An inaugural essay, on the eye, and on vision : submitted to the examination of the Rev. John Andrews ..., the Trustees and medical professors of the University of Pennsylvania, on the 5th day of June, 1805, for the degree of Doctor of Medicine / by Elisha de Butts, of Maryland.

Date:
1805
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: An inaugural essay, on the eye, and on vision : submitted to the examination of the Rev. John Andrews ..., the Trustees and medical professors of the University of Pennsylvania, on the 5th day of June, 1805, for the degree of Doctor of Medicine / by Elisha de Butts, of Maryland. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the National Library of Medicine (U.S.), through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the National Library of Medicine (U.S.)

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    SFCTION III. OF THE MJMjYER \IJ\T WHICH VISION IS PERFORMED. There is a certain innate principle, inseparable from humani- ty, which naturally leads us to contemplate the works of nature with a peculiar gratification. There are few periods in our lives, in which we experience a more serene satisfaction, than when, in solitude, we are occupied in viewing the stupendous height of the distant mountain, or the foaming torrents of the lushing cataract. If we turn our attention to the diversified streaks of the tulip, or the flinty crags of the rock, we are alike intuitively impelled to admire and acknowledge, the wisdom by which they were constructed. The uncultivated peasant will gaze in silent admiration, on the colours and grotesque figures of the evening clouds, with emotions which his simple language is incapable of describing : but it is only the outlines of nature which can give satisfaction to minds uninformed. The man of genius and philosopher alone can become acquainted with her diversity of tints and shades, and discover the secret touches which are imperceptibly the foundation of all the beauties in the picture. The subject of this section, and to which the two foregoing ones were only preparatory, is highly calculated to excite more interesting reflections, than any other phenomena with which we are acquainted. Having in the first section described the form and situation of the cornea and humors of the eye in gen- eral, I will now proceed to speak of them in a more particular manner. And first, of the aqueous humor. The aqueous humor is less dense than any other refracting humor of the eye, and is situated in the anterior and posterior chambers, between the cornea and chrystalline lens. As the cor-