the whole body is reduced, the softness of the flesh and skin departs. The hair participates in the same changes, and turns grey or falls off. The cornea of the eye is rendered flatter, so that its power of reflecting the rays of light that come from near objects is diminished. The vision of distant objects, however, is still preserved, and the convex glasses supply the imperfection of the organ.
The arteries are not exempt from the general decay; the larger trunks are dilated, their coats are more or less converted into a substance of cartilagenous or bony hardness, and assume a brittle texture. The process of ossification in the smaller tubes reduces their calibre. The capillaries are greatly diminished in number. This change affects the organs of every description. The same parts which exhibit innumerable blood vessels in the growing body, possess now but few and scattered ramifications. The veins are enlarged and varicose.
The muscles also are changed—fat is deposited amongst their fibres, and the tendonous parts increase in their proportion. They feel, however, at this time, soft and relaxed.
The bones receive an undue deposition of earthy matter, lose their cohesion, break very easily, and unite after fracture very slowly and imperfectly. The cartilages become brittle, and in many instances are ossified; the ligaments are rendered harder, but are less capable of resisting extension.
The organs of motion lose their vitality in an equal degree with those of sensation and volition. The movements are slow, tremulous, and uncertain. The erector muscles of the trunk can no longer support it in an erect posture; hence the body is bent forward, and the legs fail in giving their proper support. The intervertebral fibro-cartilages are compressed and reduced in size, and the stature consequently experiences a real diminution.
Such is the description given by physiologists of advanced age. It is our business to soften down those excrescences, to prop up the reclining figure, and retain to the last the appearance of middle life.
Before we advert to the nature of our adaptations for this period of life, we must draw a distinction between age and "premature old age." The former is the decline of nature, which must always take place, whilst the latter is the result of disease or improper habits. What we mean by improper habits is such, for instance, as tight lacing or the wearing of an
