Massage takes the place of voluntary muscular movement, in promoting the flow of lymph and the flow of venous blood toward the heart, if the proper direction, that of rubbing toward the heart, be followed; while, on the contrary, rubbing down a limb or from the heart actually retards the process which it is meant to facilitate. Gentle rubbing of any part of the body promotes growth, while vigorous rubbing removes superfluous fat. Massage finds its widest field of usefulness in conditions of fatigue, where the elimination of waste matter must be assisted, and where the nutrition of a part is impaired or destroyed. Muscles can be improved in size, tone, and nutrition; ligaments can be stretched and lengthened, the general circulation accelerated, and overloaded veins made to disgorge their blood. The digestive tract can be stimulated, and overwrought nerves soothed and relieved of their hypersensibility. The nourishment of the muscle-cell is improved by forcing out the products of fatigue and keeping it bathed in a constantly renewed stream of arterial blood. This alone is sufficient to prevent wasting of substance in conditions where active movements are impossible. Massage relieves the nervous system by maintaining the nutrition of the muscles, without the expenditure of nerve force required to make them contract. It acts on the central nervous system through the nerves of sense, stimulating or soothing them, according to the nature and the amount of the manipulation. Mosso and Maggiora, of Turin, have proved, by their experiments as to the effect of massage on the muscles, that muscles were capable of doing twice as much work after massage. It was also discovered that extending of the period of the massage did not produce any greater results in the capacity for work; the full effect was obtained in five minutes. The action of massage in improving muscle tone, in postponing the onset of fatigue, and hastening recovery from it has long been recognized by athletic trainers. After a hard race or other contest, it is a matter of knowledge among trainers that a five minutes’ treatment will enable an athlete to repeat or continue a performance otherwise impossible. Massage is the most economic form of exercise on the nervous system. Its potency is shown by the increase of the red-blood corpuscles and hemoglobin, and by the increased rate and force of the heart’s beat without a corresponding change in the arterial tension. It accomplishes these results by decreasing the resistance in the peripheral vessels, by the removal of the products of oxidation, and by mechanically moving the blood-current forward in the lymph-spaces and venous channels. It is thus shown to stimulate the circulation, the respiration, nutrition, and excretion.