,,medica ,,sacra2 ,,or1 ,a ,,commentary ,on the most remarkable ,,diseases1 ,mentioned in the ,,holy ,,scriptures4 ,by ,,richard ,,mead1 ,fellow of the ,royal ,colleges of ,physicians at ,,london and ,,edinburgh1 and of the ,royal ,society1 and ,physician to his ,majesty4 ,translated from the ,latin1 ,under the ,,author's ,inspection1 ,by ,,thomas ,,stack1 ,m4,d4,f4,r4,s4 ,,london3 ,printed for ,j4 ,,brindley1 late ,bookseller to his ,royal ,highness the ,prince of ,,wales1 in ,new ,bond-street4 ,m ,,dcclv4 ,,the ,,contents4 ,memoirs of the life and writings of the learned author ,the preface ,i4 ,the disease of ,job page #a ,,ii4 ,the leprosy #ac ,,iii4 ,the disease of king ,saul #bh ,,iv4 ,the disease of king ,joram2 ,jehoram #cd ,v4 ,the disease of king ,ezekias2 ,hezekiah #cf ,,vi4 ,the disease of old age #ch ,,vii4 ,the disease of king ,nebuchadnezzar #eg ,,viii4 ,the paralysy1 palsy #fb ,,ix4 ,of demoniacs #gc ,x4 ,of lunatics #ic ,,xi4 ,the issue of blood in a woman #ajc ,,xii4 ,weakness of the back1 with a rigidity of the spine back bone #ajd ,,xiii4 ,the bloody sweat of ,christ #ajf ,,xiv4 ,the disease of ,judas #ajh ,,xv4 ,the disease of king ,herod #aac ,greek3 ,panta dochimazete to kalon katechete ,d4 ,paul4 #a ,ep4 ad ,thessal4 v4 #ba4 ,prove all things2 hold fast that which is good4 ,,books wrote by the late learned ,dr4 ,,mead1 and sold by ,j4 ,,brindley1 ,bookseller1 in ,new ,bond ,street4 ,,english ,,pieces1 viz4 ,i4 ,a ,mechanical ,account of ,poisons in several ,essays1 #dth ,edition4 ,price #es4 #agdg ,,ii4 ,a ,discourse on the ,plague1 #ith ,edit4 ,price #ds4 #agdd ,,iii4 ---- on the ,small ,pox and ,measles2 to which is annexed1 a ,treatise on the same ,disease by the celebrated ,arab4 ,phys4 ,abubeker ,rhazes4 ,price #ds4 ,,iv4 ---- on the ,scurvy2 to which is annexed1 ,an historical ,account of a new ,method for extracting the foul ,air out of ,ships1 c4 with the ,description and ,draught of the ,machines by which it is performed3 ,in two ,letters to a friend4 ,by ,samuel ,sutton1 the ,inventor4 ,price #cs #f;d #agdi ,v4 ---- on the ,influence of the ,sun and ,moon upon human ,bodies1 and the ,diseases thereby produced4 #ds #agdh ,,vi4 ,medical ,precepts and ,cautions4 ,price #es4 #agea ,,vii4 ,a ,commentary on the ,diseases mentioned in the ,holy ,scriptures4 ,price #ds4 #agee ,the above seven ,discourses are all translated under the ,author's ,inspection1 by ,dr4 ,,stack1 ,m4,d4,f4,r4,s4 ,,latin ,,pieces1 viz4 ,,viii4 ,de ,variolis ,morbillis ,liber1 huic accessit ,rhazes ,medici inter ,arabas celeberrimi1 de iisdem ,morbis ,commentarius4 ,price #ds4 #agdg ,,ix4 ,de ,imperio ,solis ac ,lun in ,corpora ,humana1 ,morbis inde ,oriundis1 ,editio ,altera1 ,auctior4 ,emendatior4 ,price #ds4 #agdf ,x4 ,medica ,sacra2 sive de ,morbis ,insignioribus qui in ,bibliis memorantur ,commentarius4 ,price #cs #f;d #agdi ,,xi4 ,monita ,precepta ,medica4 ,price #ds #f;d #agea ,n4 ,b4 ,the above are to be had either in ,sets1 uniformly bound1 or separate4 ,,memoirs ,,of ,,the ,,life and ,,writings ,of the ,late ,dr4 ,,mead4 ,it is a natural1 nor can it be deemed an illaudable curiosity to be desirous of being informed of whatever relates to those who have eminently distinguished themselves for sagacity1 parts1 learning1 or what else may have exalted their characters1 and thereby entitled them to a degree of respect superior to the rest of their cotemporaries4 ,the transmission of such particulars1 has ever been thought no more than discharging a debt due to posterity2 wherefore it is hoped1 that what is here intended to be offered to the publick1 relative to a gentleman1 who is universally allowed to have merited so largely in the republic of letters1 and more particularly in his own profession1 a profession1 not less useful than respectable1 will not be judged impertinent or disagreeable4 ,our learned author was descended from a distinguished family in ,buckinghamshire1 and born at ,stepney the second of ,august #afgc4 ,his father1 ,mr4 ,matthew ,mead1 was held in great esteem as a divine among the presbyterians1 and was possessed1 during their usurped power1 of the living of ,stepney2 from whence he was ejected the second year after the restoration of king ,charles the ,i,id4 ,nevertheless1 tho' he had fifteen children1 of whom our ,richard was the seventh1 he found means1 with a moderate fortune1 to give them a compleat education4 ,to this purpose he kept a tutor in his house to instruct them1 and they were taught latin rather by practice than by rules4 ,party-rage perhaps never run higher than about the latter end of ,charles the ,i,id's reign2 hereby this little domestic academy was dispersed in #afhc4 ,the king1 or rather his ministers1 were determined to be revenged on those1 whom they could not prevail on to concur with their measures4 ,mr4 ,mead 7the father7 was accused of being concerned in some designs against the court2 wherefore being conscious that even his being a presbyterian1 rendered him obnoxious to those in power1 he chose rather to consult his security by a retreat1 then to rely upon his innocence2 to this purpose he sought and found that repose in ,holland1 which was denied him in his own country2 having first placed his son ,richard at a school1 under the tuition of an able master of his own principles3 under whose care our young gentleman1 by a ready genius1 strong memory1 and close application1 made a great proficiency4 ,at seventeen years of age he was sent to ,utrecht1 to be further instructed in liberal knowledge1 by the celebrated ,grvius1 with whom he continued three years4 ,having determined to devote his attention to medicine1 he removed from ,utrecht to ,leyden1 where he attended ,dr4 ,herman's botanical lectures1 and was initiated into the theory and practice of physick1 by the truely eminent ,dr4 ,pitcairn1 who then held the professorial chair of this science in that university3 here our young student's assiduity and discernment1 so effectually recommended him to the professor1 who was not very communicative of his instructions out of the college1 that he established a lasting correspondence with him1 and received several observations from him1 which he inserted in one of his subsequent productions4 ,his academical studies being finished1 ,mr4 ,mead sought further accomplishments in ,italy1 whither he was accompanied by his elder brother1#a ,mr4 ,polhill1 and ,dr4 ,thomas ,pellet1 afterwards president of the college of physicians4 #a ,mr4 ,nathaniel ,mead1 who was at first destined to the service of religion1 and preach'd two or three times at the meeting house at ,stepney1 built by his father1 after his ejection from the parish church3 but taking a dislike to theological studies1 he applied himself to the law1 and made as great a figure at the bar1 as his brother did in physick4 ,in the course of this tour1 ,mr4 ,mead commenced doctor in philosophy and medicine at ,padua1 the twenty-sixth of ,august #afie1 and afterwards spent some time at ,naples and ,rome3 how advantageous to himself1 as well as how useful to mankind he rendered his travels1 his works bear ample testimony4 ,about the middle of the year #afif1 he returned home1 and settled at ,stepney1 in the neighbourhood where he was born3 the success1 he met with in his practice here1 established his reputation1 and was a happy presage of his future fortunes4 ,if it be remembered1 that our author was1 when he began to practise1 no more than twenty-three years old1 that only three years1 including the time taken up in his travels1 were appropriated to his medical attainments1 it may be1 not unreasonably1 admitted1 that nothing but very uncommon talents1 join'd to an extraordinary assiduity1 could have enabled him to distinguish himself1 at this early a period of life1 in so extensive1 and so important a science4 ,in #agjb1 ,dr4 ,mead exhibited to the public1 a manifest evidence of his capacity for1 as well as application to medical researches1 in his mechanical account of poisons2 which he informs us was begun some years before he had leisure to publish it4 ,these subjects1 our author justly observes1 had been treated hitherto very obscurely1 to place therefore the surprizing phoenomena1 arising from these active bodies in a more intelligible light1 was his professed intention2 how well he succeeded1 the reception this piece universally met with1 even from its first publication1#b sufficiently declares4 ,in #agjh he gave a new edition of it1 with some few additions1 the principal of which consists in some strictures on the external use of mercury in raising salivations4 ,he has considerably further explained his sentiments upon the same head1 in the edition of this work printed in #agdg4 #b ,an abstract of this work was thought deserving a place in the philosophical transactions 7,n #bhc7 for the months of ,january and ,february #agjc4 ,this last edition has received so many additions and alterations1 as might almost entitle it to the character of a new performance4----,a stiffness of opinion has been but too commonly observed1 especially among writers on science2 and age has been seldom found to have worn out this pertinacity3 a favourite hypothesis has been defended even in opposition to the most obvious experiments1 with a degree of obstinacy ever incompatible with the real interests of truth4 ,on the contrary1 our ingenious author has set before his literary successors1 an example of sagacity and fortitude1 truely worthy of imitation1 in the victory he obtained over these self-sufficient pre-possessions2 length of years was so far from rivetting in him an inflexibility of sentiment1 that1 joined to a most extended experience1 it served only to teach him1 that he had been mistaken3 his candid retraction of what he thought to have been advanced amiss by himself1 cannot be better expressed than in his own words4 ,neither have ,i1 says he1#c been ashamed on some occasions1 7as the ,latins said7 cdere vineta mea1 to retrench or alter whatever ,i judged to be wrong4 ,dies diem docet4 ,i think truth never comes so well recommended1 as from one who owns his error3 and it is allowed that our first master never shewed more wisdom and greatness of mind1 then in confessing his mistake1 in taking a fracture of a skull1 for the natural suture2#d and the compliment1 which ,celsus#e makes to him on this occasion1 is very remarkable and just2 nor is it less applicable to ,dr4 ,mead at present than it was to the ,coan sage in his day4 ,more scilicet1 inquit1 magnorum virorum1 fiduciam magnarum rerum habentium4 ,nam levia ingenia1 quia nihil habent1 nihil sibi detrahunt3 magno ingenio1 multaque nihilominus habituro1 convenit etiam simplex veri erroris confessio2 prcipueque in eo ministerio1 quod utilitatis caus posteris traditur4 #c ,advertisement prefixed to the last edition of the essay on poisons1 p4 #d4 #d ,epidem4 lib4 iv4 #ad4 #e ,medicin4 lib4 viii4 c4 #d4 ,the insertion of additions and improvements in the title of new editions of books1 has been too generally1 though sometimes justly1 understood as little else than a contrivance of the bookseller1 to animate a languishing sale2 but this is far from being the case in respect to the works of our author1 whose maturer sentiments on many of the subjects1 he had before treated of1 cannot be well comprehended1 unless by a careful perusal of his later corrections1 seeing the alterations he has thought fit thereby to make in his earlier productions1 are not less necessary to be attended to by the prudent practitioner1 than they are really interesting to the unhappy patient3 the truth of which cannot be more manifestly evinced1 than by his last publication of his essays on poisons2 wherein he entirely subverts his former hypothesis1 and builds his reasonings upon a new foundation2 he also tacitly admits his former experiments to have been too precipitately made1 and the conclusions deduced from them1 to have been too hastily drawn4 ,to illustrate what has been advanced upon this head1 it will not be improper to observe1 that when ,dr4 ,mead first wrote these essays1 he was of opinion1 ,that the effect of poisons1 especially those of venemous animals1 might be accounted for1 by their affecting the blood only3 but the consideration of the suddenness of their mischief1 too quick to be brought about in the course of the circulation1 7for the bite of a rattle snake killed a dog in less than a quarter of an hour7#f together with the nature of the symptoms entirely nervous1 induced him to change his sentiments1#g and to conclude1 that the poison must be conveyed by a medium of much greater quickness1 which could be no other than the animal spirits4 #f ,philosophical transactions ,n #cii4 #g ,introduction to the last edition of the essays on poisons1 page #ab4 ,from hence our author is led to prefix to the last edition of this performance1 an inquiry into the existence and nature of this imperceptible fluid1 with which we have been but very imperfectly acquainted4 ,he has also added several new experiments1 tending to confirm this theory1 and explain the properties of the viperine venom1 particularly by venturing to taste it2 at the same time he has likewise contradicted some of those he had formerly made1 whereby he had been induced to believe1 this poison partook of a degree of acidity3 for instance1 he formerly asserted that he had seen this sanies1 as an acid1 turn the blue tincture of heliotropium1 to a red colour2#h whereas his more modern trials convinced him1 it produced no alteration at all4 #h ,second edition of those essays1 page #aj4 ,the essays on the tarantula and mad dog1 are likewise considerably enlarged in the last impression2 especially the latter1 in which is now comprehended a regular and elegant history of the symptoms attending the bite of this enraged animal1 the reason of the consequent hydrophobia1 and more extensive directions for the cure3 also an accurate description of the lichen cinereus terrestris1 its efficacy1 and manner of acting4 ,a composition of equal parts of this plant and black pepper1 was inserted1 at our author's desire1 into the ,london dispensatory1 in the year #agba1 under the title of pulvis antilyssus1 which he afterwards altered by using two parts of the former1 and only one of the latter1 as it now stands3 in #agce he also recommended the use of this medicine in a loose sheet1 intitled1 a certain cure for the bite of a mad dog4 ,in treating of poisonous minerals1 exclusive of what is added concerning mercurial unctions1 our author has given a new analysis of the antient and modern arsenic2 and his essay on deliterious plants1 has afforded him an opportunity of enquiring into the cicuta1 so much in use of old for killing1 especially at ,athens1 and which is said to have been administered to ,socrates in consequence of his condemnation4 ,to this he has likewise subjoin'd an appendix1 concerning the mischievous effects of the simple water distilled from the lauro-cerasus1 or common laurel1 which were first observed some years since in ,ireland1 where1 for the sake of its flavour1 it was frequently mixed with brandy4--,his observations upon venemous exhalations1 are not less extended1 nor ought the1 as well useful as ornamental1 plates added to this last edition1 to pass unnoticed1 particularly1 ,the anatomical description of the parts in a viper1 and in a rattlesnake1 which are concerned in their poison1 by our great anatomist the learned and ingenious ,dr4 ,nichols4 ,in #agjc ,dr4 ,mead communicated to the royal society1 a letter published in ,italy in #afhg 7a copy of which he met with in the course of his travels7 from ,dr4 ,bonomo to ,seignor ,redi1 containing some observations concerning the worms of human bodies2#i whereby it is intended to prove1 that the disease1 we call the itch1 proceeds merely from the biting of these animalcules3 this opinion is espoused by our author in one of his latest performances1#aj wherein therefore he directs only topical applications for the cure of this troublesome disease4 #i ,an abstract of part of this letter was inserted in the before-cited number of the philosophical transactions4 ,vid4 supra p4 #aj4 #aj ,monita prcepta medica1 p4 #baa1 c4 ,the proofs our young physician had already given of literary merit1 recommended him soon after the above-mentioned communication1 to a seat among that learned body2 in the same year he was also elected one of the physicians of ,st4 ,thomas's hospital1 and was employed by the surgeons company to read anatomical lectures at their hall1 which he continued to do for some years4 ,in #agjd appeared his treatise de imperio solis ac lun in corpora humana1 morbis inde oriundis4 ,at this time the ,newtonian system of philosophy1 from whence our author had chiefly deduced his reasonings upon this abstruse subject1 were neither thoroughly understood1 nor universally received3 nevertheless whatever cavils were raised against his hypothesis1 it was generally admitted1 that his observations had their uses in practice4 ,the doctor thought proper to revise this juvenile production1 and to give a new edition of it in #agdh2 when he not only altered the disposition of some of the old1 but also introduced more than a little new matter into that work3 particularly he has placed some mathematical points in a clearer light1 than they before appeared2 he has entered into the discussion of a difficult question1 which has raised great contention among philosophers3 viz4 whereas water is more than eight hundred times heavier than air1 how does it happen1 that the latter when replete with watery vapours1 depresses the mercury in the barometer2 so that its fall is an indication of rain8#aa he has also enquired into the weight of the atmosphere on a human body1 and its different pressure at different times2#ab and he has illustrated and confirmed the medicinal part by several additional observations and cases1 that promise real utility to the practice of physic4 ,to the whole is now first adjoined a corollary tending to strengthen his reasonings upon the subject1 by observations of the effects of storms on the human body2 wherein1 from the case of a lady who was seized in an instant with a gutta serena1 7that rendered her totally blind7 on the