IRON. 



though he, on the other liand, prefcribes wine or water, in 

 which red-hot iron has been quenched, as an ailringent in dy- 

 fenteries, diarrhoeas, and weaknelTes of the ftomach. 



Iron combined willi acids becomes an ailringent fub- 

 ftance ; and liencc its great medicinal virtue is caufcd by its 

 tonic and llrengthening quahties ; for by increafing tlie tone 

 of the vefTels, it incrcafes tlieir vigour and aftivitv. It pro- 

 duces a flight and gentle irritation of the fibres, the eft'ecl of 

 which is to conftringe the fenfible organic parts upon which 

 it acts, and fo increafe their force ai:d ehillicity. Iron par- 

 ticularly aCis upon the libres, and the vefli Is of tlie ilomach 

 and inteftines; hence it prodi-.ces exo-llent effefts in all 

 difeafes which proceed from laxity and inaftivity of the di- 

 gellive organs. Such are crudities, bad digeilion, accom- 

 panied witli diarrha;a, flatulencies, flatulent colics, &c. &c. 

 in difeafes which proceed from the former, as many hyfte- 

 rical, hypochondriacal, melancholic affedions, intermittent 

 fevers, tertians and quartans, &c. In thofe cafes iron 

 quickens the circulation and railcs the pulfe ; renders the 

 blood more florid, and as it were expands and rarefies the 

 juices, promoting, when they are deficient, and reflraining, 

 ivlien immoderate, the fecretions that are made from tlie 

 blood, as perfpiration, urine, and the uterine purgations. 

 By the fame corroborating pov/er, which renders it fer- 

 viceable in promoting deticient, and rellraining red.mdant 

 difcharges, where the fnpprellion or flux arifes from debility 

 and relaxati-<n, it increafes, on the contrary, fluxes, and 

 coniirms ob'lruaio::s, when they proceed from tenfion, ri- 

 gidity, or fpaHnodic tlrirtures of the veflels. Where either 

 the circulation is quick, or the habit plethoric, by increaGng 

 the velocity of the blood, and the plethoric fymptoms, it 

 produces heaviiiefs, dulnefs, vague heats and flnlhings, or 

 kindles more dangerous fevers or inflammations, or burfls 

 fome of the over-diftended fmall vefl"els. In fome coKftitu- 

 tions, where iron is proper and fa'utary, particularly in 

 hyilerical and !iyj)ochondriacal cafe?, and where the fl;omach 

 is very weak, it is apt at lirft to occafion great ficknefs and 

 perturbation : to remedy thefe inconveniences, Sydenham 

 advifes, to begin with very fmall dofes, and to adminifler it 

 for a while at bed-time, in conjunction with a flight opiate. 

 In other crcumftances, it is commonly taken in the morning 

 and afternoon, and moderate exercil'e ufed to promote its 

 aftion. In all cafes the dofe fliould be fmall and repeated ; a 

 grain, or half a grain of the metal diflolved, or in a fokible 

 date, is generally a fufficient dofe. Its eO'eds are known 

 bv nidorous eructations, and by the alvine faces being tinged 

 oi a blick colour. 



Stahl, and feveral other modern chemi:Is and phyficiars, 

 acknowledge only the to:ic and ftreng'hening qiialities of 

 iron. The cafes in which iron has jirodiced a refolving and 

 aperient efTea are tliofe, in which the obilrutiions, and the 

 defed of fecretions and excretions, have proceeded from 

 weaknefs and rehxation of the fibres and of tlic veflels, rather 

 than from a craffitude of humours, as in the chlorofis, in 

 fome kinds of jaundice, and other difeafes of the fame 

 fort. 



