Another collection of philosophical conferences of the French virtuosi upon questions of all sorts for the improving of natural knowledg made in the assembly of the Beaux Esprits at Paris by the most ingenious persons of that nation / render'd into English by G. Havers, Gent. & J. Davies ..., Gent.

CONFERENCE CXL. Of the Lethargy.

AS the Brain is the most eminent and noble of all the parts, being the Seat of the Understanding, and the Throne of the Reasonable Soul, so its diseases are very considerable; and the more, in that they do not attaque that alone, but are com∣municated to all the other parts, which have a notable interest in the offence of their Chief, ceasing to diffuse its Animal Spi∣rits destinated to Motion, Sense, and the Function of the Inferior Members. Which Functions are hurt by the Lethargy, which deprives a Man of every other Inclination but that to sleep, and renders him so forgetful and slothful, (whence it took its Greek name, which signifies sluggish oblivion) that he remembers nothing at all, being possess'd with such contumacious sleepiness that she shuts his Eyes as soon as he ha's open'd them; besides that, his Phansie and Reasoning is hurt with a continual gentle Fe∣ver. Which differences this Symptom from both the sleeping and waking Coma, call'd, Typhomania: the former of which com∣monly begins in the Fits of Fevers, and ends or diminishes at their declination, but the Lethargick sleeps soundly, and being wak'd by force, presently falls a sleep again: The latter makes the Pa∣tient inclin'd to sleep, but he cannot, by reason of the variety of Species represented to him in his Phansie. The signes of this Malady are deliration, heaviness of the Head, and pain of the Neck after waking, (the Matter taking its course along the spine of the back), frequent oscitation, trembling of the Hands and Head, a palish Complexion, Eyes and Face pufft up, sweat∣ings, troubled Urine, like that of Cattle, a great Pulse, lan∣guishing and fluctuating, Respiration rare with sighing, and so great forgetfulness, as sometimes not to remember to shut their Mouths after they have open'd, nor even to take breath, were they not forc'd to it by the danger of suffocation. The Conjunct and next Cause of this Malady is a putrid Phlegm, whose natural coldness moistens and refrigerates the Brain, whilst its put refa∣ctive heat kindles a Fever by the vapors carry'd from the Brain to the Heart, and from thence about the whole. Now this Phlegmatick Humor is not detained in the Ventricles of the

Brain; for then it would cause an Apoplexy if the obstruction were total, and if partial an Epilepsie, wherein the Nerves contract themselves towards their original for discharging of that Matter: But 'tis onely in the sinuosities and folds of the Brain, which imbibing that excessive humidity, acquires a cold and moist intemperature; from whence proceeds dulness and liste∣lesness to all Actions. For as Heat is the Principle of Motion, especially when quickned by Dryness; so is Cold the Cause of stupidity and sluggishness, especially when accompanied with hu∣midity, which relaxes the parts, and chills their Action. In like manner, Heat or Dryness inflaming our Spirits the Tunicles of the Brain, produce the irregular Motions of Frenzy, which is quite contrary to the Lethargy; although it produce the same sometimes, namely, when the Brain after great evacuations acquires a cold and moist intemperature; in which case the Le∣thargy is incurable, because it testifies Lesion of the Faculty, and abolition of strength: But on the contrary, a Frensie after a Lethargy is a good sign, resolving by its Heat, and dissipating the cold humors which produce the same.

The Second said, That coldness being contrary to put refacti∣on, Phlegm the coldest of all humors, cannot easily putrifie in the Brain, (which is cold too of its own nature) much less ac∣quire a Heat sufficient to communicate it self to the Heart, and there excite a Fever; it being more likely for such adventitious Heat to cause in the Brain rather the impetuous motions of a Frenzy, than the dulness and languor of a Lethargy. Nor is it less then absurd, to place two enemy-qualities in the same Subject, to wit, Cold and Heat, whereof the one causes sleep, the other a Fever; which, I conceive, to precede not to follow the Le∣thargy, and which having raised from the Hypochondres to the Brain, a Phlegmatick blood mixt with gross vapors, there caus∣eth that obscuration of Reason, and sluggishness of the whole Body, but especially the abolition of the Memory, the sutable temperament for which is totally destroyed by excessive humi∣dity. Indeed the troubled Urine, liquid Digestions, Tumors and pains of the Neck, bloated Flesh, and other such signs accompanying this disease, argue that its matter is more in the rest of the Body than in the Brain, which suffers onely by Sympathie.

