37^ ON FEVER. 



I muft beg leave, in this place, to enter a ca- 

 veat againft the practice of immoderate and 

 profufe bleedings, adopted of late by various 

 juvenile praftitioners, on almoft every occafion 

 which may be fuppofed to require venefeftion. 

 The idea, (and it is a very juft one) that during 

 the exillence of inflammatory diathefis, it is re- 

 ally dangerous to be too fpaiing of the patients 

 blood, has induced a fpurious analogy. It has 

 thence been rafhly and falfely concluded, that, 

 generally, no good can be effeded by a mode- 

 rate bleeding. I am led to conclude, from long 

 obfervation, that much irreparable mjfchief is 

 conftantly done by over bleeding worn-down 

 and debilitated horfes. That lightnefs and 

 cheerfulnefs temporarily induced by the flimu- 

 lus of evacuation, either from bleeding or purp-- 

 ing, is a never-failing fource of deception. A 

 middle-aged man, in a ftate of great debility, 

 was bled five ounces, with the view of mitigating 

 vertiginous fymptoms. I faw and enquired of 

 him every day, and he neither acquired his pre- 

 vious degree of ftrength, nor was that trifling 

 wafle of blood fenfibly repaired under three 

 weeks. One of the clafs of improved and enter- 

 prifmg praftitioners, lately ridiculing my cau- 

 tions on this head, afferted it was idle to fup- 

 pofe, that taking a lefs quantity of blood than 

 four or five quarts, could have any perceptible 

 effe6l on the circulation of a horfe, fince he had 



frequently 



