BRIEF SYSTEMATIC EXERCISE
years they change so fast, from what was the result of development. But most of the cases cited are of men who had their growth; and had apparently, to a large extent, taken their form and set for life. To take a man twenty-eight years old, tall and rather slim, and whose height had probably not increased a single hair's-breadth in seven years; and, in a few short months, increase that height by a good half inch; to take another also twenty-eight, and suddenly, in the short period between September 11th and the 30th of the next April, add sixteen pounds to his weight, and every pound of excellent stuff, was in itself no light thing; and there are thousands of men in our land to-day who would be delighted to make an equally great addition to their general size and strength, even in twice the period. To add five whole inches of chest; and nearly that much of lung and heart room and stomach room; and the consequent greater capacity for all the vital organs, is a matter, to many men, of almost immeasurable value. Hear Dr. Morgan, in his English University Oars, on this point:
"An addition of three inches to the circumference of the chest implies that the lungs, instead of containing 250 cubic inches of air, as they did before their functional activity was exalted; are now capable of receiving 300 cubic inches within their cells: the value of this augmented lung-accommodation will readily be admitted. Suppose, for example, that a man is attacked by inflammation of the lungs; by pleurisy; or some one of the varied forms of consumption; it may readily be conceived that, in such an emergency, the possession of enough lung~tissue to admit 40 or 50 additional inches of air will amply suffice to turn the scale on the side of recovery! It assists a patient successfully to tide over the critical stage of the disease.
A man, then, of feeble lungs—the consumptive, for instance—taken early in hand, with the care which Sar-
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