Popular Lectures on Zoonomia / Or The Laws of Animal Life, in Health and Disease

by Thomas Garnett

The sense of taste, as well as of touch, may become deficient, from various affections of the brain and nerves; this, however, is not often the case. Some persons have naturally a diminished sense of taste, and this generally accompanies a diminished sense of smell. This sense is frequently diminished in sensibility from a deficiency of saliva, as well as of the proper moisture of the tongue. Hence, in many diseases, it becomes defective, such as fevers, colds, and the like; both from a want of the proper degree of moisture, and from defect of appetite, which, as was before observed, is necessary to the sense of taste.

The sense of taste is often diminished by a thickened mucous covering of the tongue, which prevents the application of substances to its nervous papillae. This mucous covering arises from a disordered state of the stomach, as well as from several other affections of the body: hence physicians inspect the tongue, that they may be able to judge of the general state of the body; and next to the pulse, it is undoubtedly the best criterion that we have, as it not only points out the nature and degree of several fevers, but likewise, in many instances, the degree of danger to be apprehended.

Having examined the sense of taste, I shall now proceed to consider that of smell; the use of which, like taste, is to enable us to distinguish unwholesome from salutary food; indeed, by this sense, we are taught to avoid what is prejudicial before it reaches the sense of taste, to which it might be very injurious; and thus we are enabled to avoid any thing which has a putrid tendency, which, if received into the stomach, would taint the whole mass of fluids, and bring on speedy dissolution.

The seat of this sense is a soft pulpy membrane, full of pores, and small vessels, which lines the whole internal cavity of the nose. On this membrane are distributed abundance of soft nerves, which arise chiefly from an expansion of the first pair of nerves coming from the brain. This membrane is likewise plentifully supplied with arteries; so that by means of this nervous and arterial apparatus, this membrane is possessed of very great sensibility; but the nerves of the nose being almost naked, require a defence from the air, which is continually drawn through the nostrils into the lungs, and forced out again by respiration. Nature has therefore supplied this part with a thick insipid mucus, very fluid at its first separation, but gradually thickening, as it combines with oxygen, into a dry crust, approaching often to a membranous matter. This mucus is poured out, or exhaled, by the numerous minute arteries of the nostrils, and serves to keep the nervous apparatus moist, and in a proper state for receiving impressions, as well as to prevent the violent effects which might arise from the stimulus of the air and other bodies. The sense of smell is the most acute about the middle of the septum of the nose, where the nervous membrane which I have described is thicker and softer, than in the cavities more deeply situated, where it is less nervous and vascular. These parts are not however destitute of the sense.

As taste proceeds from the action of the soluble parts of bodies on the nervous papillae of the tongue, so smell is occasioned by minute and volatile particles flying off from bodies, which become mixed with the air, and drawn up with it into the nostrils, where these small particles stimulate or act upon the nerves before described, and produce the sensation which we call smelling.

The air therefore, being loaded with the subtile and invisible effluvia of bodies, is, by the powers of respiration, drawn through the nose, so as to apply these particles to the almost naked olfactory nerves, which, as was before observed, excites the sense of smelling. When we wish to smell accurately, we shut the mouth, open the nostrils as wide as possible, and making a strong inhalation, draw up a greater number of these volatile particles, than could be drawn up by the common action of respiration, by which means the olfactory nerves are more stimulated, and produce a stronger sensation.

In order that this sense may be enjoyed in perfection, it is necessary that the organ of smell be in a proper state or condition to receive impressions, and that the odorous bodies be likewise in a proper state. With respect to the first, it is necessary that the state of the nerves be sound, and particularly that they be kept in a proper state with respect to moisture.

With regard to the odorous bodies, it is necessary, first, that their minute particles should be disengaged, either by heat, friction, fermentation, or other means capable of decomposing those bodies which are the subjects of smell: secondly, that they may be capable of assuming the vaporous or gaseous state, by combining with caloric, or at any rate, that they should remain for a certain time dissolved or suspended in the air: thirdly, that they should not meet with any substance in their way to the nostrils, which is capable of neutralising them, or altering their properties by its chemical action.

Notwithstanding all the pains which physiologists have taken to detect the nature of odorous bodies, they have met with but little success. They are so extremely minute as to escape the other senses, and we can only say that they must be composed of particles in an extreme state of division and subtilty, because very small quantities of odorous matter exhale a sufficient quantity of particles to fill a large space. A grain of camphor, musk, or amber exhales an odour which penetrates every part of a large apartment, and which remains for a long time.

There is perhaps no substance in nature which is absolutely incapable of being changed from a solid state into that of a fluid or gas, by combining with caloric; though different substances require very different quantities of heat to produce those effects. Those which are with difficulty converted into fluids or gases, are termed fixed, while those which are easily changed are called volatile; though these are only terms of comparison, for there is probably no body which is absolutely fixed, or incapable of being reduced to vapour by the application of a sufficient degree of heat.