night of the great storm which happened in #agjc1 he is led to give a distinct account of the cause and cure of that melancholly distemper4 ,this work is also remarkably distinguished by many curious observations our author received from his ingenious preceptor in the art of healing1 ,dr4 ,pitcairne4 #aa ,stack's translation of the influence of the sun and moon1 p4 #ba4 #ab ,ibid4 p4 #cj4 ,our author's distinguished genius for1 and sedulous attention to the interests of his profession1 procured him an acquisition of farther honours1 as well as recommended him to the patronage of the most eminent of the faculty3 in #agjg his ,paduan diploma for doctor of physick1 was confirmed by the university of ,oxford2 in #agaf he was elected fellow of the college of physicians1 and served all the offices of that learned body1 except that of president1 which he declined when offered to him in #agdd4 ,radcliff1 the most followed physician of his day1 in a particular manner espoused ,dr4 ,mead1 and in #agad1 upon the death of the former1 the latter succeeded him in his house1 and the greater part of his practice2 some years before which1 he had quitted ,stepney1 and had resided in ,austin ,fryars4 ,party-principles were far from influencing his attachments2 though he was himself a zealous whig1 he was equally the intimate of ,garth1 ,arbuthnot1 and ,friend3 his connections1 more especially1 with the latter1 are manifested not only in their mutual writings1 7of which1 more hereafter7 but in that when ,dr4 ,friend was committed a prisoner to the ,tower in #agbc1 upon a suggestion of his being concerned in the practices of ,bishop ,atterbury against the government1 ,dr4 ,mead became one of his securities to procure his enlargement4 ,in #agai1 an epidemic fever made great ravages at ,marseilles2 and tho' the ,french physicians were very unwilling to admit1 this disease to have been of foreign extraction or contagious2 yet our government wisely thought it necessary1 to consider of such measures as might be the most likely to prevent our being visited by so dangerous a neighbour2 or in failure thereof1 to put an early stop to the progress of the infection4 ,dr4 ,mead1 whose deserved reputation may not unjustly be said to have merited that mark of distinction1 was consulted on these critical and important points1 by command of their excellencies1 the lords justices of the kingdom1 in his majesty's absence3 how equal he was to this momentous talk1 sufficiently appears from the discourse he published on that occasion3 the approbation this performance met with1 may be estimated from the reception it universally found2 seven impressions were sold of it in the space of one year1 and in the beginning of #agbb1 the author gave an eighth1 to which he prefixed a long preface1 particularly calculated to refute what had been advanced in ,france1 concerning the absence of contagion in the malady that had afflicted them3 he also now added a more distinct description of the plague1 and its causes2 and confirmed the utility of the measures he had recommended1 for preventing its extension1 from examples of good success1 where the same had been put in practice3 to these he has likewise annexed1 a short chapter relating to the cure of this deplorable affliction4--,in #agdd1 this work was carried to a ninth edition1 wherein1 to use the doctor's own expression1 he has here and there added some new strokes of reasoning1 and1 as the painters say1 retouched the ornaments1 and heightened the colouring of the piece4 ,here it may not be improper to take notice1 that it is in this last impression of his discourse on the plague1 that our author appears to have first adopted his theory of the properties and affections of the nervous fluid1 or animal spirits1 upon which he has also founded his latter reasonings on the subject of poisons1 as well as in respect to the influence of the sun and moon on human bodies4 ,in #agbc1 ,dr4 ,mead was appointed to speak the anniversary ,harveian oration1 before the members of the college of physicians1 when1 ever studious of the honour of his profession1 he applied himself to wipe off the obloquy1 thought to be reflected upon it1 by those who maintained the practice of physic at ,rome1 to have been confined to slaves or freed-men1 and not deemed worthy the attention of an old ,roman3 which oration was made publick in #agbd1 and to it was annexed1 a dissertation upon some coins1 struck by the ,smyrnans1 in honour of physicians4#ac #ac ,dissertatio de nummis quibusdam1 a ,smyrnis1 in medicorum honorem1 percussis4 ,this publication was smartly attacked by ,dr4 ,conyers ,middleton in #agbf1ad who was replied to by several1 and particularly1 as it is said1 by ,dr4 ,john ,ward1 professor of rhetoric in ,gresham ,college4 ,this gentleman was supposed by his opponent1 to have been employed by ,dr4 ,mead1 who did not chuse to enter personally1 into this little-important debate2 upon which presumption1 ,dr4 ,middleton published a defence of his former dissertation in the succeeding year2#ae wherein he treats his respondents with no little contempt4#af ,the merits of this dispute are not intended to be here discussed1 but it may not be amiss to observe1 that however displeased ,dr4 ,middleton may have been with his antagonists2 in a work published several years after1 he speaks of our author in the most respectful manner4 ,in treating of an antique picture1 he says1 he believes it to be the first1 and only one of the sort ever brought to ,england1 donec ,meadius noster1 artis medic decus1 qui vita revera nobilis1 vel principibus in republica viris1 exemplum prbet1 pro eo1 quo omnibus fere prstat artium veterum amore1 alias postea quasdam1 splendidiores1 opinor1 ,roma quoque deportandas curavit4#ag #ad ,in a piece entitled1 ,de medicorum apud veteres ,romanos degentium conditione dissertatio2 contra viros celeberrimos ,jac4 ,sponium ,rich4 ,meadium1 ,m4,d4,d4 ,servilem atque ignobilem eam fuisse ostenditur1 published in the fourth volume of his works1 p4 #agi4 #ae ,dissertationis1 c4 contra anonymos quosdam notarum brevium1 responsionis atque animadversionis auctores1 desensio1 ibid4 p4 #bjg4 #af ,speaking of the answer ascribed to ,dr4 ,ward1 ,dr4 ,middleton says1 quamvis enim nomen suum celavisset1 sensi tamen hominem e rhetorum turba conductum esse oportere2 cui scilicet generi concessum novimus1 omnia tragice ornare1 augere1 ementiri3 is mihi solum scrupulus restabat1 quod in ejus quidem sermone1 nihil plane1 quod rhetorem oleret1 nihil venustatis1 nihil ornats1 sed inculta potis omnia nec satis latina invenirem4 ,hujusmodi itaque scriptorem1 haud magis quam alterum illum 7cui neutiquam sane eum anteserendam censeo7 cogitatione ulla mea aut animadversione dignum judicassem2 ni hanc potissimum hominem a clarissimo ,meadio ad hoc respondendi munus delectum2 librumque ipsum ejusdem cura sumptibus in lucem emissam2 amicisque suis manu propria inscriptum dono a ,meadio ipso missum intellixissem4 #ag ,germana qudam antiquitatis erudita monumenta1 c4 first published in #agde1 and inserted in the before-cited volume of his works1 p4 #b4 ,in respect to this controversy1 our author's eulogist#ah takes notice that there is reason to believe1 that ,dr4 ,mead himself had some thoughts of more determinately explaining or confirming his sentiments upon this subject1 in a work which he left unfinished1 and which was designed to have been intitled1 medicina vetus collectitia ex auctoribus antiquis non medicis4 #ah ,the ingenious ,dr4 ,maty1 who in his journal britannique 7a work not less useful than entertaining7 for the months of ,july and ,august #aged1 has inserted a piece1 which he titles1 eloge du docteur ,richard ,mead1 composed1 as himself takes notice1 from materials communicated to him by ,mr4 ,birch2 to which piece these memoirs are obliged for some anecdotes relating to our learned author4 ,however1 this literary altercation1 did not in the least affect our author's medical reputation1 for in #agbg1 soon after his present ,majesty's accession to the throne1 whom he had the honour to serve in the same capacity while prince of ,wales1 he was appointed one of the royal physicians1 and he had the happiness to see his two sons-in-law1 ,dr4 ,willmot and ,dr4 ,nichols1 his co-adjutors in that eminent station4 ,after having spent near fifty years in the constant hurry of an extensive and successful practice2 after having lived 7truely according to his own motto1 non sibi sed toti7 beyond that period assigned by the royal psalmist for the general term of mortality2 when the infirmities of age would no longer permit him the free exercise of those faculties1 which he had hitherto so advantageously employed in the service of the community1 far from sinking into a supine indolence1 or assuming a supercilious disregard of the world1 he still continued his application1 even in the decline of life1 to the improvement of physic1 and the benefit of mankind4 ,when he was grown unequal to the discharge of more active functions1 and a retirement was become absolutely necessary1 he took the opportunity of revising all his former writings3 to this retreat therefore1 and the happy protraction of so useful a life1 the world is indebted for the improvements that appear in the latter editions of those works1 which have already been taken notice of4 ,it was not till now that our author could find leisure to perfect his discourse on the small pox and measles1#ai which had been begun by him many years before4 #ai ,de variolis morbillis #agdg4 ,as it was the principal design of these memoirs1 to lay before the public a concise and comprehensive history of ,dr4 ,mead's writings1 the occasion of this universally admired performance1 cannot be better given than from the author's own account1 contained in the preface to it1 in which also his connections with1 and attachment to ,dr4 ,friend1 are further illustrated4 ,it appears that ,dr4 ,mead1 from having observed in the year #agjh1 that some of his patients in ,st4 ,thomas's ,hospital1 recovered from a very malignant sort of the small pox1 even beyond expectation1 by a looseness seizing them on the ninth or tenth day of the disease1 and sometimes earlier1 first took the hint to try what might be done by opening the body with a gentle purge1 on the decline of the distemper2 finding the success of this experiment in a great measure answerable to his wishes1 he communicated this method of practice to ,dr4 ,friend1 and met with his approbation4 ,the latter being1 soon after1 called to a consultation with two other eminent physicians1 on the case of a young nobleman who lay dangerously ill of the small pox1 proposed our author's method2 this was opposed till the fourteenth day from the eruption1 when the case appearing desperate1 they consented to give him a gentle laxative draught2 which had a very good effect3 ,dr4 ,friend was of opinion to repeat it1 but was over-ruled1 and the patient died the seventh day after4#bj #bj ,friendi opera1 p4 #bfc4 ,from the result of this case1 the gentlemen of the faculty were greatly divided in opinion1 as to the rectitude of this practice1 insomuch that ,dr4 ,friend thought himself under a necessity of vindicating it2 and therefore sent to our author for the purport of their former conversation upon this topic1 desiring it might be reduced into writing4 ,such was the friendship that mutually subsisted between these learned men1 that this request was granted without hesitation1 and ,dr4 ,mead's letter was shewn to ,dr4 ,radcliffe1 who prevailed upon our author to consent1 that the same might be annexed to ,dr4 ,friend's intended defence2 which1 however he was advised by some friends1 to drop at that time2 whereby this letter lay by till the latter's publication of the first and third books of ,hippocrates's epidemics1 illustrated with nine commentaries concerning fevers4 ,of these the seventh treats of purging in the putrid fever1 which follows upon the confluent small pox3 to which are annexed1 in support of this opinion1 letters from four physicians on that subject1 and among them that from our author1 which he had translated from the english into latin1 enlarged and new modelled to serve this purpose4 ,this work gave rise to a controversy1 maintained with an unbecoming warmth on both sides3 among ,dr4 ,friend's principal opponents1 may be reckoned ,dr4 ,woodward2 who1 not contented with condemning a practice1 experience has since evinced not only salutary in general1 but in many cases absolutely necessary2 likewise treated its favourers with contempt and ill-manners1 and more particularly our author2#ba whose resentment upon this occasion1 appears to have been carried to a justly exceptionable length1 seeing it had not subsided twenty years after the death of his antagonist4#bb #ba ,the state of physic1 by ,john ,woodward1 ,m4,d4 printed in #agah4 #bb ,in the front of this band stood forth ,dr4 ,john ,woodward1 physic professor at ,gresham ,college1 a man equally ill-bred1 vain1 and ill-natured2 who1 after being for some time apprentice to a linnen-draper1 took it into his head to make a collection of shells and fossils1 in order to pass upon the world for a philosopher2 thence getting admission into a physician's family1 at length1 by dint of interest1 obtained a doctor's degree4 ,preface to the discourse on the small pox1 c4 p4 #h1 c4 ,dr4 ,mead's daily acquisition of knowledge and experience1 enabled him to enlarge to many beneficial purposes1 this performance1 which1 in all probability1 was at first designed only to illustrate and vindicate the sentiments contained in the aforementioned letter2 and it is but justice to say1 the applause it has found among the learned1 as well for the elegance of its diction1 as the perspicuity of its precepts1 is no more than what is truely due to it4----,to this discourse is subjoin'd a latin translation1 from the arabic of ,rhazes's treatise on the small pox and measles1 a copy of the original having been obtained for this purpose by ,dr4 ,mead1 from the celebrated ,boerhaave1 between whom there had long subsisted an intimate correspondence1 nor did their reciprocally differing in some opinions1 diminish the friendship they mutually manifested for each other4 ,the year #agdi1 furnished two new productions from our author2 a translation of one of which follows these memoirs4 ,the other is entitled1 a discourse on the scurvy1 affixed to ,mr4 ,sutton's second edition of his method for extracting the foul air out of ships4 ,it is more than possible that1 but1 for the patronage of ,dr4 ,mead1 this contrivance1 which confers no less honour to the inventor1 than utility to the public1 might have been for ever stifled3 our author1 than whom no one more ardently wished for1 or more zealously promoted the glory and interest of his country1 being thoroughly convinced of its efficacy1 so earnestly1 and so effectually recommended it to the lords of the admiralty1 as to prevail over the obstinate opposition that was made against its being put into practice4 ,to the same purpose in #agdb1 he explained the nature and conveniencies of this invention to the royal society1#bc and with the same view he confessedly wrote the last mentioned discourse1 of which he made a present to ,mr4 ,sutton4 #bc ,in a paper read before the royal society1 ,feb4 #aa1 #agda-b1 and published in ,mr4 ,sutton's account1 page #da4 ,he also presented a model of this invention made in copper to the royal society1 which cost him #bjjl4 ,his medical precepts and cautions1 which appeared in #agea1 and was his last publication1 affords an indisputable testimony1 that length of years had not in the least impaired his intellectual faculties4 ,our author has herein furnished the public1 with the principal helps against most diseases which he had either learned by long practice1 or deduced from rational principles4#bd ,who could with the same propriety take upon himself to be an instructor and legislator in the medical world1 as he who had been taught to distinguish truth from falsehood1 in the course of so extended an experience1 protracted now to almost threescore years8 to this may be added1 that he has so contrived to blend the utile dulci1 by embellishing his precepts with all the delicacy of polite expression1 as to render them at the same time not less entertaining than instructive4 #bd ,preface to the monita prcepta medica1 p4 #a4 ,however1 this work was productive of two other little pieces1 from two gentlemen of the faculty3 one by ,dr4 ,summers2 who in a pamphlet on the success of warm bathing in paralytic cases1 controverts ,dr4 ,mead's assertion1 that hot bathing is prejudicial to all paralytics 444 calid vero immersiones omnibus paralyticis nocent#be4--,some reflections upon the advocates for ,mrs4 ,stephens's medicines1 in the cure of the stone and gravel1 by our author1 occasioned a letter to him on that subject by ,dr4 ,hartley of ,bath4 ,the former expressed himself in the following manner2 ,neque temperare mihi possum1 quin dicam in opprobrium nuper medicis nonnullis cessisse1 quod insano pretio redimendi anile remedium magnatibus auctores fuerunt4#bf 444 ,nor can ,i forbear observing1 tho' ,i am extremely sorry for the occasion1 that some gentlemen of the faculty a few years since acted a part much beneath their characters1 first in suffering themselves to be imposed on1 and then in encouraging the legislature to purchase an old woman's medicine at an exorbitant price4#bg ,of this the latter complains as an unmerited indignity1 ,illud interea 7inquit7 tanquem inopinatum1 ab quitate tua alienum queri liceat1 ,,te1 qui in obvios quoscunque comis urbanus esse1 bene autem merentibus de re medica1 vel etiam literaria quavis1 summa cum benignitate favere soleas1 in lithrontriptici fautores acerbis invectum fuisse2 non potius laudi illis dedisse1 quod arcanum sine pretio vulgatum1 virorum dignitate1 fide1 ingenio1 artis nostr periti illustrium examini subjecerent1 neque aliam viam ad prmium reportandum aperiri voluerint1 quam qu1 veris lict rerum inventoribus facilis munita1 jactatoribus tamen falsiloquis esset impervia4#bh 444 ,in the mean while1 ,i cannot but complain of it as a thing unexpected1 and greatly inconsistent with your usual