Haddam Beryls. 39} 
increased to an enormous size. His knees were drawn to- 
gether beyond the power of separation, shortening the left 
leg so that nothing but the toes reached the floor. The 
hands were forcibly and irremovably fixed to the breast, 
the distorted fingers being bent backwards, forming an arch 
over the swollen mound at the joints. A little motion with 
the ends of the fingers was all the sufferer could produce; 
and I was much impressed with the insensibility of man to 
his ordinary blessings, when I saw this poor invalid call 
several times for a servant to come and brush off a fly that 
was biting his leg unmolested. On his back was a large 
running sore, which his friends were uncertain whether to 
ascribe to disease, or to the effects of lying so long ina 
horizontal and immoveable posture. The daily dressing of 
this sore, which was performed while I was present, gave 
him so great pain, that he was unable to sit up a moment 
after it was completed. ‘Three servants took him up with 
all possible care, and laid him on the bed; while the excru- 
ciating misery which this gentle movement produced, filled 
the mouth of the sufferer with groans and entreaties. Here 
he lay, bewailing his lot in a hollow, piteous tone, and ery- 
ing, “Oh that thou wouldst hide me in the grave, that 
thou wouldst keep me secret, until thy wrath be past!’’ 
On enquiring the cause of his sufferings, I was told that, 
three years ago, being afflicted with rheumatism, he took 
the advice of a quack to attempt its cure by enormous do- 
ses of sulphur. With this view, he mixed a pound of sul- 
phur with five quarts of water, and stirring it, took half a 
pint three times a day, until he had taken six pounds of sui- 
phur. Soon after, commenced the pain and distortion of 
his limbs, which had subjected him to increasing and ex- 
cruciating sufferings ever since.--Communication to the 
Editor. 
4. Peculiar form of some of the Beryls of Haddam, Conn. 
—A correspondent, distinguished by his accurate dis- 
crimination of minerals, and especially of the peculiarities 
of crystals, remarks of some beryls, which he obtained from 
ene of the quarrymen at Haddam that “ they are different 
in form from any that he has ever seen or heard of.” 
“* One specimen, he remarks, has part of a hexahedral 
prism—the facettes of which are alternately broad and 
