as to the practice to be followed in order
-
8/4/2019 Fathers of Biology
5/48
to assist Nature in her operations.
Hippocrates thus appears to have studied "the natural history ofdiseases." As stated above, his practice was to watch the manner inwhich the humours were undergoing their fermenting coction, thephenomena displayed in the critical days, and the aspect and nature ofthe critical discharges--not to attempt to check the process going on,
but simply to assist the natural operation. His principles and practicewere based on the theory of the existence of a restoring essence (or) penetrat
ng through all creat
on; the agent wh
ch
con
tantlytr
v
ng to preerve all th
ng
n the
r naturaltate, and to re
tore
them when they are preternaturally deranged. In the management oth
_v
med
catr
x natur_ the art othe phy
c
an con
ted. Attent
on,there
ore, to reg
men and d
et wa
the pr
nc
pal remedy H
ppocrate
employed; neverthele
he d
d not he
tate, when he con
dered thatocca
on requ
red, to adm
n
ter
uch a power
ul drug a
hellebore
nlarge do
e
.
The wr
t
ng wh
ch are extant under the name o H
ppocrate cannot all
be a
cr
bed to h
m. Many were doubtle
wr
tten by h
am
ly, h
decendant
, or h
pup
l. Other
are product
ono
the Alexandr
anchool,
ome o
the
e be
ng con
dered by cr
t
ca
w
lul
orger
e,
the h
gh pr
ce pa
d by the Ptolem
e or book o reputat
on probablyhav
ng acted a
nducement to uch raud. The ollow
ng work havegenerally been adm
tted agenu
ne:--
1. On A
r , Water , and Place .2. On Anc
ent Med
c
ne.3. On the Progno
t
c.
4. On the Treatment
n Acute D
ea
e
.
5. On Ep
dem
c [Book I. and III.].6. On Wound o the Head.
7. On the Art
culat
on .8. On Fracture
.
9. On the In trument o Reduct
on.10. The Aphor
m [Seven Book ].11. The Oath.
The work "On Fracture ," "On the Art
culat
on ," "On Injur
e to theHead," and "On the In
trument
o
Reduct
on," deal w
th anatom
cal orurg
cal matter, and exh
b
t a remarkable knowledge oo
teology and
anatomy generally. It ha
omet
mebeen doubted
H
ppocratecould
ever have had opportun
t
e o ga
n
ng th
knowledge rom d
ect
on o
the human body,
or
t habeen thought that the
eel
ng othe age
wad
ametr
cally oppoed to
uch a pract
ce, and that H
ppocratewould
not have dared to v
olate th
eel
ng. The language ued, however,
n ome pa age
n the work "On the Art
culat
on ," eem to put thematter beyond doubt. Thu
he
ay
n one place, "But
one w
lltr
pthe po
nt othe
houlder o
the
le
hy part
, and where the mu
cle
extend, and al
o lay bare the tendon that goe
rom the armp
t andclav
cle to the brea t," etc. And aga
n, urther on
n the ametreat
e, "It
ev
dent, then, thatuch a ca
e could not be reduced
e
ther byuccu
on or by any other method, unle
one were to cut openthe pat
ent, and then, hav
ng
ntroduced the hand
nto one othe great
cav
t
e , were to pu h outward rom w
th
n, wh
ch one m
ght do
n thedead body, but not at all
n the l
v
ng."
H
de cr
pt
on o the vertebr, w
th all the
r proce e andl
gament, a
well a
h
account o
the general character
o
the
nternal v
cera, would not have been a
ree
rom error a
they are
-
8/4/2019 Fathers of Biology
6/48
he had der
ved all h
knowledge
rom the d
ect
on othe
ner
oran
mal. Moreover,
t
nd
putable that, w
th
n le
than a hundredyear
rom the death o
H
ppocrate, the human body wa
openly d
ected
n thechool
o
Alexandr
a--nay,urther, that even the v
v
ect
on o
condemned cr
m
nalwa
not uncommon. It would be unrea
onable to
uppo
e that
uch a pract
ce a
the
ormer
prang up
uddenly under thePtolem
e, and
teem
, there
ore, h
ghly probable that
t waknown
and tolerated
n the t
me o H
ppocrate . It
not urpr
ng, when weremember the rude appl
anceand method
wh
ch then obta
ned, that
nh
knowledge o
m
nute anatomy H
ppocrate
hould compare un
avourablyw
th anatom
t
o
the pre
ent day. O
h
tology, and
uch other
ubject
a
could not be brought w
th
n h
d
rect peronal ob
ervat
on,the knowledge o
H
ppocratewa
nece
ar
ly deect
ve. Thuhe wrote o
the t
ue
w
thout d
t
ngu
h
ng them; con
u
ng arter
e
, ve
n
, andnerve
, and
peak
ng omu
cle
vaguely a
"
le
h." But w
th matter
w
th
n the reach othe Anc
ent Phy
c
an'own care
ul ob
ervat
on, theca
e
very d
erent. Th
well
hown
n h
wonder
ul chapter on
the club-oot,
n wh
ch he not onlytate
correctly the true nature o
the mal ormat
on, but g
ve ome very en
ble d
rect
on or rect
y
ng
the de
orm
ty
n early l
e.
When humantrength wa
not
u
c
ent to retore a d
placed l
mb, he k
l ully ava
led h
m el o all the mechan
cal power wh
ch were thenknown. He doe not appear to have been acqua
nted w
th the u e o pulley
or the purpo
e, but the axle
wh
ch he decr
bea
be
ngattached to the bench wh
ch bearh
name (_Scamnum H
ppocrat
_) mu
t
have been qu
te capable o exerc
ng the orce requ
red.
The work called "The Aphor
m
," wh
ch waprobably wr
tten
n the oldage o
H
ppocrate, con
t
o
more than
our hundred
hort p
thy entence , ett
ng orth the pr
nc
ple o med
c
ne, phy
ology, andnatural ph
lo ophy. A large number o the e entence are ev
dently
taken rom the author' other work , e pec
ally tho e "On A
r," etc.,"On Progno
t
c," and "On the Art
culat
on." They embody the re
ult o
a va t amount o ob ervat
on and re lect
on, and the major
ty o themhave been con
rmed by the exper
ence o two thou and year . A proo o the h
gh eteem
n wh
ch they have alwaybeen held
urn
hed by the
act that they have been tran
lated
nto all the languageo
the
c
v
l
zed world; among other ,
nto Hebrew, Arab
c, Lat
n, Engl
h,Dutch, Ital
an, German, and French. Theollow
ng are aew example
o
thee aphor
m
:--
"Spontaneou la
tude
nd
cate d
ea e."
"Old people on the whole haveewer compla
ntthan the young; but
thoe chron
c d
ea
e
wh
ch do beall them generally never leave
them."
"Peron
who have
udden and v
olent attacko
a
nt
ng w
thout anyobv
oucau
e d
euddenly."
"Othe con
t
tut
ono
the year, the dry upon the whole are more
healthy than the ra
ny, and attended w
th le
mortal
ty."
"Phth
mo t commonly occur between the age o e
ghteen andth
rty-
ve year."
"I one g
ve to a per on
n ever the ame ood wh
ch
g
ven to aper
on
n good health, what
trength to the one
d
ea
e to the
other."
-
8/4/2019 Fathers of Biology
7/48
"Suchood a
mo
t grate
ul, though not
o whole
ome,
to be
preerred to that wh
ch
better, but d
ta
te
ul."
"L
e
hort and the art long; the opportun
tyleet
ng;exper
ence
allac
ou
and judgment d
cult. The phy
c
an mu
t notonly do h
duty h
mel
, but mu
t al
o make the pat
ent, the
attendant and the external , co-operate."
