Bodily Changes in Pain, Hunger, Fear and Rage

These moral considerations, however, are apart from the main intent of our discussion. Our ear- lier inquiry confirmed the belief that the fighting emotions are firmly rooted in our natures, and showed that these emotions are intimately asso- ciated with provisions for physical exertion. It is particularly in this aspect of the discussion of substitutes for war that these studies have sig- nificance. The idealization of the state and the devotion of service to social welfare, which have been sug- gested as moral substitutes for military loyalty, leave unanswered the claims of the militarists that in war and in preparations for war oppor- tunities are offered which are peculiarly favorable to the development of important physical qualities

■ — ^bodily vigor, sturdiness, and ability to with- stand all manner of hardships. In the evidence previously presented, it seems to me there was a suggestion that offers a perti- nent alternative to these claims. When the body goes onto what we have called a war footing, the physiological changes that suddenly occur are all adapted to the putting forth of supreme mus- cular and nervous efforts. That was what primi- tive battle consisted of, through countless myriads of generations — a fierce physical contest of beast with beast, and of man with man. Such contests, attended as they were by the thrill of unpredict- able incidents, and satisfying completely the lust of combat, are to be contrasted with the dull grind in preparation for modern war, the monotonous regularity of subservience, the substitution every- where of mechanism for muscle, and often the attack on an enemy who lies wholly unseen.* As

* Lord Wolseley, while commander-in-chief of the English forces, in 1897, secured sanction for not displaying the regi- mental colors in battle. "It would be madness and a crime," he declared, "to order any soldier to carry colors into action in the future. You might quite as well order him to be as- sassinated. We have had most reluctantly to abandon a practice to which we attached great importance, and which, tinder past and gone conditions of fighting, was invaluable in keeping alive the regimental spirit upon which our British troops depended so much." All was has been transformed by the invention of the far-reaching and fate-dealing rifle and automatic gun, with which an enemy kills, whose face is not even seen. War is almost reduced to a mechanical inter-

Wallas witli nice irony has remarked, "The gods ia Valhalla would hardly choose the organization of modem lines of military communication, as they chose the play of sword and spear, to be the most exquisite employment of eternity." While it is true that physical strength can be developed by any form of hard labor, as, for example, by sawing wood or digging ditches, such labor does not stimulate quickness, alertness, and resourcefulness in bodily action. Nor does it give any occasion for use of the emotional mechanism for reenforcement. If this mechanism, like other physiological arrangements, is present in the body for use — and previous discussion leaves little

change of volleys and salvoes, and to the intermittent fire of rifles and machine guns, with short rushes at the last, in which there is no place for the dignity and grace of the antique battle of the standard. (See London Times, July 31, 189Y, p. 12.) T. r. Millard, the well-known correspondent of the Russo- Japanese War, wrote as follows of the characteristics of present day conflicts : "A largje part of modern war is on too great a scale to give much opportunity for individual initiative. Soldiers can rarely tell what is going on in their immediate vicinity. They cannot always see the enemy they are firing at, and where they can see the object of their fire such an important matter as range and even direction can- not be left to them. . . . Troops are clothed so much alike nowadays that it is very difficult to distinguish friend from foe at five hundred yards, and large bodies of troops rarely get that close to each other in modern war while there is light enough to see clearly. . . . Battery officers simply see that their guns are handled according to instructions. They

doubt of that — then as a means of exercising it and, in addition, satisfying the strong instinct for competitive testing of strength and physical skill, some activity more enlivening than monotonous gymnastics and ordered marching is required. In many respects strenuous athletic rivalries present, better than modern military service, the conditions for which the militarists argue, the conditions for which the body spontaneously pre- pares when the passion for fighting prevails. As explained in an earlier chapter, in competitive sports the elemental factors are retained — man is again pitted against man, and all the resources of the body are summoned in the eager struggle

regulate the time, speed, objective and range as ordered. . . . The effects of the fire are observed by officers appointed to that duty, stationed at various parts of the field, often miles and miles apart, and who are in constant communication with the chief of artillery by telephone." (See Scribner's Magazine, 1905, xxxvii, pp. 64, 66.) The testimony of a captain of a German battery engaged against the French and English in 1914, supports the forego- ing claims. He is reported as saying : "We shoot over those tree tops yonder in accordance with directions for range and distance which come from somewhere else over a field tele- phone, but we never see the men at whom we are firing. They fire back without seeing us, and sometimes their shells fall short or go beyond us, and sometimes they fall among us and kill and wound a few of us. Thus it goes on day after day. I have not with my own eyes seen a Frenchman or an Englishman unless he was a prisoner. It is not so much pleasure — fighting like this." (See Philadelphia Saturday Evening Post, December 26, 1914, p. 2Y.)

