Dr. Colbatch's Legacy, OR THE FAMILY PHYSICIAN NUMBER I. CONTAINING An exact Description of the following DISTEMPERS, viz. I. ABORTION. II. AGUE. III. St. ANTH. FIRE. IV. APOPLEXT. V. APPETITE LOST. VI. APPET. VITIATED. WITH A plain and rational DISCUSSION both of their Causes and their Cures. Price Six-pence. (To be continued.) It is proposed to publish this Work in Sixpenny Numbers, once a Fortnight; and as it is digested into Alpha- betical Order, the Publick will from time to time be acquainted with the Diseases each Number contains. As it will be in the Power of the Learned to judge of the Reasonings advanced in this Treatise, as to the Nature and Causes of Diseases, so those of a weaker Capacity will easily discover by Experience the Usefulness of the Doctor’s Design, drawn from no other Principle than that of doing Good to Mankind. Dr. Colbatch’s Legacy, OR THE FAMILY PHYSICIAN: Containing an Account of all the DISEASES Incident to the HUMAN BODY: Alphabetically digested WITH A plain and rational DISCUSSION both of their Causes and their Cures. The Receipts for each Distemper being put in English; And the Method in which the Sick are to be treated carefully explained. Together with necessary Tables, Index’s, &c. LOND0N: printed for J. Roberts, in Warwick-Lane; and Sold by T. Astley, at the Rose in St. Paul’s Church-yard; J. Isted, at the Golden-Ball, near Chancery-Lane End; T. Worrall, at the Judge’s Head, over-against St. Dun- stan’s Church, and J. Janeway, at the Golden-Ball, near Water-Lane, Fleet-Street; alseby J. Jolliff, in St.James's Street. 34 DCC XXXIII. PREFACE. THE Science of Physic is not so great a Mystery (though industriously clouded by some of the Sons of Art) but any one may with a little Pains and Attention fall in with the most proper Method to pre- serve Health, or restore it in a Case of Sickness. A right Distribution of the circulating Blood and Juices is the Cause of Health and a vi- gorous Constitution; and hence the Solids of the Body are kept up without Waste, Suffering no Diminution in their Bulk and Firmness: On the contrary, when any Portion of Matter en- ters into their Composition that is too gross to make its Way thorough the Conveyances, and consequently raises a Lodgement upon this or that Part which the fluid Current cannot remove, thence is laid the Foundation of Dis- eases, and a Variety answering to the Nature of the Stoppage or its Situation. The first, viz. Health, is easily maintained by Exercise and ii PREFACE. and Temperance. As to the last, it shall be my Care in the following Sheets to lay before the World in a compendious Way all the ne- cessary Observations and Remarks upon Dis- eases that have been made from the Days of Hypocrates to the present Age, together with the most effectual Prescriptions and Method of Cure that have ever yet appeared. One need only take a cursory View of Apo- thecaries Files (who are the trusty Deposita- ries of Receipts) to be able to form a Judg- ment of modern Practice; where out of an hundred Recipe’s you shall scarce find two fit to convince you, that the Prescriber was in any great Pain about the Recovery of the Patient: Which extorted from honest Quincy, in his Dispensatory, the following ingenuous Confessi- on, But how can it be otherwise, when Practice is calculated rather for the Ease and Dispatch of a great deal of Business, than to cure Patients? whereby Cases of Difficulty are not worth the Cure of any but Quacks and such as venture at ran- dom. And yet Quincy, in Compliance with the Delicacy of the Times, has so far indulg'd the above vicious Defect, as to give an Encou- ragement to Juleps that are good for nothing. In the Dispensation of Medicines, where the Life of Man is always the principal Object, no Regard ought to be had to the Palate, far- ther than is consistent with the Preservation of the Patient; and the Remedy be rather adapt- ed to facilitate the Cure, than accommodated to the Taste of any Man; nor should Appetite be gratifyed at the Hazard of Life. Can any one PREFACE. iii one give a Reason why a Beau is to be kill'd out of Complaisance more than a common Beggar? Since the one wrapt up in Blankets upon a Sick-bed makes no worse an Appear- ance, or more pitiful a Figure, than the other under the same Circumstances. I must therefore beg the Reader’s Leave to. revive the old Way of ordering essential Oils and Powders into Juleps, Draughts, &c. for as the present Practice regulates this Matter, a Julep made of equal Quanities of White-wine and Spring-water, with half a Drachm of Spirit of Lavender, is better by far than any one now to be met with: And the Reason this polite Age gives for this Alteration from the Custom of our Forefathers, is the Neatness and Ele- gance of the Medicine: But for what Inten- tion is a Bauble, that can only please the Eye? And since it is own'd of all Hands, that the Juleps now-a-days are not to be depended on, farther than as any other common Vehicle to wash Things down of some Efficacy, why are they not quite expung'd the Dispensatory, or rejected in Prescription? Things of no Use make but an heavy Figure in the melancholy Apartments of the Sick, for which Reason, when I have Occasion to call in Juleps, they shall either be such as will perform the Cure of themselves, or in an obstinate Case (where Assistance is necessary from every Quarter) act at least: as stout Auxiliaries. As for those whose Delicacy of Constitution subjects them to Vapours, or a Difficulty of Choice, I have diversify'd the Method of Cure so, that where one iv PREFACE. one Form of Medicine happens to displease, they may find among the rest one at least that will go palatably down. Lastly, in my Manner of communicating the most powerful Remedies that are at this Day known, I have neither, as is the Fault of some, amass'd such a formidable Number of Medicines as, if the Patient was not a Man of a clear Head himself, would be more apt to fright him to Death than cure him; nor with others, after all their full-blown, dis interested and unreserv'd Promises at the Publication of their Works, taken leave of you at last with- out letting you into any other Secret than the Doctor’s Place of abode; but have made it evi- dent, by an open, candid, and earnest Appara- tus, that the Health and real Welfare of Man- kind is hereby only consulted, not any Self-end of mine No Prescription is embarrass'd, or Ingredient invented, to bring on an Application to a Physician. Dr. COL- [I] Dr. COLBATCH’s Legacy, &c. CHAP. I. ABORTION. THAT I may not trespass need- lessly upon the Reader's Time, by examining the several whimsical and extravagant Notions of Plato and others, (who all of them have but learnedly shew'd their own Ignorance) with regard to the Principles of Generation; I chuse rather to admire the Supreme Architect and his Work than presume to trace the wonderful and unfathomable Formation of an human Body. By the fortieth Day from Con- ception the little Embryo is no bigger than an Em- met, yet the Delineations of all its Parts are corn- pleat, and perfect, however imperceptible to the Eye. Who is he then that in so small a Body can with any Certainty pronounce, which Part was worked up first, or which last; or in what Manner formed : Such curious Inquiries, says Galen, will convince “ thee, that thou art sensible neither of thy own B “Shallow 2 Mr. COLBATCH’S LEGACY: “ Shallow Understanding, nor the Omnipotence of “ thy Maker.” As the Materials of any Structure, though laid in the Place where the Fabrick is in- tended to be built, cannot of themselves without the