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ESCAROTICS. 
mene it 
Substances and agents which erode, destroy, or _ 
decompose, the solid fibre of the living body: ap- 
plied to the skin they erode it, and to ulcers or 
denuded muscles, or teguements, they remove the 
surface. They act: 
1. By their natural properties as the heated 
iron and moxa in which case they are called 
actual cauteries: or, vot ow 
2. By their chemical causticity, as the concentra- 
ted mineral acids, fused potash. the salts of metals 
formed with acids, as nitrate of silver, the muriate 
of antimony, (or butter, of antimony,) the nitric 
oxide of quick-silver (or red precipitate.) the oxy- 
muriate of the same, (or corrosive sublimate,) the 
ammoniated sub-muriate of the same, (or white 
precipitate.) The sulphate of copper (or blue vitri- 
ol:) the subacetate of copper (or erugo;) the arseni- 
ous acid, (or white oxyde of arsenic ;) the dried 
sulphate of alumine,—all of which have been called 
the potential cauteries or caustics: or, eg 
5. By the eroding causticity of their essential oil, 
as savin or the concentrated essential oil of cloves. 
The whole assemblage have been called caustics, 
cauteries, erodents and escharotics. They have 
by some been divided into ereding escharotics and 
caustic escharotics, a division grounded on the less 
or greater intensity of their destructive power. 
‘The application of these substances is always, 
attended with some pain, occasionally of an exas- 
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