SECT. XXXIV. 2. 7. OF VOLITION. 339 



with delight, and complained no more of his fatigue. Here the 

 aid of another fenforial power, that of pleafurable fenfation, fu- 

 peradded vigour to the exertion of exhauiled volition. Which 

 could otherwife only have been excited by additional pain, as by 

 the lafh of flavery. On this account where the whole fenforial 

 power has been exerted on the contemplation of the promifed 

 joys of heaven, the faints of all perfecuted religions have borne 

 the tortures of martyrdom with otherwife unaccountable firmnefs. 



7. There are fome difeafes, which obtain at lead a temporary 

 relief from the exertions of infanity ; many inftances of dropfies 

 being thus for a time cured are recorded. An elderly woman 

 labouring with afcites I twice faw relieved for fome weeks by 

 infanity, the dropfy ceafed for feveral weeks, and recurred again 

 alternating with the infanity, A man afflifted with difficult ref- 

 piration on lying down, with very irregular pulfe, and cedema- 

 tous legs, whom I faw this day, has for above a week been much 

 relieved in refpeft to all thofe fymptorns by the accefllon of in- 

 fanity, which is (hewn by inordinate fufpicion, and great anger. 



In cafes of common temporary anger the increafed aclion of 

 the arterial fyftem is feen by the red fkin, and increafed pulfe, 

 with the immediate increafe of mufcular activity. A friend of 

 mine, when he was painfully fatigued by riding on horfeback, 

 was accuftomed to call up ideas into his mind, which ufed to ex^ 

 cite his anger or indignation, and thus for a time at leait relieved 

 the pain of fatigue. By this temporary infanity, the effecT: of 

 the voluntary power upon the whole of his fyftem was increafed; 

 as in the cafes of dropfy above mentioned, it would appear, that 

 the increafed aclion of the voluntary faculty of the fenfonum 

 affe&ed the abforbent fyftem, as well as the fecerning one. 



8. In refpect to relieving inflammatory pains, and removing 

 fever, I have feen many inftances, as mentioned in Sect. XII. 

 2. 4. One lady, whom I attended, had twice at fome years in- 

 terval a locked jaw, which relieved a pain on her fternuin with 

 peripneumony. Two other ladies I faw, who towards the end 

 of violent peripneumony, in which they frequently loft blood, 

 were at length cured by infanity fupervening. In the former 

 the increafed voluntary exertion of the mufcles of the jaw, in the 

 latter that of the organs of fenfe, removed the difeafe ; that is, 

 the difagreeable fcnfation, which had produced the inflamma- 

 tion, now excited the voluntary power, and thefe new voluntary 

 exertions employed or expended the fuperabundant fenforial 

 power, which had previoufly been exerted on the arterial fyftem, 

 and caufed inflammation. 



s Another cafe which I think worth relating, was of a young 

 man about twenty; he had laboured under an' irritative fe^er 



with 