Hand of an Artificer rise into an Edifice, so Parents contribute nothing to the Birth but the Matter, all the rest is conduced by the Finger of Heaven, the Conception, regular Growth of the Body, Infusion of the Soul, and the Conservation of all the Parts. The Birth continues, if no untoward Accident intervenes, in its dark Inclosure, ’till it has arriv’d at Strength enough to bear the Violence of the Air, and a Change of Diet; but how long that Time is has been warmly controverted by the Learned. Hy- pocrates maintains that Children may be born in ihe eleventh Month. Aristotle is of the same Opinion. Homer mentions one born in the twelfth. Pliny tells us of a Woman that, was brought to bed in the thir- teenth, and Avicen of one deliver'd ift the fourteenth: But he who pitches the Bar farthest is Schenkius, who has been pleased to give instances of several, some of whom went two, some three, and others four complete "Years. Many Examples likewise may be seen in Avicen, Cardan, Spigelius, Montuus, Vallesius, Mena, and other Authors, of Women brought to lied in the fifth and sixth Month, whose Children notwithstanding liv'd and did well. But all these are groundless and ridiculous Stories, and Credulity reports the Tale, though it has neither Reason nor Experience to support it, leaning upon no other Foundation than what has been Suggested by the Cunning or Simplicity of the Mother: For either the Husband is dead, in which case a Bastard is to be palm’d upon him within ten, eleven, or twelve Months after his Death; or a simple Woman mistakes her Reckoning, which is a very common Accident, and the Child is reputed to be born in the fifth or sixth Month, when at the same Time the Vigour of the Infant gives a convincing Proof that he was born at his full Time. What or the FAMILY PHYSICIAN. 3 What Month soever then the Birth comes into the World with a due Strength and Proportion of Parts, we may conclude the Parent has gone at least seven Montns, if not eight or nine: And die Cause that frequently mature Births, strong and lively, are born in the seventh and eighth, as well as in the ninth Month, proceeds mostly from the Temperament of the Mother, whose natural Heat is of that Force to nourish and produce a Child in a shorter Time, who having reach’d all the Growth such a narrow Apart- ment will admit, and beginning next to want Re- spiration, ceases not to prompt and sollicit Nature, ’till thro' her friendly Offices he leaves his Prison. But if the Burthen cannot be sustained in the Womb to the due Time, then follows, according to the Course of its Stay, either a Shift or Slip, other- wife an Abortion. It is a Slip, properly speaking, 'till the fortieth Day, and afterwards an Abortion. In the first case there is scarce discernable any Form or Shape; in the last the Birth, whether alive o dead, is violently expell’d before Maturity. It is a common Remark, though false in many Instances, that Women who miscarry once suffer Abortion with the rest of their Children much about the same Period of the Year in which the first hap- pen’d. However, as such an Accident cannot be guarded against with too much Caution, any one who has once had the fatal Experiment ought, for her own sake as well as the Child’s, to keep her bed, if her Circumstances will permit, for at least ten Days before and ten Days after the dreaded Time, shunning all inordinate Passions of the Mind, ab- staining from Venus, boil’d or baked Meats, with all Manner of Things that provoke Urine, and for- bearing to stir out when the South Wind blows, be- cause then, as Hypocrates observes, upon every flight Occasion Women miscarry. Besides, whenever there is the least Suspicion of Danger, particularly in the three last Months, the Belly should be defended and B2 Under- 4 Dr. COLBATCH's LEGACY: under-prop’d with a Swathe, Belt, or Roller, to the end the Weight of the Birth may not tear the Liga- ments or Vessels that fasten it in the Womb. Women with Child should use moderate Exercise, (but where there is the lead Apprehension of Mis- carriage, not ride in Chariots or Coaches) it being a true Annotation of Aristotle, that those who accustom themselves to Exercise, meet always with the easiest Labours and least Pain. To stop either a Vomiting or Looseness suddenly has been often the Cause of Abortion, wherefore neither must be attempted, while they do not visibly weaken or prostrate the Spirits of the Woman; but so soon as these Symptoms appear, the Cure must not be longer delay’d, and the following Electuary will infallibly answer in either Affection. A Strengthening Electuary. Take Marmalade of Quinces, Conserve of red Roses, candied Nutmegs, Juice of Kermes, Syrup of Quinces, Syrup of Coral, of each half an Ounce; Species for the Confection of Hyacinth, 3 Drachms; Aromaticum Rosa- tum, and astringent Saffron of Mars, of each 2 Drachms; Salt of Wormwood, and Sugar of Lead, of each 1 Drachm; Oil of Cinnamon, 7 Drops: Mix all together into an E- lectuary. The Dose half an Ounce Morning and Evening. Those who cannot take an Electuary may chuse any one of the following Prescriptions, which will also be found effectual, provided they can but abstain from the Use of Malt Liquor ’till the Cure is perfected. An Infusion. Take red Rose Leaves and Oak Bark, of each half an Ounce; Salt of Wormwood 1 Scruple, Spring Water 2 Pints; give a close and warm Infusion for 10 Hours. Then drain, and add strong Cinnamon Water 4 Ounces, fine white Sugar 3 Ounces, Oil of Cinnamon 3 Drops, Dose 4 Ounces twice a Day, ’till the Symptom ceases. A Julep. or the FAMILY PHYSICIAN. 5 A Julep. Take Mint Water 6 Ounces; compound Gentian Wa- ter, compound Wormwood Water, and Syrup of Lemons, of each 2 Ounces; Salt of Wormwood 2 Scruples, liquid Laudanum 40 Drops, Oil of Cinnamon 4 Drops. Mix according to Art. Dose 3 Spoonfuls 3 or 4 times a Day. A Draught. Take Barley Cinnamon Water 2 Ounces, Mint Water and Syrup of dry Roses of each half an Ounce, Powder of Bole 1 Scruple, Salt of Wormwood 1o Grains, liquid Laudanum 15 Drops, Oil of Cinnamon 2 Drops. Mix for 1 Dose to be given at Night. A Bole. Take Powder of Spanish Angelica Root 6 Grains, red Coral 16 Grains, Species for the Confection of Hyacinth half a Scruple, Oil of Cinnamon 1 Drop, Syrup of Quinces what is sufficient to work up the other ingredients into a Bole. This Bole must be taken Morning and Evening 'till it satisfies the Intention. A Powder. Take Tormentil Root, Mastich, and Japonie Earth, of each 10 Grains; Sugar of Lead 2 Grains, Sugar of Roses 15 Grains, Oil of Mint 3 Drops. Make into a Powder for 1 Dose, to be given at Bed-time in a Glass of red Wine. Pills. Take Roots of the larger Comfrey, Solomon’s Seal, Tormentil, Blood-stone, Chalk, roch Alum, of each 1 Drachm ; Aromaticum rosatum 2 Drachms: Reduce into fine Powder, and make into a Mass with a sufficient Quantity ot Balsam of Tolu, and 12, Drops of Oil of Cinnamon, forming 3 Pills out of every Scruple. Dose 3 Pills twice or thrice a Day. Besides, in all Cases where there is any Likelihood, to prevent Abortion the following Plaster may be of excellent Service A Plaster 6 Dr. COLBATCH'S LEGACY: A Plaster. Take Rupture Plaster 1 Ounce, Bees-wax half an Ounce, Oil of Amber half a Drachm; melt them toge- ther, then add Powder of larger Comfreyroots 2 Drachms, Mastich, Armenian Bole, red Coral, Galls, Cinnamon, of each 1 Drachm ; Cyprus Turpentine enough to bring the whole into the Consistence of a Plaster : Apply it to the Region of the Loins, and the Back too, if there is an urgent Occasion. This Plaster needs not be taken