36$ RETROGRADE ABSORBENTS. SECT. XXIX. 4, 



by means of fixed alcali, given in the dofe of half a 

 dram every fix hours, of great advantage, with a 

 few grains of rhubarb, fo as to produce a daily eva^ 

 cuation. 



The food fhould confift of materials that have the 

 leaft ftimulus, with calcareous water, as of Briflol 

 and Matlock; that the mouths of the laOeals may 

 be as little ftimulated as is neceffary for their proper 

 abforption ; left with their greater exertions, fhould 

 be connected by fympathy, the inverted motions of 

 the urinary lymphatics. 



The fame method may be employed with equal 

 advantage in the aqueous diabetes, fo great is the 

 fympathy between the (kin and the ftomach. To 

 which, however, fome application to the fkin might 

 be ufefully added ; as rubbing the patient all over 

 with oil, to prevent the too great adion of the cuta* 

 neous abforbents. I knew an experiment of this 

 kind made upon one patient with apparent adyan? 

 tage. 



The mucilaginous diabetes will require the fame 

 treatment, which is mod efficacious in the dropfy, 

 and will be defcribed below. I mud add, that the 

 diet and medicines above mentioned, are ftrongly 

 recommended by various authors, as by Morgan, 

 Willis, Harris, and Etmuller; but more hiftories 

 of the fuccefsful treatment of thefe difeafes are 

 wanting to fully afcertain the moil efficacious me- 

 thods of cure. 



In a letter from Mr. Charles Darwin, dated April 

 24, 1778, Edinburgh, is the fubfequent paiTage: 

 " A man who had long laboured under a diabetes 

 died yefterday in the clinical ward. He had for 

 fome time drank four, and pafled twelve pounds of 

 fluid daily ; each pound of urine contained an ounce 

 of lugar. He took, without confiderable relief, 

 gum kino, fanguis draconis melted with alum, tinc- 

 ture of cantharides, ifinglafs, gum arabic, crabs. 



