BEAUMONT 



33 



experiments on him. These he published, # and 

 they were of great value. But it is to be noted 

 that the ground had been cleared already, fifty 

 years before, by Reaumur and Spallanzani : — 



u I make no claim to originality in my opinions, 

 as it respects the existence and operation of the 

 gastric juice. My experiments confirm the doctrines 

 (with some modifications) taught by Spallanzani, 

 and many of the most enlightened physiological 

 writers." (Preface to Dr Beaumont's book.) 



Further, it is to be noted that Alexis St Martin's 

 case proves that a gastric fistula is not painful. 

 Scores of experiments were made on him, off and 

 on, for nine years : — 



H During the whole of these periods, from the 

 spring of 1824 to the present time (1833), he 

 has enjoyed general good health, and perhaps 

 suffered much less predisposition to disease than 

 is common to men of his age and circumstances 

 in life. He has been active, athletic, and vigor- 

 ous ; exercising, eating, and drinking like other 

 healthy and active people. For the last four 

 months he has been unusually plethoric and robust, 

 though constantly subjected to a continuous series 

 of experiments on the interior of the stomach ; 

 allowing to be introduced or taken out at the 

 aperture different kinds of food, drinks, elastic 

 catheters, thermometer tubes, gastric juice, chyme, 

 etc., almost daily, and sometimes hourly. 



* Experiments and Observations on the Gastric Juice, and 

 the Physiology of Digestion, by William Beaumont, M.D. ; 

 Edinburgh, 1838. 



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