Sex in Relation to Society
1616. At the time he was described he was fifty years old, four feet in
5231 words | Chapter 18
height; his head measured three feet in circumference and one foot in
height. There was a proverb in Marseilles, "Apas mai de sen que
Borghini," meaning in the local dialect, "Thou hast no more wit than
Borghini." This man, whose fame became known all over France, was not
able, as he grew older, to maintain the weight of his head, but carried
a cushion on each shoulder to prop it up. Fournier also quotes the
history of a man who died in the same city in 1807 at the age of
sixty-seven. His head was enormous, and he never lay on a bed for
thirty years, passing his nights in a chair, generally reading or
writing. He only ate once in twenty-four or thirty hours, never warmed
himself, and never used warm water. His knowledge was said to have been
great and encyclopedic, and he pretended never to have heard the
proverb of Borghini. There is related the account of a Moor, who was
seen in Tunis early in this century, thirty-one years of age, of middle
height, with a head so prodigious in dimensions that crowds flocked
after him in the streets. His nose was quite long, and his mouth so
large that he could eat a melon as others would an apple. He was an
imbecile. William Thomas Andrews was a dwarf seventeen years old,
whose head measured in circumference 35 inches; from one external
auditory meatus to another, 27 1/4 inches; from the chin over the
cranial summit to the suboccipital protuberance, 37 1/2 inches; the
distance from the chin to the pubes was 20 inches; and from the pubes
to the soles of the feet, 16; he was a monorchid. James Cardinal, who
died in Guy's Hospital in 1825, and who was so celebrated for the size
of his head, only measured 32 1/2 inches in head-circumference.
The largest healthy brains on record, that is, of men of prominence,
are those of Cuvier, weighing 64 1/3 ounces; of Daniel Webster,
weighing 63 3/4 ounces (the circumference of whose head was 23 3/4
inches); of Abercrombie, weighing 63 ounces, and of Spurzheim, weighing
55 1/16 ounces. Byron and Cromwell had abnormally heavy brains, showing
marked evidence of disease.
A curious instance in this connection is that quoted by Pigne, who
gives an account of a double brain found in an infant. Keen reports
finding a fornix which, instead of being solid from side to side,
consisted of two lateral halves with a triangular space between them.
When the augmentation of the volume of the cranium is caused by an
abundant quantity of serous fluid the anomaly is known as hydrocephaly.
In this condition there is usually no change in the size of the
brain-structure itself, but often the cranial bones are rent far
asunder. Minot speaks of a hydrocephalic infant whose head measured 27
1/2 inches in circumference; Bright describes one whose head measured
32 inches; and Klein, one 43 inches. Figure 93 represents a child of
six whose head circumference was 36 inches. Figure 94 shows a
hydrocephalic adult who was exhibited through this country.
There is a record of a curious monster born of healthy half-caste
African parents. The deformity was caused by a deficiency of osseous
material of the bones of the head. There was considerable arrest of
development of the parietal, temporal, and superior maxillary bones, in
consequence of which a very small amount of the cerebral substance
could be protected by the membranous expansion of the cranial centers.
The inferior maxilla and the frontal bone were both perfect; the ears
were well developed and the tongue strong and active; the nostrils were
imperforate and there was no roof to the mouth nor floor to the nares.
The eyes were curiously free from eyelashes, eyelids, or brows. The
cornea threatened to slough. There was double harelip on the left side;
the second and third fingers of both hands were webbed for their whole
length; the right foot wanted the distal phalanx of the great toe and
the left foot was clubbed and drawn inward. The child swallowed when
fed from a spoon, appeared to hear, but exhibited no sense of light. It
died shortly after the accompanying sketch was made.
Occasionally a deficiency in the osseous material of the cranium or an
abnormal dilatation of the fontanelles gives rise to a hernia of the
meninges, which, if accompanied by cerebrospinal fluid in any quantity,
causes a large and peculiarly shaped tumor called meningocele. If there
is a protrusion of brain-substance itself, a condition known as hernia
cerebri results.
