Injury of the Brain, 369 



ously; he slept several hours last night, and that sleep was 

 sound and undisturbed, and he appears to be nuich re- 

 freshed ; he is able to sit up in bed for an hour at a time, 

 and takes broth and small quaniities of the whiter kinds of 

 meat, but he is very much reduced in bulk and in strength ; 

 his bowels keep regularly open, and the colour of the Jteces 

 greatly improves. I ordered him to go on with the mix- 

 ture as before. 



March 7. He continues gradually to get better; for the 

 kst three days he has sat up three hours at a time without 

 beino- much tired ; his appetite increases, and he is in every 

 other respect proportionally well. The pain in his head 

 has almost left hin> ; his speech is still very indistinct, and 

 in speaking he very often forgets what he was going to say. 

 At times he seems to lose all recollection for a moment. 

 The mixture continued. 



March i?0. His faeces are now perfectly of a natural 

 colour, and he goes to stool once or twice every day. His 

 skin keeps moist ; liis appetite is very good; he is still ia 

 a slaie of great debility ; he has left oil' taking his medicine ; 

 talks better; pains in the head quite gone ; is able to walk 

 out a short distance ; his meo)ory is as good as usual, and 

 he is mending hourly. 



May 12. 1 have just called and found him with his 

 wife at dinner, and apparently eating very heartily ; he is 

 got quite fat since la^t I saw him ; he tells me he can pur- 

 sue the office of constable as he was accustomed, and feels 

 as well as ever he did in his life, except h;s articulation, 

 which is the only thing from which he suflTers. 



From the peculiar and well marked symptoms under 

 which the patient has laboured in both attacks, I think 

 little doubt can remain as to the cause which produced 

 them ; namely, that it was pressure on some part of the 

 brain; but on what part that pressure was, or what caused 

 the pressure, scarcely admits of a conjecture, for the pain has 

 never been contined to any particular part; but, on the con- 

 trary, was generally diflused over the whole head. The 

 mode of treatment has bpen very simple, and the three chief 

 points it had in view, were to regulate the evacuations of 

 the alimentary canal, to set right the morbid secfetion of 

 bile, and to keep up a gentle action or iierspiration on the 

 skin. Now this treatment, as the relation of the case shows, 

 has been attended with success ; for as soon as the skin be- 

 came in a natural state, and th^ excretions from the bowels 

 regular and of a good colour, so soon did the symptoms be- 

 giji to be init'.gated, and continued so to do till they disap- 

 peared. 



