innocence, are pleased to class them, we leave to persons of common sense and common discrimination to decide.

"Mucous membrane.

In the hands of Broussais, the mucous membrane' first rose to eminence. Bustling, active, ready, he first pushed it into notice; and so skilled was he in all the arts of scholastic juggling, that not only did he parry every blow aimed against his favourite theme by the skin supporters, but he at last obtained for it so great an influence in the sick room, that no patient of importance could be legitimately put to death till he had been first called in to prescribe something for the 'mucous membrane.' Broussais thus became the French dictator, and the 'mucous membrane' the French ruling doctrine. Carried by his numerous partisans and disciples into every commune in France, the 'mucous membrane' at last found its way into England, where it was taken up by the late Dr. Armstrong-and an excellent stepping-stone it proved to him in practice. Everybody came to hear what he had to say of the 'mucous membrane.' You could not have an ache in your back or a cramp in your leg, but the mucous membrane' was in fault; nay, had you a pimple on your nose, or a pain in your great toe, it was still the "mucous membrane." Nor is this doctrine even now quite exploded. How many of the various SECRETIONS have run this gauntlet of accusation, it would be unprofitable to do more than allude to.

"The perspiration was at one time much in vogue, and 'checked perspiration' the reply to every inquiry. Our grandmothers use the phrase occasionally still; though some of them betray a leaning to the system of the water doctors -not the water doctors of the present day, Priessnitz and his followers, to wit, no, quite a different class of. persons; the persons I speak of only needed to inspect your water to find out a cure for your complaint. Many curious stories come to my mind in connexion with this; but the subject is too grave to be trifled with. Let us therefore pass from that to the bile’— the mysterious cause of so much offending. How many difficulties has not this secretion mastered? How many has it not made where none existed before? You derange every organ and function in your frame by intemperance the bile,' not the wine, is the criminal! You have headach from hard study, it is still 'the bile'-the palpable and obvious agencies going for nothing-while ONE of many EFFECTS, produced by a common cause, is absurdly singled out as the father and mother of the whole!"

We think that you have a sufficient explanation in this extract of the reason why physicians do not take, when ill themselves, the drugs they prescribe for others. This note has extended too far already for us to think of entering into an illustration of the scepticism so common among medical men of the employment of drugs in their own ailments. We shall, however, give shortly an instance related to us the other day, by a personal observer, and which took place some few years ago in the West Indies. A medical gentleman in was attacked with fever; he called his servants around him, and mentioned to. them that he was about to have a severe attack of illness, stating that many physicians would come and see him, and prescribe remedies for the removal of the attack. “Now, I command you," said he, "not to give these to me, but, instead of pouring them into my stomach, pour them into a tub. I warn you that if any one of you should give me any of the drugs sent, I shall have you

tied up, and will order you to receive a hundred lashes for every time you have given me a dose, should I recover." The physician did recover, and when quite convalescent, sent for his kind physicians to come and take dinner with him. They came, and after a substantial meal, he took them into his bed room and said, pointing to the tub in which the medicine was contained, "Where should I have been, gentlemen, think you, had I taken this gallon or so of drugs you so kindly sent me? Not certainly should I have been your host this day. After this, when you have a friend to treat, I would recommend you to be more guarded in giving medicines." We, to our readers would say, Be you more guarded in the choice of your physician, and at no time take any drugs.

CONGESTION OF THE BRAIN.

TO THE EDITORS OF THE WATER CURE Journal.

W. M.

DEAR SIRS, I have read the numbers of your Journal with great interest so far, being a thorough-going hydropathist myself. I spent four months last winter at a hydropathic establishment for congestion of the brain, and left it very much better; but unfortunately, after leaving, I was persuaded to consult a drug doctor, who, in a couple of months, made me worse again than ever. I then determined to cease drugging, and live hydropathically, taking a cold bath every morning, which I think every body ought to do and I recovered rapidly.