for victory. And because, tmder such circum- stances, the same physiological alterations occur that occur in anticipation of mortal combat, the belligerent emotions and instincts, so far as their bodily manifestations are concerned, are thereby given complete satisfaction. For reasons given above, I venture to lay em- phasis on a suggestion, which has been made before by others, that the promotion of great inter- national athletic contests, such as the Olympic games, would do for our young men much that is now claimed as peculiar to the values of military discipline. The substitution of athletic rivalries for battle is not unknown. In the Philippine Isl- ands, according to Worcester,^ there were no athletics before the American occupation. The natives soon learned games from the soldiers, j^nd when the sports reached such development that competition between towns and provinces was possible, they began to arouse the liveliest enthu- siasm among the people. The physical develop- ment of the participants has been greatly stimu- lated, the spirit of fair play and sportsmanship, formerly lacking, has sprung into existence in every section of the Islands, and the annual meets between athletic teams from various provinces are recognized as promoting a general and friendly

understanding among the different Filipino tribes. The fierce Igarots of Bontoc, once constantly at war with neighboring tribes, now show their prow- ess not in head-hunting, but in baseball, wrestling, and the tug-of-war.* Is it unreasonable to expect that what has hap- pened in the Philippine Islands might, by proper education and suggestion, happen elsewhere in the world? Certainly the interest in athletic contests is no slight and transient interest. At the time of a great war we know that news of the games is fully as much demanded as news of the war. Already in the United States, without special stimulation, the number of young men engaged in athletic training is estimated as equal to the num- ber in the standing army. And in England, belief in the efficacy of athletics as a means of promoting hardihood and readiness to face stern hazards has found expression in the phrase that England's battles have been won on the football fields of Eugby and of Eton. With the further promotion of international contests the influence of competi- tive sports is likely to increase rather than lessen. Within national boundaries emulation is sure to stimulate extensively such games as will bring forth the best representative athletes that the coun-

* It is reported that when these warriors first appeared at the games, each brought his spear, which he drove into the ground beside him, ready for use. As the nature of the new rivalries became known, the spears were left behind. try can produce. In one of tlie high-spirited Eu- ropean nations, which made a poor showing at the last Olympic meet, thousands of young men began training for the next meet, under a director im- ported from the nation that had made the highest records.

Training for athletic contests is quite as likely to enure young men to physical hardship and fatigue, is quite as conducive to the development of bodily vigor, the attainment of alertness and skill and the practice of self-restraint, as is army life with its traditional associations and easy li- cense. It may be urged, however, that an essential element is lacking in all this discussion — the so- bering possibility that in war the supreme sur- render of life itself may be required. Death for one's country is indeed glorious. But the argu- ment that being killed is desirable has little to commend it. When the strongest and sturdiest are constantly chosen to be fed to the engines of anni- hilation, the race is more likely to lose greater values than it gains from the spectacle of self- sacrifice, however perfect that may be. Are there not advantages in the conditions of great athletic rivalries that may compensate for war's most aus- tere demand? The race of hardy men, to secure which the militarists urge war, is much more likely to result from the honoring and preserving of vigorous men in their vigor than it is from the

systematic selection of such, men to be destroyed in their youth. There are other aspects of international games which strongly commend them as an alternative to the pursuit of military discipline. The high standards of honor and fairness in sport ; its un- failing revelation of excellence without distinc- tions of class, wealth, race or color ; the ease with which it becomes an expression of the natural feelings of patriotism; the respect which victory and pluckily borne defeat inspire in competitors and spectators alike; the extension of acquaint- ance and understanding which follows from friendly and magnanimous rivalry among strong men who come together from the ends of the earth' — each of these admirable features of athletic eon- tests between nations might be enlarged upon. But, as intimated before, these moral considera- tions must be left without further mention, as being irrelevant to the physiological processes with which we are dealing.

