2. It is placed in a bony box called the skull; it is covered and held together by three coats or membranes.
3. The outer membrane is thick and firm; it strengthens and supports the brain.
4. The middle membrane is thick, and somewhat like a spider's web in appearance.
5. The inner membrane is a network of blood-vessels.
6. From the brain, white or reddish gray pulpy cords, called nerves, pass to all parts of the body. These nerves are of two kinds: nerves of feeling, and nerves of motion.
7. If I prick my finger, a nerve of feeling carries the message to my brain; if I wish to move my finger, a nerve of motion causes my finger to obey my will.
8. Twelve pairs of nerves pass from the base of the brain: the first pair, called the nerves of smell, to my nose; the fourth pair, called the nerves of sight, to my eyes; the fifth pair, called the nerves of taste, to my mouth, tongue, and teeth. One pair pass to my face; another to my ears. The ninth, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth pairs to my tongue and parts of my throat and neck.[[3]]
9. The spinal cord is a bundle of nerves extending from the base of my brain, down through the whole length of my spine, or backbone. It is the largest nerve in my body.
10. From the spine, thirty-one pairs of nerves, called spinal nerves, pass to different parts of my body; some to the lungs, some to the heart, some to the stomach, some to the bones, and some to the muscles and skin.