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visible, and when they show us by their happiness, their cheerfulness, and their tenderaffection, that they are grateful for the trouble bestowed upon them for their temporaland spiritual welfare.

“ In general, cretins have a great horror of animals, and a predilection for inanimateplaythings, dolls, flowers, &c. &c. Their food is also an object of much excitement.”

“ L-, a girl of six months old, was brought to us in a fearful state. Her body

was a complete skeleton, out of all proportion, and covered with a cold, wrinkled skin.Her face was white as death; and her shrivelled forehead and cheeks gave her theappearance of an old woman, which was increased by the strange expression of herlittle, dark, brilliant eyes, fidl of meaning.

“ It was July when she came, the season of the year the best fitted, from the elasticityof the air and the splendour of the sunshine, to produce an amelioration in the state ofour invalids. Thanks to these kind influences of nature, and to our unwearied care, shemade as rapid progress in her recovery as she had done in her decline. In three months’time her deformities began to disappear, her skin became soft and warm, the wrinklesvanished, and her countenance, losing its aged look, grew younger every day. Theawakening of the mind soon followed the second spring-time of her body, and showeditself by her smiles and manner of noticing everything around her.

“ The gradual change that took place in her in a year can only be compared to that ofpassing from a mummy state into that of an animated being.

“ After eighteen months spent on the Abendberg, she returned to her native villageof Lutzeldorf, where, as we learn from her pastor, Bitrius, she continues perfectly well,and is beginning to talk.

“ C-was four years old when she came to us, with every symptom of confirmed

rachitic cretinism. Her nervous system was so completely out of order, that thestrongest electric shocks produced scarcely any effect upon her for some months.Aromatic baths, frictions, moderate exercise, meat regimen and milk, were the means ofrestoring her. Her bones and muscles grew so strong, that in the course of a year shecould run and jump. Her mind appeared to advance in proportion to her body, for shelearnt to talk in French and also in German. The life and spirits usual in children ofthat age at length burst forth, and she was as gay and happy as before she had beencross and disagreeable.

“ She was peculiarly open-hearted, active, kind, and cleanly. She learnt to read,write, cypher, sew and knit; and, above all, she loved to sing.

“ It is now two years since she left us, and we had the happiness of hearing latelythat she continues quite well and goes to school.

“ This is an important fact, because in her family there is a strong tendency tocretinism, and the climate of the canton of the Yalais, where she is, is fatal to alldevelopment.

“ M-was a year and a half old when confided to us, half paralyzed and in a most

deplorable state, unconscious of anything around her. It took at least nine months toreanimate her a little, when she began to show some signs of intelligence. Hers werethe extremes of laughter and of tears—of rapture and despair—of attention andinattention. The perfect gloom of night which enveloped the mind of this child atlength gave way to a dawn of intelligence, which announced the awakening of all herfaculties. At three years old she had very correct notions of right and wrong, of God and of her Saviour; and after a stay of four years amongst us, this poor child, whoseemed doomed only to vegetate all her life, was sent homo with every indication of ahealthy mind, as well as of a healthy body.

“A very different subject was sent to the Hospital. Her rosy cheeks, her bright eyes,her fine intelligent expression, would have deceived any one. Nevertheless, at three