428 On the llfficacy of Yeast. 



spitting of blood be never tails to give a vomit, and it always stops 

 the effusion of blood. He tells me, it has never failed him. 

 Wishing you every success in your laudable endeavours to relieve 

 the distrer,ses of others, and extend the science of medicine, 

 i remain, dear Doctor, 



Yours very sincerely, 



Exeter. 



Case of Morlification cured by the Application of Yeast out- 

 ivardbj, and Inj the Form of Injection inwardly'^. 



Glasgow, .Tune ", 1816. 



Dear Sir, — My son Robert (now a man) when a child about 

 two years old, had tlie chicken pox, after which, in consequence 

 of catching cold, in the course of a single night a mortification 

 took place across his belly; on the outside it had the appearance 

 of a mazarine blue ribband laid across from the one side to the 

 other. Immediately cloths dipt iu barm or yeast were applied, 

 repeating them as often as they began to dry, at the same time 

 giving him injections of barm ; thev were given cold, to prevent 

 them being thrown off too soon. The reason of giving him the 

 injections was, that he would not swallow the barm ; and the 

 Doctor assured me, the whole mass of blood was in a state of 

 corruption ; and indeed it appeared so, for in a few days after the 

 first appearance of mortification there arose on one of his temples 

 a gathering about the size of a pigeon's egg, of a very dark co- 

 lour, and when it broke it discharged a black watery kind of stuff : 

 before the first broke, a second began to gather on the other tem- 

 ple : it was longer in coming to maturity, but when it did break 

 it discharged a good thick yellow matter, when the Doctor pro- 

 nounced him out of danger. After the application of the barm, the 

 blue part across the belly turned of a yellow colour, which the 

 Doctor took out, and then the wound had the appearance of a 

 mouth wide open ; it could easily receive the side of a hand laid in. 

 The barm was continued for ten days or a fortnight, till every 

 appearance of danger was over; after that, there was some kind 

 of simple ointment applied to heal up the wound, which now has 

 the appearance of a deep burn after being healed. 



His diet during his illness consisted chiefly of fruit. 

 To Mr. Tilloch. Janet Allan." 



* The last of these cases 1 communicated to Dr. Thornton, who thinks it 

 deserves to be made generally known. I'hc writer is a I'felaljion of my own. 

 Vt'hcn R. Allan was taken ill, an able medical (gentleman of Glasgow was 

 instantly sent for. He frankly told the parents that there was no possibility 

 of the child recovering. It was in consequence of this ; and of Mr.s. Allan 

 having read, in one of the early volumes of the Philosophical Magazine, of 

 the curative powers of yeast in putrid cases, that this remedy, and with such 

 happy success, waa resorted to. — A. T. 



LXXTX. A 



