Case of Hydropholia cured in India ly Bleeding. 361 



©usly awoke, and appeared again somewhat agitated, with 

 more suspicion in his hioks, and ot^^ apparent doubt whether 

 he could swallow as well as before; tor wlien he took the 

 rup, he put it to his lips with a quick motion, and gulped 

 down about fotir ounces oF water in a hurried manner, as it" 

 afraid that the ditficully of swallowing would be increased 

 by a moment's delay. He also put his hand to the region 

 of the stomach, and said that the pain in that part was re- 

 turning. These threatening appearances of relapse deter- 

 mined me to hazard a further detraction of blood. I there- 

 fore innnediaiciv opened a vein in the iett arm, and allowed 

 the blood to tlow again idl he completely fainted ; but pre- 

 viously to this effect of the bleeding, the jtain at the sto- 

 mach had ceased ; and while the blood was vet flowing he 

 had again drunk four ounces of water without fear or 

 disgust. When he recovered from the fainting fit, he 

 retched several times, but, as before, discharged nothing" 

 but saliva. 



At the end of the first bleeding his pulse was 104 ; im- 

 mediately before the second, it was 96, with a slight degree 

 of sharpness in the beat ; and after recovering from the 

 fainting occasioned by the second bleeding, it was 8B, re- 

 gular, soft, and feeble, and he now complained of nothing 

 but extreme weakness, and giddiness of the head. And 

 at this stage of the case, I apprehend, it will be allowed 

 that the cure of the hydrophobia was complete — 

 whether it would be permanent or not, remained yet to be 

 seen. 



When I began the treatment of this patient, it was my 

 intention, as J have said, to follow in every circumstance 

 the practice pursued in Mr. Tymon'-s successful case ; and 

 accordinglv, a drautvltt with 100 drops of tincture of opium, 

 and an enema of 300, were in readiness to be administered 

 immediately after the bleeding. But seeing the surprismg 

 effects of the bleeding alone, and feeling convinced that the 

 disease was, for the present at least, completely annihilated 

 by the copiousness of that evacuation, I determined to pre- 

 serve the treatment as simple as possible, in order that, if the 

 patient did finally recover, it might with certainly be known 

 to what he owed his safety ; and that thence the applica- 

 tion of the same practice to future cases of hydrophobia 

 might with the greater confidence be recommevided : —a re- 

 solution in which I was the more confirmed, from having 

 heard some medical friends, whose opinions are entitled to 

 every degree of respect, ascribe Mr. Tymon's success to 

 the mercury he liad used, rather than to the bleeding. 



I am 



