taud. trivial, that it were better to reject it all.”—Lieu- Thomsonism has nothing mysterious or secret about it. It courts investigation, confident as its practitioners are, that the closer the scrutiny, the stronger will its claims appear. Every thing pertaining to it is laid open in language not to be mista-isfied; but after an impartial investigation of Doctor "While pursuing the old study, I was never satken, and its advocates, instead of appealing Thomson's System, I cecame its firm, bold and unto their acquaintance with an occult science daunted friend, from the fact, the remedies prescrib as a proof of its merits, only ask that it may W. K Griffin, M. D ed being safe, powerful, speedy, and efficacious.”— be judged by the only true test, its success in the healing art.-Botanic Advertiser. A Regular's Advice.-A few days since, we were sent for to attend a lady who had been for a long time in feeble health. She was the daughter of one of the old school physicians, but had been for some time from home, and during that time had employed several physicians; and had by each in turn been either bled, blistered or calomelized, until she was nothing better, but much worse. "We must adopt the Thomsonian remedies, or lose our practic›. * I have used steam, pepper, and lobelia, and found them useful medicines to remove disease."-Professor McClellan. The publication of the Thid Volume of the THOMSONIAN MANUEL, will be commenced on the 15th of November next. The coming volume like its fence of teat System of Vedical Practice, discovered predecessors, will be devoted to the diffusion and deby, and patented to, Dr. Thomson. plan, will be reported from time to time; and matters Cases of interest, treated upon the Thomsonian of fact, of every description that have a bearing upon the subject, will be spread before the public. portion of original matter, and no exertions will be spared to keep pace with that march of improvement in Medical Science, which the introduction of the Botanic Practice has, within a few years, advanced sciences, with a rapidity unequalled in the history of other As heretofore, the Manual will contain a large pro It is deemed necessary that such a work should be possession of the facts relative to the system, &c., erally, and the friends of the system particularly, in Being rather dissatisfied with all her physicians, she determined to visit her own father, thinking he, of course, would act honestly by her, and so he did. And what think you, was his prescription? a very ho.published, for the purpose of putting the public gennest one, truly. It was this--"take no more poisonous drugs, nor employ any one who deals therein," "for," said he, "I know by experience that all they do is to try ex-abused. periments and if you do any thing, try some botanic physician;" such was his advice. : He urged her in particular to visit our Infirmary, if possible and she did. But we were reluctantly compelled to disappoint her expectations, by informing her that we could perceive no possible chance for her recovery. But she would not willingly give up all hope, and we accordingly consented to prescribe for her; if she dies, as no doubt she will, it will be lobelia and cayenne that killed her.-Ib. and thereby enabling them to correct some few of which individuals, and the public, are continually the many false reports and misrepresentations, by The MANUAL appears to be fast gaining favor amongst the people; and the patronage already received warrants the Proprietor in making some effort to improve and enlarge the work. Our friends are requested to use their best enand we assure them that renewed exertions will be deavors to extend the circulation of the MANUAL; made to improve its usefulness, and merit an increase of public patronage. CONDITIONS: The MANUAL will be issued monthly, at Boston, Mass., on a super-royalsheet, in octavo form. convenient for preservation and binding. The covers amount of postage one half, and additional matter will hereafter be omitted, which will diminish the will be inserted in the numbers-thereey greatly enhancing the value of the work. The annual subscription is ONE DOLLAR, payable at the time of subscribing. Those who fail to notibers until such notice is given, and no subscription fy a discontinuance, will be considered as subscriwill be received for a less term than one year Persons wishing to become Agents, by forwarding fire dollars, (free of postage,) will be aypointed as such, and entitled to a copy gratis for one year. must be addressed (post paid) to Dr. SAMUEL Southern Botanic Journal. VOLUME 1. "Great names may give splendor to error, but canno: transform it into truth." SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 1837. NUMBER 22 THE SOUTHERN BOTANIC JOURNAL,"Dropsy, or rather the effused and accumu EDITED BY D. F. NARDIN. Printed by Thomas J. Eccles, No. 44 Queen-Street. Published every other Saturday, at Two Dollars and fifty cents per year, payable in advance. All communications, must be addressed to NARDIN & WOOD, Charleston, S. C. Those not containing remittances, must be post paid. DROPSY. It will not be expected that we should go into all the details in enumerating the different varieties of this disease, and the thousand and one remedies that are employed to cure its various forms, as is customary with medical writers. Our object here is to give a short essay for practical use, and not to show our readers what others have said on the subject. Perhaps the greatest use that our remarks may be to the Thomsenian practi. tioners, will be to put them on their guard against undertaking desperate cases, without apprizing the patient or his friends, of the danger of the malady, the uncertainty of performing a cure, and the reasons for the probable failure. When some persons are reduced to the necessity of calling