Complete absence of the inferior maxilla is much rarer in man than in
animals. Nicolas and Prenant have described a curious case of this
anomaly in a sheep. Gurlt has named subjects presenting the total or
partial absence of the inferior maxilla, agnathes or hemiagnathes.
Simple atrophy of the inferior maxilla has been seen in man as well as
in the lower animals, but is much less frequent than atrophy of the
superior maxilla. Langenbeck reports the case of a young man who had
the inferior maxilla so atrophied that in infancy it was impossible for
him to take milk from the breast. He had also almost complete
immobility of the jaws. Boullard reports a deformity of the visage,
resulting in a deficiency of the condyles of the lower jaw. Maurice
made an observation on a vice of conformation of the lower jaw which
rendered lactation impossible, probably causing the death of the infant
on this account. Tomes gives a description of a lower jaw the
development of the left ramus of which had been arrested. Canton
mentions arrest of development of the left perpendicular ramus of the
lower jaw combined with malformation of the external ear.
Exaggerated prominence of the maxillaries is called prognathism; that
of the superior maxilla is seen in the North American Indians. Inferior
prognathism is observed in man as well as in animals. The bull-dog, for
example, displays this, but in this instance the deformity is really
superior brachygnathism, the superior maxilla being arrested in
development.
Congenital absence of the nose is a very rare anomaly. Maisonneuve has
seen an example in an individual in which, in place of the nasal
appendix, there was a plane surface perforated by two small openings a
little less than one mm. in diameter and three mm. apart.
Exaggeration in volume of the nose is quite frequent. Ballonius speaks
of a nose six times larger than ordinary. Viewing the Roman
celebrities, we find that Numa, to whom was given the surname
Pompilius, had a nose which measured six inches. Plutarch, Lyourgus,
and Solon had a similar enlargement, as had all the kings of Italy
except Tarquin the Superb.
Early in the last century a man, Thomas Wedders (or Wadhouse), with a
nose 7 1/2 inches long, was exhibited throughout Yorkshire. This man
expired as he had lived, in a condition of mind best described as the
most abject idiocy. The accompanying illustration is taken from a
reproduction of an old print and is supposed to be a true likeness of
this unfortunate individual.
There are curious pathologic formations about the nose which increase
its volume so enormously as to interfere with respiration and even with
alimentation; but these will be spoken of in another chapter.
There have been some celebrities whose noses were undersized. The Duc
de Guise, the Dauphin d'Auvergne, and William of Orange, celebrated in
the romances of chivalry, had extremely short noses.
There are a few recorded cases of congenital division of the nose.
Bartholinus, Borellus, and the Ephemerides speak of duplex noses.
Thomas of Tours has observed congenital fissure of the nose. Rikere
reports the case of an infant of three weeks who possessed a
supernumerary nose on the right nasal bone near the inner canthus of
the eye. It was pear-shaped, with its base down, and was the size of
the natural nose of an infant of that age, and air passed through it.
Hubbell, Ronaldson, and Luscha speak of congenital occlusion of the
posterior nares. Smith and Jarvis record cases of congenital occlusion
of the anterior nares.
Anomalies in size of the mouth are not uncommon. Fournier quotes the
history of a man who had a mouth so large that when he opened it all
his back teeth could be seen. There is a history of a boy of seventeen
who had a preternaturally-sized mouth, the transverse diameter being 6
1/2 inches. The mother claimed that the boy was born with his foot in
his mouth and to this fact attributed his deformity. The negro races
are noted for their large mouths and thick lips. A negro called "Black
Diamond," recently exhibited in Philadelphia, could put both his fists
in his mouth.