H
ppocrate
appear
to have travelled a great deal, and to havepract
ed h
art
n many place
ar d
tant
rom h
nat
ve
land. A
ew trad
t
ono
what he d
d dur
ng h
long l
e rema
n, butd
erence
o
op
n
on ex
t a
to the truth o
the
e
tor
e.
Thuone
tory
ay
that when Perd
cca, the K
ng oMacedon
a, wa
uppo
ed to be dy
ng ocon
umpt
on, H
ppocrated
covered the d
order
to be love-
ckne , and
peed
ly e ected a cure. The deta
lo
th
tory
carcely
eem to be worthy o
credence, more e
pec
ally a
m
larlegend have been told o ent
rely d
erent per on belong
ng to w
dely
d
erent t
me
. There are, however,
ome rea
on
or bel
ev
ng thatH
ppocratev
ted the Macedon
an court
n the exerc
e o
h
proe
onal dut
e,
or he ment
on
n the coure o
h
wr
t
ng,
among place wh
ch he had v
ted, everal wh
ch were
tuated
nMacedon
a; and, urther, h
on The alu appear to have a terward been court phy
c
an to Archelau, K
ng oMacedon
a.
Another tory connect the name o H
ppocrate w
th the Great Plaguewh
ch occurred at Athen
n the t
me o the Peloponne
an war. It
a
d that H
ppocrateadv
ed the l
ght
ng ogreat
rew
th wood o
ome aromat
c k
nd, probablyome
pec
eo
p
ne. Thee, be
ng k
ndledall about the c
ty, tayed the progre o the pe t
lence. Other be
de H
ppocrate are, however, amou or hav
ng ucce ully adopted
th
pract
ce.
A th
rd legend tate that the K
ng o Per
a, pur u
ng the plan (wh
ch
n the two celebrated
n tance o Them
tocle and Pau an
a had proveducce
ul) o
attract
ng to h
de the mot d
t
ngu
hed per
on
nGreece, wrote to H
ppocratea
k
ng h
m to pay a v
t to h
court, and
that H
ppocrate re u ed to go. Although the tory
d
carded by manycholar
,
t
worthy o
note that Cte
a, a k
nman and contemporary
oH
ppocrate,
ment
oned by Xenophon
n the "Anaba
" a
be
ng
nthe
erv
ce othe K
ng oPer
a. And, w
th regard to the reu
al o
the venerable phy
c
an to comply w
th the k
ng' reque t, one cannotlo
e
ght othe
act that
uch re
u
al wa
the only cour
e con
tent
w
th the op
n
onhe pro
e
ed o
a monarch
calorm o
government.
A ter h
var
ou travel H
ppocrate , a eem to be pretty generallyadm
tted,pent the latter port
on oh
l
e
n The aly, and d
ed atLar
a at a very advanced age.
It
d
cult to peak o the k
ll and pa
n tak
ng per everance o H
ppocrate
n termwh
chhall not appear exaggerated and
extravagant. H
method o
cult
vat
ng med
c
ne wa
n the truep
r
to
the
nduct
ve ph
loophy. H
de
cr
pt
onwere all der
vedrom
care ul ob ervat
on o
t phenomena, and, a a re ult, the greaternumber o
h
deduct
onhave
tood un
cathed the te
t o
twenty
centur
e.
St
ll more d
cult
t topeak w
th moderat
on othe candour wh
ch
mpelled H
ppocrateto con
e
error
nto wh
ch
n h
earl
er
-
8/4/2019 Fathers of Biology
8/48
pract
ce he hadallen; or o
that
reedom
rom
uper
t
t
on wh
chent
tled h
m to bepoken o
a
a man who knew not how to dece
ve or bedece
ved ("qu
tamallere quam
all
nec
t"); or, latly, o
that
pur
ty ocharacter and true nob
l
ty o
oul wh
ch are broughto
d
t
nctly to l
ght
n the wordo
the oath tran
lated below:--
"Iwear by Apollo the Phy
c
an and culap
u, and I call Hyge
a
and Panacea and all the god and godde e to w
tne , that to thebe
t o
my power and judgment I w
ll keep th
oath and th
contract; to w
t--to hold h
m, who taught me th
Art, equally dearto me a
my parent
; to
hare my
ub
tance w
th h
m; toupply h
m
he
n need othe nece
ar
eo
l
e; to regard h
o
pr
ng
n theame l
ght amy own brother
, and to teach them th
Art,
they
hall de
re to learn
t, w
thout
ee or contract; to
mpartthe precept
, the oral teach
ng, and all the ret o
the
ntruct
onto my own
on
, and to the
on
o
my teacher, and to pup
lwho
have been bound to me by contract, and who have beenworn accord
ngto the law o
med
c
ne.
"I w
ll adopt that
y
tem o
reg
men wh
ch, accord
ng to my ab
l
tyand judgment, I con
deror the bene
t omy pat
ent, and w
llprotect them
rom everyth
ng nox
ouand
njur
ou. I w
ll g
ve nodeadly med
c
ne to any one, even
a ked, nor w
ll I g
ve any uchcoun el, and
m
larly I w
ll not g
ve to a woman the mean o procur
ng an abort
on. W
th pur
ty and w
th hol
ne
I w
ll pa
myl
e and pract
e my art.... Into whatever hou
e
I enter I w
ll go
nto them or the bene
t o the
ck, keep
ng my el aloo romevery voluntary act o
nju t
ce and corrupt
on and lu t. Whatever
n the coure o
my pro
e
onal pract
ce, or out
de o
t, Iee
or hear wh
ch ought not to bepread abroad, I w
ll not d
vulge, a
reckon
ng that all uch hould be kept ecret. I I cont
nue toob erve th
oath and to keep
t
nv
olate, may
t be m
ne to enjoy
l
e and the pract
ce o the Art re pected among all men or ever.But
hould I v
olate th
oath and
or
wear my
el
, may the rever
e
be my lot."
FOOTNOTES:
[1] Grote'"Ar
totle," vol.
. p. 3.
[2] Grote'"H
tory o
Greece," vol.
. p. 358.
ARISTOTLE.
_ARISTOTLE._
About the t
me that H
ppocrate d
ed, Ar
totle, who may be regarded a the
ounder o
the
c
ence o"Natural H
tory," wa
born (B.C. 384)
nStag
ra, an un
mportant Hellen
c colony
n Thrace, near the Macedon
an ront
er. H
ather wa a d
t
ngu
hed phy
c
an, and, l
keH
ppocrate, boa
ted de
cent
rom the A
clep
ad. The
mportanceattached by the A
clep
adto the hab
t ophy
cal obervat
on, wh
ch
-
8/4/2019 Fathers of Biology
9/48
habeen already re
erred to
n the l
e o
H
ppocrate,
ecured
or
Ar
totle,
rom h
earl
et year
, that
am
l
ar
ty w
th b
olog
caltud
ewh
ch
o clearly ev
dent
n many oh
work
.
Both parento
Ar
totle d
ed when the
ron wa
t
ll a youth, and
ncon
equence o
th
he went to re
de w
th Proxenu
, a nat
ve o
Atarneu, who had
ettled at Stag
ra. Subequently he went to Athen
and
jo
ned the chool o Plato. Here he rema
ned or about twenty year , andappl
ed h
mel
to
tudy w
thuch energy that he became pre-em
nenteven
n that d
t
ngu
hed band o
ph
lo
opher
. He
a
d to havebeen
poken o
by Plato a
"the
ntellect" othe
chool, and to have
been compared by h
m to ap
r
ted colt that requ
red the appl
cat
on o
the re
n to retra
n
tardour.