the help of a Thomsonian, although they suffer with out a murmur the failure of what is called, by way of courtesy, the scientific practice, yet they will look for cure, immediate and radical cure, at the hand of one, who is hardly allowed to have common sense, much less any scientific knowledge. If he fails. hundreds are ready to take an oath that he killed his patient, although the case may have been pronounced incurable and mortal, by those who are licensed to "know best." lated fluid which constitutes the most conspicuous external character of this disease, must be regarded only as an effect of a primary morbid condition of the solids. This morbid condition," he continues, "of the solids, constitutes the malady to which the physician's attention must be directed.” This will at once suggest the course of treatment necessary to be pursued, in order to eradicate the complaint; and it will also suggest the necessity of a proper examination of the patient and the propriety of in. quiring deeply into the cause or causes that have produced the disease, in order that the practitioner may have a tolerable idea of the probable chance of success. PROXIMATE CAUSE. The immediate cause of Dropsy is not understood. Why it is, that under certain conditions, more fluid will be infiltered through the cellular tissue of the whole or a certain part of the body, than is absorbed ; or what constitutes this condition of the fluid or the membrane, or the absorbents, is not known. No anatomists or pathologists have yet been able to discover any change in the membrane, the fluids, nor the absorbents of an hydropic patient from that of a healthy person. Johnson says, "we know too little of the nature of the proximate cause (of Dropsy,) to be able to draw any conclusions from it relative to the cure of Dropsies." And Portal remarks "we may say that the secretion and the absorption and the excretion of serosities, proceed from a kind of sensibility and irritability, the nature and degree of Dropsy is a disease that has always been which cannot be defined in the natural state, looked upon as fraught with great dan-but which are doubtless the same in all perger and the result of medical aid, has only served to confirm the just dread that is entertained with regard to this complaint The reason of this, is, that Dropsy, whether local or general, is seldom, perhaps never, idiopathic, the disease itself, the effusion of water into a particular cavity, is most always the. effect of some other cause or causes wae difficult to remove, than the apparent complaint itself. Doctor Eberle observes, sons who enjoy perfect health; whilst on the contrary, they are continually varying in a state of disease. But," he continues, "whence happens it that the secretions of serosities continue to go on, whilst the excretions are diminished or suppressed? This is unknown to us, and probably will be so laways!" Dr. Gregory also observes on this same subject, "we are too imperfectly acquainted with the phisiology of the absor bent system, to determine what share it has or chylopoetic organs, especially the liver, in the production of Dropsy." which destroys and deranges the digestive More recent writers, however, not willing process, and hence lays the foundation of to acknowledge their ignorance of the sub- athrophy. And for the same reason, innuject, must suppose a cause, and refer this to tritious or indigestible food, is a frequent inflammation, and from this assumed position, cause of some species of the disease, as also the depletory system of practice, is,of course, is great loss of blood from any organ, and presci.bed. We shall not here enter upon especially when such discharge becomes pethe refutation of this assumption, it is to riodical." shal'ow, and to us so untenable, that it hard- How such causes, when all combined with ly requires one word of comment to refute those we shall presently enumerate, can posit. However, the word inflammation of the sibly suggest à depletive treatment, we are moderns ceases, to have any defined mean- at a loss to comprehend; yet all the writers ing, as all diseases are now caled by this we have read, recommend blood-letting as general name. There would be no harm in one of the first and most important remedy, that, if by extending the meaning of this but most particularly Dr. Eberle, who is the word, the practice to cure this morbid ca-oracle of the fashionable practice, in the U. meleon was not confined in the narrow com S., partly follows the plan of Sangrado and pass of Calomel and depletion. The greatest he adds abundance of mercury, to season the argument that can be offered against this small draughts of water. practice, and, at the same time, the plainest indieation to a more rational treatment, is the fact, which all writers seem to agree upon, as Dr. Good has expressed it several times. viz: that "Drepsy is a disease of debility," and he further says, "all Dropsies proceed from similar causes, which, as they are general or local, produce general or local discase. The cominon predisponent is debility." REMOTE CAUSES. To the above list of causes, we may add drinking much and too cold water, when the body is heated, violent exercise, pressure upon the veins, gravid uterus, chronic diarhea, exposure to cold and damp, repressed cutaneous eruptions. Among the most frequent causes of Dropsies, is blood-letting, or any great loss of blood. This it seems to us, ought to have long since deterred practition ers from bleeding to cure fevers, more especially when we remember, that Dropsy is often the consequence of fever, and likewise of loss of blood. How much more liable will the patient be to this disease, when the latter is used to cure the former? ANA SARCA. "The remote causes," says Dr. Good, "are very numerous, and most of them apply to every form under which the