Morgan reports two cases of congenital macrostoma accompanied by
malformation of the auricles and by auricular appendages. Van Duyse
mentions congenital macrostoma with preauricular tumors and a dermoid
of the eye. Macrostoma is sometimes produced by lateral fissures. In
other cases this malformation is unilateral and the fissure ascends, in
which instance the fissure may be accompanied by a fistula of the duct
of Stensen. Sometimes there is associated with these anomalies curious
terminations of the salivary ducts, either through the cheek by means
of a fistula or on the anterior part of the neck.
Microstoma.--There are a few cases on record in which the mouth has
been so small or ill-defined as not to admit of alimentation. Molliere
knew an individual of forty whose mouth was the exact size of a
ten-centime piece.
Buchnerus records a case of congenital atresia of the mouth. Cayley,
Smith, Sourrouille, and Stankiewiez of Warsaw discuss atresia of the
mouth. Cancrum oris, scarlet fever, burns, scurvy, etc., are occasional
causes that have been mentioned, the atresia in these instances taking
place at any time of life.
Anomalies of the Lips.--The aboriginal tribes are particularly noted
for their large and thick lips, some of which people consider enormous
lips signs of adornment. Elephantiasis or other pathologic hypertrophy
of the labial tissues can produce revolting deformity, such as is seen
in Figure 100, representing an individual who was exhibited several
years ago in Philadelphia. We have in English the expression, "pulling
a long lip." Its origin is said to date back to a semimythical hero of
King Arthur's time, who, "when sad at heart and melancholic," would let
one of his lips drop below his waist, while he turned the other up like
a cap on his head.
Blot records a case of monstrous congenital hypertrophy of the superior
lip in an infant of eight months. Buck successfully treated by surgical
operations a case of congenital hypertrophy of the under lip, and
Detmold mentions a similar result in a young lady with hypertrophy of
the lip and lower part of the nose. Murray reports an undescribed
malformation of the lower lip occurring in one family.
Hare-lip may be unilateral or double, and may or may not include the
palatine arch. In the worst cases it extends in fissures on both sides
to the orbit. In other cases the minimum degree of this deformity is
seen.
Congenital absence of the tongue does not necessarily make speech,
taste, or deglutition impossible. Jussieu cites the case of a girl who
was born without a tongue but who spoke very distinctly. Berdot
describes a case in which the tongue was deficient, without apparent
disturbance of any of the functions. Riolan mentions speech after loss
of the tongue from small-pox.
Boddington gives an account of Margaret Cutting, who spoke readily and
intelligibly, although she had lost her tongue. Saulquin has an
observation of a girl without a tongue who spoke, sang, and swallowed
normally. Aurran, Bartholinus, Louis, Parsons, Tulpius, and others
mention speech without the presence of a tongue.
Philib reports a case in which mutism, almost simulating that of one
congenitally deaf, was due to congenital adhesions of the tongue to the
floor of the buccal cavity. Speech was established after removal of the
abnormal adhesion. Routier speaks of ankylosis of the tongue of
seventeen years' duration.
Jurist records such abnormal mobility of the tongue that the patient
was able to project the tongue into the nasopharynx. Wherry and
Winslow record similar instances.
There have been individuals with bifid tongues, after the normal type
of serpents and saurians, and others who possessed a supernumerary
tongue. Rev. Henry Wharton, Chaplain to Archbishop Sancroft, in his
journal, written in the seventeenth century, says that he was born with
two tongues and passed through life so, one, however, gradually
atrophying. In the polyclinic of Schnitzer in Vienna in 1892 Hajek
observed in a lad of twelve an accessory tongue 2.4 cm. in length and
eight mm. in breadth, forming a tumor at the base of the normal tongue.
It was removed by scissors, and on histologic examination proved to be
a true tongue with the typical tissues and constituents. Borellus,
Ephemerides, Eschenbach, Mortimer, Penada, and Schenck speak of double
tongues, and Avicenna and Schenck have seen fissured tongues. Dolaeus
records an instance of double tongue in a paper entitled "De puella
bilingui," and Beaudry and Brothers speak of cleft tongue. Braine
records a case in which there was a large hypertrophied fold of
membrane coming from each side of the upper lip.
