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NATURAL HISTORY. 208 
the pleurify. ‘There is another fort, that have a fnout or trunk, with 
a kind of crooked claws, wherewith they fometimes gnaw and tear the 
membranes of the ftomach, caufing inexpreflible pain, anxiety, and a 
ftinking breath; but they more generally refide in the gut called the 
ileum, becaufe it is free from the gall, for they cannot. bear its bitter- 
nefs: the bellies of children are fometimes ftrangely diftended with 
them, and they render the excrements like cow dung, and full of fub- 
- ftances, like cucumber feed: the round Worms are generally of the 
length of a palm, or longer; and yet a certain blackimith threw one | 
up by-vomit, a foot and a half long, with a red fmooth head, about 
the fize of a pea, and the body, was covered over with a fort of a down, 
with a tail in the thape of a half-moon. At Rome a man afilifed with . 
‘Worms, which gave him inexpreflible pain, at length voided one that 
was black and hairy, of the length of five feet, and about the thicknefs 
of areed. Another brought away one not above a palm in length 
which was pretty like the round fort, only the back of it was covered, 
with red hair or down: they have been feen of all colours, as red, 
yellow, black, and variegated with white and black; but of thefe the 
green are moft uncommon. However thefe are all uncommon pro- 
‘duétions, and never have yet been placed by naturalifts in any regular 
elafs. : ee ae 
The Afcarides are alfo Worms bred in a human body, and fome pre- 
tend they have feen them in the mud, at the bottom of rivers and ponds. 
At is of an oblong form, flender, and covered with ‘a very tender foft 
4kin, and are not unlike book Worms.. It is of the thicknefs of a fmall 
pin, with a {malt tharp head, and a pointed tail: there is always a vaft 
number of them together, and they are fometimes voided out of human 
bodies in large quantities: their feat is in the great guts, and particu- 
larly the rectum. They produce inflations of the belly, ficknefs, and 
Jeannefs, and are attended with great itching of the anus. Some of 
thefe Worms are larger than others. 
The tape Worm grows to a furprifing length, being fometimes two 
or three ells or longer; and it is divided throughout its whole length 
by knots or joints. Some have formerly thought that it was the in- 
ward fkin of the guts, which comes off throughout their whole length ; 
but this is a miflake, for ic has been fometimes feen to move after it 
was voided. It has fomewhat the appearance of the links of a chain, 
the joints being a third of an inch long, and the tkin is fmooth, and of 
a whitith colour. It is found in the inteftines of many other animals, 
defides men, not excepting birds and fihh. Inthe year 1725, it was 
epidemical among the geefe in Germany ; fome of them were voided a 
foot and fome inches in length, with the dung, and many of the geefe 
were cured by accidentally feeding upon the remains of fage and hyflop 
after they were diftilled. There have been fith opened, that have not 
‘only one tape Worm, but three at atime, and thefe three times the 
Jength of the fifh themfelves. Mr /ry/ch, a German, who gives us this 
account, affirms, that thefe fuppofed joints are real knots, which he has _ 
been at the pains to untye, which when done, rendered the Worms a 
great deal longer. He farther obferved, that they had a fort of an 
artery, which run from the head to the tail, and was plain enough to 
_ be feen, it being of the colour of blood, and the body itfelf white: the 
breadth of the body grew lefs — to the ‘end of the tail, and end- 
cz ed. 
