Case of HydrGpholia cured in India ly Bleeding. 423 



and its classification with diseases of the nervous kind, 

 accompanied by great dehility, tended directly to discourage 

 all lowering plan's of cure, and to point out antispasmodics 

 and tonics as the only resource in hydrophcbia. 



Dr. Mead, who was very confident that he had found an. 

 infallible preventative of the disease, in a little livenvort 

 and black pepper, aided by bleeding and cold bathing before 

 the coninicnecment of the course of medicine, says, " as to 

 all other ways of curing the hydrophobia, I own I have not 

 been so happy as to find any success from the many I have 

 tried. Bathing at this time is inefTectual. I have taken 

 away large, qvantilies oj Hood; have given opiates, vola- 

 tile salts,"&c. &c. &c.— All has been in vain, because too 

 late." Notwithstanding his disappointment, he still con- 

 cludes, " if any relief could be expected in this desperate 

 state, I think it would be from large bleeding even ad animi 

 deliqnium, before the fibres of the membranes have lost their 

 natural force ly convulsions. But after all it will generally 

 happen, that (as the Greeks said upon deplorable cases) 

 * Death will be the physician that cures.' " This, though 

 a recommendation, was certainly no great encouragement 

 to blood-letting. 



The doctrines of Boerhaave also led him and his pupils 

 to recommend and practise bleeding in hydrophobia. The 

 celebrated Leydcn Professor savs, " the distemper is to be 

 treated as one highly inflammatory, upon the first appear- 

 ance of the signs which denote its invasion, by blood-letting 

 from a large orifice, continued till the patient faints away ; 

 and soon after by eneniata of warm water and vinegar,'* 

 &c., &c. and he adds, " that this practice is supported by 

 some fmall number of trials." But the particulars of this 

 successful practice are not given. 



I find, however, a trial of it at Edinburgh, more than 

 60 years ago, by the late Dr. Rutherford, a pupil of Boer- 

 haave's, ^S'ho took away gradually sixty-six ounces of blood 

 from a patient who had alreadv been bled the same morn- 

 ing. As this patient lived forty-eight hours after the large 

 bleeding, it is probable that it was used somewhat early in 

 the disease, and should, therefore, it may be said, have suc- 

 ceeded. Why it did not, it is impossible now to tell ; but 

 I am persuaded the circumstances attending its failure had 

 creat weight in deterring others from pursuing the plan re- 

 commended by Boerhaave, and in giving an entirely dif- 

 ferent direction to the practical views of physicians ou the 

 fuiiject of liydrophobia. 



On the failure of bltcding in this case. Dr. Rutherford, 

 D d 4 who 