disease makes its appearance." Debility and every cause that can depress the vital functions, are remote causes of Dropsy. Wherever there is an unnatural accumulation of fluid, it is evi- Symptoms of anasarca or general Dropsy, dent that the absorbents are inactive; "want or effusion of water in the cellular tissue.of action in the part of the absorbents," says These membranes being diffused throughout the author above quoted," is, in every instance, the body and divided into little cells, consethe result of debility. Profuse exhalations quently when water is collected in them, the on the part of the seceruants or terminal ar body is bloated all over, often from the sole teries, in most cases, proceed from th like of the foot to the crown of the head. But - cause. Dropsy is, in most instances, there-the swelling generally commences at the feet fo.c, a lisease of debility; and if we ni- and legs, and gradually increases and rises nutely attend to the histories of the who higher up. The swelling being very tense are suffering from this disease, we shall gea. towards night, and slacker in the morning, erally find, that they have for some time and the skin will pit on pressure, which is antecedently, been laboring under general the surest symptom. The person becomes and local debility; that they are weakened sallow and pale, a general inactivity pervades by protracted fevers, or languishing under all the organs, he is inclined to sleep, and the effects of unkindly lying-in; that they moves about with reluctance, the bowels have un trung their frames, by a long expo are costive and the urine scanty, the pulse sure to a cold and moist atmosphere, or worn weak, the extremities cold, great thirst.themselves out by hard labor, or, which is The swelling first commences on the feet still worse, by hard eating and drinking; or and legs, now increases and ascends hi that they are suffering from habitual dys-respiration short, &c. It is hardly possible popsia, or some other malady of the stomach to mistake this complaint. DROPSY IN THE ABDOMEN-Ascites, physicians. "A lady under these circumIs generally caused by a derangement of stances, was a few years ago, attended for the viscera, principally the liver and spleen; several months, by three or four of the most drunkenness is a prominent cause, some-celebrated physicians of this metropolis, times the symptoms are very strongly mark- (London) one of whom was a practitioner ed, the fluctuation of water being easily felt, of midwifery, and concurred with the rest in by placing one hand on the side of the ab-affirming that her disease was an encysted domen, and gently tapping with the other dropsy of the abdomen. She was in conse on the opposite side; the tongue is parched sometimes, and red and inflamed, great thirst, the skin hot and feverish, urine scan ty and sedimentous, difficulty of breathing, loss of appetite, &c. quence, put under a very active serics of different evacuants; a fresh plan being had recourse to, as soon as a preceeding had failed, and was successively purged, blistered, salivated, treated with powerful diuretics, This is the kind of Dropsy Dr. Thomson and the warm bath, but equally to no pursays, cannot be cured without tapping, and pose; for the swelling still increased and rarely then. (page 145 N. G.) This every became firmer, the face and the general form physician will say is true. Dr. Gregory ob- were emaciated, the breathing was laborious, serves, that ascites are seldom cured. The the discharge of urine small, and the apreason of the failure, is not owing to the dif. petite intractible, till at length these ficulty of removing the water, but of eradi- threatening symptoms were followed by cating the complaint that causes the Dropsy. a succession of sudden and excruciating When the malady is caused by an organic pains, that by the domestics, who were not derangement of the liver, it becomes more prepared for their appearance, were supposobscure, as it is sometimes seated in the or-ed to be the forerunners of a speedy dissogan itself, in small cysts, or what is techni-lution, but which fortunately terminated becally called hydatids. In this instance, it fore the arrival of a single medical attendant, would be worse than useless to tap, for the in giving birth to an infant, that, like its moth fluid being contained in small bladders, that have no communications with each other, they could not be emptied unless each one was punctured, an operation that becomes literally impossible from the great number of them, and their situations in various parts of the organ. In this instance, however, no fluctuation of water can he felt. It is only when the motion of the water can be distinctly felt, that tapping should be perform ed, and at no other time. Besides this there is danger from performing this operation at any time, as the circulation is languid and slow, mortification may take place, from the slightest wound. DROPSY OF THE OVARIA. The symptoms of this are similar to that of the above, and it is sometimes impossible to distinguish them. Both this and the above have been mistaken for pregnancy, instances of which, are frequently reported in medical books, and also known to most of persons. This mistake always reflects upon the learning and good sense of the practi. tioner. Yet it is not always easy to distinguish between the two, particularly if the patient be a married woman, and for many years without having been impregnated. Dr. Good relates a case where this mistake was made, by three celebrated and learned Paracente sis. er, had wonderfully withstood the whole of the preceeding medical warfare without in jury." Not without injury! for it would be impossible for any mortal to undergo the treatment above hinted at, without injury.the author means that the mother and child escaped with life, but