Selected quad for the lemma: soul_n
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A78095
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A discourse of consumptions: with their cure by a new method, By T. Byfield, M.D.
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Byfield, T. (Timothy)
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1685
(1685)
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Wing B6396A; ESTC R230922
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10,599
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28
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distinguish'd from an ordinary good Temper so deprav'dness of mind through the custom of little sins only sizes so exactly with the common Genius of the World that it seems like none at all to many Persons nevertheless both Body and Soul are in the greaâ— danger hereby But as to Physick only 't is obvious among our selves how plump and blith those Persons seem who by care at select times for prevention cast forth those Dregs which Nature has amass'd And if she be any ways tainted therewith by Specificks and apprâ—…riate Medecines restore a pristin equal mixture of Principles and so preserve a Youthful gay Com lexion and sound Constitution Natures best Paint notwithstanding the Revolution of many Years When as the careless or impoverish'd Persons lye under the decays and filth of many Distempers which though not always Fatal yet afflict 'em with Cutaneous nasty Diseases as Scurvey Itch Boils Leprosie c. But you never see Wealthy or careful Persons thus afflicted 't is fit therefore for Persons to have recourse to the Learned in Physick if Health and Life be valuable to take sometime a true estimate of their present Constitutions especially if doubtful in any respect Hereby many Diseases are prevented and those Sordes amass'd in the Body for Discharge which are the Fewel of most Distempers are timely expell'd so that no imminent danger can ensue By our preventive Method for Consumptions many that have just begun to decline and waste in their Flesh seiz'd on by this depopulating Disease have had a Renovation of all the juices of their Bodies By sweetning their Blood plumping their Flesh and removing all bad Symptoms for though Persons are naturally inclin'd to Consumptions yet by the use of this our preventive Method or some such like together with the Addition of their own care in wholsome rules for Life they may both avoid this Disease and protract their Lives to great length And I know not why as great Relief to Sickly discompos'd Bodies may not be expected from Physick as our common recruits to nature from Food were but the former as seasonably and suitably apply'd as this latter For I doubt not but the Wise Creator suffers all things in this World to perform their Natural Energy and Force that right Measures may be taken by Rational Creatures Lords of the Creation in Refining Using and dispensing Natures Rarities And from that equal Provision made for Diseas'd as well as healthy Bodies in the great variety of Plants Minerals and living Creatures we may observe the Providence of God in ordering means to restore Health that 's decaying as well as to maintain it in Vigour Nay the curious Texture of the particles of Plants and Minerals in their Emetick Cathartick Sudorifick Diuretick c. qualities shews in part the Delicacy Difficulty and Excellency of a Physicians Skill Now if these things necessary for Life may be well us'd or misapply'd they are the wisest Persons who by the conduct of their Reasons so proportion 'em to their Appetites that there may be neither Defect on the one hand nor Excess on the other But because this exact performance to some is a burthensome nicety and a Methodical Life to others is worse than Death such may at least commit this piece of prudence as at some seasonable times to enquire into their Constitutions and if they have indulg'd too much in Meat Drink or other Pleasures procure such early help as may easily exterminate the seeds of many Diseases and thus prevent tedious and hazardous Fits of Sickness But I chiefly design to perswade Persons timely to prevent or amend the tendency of their Bodies to Consumptions which by Coughs wasting of their Flesh dryness and heats in the Palms of their hands and Soles of their Feet by flushing in the Face Night-sweats c. are to be discovered And here I must note that those tedious tickling Coughs that usually attend Consumptions are often miâ—…ken for ordinary Defluxions of Rheum or a slight Catarh for though a Cough may be without a Consumption yet a Consumption is rarely without a Cough And 't is a piece of Curiosity and Skill in our profession to discern what Coughs do presage a deep Consumption and what are to be dealt with in a common Method and the defect of this early Scrutiny has ruin'd thousands by irrecoverable Consumptions which might have been prevented But the deceitful beginnings of this Distemper are such that few will be convinc'd they are in Consumptions till the Disease has almost eaten out their vital Strength and with purulent viscous tough Flegm well nigh Strangled ' em And since I have been mentioning some of the most obvious Symptoms from whence we take our Measures to deal with this Disease I must recite one thing more as necessary though I had rather pass it by because â—f the Scandal abuse has brought upon it And that is the discovery of Consumptions at their beginning in a great measure by Vrine of which I shall say but little at present though it gives us a great insight to the