In some cases there is marked augmentation of the volume of the tongue.
Fournier has seen a juggler with a tongue so long that he could extrude
it six inches from his mouth. He also refers to a woman in Berlin with
a long tongue, but it was thinner than that of a cat. When she laughed
it hung over her teeth like a curtain, and was always extremely cold to
the touch. In the same article there is a description of a man with a
very long neck who could touch his tongue to his chest without
reclining his head. Congenital and acquired hypertrophy of the tongue
will be discussed later.
Amatus Lusitanus and Portal refer to the presence of hair on the
tongue, and later there was an account of a medical student who
complained of dyspepsia and a sticky sensation in the mouth. On
examination a considerable growth of hair was found on the surface of
the tongue. The hairs would be detached in vomiting but would grow
again, and when he was last seen they were one inch long. Such are
possibly nevoid in formation.
The ordinary anomalies of the palate are the fissures, unilateral,
bilateral, median, etc.: they are generally associated with hare-lip.
The median fissure commencing between the middle incisors is quite rare.
Many curious forms of obturator or artificial palate are employed to
remedy congenital defects. Sercombe mentions a case in which
destruction of the entire palate was successfully relieved by
mechanical means. In some instances among the lower classes these
obturators are simple pieces of wood, so fashioned as to fit into the
palatine cleft, and not infrequently the obturator has been swallowed,
causing obstruction of the air-passages or occluding the esophagus.
Abnormalism of the Uvula.--Examples of double uvula are found in the
older writers, and Hagendorn speaks of a man who was born without a
uvula. The Ephemerides and Salmuth describe uvulae so defective as to
be hardly noticeable. Bolster, Delius, Hodges, Mackenzie of Baltimore,
Orr, Riedel, Schufeldt, and Tidyman are among observers reporting
bifurcated and double uvula, and they are quite common. Ogle records
instances of congenital absence of the uvula.
Anomalies of the Epiglottis.--Morgagni mentions a man without an
epiglottis who ate and spoke without difficulty. He thought the
arytenoids were so strongly developed that they replaced the functions
of the missing organ. Enos of Brooklyn in 1854 reported absence of the
epiglottis without interference with deglutition. Manifold speaks of a
case of bifurcated epiglottis. Debloisi records an instance of
congenital web of the vocal bands. Mackenzie removed a congenital
papillomatous web which had united the vocal cords until the age of
twenty-three, thus establishing the voice. Poore also recorded a case
of congenital web in the larynx. Elsberg and Scheff mention occlusion
of the rima glottidis by a membrane.
Instances of duplication of the epiglottis attended with a species of
double voice possess great interest. French described a man of thirty,
by occupation a singer and contortionist, who became possessed of an
extra voice when he was sixteen. In high and falsetto tones he could
run the scale from A to F in an upper and lower range. The compass of
the low voice was so small that he could not reach the high notes of
any song with it, and in singing he only used it to break in on the
falsetto and produce a sensation. He was supposed to possess a double
epiglottis.
Roe describes a young lady who could whistle at will with the lower
part of her throat and without the aid of her lips. Laryngeal
examination showed that the fundamental tones were produced by
vibrations of the edges of the vocal cords, and the modifications were
effected by a minute adjustment of the ventricular bands, which
regulated the laryngeal opening above the cord, and pressing firmly
down closed the ventricle and acted as a damper preventing the
vibrations of the cords except in their middle third. Morgan in the
same journal mentions the case of a boy of nineteen, who seemed to be
affected with laryngeal catarrh, and who exhibited distinct
diphthongia. He was seen to have two glottic orifices with associate
bands. The treatment was directed to the catarrh and consequent paresis
of the posterior bands, and he soon lost his evidences of double voice.
