produced by the Ufe of Spirituous Liquors. 14! 



of rum or of anifeed-water. The wife of Millet had been 

 continually intoxicated ; Madam de Bcnfeon for feveral years 

 had drunk nothing but fpirits ; Mary Jauffret was much ad- 

 diftcd to drinking ; and Mademoifclle Thuars, and the other 

 women of Caen, were equally fond of ftrong liquors. 



Such excefs, in regard to the ufe of fpirituous liquors, muft 

 have had a powerful aftion on the bodies of the perfons to 

 whom I allude. All their fluids and folids muft have expe- 

 rienced its fatal influence; for the property of the abforbing 

 veflcls, which is fo active in the liuman body, feems on this 

 occafion to have afted a diftinguiflied part. It has been 

 obferved that the urine of great drinkers is generally aque- 

 ous and limpid. It appears, that in drunkards who make 

 an immoderate ufe of fpirituous liquors, the aqueous part of 

 their drink is difcharged by the urinary paflage, while the 

 alcoholic, almoft like the volatile part of aromatic fubftances, 

 not being fubjefted to an entire decompofition, is abforbed 

 into every part of their bodies. 



I fliall now proceed to the fecond general obfervation, 

 that the combuftion took place only in women. 



I will not pretend to aflert that men are not liable to com- 

 buftion in the fame manner, but I have never yet been able 

 to find one well certified inftance of fuch an event ; and as 

 we cannot proceed with any certainty but on the authority 

 of fafts, I think this Angularity fo furprifing as to give rife 

 to a few refie&ions. Perhaps when the caufe is examined, 

 it will appear perfeftly natural. The female body is in ge- 

 neral more delicate than that of the other fex. The fyftem 

 of their folids is more relaxed ; their fibres are more fragile 

 and of a weaker fl;ru6lure, and therefore their texture more 

 eafily hurt. Their mode of life alfo contributes to increafe the 

 weaknefs of their organization. Women, abandoned in ge- 

 neral to a fedentary life, charged with the care of the inter- 

 nal domeltic economy, and often flnit up in clofe apartments, 

 where they are condemned to fpend whole days without tak- 

 ing any cxercife, are more fubjeft than men to become cor- 

 pulent. The texture of the foft parts in female bodies being 

 more fpongy, abforption ought to be freer j and as tlieir 



whole 