"We are concerned with the question of exercis- ing the fighting instinct and thus assuring the physical welfare of the race. The race must de- generate, the militarists say, if this instinct is not allowed to express itself in war. This declar- ation we are in a position to deny, for the evi- dence is perfectly clean-cut that the aggressive instincts, which through aeons of racial experi- ence have naturally and spontaneously developed vigor and resourcefulness in the body, are invited by elemental emotions, and that through these emotions energies are released which are highly useful to great physical effort. No stupid routine of drill, or any other deadening procedure, will call these energizing mechanisms into activity. War and the preparations for war nowadays have become too machine-like to serve as the best means of preserving and disciplining these forces. The exhilarating swing and tug and quick thrust of the big limb muscles have largely vanished. Pressing an electric contact or bending the trigger finger is a movement altogether too trifling. If, then, natural feelings must be expressed, if the fight- ing functions of the body must be exercised, how much better that these satisfactions be found in natural rather than in artificial actions, how much more reasonable that men should struggle for victory in the ancient ways, one against an- other, body and spirit, as in the great games.

1. The Influence of Emotional States on the Functions of the Alimentary Canal. By W. B. Cannon. American Jour- nal of the Medical Sciences, 1909, cxxxvii, pp. 480-487. 2. Emotional Stimulation of Adrenal Secretion. By W. B. Cannon and D. de la Paz. American Journal of Physiology, 1911, xxviii, pp. 64-70. 3. The Effects of Asphyxia, Hyperpnoea, and Sensory Stimulation on Adrenal Secretion. By W. B. Cannon and R. G. Hoskins. Ibid., 1911, xxix, pp. 274-279.

5. A Consideration of Some Biological Tests for Epi- nephrin. By R. G. Hoskins. Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, 1911, iii, pp. 93-99. 6. The Sthenic Effect of Epinephrin upon Intestine. By R. G. Hoskins. American Journal of Physiology, 1912, xxix, pp. 363-366. 8. A New Colorimetric Method for the Determination of Epinephrin. By 0. Folin, W. B. Cannon and W. Denis. Journal of Biological Chemistry, 1913, xiii, pp. 477-483. 9. The Depressor Effect of Adrenalin on Arterial Pressure. By W. B. Cannon and Henry Lyman. American Journal of Physiology, 1913, xxxi, pp. 376-398.

10. The Effect of Adrenal Secretion on Muscular Fatigue. By W. B. Cannon and L. B. Nice. Ihid., 1913, xxxii, pp. 12. The Threshold Stimulus as Affected by Fatigue and Subsequent Best. By C. M. Gruber. Ibid., 1913, xxxii, pp. 13. The Fatigue Threshold as Affected by Adrenalin and by Increased Arterial Pressure. By C. M. Gruber. Ihid., 1914, xxxiii, pp. 335-355. 15. The Relation of Adrenalin to Curare and Fatigue in Normal and Denervated Muscles. By C. M. Gruber. Ihid., 1914, xxxiv, pp. 89-96.

lY. The Hastening or Retarding of Coagulation by Adrenalin Injections. By W. B. Cannon and Horace Gray. Ihid., 1914, xxxiv, pp. 232-242. 20. The Interrelations of Emotions as Suggested by Recent Physiological Researches. By W. B. Cannon. American Journal of Psychology, 1914, xxv, pp. 256-282. Adrenal glands : nerve sup- ply of, 37; stimulated in emotion, 52-59, 62-63 ; stimulated in pain, 59-62, 63; in relation to blood sugar, 77; removal of, causes muscular weakness, 81; secretion of, improves contraction of fatigued muscle, 92; variations in adrenin content of, 171; latent period of, when splanchnics stimulated, 188; amount of secretion from, when splanchnics stimulated, 198 ; fatigue of, 199; stimulated by as- phyxia, 206-208.

body, 107; quickly restores fatigued muscle to normal irritability, 119-123 ; specific in its restorative action, 124-128; as an antidote to muscular metabolites, 129; restores fatigued denerv- ated muscle to normal irri- tability, 130; point of ac- tion of, in muscle, 128-133 ; antagonistic to curare, 132 ; induces rapid coagulation of blood, 136, 147 ff.; not the direct cause of rapid coagulation, 156-158; fails to shorten coagulation time in absence of intestines and liver, 157-158 ; vari- able amount of, in adrenal glands, 171 ; emergency functions of, 185 ff. ; util- ity of, in bettering the con- traction of fatigued mus- cle, 194-195; not a check to use of sugar in the body, 197, 199; amount of, se- creted when splanchnics stimulated, 198 ; a condition for increase of blood sugar, 199; stimulates the heart, 191, 201; dilates the bron- chioles, 204; secretion of, increased in asphyxia, 206- Amyl nitrite: effect of, on contraction of fatigued muscle, 126.