The fame preparation, as Dr. Lewis has judicioufly ob- 

 ferved, may fometimes exert an aperiei.t, and fometiraes an 

 ailringent, power, accordmg to the flate of the body to 

 which they are applied. E.g. If a retention of menfes de- 

 pends upon a weaknefs in the vefllls of the uterus, chaly- 

 beate medicines, by invigorating the force of the veflels, 

 ■ may cure the difeafe, and may therel>y appear to be aperient ; 

 and, on the contrary, in a mcnorrhagia, when the difeafe 

 depends upon a laxity of the extreme veflels of the uterus, 

 iroa exhibited, by rcftoring the tone of thefe veflels, may 



fliew an ailringent operation. However, it is probable, 

 that in the cafes of fuppreflion depending upon a conflriftioii 

 of the extremities of the veflels of tide uterus, the fame 

 tonic powers may not be fo properly employed. By conii- 

 derations of this kind, the inutility or propriety of the me- 

 dicinal preparations of iron may be determined. In cU 

 cafes of aftive hemorrhagy they muft be hurtful ; and 

 in cafes of hemorrliagy from exteri al violence. Dr. Cullen 

 would judge them to be ul'eiefs, if not hurtful. In cafes of 

 a general flaccidity, as it is frequently marked under the 

 title of " Cachexy," and in all cafes of evacuations from 

 laxity, whe'her fa iguine or ferous, they are likely to be 

 the mofl; effectual remedies. The good effects of the prepa- 

 rations of iron, as Dr. Cullen apprehends, have been often 

 mifled by their being given in too fmall dofes. The faline 

 preparations, in large dofes, are ready to irritate the fto- 

 mach ; and for tliis reafon, and fome others, it muft be al- 

 ways proper to begin with fvnall dofes, and to increafe them 

 by degrees; but he has often found, that no great benelit 

 IS to be obtained but when large quantities, either by tlie 

 fize of the doles, or by the long continuance of them, have 

 been tlirown in. He fays, that he has found the finiple rnll 

 as effeftual as any other preparation, and the Ilomach has 

 borne it better than any other. He begins with a dofe of 

 five grains, but gradually increafes it to what the ilomach 

 eafily bears. Some are faid to have given it to the quantity 

 of fix drams in one day ; but he has hardly found any fto- 

 mach that would bear the third pare of that quantity with- 

 out much ficknefs. He thinks that the ftomach bears it bet- 

 ter by joii.ing witli it fome aromatic. 



I'he preparations of iron that have been in more frequent 

 ufe, and fi.me of w'lich are at prefent continued under dif- 

 ferent names, are, i. The crude filings reduced to an impal- 

 pable powder ; tl-.is is an excelieut form for adminillering 

 iron in female diforders, in which the body is weak, 

 languid, and full of acidities ; the dofe of the filings is from 

 two or three grains to a fcruple or more. 2. " Mars faccha- 

 ratus," which is the filings candied with fugar, by diffolving 

 two parts of fine fugar in water, and boiling it down to 

 a candy ccnfiftence, and adding, by httle and httle, one part 

 of the clcanfed filings in a kettle over a gentle fire ; the 

 veflel being continually fhaken, that the filings may be crufted 

 over with the fugar. In order to prevent the mixture from 

 ri;nning into lumps, a little ftarch is previoufly mixed with 

 the fugar, in the proportion of a dram to' a pound. 3. " Li- 

 mati:ra Martis pr-.Eparata," or " Chalybis rubigo prspa- 

 rata," is formed by moiftening the filings with vinegar or 

 water, ai>d expoi'iiig them to a moiil air, or occafionally 

 moiftening them afieih, which foon change in great part into 

 rufl ; this mil may be feparated from ttie uncorroded part, 

 by grinding and waihing over the fine powder with water. 

 This is given in the fame dofe as the crude filings. 



This preparation, wliich was denominated " chalybis ru- 

 bigo prasparata" in the London Pharmacopeia of 174^, and 

 " ferri rubigo" in that of 17S7, is now called " ferri car- 

 bonas," or carbonate of iron. It is formed of fulphate of 

 iron, eight ounces ; fub-carbonate of foda, ten ounces ; and 

 a gallon of boiling water. DifTolve the fulphate of iron aud 

 fub-carbonate of foda feparately, each in four pints of water ; 

 then mix tlie folutions together, and fet by tlie mixture, 

 that the precipitated powder may lubfide ; having poured off 

 the fupernatant liquor, wafli the carbonate of irOn with hot 

 water, and dry it upon bibulous paper in a gentle heat. 



There are two oxyds of iron, both of which are com- 

 bined with acids, and form different modifications of the 

 fame fait, a dilUndlioiithat ought to bepaiticularly regarded 