off, unless there follows an Heat and Difficulty of Urine, in which Event it must once a Day be removed (the Place anointed with Oil of Roses) and then laid on again. However, let it be remember’d, that where there is any Certainty or well-grounded Apprehen- sion of a dead Child, or the Woman has gone out her full Time, not only Plasters, but even inward Medicines of an astringent (or binding) Quality would be attended with fatal Effects. If from a Fall, Blow, or violent Exercise there is any Peril of Abortion, it will be proper to breathe a Vein in a small Quantity, chusing rather to repeat the Operation (if wanted) than part with too much Blood at a time; for by this Practice many have been cured, who were formerly subject to Miscar- riages. After opening a Vein in consequence of a Fall, or any other mischievous Incident, 20 Grains of Rhubarb in Powder ought to be taken next Day, made up into a Bole, with a Drachm of the above- mentioned Electuary, and a Tea Spoonful or two of red Wine; and the Electuary continued afterwards, 'till every noxious Symptom is eradicated. And here it will not be amiss to observe, that no Purge but Rhubarb can falsely be administer’d to pregnant Women, in regard all others, even the most harmless of the Tribe, as Manna, Lenitive Electuary, Cas- sia, &c. through their Moisture unbrace and relax the Stomach, and consequently all the Parts which Commu- or the FAMILY PHYSICIAN. 7 communicate with the nervous Membranes of the Womb: Nor are Clysters convenient, for tho' they may sometimes do good, they have more frequently done harm. I shall add no more upon the Subject, but my best and heartiest Wishes that every Woman may live to be a joyful Mother of Children. CHAP. 11. AGUE. IT being the genuine Office of the Liver, Spleen, and Sweetbread, to attenuate and prepare the Blood and Chyle with a proper Ferment, to the end they may become more spirituous in the Heart, and be endow’d with a Power to give Nourishment to all the Parts, we need not wonder that many Diseases should owe their Rise to the interrupted Functions of those Bowels. While their Action is according to Nature, the Heart performs its Business with a mo- derate Heat; but if their Concoctions are crude and unlabour’d, the Heat is too small to produce a due Quantity of Spirits, which occasions a cold Habit of Body, and its Consequences; on the other hand, when they over-act their part, and make too subtile a Comminution of the Particles of the Blood, an extraordinary Effervescence follows, which loads the Spirits with an uncommon Acrimony and Heat, whence is laid the Foundation of Fevers, and several other Diseases. An Ague is an intermitting Fever, which seizes the Patient with an extreme Cold, Horror, and Shaking; afterwards with Heat, a Sweat, then for some time, more or less, gives a Truce; It is distin- guish'd 8 Dr. COLBATCH'S LEGACY: guish’d into Quotidian, which makes its Assault every Day; Tertian, which (if we reckon from the Hour of the Paroxysm) comes again on the third Day; and Quartan, which (computing the Time inclusively) returns on the fourth. This Divison of an Ague, how ridiculous soever in it self, might be excus’d upon the score of its Antiquity, if many of the Moderns had not from a crooked Hint or Con- jecture of Hypocrates, run it out into various other Branches, as the fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth Day Agues, and also diversify’d aimed every Symptom of it with a different Name. But since all this Diversity arises from an Obstruction that more or less indurates or hardens the fluid Consistence of the Juices, and retards their Motion, one serious Thought or calm Reflection is enough to convince any Man of an unprejudiced Head, that there can be but one Ague, however accidentally it may form or continue its Attacks. For is not an Ague, accord- ing to the Nature of the Habit of Body at the time, either vehement or mild, long or short, and attended with Thirst, Lassitude, Dryness of the Tongue, an irregular Pulse, Gaping and Yawning, Oppression about the Heart, Loss of Appetite, an Head-ach, a Pain both in the Back and Loins, often a Squeamish- ness and Vomiting during the whole Course of the Fit, and sometimes more other times fewer Symptoms? All its various Effects therefore proceed in a manner corresponding to the Quantity or Quality of the offending Matter, which in the Beginning of the Disease is generally contain’d within the Vessels of the first Passages. If it renews its Attacks every Day, which very seldom happens, the Sick are for the most part invaded about Night with a Cold and Shaking of the extreme Parts, succceded by a mode- rate Heat but no Sweat, though afterwards in the Progress of the Disease they sweat a little. The Pulse is small and slow, and the Paroxysm conti- nues eighteen Hours, so that the Patient has but six Hours or the FAMILY PHYSICIAN. 9 Honrs free in the twenty four. Again, if the Fit re- turns but once in forty eight Hours, with an ex- traordinary Cold, then intense Heat, an unequal and weak Pulse at first, but vehement and quick in its Increase, great Thirst, &c. and docs not last above 12 Hours, this forsooth must be an exquisite Tertian, and always determines at the seventh Fit, where no Error is committed in Medicine or in Diet. But if the Paroxysm extends to more than 12 Hours, and comes every other Day, whether its Return keeps to a certain Hour or not, in this case it gets the Name of a Bastard Tertian. As to the last, which takes its Appellation from a Quartan Circuit, tho’ it intermits two Days, the Patient is afficted with a troublesome Uneasiness all over his Body, follow’d by a Shivering, which at first is but little, but afterwards increases upon the Continu- ance of the Disease, so as to be both violent and painful; the Heat kindles by degrees, nor is immo- derate, and the Pulse much the same as in a Tertian; a Diaphoreds or Sweat is scarce perceptible in the Beginning, but rises copiously in the Course of the Disease. Such is a pure Quartan, but in the Bastdard Sort there is great Heat, Thirst, Restelsness, and many other Symptoms. However, this is common to both, that the Duration of the Fit cannot well be ascertain'd, for sometimes it continues 24 Hours, and at another is concluded in a much shorter Space. Now though an Ague in many Instances keeps to stated Periods, yet in others it observes none at-all, the second Paroxysm falling out either an Hour sooner or an Hour later than the first, and at the same rate anticipating or postponing every Fit while the Dis- temper remains. Sometimes too the Paroxysms are shorter, and sometimes longer, which Accident arises from an Augmentation or Decrease of the morbid Matter of the Body, as also from the Quality of the Humours; for where there is a great Collection of malig- 10 Dr. COLBATCH ’s LEGACY: malignant Stuff, or it is viscid and thick, Nature takes a longer Time before she can disuss and expell it out of the Body; whereas when it is in a small Quantity, or but thin, she gains an easier and quicker Conquest of the Fit. And that the Paroxysms still recur, notwithstanding the Diminution of the Mat- ter, and Shortness of the Fits, is owing to the putrid Disposition of the Humour, which as it varies its Nature, so are the several Accidents of an Ague: Thus it happens, that what used to assault upon the third Day, may come to degenerate into a fourth Day Circuit. But in regard whilst any the least Particle of this Corruption lies lurking in the Body, and of consequence the Part is enfeebled, where it resides, what Portion soever of the