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. Therefore are they made of
flesh, and flesh is softer in man than in any other animal, the reason
for this being that of all animals man has the most delicate sense
of touch.
17
The tongue is placed under the vaulted roof of the mouth. In land
animals it presents but little diversity. But in other animals it is
variable, and this whethe+r we compare them as a class with such as
live on land, or compare their several species with each other. It
is in man that the tongue attains its greatest degree of freedom, of
softness, and of breadth; the object of this being to render it
suitable for its double function. For its softness fits it for the
perception of savours, a sense which is more delicate in man than in
any other animal, softness being most impressionable by touch, of
which sense taste is but a variety. This same softness again, together
with its breadth, adapts it for the articulation of letters and for
speech. For these qualities, combined with its freedom from
attachment, are those which suit it best for advancing and retiring in
every direction. That this is so is plain, if we consider the case
of those who are tongue-tied in however slight a degree. For their
speech is indistinct and lisping; that is to say there are certain
letters which they cannot pronounce. In being broad is comprised the
possibility of becoming narrow; for in the great the small is
included, but not the great in the small
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