present Constitution of the Body For by the Examen I make of it demonstrates more the growings of this Disease than any one single Symptom besides I must confess the abuse of Urines by ignorant Fellows who only shaking the Urinal can tell whether it be Mans or Womans if the fatter whether with Child or not or like to be and in short make it a Speculum Matriâ—… and can discern in it pains in the Back Head-aches indispositions at Stomach with foulness there and such like all very Silly is enough to disgust Persons from carrying their Urines and Physicians from receiving 'em Therefore were it not absolutely necessary to our business I shou'd not desire Persons to save and send their Urines But we must not forego those advantages that can be taken since all are little enough for the discovery of lurking Distempers And we chuse rather to observe Urines in the beginnings of this Disease than when it has made a setled decay of the Body Urines rightly examin'd give as true an account of the Constitution of the Blood as the Wax does the impression of the Seal But we must have the Urine that 's made the latter part of the Night where 't is discharg'd more than once for by repeated Circulations of the Serum with the Mass of Blood and its longer digestion it does so imbâ—… a proportion of all its parts that it gives a great insight to our understanding a further reason why we chuse only to have the Morning Vrine I rought us and that made whilst in Bed is because 't is not accelerated through the veins either by the exercise of the Body or the supply of pâ—tulent matter nor multiply'd by checking the pores but has a longer time to lye in the Body and receive a greater tincture and impression from the juices with which it commixes and the parts though which it passes And we do not desire the Vrine made after a large Evening Drinking but that after a very temperate composure to rest Now if any shall contrive to put tricks upon us by falsifying their Urine 't will be only from such as want not our Skill at present and the Damage will be theirs 'T is satisfaction to propose the best ways of discovering the Enemies of Health and Life in order to their Subduction Here I thought to have discourst of the refining of Medicine and shewn how a Reformation therein wou'd very well agree with the new improvements of our late Theory and to say something of Noble and Generous Menstruums requisite to the preparation of clean and useful Physick and so to have thrown off Nic. Culpeppers R. to them who desire to know no better But lest hereby I displease any I 'll pass it by at present and only add that my peculiar Medecines are refin'd to Elixirs Samechs Tinctures Balsomes Magisteries Extracts Alkaliâ—s'â— besides my Febrifuge and great Arcanum for the Lungs c. All which are so penetrating deobstruating Restorative Healing Appropriate and clean in their Operation that my Method thereby is rendered not only beneficial but delightful When as the old way by Sugar-plums Licks and slops Oyls and Syrups c. with the use of Liniments for extream Unction Overcharge Nauseate Glut Surfeit and foul the Body and so of themselves create Diseases Now I hope none will be so injurious as to censure my Labour in these Experiments nor take amiss the destribution of a few Medicines to the Poor who can neither see the Physician nor be gainful to the Apothecary I hope such Charity will rather excite in others the like than Envy If those of Learning wou'd somtimes be content to be fee'd with prayers and good wishes 't wou'd encourage the Poor to come or send to 'em and prevent the growing numbers of Impostors and cheats in Physick for now adays Fingit se medium quisquiâ— Idiota profanus Judaeus Monachus histrio rasor anus Be Persons never so poor yet I find 'em willing to Live long though always such and as desirous of recovery from Sickness as though they had store laid up for longer Life To condescend therefore to the mean Abilities of lower Persons is no Symptom of illiteracy or want Neither it is prudent or just to suppress any useful discovery especially if the not making our Talent two at least is an unexcusable Crime Now the Philosophers Stone it self will neither Transmute nor Heal kept lockt in a Chest No more will my Method and Medicines so much as open one Pipe of the Lungs if not known and us'd much less cure a Consumption FINIS
And so the Mass of Blood becomes wholly corrupt For being devested of a due proportion of these living Principles which a just Crasis wou'd have preserv'd Natures own Juices Corrupt within themselves and they are left at length void of all Nutritious parts But Artificial allays may be despenst that will subdue the too much exalted parts and such a recruit of Similar particles to those deprest as will recover a Renovation of them and the other parts of the Blood by cleansing its Mass and restoring it to a due proportion and Fervour By various mixtures Nature does produce all the varieties in the Material World For from the different mixture of Particles arise those manifold results with which our Senses are gratify'd as the Objects of Sight Smell Taste c. The whole Doctrine of Accretion Maturation and Corruption arises from the various Mixtures of these active Principles with a due proportion of Lympha in Fluid Bodies and the same principles with an adcequate proportion of Calx or Terre part in solid Bodies For when any Mass is Illustrated by the repeated Circulations of its Living Principles so that all the Meatus's are rarefiy'd to their utmost extension then just before the more nimble particles do