circulating Juice has the Misfortune to fall into its Embraces, receives immediately an Infection; and thence springs a fresh Paroxysm, which will periodically have a run, 'till the Cause is extirpated, and the injur’d Member restored to Vigour, This terrible Distemper is most frequent about Autumn, and the latter End of the Year, tho' no Season if it be cold or moist can plead an Exemption, but not dangerous, provided the Cure be concerted with Judgment, and the Patient willing to comply with a proper Regimen. As to the first, the Business of the Physician is to consider carefully where Na- ture leads, and towards the same Purpose to direct his Medicines. Nature (by which I mean all the instruments of Circulation) gives us here a most signal Evidence of her tender Care, and earnest Strug- gle for the Preservation of the Body. How vigo- rous are her Efforts in a Skirmish with the Enemy, and how surprising frequently the Consequence? The Patient being often cured (where Intemperance docs not stand in the way) by her means alone, without the Help of Medicine. Does she not during the Paroxysm generally provoke the Patient to vomit, and in the End of it move him to a Sweat ? Hereby signi- or the FAMILY PHYSICIAN. 11 signifying the most rational Method to overcome the Disease. And the fatal Effects of persuing ano- ther Course, without an antecedent Preparation of the Body, are visible in a Multitude of Instances every-where to be met with. Is it not too common a Practice upon the first Approach of an Ague to fly immediately to the Bark? by whose pernicious Astringency the Humour is nail’d down upon the Part, and all Assistance from Nature cut off, so that though in the mean time the Patient thinks he has got a Cure, yet in the Event he finds that he has only exchang’d a bad Enemy for a worse. The pu- trid Matter breaks forth at last from Confinement, and invades him afresh either with an Ague of a more malignant Quality than the first, or appears in the Shape of a dangerous Catarrh, Asthma, Gout, or other Distemper, according to the Texture of the Vessels infected with its Malignity. And that this is the principal, nay only Qualification of the Bark (however injustly celebrated for promoting insensible Perspiration) is hence demonstrable, from its being a noble and safe Medicine join’d with other Ingre- dients, as well in obstinate Loosenesses, as in a con- tinual and immoderate Profusion of Sweat. Nor do I condemn altogether the life of it in Agues, all I contend for is, that Mankind would in Mercy to themselves forbear taking it, ’till the Body has been so prepared, that it may be administer’d with Safe- ty; for if this is not attended to, it will infallibly do Mischief, without a Possibility of doing Good. As for the Sick, they must be particularly careful with relation both to Meat and Drink; all salt Victuals must be avoided, especially what has been dry’d in the Smoak, they must likewise forbear eating Pork, Cucumers, Melons, Grapes, and all other raw Fruits, and conform for a little while to a spare Diet, remembering that what Food soever is taken down nourishes more the Disease than it does them, and not to eat or drink any thing that is not Milk-warm, C2 and 12 Dr. COLBATCH's LEGACY: and upon the Sick-day not to taste Food at a less distance than four Hours before the Fit. Drink too should be taken in a very moderate Quantity, else it may change the Accidents of the Fever, and con- sequently by protracting the Disease reduce the Pa- tient to such a Weakness, as will bring on a Con- sumption, or end him in a Dropsy. He must shun all manner of Spirits, drink only Spanish Wine, but always medicated; or (if he cannot afford this) stale Beer that is not too old. And if the Ague goes a Quartan Circuit, or is attended with a Pleurisy, Spitting of Blood, bloody Urine, Bloody-Flux, Ul- cers of the Reins and Bladder, or has join’d it self to the Pathifie, all Acids are pernicious, as Oranges Lemons, Vinegar, Oil and Spirit of Vitriol, and Spirit of Salt, &c. tho’even these may be used with Safety under the other Circumstances of an Ague, The shorter the Paroxysms are, and the sooner a Sediment appears in the Urine, and especially when a Vomiting seizes the Patient in the Beginning, the more speedy will be the Cure. Sometimes the Jaun- dice following upon it (by giving a new turn to the peccant Matter in the circulating Humours) dis- lodges the Disease, and that certainly, if there en- sues any Evacuation either by Stool or Urine. An Ague that comes every Day, and changes the man- ner of its Attack to the third Day, gives the Pro- spect of a safe Recease from the Malady. But if the morbid Matter and Viscidity of the circulating Humours be such as (by the Weight of the Obstruction) breeds an hard Swelling without Pain in this or that Bowel, or Part, and cannot be speedily remedied, it shews the Ail will be of stub- born Continuance, and at last call in a Cachexy or Dropsy to conclude the Patient. Where the Paroxysms are very long, and never terminate in a Sweat, and the Disease is attended with a great Loss of Appe- tite, the sick Person is in no small Danger. When an Ague settles upon those who are upwards of sixty years or the FAMILY PHYSICIAN. 13 Years of Age, it is generally, tho' not always, mortal: Or if, in younger People (by an unskilful Administration of Medicines, or through Gluttony or Drunkenness) it is changed into a burning or malignant Fever, without the Blessing of Heaven, and exquisite Management, there is but little Hope of the Patient’s Life. We see the Course Nature steers, in order to rid herself of this impertinent Guest; Part of the ob- structing Humours is discharg’d by Vomit, some by Sweat, and others by Urine, for she seldom in this Disease points out the way by Stool, while the Re- mainder (as much of it as can be managed at once) is carried back into the refluent Blood, there to be thin’d, and fitted for a more easy Expulsion. Since this is the plain and obvious Intention of Nature, let us set about the Cure in the following Manner : The vitious Humour must be evacuated with this Vomit. An Emetic Bole. Take Tartar Emetic 8, 7, 6, 5, or 4 Grains (according to your Strength, or known Ease or Difficulty to be work’d upon) Cochineal 6 Grains, Conserve of Roman Wormwood half a Drachm, Venice Treacle 1 Scruple; mix together into a Bole; to be taken 3 Hours before the Accession of the second. Fit, managing yourself, during the Operation of the Vomit, as shall be directed in the Chapter upon Appetite lost. When the Vomit has done working, get instantly to Bed, and as near as you can guess to an Hour be- fore the Paroxysm take this other Bole. A Diapboretic Bole. Take Salt of Wormwood 1 Scruple, Camphire 8 Grains, Confection of Alkermes just what is sufficient to make a Bole: Drinking after it a large Glass of the following Decoction. An 14 Dr. COLBATCH’s LEGACY: An Apozem. Take Leaves of Sage, and Flowers of Chamomile, of each half a Handful, White-wine and Water of each a Pint; remove it off the Fire the Moment it begins to boil, and when it has flood close stopt ’till it is cool, strain it out for use, and add to it the Juice of one Le- mon: remembering however to forbear this Addition in the Case of a Quartan Symptom. Or instead of the above Apozem, get ready this Medicated Wine, of which take a Glass-full, to wash down the aforesaid Bole, using it likewise in all the Circumstances of an Ague for ordinary? Drink. A Medicated Wine. Take Roots of Butterbur, Masterwort and Succory, of each 1 Ounce; Leaves of Water-Germander, (alias Scor- dium) Roman Wormwood, and Horehound, of each one Handful; Chamomile Flowers 3 Handfuls; slice the Roots, cut the Herbs small, and hang the Mixture in a Linnen Bag in a Glass Vessel, and pour over it 1 Gallon and an half of White Port, it will be fit to drink in 24 Hours. Those who cannot afford Wine may infuse the same Mixture in Beer, but then it will not be fit for Use under three Days. And the same Method should be repeated, that is to say, both the Vomit and the Bole, before and af- ter the third Paroxysm and the fourth; but if the Patient is cow-hearted, and cannot work himself up to a Resolution of taking three Vomits, I shall be satisfy'd if he will take but one, and continue the Bole 'till he finds a Cure, which for the most part will be brought about before the fixth Paroxysm But then from the Day that the Ague bids him Good- night, he must (to prevent a Relapse) take every Morning and Night, as he goes to Bed, the Bigness of a Chesnut of this Electuary. An or the FAMILY PHYSICIAN. 