candour1 that ,,you1 who are so courteous and humane to all mankind1 and so remarkably the patron of those who excel in the profession of physic1 or indeed in any branch of learning1 should so severely reproach the favourers of this lithontriptic medicine2 and not rather have commended them1 for submitting a secret1 communicated to them without fee or reward1 to the examination of some worthy physicians1 eminent for integrity1 ingenuity1 and learning3 and for endeavouring to excite the munificence of the publick in such a manner only1 as to render it accessible to the true authors of an important discovery1 but impervious to boasting impostors4 #be ,monita prcepta1 p4 #fb1 and ,stack's translation of the same1 p4 #fi4 #bf ,our author's disapprobation of this medicine and its favourers1 is no less severely express in his treatise concerning the influence of the sun and moon upon human bodies1 p4 #ajj4 #bg ,monita1 c4 medica1 and ,stack's translation1 p4 #agd and #aig4 #bh ,ad virum clarissimum ,ric4 ,mead1 ,m4,d4 ,epistol1 varias lithontripticum1 ,joann ,stephens exhibendi methodos indicans4 ,auctore ,davide ,hartley1 ,a4,m4 p4 #c4 ,in enumerating the obligations the republic of letters is under to ,dr4 ,mead1 it would be injustice to omit taking notice1 that to his generosity and public spirit1 it is farther indebted for the first complete edition of the celebrated history of ,thuanus4#bi #bi ,published in seven volumes folio #agcc1 by ,samuel ,buckley1 under the sanction of an act of parliament4 ,to enlarge upon his literary collections1 and other curiosities1 would at present be useless1 seeing the world will soon be apprized of their value and contents from the catalogues that are already1 and are yet about to be published of them2 it may therefore suffice to say1 that he did not shew more assiduity and judgment in collecting them1 than he did candour and generosity in permitting the use of them to all that were competent judges1 or that could benefit themselves1 or the public by them4 ,it may1 perhaps not unjustly1 be said no ,subject in ,europe had a cabinet so richly and so judiciously filled2 to which the correspondence he maintained with the learned in all parts of ,europe1 not a little contributed2 nor can there be an higher instance given of his reputation in this respect1 than in the king of ,naples having sent him the two first volumes of ,m4 ,bajurdi's account of the antiquities found in ,herculaneum1 with the additional compliment of asking in return1 only1 a compleat collection of our author's works1 to which was adjoined1 an invitation to visit that newly discovered subterraneous city3 an invitation that could not but be greatly pleasing to a genius so inquisitive after knowledge1 and which he declared1 he should very gladly have embraced1 had not his advanced years been an insuperable impediment1 to the gratification of his curiosity4 ,in short1 his character abroad was so well known and established1 that a foreigner of any taste1 would have thought it a reproach to him1 to have been in ,england without seeing ,dr4 ,mead4 ,as his knowledge was not limited only to his profession1 the deserving in all sciences had not only free access to him1 but always found a welcome reception1 and at his table might daily be seen together the naturalist1 the antiquarian1 the mathematician1 and the mechanic1 with all whom he was capable of conversing in their respective terms2 here might be seen united the magnificence of a prince1 with the pleasures of the wise4 ,his munificence was conspicuous in that there was no remarkable publick charity to which he was not a benefactor1 particularly he was one of the earliest promoters of1 and subscribers to the ,foundling hospital4 ,let these specimens of his superior abilities and merit suffice for the present1 nor let envy or detraction attempt to sully so exalted a character4--,soon after the publication of his monita prcepta medica1 this ornament of his profession1 and delight of his acquaintance1 grew more and more sensible of the natural infirmities attending his length of years2 and with the utmost tranquillity and resignation1 quietly sunk into the arms of death on the #afth of ,february #aged4 ,to whom may1 with the greatest propriety1 be applied a part of the epitaph inscribed to the memory of the celebrated ,guicciardini1 at ,florence2 ,cujus ,otium an ,negotium ,gloriosius incertum3 ,nisi ,otii ,lumen ,negotii ,famam ,clariorem reddidisset4 ,the ,,end4 ,,the ,,preface4 ,my declining years having in a great measure released me from those medical fatigues1 in which1 for the publick good1 7at least as ,i hope7 ,i have been employed about fifty years1 ,i have determined to pass the short remains of life in such a sort of leisure1 as may prove neither disagreeable to myself1 nor useless to others4 ,for good men are of opinion1 that we must give an account even of our idle hours1 and therefore thought it necessary1 that they should be always well-spent4 ,having from my earliest childhood entertained a strong passion for learning1 after ,i had chosen the art of medicine for my profession1 ,i still never intermitted my literary studies2 to which ,i had recourse from time to time1 as to refreshments strengthening me in my daily labours1 and charming my cares4 ,thus1 among other subjects1 ,i frequently read the holy scriptures1 as becomes a christian2 and next to those things which regard eternal life1 and the doctrine of morality1 ,i usually gave particular attention to the histories of diseases1 and the various ailments therein recorded2 comparing those with what ,i had learnt either from medical writers or my own experience4 ,and this ,i did the more willingly1 because ,i had remarked that divines1 thro' an unacquaintance with medicinal knowledge1 frequently differed widely in their sentiments2 especially on the subject of dmoniacs cured by the power of our saviour ,jesus ,christ4 ,for it is the opinion of many1 that these were really possessed with devils1 and that his divine virtue shone forth in nothing more conspicuous than in expelling them4 ,i am very far from having the least intention to undermine the foundations of the christian doctrine1 or to endeavour1 by a perverse interpretation of the sacred oracles1 to despoil the ,son of ,god of his divinity1 which he has demonstrated by so many and great works performed contrary to the laws of nature4 ,truth stands no more in need of the patronage of error1 than does a natural good complexion of paint4 ,and it is certain1 that the opinion which has been prevalent for many ages1 of the power granted to devils1 of torturing human bodies and minds1 has been several ways made subservient to the subtle designs of crafty men1 to the very great detriment and shame of the christian religion4 ,what sensible man can avoid justly deriding those solemn ceremonies1 practised by the roman priests1 in exorcising1 as they are fond of terming it1 dmoniacs3 while proper persons 7hired and7 taught to counterfeit certain gestures and fits of fury1 such as are believed to be caused by evil spirits1 pretend that they are freed from devils1 and restored to their senses by holy water1 and certain prayers1 as by inchantment4 ,but these juggling tricks1 how grosly soever they may impose on the eyes and minds of the ignorant multitude1 not only scandalize1 but also do a real injury to1 men of greater penetration4 ,for such1 seeing into the cheat1 often rush headlong into impiety2 and viewing all sacred things in the same light1 after they have learnt ,relligionibus atque minis obsistere vatum3#cj #cj ,lucret4 ,lib4 i4 ver4 #aaj4 they advance farther1 and by an abominable effort1 endeavour thoroughly to root out of their minds all sense and fear of the supreme deity4 ,in which proceeding they act as if a person doubted of the existence of the ,indies1 because travellers relate many falshoods and fictions concerning them4 ,hence it comes to pass1 that1 in countries too much given up to superstition1 very many atheists are to be met with even among the learned1 whom their learning and knowledge ought to secure from these errors4 ,therefore to be free from this folly1 is the principal part of wisdom2 next to which1 is not to corrupt truth with fictitious opinions4 ,and indeed it is frequently to me a matter of wonder1 why our spiritual guides so strenuously insist on exhibiting devils on the stage1 in order to make the divinity of ,christ triumph over these infernal enemies4 ,is ,christ's divine power less manifested by the cure of the most grievous diseases1 performed in an instant at his command2 than by the expulsion of evil spirits out of the bodies of men8 ,certainly all the wonderful things done by him for the good of mankind1 such as restoring sight to the blind1 firmness and flexibility to relaxed or contracted nerves1 calling the dead to life1 changing the properties of the elements1 and others of the same kind1 are testimonies of the omnipotence of the creator of the world1 and demonstrate the presence of ,god2 who alone commands all nature1 and at his pleasure changes and inverts the order of things established by himself4 ,wherefore it cannot be doubted1 that ,he1 who has perform'd these things1 had the devils subject to him1 that they might not obstruct his gracious resolution of revealing the will of his father to men1 and correcting their depraved morals4 ,but to resume the subject of dmoniacs1 the opinion1 which ,i propose in this treatise1 is not purely my own1 but also of several other persons1 before me1 eminent for piety and learning4 ,and indeed among our own countrymen1 it was in the last century defended in an excellent dissertation1 by that treasure of sacred knowledge1 the reverend ,joseph ,mead4 ,wherefore as ,i have the honour to be of the same family with him1 and am the son of ,matthew ,mead1 a very able divine1 ,i always thought ,i might lay some claim to these studies1 by a kind of hereditary right4 ,i am not insensible of the difficulty of removing vulgar errors1 especially those which relate to religion4 ,for every body knows the power of education1 in imprinting on the mind notions1 which are hard to be effaced even in adult age4 ,children in the dark1 fear ghosts and hobgoblins2 and hence often quake with the same fear through the whole course of their lives4 ,why then do we admire1 if we can hardly unlearn1 and clear our minds of1 some false notions1 even when we are advancing to old age8 ,nor will this be deemed indeed a matter of little importance by him1 who considers the serious evils1 into which mankind are often led1 by things that to some may appear trifling1 as being nothing more than bugbears of children and women4 ,my soul is seized with horror on recollecting1 how many millions of innocent persons have been condemned to the flames in various nations1 since the birth of ,christ1 upon the bare suspicion of witchcraft3 while the very judges were perhaps either blinded by vain prejudices1 or dreaded the incensed populace1 if they acquitted those1 whom the mob had previously adjudged guilty4 ,who would believe that any man in his right senses could boast1 as a matter of merit1 that he had capitally condemned about nine hundred persons for witchcraft1 in the space of fifteen years1 in the sole dutchy of ,lorraine8#ca ,and yet from many histories1 which he relates of those who suffered1 it manifestly appears1 that every individual of these criminals1 had no compacts with devils1 as they themselves imagined1 but were really mad1 so as openly to confess that they had done such feats as are impossible in the nature of things4 ,but so it happens1 that error generally begets superstition1 and superstition cruelty4 ,wherefore ,i most heartily rejoice1 that ,i have lived to see all our laws relating to witchcraft entirely abolished3 whereas foreign states still retain this barbarous cruelty1 and with various degrees of obstinacy in proportion to their ignorance of natural causes4 ,and it is but too true1 that the doctrine of dmons is so understood by the vulgar1 as if the devil was to be esteemed a sort of deity2 or at least1 that1 laying the fear of him aside1 no divine worship can well subsist2 altho' the apostle has expresly said2 ,for this purpose the ,son of ,god was manifested1 that he might destroy the works of the devil4#cb #ca ,see ,nic4 ,remigii ,dmonolatreia4 #cb ,john4 ,ep4 i4 ,chap4 iii4 ver4 #h4 ,and here it may not be improper1 once for all1 to inform the reader1 that ,i have generally made use of ,sebastian ,castalio's version of the bible1 because1 upon collating it in many places1 ,i found it to be not only excellent ,latin1 but also very accurate1 and particularly well adapted to the sense and meaning of the words in the ,hebrew and ,greek4 ,nor can ,i refrain from declaring1 that ,i have not writ these essays for the profane or vulgar2 but for those only who are well versed1 or at least initiated in theological or medical studies3 and for this reason ,i chose to publish it in ,latin2 which language has for many ages past been made use of by learned men2 in order to communicate to each other1 whatsoever might seem to them either new1 or expressed in a different manner from the common notions4 ,wherefore if any person should intend to publish an ,english version of this book1 ,i give him this timely notice1 that he will do it1 not only against my will2 but likewise in direct opposition to that equitable law1 whereby every man is allowed to dispose of his own property according to his pleasure4#cc #cc ,this declaration seems to have been intended only to prevent any surreptitious translation of this performance from appearing1 seeing most of the works of our learned author have heretofore been greatly disgraced by attempts of that kind4 ,nevertheless the public may be assured1 that ,dr4 ,mead not only approved1 but inspected what is now offered to them4 ,but to bring this preface to a conclusion2 it is manifest that the christian religion requires of all its members in a most especial manner1 to practice every act of humanity and benevolence towards each other4 ,wherefore the utmost care ought to be taken1 that this beneficent disposition of mind be not corrupted by any means whatsoever3 and nothing contributes more towards bringing on this corruption1 than opinions derogatory from the divine goodness4 ,upon this account1 as such is the misfortune of our times1 that it is not only allowed1 but even by many deemed a commendable action1 to oppugn1 and by every method to invalidate1 the doctrine and authority of the christian religion2 no interpretations of the histories of miracles ought to be look'd upon as out of season1 provided they appear neither improbable1 nor repugnant to the nature of the facts related4 ,in fine1 it was not my intention to treat of every disease mentioned in holy writ2 but to confine myself more particularly to those1 the nature of which is generally but little known1 or at least to such as ,i had some peculiar medicine for1 or method of cure1 to offer to the public2 and to perform this task1 in the same order1 in which they occur in those sacred writings3 excepting only ,job's disease1 to which ,i have given the first place1 on account of the great antiquity of that book4 ,the ,saviour of the world1 in order to make his divine power manifest to mankind1 cured many other diseases1 both of the body and mind1 besides those which ,i have mentioned in this work3 the nature and causes of all which diseases1 whosoever would intend to enquire into1 must of necessity compile a body of physic1 which was not my present design4 ,but if providence protract my life1 ,i am not without hopes of laying more of my thoughts on this subject before the public1 for the honour which ,i bear to my profession1 unless ,frigidus obstiterit circum prcordia sanguis4 ,in the mean time1 whatever be the fate of these essays with my readers1 ,i shall rest satisfied from a consciousness of the rectitude of my intention1 in having thus employ'd some of my hours of leisure4 ,a ,,commentary ,,on ,,the ,,diseases ,mentioned in ,scripture4 ,,chapter ,i4 ,the ,disease of ,job4 ,job's disease is rendered remarkable by some uncommon circumstances and consequences2 such as the dignity of the man1 the sudden change of his condition1 his extraordinary adversity1 his incredible patience under them1 his restoration to a much happier state than he had ever before enjoyed1 and lastly the singular nature of the illness with which he was seized4 ,his habitation was in the land of ,uz1 which1 according to the learned ,friderick ,spanheim1#cd was situated in the northern part of ,arabia deserta1 towards the ,euphrates and ,mesopotamia4 ,he was a very illustrious man1 the most opulent of all the ,orientals1 very happy in sons and daughters1 of a most upright life and exemplary piety4 ,now it is related that ,god1 in order to try his integrity and constancy1 permitted ,satan to afflict him by all means which he could devise1 except the taking away of his life4 ,in pursuance of this permission1 ,satan brought the most dreadful calamities on him2 for all his oxen and asses were driven away by the ,sabeans2 his sheep and servants were consumed by fire from heaven2 his camels were carried off2 his sons and daughters were crush'd to death by the falling in of the house upon them in a violent storm of wind2 and soon after he himself was afflicted with scabs and foul ulcers all over his body2 so that he sate down among the ashes1 and scraped himself with a potsherd4 ,thus from a very rich man he became extremely poor1 and from the heighth of prosperity he sunk into the depth of misery4 ,and yet all these evils did not give the least shock to his firmness of mind1 nor to his piety towards ,god3#ce wherefore the ,lord1 moved by his prayers1 put an end to all his calamities2 gave him twice as much wealth as he had lost1 and made him more prosperous than he had ever been before4#cf #cd ,histor4 ,jobi1 ,cap4 iv4 #ce ,see ,job ,chap4 i and ii4 #cf ,the same1 ,chap4 xiii4 ,now the book of ,job may justly be esteemed the most ancient of all books1 of which we have any certain account3 for some are of opinion that it was written in the times of the patriarchs2 many others1 that it was composed