Ar
totle probably wrote at th
t
meome ph
looph
cal work, the
ame
owh
ch reached the earo
Ph
l
p, K
ng oMacedon
a, and added to thereputat
on wh
ch the young ph
loopher had already made w
th thatmonarch;
or Ph
l
p
a
d to have wr
tten to h
m on the occa
on o
Alexander' b
rth, B.C. 356: "K
ng Ph
l
p o Macedon
a to Ar
totle,
greet
ng. Know that a
on ha
been born to me. I thank the god
not
omuch that they have g
ven h
m to me, athat they have perm
tted h
m tobe born
n the t
me oAr
totle. I hope that thou w
ltorm h
m to be ak
ng worthy to ucceed me and to rule the Macedon
an ."
Ater the death o
Plato, wh
ch occurred
n 347 B.C., Ar
totle qu
ttedAthen
and went to Atarneu
, where he
tayed w
th Herm
a, who wa
then
de pot o that town. Herm
a wa a remarkable man, who, rom be
ng a lave, had contr
ved to ra
e h
m el to the upreme power. He had beenat Athen
and had heard Plato'
lecture
, and had there
ormed a
r
endh
por Ar
totle. W
th th
man the ph
loopher rema
nedor
three year , and wa then compelled uddenly to eek re uge
n M
tylene,ow
ng to the per
d
ou murder o Herm
a . The latter wa decoyed out o
the town by the Per
an general, e
zed and ent pr
oner toArtaxerxe
, by whom he wa
hanged a
a rebel. On leav
ng Atarneu,
Ar
totle took w
th h
m a n
ece o Herm
a , named Pyth
a , whom hea terward marr
ed. She d
ed young, leav
ng an
n ant daughter.
Two or three yeara
ter th
, Ar
totle became tutor to Alexander, who
wa then about th
rteen year old. The ph
lo opher eem to have been aavour
te w
th both the k
ng and the pr
nce, and,
n grat
tudeor h
erv
ce, Ph
l
p rebu
lt Stag
ra and retored
t to
t
ormer
nhab
tant, who had e
ther been d
per
ed or carr
ed
ntolavery. The
k
ng
a
d al o to have e tabl
hed there a chool or Ar
totle. Theh
gh repect
n wh
ch Alexander held h
teacher
expre
ed
n h
ay
ng that he honoured h
m no le
than h
own
ather,
or wh
le toone he owed l
e, to the other he owed all that made l
e valuable.
In 336 B.C. Alexander, who wathen only about twenty year
o
age,
became k
ng, and Ar
totle
oon a
terward
qu
tted Macedon
a and took uph
re
dence
n Athenonce more, a
ter an ab
ence o
about twelve
year . Here he opened a chool
n the Lycum, a gymna
um on the ea tern
de othe c
ty, and cont
nued h
work there
or about twelve year
,
dur
ng wh
ch t
me Alexander wamak
ng h
br
ll
ant conquet
. The
lecturewere g
venor the mo
t part wh
le walk
ng
n the garden, and
n con equence, perhap , o th
, the ect rece
ved the name o thePer
patet
c. The d
cour
e
were o
two k
nd--the _e
oter
c_, orab
tru
e, and the _exoter
c_, oram
l
ar; theormer be
ng del
vered to
the more advanced pup
l only. Dur
ng the greater part o th
t
meAr
totle kept up corre
pondence w
th Alexander, who
a
d[3] to haveplaced at h
d
po
al thou
and
o
men, who were bu
ly employed
n
-
8/4/2019 Fathers of Biology
10/48
collect
ng objectand
n mak
ng obervat
on
or the complet
on othe
ph
loopher'
zoolog
cal reearche
. Alexander
, moreover,
a
d tohave g
ven the ph
loopher e
ght hundred talent
or the
ame purpo
e.
Inp
te othe
e mark
o
r
endh
p and repect, Alexander, who wa
a
t becom
ng
ntox
cated w
th
ucce
, and corrupted by A
at
c
nluence
, gradually cooled
n h
attachment toward
Ar
totle. Th
may have been ha tened by everal cau e , and among other by thereedom o
peech and republ
can op
n
ono
Call
thene
, a k
nman and
d
c
ple o
Ar
totle, who had been, by the latter'
n
luence,appo
nted to attend on Alexander. Call
thene
proved
o unpopular, that
the k
ngeem
to have ava
led h
mel
read
ly othe
rt plau
blepretext
or putt
ng h
m to death, and to have threatened h
ormer
r
end and teacher w
th a
m
lar pun
hment. The latter,
or h
part,probably had a deep
eel
ng ore
entment toward
the de
troyer o
h
k
nman.
Meanwh
le the Athen
anknew noth
ng othe
e altered relat
onbetween
Ar
totle and Alexander, but cont
nued to regard the ph
lo opher a
thoroughly
mbued w
th k
ngly not
on
(
n
p
te o
h
wr
t
ng
be
ngqu
te to the contrary);o that he wa
an object o
u
p
c
on andd
l
ke to the Athen
an patr
ot. Neverthele
, a
long a
Alexander wa
al
ve, Ar
totle wa a e rom mole tat
on. A oon, however, a Alexander' death became known, the ant
-Macedon
an eel
ng o theAthen
anbur
t
orth, and
ound a v
ct
m
n the ph
loopher. A charge
o
mp
ety wabrought aga
nt h
m. It waalleged that he had pa
dd
v
ne honour to h
w
e Pyth
a and to h
r
end Herm
a . Now, orthe latter, a eunuch, who rom the rank o a lave had ra
ed h
m el tothe po
t
on ode
pot over a
ree Grec
an commun
ty,o
ar
rom
coupl
ng h
name (a
Ar
totle had done
n h
hymn) w
th the greatet
per onage o Hellen
c mythology, the Athen
an publ
c elt that nocontempt wa too b
tter. To e cape the torm the ph
lo opher ret
red to
Chalc
,
n Euba, then under garr
on by Ant
pater, the Governor o Macedon
a, remark
ng
n a letter, wr
tten aterward
, that he d
do
norder that the Athen
an m
ght not have the opportun
ty o
nn
ng a econd t
me aga
n t ph
lo ophy (the allu
on be
ng, o cour e, to theate o
Socrate
).
He probably
ntended to return to Athen aga
n o oon a the pol
t
caltrouble
had abated, but
n September, 322 B.C., he d
ed at Chalc
. An
overwrought m
nd, coupled w
th
nd
get
on and weakne
othe
tomach,
rom wh
ch he had longu
ered, wa
mo
t probably the cau
e o
death.
Some o h
detractor , however, have a erted that he took po
on, andother
that he drowned h
mel
n the Euban Eur
pu.
It
not ea
y to arr
ve at a jut e
t
mate othe character o
Ar
totle. By ome o h
ucce or he ha been reproached w
th
ngrat
tude to h
teacher, Plato; w
therv
l
ty to Macedon
an power,and w
th love oco
tly d
play. How
ar the
e two la
t charge
are due
to peronal
lander
t
mpo
ble toay. The only ground
or the
r t charge
, that he cr
t
c
ed adver ely ome o Plato' doctr
ne .
The manucr
pto
Ar
totle'
work
pa
ed through many v
c
tude.
