[ 2 7i ] 
the waters : but perhaps the operation would have 
fucceeded, if the feat of the dropfy had been on the 
outfide of the brain. However that be, this trocart 
to me feerns useful for feveral operations : and this 
is my firft motive for prefenting it to the Royal So- 
ciety. My fecond motive for fo doing is, the confe- 
quences, which may be deduced from this obfeiva- 
tion with regard to the apoplexy. 
How can one believe, that the apoplexy is caufed 
by the extravafation of the liquids, or by thefullnefs 
of the veffels, after having feen a brain filled with 
water, and diftended fo vaftly as this was, without 
anyone apopledtic fymptom ? Verduc, who in his 
pathology propofes an objection fimilar to this 
againfl his own fyftem, endeavours to folve it, but 
has not fucceeded, The objection remains victorious. 
Neverthelefs, when the brain of a perfon dead of 
an apoplexy is open’d, and extravafated blood is 
found in it, his death is imputed to this extrava- 
fation alone, and the apoplexy is pronounced fan- 
guineous. This has happened on the death of M. De 
Frequienne, prefident of our parliament. On open- 
ing him I found about a tea-fpoon full of blood ex- 
travafated within the medulla oblongata , between the 
third and fourth ventricle, at the beginning of the 
latter. Could fo fmall a quantity of blood prefs on 
the principles of the nerves fo as totally to inter- 
cept the courfe of the fpirits ? No, certainly 3 for this 
would be miftaking the effedl for the caufe. This 
extravafated blood was but an accident owing to the 
convulfive motions of the dura mater , and of the 
veffels of the whole bad? of the fcuil, feized with 
the apople&ic diforder, which moft commonly is 
nothing 