Dissilire or leap out we term that Body in its full Maturity and if we wou'd preserve it in that consisâ—… we cut off all force from it I mean dam up all passages for additional Matter as in gathering Ripe Fruits for shou'd either supply from its old Roots the cherishing Air or prolifick Sun be continued it 's Meatus's being so fully distended the Vivifying principles wou'd soon be gone and engaged in the Texture of other Bodies and when once they begin to pass like a flock of Sheep none will stay but the Mass shrinks and withers and becomes putrid Now the due preservation of these benign particles in their adequate proportion we may properly call the Health of this or that Body whether Animate or Inanimate and the disproportion of 'em their Diseases or decay and as the disproportion is more or less so is their decay and consequently the peril of that Body And as in the Accretion of various Bodies whether this or that Principle does praepollere or excel so we denote it a majori and say it is this or that or has this or that Smell Taste c. So in declention of Bodies there 's as great variety and the defect of these or those benign Principles we term such or such Disease or I think we might more properly than to assign 'em their Names from the Scituation of the parts of the Body on which Nature throws off her Faeces Since then Consumptions proceed from an Effervency or Fret of Blood whereby its Crasis is so wakened that it makes a discharge of its Serosities thin Choler and sometimes Nutritious juice on the pure Substance of the Lungs which hot sharp â—roding Humour Exulcerates 'em and stirs up a Cough with purulent foul Spittings 't is a very large Theme to discourse of and beyond my present bounds I 'le only therefore add these obvious Causes of this disease Where Persons don't force themselves on this untimely â—…d lamentable Exit it often happens if not Hereditary through an ill formation of the Body especially the Thorax which predispose to a Phthisick to some by Catching Cold and hindering a due Transpiration which inverts the course of Nature and make her discharge that Serum on the Lungs which stirring up a Cough and that neglected easily slips the Party into a Consumption and because they did at first Cough without a Consumption they fancy they do so still and perceive not the Silent Gradations of this insinuating Disease though they frequently complain their Cough grows worse till other amazing Symptoms stare them in the Face and some will hardly believe the danger they are in yet because of the Intermission of this Disease though this is accounted a Concomitant Symptom And being thus willing to deceive themselves they look on Robust Persons who do weather out a Cough it may be a whole Winter and proposing them for Examples Ruin their tenderer Constitutions in the mean while Some get this Disease by Infection which has been frequently observed from the Marriage of a Consumptive Body that has decay'd it s well constituted Companion and liv'd many Years beyond all probability on its Ruins Very Lean and Old Bodies have large hungry Pores which Magnetically attract all that 's Nutritive about ' em The witherings of Age are often Supâ—… with the plumpness of young Bodies to their great danger which is obvious and that makes Ancient Persons seldom refuse young Bed-fellows when they can contrive it finding the benefit from sufficient Recruits And I 'm of the opinion that there 's no better way of Rejuvenescence to old Folks than close Lodgment with Sleek Plump young Bodies I have my self Cur'd some young Persons endanger'd by a Consumption only by removing 'em from their old Bed-fellows and I remember one Crafty Old Woman I serv'd so who neither recover'd the loss nor forgave the wrong while I knew her The Scurvey when arriv'd to any height as to beget Feaverish intermissions of the Blood which I call a Scorbutick Feaver and is nicely to be distinguisht from an incipient Consumption does often terminate in this Disease The Constant use of Wines Spirits or Drams and other Strong Liquors though in small quantities at a time are very injurious to young Persons whose Blood is too apt to Fire and enkindle into Feavers The early Marriages much more the Exorbitant use of Venus which is usually committed in Heats of Drink cousequently without government are destroyers of Nature and preambulary to this Disease But foul Leaps in Venery soon leaven hot Blood and by unskilful usage often prove destructive I cou'd name many Diseases that tend to this end and shew how Agues eat out the Heart of the Blood by their frequent Paroxisms before Persons are aware of it There are many Distempers the Ladies are more particularly apt to be damag'd which I won't here mention that often lead to this Fatal Disease But I shall sum up all only in mentioning that excessive grief melancholly several Chronick Diseases and any ill habit of Body long suffer'd do all frequently terminate in this wasting and ruinating Distemper And I cou'd here particularize a Volume did I think it necessary to publish my Scrutiny into the Doctrine of Consumptions It may suffice at present to give notice of the danger many Persons are in who perceive little or none and it may be no body else about 'em how needful 't is therefore to watch against and Correct little disorders is plain And we have as much reason to forewarn People hereof if we mean 'em well as Divines have to caution 'em against little Sins and strictly to observe and regard the first instances of change from Goodness for as a little ill habit of Body is nicely to be