At the death othe ph
loopher they were bequeathed to Theophra
tu
,
who cont
nued ch
e o the Per
patet
c chool or th
rty-
ve year .Theophra
tu
le
t them, w
th h
own work
, to a ph
looph
calr
endand pup
l, Neleu, who conveyed them
rom Athen
to h
re
dence at
Scep
,
n A
a M
nor. About th
rty or orty year a ter the death o Theophra
tu
, the k
ngo
Pergamu
, to whom the c
ty oScep
belonged, began collect
ng bookto
orm a l
brary on the Alexandr
an
-
8/4/2019 Fathers of Biology
11/48
plan. Th
led the he
ro
Neleu
to conceal the
r l
terary treaure
n a cellar, and there the manucr
ptrema
nedor nearly a century
and a hal, expo
ed to
njuryrom damp and worm
. At length they were
old to Apell
con, a re
dent at Athen, who wa
attached to the
Per
patet
cect. Many o
the manu
cr
ptwere
mperect, hav
ng becomeworm-eaten or
lleg
ble. The
e de
ect
Apell
con attempted to remedy;but, be
ng a lover obook
rather than a ph
loopher, he per
ormed the
work omewhat un k
l ully. When Athen wa taken by Sylla, 86 B.C., thel
brary oApell
con watran
ported to Rome. There var
oul
teraryGreek
obta
ned acce
to
t; and, among other
, Tyrann
on, a grammar
anand
r
end oC
cero, d
d gooderv
ce
n the work ocorrect
on.Andron
cuo
Rhode
a
terward
arranged the whole
ntoect
on, and
publ
hed the manu
cr
ptw
th a tabulated l
t.
The three pr
nc
pal workon b
ology wh
ch are extant are: "The H
tory
oAn
mal;" "On the Part
o
An
mal;" "On the Generat
on oAn
mal."
The other b
olog
cal workare: "On the Mot
on oAn
mal;" "On
Rep
rat
on;" "Parva Natural
a;"--aer
eo
e
ay
wh
ch are plannedto orm an ent
re work on en e and the en
ble.
"The H
tory o
An
mal"
the large
t and mo
t
mportant o
Ar
totle'
work
on b
ology. It conta
na va
t amount o
normat
on,not very method
cally arranged, and po
led by the occurrence here andthere o very gro error . It con
t o n
ne book .
The
rt book open
w
th a d
v
on othe body
nto
m
lar andd
m
lar part . Be
de thu d
er
ng
n the
r part , an
mal al od
er
n the
r mode o l
e, the
r act
on and d
po
t
on . Thu omeare aquat
c, otherterre
tr
al; othe
ormer,
ome breathe water,
othera
r, andome ne
ther. Oaquat
c an
mal,
ome
nhab
t theea,
and other r
ver , lake , or mar he . Aga
n, ome an
mal arelocomot
ve, and other are tat
onary. Some ollow a leader, other act
ndependently.
ar
ou d
erence are
n th
way po
nted out, andthere
no lack o
llutrat
on and deta
l, but au
p
c
on
exc
tedthat the general
zat
on are omet
me ba ed upon
n u
c
ent act .The book clo e w
th a de cr
pt
on o the d
erent part o the humanbody, both
nternal and external. Inpeak
ng othe ear, Ar
totle
eem
to have been aware o
what we now call the Eu
tach
an tube,or he
ay , "There
no pa age rom the ear
nto the bra
n, but there
tothe roo
o
the mouth."[4]
In theecond book he pa
e
on to de
cr
be the organo
an
mal. The
an
mal are dealt w
th
n group --v
v
parou and ov
parou quadruped ,
h,
erpent
, b
rd, etc. The ape, elephant, chameleon, and
ome
otherare e
pec
ally not
ced.
The th
rd book cont
nue the de cr
pt
on o the
nternal organ .Re
erence
wh
ch are made to a d
agram by letter, _a_, _b_, _c_, _d_,
how that the work wa
or
g
nally
llutrated. At the clo
e o
th
book Ar
totle ha
ome remark
on m
lk, and ment
onthe occa
onalappearance o m
lk
n male an
mal . He peak o a male goat at Lemno wh
ch y
eldedo much that cake
o
chee
e were made
rom
t. S
m
lar
ntance
o
th
phenomenon have been recorded by Humboldt, Burdach,
Geo roy St. H
la
re, and other.
In the
rt
our chapter
o
the
ourth book the anatomy o
the
nvertebrata
dealt w
th, and the accountg
ven ocerta
n molluca
and cru tacea are very care ul and m
nute. The re t o the book
devoted to a decr
pt
on othe organ
o
en
e and vo
ce; o
leep, and
the d
t
nct
ono
ex. The accurate knowledge wh
ch Ar
totle exh
b
t
-
8/4/2019 Fathers of Biology
12/48
othe anatomy and hab
to
mar
ne an
mal,
uch a
the Cephalopoda and
the larger Crutacea, leave
no doubt that he der
ved
trom actual
obervat
on. Proe
or Owen
ay
, "Re
pect
ng the l
v
ng hab
to
the
Cephalopoda, Ar
totle
more r
ch
n deta
l than any other zoolog
calauthor." What
now
poken o
a
the _hectocotyl
zat
on_ oone or more
o
the arm
o
the male cephalopod d
d not e
cape Ar
totle'
eye. Andwh
le hepeak
o
the teeth and that wh
cherve
the
e an
mal
or a
tongue,
t
pla
n rom the context that he mean
n the one ca e thetwo halve
o
the parrot-l
ke beak, and
n the other the anter
or end o
the odontophore.
Book
ve toeven deal w
th theubject o
generat
on.
The e
ghth book conta
n
a var
ety o
deta
l
re
pect
ng an
mal
, the
rood, m
grat
on, h
bernat
on, and d
ea
e
; w
th the
nluence o
cl
mate and local
ty upon them.
The n
nth book decr
bethe hab
tand
nt
ncto
an
mal. The
deta
l are
ntere t
ng; but there
, a u ual, very l
ttle attempt at
cla
cat
on. D
jo
nted
tatement
and
udden d
gre
on
occur, theubject
be
ng treated
n the order
n wh
ch they preented them
elve
to the author. Such cur
ou
tatement
a
the
ollow
ng are met w
th:"The raven
an enemy to the bull and the a , or
t l
e round themand tr
ke the
r eye ." "I a per on take a goat by the beard, all there
t o
the herd
tand by, a
natuated, and look at
t." "Femaletag
are captured by the
ound o
the p
pe and by
ng
ng. When twoper on go out to capture them, one how h
m el , and e
ther play upona p
pe or
ng , and the other tr
ke beh
nd, when the
r t g
ve h
mthe
gnal." "Swanhave the power o
ong, e
pec
ally when near the endo
the
r l
e;
or they then
ly out to
ea, and
ome per
on
a
l
ngnear the coa t o L
bya have met many o them
n the ea
ng
ng amourn ul ong, and have a terward een ome o them d
e." "O all w
ld
an
mal , the elephant
the mo t tame and gentle; or many o them arecapable o
ntruct
on and
ntell
gence, and they have been taught _towor h
p the k
ng_."
In the work "On the Parto
An
mal," the author con
dernot only the
phenomena ol
e exh
b
ted by eachpec
e, but al
o the cau
e or
cau e to wh
ch the e phenomena are attr
butable. A ter a general
ntroduct
on, he proceedto enumerate the three degree
o
compo
t
on,v
z.:--
(1) "Compo
t
on out o what ome call the element , uch a a
r,earth, water, and
re," or "out othe elementary
orce
, hot
and cold,ol
d andlu
d, wh
chorm the mater
al oall
compoundub
tance
."
(2) Compo
t
on out othe
e pr
maryub
tance
o
the homogeneou
parto
an
mal, e.g. blood,
at, marrow, bra
n,le
h, and
bone.
(3) Compo
t
on
nto the heterogeneoupart
or organ
. The
e part
he
decr
be
n deta
l, con
der
ng thoe belong
ng toangu
neou
an
mal
rt and mo
t
ully.
Thee d
v
oncorre
pond roughly to the three
old
tudy o
tructure
wh
ch we nowadayrecogn
ze achem
cal, h
tolog
cal, and anatom
cal.
Aexample
o
Ar
totle'
method o
treatment, h
de
cr
pt
ono
blood, the bra
n, the heart, and the lung may be con
dered.