Antagonisms : autonomic, 34 ; in relation to emotions, 38 ; between cranial and sym- pathetic divisions, 268-270; between sacral and sympa- thetic divisions, 270-272. Appetite : compared with hunger,. 233, 235; opera- tion of, after section of vagus and splanchnic nerves, 240. Arterial blood pressure : in- creased in excitement, 95; artificial methods of in- creasing, 97; influence of different heights of, on fatigue, 97-102 ; influence of increase of, on fa- tigue, 97-102 ; influence of decrease of, on fa- tigue, 102, - 104; the "critical region" in de- creasing, 104; explanation of effects on fatigued mus- cle, of varying, 104-106; value of increased, in pain and emotion, 106.

Autonomic nervous system: three divisions of, 25; ar- rangement of sympathetic division of, 26-29 ; arrange- ment of cranial and sacral divisions of, 29-30; general functions of cranial di- vision of, 30-32; general functions of sacral division of, 32-34; antagonism be- tween sympathetic and cranial-sacral divisions of. 34-36 ; identity of action of sympathetic division of, and adrenal secretion, 36- 38 ; antagonisms between emotions expressed in, 268-

Blood : method of obtaining, for test for adrenin, 45-46 ; method of testing, for adrenin, 47-50; sugar in, 66, 73-74; distribution of, as affected by adrenin, pain and excitement, 107-108, 200; functions of, 135; rapid coagulation of, by adrenin, 136 ff. ; drawing of, for testing coagulation time, 140-142 ; treatment of, in testing coagulation time, 142-145 ; faster co- agulation of, after subcu- taneous injections of adre- nin, 147-150, and after in- travenous injections, 150- 156; oscillations in the rate of coagulation of, 155 ; rapid coagulation of, not due directly to ad- renin, 156-158; rapid co- agulation of, not caused by adrenin in absence of liver and intestines, 157-158, and not caused by increase of blood sugar, 159, 170; coagulation of, hastened by splanchnic stimulation, 162-167, but not in absence of adrenal glands, 167-171 ; possible delay of coagula- tion of, after stimulatioii

of hepatic nerves, lYO ; co- agulation of, hastened by "painful" stimulation, 172- 177 ; coagulation of, hasten- ed in light anesthesia, 174- 177; rapid coagulation of, after excitement, stopped by severing splanchnic nerves, 180-182; utility of increased sugar in, 188-193 ; distribution of, in pain and excitement, favorable to muscular effort, 201; , sugar in, increased by as- phyxia, 209 ; utility of rapid coagulation of, 211. Combat: relation of emotion and endurance in, 225- 226; nature of ancient,

Cranial autonomic division; functions of, to conserve bodily resources, 30-32, 268 ; activities of, suppress- ed by activities of ssrm- pathetic division, 268- Emotions: surface signs of, 3 ; favorable to digestive se- cretions, 4-8 ; unfavorable to digestive secretions, 9- 13 ; persistence of effects of, on digestive secretions, 12; effects of, on gastric and intestinal contractions, 13-18; in relation to sym- pathetic division, 36 ; in re- lation to adrenal secretion, 44, 52-59, 62-63; increase of blood sugar in, 66, 73; glycosuria in, 70-76; influ- ence of, on distribution of blood in body, 108; faster coagulation of blood in, 177-182, but stopped by cutting splanchnics, 180- 182; value of forced res- piration in, 203; value of bronchiolar dilation in, 204; relationto action, 215/ displayed in a "pattern" response, 218, 282; in re- lation to exhibitions of power and endurance, 215, 229; antagonisms between cranial and sympathetic, 268-270, and between sacral and sympathetic, 270- 272; similarity of visceral changes in strong, 275-279 ; dependence of, on cerebral cortex, 282-283.

Endurance: feats of, related to great emotion, 217-218; in the excitements of mania and dancing, 222- 224; stimulated by music, Esophagus : contractions of, associated with hunger sen- sation, 259-260. Fatigue : of muscls, 84 ; mus- cular, lessened by splanch- nic stimulation, 89-93; as affected by increase of ar- terial pressure, 97-102 ; irritability of muscle in, increased by splanchnic stimulation, 101; explana- tion of effects of varied ar- terial pressure on, 104-106 ; lessens neuro-musculap ir- ritability, 114-117, 120; ef- fect of, on curarized mus- cle, 132; utility of adrenin in lessening effects of, 194, 195; of adrenal glands, 199; cessation of hunger contractions in, 262.

