SUP. I. 11. 1. THEORY OF FEVEU. 477 



fevers with arterial debility be in general owing to paucity of 

 blood? as explained in Sect. XXXII. 2. 3. and its slowness in 

 paresis irritativa be caused by the debility being accompanied 

 with due quantity of blood? or may not the former circumstance 

 sometimes depend on a concomitant affection of the brain ap- 

 proaching to sleep? or to the unusual facility of the passage of 

 the blood through the pulmonary and aortal capillaries? in which 

 circumstance the heart may completely empty itself at each pul- 

 sation, though its contractions may be weak. While the latter 

 depends on the difficulty of the passage of the blood through the 

 pulmonary or aortal capillaries, as in the cold fits of intermittents, 

 and in some palpitations of the heart, and in some kinds of hae- 

 moptoe; in these cases the increased resistance prevents the 

 heart from emptying itself, and in consequence a new diastole 

 sooner occurs, and thus the number of pulsations becomes greater 

 in a given time. 



5. In respect to the sympathies of action, which produce or 

 constitute fever with debility, the system may be divided into 

 certain provinces, which are essentient or opposite to each other. 

 First, the lacteals or absorbent vessels of the stomach, and upper 

 part of the intestines; secondly, the lymphatics or all the other 

 branches of the absorbent vessels, which arise from the skin, 

 mucous membranes, cellular membranes, and the various glands. 

 These two divisions act by reverse sympathy with each other in 

 the hot fits of fever with debility, though by direct sympathy in 

 the cold ones. The third division consists of the secerning ves- 

 sels of the stomach and upper intestines; and the fourth of the 

 secerning vessels of all the other parts of the body, as the capil- 

 lary glands of the skin, lungs, and cellular membrane, and the 

 various other glands belonging to the sanguiferous system. Many 

 of these frequently, but the capillaries always, act by reverse 

 sympathy with those of the third division above mentioned in the 

 hot fits of fever with debility, though by direct sympathy with 

 them in the cold fits. Fifthly, the muscular fibres of the stomach, 

 and upper intestines; and sixthly, the muscular fibres of the heart 

 and arteries. The actions of these two last divisions of moving 

 fibres act by direct sympathy with each other, both in the cold 

 and hot fits of fevers with debility. 



The efficient cause of those apparent sympathies in fevers 

 with weak pulse may be thus understood. In the cold paroxysm 

 of fever with weak pulse, the first part affected I believe to be 

 the stomach, and that it has become torpid by previous violent 

 exertion, as by swallowing contagious matter mixed with saliva, 

 and not by defect of stimulus; as from cold or hunger. The 

 actions of this important organ, which sympathizes with almost 



