ART. 1.2. 6. i. NUTRIENTIA. 17 



again become a part of them, as well as the calcareous matter 

 with which they are united. Whence it may be conceived, 

 that the waters, which abound with limeftone in folution, may 

 fupply nutriment both to animals and to vegetables, as mention- 

 ed above. 



VI. i. The manner, in which nutritious particles are fub- 

 flituted in the place of thofe, which are mechanically abraded, 

 or chemically decompofed, or which vanifh by animal abforp- 

 tion. mull be owing to animal appetency, as defcribed in Seel:. 

 XXXVII. 3. and is probably fimilar to the procels of inflamma- 

 tion, which produces new veflels and new fluids ; or to that 

 which conflitutes the growth of the body to maturity. Thus 

 the granulations of new flefh to repair the injuries of wounds 

 are vifible to the eye ; as well as the callous matter, which ce- 

 ments broken bones ; the calcareous matter, which repairs in- 

 jured fnail-ihells ; and the threads, which are formed by filk- 

 worms and fpiders ; which are all fecreted in a fofter date, and 

 harden by exfkcation, or by the contact; of the air, or by abforp- 

 tion of their more fluid parts. 



Whether the materials, which thus fupply the wade of the 

 fyftem, can be given any other way than by the ftomach, fo as 

 to preferve the body for a length of time, is worth our inquiry ; 

 as cafes fometimes occur, in which food cannot be introduced 

 into the ftomach, as in obftruclions of the ceiophagus, inflam- 

 mations of the throat, or in hydrophobia ; and other cafes are 

 not unfrequent in which the power of digeftion is nearly or to- 

 tally deftroyed, as in anorexia epileptica, and in many fevers. 



In the former of thefe circumftances liquid nutriment may 

 fometimes be gotten into the Itomach through a flexible cathe- 

 ter ; as defcribed in Clafs III. i. I. 15. In the latter many 

 kinds of mild aliment, as milk or brorh, have frequently been 

 injected as clyfters, together with a fmall quantity of opium, as 

 ten drops of the tinfture, three or four times a ciay , to which 

 alfo might be added very fmall quantities of vinous Ipirit But 

 thtfe, ab far as I have obftrved, will not long iultain a perfon, 

 who cannot take any fuftenance by the {tomach. 



2 Another mode of applying nutritive fluids might be by 

 exrenfive fomentations, or by immerging the whole body in a 

 bath of broth, or of warm milk, which might at the fame time 

 be coagulated by rennet, or the acid ot the calf's {tomach ; broth 

 or whey might thus probably be introduced, in part at Jeaft, into 

 the circulation, as a folution of nitre is faid to have been ab- 

 forbed in a pediluvium, which was afterwards difcovered by the 

 manner in which paper dipped frequently in the urine of the pa- 

 tient and dried, burnt and fparkled like touch-paper. Great 



quantity 



