246 RETROGRADE SECT. XXIX. 4. 2. 



conneled with the ladleals by many anaftomofes, inverts its mo- 

 tions, and a great quantity of pale unanimalized urine is dif- 

 charged. By this wife contrivance too much of an unneceflary 

 fluid is prevented from entering the circulation This may be 

 called the drunken diabetes, to diftinguifh it from the other tem- 

 porary diabetes, which occur in hyfleric difeafes, and from con- 

 tinued fear or anxiety. 



2, If this idle ingurgitation of too much vinous fpirit be dai- 

 ly praftifed, the urinary branch of abforbents at length gains a 

 habit of inverting its motions, whenever the la&eals are much 

 flimulated ; and the whole or a great part of the chyle is thus 

 daily carried to the bladder without entering the circulation, and 

 the body becomes emaciated. This is one kind of chronic dia- 

 betes, and may be diftinguifhed from the others by the tafte and 

 appearance of the urine ; which is fweet, and of the colour of 

 whey, and may be termed the chyliferous diabetes. 



5. Many children have a fimilar depofition of chyle in their 

 urine, from the irritation of worms in their inteftines, which 

 ftimulating the mouths of the la&eals into unnatural aUon,the 

 urinary branch of the abforbents becomes inverted, and carries 

 part of the chyle to the bladder: part of tbe chyle alfo has been 

 carried to the iliac and lumber glands, of which inftances are 

 recorded by Halleiyt. vii, 225. and which can be explained on 

 no other theory,: but the difTelions of the lymphatic fyftem of 

 the human body, which have yet been publifhed, are not fuffi- 

 ciently extenfive for our purpofe ; yet if we may reafon from 

 comparative anatomy, this tranilation of chyle to the bladder is 

 much illuftrated by the account given of this fyftem of veflels in 

 a turtle, by Mr. Hewfon, who obferved, " That the lafteals near 

 the root of the mefentery anaftomofe, fo as to form a net- work, 

 from which feveral large branches go into fome confiderable 

 lymphatics lying near the fpine ; and which can be traced al- 

 moft to the anus, and particularly to the kidneys. Philof. 

 Tranf. v. 59. p. 199 Enquiries, p. 74. 



4. At the fame time that the urinary branch of abforbents, in 

 the beginning of diabetes, is excited into inverted adion, the 

 cellular branch is excited by the fympathy above mentioned, in- 

 to more energetic atHon ; and the fat, that was before depofited, 

 is reabforbed and thrown into the blood veflels; where it floats 5 

 and was miftaken for chyle, till the late experiments of the inge- 

 nious Mr. Hewfon demonftrated it to be fat. 



This appearance of what was miftaken for chyle in the blood, 

 which was drawn from thefe patients, and the obftrudled liver, 

 which very frequently accompanies this difeafe, feems to have 

 led Dr. Mead to fufpeft the diabetes was owing to a defeft of 



fanguification 



