17* DISEASES Class II. 2. 1. 17* 



with heat, tenfion, tumour, and pain of the lower belly. The 

 os uteri painful to the touch. Vomiting. This difeafe is gen- 

 erally produced by improper management in the delivery of 

 pregnant women. I knew an unfortunate cafe, where the pla- 

 centa was left till the next day ; and then an unfkilfui accouch- 

 eur introduced his hand, and forcibly tore it away j the confe- 

 quence was a moft violent inflammatory fever, with hard throb- 

 bing pulfe, great pain, very fizy blood, and the death of the pa- 

 tient. Some accoucheurs have had a practice of introducing 

 their hand into the uterus immediately after the birth of the 

 child, to take away the placenta •, which they faid was to fave 

 time. Many women I believe have been victims to this unnat- 

 ural practice. 



Others have received injury, where inflammation has been 

 beginning, by the univerfal practice of giving a large dofe of o- 

 pium immediately on delivery, without any indication of its 

 propriety ; which, though a proper and ufeful medicine, where 

 the patient is too feeble, when given in a fmall dofe, as 1 o 

 drops of tincture of opium, or half a grain of folid opium, muft 

 do a proportionate injury, when it is given improperly ; and as 

 delivery is a natural procefs, it is certainly more wife to give no> 

 medicines, except there be fome morbid fymptom, which re- 

 quires it ; and which has only been introduced into cuftom by 

 the ill-employed activity of the prieftsor prieftefles of Lucina ; 

 like the concomitant nonfenfe of cramming rue or rhubarb into 

 the mouth of the unfortunate young ftranger, who is thus ibon 

 made to experience the evils of life. See Clafs II. 1. 1. 12. 

 and I. 1. 2. 5. Juft fo fome over-wife beldames force young 

 ducks and turkeys, as foon as they are hatched, to fwallow a 

 pepper corn. 



M. M. Venefection repeatedly ; diluents ; fomentation ; the 

 patient mould be frequently railed up in bed for a fhort time, 

 to give opportunity of dilcharge to the putrid lochia ; mucilag- 

 inous clyfters. See Febris Puerpera. 



17. Lumbago fmfitiva. Senlitive lumbago. When the exten- 

 five membranes, or ligaments, which cover the mufcles of the 

 back are torpid, as in the cold paroxyfm of ague, they are attend- 

 ed with pain in confequence of the inaction of the veffels, which 

 compofe them. When this inaction continues without a coufe- 

 quent renewal or increafe of activity, the difeafe becomes chron- 

 ical, and forms the lumbago frigida, or irritativa defcribed in 

 Clafs I. 2. 4. 16. But when this cold fit or torpor of thefe 

 membranes, or ligaments or mufcles of the back, is fucceedcdby 

 a hot lit, and confequent inflammation, a violent inflammatory 

 fever, with great pain, occurs, preventing the ered; pofture of 



the 



