Gall Insects, 140 Anecdote of the Natives of Porto Rico, 143 Winter Sport, 144 Clouds, 144 The Orang-Outang, 145 Field Teachers, 154 Life and Character of Alexander the Great, 157 Discovery of the Mines of Potosi, 165 Wild Geese, 169 The Two Friends, 175 The Selfish Boy, 177 Story of Little Dick and the Giant, 178 The Flowers, 179 Christmas, 180 Winter is coming, 182 Liberty, 183 Dress and other matters in France, in the time of Henry IV., 185 The Last Leaf of Autumn, 186 Reflections, 188 Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1842, by S. G. GOODRICH, in the Clerk’s Office of the District Court of Massachusetts. [Illustration: KNIGHTS TEMPLARS.] MERRY’S MUSEUM. VOLUME IV.--No. 1. [Illustration] The Sense of Taste. The tongue, which has so much to do with talking, has a good deal to do with tasting. It is indeed one of the chief instruments by which the sensation of taste is experienced. The palate is also another organ of importance in the perception of taste. The tongue is always moistened with saliva, which instantly dissolves the surface of anything that is put into the mouth. Some portion of the particles being taken upon the tongue, this latter is pressed against the roof of the mouth, thus bringing them in contact with the nerves which coat the surface of the mouth and palate. It is by means of these nerves that the qualities of substances are perceived and the sensation which we call taste is excited. It will be perceived that the saliva of the mouth is one great cause of all taste. When the tongue is rendered dry by disease, or any other circumstance, the sense of taste is either imperfect or lost. The pressure of the tongue against the surface of the mouth seems also to be important in producing the sense of taste; for if you put anything into your mouth, and hold it open, the sensation is hardly produced. It is from the effect of this pressure that the act of chewing and swallowing gives us so much pleasure.