Page:The Harveian oration - delivered at the Royal College of Physicians, London, on October 18, 1884 (IA b21778929).pdf/28

 dealing with Harvey's foresight of that matter." Again, in the passage quoted from the paper on Parturition, we find a curious forecasting of the ingenious application of the reflex theory of Hall to the interpretation of the action of the uterus which was made by Dr. Tyler Smith. In thus sketching soine of the motives which led to the event of last year, and also to the fact of our meeting here to-day, it has been my wish to show that we still hold in reverential regard the perishing remains at Hemp. stead; and also the living force that is with us, now and here; and which comes to us from our knowledge of the individual, Harvey, in his relation to the past, the surround- ing conditions of his time, and his outlook towards the future.

C. There is one thing more, however, that this College has done for many years, and that is, by this annual Oration, to hand down to coming generations the memory of him from whom we have learned so much, and to whom our debt of gratitude is larger than we, perhaps, as yet can know; cer- tainly much larger than it falls within the range of my powers to express.

We speak of the "immortal Harvey," but in what sense ? To many, his own words would convey all the meaning of that attribute. "The eternity of things," he says, "is connected with the reciprocal interchange of generation and decay; and as the sun, now in the east, and then in the west, completes the measure of time by his ceaseless revolutions, so are the fleeting things of mortal existence made eternal through incessant change; and kinds and species are perpetuated, though individuals die."" True ---grandly but sadly true-and yet, our meeting of this day

20 Vid. ant. 21 On Generation, p. 226.