{footnote} The following is a description of the laryngeal formation of
a singer who has recently acquired considerable notice by her ability
to sing notes of the highest tones and to display the greatest compass
of voice. It is extracted from a Cleveland, Ohio, newspaper: "She has
unusual development of the larynx, which enables her to throw into
vibration and with different degrees of rapidity the entire length of
the vocal cords or only a part thereof. But of greatest interest is her
remarkable control over the muscles which regulate the division and
modification of the resonant cavities, the laryngeal, pharyngeal, oral,
and nasal, and upon this depends the quality of her voice. The uvula is
bifurcated, and the two divisions sometimes act independently. The
epiglottis during the production of the highest notes rises upward and
backward against the posterior pharyngeal wall in such a way as almost
entirely to separate the pharyngeal cavities, at the same time that it
gives an unusual conformation to those resonant chambers."
Complete absence of the eyes is a very rare anomaly. Wordsworth
describes a baby of seven weeks, otherwise well formed and healthy,
which had congenital absence of both eyes. The parents of this child
were in every respect healthy. There are some cases of monstrosities
with closed, adherent eyelids and absence of eyes. Holmes reports a
case of congenital absence of both eyes, the child otherwise being
strong and perfect. The child died of cholera infantum. He also reports
a case very similar in a female child of American parents. In a girl of
eight, of German parents, he reports deficiency of the external walls
of each orbit, in addition to great deformity of the side of the head.
He also gives an instance of congenital paralysis of the levator
palpebrae muscles in a child whose vision was perfect and who was
otherwise perfect. Holmes also reports a case of enormous congenital
exophthalmos, in which the right eye protruded from the orbit and was
no longer covered by the cornea. Kinney has an account of a child born
without eyeballs. The delivery was normal, and there was no history of
any maternal impression; the child was otherwise healthy and well
formed.
Landes reports the case of an infant in which both eyes were absent.
There were six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot. The
child lived a few weeks. In some instances of supposed absence of the
eyeball the eye is present but diminutive and in the posterior portion
of the orbit. There are instances of a single orbit with no eyes and
also a single orbit containing two eyes. Again we may have two orbits
with an absence of eyes but the presence of the lacrimal glands, or the
eyes may be present or very imperfectly developed. Mackenzie mentions
cases in which the orbit was more or less completely wanting and a mass
of cellular tissue in each eye.
Cases of living cyclopia, or individuals with one eye in the center of
the forehead after the manner of the mythical Cyclops, are quite rare.
Vallentini in 1884 reports a case of a male cyclopic infant which lived
for seventy-three hours. There were median fissures of the upper lip,
preauricular appendages, oral deformity, and absence of the olfactory
proboscis The fetus was therefore a cyclops arrhynchus, or
cyclocephalus. Blok describes a new-born infant which lived for six or
seven hours, having but one eye and an extremely small mouth.
The "Four-eyed Man of Cricklade" was a celebrated English monstrosity
of whom little reliable information is obtainable. He was visited by W.
Drury, who is accredited with reporting the following--
"'So wondrous a thing, such a lusus naturae, such a scorn and spite of
nature I have never seen. It was a dreadful and shocking sight.' This
unfortunate had four eyes placed in pairs, 'one eye above the other and
all four of a dull brown, encircled with red, the pupils enormously
large.' The vision in each organ appeared to be perfect. 'He could shut
any particular eye, the other three remaining open, or, indeed, as many
as he chose, each several eye seeming to be controlled by his will and
acting independently of the remainder. He could also revolve each eye
separately in its orbit, looking backward with one and forward with
another, upward with one and downward with another simultaneously.' He
was of a savage, malignant disposition, delighting in ugly tricks,
teasing children, torturing helpless animals, uttering profane and
blasphemous words, and acting altogether like the monster, mental and
physical, that he was. 'He could play the fiddle, though in a silly
sort, having his notes on the left side, while closing the right pair
of eyes. He also sang, but in a rough, screeching voice not to be
listened to without disgust.'"