15 An Electuary. Take Powder of Tamarisk Bark, Roots of Masterwort, Lovage, and Succory, of each 2. Drachms; Flowers of Chamomile half an Ounce, Salt of Wormwood 2 Drachms, Conserve of Roman Wormwood 1 Ounce and an half, Tincture of Salt of Tartar do Drops, Syrup of Five Roots enough to make into an Electuary. Continue the use of this for a Fortnight, together with the Medicated Wine. One Thing must not be forgot, that no Vomit, far less a Purge, is to be exhibited after Sediments have appear’d in the Urine, for fear of perverting the Motion of circulating Nature, and lengthening out the Disease. As to breathing a Vein in this Distemper, it can never be necessary, except a Pleurisy supervenes, but may be hurtful, and render the Patient unable to struggle with the future Paroxysms of the Disease. If the Belly is at any Time too costive, and there- by produces either Pain or Uneasiness, let this Clyster be injected. A Clyster. Take Rhubarb in Slices 1 Drachm, Groundsel 2 Hand- fuls ; boil in a Quart of Water to 12 Ounces; then drain- ing it out hard, add Chymical Oil of Anise half 2 Drachm, and use it warm as often as it is wanted. But because a Variety of Structure is necessary to fix the Attention of some People, even to Things that relate only to their own Benefit, we shall pro- ceed to diversify the Cure. A Vomit, Take Tartar Emetic 6 or 4 Grains, Saffron and Dia- phoretick Antimony of each 3 Grains, Mathew’s Pill a Grains; mix together into a Powder, and take it down in a Glass of White-wine immediately after the Conclusion of the first Paroxysm, and observe the Management di- rected at Chap. V. Appetite lost. Then 16 Dr. COLBATCH's LEGACY: Then every Night and Morning use the following Pills. Pills. Take Powder of the Roots of Gentian and Masterwort of each 1 Drachm, Powder of the Leaves of Wormwood and Chamomile Flowers of each a Drachms; Pearl pre- pared, Crabs Eyes and Lapis Lazuli finely levigated, of each half a Drachm; Salt of Wormwood and Bay Berries, of each 1 Drachm and an half; Balsam of Tolu no more than is sufficient to make the Whole into Pills. Dose a Drachm at a Time. And about an Hour before the second Paroxysm take this Powder in a Glass of Wine. A Powder. Take Antimony Diaphoretic, Salt of Wormwood and Leaves of Cinquefoil, of each 1 Scruple ; redce into Powder, and convey down with a Glass of Wine ; re- peating the same before every Paroxysm ’till all the Sym- ptoms cease, and in the mean Time not neglecting the above Pills. Where the preceding Methods are not acceptable, let the Patient (after having premis'd the Vomit as at first ordered, which is necessary to divide and fit the obstructed Humours for Separation) take, imme- diately after the first Paroxyfm is ended, this Draught. A Draught. Take Powder of Virginia Snakeweed 15 Grains, Cochi- neal 7 Grains, Venice Treacle half a Drachm, White-wine 3 Ounces; mix, take and go to Bed, encouraging a Sweat for an Hour or two. Then about an Hour before every suceceding Pa- roxyfm use this Bole. A Bole. Take Salt of Wormwood, Powder of Myrrh and Alum, of each 1 Scruple, Oil of Chamomile chymically drawn 3 Drops, Confection of Alkermes enough to make a Bole; Remem- or the Family physician. 17 Remembering that as Exercise is in all Cases ser- viceable, it is here neccssary. Any of these Methods will make an effectual and speedy Cure, but more particularly the first, which never fail’d me but once in ail my Life; and has too under my Direction remedied this Distemper, after an unsuccessful Prosecution of the Bark by others for two Years together. And here I must endeavour to obviate one Excep- tion, which some People have upon Trust and with- out any Grounds taken against Camphire, viz. That it occasions Impotence: Now Experience only must be Judge in this Matter: From repeated Experiments, as well upon myselt (for I began always at home first) as upon Numbers of others, I never met with one Instance wherein this best and safest of all Medi- cines had such an Effect. And no one Symptom can happen in this Distemper wherein it would not be of admirable Use; which Encomium is by no means due to the famous Bark. What Silvius said of Opium, and Quincy iikewise ascribes to the Bark, may with infinitely greater Reason be the Distinction of Cam- phire, viz. That without it Physick would not be worth practising. Those who have such an Opinion of the Bark, as to like it better than any other Medicine, shall be here instructed how it may be administer’d with Safety. Three Vomits must of Necessity be premis’d, each to be taken about three Hours before a Paroxysm; then after the fourth Fit, the Bark may be suffer’d to give its Assistanes in many Cases without any Damage. C Pills. 18 Dr. COLBATCH’s LEGACY: Pills. Take Peruvian Bark in fine Powder half an Ounce, Roots of Tormentil in Powder 2 Drachms, Flowers of Benjamin half a Drachm, Spirit of Wine tartariz'd 70 Drops, Balsam of Tolu a susfficient Quantity to make in- to Pills; ten out of each Drachm of the Mass. Dose fix, thrice a-day upon the Well-days; and twelve an Hour before the Coming of the Fit. And this may be safely used even in a Hectick Constitution. An Electuary. Take Peruvian Bark in fine Powder 1 Ounce, Salt of Steel and Salt of Amber, of each 1 Drachm, Powder of Crabs Eyes and Bay Berries, of each half a Drachm; Sy- rup of Five Roots enough to make into an Electuary. Dose the Quantity of a Nutmeg betwixt the Fits, and to be taken twice a-day on the Well-days; doubling the Quantity when it is given an Hour before the Fit. This is the safest Preparation of it for cold Con- stitutions, and in an obstruction of the Menses. But in an hot Temperature of Body this following is preferable. An Electuary. Take Peruvian Bark in fine Powder 1 Ounce, Powder of the Roots of Cinquesoil half an Ounce, Antimony Diaphoretic and Salt of Wormwood of each 2 Drachms, Tincture of Nitre 100 Drops, Oil of Chamomile chymi- caliy prepared 6 Drops, Syrup of Gilly-flowers enough to make into an Electuary. Dose the Bigness of a Ches- nut thrice a-day between the Fits: But to be discontinued by Women about the Time of usual Disharges. If the Constitution is otherwise strong, having nothing else to combat but an Ague, after the Body has been prepared duly with three Vomits, let the Patient, in order to get rid of it at once, take about an Hour before the fifth Paroxysm the following Bole. A Bole. or the FAMILY PHYSICIAN. 