Sir Everard Home’s farther observations , &c. 263 
Of this opinion I was led to entertain considerable doubts, 
in consequence of having found upon one occasion, in which 
I took half a bottle of the Eau Medicinale which had been 
poured off without shaking the bottle, that the sensible effects 
were very mild ; those produced by the other half, in which 
the deposit was mixed, were unusually severe, the nausea be- 
ing greater, and a greater number of stools being produced. 
These doubts were much strengthened, when I found that the 
effects of the Eau Medicinale are more violent upon many sto- 
machs than those of the vinous infusion of the Colchicum, which 
probably arises from the Eau Medicinale being kept in small 
bottles, in consequence of which all the deposit that takes place 
is given along with the infusion, while the vinous infusion of 
Colchicum being kept in large bottles, the deposit falls to the 
bottom. If such deposit increased the powers of the medicine 
in counteracting the symptoms of gout, it would be unne- 
cessary to prosecute this investigation farther, since it would 
be absurd to diminish the violence of a medicine, if, by so 
doing, its efficacy is to be diminished in an equal degree. 
To ascertain this point, I gave 60 drops of the vinous infu- 
sion of Colchicum, in which there was no deposit whatever, 
to a man labouring under a severe paroxysm of gout, to which 
he was a great martyr, and whose paroxysms were usually 
of several weeks continuance ; he was 60 years of age. 
The medicine was exhibited on the 17th of January 1817, 
his pulse being 115. In half an hour, he had slight nausea, 
which soon went off. In 5 hours, a profuse perspiration came 
on, and the pain of the gout entirely subsided, leaving a 
soreness in the parts that had been affected. In 12 hours, 
the bowels were gently moved, his pulse 105 and irregular; 
mdcccxvii. M m 
