The life and correspondence of Andrew Combe / by George Combe.

Date:
1850
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The life and correspondence of Andrew Combe / by George Combe. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. The original may be consulted at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh.

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    7] the Freuch towards the English at the time of his residence in Paris, and he mentions many amusing in- stances of the forms in which their mortification and dislike manifested themselves. In general, he bore their ebullitions, both general and particular, with equanimity; but occasionally the excess of their vanity, and the de- grading nature of the charges brought by them against his country, roused his indignation. In a letter to George, dated 22d September 1818, he says:— “ They will not lay aside their national vanity for ten minutes at a time, nor speak to one as one of themselves. They cannot forget for a moment that you are of a dilferent nation. To ho everlastingly annoyed with glory on all occasions, in philosophical discussions at the Institute, in medical lectures, and everywhere else, is too much of a good thing. Put glory where glory should he ; hut glory and philoso- phy make a curious compound, and glory and glauher-salts are more ridiculous still.” « * * “ There is,” he adds, “ a difference be- tween the conformation of the forehead of a French man and that of a French woman; the fohmer slopes backwards from the nose rapidly, indicating deficiency in the reflective organs, while the woman’s fore- head is much more perpendicular.” This remark is correct; and tlie fact that, in Paris, women exercise a greater influence in proportion to that wielded by men, than women do in corresponding situ- ations iu England, harmonizes with it. This difterence ill the development of the reflective organs in the male and female heads does not generally prevail in the latter country. During the winter and spring of 1818-1819, Andrew continued the study of his profession and of collateral branches of knowledge, with the same ardour which he had maiiifested iu the preceding year; but it is unneces- sary to enter into farther details. In some of his letters, however, he introduces observations which appear to be worthpreserving, and a fewof these shall now be selected. In a letter to George, dated Paris, 8th Eebruary 1819,
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