Fear: anticipatory character of, 186-187 ; associated with action, 188 ; explanation of paralyzing effect of, 189 ; energizing influence of, 216; relation to rage, 275; bodily changes in, like those in rage, 276-277 ; importance of, as a fight- ing emotion, 286. Fighting emotions : bodily changes in, like those in competitive sports, 219-221, 296; anger and fear as, 285; importance of, 286; satisfactions for, in com- petitive sports, 301. Food: effect of sight and smell of, on gastric secre- tion, 6.

Football: glycosuria in play- ers of, 75; relation of ex- citement and power in, Gastric glands : turgescence of, not the cause of hun- ger sensation, 249-250. Gastric juice: psychic secre- tion of, 5-8, 11 ; importance of, for intestinal digestion, 7 ; flow of, inhibited by ex- citement, 9-12, and by pain, 19. Generative organs: innerva- tion of, 32, 33; effects of strong emotions on activ- ities in, 271. Intestine : contractions of, inhibited by excitement, 16; innervation of, 27, 31; use of, as test for adrenin in blood, 47-50; contracts when empty, 251-253 ; con- tractions of, may originate hunger sensations, 263.

Metabolites: influence of, on muscular contraction, 104; action of, opposed by adre- nin, 129; increase adrenal secretion, 206-208. Militarists: emphasis of, on strength of fighting in- stincts, 286-288; claims of, as to values of war, 287; support for claims of, 287. Muscle: weakness of, after removal of adrenal glands, 81 ; improved contraction of, after injection of adre- nal extract, 82; fatigue of, 84; method of recording fatigue of, 85-86; fatigue of, lessened by splanchnic stimulation, 89-93 ; con- traction of, when fatigued, improved by increased arte- rial pressure, 97-102; irri- tability of, when fatigued, increased by splanchnic stimulation, 101 ; contrac- tion of, when fatigued, less- ened by decreased arte- rial pressure, 102-104; ex- planation of effects of va- ried arterial pressure on fatigued, 104-106 ; irritabil- ity of, decreased in fatigue, 114-117, 120; decreased ir- ritability of, slowly re- stored by rest, 117-118, and quickly restored by adre- nin, 119-123 ; contraction of fatigued denervated, in- creased by adrenin, 130; point of action of adrenin in, 128-133; use of , in strug- gle, 189; energy of, from carbonaceous material, 190- 193; disappearance of gly- cogen from, 190; increased efficiency of, with increase of blood sugar, 192-193; utility of adrenin in less- ening fatigue of, 194- 195 ; efficiency of, increased by distribution of blood in pain and excitement, 201.

Music : stimulating influence of, 227; influence of mar- tial, 228. pathetic, 26; arrangement of sympathetic for diffuse action, 28 ; restricted dis- tribution of cranial and sa- cral, 29; arrangement for specific action, 30. Operations: in light anes- thesia hasten coagulation of blood, 174-177. Philippine Islands : substi- tution of sports for war- fare in, 297. Psychic secretion: of gastric juice, 5-8, 11; of saliva, 6; dependent on cranial auto- nomic innervation, 31.

Rage: relation of, to fear, 275 ; transformation of other emotions into, 276; bodily changes in, like those in fear, 276-277 ; im- portance of, as a fighting emotion, 286. Respiration: Utility of in- creased, in pain and ex- citement, 202; value of forced, in lessening dis- tress, 203. Sacral autonomic division : functions of, in mechan- isms for emptying, 32-34; activities of, suppressed by activities of sympathetic division, 270-272. Saliva : psychic secretion of, 6 ; importance of, for taste, 6 ; flow of, inhibited by ex- citement, 9.

Splanchnic nerves: stimula- tion of, causes adrenal se- cretion, 41-43; method of stimulating, 87-88; stimu- lation of, improves contrac- tion of fatigued muscle, 89; stimulation of, hast- ens coagulation of blood, 162-167, but not in absence of adrenal glands, 167-171 ; severance of, stops rapid coagulation following ex- citement, 180-182 ; eating after severance of, 240. Stomach: psychic tonus of, 13 ; contractions of, inhib- ited by excitement, 14-15, 11, and by pain, 19; in- nervated by sympathetic neurones, 2Y, and by cra- nial autonomic, 31; refer- ence of hunger sensation to, 245-24Y; emptiness of, not the cause of hunger, 248; contractions of, when empty, 251-253; method of recording contractions of, 255-256 ; contractions of, when empty, associated with hunger sensations, 256-259 ; function of con- tractions of empty, 263-