19 A Bole. Take Peruvian Bark in fine Powder a Drachms, Venice Treacle half a Drachm, Camphire 6 Grains, Syrup of O- ranges enough to make a Bole. Take this being in Bed, and expect a thorough Sweat, drinking a large Draught of warm Sage Tea after it. Or in an obstinate Ague, that seems deaf to all Medicines and a vigorous Constitution, that may be able to bear a thorough Shake, the following strange Medicament, which has in some Instances prevail’d at one Dose, may be given. A Draught. Take Cork (roasted upon the Fire 'till fit to be pow- der’d) in fine Powder 2 Drachms, Venice Treacle half a Drachm, Treacle Water 4 Ounces, White-wine 2 Ounces; mix well together for a Draught. The Patient must be in Bed, and cover’d well up with Cloaths, taking it an Hour before the Fit, in Expectation of a violent Sweat. As for Children, who are often troubled with slight Intermittents, occasion’d by Worms (which may be known by the Hardness of their Belly, a stinking Breath, and a Decay of Strength in their lower Parts) if they are under six Years of Age, the Management must proceed in this manner. Take 1 Scruple of Camphire, which must be hung about their Neck in a little Silk Bag, so low as to reach the Stomach; then give them the following Purge. A Bole. Take Rhubarb in Powder 7 Grains, Æthiops Mineral 6 Grains, Confection of Alkermes enough to make a Bole; to be given in a Morning, and repeated with Discretion kill the Malady goes off. If the Child exceeds six Years of Age, hang in the same manner half a Drachm of Camphire about his D2 Neck; 20 Dr. COLBATCH’s LEGACY: Neck; (which Experiment by-the-bye has sometimes cured an Ague even in Men and Women) then give him the following Purge. A Bole. Take Rhubarb in fine Powder, and Calomel, of each 10 Grains; Conserve of Wormwood enough to make a Bole: And this give every third Day ’till the Cause is ex- tirpated. Sometimes Patients are so stubborn, as to refuse absolutely all inward Medicines; for the sake of such therefore I shall give next the best Advice I am able, tho’ nothing of this Nature within the Power of Physick can be depended on with Certainty. A Plaster. Take Cummin Plaster, Hemlock Plaster with Ammoni- acum, Tacamahaca and Frankincense, of each 1 Ounce; Powder of Tabacco, Native Cinnebar, Æthiops Mineral, and Pepper, of each half an Ounce; Camphire 3 Drachms, Chymical Oils of Turpentine and Savin, of each 1 Drachm, Balsam of Peru a sufficient Quantity; mix into an Emplaster according to Art. A long Slip of Leather must be spread with this, and apply’d to the Back-bone, a second Plaster laid upon the Navel, a third to the Stomach, two to the Soles of the Feet, and two to the Wrists; and at the same Time this Clyster must be injected thrice a Day, observing always to give it especially at the going off of the Fit. A Clyster. Take Peruvian Bark in very fine Powder half an Ounce, boil in a strong Decoction of Chamomile Flowers (which has been drain’d from the Flowers; to half a Pint; then without draining add Chymical Oils of Camphire and Savin, of each half a Drachm ; mix together and inject. If or the FAMILY PHYSICIAN. 21 If in any Case upon the Cessation of the Disease a Dropsy follows, the Cure must not be attempted by Purges, but Strengtheners and Alterants given, mix’d with Diuretics, that may at once fortify the Body, and remove the Ail, as An Electuary. Take Species Dianthus, Powder of Marshmallow Roots and Elecampane, of each half an Ounce; Bay Berries and Crabs Eyes, of each 2 Drachms; Conserve of red Roses and Scurvy-Grafs, of each 1 Ounce; Syrup of Marshmallows a sufficient Quantity to make an Electuary. Dose the Bigness of a Chesnut 3 times a-day; adding to the Morning Dose for at least a Fortnight 5 Grains of Salt of Steel. I shall make only one Remark more, and have done with the Subject; if an Ague proceeds from an in- ward Ulcer, or has been occasioned by a Pleurify, St. Anthony’s Fire, or an Itch foolishly drove in by a Quick-siver Girdle, or joins it self to a Bloody- flux, or Phthisis, in such a lamentable Event no one Preparation of the Bark could be thought of, that would not do Prejudice; and among all the above Medicines, that Method which I began with first is the most safe and proper, provided the Patient does not add the Juice of Lemon, as there order’d, for un- der the Circumftances above-mentioned all Sorts of Acids he must forbear, whether Mineral or Vege- table. CHAP. 22 Dr. COLBATCH's LEGACY: CHAP. 111. St. ANTHONY's FIRE. I SHALL under this Head include likewise the Tetter and Shingles, in regard of their Affinity to one another, and that all three concur sometimes upon one Place. Erysipelas, or St. Anthony’s Fire, is a Tumour (deposited within the Skin it self, or subjacent Muscles) arising from a Viscidity which obstructs the minute Passages of the Parts, and attended with a violent Heat, Inflammation and Pain, and also a Fever, where it has not been occasion’d by an ex- ternal Cause. It seizes commonly upon the Neck, Face, Head, Thighs, or Legs, is of a Colour be- tween pale and red, and the Swelling not large, easily giving way to the Touch, and as soon returning to its former Extension. Where, through an unskilful Management, it comes to suppurate, a Gangrene is often the Consequence; or if, after Eruption, it should disappear of a sudden, or is imprudently drove back into the Mass of Blood, without any previous Endeavour to enlarge the Dis- charges by Urine and Perspiration, the Patient would in either Case be in no small Danger: Likewise if a Delirium follows, or the Distemper has infected any of the Bowels with its Malignity, the Cure would be both difficult and incertain. The Tetter shews it selt in several Shapes, some- times disfiguring the Skin with rough hard Pustles, that diffuse their Contagion to the neighbouring Parts, fretting and almost ulcerating the Skin where- ever they spread, and without proper Care degene- rates into an Elephantiasis [Leprosy] or else a Can- cer. At another Time it breaks out in the Form of an Ulcer resembling a Pin-hole, but neither in- flamma- or the FAMILY PHYSICIAN. 23 flammatory nor painful, nor with any perceptible Flow of Matter unless open’d, in which Event it turns to a Scab, and if not timely prevented, will consume and prey upon the Flesh like a Cancer. One while it arises in a Clutter of little Wheals, with an intolerable Itching, and in Colour not alter’d much from the rest of the Skin; a thinnish Humour issues out of them, when rub’d or scratch’d, and little Scabs follow in the Figure of Millet Seed; and at another, in the Similitude of an ample Pustle sur- rounded with an Inflammation of a yellow Colour, which suppurates in a short Time, and is accompa- ny’d with, no Danger, except there is conjoin’d to it an Erysipelas with the Symptoms of a Fever, from an Union of which Accident springs the Distemper which the common People call the Shingles, when they see it in a circular Manner invade the Waist. As all these Eruptions produce commonly an in- tense Heat, Itching and Pain, the Person affected is apt to have Recourse to refrigerating Fomentations, or same cooling Ointment which may asswage the disagreeable Sensation: But this Practice, instead of removing, only palliates for a short Time the Ail. Such Medicines therefore are to be used in this Case, as open at once the Passages, and dissipate the ob- structed Matter by Transpiration. The Patient must immediately have a Vein open’d in his Arm, sending out eight or nine Ounces of Blood, and the same Night take the following Bole. A Bole. Take Diuretic Sal Armoniac and Antimony Diaphoretic of each 10 Grains, Camphire 5 Grains, Venice Treacle and Conserve of Wood-Sorrel of each half a Drachm, Syrup of red Poppies enough to make a Bole. Then next Morning