MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS. 
the Hydro-maxia; but I apprehend 
he is mistaken, for I never knew 
a patient mere attached to water 
when abroad, than when at home. 
There certainly, however, are 
symptoms, which indicate a mania 
of some kind or other; but so im- 
perfect is our knowledge of maviccal 
cases, that I can derive no infor- 
mation from books. Arnold does 
not mention it in his last edition, 
although probably he may in the 
next, for which I fam told he is 
preparing materials. Besides, I 
confess, that I am not very partial 
to increasing our catalogue ef m7- 
xias. So many things might be 
brought under this title, that a 
eneral history of madness would, 
‘ye afraid, be as comprehensive as 
the Annual Register, or any other 
work which professed to record the 
actions of man; but this is a di- 
gression. 
It is peculiar to the disorder I am 
now speaking of, that the symp- 
toms of it never appear, when the 
patients are by themselves: the 
presence, however, of a stranger, 
or a party of strangers, never tails 
to bring on the cough, dispnea, 
and other concomitants. Bur above 
ail other occasions, they are most 
exasperated in the presence of the 
head of the family, whether a 
father, an uncle, or a guardian. 
Now, as this is as much a discase 
ef the mind as of the body, it 
strikes me, that the passion of en- 
vy or jealousy, isstrongly excit- 
ed by the sight of persons who are 
not affliétcd with the disorder, 
which is generally the case with 
fathers, uncles, and guardians, 
and that the patient, from a de- 
sire of communicating the disease, 
is impelled to throw out those 
Miasmata, contagious _ particles, 
which will affct all present. 
[A477 
That this is often done without 
producing the effect, I well know, 
but I must say, that, in general, 
where the disorder is of long con- 
tinuance (a month or six weeks, 
for example) it seldom fails to im- 
part such a degree of its virulence, 
as to affect the father, and then, 
I observe, the cure is as good as 
performed. 
From the few remarks I have 
thrown out, you will perceive, sir, 
that although we cannot refer this 
disorder to any elass hitherto men. 
tioned by nosologists, yet we may 
rank it among exdemics, or those 
disorders which affecé the inhabr. 
tants of a certain district. This is 
most prevalent in the city of Lon. 
don, and extends a little way into 
the suburbs. I have met with 
a tsw cases of’ the kind in the Bo- 
rough of Southwark; but the smalJ 
villages near town are, I think, ge- 
nerally pretty free from it. As to 
the Borough, it is rather singular, 
that some of the patients, after re- 
turning from Margate or Brighton, 
apparently perfectly cured, take 
lodgings nevertheless in a large 
building in St. George’s fields; 
whether this confirms the cure, I 
know not, but I apprehend it 
may prevent a relapse, and I am 
doubtful whether any thing will 
so effectually answer this purpose. 
The tendency of the disorder to re- 
turn, is one of the worst circum. 
stances belonging to it, and sufli- 
ciently convinces me, that there 
is a radical error in the mode of 
treatment. I am not ashamed to 
confess, that I have often failed. 
If we physicians are not as free 
in acknowledging our errors, as 
proud in announcing our cures, the 
medical art, as to prattical use- 
fulness, muse stand still. 
With respect to the causes of the 
Domi- 
