FEVERS. 237 



To enter into a tedious medical difquifition 

 Upon the origin of fevers, their different de- 

 grees and effeds, would exhauft the patience 

 of the mofr patient inquirer; I iTiall confe- 

 quently avoid fo unentertaining a detail, and ad- 

 here to fuch explanatory parts as become more 

 immediately the objedls of information. To 

 enumerate the poilible caufes in which a fever 

 may originate, would be, in this work, equally 

 impracticable ; they are fo much more fympto- 

 matic than felf-exiffing, that circumftances and 

 careful attention only mull lead to the difcovery . 



There is not the leaft doubt but a general 

 cutaneous obflrudiion, or fudden conilridlion 

 upon the perfpirable pores, (proceeding from 

 what caufe foever,) v/ill conftitute the founda- 

 tion of every fever to which the animal can pof- 

 fibly be fubjed: the matter deftined for per- 

 fpiration, being forcibly returned upon the 

 velTels, is abforded into the circulation; the 

 blood being thus corrupted becomes vifcid, the 

 paffages are evidently overloaded, and Nature, 

 by an increafe of circulation in the velocity of 

 the blood, endeavours to relieve herfelf from 

 the opprefTion, which in this difeafe (he fo 

 cvidentlv labours under. 



In 



