Page:Letters on the Human Body (John Clowes).djvu/64

44 , is thus communicated, every day, from one mind to another, through the instrumentality of that small organ called the ear! Knowledge is thus brought into general circulation, and, like every other gift of the, becomes, as it were, a common property. Nor is it knowledge alone which is conveyed from one mind to another, by this wonderful channel, since it must be obvious to every person of reflection and observation, that by discourse the affections are wrought upon, the will is moved, and the whole man, in many cases, becomes changed as to his purposes, his inclinations, and the general temper and spirit of his life. As therefore, according to what was observed in my last letter, the eye is instrumental in the introduction of material images, necessary for the formation of intellectual ideas, and thus in giving birth and growth to the intellectual mind, in like manner, the ear is instrumental in admitting sounds,—by virtue of which, not only the intellectual, but also the voluntary principle of man is operated upon and cherished, whether that principle be grounded in good or evil. The two organs of sight and of hearing, therefore, unite in this use, that each is subservient to the purposes of mental growth and perfection,—the former being adapted principally to the service of the intellectual mind, whilst the latter is adapted to the