about the days of ,moses1 and even by ,moses himself2 and there are but few who think it posterior to him4#cg ,for my part1 ,i embrace the learned ,lightfoot's opinion1 that it was composed by ,elihu1 one of ,job's companions1 chiefly because he therein speaks of himself as of the writer of this history1#ch and if so1 it will appear to be older than the days of ,moses4 ,however this be1 it is most certain that this book carries with it manifest tokens of very great antiquity2 the most material of which seem to be these4 ,in it there is not the least mention made of the departure of the ,israelites out of ,egypt1 of ,moses1 or the ,mosaic ,law4 ,after the manner of the ,patriarchs1 ,job1 as the head of his family1 offered sacrifices in his own private house1 for the sins of his children4#ci ,when he declares his integrity he scarcely mentions any other ,idolatry1 but that most ancient one1 the worship of the sun and moon1#dj which we know to be very old1 and to have first obtained among the neighbouring ,chaldeans1 and ,phoenicians4 ,in fine his own age1 protracted far beyond the life of man in ,moses's time1 is a proof of its antiquity1 for he lived a hundred and forty years after an end had been put to his calamities2 so that it is reasonable to believe that he lived above two hundred years in all4 ,for that he was aged1 when his misfortunes crowded on him1 may be hence inferred1 that1 altho' his three friends are stiled old men1#da yet in his disputes with them1 he does not seem to honour them for their age1 as ,elihu does4 ,to avoid prolixity1 ,i join with ,spanheim in opinion1 that ,job's time coincides with the bondage of the children of ,israel in ,egypt1 so as to be neither posterior to their quitting that country1 nor anterior to their entering it4 #cg ,see ,spanheim's learned dissertation on this subject in the book above quoted1 ,chap4 viii4 and ix4 #ch ,his ,works1 tom4 #a4 page #bd4 #ci ,job1 ,chap4 i4 v4 #e4 #dj ,the same1 ,chap4 xxxi4 v4 #bf1 #bg4 #da ,job ,chap4 xxxii4 v4 #f4 ,but there subsists a dispute of a different nature between very grave authors1 and that is1 whether this narrative be a fable or a true history3 ,if ,i were allowed to interpose my opinion1 ,i would say1 that it is not a parable invented by ,greek3 hypotypsis1 but a dramatic poem composed upon a true history2 and perhaps with this design1 that from the example of this illustrious and upright1 yet afflicted and most miserable man1 the people of ,israel might learn to bear with patience1 all those evils and hardships1 which they were daily suffering in their ,egyptian captivity4 ,that this book is metrical1 as well as ,david's ,psalms1 the ,proverbs1 ,ecclesiastes1 and ,solomon's ,song1 is generally allowed3 and the persons of the drama are ,god1 ,satan1 ,job and his wife1 his three friends1 and ,elihu4 ,wherefore it is1 says ,grotius1 a real fact1 but poetically handled4#db ,poetry was certainly a very ancient manner of writing1 and poets were wont to embellish true histories in their own way1 as we see in the most ancient among the ,greeks and ,romans4 ,and among the ,hebrews likewise1 long after the time above-mentioned1 ,ezechiel comprised the history of the departure out of ,egypt in a dramatic poem2 upon which account he is called by ,clemens ,alexandrinus1 the poet of ,judaic tragedies4#dc ,nor indeed1 in my opinion1 can there be found1 in this kind of writing1 any thing more admirable1 and better adapted to move the passions than this piece2 whether we regard the sublimity and elegance of style1 the description of natural things1 or in fine1 the propriety of the characters ascribed to all the persons concerned in it2 all which circumstances are of the greatest moment in a dramatic performance4 #db ,est ergo res vere gesta1 sed poetic tractata4 ,in locum4 #dc ,greek3 ,ho tn ,ioudaikn tragdin poits4 ,stromat4 book #a4 p4 #dad of the ,oxford ,edit4 #agae4 444 ,quo propius stes ,te capiet magis4 ,the nearer you behold1 ,the more it strikes you4 ,before ,i close this chapter1 it may not be improper to offer my conjecture concerning the disease of this illustrious man4 ,but previous to this1 it is proper to remark1 that it is not ,job himself1 or his friends1 but the author of the book that attributes his calamities to ,satan2 for this author's intention seems to be1 to shew1 by a striking example1 that the world is governed by the providence of ,almighty ,god1 and as the holy angels1 whose ministry ,god makes use of in distributing his bountiful gifts1 punctually execute all his commands2 so ,satan himself with his agents are under the power of ,god1 and cannot inflict any evils on mankind without the divine permission4 ,thus1 when the ,sons of ,god 7angels7 came and presented themselves before the ,lord1 it is said that ,satan came also among them4 ,now the word astare to present one's self1 as ,moses ,maimonides#dd observes1 signifies to be prepared to receive ,jehovah's commands1 but ,satan came of his own accord and mixed with them without any summons4 #dd ,more ,nevochim1 ,part4 iii4 ,chap4 xxii4 ,now as to the disease1 it is plain that it was cuticular1 and as it is certain that the bodies of the ,hebrews were very liable to foul ulcers of the skin from time immemorial2 upon which account it is1 that learned men are of opinion that they were forbid the eating of swine's flesh 7which1 as it affords a gross nourishment1 and not easily perspirable1 is very improper food in such constitutions7 wherefore by how much hotter the countries were which they inhabited1 such as are the desarts of ,arabia1 the more severely these disorders raged4 ,and authors of other nations1 who despised and envied the ,jews1 say that it was upon this account that they were driven out of ,egypt2 lest the leprosy1 a disease common among them1 should spread over the country4#de ,but there is another much worse disease1 so frequent in ,egypt1 that it is said to be endemial there1#df though it may also be engendered in this hot country1 ,i mean the ,elephantiasis4 ,perhaps it was this1 which is nearly of the same nature with the leprosy1 that had affected the body of our righteous man3 but on this subject we shall treat more largely in the subsequent chapter4 #de ,justin4 ,hist4 ,lib4 xxxvi1 ,c4 #b4 ,tacit4 ,hist4 ,lib4 v4 ab initio4 #df ,lucret4 ,lib4 vi4 v4 #aaab4 ,est ,elephas morbus1 qui propter flumina ,nisi4 ,gignitur ,aegypto in media4 ,,chapter ,,ii4 ,the ,leprosy4 ,a most severe disease1 to which the bodies of the ,jews were very subject1 was the ,leprosy4 ,its signs recorded in the holy scriptures are chiefly these4 ,pimples arose in the skin2 the hair was turned white2 the plague 7or sore7 in sight was deeper than the skin1 when the disease had been of long standing2 a white tumour appeared in the skin1 in which there was quick flesh2 the foul eruptions gained ground daily1 and at length covered the whole surface of the body4 ,and the evil is said to infect1 not only the human body1 but also the cloaths and garments1 nay 7what may seem strange7 utensils made of skins or furs1 and even the very walls of the houses4 ,wherefore there are precepts laid down for cleansing these also1 as well as the lepers4 ,medical authors are of different opinions concerning the contagion of this disease4 ,and whereas neither the ,arabian nor ,greek physicians1 who have treated largely of the leprosy1 have given the least hint of this extraordinary force of it1 whereby it may infect cloaths and walls of houses2 the ,rabbin doctors dispute1 whether that which seized the ,jews1 was not intirely different from the common leprosy2 and they all affirm1 that there never appeared in the ,world1 a leprosy of cloaths and houses1 except only in ,judea1 and among the sole people of ,israel4 ,for my part1 ,i shall now freely propose1 what ,i think most probable on the subject4 ,one kind of contagion is more subtile than another2 for there is a sort1 which is taken into the body by the very breath2 such as ,i have elsewhere said to exist in the plague1 small pox1 and other malignant fevers4 ,but there is another sort1 which infects by contact alone2 either internal1 as the venom of the venereal disease2 or external1 as that of the itch1 which is conveyed into the body by rubbing against cloaths1 whether woollen or linnen4 ,wherefore the leprosy1 which is a species of the itch1 may pass into a sound man in this last manner2 perhaps also by cohabitation2 as ,fracastorius has observed1 that a consumption is contagious1 and is contracted by living with a phthisical person1 by the gliding of the corrupted and putrefied juices of the sick into the lungs of the sound man4#dg ,and ,aretus is of the same opinion with regard to the ,elephantiasis1 a disease nearly allied to the ,leprosy3 for he gives this caution1 ,that it is not less dangerous to converse and live with persons affected with this distemper1 than with those infected with the plague2 because the contagion is communicated by the inspired#dh air4 #dg ,de morbis contagiosis4 ,lib4 ii4 ,cap4 ix4 #dh ,de causis diuturnorum morborum1 et de curationibus eorundem1 ,lib4 ii4 ,cap4 xiii4 ,but here occurs a considerable difficulty4 ,for ,moses says1 ,if in the leprosy there be observed a white tumour in the skin1 and it have turned the hair white in it1 and there be quick flesh within the tumour2 it is an old leprosy in the skin of his flesh4 ,but if the leprosy spread broad in the skin1 and cover the whole skin of the diseased from his head even to his feet1 the person shall be pronounced#di clean4 ,but the difficulty contained in this passage will vanish1 if we suppose1 as it manifestly appears to me1 that it points out two different species of the disease2 the one in which the eroded skin was ulcerated1 so that the quick flesh appeared underneath2 the other1 which spread on the surface of the skin only in the form of rough scales4 ,and from this difference it happened1 that the former species was1 and the latter was not1 contagious4 ,for these scales1 being dry and light like bran1 do not penetrate into the skin2 whereas the purulent matter issuing from the ulcers infects the surface of the body4 ,but concerning the differences of cuticular diseases1 ,i heartily recommend to the reader's perusal1 what ,johannes ,manardus1 equally valuable for his medical knowledge and the purity of his ,latin1 has written upon the subject4#ej #di ,levit4 ,chap4 xiii4 v4 #aj c4 #ej ,epist4 ,medicinal4 ,lib4 vii4 ,epist4 ii4 ,there is no time1 in which this disease was not known2 but it was always more severe in ,syria and ,egypt1 as they are hotter countries1 than in ,greece and other parts of ,europe2 and it is even at this day frequent in those regions4 ,for ,i have been assured by travellers1 that there are two hospitals for the leprous alone in ,damascus4 ,and there is a fountain at ,edessa1 in which great numbers of people affected with this cuticular foulness wash daily1 as was the ancient custom4 ,moreover we read the principal signs1 which occur in the description of the ,mosaic leprosy1 excepting only the infection of the cloaths and houses 7of which by and by7 recorded by the ,greek ,physicians4 ,hippocrates himself calls the ,greek3 leuk or white leprosy ,greek3 ,phoiniki nousos the ,phoenician disease4#ea ,for that the word ,greek3 phthinik ought to be read ,greek3 ,phoiniki1 appears manifestly from ,galen in his ,explicatio linguarum ,hippocratis2 where he says that ,greek3 phoinik nousos is a disease which is frequent in ,phoenicia and other eastern regions4#eb ,in the foregoing chapter ,i said that the ,leprosy 7,leuce7 and the ,elephantiasis1 were diseases of great affinity3#ec in confirmation of which notion the same ,galen observes1 that the one sometimes changes into the other4#ed ,now these two distempers are no where better described than by ,celsus1 who lived about the time of ,augustus ,csar1 and having collected the works of the principal ,greek writers in physic and surgery1 digested them into order1 and turned them into elegant ,latin with great judgment4 ,thus he describes the leprous diseases4 ,three are three species of the ,vitiligo4 ,it is named ,greek3 alphos1 when it is of a white colour1 with some degree of roughness1 and is not continuous1 but appears as if some little drops were dispersed here and there2 sometimes it spreads wider1 but with certain intermissions or discontinuities4 ,the ,greek3 melas differs from this in colour1 because it is black1 and like a shadow1 but in other circumstances they agree4 ,the ,greek3 leuk has some similitude with the ,greek3 alphos1 but it has more of the white1 and runs in deeper3 and in it the hairs are white1 and like down4 ,all these spread themselves1 but in some persons quicker1 in others slower4 ,the ,alphos and ,melas come on1 and go off some people at different times2 but the ,leuce does not easily quit the patient1 whom it has seized4#ee ,but in the ,elephantiasis1 says the same author1 the whole body is so affected1 that the very bones may be said to be injured4 ,the surface of the body has a number of spots and tumors on it2 and their redness is by degrees changed into a dusky or blackish colour4 ,the surface of the skin is unequally thick and thin1 hard and soft2 and is scaley and rough3 the body is emaciated2 the mouth1 legs and feet swell4 ,when the disease is inveterate1 the nails on the fingers and toes are hidden by the swelling4#ef ,and the accounts left us by the ,arabian physicians1 agree with these descriptions4 ,avicenna1 the chief of them1 says that the ,leprosy is a sort of universal cancer of the whole body4#eg ,wherefore it plainly appears from all that has been said1 that the ,syrian ,leprosy did not differ in nature1 but in degree only1 from the ,grecian1 which was there called ,greek3 leuk2 and that this same disease had an affinity with the ,elephantiasis1 sometimes among the ,greeks1 but very much among the ,arabs4 ,for the climate and manner of living1 very much aggravates all cuticular diseases4 #ea ,prorrhetic4 ,lib4 ii4 sub finem4 #eb ,greek3 ,h kata ,phoinikn1 ki kata ta alla anatolika mer pleonazousa4 #ec ,pag4 #ae4 #ed ,de simpl4 medicam4 facult4 ,lib4 xi4 #ee ,de medicina1 ,lib4 v4 ,cap4 xxviii4 4 #ai4 #ef ,lib4 iii4 ,cap4 xxv4 #eg ,canon1 ,lib4 iv4 ,fen4 #c4 ,tract4 #c4 ,cap4 i4 ,now with regard to the infection of the cloaths1 it has been found by most certain experiments1 not only in the plague1 and some other malignant eruptive fevers1 as the small pox and measles1 but even in the common itch2 that the infection1 once received into all sorts of furs or skins1 woollen1 linnen1 and silk1 remains a long time in them1 and thence passes into human bodies4 ,wherefore it is easy to conceive1 that the leprous miasmata might pass from such materials into the bodies of those1 who either wore or handled them1 and1 like seeds sown1 produce the disease peculiar to them4 ,for it is well known1 that the surface of the body1 let it appear ever so soft and smooth1 is not only full of pores1 but also of little furrows1 and therefore is a proper nest for receiving and cherishing the minute1 but very active1 particles exhaling from infected bodies4 ,but ,i have treated this subject in a more extensive manner in my ,discourse on the ,plague4#eh ,and these seeds of contagion are soon mixed with an acrid and salt humor1 derived from the blood2 which as it naturally ought1 partly to have turned into nutriment1 and partly to have perspired through the skin1 it now lodges1 and corrodes the little scales of the cuticle2 and these becoming dry and white1 sometimes even as white as snow1 are separated from the skin1 and fall off like bran4 ,now1 altho' this disease is very uncommon in our colder climate2 yet ,i have seen one remarkable case of it1 in a countryman1 whose whole body was so miserably seized by it1 that his skin was shining as if covered with snow3 and as the furfuraceous scales were daily rubbed off1 the flesh appeared quick or raw underneath4 ,this wretch had constantly lived in a swampy place1 and was obliged to support himself with bad diet and foul water4 #eh ,chap4 i4 ,but it is much more difficult to account for the infection of the houses4 ,for it seems hardly possible in nature1 that the leprous spots should grow and spread on dry walls1 made of solid materials4 ,but upon a serious consideration of the different substances employed in building the walls of houses1 such as stones1 lime1 bituminous earth1 hair of animals1 and other such things mix'd together2 ,i thought it probable1 that they may by a kind of fermentation1 produce those hollow greenish or reddish strokes in sight lower than the wall 7or within the surface7#ei which1 as they in some measure resembled the leprous scabs on the human body1 were named the ,leprosy in a house4 ,for bodies of different natures1 very easily effervesce upon being blended together4 ,wherefore we may reasonably suppose that this moisture or mouldiness1 gradually coming forth and spreading on the walls1 might prove very prejudicial to the inhabitants1 by its stinking and unwholesome smell1 without having recourse to any contagious quality in it4 ,and somewhat analogous to this is pretty frequently observable in our own houses2 where1 when the walls are plaistered with bad mortar1 the calcarious and nitrose salts sweat out upon their surface1 of a colour almost as white as snow4 ,the power of inspecting their houses was invested in the priests2 who1 when they observed this foulness1 gave orders first to have the walls of the house scraped all around2 and afterwards1 if it continued to break out1 to pull down the house1 and carry the materials out of the city into an unclean place4 #ei ,levit4 ,chap4 xiv4 v4 #cg4 ,i am well aware1 that all this is related1 as if ,god himself had struck the house with this plague4 ,but it is well known1 that that way of speaking is not uncommon in the jewish history2 as in unexpected evils and dreadful calamities1 which are sometimes said to be done by the hand of ,god1 tho' they may be produced by natural causes4 ,nor can ,i be easily induced to believe1 with some divines1 that ,god1 who commanded his people to be always free from every sort of uncleanness1 would vouchsafe to work a miracle1 in order to inflict this most