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fore death, which was really a confequence of it ; 
or we may imagine it to be a natural change after 
death, when it was truly a dileafe of the living 
body. It is eafy to fee therefore, how a man in 
this hate of ignorance mu ft blunder, when he 
comes to connect the appearances in a dead body 
with the fymptoms that were obferved in life ; 
and indeed all the ufefulnefs of opening dead bo- 
dies depends upon the judgement and lagacitv 
with which this fort of companion is made. 
There is a cafe of a mixed nature, which can- 
not be reckoned a procefs of the living body, nor 
of the dead ; it participates of both, inafmuch as 
its caufe arifes from the living, yet cannot take 
effedt till after death. 
This ftiall be the objebt of the prefent paper ; 
and, to render the fubjedt more intelligible, it will 
be lieceflary to give lome general ideas concerning 
the caufe and effedts. 
An animal fubftance, when joined with the living 
principle, cannot undergo any change in its pro- 
perties but as an animal ; this principle always adt- 
ingand preferving the fubftance, which it inhabits, 
from diflolution, and -from being changed accord- 
ing to the natural changes, which other fubftances, 
applied to it, undergo. 
There are a great many powers in nature, which 
the living principle does not enable the animal 
matter, with which it is combined, to relift, viz. 
the mechanical and moft of the ftronger chemical 
folvents. It renders it however capable of re- 
filling the powers of fermentation, digeftion, and 
perhaps feveral others, which are well known to 
adt 