this Purge. Take Pills of Rudius 1 Scruple, Calomel and Salt of Amber of each 10 Grains, Oil of Chamomile 2 Drops, Extract of Saffron no more than may be wanted to form 6 Pills for a Dose. But 24 Dr. COLBATCH’s LEGACY: But a Woman with Child must not venture upon any Cathartic but the following. A Purge. Take the best Rhubarb in fine Powder 20 Grains (or half a Drachm, according to her Strength) Salt of Am- ber 5 Grains, Oil of Anise 1 Drop, Conserve of Wood- Sorrel 1 Drachm, Syrup of Oranges enough to make a Bole, to be taken in the Morning, keeping her self warm. An Abstinence from all Manner of Spirits is ne- cessary, and no Drink proper during the Course of the Cure but this medicated Wine. A Medicated Wine. Take Water-Germander (alias Scordium) and Wood- Sorrel of each 1 small Handful, White-wine 1 Quart, give a warm and close Infusion for an Hour, then strain for ordirary Use. These Things premis’d, the Sick may boldly ven- ture upon outward Applications, as A Fomentation. Take common Wormwood and St. John’s Wort of each 3 Handfuls, Chamomile Flowers 2 Handfuls, Bay-Berries and Juniper Berries of each 3 Ounces, Garlick 4 Ounces, cut Tabacco 2 Ounces, common Ashes 1 Pound; boil in 3 Quarts of Water to 3 Pints, and in the strain’d Liquor dissoive Salt of Tartar and crude Sal Armoniac of each 1 Ounce, adding to the Whole 9 Ounces of Spirit of Wine. A Flannel must be dipt in this Liquor, and the Part fomented pretty warm thrice a-day; and after- wards this Cataplasm laid on. A Cataplasm. Take fresh Cow's-dung 1, 2, or 3 Ounces, in Propor- tion to the Demand of the Part, common Oil of St.John’s Wort as much as is sufficient to bring it into a Consistence fit to be spread upon a double Linnen Cloth. And or the FAMILY PHYSICIAN. 25 And this Cataplasm is to be renew’d as often as you bathe the Part; observing that if the Malady is obstinate, Bleeding and Purging must be repeat- ed, and the first Bole continued every Night ’till the Symptom ceases. If the Disease brings on a Delirium, the Head must be shaved, and covered with a Plaster of Gal- banum spread upon thin Leather, a blistering Plaster apply’d to the Neck, and this Medicine exhibited once a-day stiil it answers the End. A Bole. Take Salt of Hart’s horn and Camphire of each 6 Volatile Salt of Vipers and Salt of Amber of each Grains 10, Castor Grains, Oil of Cinnamon 3 Drops, Spirit of Lavender 60 Drops, Conserve of Rosemary Flowers a sufficient Quantity to make a Bole. As to those who may be pester’d with such E- ruptions, but are otherwise in good Health, having premis’d one of the above Purges, and persisting in the Use of the medicated Wine, they need only ap- ly to the Part the succeeding Unguent. An Ointment. Take Ointment of Elder Flowers. 2, Ounces, Camphire in Powder 2 Drachms 5 Powder of Myrrh, white Vitriol, crude Sulphur, and Sugar of Lead, of each 1 Drachm; Powder of Quick-lime, and Tabacco, of each half a Drachm; Oil of St. John’s Wort a Quantity sufficient to bring the other Ingredients without the Help of Fire to a due Consistence. And such as are delicate and hard to please, may incorporate 6 Drops of Oil of Rhodium with it, to give it an agreeable and fine Smell. L CHAP. 26 Dr. COLBATCH's LEGACY: CHAP. IV. APOPLEXY. AN Apoplexy is a sudden Cessiation of all the animal Faculties but that of Respiration. Tho' the Persons afflicted with this Distemper fall instantly down, void both of Sense and Motion, yet their Pulse in the Beginning beats pretty strong, from the forcible Endeavours of the Heart and Arteries to set the Stream a flowing; and they breathe, because there is still an Influx of some Spirits to recruit the Action of the respiratory Nerves. It may be known from a suffocating Catarrh by this, that there all the Parts of the Body are cold, the Face pale, the Pulse scarce perceptible, and Re- spiration near quite exstinct, whereas in an Apoplexy the extreme Parts are generally hot, and the Face red; likewise the Patient snores, which is an Effect that never happens in the other. It differs from a Lethargy, because here there is no Fever, nor Possi- bility to be waked (which are the common Acci- dents of that) the Patient being almost immoveable; and is easily discerned from the Epilepsy, because in it the Body is contracted and convuls'd by a violent Motion, which never attends this Disease. In a Syn- cope too, tho' there is a sudden Prostration of the Spirits, yet Sense is not altogether abolish’d as in this: there the Look is pale, and the Mouth, Teeth and Hands close shut, but here a Relaxation of all the Parts, Nor can a Melancholic Extasy be mis- taken for this, in regard (besides the common Signs, as a bewilder'd Imagination, &c. which must have preceded the Paroxysm) almost a total Obscurity of both Pulse and Respiration marks out the Diffe- rence, An or the FAMILY PHYSICIAN. 27 An Apoplexy arises from a Stagnation of Blood in the Arteries that lead to the Brain, which occa- sioning an immediate Interception of the Fluid of the Nerves, gives this Sudden Shock to the whole Oeconomy: For from what Cause soever this Ob- struction happens in the Arteries, whether from sercus Matter collectcd within the Substance of the Brain it self, or between the Meninxes, or a Depression of the Scull, as the arterial Blood is thereby deny’d Access into the Brain, neither new Spirits can be generated, nor those already made push’d forward to supply the Exigencies of the Nerves. And as this nervous Liquor presides over all the Senses, and is the principal Organ of the Mind it self, a Stop put to its Current must of Consequence stupify and deaden all the Functions both of the Mind and Body, and unless an Afflux of Spirits from the Heart can arrive in Time, and with Vigour enough to force open their Confinement, end in Death it self. Tho' an Apoplexy seizes often without giving any previous Warning of its Approach, yet a continual or frequent Pain in the Head, a more than common Stupidity of Judgment, a strong Inclination to sleep, a Vertigo, a Chilliness in the extreme Parts, a Swelling of the Veins of the Neck, a Slowness to move, frequent Attacks of the Cramp, and Incubus or Night-mare, are each and all of them such Pre- sages as should determine a Man of Prudence to a very strict and regular Life, and at the same Time fortify his Body with generous Medicines, that may ward off so terrible a Distemper; for once it has made an Invasion, it is but seldom that Physick can make a thorough Cure, which confirms this Testi- mony of the great Hypocrates, A 'vehement Apoplexy it is impossible to cure, but a light one may be cured, tho' not without some Difficulty. For which Reason, so soon as any of these com- mon Fore-runners appear, it will be highly proper to begin the following Method, E2 As 28 Dr. COLBATCH’s LEGACY: As no one Thing within the Reach of Medicine can exert with so quick a Force, or communicate a remarkable Efficacy thorough all the Parts of the Body so soon as a Vomit, that must be premis’d, in order to rouze the Motion of the circulating Juices, and put the several Outlets in a proper Disposition to expell those noxious acid Particles, that are for the most part, if not always, the Groundwork of this Disease, Therefore Take Emetic Tartar 6 or 5 Grains, Saffron in Powder 4 Grains, White-wine 4 Ounces, mix together for a Vomit. And at Night take this Bole. Take Castor in Powder 1 Scruple, Salt of Amber 15 Grains, Camphire 6 Grains, Conserve of Lavender- Flowers 1 Drachm and an half, Spirit of Lavender enough to make a Bole; washing it down with a Glass of White- wine. He must continue the Use of the above Emetic once a Week, and the following Electuary every Day, whilst any Symptoms remain. Take Powder of wild Valerian and Male-Pioney Roots of each 2 Drachms; Myrrh, Castor, and Salt of Amber, of each 1 Drachm; greater and lesser Cardamoms of each half a Drachm, Powder of Mustard-Seed 6 Drachms, Conserve of Rue 6 Ounces, Spirit of Lavender 1 Ounce, Syrup of Gilly-Flowers enough to make an Electuary, Dose the Bigness of a Wallnut twice a-day. He must likewise forbear all strong and hot Spirits, for tho' these when taken in a Case of Necessity, as the Cholic or any violent Disorder of the Stomach, are so far from being an Impediment to the circu- lating Juices, that for some Time they accelerate their Motion, yet a continued Tippling of them weakens and impoverishes the Blood; for by mixing with and agitating the more volatile Particles, it drives or the FAMILY PHYSICIAN. 