filthy punishment on any person4 ,thus much is indubitable1 that the precepts of the mosaic law were constituted particularly1 to avert the people from idolatry and false religion1 and at the same time to keep them clear of all uncleanness4#fj ,to this end conspired the prohibition of eating blood1 carrion1 or animals that died spontaneously1 swines flesh1 and that of several other creatures4#fa ,for all these meats yield a gross nutriment1 which is improper and prejudicial in diseases of the skin4 #fj ,mos4 ,maimonid4 ,more ,navochim1 ,part4 iii4 ,cap4 xxxiii4 et xlviii4 #fa ,levit4 ,chap4 xi4 et xvii4 ,but in order to close these theological researches with somewhat medical1 ,i am convinced from experience1 that there is not a better medicine known against this filthy disease1 than the tincture of ,cantharides of the ,london ,dispensatory4 ,its remarkable virtue in this case1 is owing to the diuretic quality of these flies4 ,for there is a great harmony between the kidneys and glands of the skin1 so that the humors brought on the latter1 easily find a way thro' the former1 and are carried off by urine3 and on the other hand1 when the kidneys have failed in the performance of their functions1 an urinous humor sometimes perspires thro' the cuticular pores4 ,but such cathartics are to be interposed at proper intervals1 as are most proper for evacuating thick and acrid humors4 ,,chapter ,,iii4 ,the disease of king ,saul4 ,when ,king ,saul was abandoned by the ,spirit of ,god1 and an evil spirit from the ,lord troubled him2 his courtiers persuaded him to command his servants to seek out somebody that was a good player on the harp1 who might sooth or compose him by his music1 when the evil spirit from ,god was upon him4 ,which when ,saul had done1 by sending messengers for ,david2 whenever it happened that ,saul was seized with that evil spirit1 ,david took his harp1 and play'd on it2 and thus ,saul was refreshed and became composed1 and the evil spirit departed from#fb him4 #fb ,see ,samuel1 or ,kings1 ,book i4 ,chap4 xvi4 ,now to me it appears manifest1 that this king's disease was a true madness1 and of the melancholic or atrabilarious kind1 as the ancient physicians called it4 ,and the fits return'd on him at uncertain periods1 as is frequently the case in this sort of disease4 ,nor could the cause of that disorder be a secret1 seeing he had been lately deprived of his kingdom by ,god's express command4 ,likewise the remedy applied1 to wit1 playing on the harp1 was an extremely proper one4 ,for physicians have long since taught us1 that symphonies1 cymbals1 and noises1 were of service towards dissipating melancholic thoughts2#fc the power of which we have accounted for in another place upon geometrical principles4#fd ,hence also it more plainly appears1 that the disorder was owing to natural causes2 for otherwise how could the music of a harp drive it away8 ,counsel and prudence in a man was1 in the ,hebrew language1 usually stiled the ,spirit of ,god2 and a person deprived of these qualities1 was said to be troubled with an evil spirit1 that is1 to be mad4 #fc ,see ,cels4 ,lib4 iii4 ,cap4 xviii4 #fd ,mechanical ,account of ,poisons1 ,essay ii4 ,ed4 #d4 ,i am not ignorant that the ,jews1 by a manner of expression familiar among them1 are wont to describe diseases of this kind1 to the power of evil angels1 as ministers of ,god2 and that even at this day1 some very learned men defend the same notion4 ,but for my part1 if ,i may be allowed to declare my thoughts with freedom1 ,i cannot think it right to have recourse to the divine wrath for diseases1 which can be proved to have natural causes2 unless it be expresly declared1 that they were sent down directly from heaven4 ,for if they fall on us in punishment of our sins1 the intention of the supreme lawgiver would be frustrated1 unless a sure rule was given1 whereby his vengeance might be distinguished from common events2 in as much as the innocent may be equal sharers in such calamities with the guilty4 ,moreover1 it seems reasonable to believe1 that evils inflicted by the omnipotent judge1 must be either incurable1 or curable by himself alone2 that the connection of his power with his equity1 may the more brightly shine forth4 ,by such a criterion1 are miraculous works distinguished from the operations of nature4 ,for it would be impiety to suppose1 that the almighty creator of heaven and earth intended1 that his works should be performed in vain4 ,wherefore it is worthy of our observation1 that great care is always taken in the sacred histories1 to make the divine power in such cases1 appear most manifest to all4 ,thus when the ,lord had infected ,miriam 7or ,mary7 with a leprosy1 for a sin committed by her1 and consented1 on the supplication of ,moses1 to make her whole2 it was not done till seven days afterward4#fe ,gehazi's leprosy remained in him and his progeny for ever4#ff ,king ,azariah was smote with the leprosy1 for not having demolished the high places2 and he was a leper unto the day of his death4#fg ,ananias and his wise were struck dead suddenly by the miraculous power of ,st4 ,peter4#fh ,elymas the sorcerer1 was struck blind for a season by ,st4 ,paul1 for his frauds and wickedness4#fi ,therefore since threats and plain indications of diseases1 inflicted in an uncommon manner1 are always manifestly declared2 whensoever these are wanting1 why may we not say1 that the event was by no means supernatural8 ,and ,i desire1 once for all1 that this sentiment may hold good with regard to several other calamities4 #fe ,numbers1 ,chap4 xii4 ,verse #ad4 #ff ,kings1 ,book ii4 7al4 iv47 ,chap4 v4 ,verse #bg4 #fg ,the same1 ,chap4 xv4 ,verse #e4 #fh ,acts1 ,chap4 v4 #fi ,the same1 ,chap4 xiii4 ,verse #aa4 ,,chapter ,,iv4 ,the disease of king ,jehoram4 ,of king ,jehoram it is related1 that1 for his wicked life1 the ,lord smote him in his bowels with an incurable disease1 so that he voided his intestines daily for the space of two years1 and then died of the violence of the#gj distemper4 ,two impious kings are recorded to have had the same end1 ,antiochus ,epiphanes1 and ,agrippa2 of whom it was said3 ,greek3 ,eis ti ta splanchna tois ou splanchnizomenois4#ga #gj ,chronicles1 ,book ii4 ,chap4 xxi4 ,verse #ah4 #ga ,see the ,notes of ,grotius on this ,place4 ,of what avail are bowels to those who have no bowels8 ,now this distemper seems to me to be no other than a severe dysentery4 ,for in this the intestines are ulcerated1 and blood flows from the eroded vessels1 together with some excrement1 which is always liquid1 and slimy matter2 and sometimes also some fleshy strings come away1 so that the very intestines may seem to be ejected4 ,,chapter ,v4 ,the disease of king ,hezekiah4 ,when ,hezekiah lay sick of a mortal disease1 and the prophet ,isaiah went and declared to him1 by ,god's express command1 that he should die and not recover2 the ,lord moved by his prayer1 commanded ,isaiah to return1 and tell him1 that he would cure him in three days4 ,whereupon ,isaiah ordered a mass of figs to be taken1 and laid it on the boil2 whereby he recovered#gb4 #gb #b ,kings1 ,chap4 xx4 ,now to me it seems extremely probable1 that this king's disease was a fever1 which terminated in an abscess3 ,for in cases of this kind1 those things are always proper1 which promote suppuration2 especially digestive and resolving cataplasms2 and dried figs are excellent for this intention4 ,thus1 the ,omnipotent1 who could remove this distemper by his word alone1 chose to do it by the effect of natural remedies4 ,and here we have an useful lesson given us in adversities1 not to neglect the use of those things1 which the bountiful ,creator has bestowed on us1 and at the same time to add our fervent prayers1 that he would be graciously pleased to prosper our endeavours4 ,,chapter ,,vi4 ,the disease of ,old-age4 ,old-age itself is a disease1 as the poet has properly expressed it#gc4 ,wherefore as ,i have frequently read with pleasure1 the very elegant description of it1 given by ,solomon the wisest of kings2 ,i think it will not be foreign to my design1 to attempt an explanation and illustration thereof4 ,for it contains some things not easy to be understood1 because the eloquent preacher thought proper to express all the circumstances allegorically4 ,but first ,i will lay the discourse itself before my readers1 which runs thus4 #gc ,terent4 ,phorm4 ,act4 iv4 ,scen4 i4 v4 #i4 ,remember thy ,creator in the days of thy youth1 before the evil times come1 and the years draw nigh1 in which1 thou shalt say1 ,i find no pleasure3 before the sun1 and the light1 and the moon1 and the stars be darkened1 and the clouds return after rain2 when the keepers of the house shall tremble1 and the soldiers shall give way1 and the diminished grinders shall cease2 and those that look out thro' holes shall be darkened2 and the doors shall be shut outwardly1 with a low sound of the mill1 and they shall rise up at the voice of the bird2 and all the daughters of music shall be of no avail2 also when they shall be afraid of high places1 and stumblings in the way2 and the almond tree shall flower1 and the ,cicad shall come together2 and the appetite shall be lost1 man departing to his eternal habitation1 and the mourners going about in the street3 before the silver chain be broken asunder1 and the golden ewer be dashed in pieces2 and the pitcher be broken at the fountain head2 and the chariot be dashed in pieces at the pit2 and the dust return to the earth1 such as it had been2 and the ,spirit return to ,god1 who gave it#gd4 #gd ,ecclesiastes1 ,chap4 xii4 ,verse #a-g4 translated from ,castalio's latin version4 ,the recital of evils 7and infirmities7 begins from the aberrations of the mind4 ,the sun1 says ,solomon1 and the light1 and the moon1 and the stars are darkened4 ,perceptions of the mind are less lively in old men2 the ideas and images of things are confounded1 and the memory decays3 whence the intellectual faculties must necessarily lose their strength or power by degrees4 ,wisdom and understanding are frequently called light in the sacred scriptures2#ge and privation of reason1 darkness and blindness4#gf ,cicero likewise says very justly1 that reason is as it were1 the light and splendor of life4#gg ,hence ,god is stiled the father of lights4#gh ,thus the virtues of the mind decaying1 may be compared to the luminaries of the world overcast4 ,i am conscious that this exposition is contrary to that of a number of learned interpreters1 who take this obscuration of the lights in the genuine sense of the words1 and think that the failing of the sight is here to be understood4 ,but ,i am surprized1 how they happened not to take notice1 that every thing in this discourse1 even to the most minute circumstances1 is expressed in words bearing a figurative sense4 ,for whereas1 in describing the infirmities of ,old-age1 the injuries of the operations of the mind1 as the most grievous of all1 were not to be pretermitted2 so these could not be more clearly expressed1 than by the obscuration of the coelestial luminous bodies1 which rule our orb1 and cause the vicissitudes of times and seasons4 ,moreover it is particularly to be observed here1 that the author mentions the defects of sight lower down1 and most certainly he would have avoided repeating the same thing4 #ge ,job1 ,chap4 xviii4 ,verse #e1 #f1 #g4 #gf ,matthew1 ,chap4 vi4 ,verse #bc4 ,john1 ,ep4 i4 ,chap4 ii4 ,verse #aa4 #gg ,academ4 iv4 #h4 #gh ,james1 ,epist4 ,chap4 i4 ,verse #ag4 ,but he goes on1 and adds1 what well agrees with the foregoing explanation4 ,the clouds return after rain4 ,that is1 cares and troubles crowd on each other1 and daily oppress aged folks4 ,as in moist climates1 and those liable to storms1 even when the clouds seem to be exhausted1 others soon follow1 and the rains become almost perpetual4 ,and these inconveniencies are felt the more sensibly1 in proportion to the debilitation of the powers of the mind1 whereby they are rendered less able now1 than formerly1 either to bear1 or get the better of their oppressions4 ,but from the mind our royal author now passes to the body4 ,the keepers of the house1 says he1 shall tremble1 and the soldiers shall give way1 and the diminished grinders shall cease4 ,the limbs1 and firmest parts of the body1 are damaged by age3 the hands and knees grow weak1 thro' the relaxation of the nerves4 ,hence those are rendered incapable of defending us against injuries1 and of performing innumerable other good offices1 for which they were originally intended2 and these becoming unequal to the weight they were wont to sustain1 lose their active suppleness1 and fail in bending4 ,likewise the double teeth or grinders1 either drop out1 or rot away2 so as now to be too few remaining to comminute solid food4 ,in the translation of the ,hebrew word1 which ,i have here rendered by double teeth or grinders1 ,i followed ,arias ,montanus1 who1 in my opinion1 has translated it right4 ,for it is in this passage used by the author in the plural number2 who afterwards employs it in the singular1 but in a quite different sense1 when he treats of the sense of tasting2 as ,i shall shew anon1 when ,i come to that passage4 ,for1 that ,solomon's intention in this place was1 to describe those defects of the senses1 which generally steal on old-age1 ,i have not the least doubt4 ,wherefore now proceeding to them1 he begins by the sight4 ,those1 says he1 that look thro' holes shall be darkened4 ,by which words it is manifest1 that he points out the failing of the eyes1 which most people1 far advanced in years1 feel by sad experience4 ,next follows the taste1 which he thus describes3 ,the doors shall be shut outwardly1 with a low sound of the mill4 ,as old people1 thro' diminution of appetite1 open their mouths seldomer than formerly2 so for want of teeth to comminute their food1 they do it with less noise4 ,now this last inconvenience seems to be meant and expressed very elegantly by the words a low sound of the mill3 for by the word mill1 which in the ,hebrew is used in the singular number1 the grinding of the food may very well be meant2 and this grinding1 as it is not done by the assistance of the teeth1 which they have lost1 but by that of the gums1 is performed with less noise4 ,sleep is the sweet soother of our labours1 and the restorer of our exhausted strength4 ,but the loss of appetite1 and disgust to our food1 generally robs us of this comfort4 ,hence subjoining this evil of old-age to the foregoing1 he says3 he shall rise up at the voice of the bird2 that is1 the old man is awaked at the cock's first crowing4 ,wherefore his sleep is short and interrupted1 tho' his weakness would require longer rest4 ,but he returns to the senses1 among which he gives the third place to hearing2 for receiving the benefits of which the ,creator gave us the use of ears4 ,now this is frequently diminished1 and sometimes entirely taken away in old-age2 which the royal author seems to indicate in the following words3 ,the daughters of music shall be of no avail4 ,for thus he thought proper to express the ears1 to which at this time of life1 not only the pleasure of harmonious sounds is sought in vain2 but1 what is much more disagreeable1 the words in conversation are not easily understood3 whereby the enjoyment1 and one of the greatest conveniencies of life1 are gradually lost4 ,hence in the jewish history1 ,barzillai1 at eighty years of age1 complains that he could no longer hear the voice of the singing men and singing women4#gi #gi ,samuel1 7al4 ,kings7 ii4 ,chap4 xix4 ,verse #ce4 ,these defects of the organs of hearing1 are immediately followed by those of the sense of feeling4 ,now the touch1 as ,cicero says1 is uniformly spread over the whole body2 that we may feel all strokes and appulses of things4#hj ,wherefore this sense1 besides its other uses1 contributes vastly to the safety of the body1 and the removal of many evils1 to which it is perpetually exposed4 ,and this the sagacious author seems to have principally in view1 when he says3 ,they shall be afraid of high places1 and stumblings in the way4 ,for as old folks are unsure of foot1 even in a plain smooth way1 by reason of the weakness of their limbs2 so when they come to a rugged uneven road1 thro' the dulness of this sense1 they do not soon enough perceive the depressions or elevations of the ground whereby they run the hazard of stumbling and hurting their feet4 ,therefore they are not unjustly represented as being afraid4 #hj ,nat4 ,deor4 ii4 #ef4 ,the only one that remains of the senses is that of smelling1 the diminution of which in old men1 he describes with equal elegance and brevity in this manner3 the almond tree shall flower4 ,by which words he seems to mean1 that old people1 as if they lived in a perpetual winter1 no longer perceive the agreeable odors exhaling from plants and flowers in the spring and summer seasons4 ,that this tree flowers in winter1 we learn from ,pliny1 who in treating of it says3 ,the almond tree flowers the first of all trees1 in the month of ,january4#ha ,i am not to learn1 that these words are by most interpreters understood as relating to grey hairs1 which being generally a sure token of old age1 they would have us believe1 are denoted by the white flowers of the almond tree4 ,but then1 who can imagine1 that this wise author1 after having indicated the defects of four of the senses1 by clear and distinct marks1 would designedly pass over the fifth in silence8 ,besides1 white hairs are by no means to be esteemed a sure and indubitable token of old-age2 since there are not a few to be found1 who turn gray in the middle stage of life1 before their bodily strength is any ways impaired4 ,moreover1 what they say of the flowers of the almond tree1 does not seem to agree with the things they mean by them3 for they are not1 strictly speaking1 white1 but of a purplish cast4 ,thus far concerning the senses3 let us proceed to the remaining part4 #ha ,lib4 xvi4 4 #db4 ,the scrotal rupture is a disease common to persons far advanced in years2 whether it be formed by the intestine or omentum slipping down into the scrotum1 or proceed from a humor distending that part4 ,in either case the part is tumefied4 ,this pernicious