The Relation of Science and Religion.pdf - Online Christian Library

210 SCIENCE AND RELIGION.already mentioned, the one set concerned withsensibility, the other with movement of themuscles. From the tips of the fingers thererun lines of nerve fibre, which are broughtinto combination at the wrist, and are carriedup the arm, and onward by the shoulderand upper portion of the back-bone to thehead. These are the nerves of sensibility, bymeans of which, as by telegraph wires, theslightest impression made on the tips of thefingers is instantly conveyed to the great nervecentre in the brain. Distinct from these isanother set of nerves issuing from the brain,and descending the arm, giving off its fibresas it passes to the several muscles above theelbow, next to those above the wrist, andnext to the inuscles of the hand and fingers.These are the nerves of nzoven~ent, by meansof which the whole arm may be brought intoaction at pleasure, or the hand may be set towork, while the arm is at rest.These two sets of nerves-the sensory andmotor-are exactly sinzilar in structure, consistingof an outer covering, within whichfloating in a white fluid is a thread whichconstitutes the nerve proper. The outer coveringprovides for isolation of the fibre, from