-
8/4/2019 Fathers of Biology
13/48
Othe _blood_ he
ay
, "What are called
breare
ound
n the bloodo
ome an
mal, but not o
all. There are none,
or
ntance,
n theblood o
deer and o
roe
, and
or th
rea
on the blood o
uch
an
mala
the
e never coagulate
.... Too great an exce
o
water make
an
mal
t
morou
.... Such an
mal
, on the other hand, a
have th
ck andabundant
bre
n the
r blood are oa more choler
c temperament, and
l
able to bur t o pa
on.... Bull and boar are choler
c, or the
rblood
exceed
ngly r
ch
n
bre, and the bull'
, at any rate,
coagulate
more rap
dly than that o
any other an
mal.... I
the
e
breare taken out o
the blood, the
lu
d that rema
nw
ll no longercoagulate."
From the
e quotat
on
t w
ll be noted that Ar
totle attr
buted thecoagulum to the pre
ence o
bre, and
n th
he ant
c
patedMalp
gh
'd
covery made
n theeventeenth century. H
remark
on the
proport
on ocoagulum and
erum
n d
erent an
mal, wh
ch
enlarged
upon
n the "H
tory o
An
mal,"[5] harmon
ze w
th modern obervat
on.
In another o h
work [6] he remark that the blood
n certa
n d
ea ed
cond
t
on
w
ll not coagulate. Th
known to be the ca
e
n cholera,certa
never
, a
phyx
a, etc.; and theact wa
probably obta
nedrom
H
ppocrate. Although Ar
totle
peak
here o
ent
re abence o
coagulat
on
n the blood o the deer and the roe,
n the "H
tory o An
mal " he adm
t an
mper ect coagulat
on, or he ay , " o that the
rblood doe
not coagulate l
ke that oother an
mal." The an
malnamed
are commonly hunted, and
t waprobably a
ter they had been hunted to
death that he exam
ned them. Now,
t
generally adm
tted thatcoagulat
on under uch c
rcum tance
mper ect and even uncommon. Thetatement a
to the r
chne
n
breo
the blood o
bull
and boar
habeen con
rmed byome modern
nvet
gat
on, wh
ch havehown that
the clot bear a proport
on to the trength and eroc
ty o the an
mal.The remark , however, a to the relat
ve rap
d
ty o coagulat
on would
appear to be contrad
cted by later ob ervat
on , or Thackrah came tothe conclu
on that coagulat
on commencedooner
nmall and weak
an
mal than
n trong.
Othe _bra
n_ Ar
totle make
the
ollow
ng among other a ert
on: "O
all parto
the body there
none
o cold a
the bra
n.... Oall the
lu
d o the body
t
the one that ha the lea t blood, or,
n act,
t hano blood at all
n
tproper
ub
tance.... That
t hano
cont
nu
ty w
th the organo
en
e
pla
nrom
mple
npect
on, andt
ll more cloely
hown by the
act that when
t
touched no
en at
on
produced.... The bra
n temper the heat and eeth
ng o theheart.... In order that
t may not
tel
be ab
olutely w
thout heat,blood-ve
el
rom the aorta end
n the membrane wh
churround
the
bra
n.... Oall an
malman ha
the large
t bra
n
n proport
on to h
ze: and
t
larger
n men than
n women. Th
becau e the reg
ono
the heart and o
the lung
hotter and r
cher
n blood
n man than
n any other an
mal; and
n men than
n women. Th
aga
n expla
nwhy
man alone oan
mal
tand
erect. For the heat, overcom
ng any oppo
te
ncl
nat
on, make growth take
t own l
ne o d
rect
on, wh
ch
romthe centre o
the body upward
.... Man aga
n hamore
uture
n h
kull than any other an
mal, and the male more than theemale. The
explanat
on
to be
ound
n the greater
ze othe bra
n, wh
chdemand ree vent
lat
on proport
onate to
t bulk.... There
no bra
n
n the h
nder part othe head.... The bra
n
n all an
malthat have
one
placed
n theront part o
the head ... becau
e the heart,
rom
wh
ch en at
on proceed ,
n the ront part o the body."
Although
t would perhapbe d
cult to
nd anywhere amany error
-
8/4/2019 Fathers of Biology
14/48
n a
ew word
, yet
thould be ob
erved that Ar
totle here
how
h
mel
to have been aware o
the ex
tence o
the membrane
o
the
bra
n--the _p
a mater_ and the _dura mater_; and elewhere[7] he
ay
more expl
c
tly, "Two membraneenclo
e the bra
n; that about thekull
the
tronger; the
nner membrane
l
ghter than the outer one." And
urther,
t
hould be noted that he de
cr
be
the latter membrane a
ava
cular one. The
act o
the bra
nub
tance be
ng
nen
ble to
mechan
cal
rr
tat
on wa known to Ar
totle, and may have been learntrom the pract
ce oH
ppocrate. La
tly,
thould be remembered
that--though th
may have been but a lucky gue
on Ar
totle'
part--the relat
ve we
ght obra
n to the ent
re body habeen
hown,
w
thew except
on, to be greater
n man than
n any other an
mal.
In de
cr
b
ng the _heart_ Ar
totle
ay
: "The heart l
e
about thecentre o
the body, but rather
n
tupper than
n
tlower hal
, and
alo more
nront than beh
nd.... In man
t
ncl
nea l
ttle toward
the let,
o that
t may counterbalance the ch
ll
ne
othat
de. It
hollow, to
erve
or the recept
on othe blood; wh
le
twall
th
ck, that
t may erve to protect the ource o heat. For here, and
here alone,
n all the v
cera, and
n
act
n all the body, there
blood w
thout blood-ve el
, the blood el
ewhere be
ng alwayconta
nedw
th
n ve el
. The heart
the
rt o
all the part
o
the body to
be ormed, and no ooner
t ormed than
t conta
n blood.... For no ooner
the embryo ormed than
t heart
een
n mot
on l
ke al
v
ng creature, and th
be
ore any o
the other part
. The heart
abundantlyuppl
ed w
th
new.... In no an
mal doethe heart conta
na bone, certa
nly
n none o tho e that we our elve have
n pected,w
th the except
on o the hor e and a certa
n k
nd o ox. In an
mal o great
ze the heart hathree cav
t
e;
nmaller an
mal
t hatwo;
and
n all
t haat lea
t one."
It w
ll be ob erved that here Ar
totle o correctly de cr
be the
po
t
on o the human heart a to render
t probable that he
peak
ngrom actual
npect
on; although man
not the only an
mal
n wh
ch theheart
turned toward the le t. In contra t
ng the heart w
th theother v
cera he appear to have overlooked the ex
tence o thecoronary ve
el
, and to have
mag
ned that the nutr
t
on othe heart
wae
ected d
rectly by the blood
n
tcav
t
e. Although the heart
not really the
r t part to appear, the ob ervat
on o
t veryearly appearance
n the embryo, wh
ch he treatmore
ully el
ewhere,[8]
alone enough to e
tabl
h h
reputat
on aan or
g
nal oberver. It
remarkable that Ar
totle
hould have overlooked the pre
ence o
the
valve o the heart, the tructure and unct
on o wh
ch were ully
nvet
gated w
th
n th
rty yearo
h
death by the anatom
t
o
the
Alexandr
anchool. Th
the more remarkable, a
he call
attent
onhere, and
n the "H
tory o
An
mal," to the
newor tendon
()
with which, h
s ys, th
h
t is suppli
d,
d by which h
p ob blym
t chi
fly th
_chod t
di
_. Th
"bo
i
th
h
t" of which h
sp
ks w
s p
ob
bly th
cucifo
m ossific
tio
which is
om
lly fou
di
th
ox
d th
stg b
low th
oigi
of th
o
t
. It is fou
d i
th
ho s
o
ly i
dv
c
d g
, o u
d
b
o m l co
ditio
s. Th
st t
m
tth
t th
h
t co
ti
s
o mo
th
th
chmb
s h
s
lw
ys b
co
sid
ds
v
y g
oss blu
d
o
th
p t of A
istotl
. Ev
Cuvi
, who g
lly l
vish
s upo
th
philosoph
th
most
xt v
g
tp is
, s
s t this. P of
sso Huxl
y,[9] how
v
, h s show
, by comp
iso
of s
v
l p
ss
g
s fom th
"Histoy of A
imls," th
t wh
t
w
ow cll th
ight
u
icl
ws
g d
d by th
utho
s
v
ous
si
us, s b
i
g p t
ot of th
h
t, but of th
g
t v
i
(_i.
