[ 939 J 
When I firft vifited him, I found him with his 
hands quite did, and utterly incapable of any bufi- 
nefs whatever ; and having already had fo much ad- 
vice, and taken fo many medicines, he concluded 
his diforder was incurable, and that he fhould en- 
tirely lofe the ufe of his hands, the Jkin on the palms 
of them (the right hand rather the word: of the two) 
having the exadl appearance of parchment , full of 
chaps ; and when I endeavoured, by force, to 
dreighten the fingers, the blood ftarted from every 
joint of them. 
After hearing the befi: account I could get of the 
caufe of his complaint, I imagined, that, as the dif- 
eafe had been contracted by his frequently dipping 
his hands into a violently-acid liquor, the mod pro- 
bable method of relieving him would be, by the ap- 
plication of an emollient liniment, mixed with ail 
alkaline lixivium. For this purpofe, I ordered as 
follows : 
Vi 01. Olivar. §iv. 
Lixivii. Salis Alkalin. fix. §ii. M. 
F. Linimentum. 
With this he was ordered to anoint his hands fre- 
quently, efpecially going to bed ; and, to prevent the 
liniment being too foon rubbed off, condantly to wear 
a pair of gloves. 
About four days after, I found the fkin a little 
foftened, and I could extend the fingers with lefs pain 
than before ; and no blood iffued, upon my endea- 
vouring to move them. This would have encouraged 
me to have continued the ufe of the fame liniment; 
but as he complained much of its making his hands 
Vol, LI. 6 E finart 