disease the ,preacher thought proper to compare to a grasshopper4 ,the grasshopper1 says he1 shall be a burthen1 ,oneri erit locusta4 ,for thus the ,hebrew phrase is more literally translated1 than by convenient cicad1 the cicad shall come together1 as the learned ,castalio has rendered it4 ,indeed the ,vulgate version has impinguabitur locusta1 the grasshopper shall be fatted4 ,the ,septuagint ,greek3 ,pachynth achris4 ,the grasshopper shall be fatted4 ,the ,arabic version1 turned into ,latin1 pinguescet locusta1 ,the grasshopper shall grow fat4 ,but our ,english translation1 ,the grasshopper shall be a burden4 ,it is well known1 that the ,hebrew language is always modest1 and that the sacred ,writers1 in expressing such things as belong to the genital members1 abstain from indecent and obscene words1 for fear of offending chaste ears1 and therefore borrow similitudes from any other things at discretion4 ,which is particularly observable in the ,canticum ,canticorum1 or ,solomon's ,song1 written by our ,author4 ,now the grasshopper1 or locust1 is an odd-shaped animal1 made up chiefly of belly2 and therefore1 especially when full of eggs1 may be said to bear some resemblance to a scrotum1 swoln by a rupture4 ,these parts being thus affected1 the wise author adds1 the appetite shall be lost2 wherein he does not attend so much to the appetite for victuals1 as for those other things1 which are sought after in the vigor of life4 ,for as the author of the ,art of ,love has rightly said3 ,turpe senilis amor#hb4 #hb ,ovid4 ,amorum1 lib4 i4 ,eclog4 ix4 ver4 #d4 ,that old people are crushed to death by so great a heap of evils and infirmities1 and depart to their eternal habitation1 to the grief of their friends1 can be no matter of wonder4 ,but in the remaining part of the discourse we are admonished1 that their miseries in this life are not confined within these bounds1 but that sometimes there is still an accession of others4 ,for loss of strength in old age does not terminate at the limbs1 or extremities of the body2 the spine of the back also loses considerably of its firmness1 by the daily diminution of power in its muscles and ligaments3 hence an old man can seldom stand upright1 but stoops his body towards the earth1 which is shortly to cover it4 ,this part is likened to a silver chain1 which is said to be broken asunder4 ,for the vertebr1 of which it is composed1 may be looked upon as the rings or links1 and they give way outward by the bending of the body4 ,moreover the medulla oblongata1 which passes through them1 is of a silver or whitish colour4 ,these points1 which we have hitherto handled1 are very difficult of explanation4 ,but the three inconveniencies1 which close the discourse1 are true nigma's1 and require an ,oedipus to solve them4 ,and as such an one1 in my opinion1 has not appeared hitherto1 ,i will use my endeavours to do it4 ,the golden ewer1 says he1 is dashed in pieces3 the pitcher is broken at the fountain-head2 and the chariot is dashed in pieces at the pit4 ,old men are troubled with defluxions from the head to the nose1 mouth and lungs2 which are compared to water rushing out of a broken bottle or ewer4 ,and the ewer is said to be of gold1 to express the dignity of the head4 ,nor does phlegm flow from the head alone2 but other parts also pour forth their juices too abundantly or irregularly4 ,for the serosities1 which are secreted by the kidneys 7whose cavity is even at this day named pelvis by ,anatomists7 runs into the bladder2 which1 by reason of the relaxation of its sphincter1 as if the pitcher were broken at the fountain head1 is not able to retain its contents a sufficient time4 ,hence an incontinence or dribbling of urine is continually troublesome4 ,now1 the evils hitherto enumerated lodge in particular parts2 but the last calamity1 both in this discourse1 as well as in old people1 is that the whole body is afflicted4 ,the very course of the blood is interrupted2 hence wretched man is seized with difficulty of breathing1 apoplexies or lethargies4 ,the heart also1 the principle and fountain of life1 sinks thro' want of its usual force1 and the broken chariot falls into the pit4 ,the ancients indeed did not know of the circulation of the blood2 but they could not be ignorant1 that it was moved thro' the body1 that it cherished the viscera and members by its heat1 and lastly1 that it concreted and grew cold in death4 ,but nothing in this whole discourse is so much worthy of our serious attention as these words1 with which he closes it4 ,the dust returns to the earth1 such as it had been2 and the spirit returns to ,god1 who gave it4 ,for by these words his intention seems plainly to have been1 to refute the ignorant notions of those1 who thought that the soul perished with the body1 and to assert its immortality4 ,,chapter ,,vii4 ,the disease of king ,nebuchadnezzar4 ,those things1 which are related of ,nebuchadnezzar king of ,babylon1 appear so surprizing and contrary to nature1 that some interpreters have imagined that he was really transformed into a beast4 ,for being driven from the company of men for seven years1 his dwelling was with the beasts of the field1 he fed on grass as oxen2 his body was wetted with the dew of heaven2 his hair and nails were grown like those of birds4 ,at length at the end of that space of time1 his understanding was restored to him1 and he was established in his kingdom1 and excellent majesty was added unto him4 ,now his crime was pride and the contempt of ,god#hc4 #hc ,see ,daniel1 ,chap4 iv4 and v4 ,all these circumstances agree so perfectly well with hypochondriacal madness1 that to me it appears evident1 that ,nebuchadnezzar was seized with this distemper1 and under its influence ran wild into the fields3 and that1 fancying himself transformed into an ox1 he fed on grass in the manner of cattle4 ,for every sort of madness is1 as ,i shall specify more particularly hereafter#hd1 a disease of a disturbed imagination2 which this unhappy man laboured under full seven years4 ,and thro' neglect of taking proper care of himself1 his hair and nails grew to an excessive length2 whereby the latter growing thicker and crooked1 resembled the claws of birds4 ,now1 the ancients called persons affected with this species of madness ,greek3 lykanthrpoi or ,greek3 kynanthrpoi2 because they went abroad in the night1 imitating wolves or dogs2 particularly intent upon opening the sepulchres of the dead1 and had their legs much ulcerated either by frequent falls1 or the bites of#he dogs4 ,in like manner are the daughters of ,proetus related to have been mad1 who1 as ,virgil says1 --,implerunt falsis mugitibus agros4#hf --,with mimick'd mooings fill'd the fields4 #hd ,see ,chap4 ix4 of ,demoniacs4 #he ,see ,aetius1 ,lib4 medecin4 ,lib4 vi4 and ,paul4 gineta1 ,lib4 iii4 ,cap4 xvi4 #hf ,eclog4 vi4 #dh4 ,for1 as ,servius observes1 ,juno possessed their minds with such a species of madness1 that fancying themselves cows1 they ran into the fields1 bellowed often1 and dreaded the plough4 ,but these1 according to ,ovid1 the physician ,melampus1 --per carmen herbas ,eripuit furiis4#hg ,snatch'd from the furies by his charms and herbs4 #hg ,metamorph4 xv4 #cbe4 ,nor was this disorder unknown to the moderns2 for ,schenckius records a remarkable instance of it in a husbandman of ,padua1 who imagining that he was a wolf1 attack'd1 and even killed several persons in the fields2 and when at length he was taken1 he persevered in declaring himself a real wolf1 and that the only difference consisted in the inversion of his skin and hair#hh4 #hh ,observat4 med4 rar4 de ,lycanthrop4 ,obs4 #a4 ,but it may be objected to our opinion1 that this misfortune was foretold to the king1 so that he might have prevented it by correcting his morals2 and therefore it is not probable that it befel him in the course of nature4 ,but we know1 that those things1 which ,god executes either thro' clemency or vengeance1 are frequently performed by the assistance of natural causes4 ,thus having threatened ,hezekiah with death1 and being afterwards moved by his prayers1 he restored him to life1 and made use of figs laid on the tumor1 as a medicine for his#hi disease4 ,he ordered king ,herod1 upon account of his pride1 to be devoured by worms#ij4 ,and no body doubts but that the plague1 which is generally attributed to the divine wrath1 most commonly owes its origin to corrupted air4 #hi ,see above ,chap4 v4 p4 #cf4 #ij ,see below1 ,chap4 xv4 ,,chapter ,,viii4 ,the ,palsy4 ,there are three paralytics recorded in the holy gospels to have been cured by ,jesus ,christ#ia4 ,the case of one of these1 which is the third1 having some singularities in it1 ,i shall relate the particulars of it in the words of ,st4 ,john1 ,there is 7says the ,evangelist7 at ,jerusalem1 by the sheep market1 a pool1 near which lay a great multitude of impotent folk1 blind1 halt1 and withered1 waiting for the moving of the water4 ,for an angel went down at a certain season into the pool1 and troubled the water3 whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in1 was made whole of whatsoever disease he had4 ,and a certain man was there1 who had an infirmity thirty and eight years4 ,when ,jesus saw him lie1 and knew that he had been now a long time in that case1 he saith unto him1 ,wilt thou be made whole8 ,the impotent man answered him1 ,sir1 ,i have no man1 when the water is troubled1 to put me into the pool2 but while ,i am coming1 another steppeth down before me4 ,jesus saith unto him3 ,rise1 take up thy bed1 and walk4 ,and immediately the man was made whole1 and took up his bed1 and walked4 #ia ,see ,matthew1 ,chap4 viii4 and ix41 and ,john1 ,chap4 v4 ,this pool1 or at least some other in its stead1 is shewn to travellers even at this day by the friars who reside there4#ib ,but1 what is much more to the purpose1 ,eusebius asserts that it actually existed in his time1 and had two basons2 both of which were filled every year by the rains1 at a stated time2 and the water of one of them was of a surprizing red colour3#ic which last phoenomenon he attributes1 according to the vulgar opinion1 to the sacrifices1 which were formerly cleansed there4 ,but ,i am clearly of opinion1 that it was owing to a red earth or ocre1 which is frequently found in baths1 raised up from the bottom at certain times by the rains1 and mixing with the water4 #ib ,see ,cotovici ,itinerarium ,hierosolymitarum1 ,lib4 ii4 ,cap4 ii4 and ,maundrell's ,journey from ,aleppo to ,jerusalem1 #hvo4 p4 #ajg4 ,oxford #agad4 #ic ,onomasticon urbium locorum sacr scriptur1 in voce ,greek3 ,bzatha4 ,commentators find more than one difficulty here4 ,for first they enquire what sort of water this was2 next why it could not exert its virtue without being troubled2 then what was the nature of this troubling2 and lastly1 concerning the angel they do not agree1 who he was4 ,wherefore ,i will offer my opinion1 in a concise manner1 on these several points4 ,first then1 mineral waters were in high esteem among the ancients for many diseases3 they used them inwardly and outwardly1 and recommended them for different distempers according to the nature of the mineral1 with which they were impregnated4 ,thus in paralitic cases1 ,celsus recommends swimming or bathing in the natural sea or salt water1 where it can conveniently be come at2 where it cannot1 even in water made salt by art4#id ,and ,pliny says1 sulphureous water is useful for the nerves1 aluminous for paralytics1 or other relaxed habits of the body4 ,he likewise adds2 ,they use the mud of those fountains with advantage1 especially if1 when it is rubbed on1 it be suffered to dry in the sun4#ie ,the same author relates strange things of some springs4 ,in ,botia1 says he1 there are two springs1 one of which retrieves the memory1 the other destroys it4#if ,in ,macedonia two streams meet1 one of them extremely wholsome to drink1 the other mortal4#ig ,and other things of the same nature4 ,to these may be added what ,lucian1 an eye-witness relates of the river ,adonis in the country of the ,byblii4 ,the water of that river changes its colour once a year1 and turning as red as blood1 gives a purple tinge to the sea1 into which it runs3 and the cause of this phoenomenon he ascribes to its passing thro' mount ,libanus1 whose earth is red4#ih ,nor is it foreign to the purpose to observe1 that there are wonderful eruptions of water in some countries4 ,in the province of ,conaught in ,ireland1 there is a fountain of fresh water on the top of a high mountain1 which imitates the tide1 by sinking and overflowing twice a day4#ii ,a certain spring in ,hungary in the county of ,saros1 is under the influence of the moon3 since it is well known to increase with the moon's increase1 to diminish with its decrease1 and to run quite dry at the great change or new moon4#ajj ,in fine1 medicinal waters were not uncommon in ,palestine1 the accounts of which are collected by that great master of oriental literature1 ,hadrian ,reland4#aja #id ,lib4 iii4 ,cap4 xxvii4 #ie ,lib4 xxxi4 4 #cb4 #if ,ib4 4 ii4 #ig ,ib4 4 #ai4 #ih ,de ,dea ,syria4 #ii ,vid4 ,ortelii ,theatrum orbis terrarum4 #ajj ,vid4 ,geo4 ,wernher4 de admirandis ,hungari aquis4 #aja ,palstina ex monument4 vet4 illustr4 p4 #cjj1 c4 ,nevertheless those who contend for a miracle in this place1 say that there are no baths known1 which can cure all distempers2 nor any that retain their virtue but one single month in the year3 they likewise add1 that it was the action of the angel troubling this water1 that gave it its sanative qualities4 ,those who are of a different sentiment1 enumerate a number of waters1 which become salutary at certain times of the year1 by being then charged with metallic salts2 the mud of which being brought up from the bottom1 has been serviceable in many diseases4 ,wherefore they say1 it is not just to have recourse to a supernatural power for effects1 which may be produced by the ordinary course of nature4 ,but as far as ,i am able to judge of these contradictory opinions1 a middle way between them seems to me to come nearest the truth4 ,for my notion of the matter is1 that the water of this pool acquired its medicinal virtues from the mud settled at the bottom1 which was charged with metallic salts1 perhaps from sulphur1 allum1 or nitre4 ,and whenever it happened that the water was troubled by any natural cause whatsoever1 perhaps a subterraneous heat1 or rains2 these salts were raised up and mixed with it1 and might well be beneficial to those1 who went down into the pool1 before the metallic particles subsided4 ,wherefore it is no wonder1 that there lay1 in the porches of this bath1 which the evangelist says were five in number1 a great multitude of impotent folk waiting for the moving of the water2 and especially of such as laboured under those diseases1 for which it was serviceable1 as blindness1 palsies1 and decays4 ,and it was very natural for every individual person to endeavour to get into it as soon as possible2 for fear of being frustrated of their cure by the subsidence of the mud4 ,wherefore he who first stept in1 experienced the virtue of the water4 ,the next circumstance to be observed is1 that the fact here related1 happened when there was a feast of the jews1 that is1 the pentecost4 ,and we learn from ,eusebius1 that this method of curing prevailed but once in a year4#ajb ,but it is well known that this feast was celebrated in the month of ,may or beginning of ,june3 which is a very proper season for the virtues of medicinal waters4 ,upon which account the patients flock'd thither the more eagerly1 that they might catch a medicine1 which they could make use of but once a year4 #ajb ,loco citato4 ,lastly1 with relation to the angel1 who is said to have troubled the water at a certain season2 those who contend for a miracle1 attribute the sanative quality of the pool to him4 ,but we have already taken notice1 that whenever any thing uncommon or surprizing happened1 of which the jews could not investigate the cause1 they were accustomed to say1 it was done by the angel of the ,lord4 ,yet it is possible1 that ,god might have added this miraculous circumstance to natural effects1 that this pool should be sanative1 at one certain time of the year only1 and that too1 when the whole nation were assembled to celebrate their solemn festival2 and to him only1 who first went into it4 ,the reason of which proceeding 7if it be allowed to form a conjecture on the divine counsels7 might perhaps have been1 that ,god was pleased to testify by so manifest a sign1 that he would not1 as he had promised1 entirely abandon his chosen people2 before the coming of the ,messias4 ,wherefore upon the whole1 this salutary virtue of the water1 which might be medicinal by nature1 seems to be so regulated by ,god1 as at the same time to afford the jews a token of his presence4 ,but the power of ,christ1 administered to this infirm man1 a more noble remedy than that water1 his evil-chasing#ajc word4 ,and this power was the more seasonable in this case1 because the disease was of so many years standing1 that it could not be removed by a natural remedy3 whence his divine virtue shone forth the more brightly4 #ajc ,greek3 ,alexikakon4 ,,chapter ,,ix4 ,of ,demoniacs4 ,that the ,dmoniacs1 ,greek3 daimonizomenoi1 mentioned in the gospels1 laboured under a disease really natural1 tho' of an obstinate and difficult kind1 appears to me very probable from the accounts given of them4 ,they were indeed affected various ways4 ,for sometimes1 they rent their garments1 and ran about naked2 striking terror into all those whom they met1 and even wounding their own bodies2 so very furious1 that tho' bound with chains and fetters1 they broke their bonds1 and rambled in the most lonely places1 and among the sepulchres of the dead4 ,sometimes also they cried out1 that they were possessed by many devils1 which they imagined could pass out of themselves into other bodies4#ajd ,at other times1 either they were worried1 and made a hideous noise2#aje or were thrown on the ground1 without being hurt1 and the devil went out of them4#ajf #ajd ,see ,matthew1 ,ch4 viii4 v4 #bh4 ,mark1 ,ch4 v4 v4 #b4 and ,luke1 ,chap4 viii4 v4 #bg4 #aje ,mark1 ,chap4 i4 v4 #bc-bf4 #ajf ,luke1 ,chap4 