[ +°3 3 
landing upon cakes of pitch. Under his feet, and 
upon the pitch, was ftrewed a large quantity of pow- 
der’d fcammony, fo thick as to prevent his lkin from 
touching the pitch. The fcammony ftuck to his feet, 
and his foies were in a manner cover’d with the pow- 
der of this drug. During the enfuing night and the 
next morning, the boy had four copious ftools, but 
without pain or griping. 
This effect excited fome debates among the fo- 
ciety. Some were of opinion, that the purgative 
power of the drug manifefted itfelf by this new me- 
thod of adminiftration : others accounted for what 
had happened, from an alteration in the temperature 
of the air, which, from hot and ferene, had become 
fuddenly cold : fome again aferibed it to the wafh- 
ing of the boy’s feet, which immediately preceded 
his electrilation ; others attributed it to the immode- 
rate quantity of fruit he had eaten. It was more- 
over infilled upon, that his being acquainted with 
what might be expected, might even fo work upon 
his imagination as to produce this effect : but as a 
real matter of fact was the object of the debate, it 
was thought proper to make a frefh inquiry, without 
trufting to conjectures. Three days afterwards there- 
fore he was electrifed again with a frefh parcel of fcam- 
mony added to the former, and the operation continued 
for the fame time, and in the fame manner, as be- 
fore ; but this produced nothing. No ftools follow’d 
it, as in the former experiment. But to prevent any 
doubts ariling from the above trials, they ftrongly 
electrifed a healthy youth of about fifteen, with pow- 
der’d gamboge under his naked feet, for forty minutes. 
E e e 2 ' During 