There is a recent report of a child born in Paris with its eyes in the
top of its head. The infant seemed to be doing well and crowds of
people have flocked to see it. Recent reports speak of a child born in
Portland, Oregon, which had a median rudimentary eye between two normal
eyes. Fournier describes an infant born with perfectly formed eyes, but
with adherent eyelids and closed ocular aperture. Forlenze has seen the
pupils adherent to the conjunctiva, and by dissection has given sight
to the subject.
Dubois cites an instance of supernumerary eyelid. At the external angle
of the eyelid was a fold of conjunctiva which extended 0.5 cm. in front
of the conjunctiva, to which it did not adhere, therefore constituting
a fourth eyelid. Fano presents a similar case in a child of four
months, in whom no other anomaly, either of organs or of vision, was
observed. On the right side, in front of the external half of the
sclerotic, was observed a semilunar fold with the concavity inward, and
which projected much more when the lower lid was depressed. When the
eyelid rolled inward the fold rolled with the globe, but never reached
so far as the circumference of the cornea and did not interfere with
vision.
Total absence of both irides has been seen in a man of eighteen. Dixon
reports a case of total aniridia with excellent sight in a woman of
thirty-seven. In Guy's Hospital there was seen a case of complete
congenital absence of the iris. Hentzschel speaks of a man with
congenital absence of the iris who had five children, three of whom
exhibited the same anomaly while the others were normal. Benson,
Burnett, Demaux, Lawson, Morison, Reuling, Samelson, and others also
report congenital deficiency of the irides in both eyes.
Jeaffreson describes a female of thirty, living in India, who was
affected with complete ossification of the iris. It was immovable and
quite beautiful when seen through the transparent cornea; the sight was
only slightly impaired. No cause was traceable.
Multiple Pupils.--More than one pupil in the eye has often been
noticed, and as many as six have been seen. They may be congenital or
due to some pathologic disturbance after birth. Marcellus Donatus
speaks of two pupils in one eye. Beer, Fritsche, and Heuermann are
among the older writers who have noticed supernumerary pupils. Higgens
in 1885 described a boy whose right iris was perforated by four
pupils,--one above, one to the inner side, one below, and a fourth to
the outer side. The first three were slit-shaped; the fourth was the
largest and had the appearance as of the separation of the iris from
its insertion. There were two pupils in the left eye, both to the outer
side of the iris, one being slit-like and the other resembling the
fourth pupil in the right eye. All six pupils commenced at the
periphery, extended inward, and were of different sizes. The fundus
could be clearly seen through all of the pupils, and there was no
posterior staphyloma nor any choroidal changes. There was a rather high
degree of myopia. This peculiarity was evidently congenital, and no
traces of a central pupil nor marks of a past iritis could be found.
Clinical Sketches a contains quite an extensive article on and several
illustrations of congenital anomalies of the iris.
Double crystalline lenses are sometimes seen. Fritsch and Valisneri
have seen this anomaly and there are modern references to it.
Wordsworth presented to the Medical Society of London six members of
one family, all of whom had congenital displacement of the crystalline
lens outward and upward. The family consisted of a woman of fifty, two
sons, thirty-five and thirty-seven, and three grandchildren--a girl of
ten and boys of five and seven. The irides were tremulous.
Clark reports a case of congenital dislocation of both crystalline
lenses. The lenses moved freely through the pupil into the anterior
chambers. The condition remained unchanged for four years, when
glaucoma supervened.
Differences in Color of the Two Eyes.--It is not uncommon to see people
with different colored eyes. Anastasius I had one black eye and the
other blue, from whence he derived his name "Dicore," by which this
Emperor of the Orient was generally known. Two distinct colors have
been seen in an iris. Berry gives a colored illustration of such a case.
