CONSENT of Parts, in the animal economy, an agree-
ment or sympathy, whereby when one part is im-
mediately affected, another at a distance becomes affected
in the same manner.
This mutual accord or consent is supposed to be ef-
fected by the commerce of the nerves, and their artful
distribution and ramification throughout the body.
The effect is so sensible as even to come under the
physician's cognizance: thus, the stone in the bladder,
by vellicating the fibres there, will pain and draw them
so much into spasms, as to affect the coats of the bowels,
in the same manner, by the intermedation of nervous
threads, and make a colic there; and also extend their
twitches sometimes as far as the stomach, and occasion
grievous vomitings; the remedy, therefore, in such
cases, is to regard the part originally affected, how re-
mote and grievous soever may be the consequences and
symptoms in other places.
The fifth conjugation of nerves branched to the parts
of the eye, the ear, those of the mouth, cheeks, precor-
dia, and parts adjacent, &c. is supposed by natu-
ralists to be the instrument of that particular and ex-
traordinary consent between those parts. Hence it
is, that a savoury thing seen or smelled excites the
appetite, and affects the glands and parts of the
mouth; that a shameful thing seen or heard affects
the cheeks with blushes: on the contrary, if it pleases,
it affects the precordia, and excites the muscles of the
mouth and face to laughter; if it grieves, it affects
the glands of the eyes, so as to occasion tears, and
the muscles of the face, putting them into an aspect
of crying. Dr Willis, quoted by Mr Derham, im-
putes the pleasure of kissing, and its effects, to this
pair of nerves; which being branched both to the lips
and the genital parts, when the former are affected
an irritation is occasioned in the latter. See SYMPA-
THY.