iv4 v4 #cc-ce4 ,these are all actions of madmen2 but the dispute is1 whether they were wrought by devils1 or by the violence of the disease4 ,thus much is certain1 that in those times it was a common opinion among the jews1 that evil spirits frequently took possession of people1 and tortured them in so surprizing a manner1 as if they were agitated by furies4 ,for in the whole catalogue of diseases1 which afflict mankind1 there is no other1 that seems so much to surpass the force of nature1 as this1 in wretchedly tormenting the patient by fierce distractions of the mind1 and excessively strong1 tho' involuntary1 motions of the body4 ,but most certainly we find nothing sacred in all this1 nothing but what may arise from a natural indisposition of body4 ,and in order to place this my opinion in the stronger light1 it may not be improper to give a short discourse on madness2 not indeed on that species1 which comes on in an acute fever1 and goes off with it1 which is called a phrenzy1 and is always of short duration2 but that other sort1 which is rivetted in the body1 and constitutes a chronical disease4 ,wherefore all madness is a disease of an injured imagination1 which derives its origin from the mind1 having been too long a time fixed on any one object4 ,hence proceed uneasiness and anxieties of mind concerning the event4 ,and by how much the things1 whose images incessantly occur to the imagination1 are of greater moment in life1 the more violently they disturb the person2 examples of which we see particularly in love and religion1 wherein hope1 fear1 despair1 and other contrary passions1 succeeding each other by turns1 drag the person different ways4 ,that this is the case1 will not be doubted by any one1 who recollects1 that a madman often has a good memory2 manages his affairs1 except when some vain ideas come across his mind1 with tolerable prudence1 nay sometimes with more than ordinary cunning2 and that he ofttimes recovers the intire and permanent use of his reason1 by a course of proper medicines4 ,therefore in this disorder the person is first over-whelmed by terrifying ideas1 which are followed by wrath and fury1 as attendants on anxiety3 whence he threatens and attempts to do acts of the utmost cruelty to those who approach him1 and thro' excess of anguish1 frequently lays violent hands even on himself3 then he grows again melancholic2 and thus rage and dejection of spirits affect him alternately3 moreover it is no uncommon thing to see a person under these circumstances1 especially when the disease has taken deep root by length of time1 seeking unfrequented and solitary places1 in order to avoid the conversation of his fellow creatures1 ,ipse suum cor edens1 hominum vestigia vitans4#ajg ,gnawing his heart1 shunning the steps of men4 #ajg ,cicero1 ,tuscul4 ,disp4 ,lib4 iii4 #bf4 who has turn'd into ,latin this verse of ,homer3 ,greek3 ,hon thumon katedn1 patn anthrpn aleeinn4 ,il4 ,z4 v4 #bjb4 ,now1 people afflicted with this disorder1 often live a long time4 ,for all mad folks in general bear hunger1 cold1 and any other inclemency of the weather2 in short1 all bodily inconveniencies1 with surprizing ease2 as they enjoy a strength of constitution superior to what might be easily imagined4 ,likewise it frequently happens1 that an epilepsy comes on madness of a long standing4 ,for these diseases are nearly related2 and in this case1 we know by experience1 that there remain not the least hopes of recovery4 ,lastly it is to be observed1 that the patient is either frantic or melancholic1 according as his habit of body is disposed to receive this or that injury4 ,but that the casting out of devils1 is nothing more than the removal of madness1 many do not believe1 upon this account1 that those things which happen to persons thus affected1 seem to them impossible to be done by the force of nature4 ,but certainly these gentlemen are too much strangers to physic1 and have not sufficiently attended to phoenomena no less surprizing1 which daily occur in other diseases4 ,do we not often see that violent affections of the mind are the cause of death8 ,a sudden fright has destroyed many1 and even excessive joy has been fatal4 ,a dangerous distemper sometimes passes from one part of the body to another1 in the twinkling of an eye4 ,the venom thrown into the mass of blood by the bite of a mad dog1 generally lies still a good while2 and at the end of some weeks1 sometimes months1 exerting its strength1 it produces symptoms not inferior to those1 which are said to be produced by devils4 ,what is more surprizing than some things which fall out in pregnancies8 ,if a pregnant woman happens to have an eager desire for any thing1 and is disappointed1 she sometimes marks the foetus with the figure or likeness of the object longed for1 on this or that part of the body4 ,and1 what is still more1 and approaches to a prodigy1 upon the mother being terrified by a sudden injury done to any one part1 that very part in the child suffers the same evil1 and decays for want of nourishment4 ,i know that the truth of stories of this kind1 is called in doubt by some physicians2 because they cannot conceive1 how such things can happen4 ,but many examples1 of which ,i have been an eye-witness1 have freed my mind of all scruples on this head4 ,now1 the power of the imaginative faculty is so stupendous1 that the mind is not less affected by false1 than by true images1 when daily subjected to them4 ,this we find by experience in those women1 who are called witches1 who1 being under the influence of such an error of the mind1 frequently imagine that they not only converse with devils1 but also have enter'd into compacts with them2 and persist in these notions with such obstinacy1 that1 when they are brought to a trial1 they confess themselves guilty of wickednesses1 which they never perpetrated1 though they know that they must suffer death for their confession4 ,moreover1 every body knows how wonderfully the mind is disturbed in melancholies4 ,one of them thinks his head is made of glass1 and is afraid of stirring abroad1 for fear of having it broken3 another believes himself to be actually dead1 and refuses food1 because the dead ought not to eat4 ,there are a thousand stories of this kind4 ,i remember1 a man of letters1 with whom ,i was well acquainted1 who positively asserted that he was big with child1 and was vastly anxious for a happy delivery4 ,i saw two others1 who1 when alone1 fancied they heard the words of people whispering them in the ear4 ,nor is their case different1 in my opinion1 who persuade themselves that they see ghosts and hobgoblins4 ,for deliriums are a kind of dreams of people awake2 and the mind in both cases affects the body differently1 according to the nature of its objects4 ,from what we have said1 it manifestly appears1 how many different ways the lessons of imagination1 when they are confirm'd by long habit1 are capable of affecting a man1 and entirely ruining his whole frame4 ,but every body knows1 that the human mind is disturbed by nothing more than by fear2 the cause of which is self-love ingrafted in all men4 ,whereas then1 as ,cicero very justly observes1 there is no nation so savage1 no man so rude1 as not to have some notion of the gods2#ajh it is no wonder1 that men conscious of wicked deeds1 should be struck with the fear of ,god1 whose empire over all created things they acknowledged4 ,for1 as they attributed every good thing1 every benefit of this life1 to the gods2 so they were of opinion1 that evils and calamities were sent down by them in punishment of crimes4 ,now1 idolatry1 as ,i said above1#aji had its origin among the ,chaldeans2 and at first it consisted in the worship of the sun and moon1 but afterwards it was extended to the adoration of dmons4#aaj ,but these were believed to be divine ministers2 and that they were originally the souls of heroes and great men1 who were worshipped for services done to mankind in general1 or to their native country in particular4 ,and this dmoniac religion being propagated from the ,chaldans to the ,phoenicians1 then to the ,egyptians1 came afterwards to the ,greeks1 thence to the ,romans1 and in progress of time to the other nations4 #ajh ,tusc4 qust4 ,lib4 i4 #ac4 #aji ,cap4 i4 p4 #e4 #aaj ,see ,sir ,isaac ,newton's ,chronology1 p4 #afj4 ,but the jews1 accustomed to ascribe every uncommon or wonderful work of nature to the agency of angels1 as ministers of the supreme deity1 could easily work up their minds to believe1 that some dreadful diseases1 which injured the mind and body together1 the causes whereof they could not investigate1 arose from the operation of evil angels4 ,for we learn from ,philo ,judus1#aaa with whom ,josephus also agrees in opinion1 that they believed there were bad as well as good angels2 that the good executed the commands of ,god on men1 that they were irreprehensible and beneficent2 but the bad execrable1 and every way mischievous4#aab ,but a more illustrious example of this matter cannot be given1 than in the narrative of ,saul's disease1#aac of which ,i have already treated4#aad ,nor were madness and the epilepsy the only diseases1 which they imputed to devils4 ,when ,jesus had restored speech to the furious dumb man1 he is said to have done it by casting out a devil4#aae ,and when he had cured another furious person1 who was blind and dumb1 the pharisees reproached him with casting out devils by beelzebub the prince of the devils4#aaf ,in fine1 ,christ himself uses this common way of expression1 on occasion of the woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years1 whom he freed from that infirmity2 by saying1 that satan had held her bound these eighteen years4#aag #aaa ,lib4 de gigantibus4 #aab ,de bello judaico1 ,lib4 vii4 ,cap4 #f4 #aac ,see ,samuel 7or ,kings7 ,book i4 ,chap4 xvi4 #aad ,chap4 iii4 page #bh1 c4 #aae ,matthew1 ,chap4 ix4 ,verse #cb4 #aaf ,ib4 ,chap4 xii4 ,verse #bb4 #aag ,luke1 ,ch4 xiii4 v4 #af4 ,and this custom of taking madmen for demoniacs1 was not so peculiar to the jews1 but that it prevailed in other nations also4 ,hence in ,herodotus king ,cleomenes is said to be driven into madness1 not by any dmon1 but by a habit of drunkenness1 which he had contracted among the ,scythians1 whereby he became frantic4#aah ,and whereas ,greek3 daimonan signifies the same thing as ,greek3 daimonion echein1 ,xenophon uses this word for furere1 to be raging mad or furious4#aai ,moreover ,aristophanes1 intending to express a high degree of the same disease1 employs the word ,greek3 kakodaimonan1 and calls the highest degree of madness1 not ,greek3 manian1 but ,greek3 kakodaimonian#abj4 ,hence also1 as ,aretus observes1 this disease was called morbus sacer1 or the sacred disease1 because it was imagined that some dmon had entered into the man4#aba ,wherefore the physicians found it absolutely necessary to oppose this false notion with all their might4 ,because the people were generally persuaded1 that diseases1 which they believed to be caused by evil spirits1 were to be expelled1 not by medical skill1 but by religious rites and ceremonies4 ,upon this account the prince of physicians ,hippocrates1 or at least some one of his scholars1 wrote a very useful piece1#abb wherein he asserts that no diseases are inflicted on man1 immediately1 by any divine power2 and that those persons ought to be accounted magicians and jugglers1 who cover their ignorance with a veil of sanctity1 by infusing such notions into the minds of the people4 #aah ,lib4 vi4 ,cap4 #hd4 #aai ,memorabil4 ,lib4 i4 #abj ,vid4 ,plutum1 ,act4 ii4 ,scen4 #c4 v4 #ch4 ,act4 ii4 ,scen4 #e4 v4 #ae4 #aba ,greek3 ,dia ts doxs daimonos es ton anthrpon eisodou4 ,de causis morbo diuturn4 ,lib4 i4 ,cap4 #d4 #abb ,de morbo sacro4 ,but with regard to this power of the devils over human bodies1 believed equally by the jews and other nations1 ,i have already said1 that the divinity ought not to be made a party concerned in imposing diseases1 which may possibly have natural causes2 unless it be expresly declared1 that they were inflicted immediately by the hand of ,god4#abc ,for of all the diseases1 with which miserable mortals are tormented1 there are none so wonderful and dreadful to appearance1 but may be the natural consequences of bodily indispositions4 ,wherefore ,god himself1 if he thinks proper1 can employ either natural causes1 or the ministry of good angels1 to inflict all sorts of diseases on mankind4 ,and ,i hope nobody will believe1 that the devils have had the power granted them of torturing men at their wanton pleasure4 ,but to say more on this subject seems the less necessary2 because two very learned divines of our nation have already treated it in a full and ample manner4#abd #abc ,chap4 iii4 page #cj4 #abd ,see the works of ,jos4 ,mede #afgg fol4 discourse vi4 and enquiry into the meaning of demoniacs1 c4 ,therefore in order to put an end to these demoniacal diseases1 ,i will now briefly shew1 how they are to be treated4 ,and first of all1 particular care should be taken1 to keep the patient's mind employed in thoughts directly contrary to those1 which possessed it before3 for one set of ideas gives place to another1 and by effecting this change1 the mind is brought out of the state in which it was3 a circumstance1 to which the generality of physicians do not give sufficient attention4 ,when this can be brought about1 the disease is sometimes speedily cured4 ,but when either the long standing of the distemper1 or some other cause1 renders this total change impracticable2 at least the strength of the present set of ideas ought to be diminished and destroyed by all possible means4 ,the vain fears of some are to be diverted1 and their dismal thoughts dispelled4 ,the daring ferocity of others is to be curb'd2 for which end it is often necessary1 to use hard words and threats4 ,likewise sudden frights1 which may give the mind a different commotion1 from that which before disturbed it1 have been found to afford a temporary relief at least4 ,the ancients prescribed some corrections1 such as bindings and stripes4#abe ,and indeed it is sometimes necessary to bind those1 who are too unruly2 to prevent their doing mischief to themselves or others4 ,but there is the less necessity for torments and stripes1 because all mad men are of such a cowardly disposition2 that even the most frantic and mischievous1 after being once or twice tied1 surrender at discretion1 and thence forward refrain from committing any outrage1 thro' fear of the punishment4 #abe ,vid4 ,celsus1 ,lib4 iii4 ,cap4 xviii4 ,as to the medical part1 the gross humors of the body are to be thinned1 and the disorderly motion of the animal spirits is to be calmed4 ,for which end blood-lettings1 emetics1 cathartics1 blisters1 and setons1 also sometimes coolings of the head are to be employed4 ,to these the foetid gums are to be added1 especially assa foetida1 myrrh1 and galbanum4 ,and camphire has been frequently found serviceable in excessive ferocity and want of sleep4 ,but when the disease is accompanied by a fever1 nothing is more proper than nitre1 given in as large quantities as the stomach will bear4 ,lastly1 the patient is to be kept to a slender diet1 and compelled to use exercise4 ,but in all evacuations1 a certain degree of moderation ought to be used1 lest the madness be changed into a contrary disease1 which the ancients termed morbus cardaicus1#abf that is1 an excessive weakness of body4 ,in which case1 the patient is so far exhausted1 that medicines are of no avail2 but the miserable dejected man drags the remains of life1 alass6 generally too long4 #abf ,idem1 ,lib4 iii4 ,cap4 xix4 ,,chapter ,x4 ,of ,lunatics4 ,as some ancient physicians attributed the falling sickness to some divine power1 so they ascribed madness to the influence of the moon4 ,yet the lunatic1 ,greek3 selniazomenos1 whose disease is described in the gospels1 was affected with the falling sickness4#abg ,wherefore this patient 7for there is but one of this kind expresly recorded there7 was either mad and epileptic at the same time1 which is not uncommon2 or he laboured under a periodical epilepsy1 returning with the changes of the moon1 which is a very common case4 ,for the account given of him is very short1 that he ofttimes fell into the fire and oft into the water4 ,now in this distemper a person falls down suddenly1 and lies for some time as dead2 or by a general convulsion of his nerves1 his body is agitated1 with distorted eyes1 and he foams at the mouth4 ,but at length he recovers out of the fit1 and has no more knowledge or remembrance of it1 than if nothing had happened to him4 ,yet ,jesus is said to have rebuked the devil1 and he departed out of him1 and the child was cured4 ,that this child's case was epileptic1 appears more manifestly from the account given of it by the evangelist1 who was also a physician3 for he says1 that as soon as the spirit has seized the patient1 he cries out1 foams at the mouth1 and is torn and worried by him4#abh #abg ,matthew1 ,chap4 xvii4 v4 #ae and #ah4 #abh ,luke1 ,chap4 ix4 v4 #ci1 c4 ,now1 as to these ,greek3 selniazomenoi1 who are subjoined to the demoniacs1 as if their diseases were different1 and whom ,jesus is said to have cured2#abi they were either mad1 or mad and epileptic together1 which is not an uncommon case1 as we have just now said4 ,and as to devils1 we have treated of them sufficiently4 ,but with relation to the moon1 there is not the least reason to doubt1 but that the regular returns of the paroxysms at certain times of the month1 gave occasion to men to believe1 that this disease was lunar4 ,for that planet has such a real influence on this disease1 that it frequently happens to some patients1 never to be seized with the fit but about the new and full moon2 which seems to join its energy to those causes1 that are adapted to produce this evil4 ,but the manner of accounting for this ,i have delivered in another place2 where ,i have plainly shewn that our atmosphere has its tides as well as the sea4#acj #abi ,matthew1 ,chap4 iv4 v4 #bd4 #acj ,de morbo sacro4 ,and indeed the great ,hippocrates has long since taught1 that this disease is owing to natural causes1 and consequently1 by no means divine4#aca ,for altho' in