._th
sup
io
d th
i
f
io
_v
cv_).
-
8/4/2019 Fathers of Biology
15/48
A istotl
sp
ks of th
_lu
g_ s si
gl
o g
, sub-divid
d, buth vi
g commo
outl
t--th
t ch
. Els
wh
[10] h
s ys, "C
ls f omth
h
t p ss to th
lu
g
d divid
i
th
s m
f shio
s th
wi
dpip
do
s, clos
ly ccomp
yi
g thos
f om th
wi
dpip
th ough th
whol
lu
g." His th
o y of
spi tio
, s
xpl i
d i
his t
tis
o
th
subj
ct, is tht it t
mp
s th
xc
ssiv
h
t p
oduc
d i
th
h
t. Th
lu
g is comp
d to p i of b
llows. Wh
th
lu
g is
xp
d
d, i ush
s i
; wh
it is co
t ct
d, th
i is
xp
ll
d. Th
h
t f om th
h
t c us
s th
lu
g to
xp
d--cold i ush
s i
, th
h
t is
duc
d, th
lu
g collps
s,
d th
i
is
xp
ll
d. Th
cold i d w
i
to th
lu
g
ch
s th
b o
chi l tub
s,
d s th
v
ss
lsco
t i
i
g hot blood u
lo
gsid
th
s
tub
s, th
i cools it
dc i
s off its sup
fluous h
t. Som
of th
i which
t
s th
lu
gg
ts fom th
bo
chil tub
s i
to th
blood-v
ss
ls by t
sudtio
,fo th
is
o di
ct commu
ic tio
b
tw
th
m;
d this i ,p
t ti
g th
body, pidly cools th
blood th oughout th
v
ss
ls.But A istotl
did
ot co
sid
th
"p
um ," which thus
ch
d th
i
t
io
of th
blood-v
ss
ls, to b
xctly th
sm
thi
gs
i
--it
w s " subtiliz
d
d co
d
s
d i ."[11] A
d this w
ow k
ow to b
oxyg
.
Th
t
tis
"O
th
G
tio
of A
imls" is
xt o
di
y
p oductio
. "No
ci
t
d f
w mod
wo ks
qu l it i
comp
h
siv
ss of d
t il
d p ofou
d sp
cul tiv
i
sight. W
h
fi
d som
of th
obscu
st pobl
ms of biology t
t
d withm
st
y
which, wh
w
co
sid
th
co
ditio
of sci
c
t th
t d
y, is t
uly
stou
di
g. Th t th
m
y
o s, m
y d
fici
ci
s,
d
ot littl
c
l
ss
ss i
th
dmissio
of f cts, m y b
dily im gi
d;
v
th
l
sst tim
s th
wok is f
qu
tly o
l
v
l with,
docc
sio
lly
v
is
sbov
, th
sp
cultio
s of m
ydv
c
d
mb yologists."[12]
It comm
c
s with th
st t
m
t th t th
p
s
t wo k is s
qu
l toth
t "O
th
P ts of A
imls;"
d fist th
msculi
d f
mi
i
_p i
cipl
s_
d
fi
d. Th
m sculi
p i
cipl
is th
o igi
of llmotio
d g
tio
; th
f
mi
i
p i
cipl
is th
o igi
of th
mt
i
l g
t
d. Aistotl
's philosophy of
tu
ws t
l
ologicl,
d th
imp
f
ct ch
ct
of his
tomic
l k
owl
dg
oft
giv
s himocc sio
to
xpl i
p ticul ph
om
by fi
l c us
s. Thus
im lsp
oduci
g soft-sh
ll
d
ggs (_
.g._ c til
gi
ous fish
d vip
s)
sid to do so b
cus
th
y hv
so littl
w mth th
t th
xt
l
suf
c
of th
gg c
ot b
di
d.
Amo
g i
s
cts, som
(_
.g._ g sshopp
, c
ick
t,
t,
tc.) poduc
you
g i
th
odi
y w
y, by th
u
io
of th
s
x
s; i
oth
c
s
s(_
.g._ fli
s
d fl
s) this u
io
of th
s
x
s
sults i
th
p oductio
of _skol
x_; whil
oth
s h v
o p
ts,
o do th
y h v
co
g
ss--such
th
ph
m
, tipul
,
d th
lik
. Aistotl
discuss
s
d
j
cts th
th
oy th
t th
ml
poductiv
l
m
t isd
iv
d fom
v
y p
t of th
body. H
co
clud
s tht "i
st
d of
s yi
g th t it com
s _f om_ ll p ts of th
body, w
should s y th t itgo
s _to_ th
m. It is
ot th
uti
t fluid, but tht which is _l
ftov
_, which is s
c
t
d. H
c
th
l g
imls h
v
f
w
you
g th
th
smll
, fo
by th
m th
co
sumptio
of
uti
t mt
i
l will b
l g
d th
s
c
tio
l
ss. A
oth
poi
t to b
otic
d is, th t th
uti
t fluid is u
iv
s
lly dist
ibut
d though th
body, but
ch
s
c
tio
hs its s
p
t
og
.... It is thus i
t
lligibl
why
child
s
mbl
th
i p
ts, si
c
th t which m k
s ll th
p ts ofth
body,
s
mbl
s tht which is l
ft ov
s s
c
tio
: thus th
h
d, oth
fc
, oth
whol
iml p
-
xists i
th
sp
m, though
-
8/4/2019 Fathers of Biology
16/48
i
u
diff
ti t
d st t
(); an
ha
each f
he e
nac
ual
y (), uch
he pe m
n p
en
al
y ()."
I
lat
r t
m
s th
two gr
at r
val th
or
s p t forward to acco
t forth d v lopm t of th mbryo hav b --
(_a_) Th
th
ory of Evol t
o
, wh
ch mak
s th
mbryo pr
-
x
st
t
th
g
rm, a
d o
ly r
d
r
d v
s
bl
by th
fold
g a
d xpa s
o of
ts orga s.
(_b_) Th
th
ory of Ep
g
s
s, wh
ch mak
s th
mbryo ar
s
, by as r
s of s cc ss
v d
ff r t
at
o s, from a s
mpl
homog o s mass
to a compl x h t rog o s orga
sm.
Th
abov
q otat
o
w
ll show how clos
ly Ar
stotl
h
ld to th
th
oryof Ep
g s
s; a d
a oth r plac h says, "Not at o c
s th a
mala ma or a hors , for th d
s last atta
d; a d th sp c
f
c form
sth
d of
ach d
v
lopm
t."
Spo
ta
o
s g
rat
o
s
owadays r
j
ct
d by sc
c
; b
t Ar
stotl
w
t so far as to b
l
v
that
s
cts, moll scs, a
d
v
ls, w
r
spo
ta
o sly g
rat
d. It
s, how
v
r,
ot
worthy,
v
w of mod
r
v
st
gat
o
s, that h
look
d
po
_p
tr
fy
g_ matt
r as th
so
rc
ofs
ch d
v
lopm
t.