The varieties of strabismus are so common that they will be passed
without mention. Kuhn presents an exhaustive analysis of 73 cases of
congenital defects of the movements of the eyes, considered clinically
and didactically. Some or all of the muscles may be absent or two or
more may be amalgamated, with anomalies of insertion, false, double, or
degenerated, etc.
The influence of heredity in the causation of congenital defects of the
eye is strikingly illustrated by De Beck. In three generations twelve
members of one family had either coloboma iridis or irideremia. He
performed two operations for the cure of cataract in two brothers. The
operations were attended with difficulty in all four eyes and followed
by cyclitis. The result was good in one eye of each patient, the eye
most recently blind. Posey had a case of coloboma in the macular
region in a patient who had a supernumerary tooth. He believes the
defects were inherited, as the patient's mother also had a
supernumerary tooth.
Nunnely reports cases of congenital malformation in three children of
one family. The globes of two of them (a boy and a girl) were smaller
than natural, and in the boy in addition were flattened by the action
of the recti muscles and were soft; the sclera were very vascular and
the cornea, conical, the irides dull, thin, and tremulous; the pupils
were not in the axis of vision, but were to the nasal side. The elder
sister had the same congenital condition, but to a lesser degree. The
other boy in the family had a total absence of irides, but he could see
fairly well with the left eye.
Anomalies of the Ears.--Bilateral absence of the external ears is quite
rare, although there is a species of sheep, native of China, called the
"Yungti," in which this anomaly is constant. Bartholinus, Lycosthenes,
Pare, Schenck, and Oberteuffer have remarked on deficient external
ears. Guys, the celebrated Marseilles litterateur of the eighteenth
century, was born with only one ear. Chantreuil mentions obliteration
of the external auditory canal in the new-born. Bannofont reports a
case of congenital imperforation of the left auditory canal existing
near the tympanic membrane with total deafness in that ear. Lloyd
described a fetus showing absence of the external auditory meatus on
both sides. Munro reports a case of congenital absence of the external
auditory meatus of the right ear; and Richardson speaks of congenital
malformation of the external auditory apparatus of the right side.
There is an instance of absence of the auditory canal with but partial
loss of hearing. Mussey reports several cases of congenitally deficient
or absent aural appendages. One case was that in which there was
congenital absence of the external auditory meatus of both ears without
much impairment of hearing. In neither ear of N. W. Goddard, aged
twenty-seven, of Vermont, reported in 1834, was there a vestige of an
opening or passage in the external ear, and not even an indentation.
The Eustachian tube was closed. The integuments of the face and scalp
were capable of receiving acoustic impressions and of transmitting them
to the organs of hearing. The authors know of a student of a prominent
New York University who is congenitally deficient in external ears, yet
his hearing is acute. He hides his deformity by wearing his hair long
and combed over his ears.
The knowledge of anomalous auricles is lost in antiquity. Figure 103
represents the head of an aegipan in the British Museum showing a
supernumerary auricle. As a rule, supernumerary auricles are
preauricular appendages. Warner, in a report of the examination of
50,000 children, quoted by Ballantyne, describes 33 with supernumerary
auricles, represented by sessile or pedunculated outgrowths in front of
the tragus. They are more commonly unilateral, always congenital, and
can be easily removed, giving rise to no unpleasant symptoms. They have
a soft and elastic consistency, and are usually composed of a hyaline
or reticular cartilaginous axis covered with connective or adipose
tissue and skin bearing fine hairs; sometimes both cartilage and fat
are absent. They are often associated with some form of defective
audition--harelip, ocular disturbance, club-feet, congenital hernia,
etc. These supernumerary members vary from one to five in number and
are sometimes hereditary. Reverdin describes a man having a
supernumerary nipple on the right side of his chest, of whose five
children three had preauricular appendages. Figure 104 represents a
girl with a supernumerary auricle in the neck, described in the Lancet,
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