or Parish Church in Manchester, and from other Bills of Mortality; by Dr. Percival.

XXV. Tables on the comparative Mortality of the Measles, from 1768 to 1774, collected from the Register of the Collegiate Church in Manchefter; by the fame.

XXVI. Additional Remarks on the Treatment of Perfons bit by Mad Animals; by Dr. Fothergill. After having given an inftance of the inefficacy of the Ormskirk remedy, in the 19th article of the volume, Dr. Fothergill appears to proceed with regret in the endeavour of exploding another prophylactic, that has likewife been much celebrated for preventing the hydrophobia. Hope, it is certain, in many inftances, effects important changes in favour of the fick; but in the poisonous bite of animals, the doctor obferves that this auxiliary is infufficient; and if the hope of fecurity fhould be mifplaced, the deception is irremediable. From this confideration Dr. Fothergill lays before the public fome reflections on the use of bathing in falt water, as a supposed prefervative from the terrible effects of the above-mentioned poison.

Dr. Fothergill is of opinion that this practice was first introduced through mistake, and has fince been continued by cuftom.

• I cannot, fays he, difprove its efficacy from my own knowledge. I have attended no perfon in the hydrophobia, who had been bathed in falt water. I have heard of divers inftances, and I have no doubt but you are as well fatisfied as myfelf, and perhaps from your own obfervation, that this procefs is by no means a preservative from the fatal confequences of the bite of mad animals.

It is true, there are divers medicines now in ufe, which have been introduced upon mistaken principles. It is nevertheless as true, that time and experience have discovered their inefficacy, and difcarded them from practice.

From the directions given by Celfus, in what manner it may be fometimes proper to treat perfons actually labouring under a dread of water, the prefent method of bathing, as a prefervative, seems evidently to have been adopted. The paffage is as follows:

"Solet autem ex eo vulnere, ubi parum occurfum eft, aquæ timor nafci. pofíav Græci appellant. Miferrimum genus morbi: in quo fimul æger & fiti & aquæ motu cruciatur, quo oppreffis in angufto fpes eft. Sed unicum tamen remedium eft, nec opinantem in pifcinam non ante ei provifam projicere, &, fi natandi fcientiam non habet, modo merfum bibere pati, modo attollere; fi habet, interdum deprimere, ut invitus quoque aqua fatietur. Sic enim fimul & fitis & aquæ metus tollitur."

Exactly in this manner, I am informed, are the patients how treated at the most noted bathing places, who apply for this prefervative remedy, without having any appearance of those Tymptoms for which this fudden and unexpected immersion in a common fishpond, or any cold water that might be at hand, for the purpose of forcing them to drink as much as poflible, at a time when they were incapable of fwallowing almost a drop fpontaneously. They are kept under water fo long, and the immerfion repeated fo often, that they feem barely to escape with their lives.

As there does not appear the least reason for believing fuch a procefs, and under circumftances which by no means come under Celfus's defcription, can poffibly contribute to fecure the patient from the dreaded evils, nor does experience affure us of its certainty, it seems high time to undeceive the public in these refpects, and if poffible at the fame time to turn their attention to a method which stands as ftrongly recommended by antiquity, and which feems likewife to be much better fupported by reason and experience.

I beg leave to quote the fame Celfus's opinion on this fubject, given in the fame chapter, on the cure of the bite of a mad dog:

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Utique autem, fi rabiofus canis fuit, cucurbitula virus ejus extrahendus eft. Deinde, fi locus neque nervofus, neque mufculofus eft, vulnus id adurendum eft."

The cafe of a hydrophobia which Dr. Watson and myself laid before you, exhibits a ftriking inftance of the good effects of keeping the wound open as long as poffible. Divers cafes have been related to me, of perfons efcaping the fatal confequences of this bite, by the continued running of the fore. It ought therefore to be the first bufinefs of thofe who have the care of fuch perfons, to pursue the directions of Celfus, to burn the part, if it can be done with fafety, and to promote a discharge from the wound as long and as copiously as poffible.'

In the fubfequent part of the paper, Dr. Fothergill further recommends the practice of fcarifying, or burning the part, upon other authorities; and it must be acknowledged, that this feems, from general experience, to be the only effectual means of preventing the hydrophobia.

The author concludes the fubject with the following recapitulation of the various methods of cure.

That the practice of immerfion in falt water, as a prefervative, was begun on falfe principles, has been continued through custom, and has been found infufficient, is, I think, mott certain.

That the Ormskirk medicine has likewife failed, you have too strong a proof before you.

That mercurials are alfo ineffectual, as prefervatives, will appear from your own collection.

That neither the pulvis antilyffus of our very eminent countryman, nor the Tonquin medicine, are altogether to be relied on as certain prophylacticks, is but too true.

It feems therefore neceffary to withdraw the public confidence as much as poffible from fuch uncertainties, and to urge the trial of one, which if ufed fpeedily and effectually, promifes much fecurity, and is ftrongly recommended by long and extenfive experience.'

XXVII. Experiments and Obfervations on the Urine in a Diabetes; by Dr. Dobfon, of Liverpool.

In oppofition to thofe who have denied the sweetness of the urine in a diabetes, Dr. Dobfon confirms the existence of this quality, from obfervations on the case of nine patients who laboured under that disorder. The following remarks, however, feem to account for the abfence of any faccharine principle, when such a taste is not perceptible.