29 drives them out by Exhalation, leaving the lumpish Parts only behind; whence Circulation grows flow and languid, the Body inactive, a Pain in the Head, and in short a Root planted that diffuses a Multitude of Diseases. The Danger in this Distemper is greater or less, in Proportion to the Difficulty or Ease in Respiration. It the Breath is fetch’d very heavily, and with a Rattling in the Throat, the Prospect of Recovery is but small; and more particularly if Respiration is so far enervated, that Froth begins to shew it self about the Mouth, it is a deadly Sign according to Hypocrates. Nor does a cold Sweat breaking out from a Struggle for Breath leave much room for Hope. But whilst the Malady is in the Beginning, and there is some Freedom of Breath, with a strong natural Heat, let us entertain good Hopes of a Cure, and (after the Patient has been once awaken'd by Medicines) vigorously prevent (as, far as Art will go) the Hazard of a Relapse, and the Conse- quence of a Palsy. As to Bleeding, which all Physicians in general fly to, as the first Thing to be done in this Distem- per, it is to be consider’d whether that can produce such an immediate Effect as is required in a strong Apoplexy, which proceeds not from a Stagnation of Blood in the Veins, but in the Arteries; like- wise whether the Patient is very old or weak (in which Case even but eight Ounces of Blood taken away would distress him more than five Vomits re- peated with Discretion) and lastly, whether it has arisen from Gluttony or Drunkenness, because with regard to such a Cause, this Remark of Henricus ab Heir, Obs. 19. seems to have a great deal of Weight; “Our Countrymen (says he) who for the most part “by an Excess of eating and drinking incur an A- “poplexy, can hardly be cured by Phlebotomy, so “that fearce one of an hundred after bleeding es- “capes with Life. But 30 Dr. COLBATCH's LEGACY: But since Bleeding in all Cases of this Nature has been the Practice for Ages, and a Physician might be blamed in an Event of Death, who had omitted it; and considering also it is often the only Trial of Skill that can be got ready soon enough to be of any Ser- vice, other Medicines coming sometimes too late to be effectual, the safest Course therefore is instantly to open a Vein, proportioning the Quantity to the Strength of the Patient, and immediately after give An Emetic Mixture. Take Salt of Vitriol in fine Powder 2 Drachms, Tartar Emetic 6 Grains, White-wine and compound Pioney- water of each 1 Ounce; mix and exhibit. At the same Time apply Cupping-glasses, with and without Scarification, to the Neck, Shoulders and Legs, remembering that the Patient must be made to sit erect in his Bed, and not be overburthen’d with Cloaths. Likewise let this Snuff be forcibly blown up thorough a Quill, or a Tabacco-pipe that has an Head small enough to enter the Nostrils, into the Nose- A Sternutatory' Take Roots of white Hellebore 1 Scruple, Pellitory of Spain half a Scruple, Leaves of Marjoram 1 Scruple, Castor, Salt of Vitriol, and black Pepper, of each 5 Grains, make into a Powder. Then let his Head, Temples, Nostrils, Neck and Face be fomented hard with this compound Spirit. Take Spirit of Castor half a Pint, Spirit of Lavender and Salt Volatile oleosum of each 1 Ounce, Spirit of Sal Armoniac 100 Drops, Camphire half an Ounce, mix. If notwithstanding all these Means the Patient still remains insensible, inject this Clyster. A or the FAMILY PHYSICIAN. 31 A Clyster. Take Root of Cuckow-pint, Pepper, and Mustard- Seed, of each 1 Ounce; Tops of common Wormwood and Rue of each 2 Handfuls, Colocynth ty’d in a Bag 1 Drachm; slice the Root, cut the Herbs small, and boil in 3 Pints of Water to one, and to the strain’d Liquor add Oil of Camphire and Savin of each 1 Drachm, Sal Gem 2 Drachms; mix. And if it should all come immediately away again, there will be a Necessity to repeat it; though sometimes Clysters are here given without the desired Effect, because of an Inability of the Intestines to retain them. Over all the Head too, being fresh shaved, apply this Cataplasm. Take fresh Roots of Cuckow-pint 3 Ounces, Leaves of Crow-foot 2 Ounces, Powder of Cloves, Nutmegs, Pepper, and Mustard-Seed, of each half an Ounce, Spa- nish Flies 3 Drachms, Camphire 1 Drachm, Sal Armoniac half a Drachm, black Soap 1 Ounce, Tincture of Diapho- retic Antimony as much as is sufficient to give a Consistence that may neither run thorough a Cloath, nor be too soon dry. Let this lay on 3 Days, then with every Melilot Plaster apply’d mix half a Drachm of Oil of Camphire. It is to be hoped however that the Vomit will have an agreeable Issue; and then, as soon as its O- peration is over, let the Patient take this Bole, and then the following Draught. The Bole. Take fresh Root of Cuckow-pint in Powder 1 Scruple, Powder of Castor 15 Grains, Salt of Vipers, Salt of Am- ber, and Camphire, of each 5 Grains; Conserve of Rose- mary-Flowers, and Conserve of Rue, of each half a Drachm; Confection of Alkermes enough to make a Bole. The Draught. Take Rue-water and White-wine of each 2 Ounces, Flowers of Salt Armoniac 15 Grains, compound Spirit of Lavender 1 Spoonful; mix and exhibit. Let 32 Dr.COLBATCH’s LEGACY: Let him often Smell to this volatile Stimulating Spirit, Take Spirit of Sal Armoniac made with Quick-lime 1 Ounce, Salt of Hart's-horn and Camphire of each 1 Drachm; mix. Next Day give the following Purge. Take Pil. Fætidæ 1 Scruple, Pil. ex duobus 10 Grains, Castor and Salt of Amber of each Grains 7, Chymical Oils of Savin and Wormwood of each 1 Drop, Tincture of Caster enough to make 6 Pills for a Morning Dose. And the Day following repeat the above Vomit, only leaving out the Salt of Vitriol, which now is of no farther Use. To Srengthen and corroborate the Nerves, pre- pare this Decoction. An Apozem. Take Roots of Satyrion and Fennel of each 1 Ounce, Zedoary and Sweet-cane of each 2 Drachms; Rosemary, Marjoram, Betony and Thyme, of each 1 Handful; Seeds of Rue and Pioney, and Juniper Berries, of each 1 Drachm; White-wine and Water, of each 1 Quart; boil to the Consumption of the half, and to the strain’d Liquor add compound Spirit of Lavender 2 Ounces, Oil of Cinnamon 3 Drops. Dose a WineGlafs full 5 times a-day. And give him every Night for a Fortnight this Bole as he goes to Bed. A Bole. Take Volatile Salt of Vipers and Volatile Salt of Hart’s horn of each 10 Grains, Salt of Amher and Castor of each 7 Grains, Chymical Oil of Rosemary and Mar- joram of each 1 Drop, Conserve of Rosemary Flowers 1 Drachm, Syrup of Gilly-Flowers enough to make a Bole. After the Removal of the Melilot Plaster off the Head, let this Cephalic Cap be in Readiness to put on. Take