not without injury to both! (Study of Medicine, vol. 4, p. 277., Ovarian Dropsy, as well as hydrocele, are considered by writers on the practice of physic as being purely surgical diseases, and require operation, but the former is not like the latter, cured by merely laying open the cyst, and evacuating the water, and we consider ovarian Dropsy shonld be treated upon general principles as well as ascites. We have described them together, because we conceive that there is too little difference in the external symptoms to make a distinction between the two, they are produced by the same causes and are often blended to gether, and also anasarea or general Drop' sy. Dr. Eberle says, that ascites may be distinguished from pregnancy, "by the fluc tuation, the uniformity of the tumor, the lateral pressure and distension of the abdomen on lying on the back, the oppression of breathing on lying down so as to raise the pelvis and abdomen higher than the chest, the thirst, the paucity of the urine, the dryness of the skin, which characterises effusion fluid in the cavity of the thorax, with confidence. (Eberle) All, or a part of these symptoms, with others, may be present in ydrothorax; all authors agree, that it is difficult to ascertain whether there is an of fusion of water in the chest. Dr. Good re tom of that disease, and was cured, from the last stage of supposed Dropsy of the chest; he died twenty years afterwards, "with his chest perfectly sound to the last." into the abdomen. And on the other hand, pronounce on the existence of an effused the absence of the peculiar symptoms of pregnancy, assist us in forming a correct diagnosis." Perhaps, also, the stethescope might be of some help in ascertaining whether the patient was in a state of pregnancy or not. The fluctuation is not to be felt in all cases, as we have remarked, and there-lates the case of a man, who had every sympfore cannot be relied on as an infallible sign. Fluctuation can also be felt or heard, in accumulation of water in the chest, and we are told by Dr. Good, that this is the only certain sign of dropsy of the chest, but he remarks that the fluctuation can but seldom be felt, even when there is an accumulation of fluid. But like dropsies of the abdomen, ovarium, &c., the dropsy of the chest may be a collection of hydatids, as numerous in number, as the air cells of the lungs, and perfect cysts, independent of one another. DROPSY OF THE CHEST-Hydrothorax. The symptoms of this disease are more obscure than any of the preceeding. Dr. Eberle observes, "Hydrothorax generally supervenes gradually, without causing in its initial period, any particular inconveniences or disturbance, calculated to excite much attention, or suspicion of the true nature of the malady." This obscurity seems to hang over the disease, throughout its course, or rather, other maladies, seems to borrow the symptoms of Hydrothorax. Dr. Gregory tells us, "the dignostic symptoms of this form of Dropsy, are very fallacious. Some times we are confident of finding water in the thorax, when that cavity is perfectly free from disease. At other times we observe the thorax full, when we had no suspicion of the complaint existing." Portal says, "the following symptoms, es pecially when they are found in company, are the least equivocal: difficulty of breathing, bloatedness of the face, with redness in the region of the cheek-bones, turgessence of the lips, the color of which, is more or less dark or livid, swelling, or oedema of the feet and hands, and at length successively, of all the exterior parts of the body, (anasarca) the diminution of urine, the sensation of weight in the epigastic region, and a greater or less swelling of the hypocondria, especially of the right hypochondrium. The pulse is unequal rebounding and often remittent, at a longer or shorter period. There is also, frequent thirst, with cough and spitting of blood or phlegm, or purulent like matter, and with palpitation of the heart, and sometimes a difficulty of breathing, nearly amounting to suffocation. Some patients have felt a numbness of the limbs and even palsy, though rarely of one or both arms, of the inferior extremities," &c. Portal also says, that in hydrothorax the swelling of the wrists and afterwards that of the arms, precede in general, the swelling of the lower extremities, but few authors mention this. Gregory remarks, "in some instances it may be pos sible to detect the presence of fluid in the thorax, by percussion, and external examination, but I am well convinced this can nevbe held out as a certain means of judging of the disease." "Diagnosis. Ability to lie down only on the side affected, if effusion has taken place, only on one side. Percussion produces a very obscure and dull sound. The percuser sion should be made while the patient is in a sitting posture. General agitation, cough We lately attended a young girl, who and a sense of suffocation, when firm pres- manifested no other symptoms of derangesure is made on the abdomen, just below thement than excessive dispne or shortness of ribs, so as to push up the vicera against the breath. When we saw her, and for some diaphragm. Inability to rest and sleep in a time previous, we were informed however, recumbent posture. If with these symp-that perhaps 6 or 8 months antecedent to our toms, there is habitual cough, starting during sleep, tension and irregularity of the pulse, slight ædema of the feet, and of the integuments of the chest, great dispnos (difficulty of breathing) on ascending an acclivity or stairs, with a disposition to syncope, we may being called, she suffered violently for a few days with pains in the chest, but in a few days they were all removed, and the patient appeared as well as usual. A short time after our attendance, she seemed to mend, however we apprehend some serious de |