It is well known that the chyle, which contains a certain proportion of faccharine matter, is by a peculiar power in the animal economy, converted into the proper animal or nutritive fluid. As this converfion, however, requires fome time, the faccharine matter, therefore, muft, for fome time, retain its nature, though, for the most part, it fubfifts either in fo fmall a proportion, or is fo overpowered by the falts of the ferum, as not to be difcernible. During this time, a part, and often a very confiderable part of the faccharine matter paffes off by the mamme of those females who give fuck; and when the powers of fanguification are, from any caufe, weak, and the converfion of the faccharine matter confequently flow and imperfect, it may pass off by other fecretions as well as that of the

mammæ.

• Are we not hence led to confider the diabetes as a fpecies of imperfect digeftion or affimilation? Is it not more a disease of the fyftem in general, than of the liver, according to Dr. Mead, or of the fecretory veffels of the kidnsys, according to others ? Some authors have obferved a chylous fluid difcharged by the kidneys, in this difeafe; and here it is evident, that the digeftion has proceeded no farther than to the formation of chyle, and that there has been little or no affimilation in the courfe of the circulation. With refpect to the cafes which have occurred in my own practice, it has not been chyle, but a sweet and almoft colourless fluid which has been discharged instead of urine.

This idea of the nature of the diabetes, leads to an explanation of the different accounts which have been given of the urine in this difeafe. Some few English authors have observed, that the urine is fweet; while most foreign writers affert, thar

it is not sweet. The very learned Dr. Letherland, who defervedly held the firft rank in his profeffion, gave me the following account of the urine in this disease, that it most refembled a dilute folution of honey in water.' On the other hand, a learned and juftly celebrated profeffor, the very ingenious Dr, Cullen affures me, that he has met with fome cafes of the diabetes, in which the urine was not fweet, agreeable to what has been obferved by foreign writers. Now all thefe varieties appear to depend upon the progress of the digeftion. For when the digeftion and affimilation are completed in any confiderable degree, the ferum will be impregnated with lefs faccharine matter, and with a larger proportion of falts, which are to be confidered as excrementitious, and the refult only of the more advanced stages of digeftion. But when the progrefs, of digestion is very incomplete, a large proportion of faccharine matter will remain unaffimilated, and the quantity of excrementitious falts being very inconfiderable, the faccharine matter will confequently. predominate.'

Dr. Dobfon obferves, that the idea of the proximate caufe of the diabetes, delivered in the above paffage, fuggefts more clearly and explicitly the method of cure. For if it is to be confidered as proceding from an imperfect digestion and affimilation of the chyle, the obvious indications of cure are, to ftrengthen the digeftive powers, and promote a due fanguification.

XXVIII. The Culture of the White Poppy, and Preparation of Opium, in the Province of Bahar; by Mr. Kerr, Surgeon to the Civil Hofpital in Bengal.

XXIX. On the Amputation of the Ankle with a Flap; by Mr. Lucas, Surgeon at Leeds.

XXX. An Extraneous Body cut out from the Joint of the Knee; in a Letter from Mr. Ford, Surgeon in London. XXXI. An encyfted Tumour in the Scrotum, which took its Origin from the Urethra, and contained a great Number of calculous Concretions as well as Urine; by Mr. Elfe, Surgeon to St. Thomas's Hofpital.

XXXII. A Suppreffion of Urine, from a Slough in the Urethra; by Mr. Andree, Surgeon to the Magdalen Hofpital.

XXXIII. Further Remarks on the Treatment of Confumptions, &c. by Dr. Fothergill.

Thefe Remarks are intended as a fupplement to the author's Obfervations on the fame fubject, publifhed in the preceding volume of the work. Dr. Fothergill enters largely into the confideration of the various remedies ufually prefcribed in this difeafe; pointing out the refpective cafes in which the adminiftration of them may prove either advantageous or preju dicial.

Ff3

6

dicial. It would increase immoderately the limits of this ar ticle, to give a particular account of the judicious and valuable obfervations with which we are here prefented; and we muft therefore leave them to be perufed in the work itself, to which we doubt not but every member of the faculty will have recourfe.

XXXIV. A fecond Cafe of a retroverted Uterus; by Dr. Hooper.

XXXV. Two Cafes of the retroverted Uterus; by Dr. Garthfhore.

XXXVI. Summary Remarks on the retroverted Uterus; by Dr. Hunter.

XXXVII. Obfervations on Disorders to which Painters in Water Colours are expofed; by Dr. Fothergill. The disease moft generally incidental to painters is the colica pictonum, or dry belly-ache, with the fpecies of palfy which accompanies its more violent ftages. Dr. Fothergill juftly imagines that the diforder is chiefly produced by the cuftom of artists, of applying the pencil to their lips; thereby infenfibly swallowing the noxious particles of the pigments, many of which are of a poisonous quality. This remark fhould ferve as a caution to thofe ingenious painters, who too often facrifice their health in the profecution of their art. With respect to the cure of the complaint, when the vomitings are abated, copious difcharges by ftool procured, and the functions of all the bowels reftored in fome degree to their usual state, the medicine which Dr. Fothergill recommends, as most effectual for restoring the use of the limbs, is the liberal and conftant ufe of the tinctura guiacina volatilis.

The concluding article is an appendix, containing Obferv. ations on the Hydrophobia, with fome Cafes; by Monf. Raymond, M. D. of Marfeilles.

The contents of this volume are fufficient to evince, that it contains many articles of importance; and those which have chiefly attracted our notice are particularly worthy of

attention.

En Hiftorical and Claffical Dictionary: containing the Lives and Characters of the most eminent and learned Perfons, in every Age and Nation, from the earlieft Period to the present Time. By John Noorthouck. 2 vols. 8vo. 125. Gadell.

AN

N hiftorical and claffical dictionary, in the English language, containing an account of the lives, characters, and writings of the moft learned and eminent perfons of all

ages