A chapt
r of th
s work
s d
vot
d to th
co
s
d
rat
o
of th
h
r
d
tarytra
sm
ss
o
of p
c
l
ar
t
s from par
t to offspr
g.
Th
f
fth a
d last book co
ta
s
q
r
s
to th
ca s
of var
at
o
th
colo r of th
y
s a
d ha
r, th
ab
da
c
of ha
r, th
sl
p ofth
mbryo, s
ght a
d h
ar
g, vo
c
a
d th
t
th.
W
d
ly d
ff
r
t op
o
s hav
b
h
ld from t
m
to t
m
of th
val
of Ar
stotl
's b
olog
cal labo rs. Th
s ph
losoph
r's r
p tat
o
has,p
rhaps, s
ff
r
d most from thos
who hav
pra
s
d h
m most. Th
pra
s
has oft
b
of s ch a
xagg
rat
d charact
r as to hav
b
com
m
a
g, a
d to hav
carr
d w
th
t th
mpr
ss
o
of
s
c
r
ty o
th
part of th
wr
t
r. S ch ar
th
la dat
o
s of C v
r. To say as h
do
s, "Alo
,
fact, w
tho
t pr
d
c
ssors, w
tho
t hav
g borrow
da
yth
g from th
c
t r
s wh
ch had go
b
for
, s
c
th
y hadprod c
d
oth
g
d r
g, th
d
sc
pl
of Plato d
scov
r
d a
dd
mo
strat
d mor
tr ths a
d
x
c t
d mor
sc
t
f
c labo rs
a l
f
of s
xty-two y
ars tha
tw
ty c
t
r
s aft
r h
m w
r
abl
to do,"
sof co rs
to talk
o
s
s
, for th
m
thod wh
ch Ar
stotl
appl
d wasthat wh
ch H
ppocrat
s had s
d so w
ll b
for
h
m; a
d
t
s
v
d
t toa
y o
that both h
s pr
d
c
ssors a
d co
t
mporar
s ar
fr
q
tlyla
d
d
r co
tr
b
t
o
by Ar
stotl
, altho
gh th
a
thor
ty
s rar
ly,
f
v
r, stat
d by h
m
l
ss h
s abo t to r
f t
th
v
w p tforward. Exagg
rat
d pra
s
of a
y a thor has a t
d
cy to
xc
t
d
pr
c
at
o
corr
spo
d
gly
j st a
d
tr
. It has b
so
th
cas
of th
s gr
at ma
. I
th
d
avo r to d
pos
h
m from th
mposs
bl
pos
t
o
to wh
ch h
s pa
gyr
sts had
xalt
d h
m, h
sd
tractors hav
go
to a
y l
gth. Th
pr
c
pal charg
s bro ghtaga
st h
s b
olog
cal work hav
b
acc racy a
d hastyg
ral
zat
o
. I
s pport of th
charg
of
acc racy, som
of th
xtraord
ary stat
m
ts wh
ch ar
m
t w
th
h
s works ar
add c
d."Th
s
," Prof
ssor H xl
y says, "ar
ot so m ch to b
call
d
rrors as
st
p
d
t
s." Som
, how
v
r, of th
acc
rac
s all
g
d aga
stAr
stotl
ar
fa
c
d rath
r tha
r
al. Th s h
s charg
d w
th hav
gr
pr
s
t
d that th
art
r
s co
ta
d
oth
g b t a
r; that th
aorta
-
8/4/2019 Fathers of Biology
17/48
aros from th r
ght v tr
cl ; that th h art d
d ot b at
a y oth ra
mal b t ma ; that r pt
l s had o blood, tc.; altho gh
r al
ty h
mad
o o
of th
s
ass
rt
o
s. Th
r
r
ma
,
v
rth
l
ss, th
grossm
sstat
m
ts r
f
rr
d to abov
, a
d wh
ch r
ally do occ r. S ch, for
sta c , as that th r
s b t a s
gl bo
th ck of th l
o ;that th r ar mor t th
mal tha
f mal a
mals; that th mo thof th
dolph
s plac
d o
th
d
r s rfac
of th
body; that th
back
of th
sk
ll
s
mpty,
tc. Altho
gh th
s
abs
rd
t
s
do
bt
dly occ
r
Ar
stotl 's works,
t by o m a s follows that h
s r spo s
bl forth m. B ar
g
m
d th c r
o s h
story of th ma scr
pts of h
str
at
s
s, w
shall f
d
t far mor
r
aso
abl
to co
cl d
that s ch rrors cr pt
d r
g th proc ss of corr ct
o a d r storat
o , by m
appar tly
g ora t of b
ology, tha that (to tak o ly o cas ) a
obs rv r who had d
st
g
sh d th c tac a from f
sh s a d had d t ct dth
r h
dd
mamm, d
scov
r
d th
r l
gs, a
d r
cog
z
d th
d
st
ctcharact r of th
r bo s, sho ld hav b so bl
d as to fa cy that th
mo th of th s a
mals was o th d r s rfac of th body.
That Ar
stotl
mad
hasty g
ral
zat
o
s
s tr
; b
t
t was
avo
dabl
. B
ology was
so
arly a stag
that a th
ory had oft
of c
ss
ty to b
fo
d
d o
a v
ry sl
ght bas
s of facts. Y
t,
otw
thsta
d
g th
s drawback, so gr
at was th
sagac
ty of th
sph
losoph
r, that ma
y of h
s g
ral
zat
o
s, wh
ch h
h
ms
lf probablylook
d
po
as t
mporary, hav
h
ld th
r gro
d for tw
ty c
t
r
s,or, hav
g b
lost s
ght of, hav
b
d
scov
r
d a
d p t forward asor
g
al by mod
r
b
olog
sts. Th s "th
adva
tag
of phys
olog
cald
v
s
o
of labo
r was f
rst s
t forth," says M
l
-Edwards, "by mys
lf
1827;" a
d y
t Ar
stotl
had sa
d[13] that "wh
v
r Nat
r
s abl
to prov
d
two s
parat
str m
ts for two s
parat
s
s, w
tho t th
o
hamp
r
g th
oth
r, sh
do
s so,
st
ad of act
g l
k
acopp
rsm
th, who for ch
ap
ss mak
s a sp
t-a
d-a-ca
dl
st
ck
o
.[14] It
s o
ly wh
th
s
s
mposs
bl
that sh
s
s o
orga
for
s
v
ral f
ct
o
s."
I
co
cl
s
o
, w
may say that th
gr
at Stag
r
t
xpo
d
d th
tr
pr
c
pl
s of sc
c
, a
d that wh
h
fa
l
d h
s fa
l r
was ca s
d bylack of mat
r
als. H
s d
s
r
for compl
t
ss, p
rhaps, t
mpt
d h
m att
m
s to f
ll
gaps w
th s ch mak
sh
fts as cam
to h
s ha
d; b t
oo
k
w b
tt
r tha
h
d
d that "th
or
s m
st b
aba
do
d
l
ssth
r t
ach
gs tally w
th th
d
sp tabl
r
s lts of obs
rvat
o
."[15]
FOOTNOTES:
[3] Pl
y, "Nat ral H
story," v
. c. 16.
[4] "H
story of A
mals,"
. 11.
[5] Bk.
. 19.
[6] "M
t
orology,"
v. 7-11.
[7] "H
story of A
mals,"
. 16.
[8] "H
story of A
mals," v
. 3.
[9] "O
som
of th
rrors attr
b t
d to Ar
stotl
."
[10] "H
story of A
mals,"
. 17.
-
8/4/2019 Fathers of Biology
18/48
[11] S Prof ssor H xl y's art
cl alr ady r f rr d to.
[12] "Ar
stotl
," by G. H. L
w
s, p. 325.
[13] "D Part. A
m.,"
v. 6.
[14] .
[15] "De Ge
er.,"
. 10, quted by Dr. Og
e.