About two months ago, I over-exerted myself very much in my eagerness to get well, and got much worse; I also took a few more drugs, which made me worse still. I am now living hydropathically again, and hope I am coming round once more; my symptoms are fulness at the top of the head, with heat there occasionally, bloodshot eyes when sleeping, and an aching pain at the back of them at times; the fulness is always greatly relieved by reclining in an easy chair, or propping the head on some support; and, generally speaking, exercise brings the fulness on, as also a tightness at the ear roots. A drug doctor cupped me, and made me ten times worse.

What I want, then, is a paper in your Magazine on atonic congestion of the brain. This is a disease which grows more and more common, and in which drug medication fails most signally. In fact, I can find scarcely any mention of it in any medical work. Solly just touches upon it. A statement of its symptoms, and the rationale of certain postures giving relief, with an outline of the manner in which hydropathy masters this disease, would, I think,

be satisfactory to your readers generally, especially to the literary portion of them.

Oldcotes, Teckhill, Oct. 14th, 1847.

I am, yours,

CANTAB.

[The disease mentioned in this letter is rather a complex one, and requires for its cure a lengthened and continuous, yet moderate course of treatment. It depends partly on irritation of the terminal nerves of the stomach, pneumigastric and sympathetic, the centres of which usually are in a similar condition; and partly upon irritation of the brain, occasioned by a protracted use of it. The symptoms of this complaint are, a whitish brown coated tongue, especially at the root and in the centre; the eyes appear "bleared," the eyelids congested, and the features irritable, while there is generally slight excitability, with a feeling of congestion of the central organs of the nervous system, and a cloudiness and heaviness over the forehead and eyebrows. This ailment commonly originates in the following manner, and pursues the course we are about to describe. The individual has for several months or years devoted himself assiduously, and without intermission, to study, or he has been closely engaged in a harassing, hurried, exciting business. After a while, he feels a fulness and sense of weight in the head; the bowels become slightly constipated, and the appetite small and irregular. These symptoms he removes and keeps at bay for an indefinite space of time, by the frequent use of blue pill and laxative medicines. These relieve him for a time, but shortly he is obliged again to have recourse to them. Still he continues his studies, or holds to his professional or business occupations. After a while, he finds that the medicines are not so effectual in removing the symptoms as they were formerly; and he now feels his head hot, and himself unable to pursue his duties for any length of time without becoming slightly feverish, with perhaps a little tremulousness, and a sensation of pricking or numbness in the upper or lower extremities. Everything appears now and then to be hazy or cloudy before his vision, his face feels full, congested, and hot. In bed, he is unable to sleep from the beating of his heart, or the irritability of his system. He has no relish for food, and has scarcely any appetite, or the appetite is variable. The food he takes produces a feeling of oppression and distension of the stomach. His physician, on being consulted, refers his illness to irritation and congestion of the brain, with indigestion; and recommends a few leeches to be applied to the temples, with alterative and cathartic medicines.

This is the practice most commonly pursued in treating this disease, a practice which we look upon to be dangerous and irrational; for what is the pathology of the case? It is a want of a just relation between the brain and the functions it is forced to perform. There is more of irritability than of strength in it, and just as a grain of sand below the eyelid, from its producing irritation, congests the eyeball with blood, so does forced mental action irritate, and thereby cause congestion of the already too severely worked brain. In addition to which there is irritation of the sympathetic ganglia, and of the nervous fibriles in the stomach, which is dependant primarily upon the irritated state of the brain, and upon excitement produced in the stomach from taking too much food, the employment of stimulants, or the use of medicines.

From this short explanation we learn that congestion in this instance is not occasioned by too great power in the organ, but from a weakness therein.

