BROWNING. 
bruises. Physicians, however, are not 
agreed with regard to tiie nature of the in- 
jury done to the animal system in any or 
all of these accidents. It is, indeed, cer- 
tain, that in all the cases above mentioned, 
particularly in drowning, there is very often 
such a suspension of the vital powers as to 
ns hath the appearance of a total extinction 
of them ; while yet they may be again set 
in motion, and the person restored to life, 
after a much longer submersion than hath 
been generally thought capable of produc- 
ing absolute death. It were to be wished, 
however, that, as it is now universally al- 
lowed, that drowning is only a suspension 
of the action of the vital powers, physici- 
ans could as unanimously determine the 
means by which these powers are suspended ; 
because on a knowledge of these means the 
methods to be used for recovering persons 
apparently drowned must certainly depend. 
We shall, in this place, give some directions 
on the subject, which have been recom- 
mended on respectable authority, and have 
been sanctioned by long experience. 
Mr. Hunter observes, that when assis- 
tance is soon called after immersion, blow- 
ing air into the lungs will, in some cases, 
elfect'a recovery ; but when any consider- 
able time has been lost, he advises stimu- 
lant medicines, such as the vapour of vola- 
tile alkali, to be mixed with the air ; w'hich 
may easily be done, by holding spirits of 
hartshoi-n in a cup under the receiver of 
the bellows. And as applications of this 
kind to the olfactory nerves tend greatly to 
rouze the living principle, and put the mus- 
cles of respiration into action, it may pro- 
bably, therefore, be most proper to have 
air impregnated in that manner thrown in 
by the nose. To prevent the stomach and 
intestines from being too much distended 
by the air so injected, the larynx is directed 
to be gently pressed against the oesophagus 
and spine. While this business is going on, 
an assistant should prepare bed clothes, 
carefully brought to a proper degree of 
heat. Heat our author considers as conge- 
nial with the living principle; increasing 
the necessity of action, it increases action i 
cold, on the other hand, lessens the neces- 
sity, and, of course, the action is diminish- 
ed ; to a due degree of heat, therefore, 
the living principle, he tliinks, owes its vi- 
gour. From experiments, he says, it ap- 
pears to be a law in animal bodies, that the 
degree of heat should bear a proportion to 
the quantity of life ; as Ufe is weakened, 
this proportion requires great accuracy. 
while greater powers of life allow it greater 
latitudes. After these and several other 
observations on the same subject, our au- 
thor proceeds to more particular directions 
for the management of drowned people. 
If bed clothes are put over the person, so 
as scarce to touch him, steams of volatile 
alkali, or of warm balsams, may be thrown 
in, so as to come in contact with many 
parts of the body. And it might probably 
be advantageous, Mr. Hunter observes, to 
have steams of the same kind conveyed 
into the stomach. This, we are told, may 
be done by a hollow bougie and a syringe : 
but the operation should be very speedily 
performed, as the instrument, by continu- 
ing long in the mouth, might produce sick- 
ness, which our author says he would always 
wish to avoid. Some of the warm stimu- 
lating substances, .such as juice of horse- 
radish, peppermint-water, and spirits of 
hartshorn, are directed to be thrown into 
the stomach in a fluid state, as also to be 
injected by the anus. Motion, possibly, 
may be of service ; it may, at least, be 
tried ; but as it hath less effect than any 
otlier of the usually prescribed stimuli, it 
is directed to be the last part of the pro- 
cess. The same care in the operator, in 
regulating the proportion of every one of 
these means, is here directed, as was for- 
merly given for the application of heat. 
For every one of them, our author ob- 
serves, may possibly have the same pro- 
perty of destroying entirely the feeble ac- 
tion which they have excited if administered 
in too great a quantity : instead, therefore, 
of increasing and hastening the operations 
on the first signs of returning life lieing ob- 
served, as is usually done, he desires they 
may be lessened, and advises their increase 
to be afterwards proportioned, as nearly as 
possible, to the quantity of powers as they 
arise. When the heart begins to move, the 
application of air to the lungs should be 
lessened, that, when the muscles of res- 
piration begin to act, a good deal may 
be left for them to do. 
Mr. Hunter absolutely forbids blood-let- 
ting in all such cases ; for as it not only 
weakens the animal principle, but lessens 
life itself ; it must consequently, he observes, 
lessen both the powers and dispositions to 
action. For the same reason he is against 
introducing any thing into the stomach that 
might produce sickness or vomiting ; and, 
on the same principle, he says, we should 
avoid throwing tobacco fumes, or aiiy other 
such articles up by the anus, as might tend to 
