4 On th^ Efects of Opium 



tempted td refer all the various changes in the 

 human body, to one general law. He maiii- 

 taiiled the existence of a principle in the ani- 

 mated body, which he denominated Excitabi- 

 lity ; That this principle was characteristic of 

 life; that action was the consequence of the 

 operation of certain powers upon this prin- 

 ciple, health the consequence of the due and 

 proper operation of these powers, and disease 

 the effect of too abundant or deficient action of 

 these powiers. 



In this state of things the very accurate and 

 most philosophical Thesis of Dr. Goodwin, 

 upon the cause of death from suspension and 

 submersion, made its appearance, in which he 

 {jiainly proved the existence of a primary 

 change in th.e: condition of the blood; that this 

 condition was Sufficient, and indeed necessary 

 to occasion death. About this period also the 

 experiments of the celebrated Italian phiJQso-' 

 pher, Fontana, attracted considerable attention 

 and beciame the subject of much discussion. 

 He contended from numerous experiments, 

 that opium was a power, which exerted a 

 direct influence upon the blood, or that the 

 blood was a necessary agent to communicate 

 its operation to the living and irritable fibre, 

 and without the circulation of which, the 

 usual effects of opium could not take place. 