GALEN.
_GALEN._
U
der the Pt
em
e
a p
werfu
t
mu
u
wa
g
ve
t
b
g
a
tud
e
at Aexa
dr
a. S
e
t
f
w
edge wa
arr
ed atep
r tw
bey
d the
m
t reahed by Ar
t
t
e. Thu
Era
tratu
a
d Herph
u
th
r
ugh
y
ve
t
gated the
tru
ture a
d fu
t
f the va
ve
f the heart, a
dwere the f
r
t t
re
g
ze the
erve
a
rga
f
e
at
. But,u
frtu
atey,
mp
ete re
rd
f the
teret
g wr
arr
ed
bythe
e me
ha
me d
w
t
ur t
me. The f
rt wr
ter after Ar
t
t
e
wh
e w
r
arre
t atte
t
Ca
u
P
u
Se
u
du
, wh
e
-
a
ed"Natura
H
t
ry,"
th
rty-
eve
v
ume
, rema
t
the pre
e
t daya
a m
ume
tf
dutr
u
mp
at
. But, aa b
g
t pr
per
y
a
ed, P
y
ab
ute
y w
thut ra
, fr he
a
ed that
pra t
a a qua
ta
e w
th the ubje t wh
h a
e u d e
ab e h
m t
pea
w
th auth
r
ty. Of
f
rmat
he had a
a
m
t
exhau
t
b
et
re;
f a
tua
w
edge, the re
u
t
f
b
ervat
a
d exper
e
e,
far a b
g
a tud
e were
er
ed, he had but
tt e. Th
wa arge
y due t
the e
y
pd
hara
ter
f the w
r
he u
dert
; h
me
tap
wer
were we
ghed dw
by a
e
rm
u
ma
f u
arra
ged a
d
-d
ge ted mater
a . But
t wa due a t the pe u
ar be
t fP
y'm
d. He wa
t,
e Ar
t
t
e, a
r
g
ath
er; he wa
e e
t
a y a
tude
tf b
, a
mme
e
y
dutr
u
but
t a
way
jud
u
mp
er. Ofte
h
e
e
t
fr
m
ther w
r
pr
ve that he
fa
ed t appre
ate the re at
ve
mp rta
e f the d
ffere
t ubje t t
wh
h he made refere
e. H
w
edge
f the Gree
a
guage appear,
t , t
have bee
defet
ve, fr he g
veat t
methe wr
g Lat
ame
t
bje
t
de
r
bed by h
Gree
authr
t
e. T
the
e defe
t
mu
t be
added h
marve u read
e t be
eve a
y tateme
t, pr v
ded
ythat
t wau
mm
; wh
e,
thether ha
d, heh
wed a
defe
be
ept
m
regard twhat wa
rea
y de
erv
gf
atte
t
. Theh
ef vaue
f h
w
r
t
the h
t
r
a
a
d hr
g
a
te f the pr gre f me f the ubje t f wh
h hetreat
--fragme
t
f wr
t
gwh
h w
u
d
therw
e be
t t
u
. P
ywa
ed
the detru
t
f P
mpe
, A.D. 79.
C aud
u Ga e
u wa b r
at Pergamu ,
A
a M
r,
the hu
dred a
dth
rty-f
rt year
f the Chr
t
a
era. Few wr
terever exer
ed f
r
g a t
meu
h a
u
d
puted
way
ver the
p
f ma
d a
d
d th
w
derfu ma
. H
auth r
ty wa e t
mated at a mu h h
gherrate tha
thatf a
the b
g
a
wr
ter
mb
ed whf
ur
hed
dur
g a per
d
f m
re tha
tweve
e
tur
e, a
d
t wa
fte
-
8/4/2019 Fathers of Biology
19/48
dered auff
e
t argume
t aga
t a hyp
the
,
r eve
a
a eged matter
f fa
t, that
t wa
trary tGa
e
.
E
dwed by
ature w
th a pe
etrat
g ge
ua
d a m
df re
t
e
e
ergy, he waem
e
ty qua
f
ed tpr
f
t by a mprehe
ve a
d
bera
edu
at
. A
d
u
h he re
e
ved. H
father, N
, a
arh
tet, wa
a ma
f
ear
g a
d ab
ty--a d
t
gu
hed
mathemat
a
a
d a
a tr
mer--a
d eem t have dev ted mu h t
me a
dare t
the edu
at
f h
. The yuth appear
t
have
tud
edph
phy
u
e
ve
y
the
h
f the St
, A
adem
,Per
patet
, a
d Ep
urea
, w
thut atta
h
g h
me
f ex
u
vey t
a
y
ef the
e, a
d thave ta
e
frm ea
h what he th
ught t
be the
m t e
e
t
apart
f the
ry
tem, reje
t
g, hwever, a
t
gether the
te
et
f the Ep
urea
. At the age
f twe
ty-
e,
the death
f h
father, he we
t tSmyr
a t
t
ue thetudy
f med
e, twh
h he
had
w dev
ted h
me
f. After
eav
g th
p
a
e a
d hav
g trave ed
exte
vey, he t
up h
re
de
e at A
exa
dr
a, wh
h wa
the
them
t fav
urab
e
p
t f
r the pur
u
t
f med
a
tud
e
. Here he
a
dt
have rema
ed u
t
he wa
twe
ty-e
ght year
f age, whe
h
reputat
e
ured h
app
tme
t,
h
at
ve
ty
f Pergamu
, t
the
ff
e
f phy
a
harge
f the ath
ete
the gym
a
a
tuated w
th
the pre
t
f the temp
e
f
u
ap
u
. F
r f
ve
r
x yearhe
ved
Pergamu, a
d the
a rev t
mpe
ed h
m t
eave
h
at
ve tw
. The adva
tage
ffered by R
me
ed h
m trem
ve
th
ther a
d ta
e up h
re
de
e
the
ap
ta
f the w
r
d. Here h
,
aga
ty, a
d
w
edge
br
ught h
m
t
t
e, a
d ex
tedthe jea
u
y
f the R
ma
d t
r
, wh
h wa
t
further
rea
ed by
me w
derfu
ure
the y
u
g Gree
phy
a
u
eeded
effet
g.P
b
y
t wa
w
g t
the
fee
g
h
w
t
Ga
e
that,
the
utbrea
f a
ep
dem
a year afterward
, he
eft the
mper
a
ty a
dpr
eeded t
Br
d
, a
d embar
ed fr Gree
e. It wa
h
te
t
t
devte h
t
me tthe
tudy
f
aturah
t
ry, a
d fr th
purp
e he
v
ted Cypru , Pa e t
e, a
d Lem
. Wh
e at the a t-
amed p a e,h
wever, he wa
udde
y
umm
ed t
Aqu
e
a t
meet the Emper
r
Maru
Aure
ua
d Lu
uVeru
. He trave
ed thr
ugh Thra
e a
dMa ed
a
f t, met the
mper
a per
age , a
d prepared f r them amed
e, fr wh
h he
eem
t
have bee
famu
, a
d wh
h
p
e
f
athe _ther
a_. It wa
pr
bab
y
me
mb
at
f
p
um w
th var
u
ar mat
a
d t
mu a
t , f r a
t
d te f ma
y d
ffere
t
d werehab
tua y ta
e
by the Rma
t
pre
erve them fr
m the
effe
t
f
p
a
df the b
te
f ve
m
u
a
ma .[16]
W
th the Emper r M. Aure
u he retur
ed t R me, a
d be ame afterward d
t
r t
the y
u
g Emperr C
mm
du
. He d
d
t, h
wever, rema
fr a
g per
d at R
me, a
d prbab
y pa
ed the greater part
f the re
t
f
h
fe
h
at
ve u
try.
Ath
ugh the date
f h
death