his time1 neither the inward parts of the animal body1 nor the properties of the blood and humors1 especially of the nervous fluid1 were sufficiently known2 yet by his great sagacity and experience1 he has left us several useful observations1 in relation both to the nature of the disease1 and to its cure4 ,for he has shewn1 that it arises from too great a quantity of humors in the brain2 and therefore that the best method of cure is to dry up1 and lessen the quantity of this peccant matter2 without having recourse to incantations and juggling tricks1 so much in use in those days4 #aca ,see influence of the sun and moon1 ,chap4 i4 and ii4 ,but when in succeeding ages1 the use of medicines became more common1 a great number of remedies for this dreadful disease were invented1 some of which indeed were too filthy and shocking3 such as drinking the warm blood of a gladiator just slain2 eating human or horse's flesh1 the testicles and penis of some animals1 and other things of the same kind2#acb as if matters so repugnant to nature1 could be contrary to such grievous defects of it4 ,for so it often happens1 that when a rational medicine is not to be found1 any improper and rash one is attempted4 ,but such experiments are to be abandoned to itinerant quacks1 and credulous old women4 ,though even in our days our art is not sufficiently purged of this filth in these cases2 seeing the dung of some birds1 and the hoofs of quadrupeds are still ordered to be swallowed down by the sick4 ,but whereas chemistry has furnished us with the means of extracting the salts1 and other most active principles from bodies2 to me it is matter of admiration1 why physicians do not choose to order these principles to be taken pure into the body1 rather than the coarse and foeculant substances1 that contain them2 which are always disagreeable1 and sometimes hurtful also1 to the stomach4 ,but this most difficult distemper demands helps far superior to these2 nor will any one method of cure answer in all cases1 but the course must be altered according to the difference of constitution1 c4 ,however1 ,i will here propose those things1 which have been found to be most generally serviceable4 #acb ,see ,celsus1 ,lib4 iii4 ,cap4 xxiii4 ,cael4 ,aurelian1 ,lib4 i4 ,cap4 #d4 ,blood is to be taken away several times1 according to the strength of the patient1 in order to check its impetus4 ,vomits are to be administered now and then1 but cathartics more frequently4 ,it is particularly requisite to draw the redundant humor from the head1 which is done by blisters2 but better1 by applying a caustic near the occiput1 and making an issue1 which is to be kept constantly running4 ,these remedies contribute indeed to weaken the paroxysms2 but for removing the cause1 when it can be done 7for sometimes it cannot7 other helps are requisite4 ,for it is manifest1 that the cause lies chiefly in the nervous fluid1 commonly called animal spirits4 ,but to investigate the manner how this fluid is affected in diseases of this kind1 would1 in my opinion1 be a fruitless labour4 ,however1 as ,i have shewn on another occasion1#acc that it consists of very minute particles secreted from the blood in the brain1 and receives and imprisons a considerable quantity of that elastic matter1 universally diffused throughout all nature2 it cannot be doubted1 but that it may be so corrupted by some indisposition of the body or mind1 as to become more or less improper for executing the functions of life1 and perform all animal motions1 not at the command of the will1 but in a disorderly manner1 and with a certain ungovernable impetuosity4 ,now the best remedies for correcting this depraved condition of the animal spirits1 are chiefly those1 which have the most powerful faculties of attenuating the humors1 and throwing them out of the body by sweat4 ,of these the most excellent are the ,root of wild ,valerian1 ,russian ,castor1 the foetid ,gums1 and ,native ,cinnabar1 taken daily in pretty large quantities2 with the interposition of cathartics at proper intervals1 among which there is none better than the ,tinctura sacra4 ,i have long known by experience1 that the celebrated ,misleto of the ,oak1 is an useless weed4 ,and indeed how can it be otherwise1 since it has scarcely any taste or smell1 and is entirely indebted to the religion of the ,druids for its great character4 ,wherefore it is to be rank'd with those other frivolous things1 which superstition has introduced into physick2 unless a person can work himself up into a belief1 that the golden sickle1 with which it was cut down1 the priest's snow-white garment1 the sacrifice of white bulls1 and other such trifling circumstances1 are conducive towards a cure4#acd #acc ,account of poisons1 ed4 #c4 introduction4 #acd ,plin4 hist4 nat4 ,lib4 xvi4 4 ult4 ,,chapter ,,xi4 ,the issue of blood in a woman4 ,saint ,matthew relates1 that ,christ1 by his word alone1 cured a woman who had been diseased with an issue of blood for twelve#ace years4 #ace ,chap4 ix4 v4 #bj4 ,and here arises a question1 concerning the nature of this disease4 ,but as the words in the ,greek are ,greek3 gyn haimorrhoousa1 ,i am of opinion1 that it was a flux of blood from the natural parts1 which ,hippocrates#acf calls ,greek3 rhoon haimatd1 and observes1 that it is necessarily tedious4 ,wherefore having been exhausted by it for twelve years1 may justly be said to be incurable by human art4 #acf ,de morb4 ,lib4 i4 ,sect4 #c4 ,,chapter ,,xii4 ,weakness of the back1 with a rigidity of the back-bone4 ,there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years1 and was so bowed together1 that she could in no wise lift up herself1 and ,jesus laid his hands on her1 and she was freed from her infirmity1 and immediately made#acg strait4 #acg ,luke1 ,chap4 xiii4 v4 #aa1 c4 ,this woman was ,greek3 sygkyptousa1 that is1 stooping forward2 being unable ,greek3 anakypsai1 or to lift up her head4 ,now that spirit1 according to the common way of speaking of the jews1 was satan4 ,for thus ,christ himself1 answering the ruler of the synagogue1 who was angry that the woman had been cured on the sabbath day1 says1 that satan had held her bound these eighteen years4 ,and exactly in the same sense saint ,mark employs ,greek3 pneuma alalon for a spirit1 which obstructed the faculty of speech4#ach #ach ,chap4 ix4 v4 #ag4 ,this infirmity often befalls those1 who have been very long afflicted with a disorder of the loins3 whence the muscular fibres of that part become contracted and rigid4 ,wherefore it is very probable1 that this tedious disease proceeded from that very cause1 and was curable by the divine assistance only4 ,,chapter ,,xiii4 ,the bloody sweat of ,christ4 ,saint ,luke relates of ,christ himself1 that1 when he was in an agony by the fervency of his prayers1 his sweat was like drops of blood falling down on the#aci ground4 #aci ,chap4 xxii4 v4 #dd4 ,this passage is generally understood1 as if the ,saviour of mankind had sweated real blood4 ,but the text does not say so much4 ,the sweat was only ,greek3 hsei thromboi haimatos1 as it were1 or like drops of blood2 that is1 the drops of sweat were so large1 thick and viscid1 that they trickled to the ground like drops of blood4 ,thus were the words understood by ,justin ,martyr1 ,theophylactus and ,euthymius4 ,and yet ,galen has observed1 that it sometimes happens1 that the pores are so vastly dilated by a copious and fervid spirit2 that even blood issues thro' them1 and constitutes a bloody sweat4#adj #adj ,lib4 de utilitate respirationis4 ,,chapter ,,xiv4 ,the disease of ,judas4 ,in the number of diseases1 ,i rank the death of ,judas1 the wicked betrayer of ,christ2 of which ,i shall treat the more willingly1 because very learned interpreters of the holy scriptures have run into different opinions concerning it4 ,and about fifty years ago1 two famous professors of history in the university of ,leyden1 ,jacobus ,gronovius and ,jacobus ,perizonius1 handled this controversy in print with too much passion4 ,for polite literature does not always polish its admirers4 ,the origin of the dispute was this4 ,perizonius had published lian's vari histori1 with his own notes and those of others2 where taking occasion from what lian says of ,poliager1#ada he diligently examines the signification of the verb ,greek3 apagchesthai1 which saint ,matthew#adb employs in relating the death of ,judas2 and insists that that word does not only mean strangling with a halter1 but also sometimes excessive grief1 by which a person is brought to the brink of death1 and frequently even destroys himself4 ,this criticism was taken amiss by ,gronovius1 who had already published a book de morte ,jud1 wherein he had said that the wretch had voluntarily put an end to his life by a halter2 wherefore he drew his pen1 in order to refute his adversary's reasonings1 and corroborate his own4 ,moreover he quarrels with ,perizonius about the phrase ,greek3 prns genomenos1 which he positively affirms ought to be understood not of a dying man1 but solely of one actually dead1 or of a dead body cast or tumbled down4 ,for ,st4 ,matthew simply says ,greek3 apgxato1#adc but ,st4 ,luke more fully1 ,greek3 prns genomenos elakse mesos1 kai exechyth panta ta splagchna autou1#add that is1 falling headlong1 he burst asunder in the midst1 and all his bowels gushed out4 ,wherefore1 if the verb ,greek3 apagchesthai can bear no other signification than that strangling1 which is performed by a halter1 it is plain that the two evangelists do not agree together2 unless we say with the learned ,casaubon1 that ,judas hanged himself1 but the rope broke1 and he tumbled headlong down4 ,but this does not explain the manner of his death2 which saint ,luke manifestly seems to have intended2 but barely adds a circumstance of little moment1 which happen'd after it1 or at the very instant of it4 ,upon the whole it is certain1 that by this word is not only meant suffocation by hanging1 but also excessive grief1 with which those who are violently overpowered1 frequently compass their own death4 ,for1 as ,ovid says3 strangulat inclusus dolor4 ,and indeed ,perizonius has clearly proved this point by a number of examples1 drawn from ancient authors4#ade ,nor is it less to be doubted1 but that the expression ,greek3 prns genomenos1 may be used for one1 who voluntarily throws himself headlong down1 as well as for one1 who falls headlong by some accident3 which he has amply demonstrated4 #ada ,lib4 v4 ,cap4 #h4 #adb ,chap4 xxvii4 v4 #e4 #adc ,ibid4 #add ,acts1 ,chap4 i4 v4 #ah4 #ade ,vid4 dissert4 de morte ,jud1 responsones duas ad ,gronovium1 ,lugd4 ,bat4 #agjb #c4 ,this controversy cost more than one dissertation4 ,but after seriously considering the strength of the arguments produced by both parties2 ,i am of opinion1 that the words of saint ,matthew may be reconciled with the account given by saint ,luke from saint ,peter's speech1 in this manner4 ,when that most unhappy traitor saw that ,christ was condemned to death1 he began to repent of his deed2 and being thereupon wreck'd with grief and despair1 or seized with the swimming in the head 7which often happens in such cases7 he fell headlong down some precipice2 or1 which is more probable1 he designedly threw himself down1 and his body chancing to pitch on some large stone or stump of a tree1 his bowels burst forth1 and he was killed4 ,wherefore ,matthew declared his tortures of mind1 which made him destroy himself2 but ,luke has clearly and properly determined the manner of his death4 ,thus this kind of death ought1 with good reason1 to find a place in the list of diseases1 upon account of the real disorder of the mind4 ,,chapter ,,xv4 ,the disease of king ,herod4 ,,the disease with which ,herod ,agrippa is said to have been smitten1 by the just judgment of ,god1 in punishment for his pride and of which he died1 is remarkable4 ,for he finished his miserable life ,greek3 sklkobrtos1 that is1 eaten by worms1 as the sacred historian relates1 in these words1 ,upon a set day1 ,herod1 arrayed in royal apparel1 sat upon his throne1 and made an oration unto them3 and the people gave a shout1 saying1 it is the voice of a god1 and not of a man4 ,and immediately the angel of the ,lord smote him1 because he gave not ,god the glory2 and he was eaten of worms1 and gave up the#adf ghost4 ,josephus indeed1 in his account of the fact1 makes no mention of worms1 but says that he was suddenly seized with violent gripings1 and after being incessantly tortured with pains in his bowels for five days1 he expired4#adg ,but saint ,luke has informed us1 that the worms1 by which his bowels were eroded1 were the cause of the gripes4 #adf ,acts1 ,chap4 xii4 v4 #ba-bc4 #adg ,antiq4 jud4 ,lib4 xix4 ,cap4 viii4 4 #b4 ,now the greatest singularity in this king's disease is1 that it was instantly inflicted on him from heaven 7which he himself acknowledged according to ,josephus#adh7 otherwise as to verminose putrefaction in human bodies1 we have several instances of it4 ,for this very king's grandfather1 ,herod1 surnamed the ,great1 is said to have labour'd under this disease a long time1 till at length it threw him into a decay1 of which he died4#adi ,likewise ,herodotus relates of ,pheretima1 the mother of ,arcesilaus1 king of ,cyrene1 that she was rotted alive by worms4#aej ,and it is recorded of the ,roman emperor ,galerius ,maximianus1 that this same loathsome disease not only eat away his genital members1 but put an end to his life4#aea ,wherefore it was impossible1 but that some at least of the ,greek physicians must have observed some cases of this kind4 ,and accordingly ,galen has proposed medicines for ulcers1 ,greek3 sklkas echonta1 that is1 abounding with worms4#aeb ,for he says1 in abscesses there are frequently found animals1 ,greek3 za1 very like those1 which are engendered from corruption4#aec ,and ,philoxenus in ,aetius says1 that in the humor of ,atheroma's1 he sometimes found animals1 like gnats or little flies4#aed ,in fine1 ,paulus ,aegineta teaches the method of getting rid of them4#aee #adh ,ubi supra4 #adi ,josephus ,ant4 ,jud4 ,lib4 xvii4 ,cap4 vi4 7an4 viii87 #e4 ,de ,bello ,jud4 ,lib4 i4 ,cap4 xxxiii4 #e4 #aej ,hist4 ,lib4 #d4 a fine ,greek3 ,zsa eulen exezese4 #aea ,sext4 ,aurel4 ,victor4 ,epitom4 ,pompon4 ,laeti ,rom4 ,hist4 compend4 #aeb ,de compos4 ,medic4 per genera1 ,l4 iv4 ,cap4 x4 #aec ,lib4 de tumorib4 prter nat4 ,cap4 iv4 #aed ,lib4 xv4 ,cap4 vii4 #aee ,lib4 iv4 ,cap4 xlii4 ,in so clear a case1 it is needless to collect a greater number of authorities from the ancients1 especially since several modern physicians have made the same observations4 ,for ,marcellus ,donatus mentions a person of high rank1 extremely fat1 whose belly was eroded and mortified by little worms engendered in his skin1 which was excessively distended by fat and humors2 and these worms were not unlike those produced in old rotten cheese4#aef ,the learned ,nicolaus ,tulpius saw worms very like these1 issuing with the urine out of the body of a very celebrated physician4#aeg ,and the ,ephemerides natur curiosorum1 contain three remarkable cases of this kind4 ,the first is that of a certain ,frenchman1 whose blood was so corrupted1 that very minute animals came forth day and night with horrid tortures1 thro' most of the outlets of the skin1 as the eyes1 nose1 mouth1 and bladder2 and at length put an end to his miserable life4#aeh ,in the second1 black worms1 not unlike scarabi or beetles1 came out of an abscess formed in the calf of the leg of a girl4#aei ,and in the third it is said1 that very small white worms issued with the milk from the breasts of a woman in childbed4#afj ,nor can ,i omit two similar cases1 one of which is related by ,poterius1 the other by his commentator ,frideric ,hoffman4 ,the former attended a countryman1 for a tumor on his right knee1 out of which1 when opened1 little live worms issued1 which caused an intolerable pain in the part by their bitings4 ,and the latter saw a tradesman1 who had a hard tumor about the veins of the arms1 which was very troublesome to him4 ,this was opened by a surgeon several times without any benefit2 until an ulcer was formed1 out of which he took a great number of little black worms1 armed with stings or prickles4#afa #aef ,de hist4 medic4 mirab4 ,lib4 i4 ,cap4 v4 #aeg ,observ4 medic4 ,lib4 ii4 ,cap4 #a4 #aeh ,decur4 #b4 ann4 #e4 append4 ,artic4 #ch4 #aei ,ibid4 ,artic4 #eb4 #afj ,ibid4 ,artic4 #aji4 #afa ,poterii opera cum annot4 ,frid4 ,hoffmanni edita1 ,francof4 #afih4 pag4 #gb4 ,now these histories1 wonderful as they seem1 are not to be refused credit4 ,for all nature is animated in a surprizing degree4 ,the air which we breathe1 the food which we eat2 all fluids especially1 are full of animalcula of very different kinds4 ,whence it is possible1 that some of these1 being received into our bodies1 and conveyed into the minute passages of the softest parts1 as into nests1 may there grow1 as worms do in the intestines1 to their proper size4 ,hence by the obstruction of the smallest vessels1 tumors arise2 which being suppurated by heat1 and bursting1 pour forth their foul offspring in the shape of worms4 ,wherefore ,i cannot agree with those interpreters1 who imagine that ,herod was consumed by1 and died of the phthiriasis1 or louzy disease4 ,for ,greek3 sklx is a different creature from ,greek3 phtheir2 this corrodes the surface of the skin1 that the inner parts of the body4 ,nor can it admit of doubt1 that saint ,luke1 who was a physician1 well understood the meaning of both the words4 ,and yet ,i know that the disease proceeding ,greek3 hypo tn phtheirn is by some learned men confounded with that caused ,greek3 hypo tn sklkn2 of the first of which ,pherecides ,syrius1#afb and ,lucius ,sylla1#afc are said to have died4 ,whereupon ,kuhnius says1#afd ,i look upon the word ,greek3 sklkobrtos in saint ,luke1 and ,greek3 phtheirobrtos in ,hesychius1#afe to be synonimous terms3 and his reason is1 because lice are worms4 #afb lian4 var4 hist4 ,lib4 iv4 ,cap4 #bh4 #afc ,plutarcho in ejus vita4 #afd ,not4 ad lianum4 #afe ,lib4 de vit4 philos4 ,the ,,end4 ,transcriber's ,note ,obvious punctuation errors have been corrected4 ,due to the age of the text1 varied spelling has been preserved4