Sect. XXXIV. 2. 7. OF VOLITION. 339 



with delight, and complained no more of his fatigue. Here the 

 aid of another fenforial power, that of pleafurable fenfation, fu- 

 peradded vigour to the exertion of exhaufted volition. Which 

 could otherwife only have been excited by additional pain, as by 

 the lafh of flavery. On this account where the whole fenforial 

 power has been exerted on the contemplation of the promised 

 joys of heaven, the faints of all perfecuted religions have borne 

 the tortures of martyrdom with cnherwifc; unaccountable lirmnefso 



7. There are Jfome difeafes, which obtain at lead a temporary 

 relief from the exertions of infanity ; many inftances of dropfies 

 being thus for a time cured are recorded. An elderly woman 

 labouring with afcites I twice faw relieved for fome weeks by 

 infanity, the dropfy ceafed for feveral weeks, and recurred again 

 alternating with the infanity. A man armtted with difficult ref- 

 piration on lying down, with very irregular pulfe, znd cedema- 

 tous legs, whom I faw this day, has for above a week been much 

 relieved in refpect to all thofe fymntoms by the acceiiion of in- 

 fanity, which is (hewn by inordinate fulpicion, and great anger. 



In cafes of common temporary anger the increafed action of 

 the arterial fyflem is feen by the red lkin, and increafed pulfe, 

 with the immediate increafe of mufcular activity. A friend of 

 mine, when he was painfully fatigued by riding on hbrfe&*ck f 

 was accuftomed to call up ideas into his mind, which uled to ex- 

 cite his anger or indignation, and thus for a time at leaft relieved 

 the pain of fatigue. By this temporary infanity, the effect of 

 the voluntary power upon the whole of his fyflem was increafed ; 

 as in the cafes of dropfy above mentioned, it would appear, that 

 the increafed action of the voluntary faculty of the fenferium 

 ar7e£ted the abforbent fyftem, as well as the fecerning one. 



8. In refpecr. to relieving inflammatory pains, and removing 

 fever, I have feen many inftances, as mentioned in Sect. XII. 

 2. 4. One lady, whom I attended, had twice at fome years in- 

 terval a locked jaw, which relieved a pain on her fternum with 

 peripneumony. Two other ladies I faw, -who towards the end 

 of violent peripneumony, in which they frequently loft blood, 

 were at length cured by infanity fupervening. In the former 

 the increafed voluntary exertion of the mufclesof the jaw, in the 

 latter that of the organs of fenfe, removed the difeafc ; that is, 

 the difagreeable fenfation, which had produced the inflamma- 

 tion, now excited the voluntary power, and thefe new voluntary 

 exertions employed or expended the fuperabundant fenforial 

 power, which had previoufly been exerted on the arterial fyftem, 

 and caufed inflammation. 



Another cafe which I think worth relating, was of a voung 

 man about twenty j he had laboured under ah irritative fever 



witfc 