To show more fully the reason why congestion, under such circumstances, takes place, we may state that no force, however powerful, is able to cause the blood to circulate freely through the capillary vessels of an organ, unless there be a healthy relation between the walls of the blood vessels or the nervous fibriles ramifying on them, and the functions of the organ in which they are situated. For example, if we tie the windpipe of a dog so as to prevent the free passage of air to and from the lungs, we shall find after death the whole of these organs congested with blood, the air cells and air tubes filled with a frothy serum, and the right side of the heart and the pulmonary vessels leading from it to the lungs quite distended with venous blood, while the blood vessels which pass from the lungs to the heart, and which usually carry arterialised blood, are almost empty. In this instance, the heart is unable to propel the blood through the lungs, and that because the process of purification which takes place in the air cells and the capillary vessels has been prevented going on. In a word, the healthy relation between the walls of the blood vessels or its nervous fibriles and the functions performed by the lungs, has been broken up. In this case we have congestion from stoppage of function, while in the former it was dependant on too great action in a weakened organ, which occasioned irritation, the immediate cause of the congestion. Nevertheless, these two states were produced by the breaking up of the natural relation between the functions of the individual parts of the organs. In the one instance, a cure would be rapidly effected by the free admission of atmospheric air into the lungs, provided death had not already taken place; while, in the other case, the mere removal of the immediate cause of irritation would be unable to effect a cure, because, from the long-continued action of the baneful influence, the reactive energy in the part had been entirely overcome and almost wholly subdued. A stimulant is, therefore, needed to raise and strengthen this reaction, so that it may be able, not only to throw off the disease, but also to strengthen the generally weakened organism. The stimulants which are best fitted for this purpose are those which, while they raise the reactive energy in the organ affected, give vigour, strength, and elasticity to the entire frame; and those best adapted for this object are, we think, fresh air, moderate exercise, plain unstimulating food, and the tonic process of the water cure, with entire cessation from all mental labour.

The three ideas which are to guide us in the treatment of this disorder are, firstly, weakness of the organs; secondly, congestion of these from irritation; and thirdly, the irregular circulation of the blood through the system. The mode by which we are to conduct the process of cure is by alleviating and removing the irritability, which is to be effected by means of warm fomentations applied to the region of the stomach, for half an hour each time, three times a day-the water out of which the flannels are wrung being of the temperature of 100 degrees to 108 degrees; and by the employment of the sitz bath for the same length of time, an hour and a half or two hours after the fomentation has been used. The irregular circulation of the blood is to be remedied by the application of the envelope once every day for the first two or three days, with a shallow bath of the temperature of 60 degrees, or a dripping sheet, wrung

out of cold water, afterwards; (the choice of which depends upon the feelings of the patient ;) then only every second or third day. The utmost care is requisite in the employment of the envelope, lest the patient become too much weakened by it. The strength is to be restored by means of very gentle exercise, the constant breathing of pure fresh air, and the moderate use of unstimulating food, which ought always to be taken cold. In this disease, white bread is preferable to brown. Water ought to be drunk in very small quantity, not above three tumblers in the twenty-four hours, and not more than half a tumbler full at a time. The compress ought constantly to be worn, and wetted after every bath in cold water. These are all the directions we can give in a general way.

WHAT DOES THE MEDICAL PROFESSION RECKON DANGER IN THE WAY OF TREATMENT?

This is a question requiring now to be answered. When a patient asks his physician to treat him homœopathically, he answers, with a very solemn and grave face, "I dare not do so, for I believe that mode of treatment to be merely negative, and my conscience would prevent me from allowing your disease to run its course without some active remedy being

used."

Again, if another patient asks another physician to treat him according to the water system, he replies with still greater, seriousness of expression, and with a frightened countenance "May I be prevented from ever using such dangerous means

with my patients!" Such and similar colloquies do not rarely take place between patients and their medical advisers. They occur daily; therefore every candid thinker will at least be inclined to imagine that physicians and surgeons look upon these two modes of treating disease as the most dangerous of all means that could be employed in practice, one in a negative, the other in a positive sense. positive sense. What, then, must be the feelings of the intelligent and candid reader after he has thought over the following extract? Will he not look upon the pretended fears mentioned above as a piece of professional cant, and will he not be inclined to say to himself, "Well, these professional brethren are twaddling sentimentalists, if they be not something worse?"

"Professor James Syme says, that the results hitherto obtained in the use of ether in surgical operations, have not been at all