The Third said, If it be true that sleep is the Brother of Death, then the Lethargy, which is a continual drowsiness, with a Fe∣ver and Delirium, seemes to be a middle Estate between Life and Death which is known by the cessation of Actions, most of which fail in those afflicted with this Evil, which nevertheless is less then the Carus, wherein the sleep is so profound, that the Patient feels not when he is prickt, or call'd by name; but is depriv'd of all Sense and Motion, saving that of Respiration, which scarce appears in the Catoche, or Catalepsie, (a stranger symptom than any of the former) wherein the Eyes remain wide open, the

whole Body stiff, and in the same state and posture wherein it hapned to be when it first seiz'd the same. The Cause whereof, most say, is a cold and moist humor, obstructing the hinder part of the Brain; but I rather ascribe it to a sudden Congelation of the Animal Spirits, as I do the Lethargy to narcotick and somni∣ferous vapors, which are the sole Causes of Inclination to sleep; which cannot be produced by simple, cold, and aque∣ous humidity, (for then Water should do it sooner than Wine, whose very smell in Presses and Cellars causes sleep, and often∣times inebriates) but by a fat and oleaginous humidity, such as is found in all Hypnoticks; some whereof are hot, as Anise and Opium; others Cold, as Lettice, Poppy, and Henbane.

The Fourth said, That the Brain being the Principal of Sense and Arbitrary Motion, which it derives into all the parts, both the one and the other are offended by the maladies of that part; some whereof are without, others, are necessarily ac∣companyed with a Fever: which is either Acute or Gentle, according to the diversity of the humor producing it, the former commonly proceeding from Choler or Blood, the latter from Phlegm or Melancholy. Amongst these Diseases, those which invade suddenly, as the Apoplexy and Convulsions, are caused by the obstruction of the Ventricles, Constriction, or Division of the Nerves, which hinders the Flux of the Animal Spirits: but those which arruire in some space of time, as the Coma, Lethar∣gy, and Carus, proceed either from a simple intempeires, ordi∣narily Cold and Moist, or else joyn'd with some Matter, which is oftentimes a Cold Phlegm, whereof the Brain is fruitful: Which coming to be inflamed, by reason of its putrefaction caused by defect of Transpiration, and the Heat of the Brain (which though Cold by its first Temper, is yet hot, inasmuch as animated, and more burning than the Air of Sommer) that Extraneous Heat begets a Fever, which yet is but little violent, and so hinders not the Natural Coldness of the humor from pro∣ducing the sleep and sluggishness apparent in the Lethargy; which nevertheless by is, Hippocrates, plac'd amongst Acute Diseases terminated on the seventh day; which time if it exceeds, the Patient recovers, especially if the Matter happen to be discharged into the Brest, and cause an Empyema there, or, in some others, the Parotides.

The Fifth said, That the Internal Maladies of the Head are of three forts: Some attaque the Membranes, and cause the Cephallagy, Megrim, and other pains of the Head, being very dolorous, by reason of the exquisite sensibility of those Mem∣branes, which are either prickt, press'd, or too much extended by vapors, wind, or humors, for the most part acrimonious and serous. Others are in the Cavities and Passages of the Ani∣mal Spirits, whose Influence being stopt by some Matter that obstruct the Passages, they cause the symptoms of the Lesion of Motion and Sense in the Vertigo, Palsie, Apoplexy, Epilepsie,

Incubus, Convulsions, Trembling, and Catarrhs or Defluxions, to which Man alone of all Animals is subject, by reason of the quantity of excrements where-with his larger and more elevated Brain abounds: The third sort which possess the whole sub∣stance of the Brain, and either onely deprave the functions of the three Prime Faculties, Reason, Imagination and Memory, are the simple Delirium, the Frenzy, Melancholy, Madness, and Lycanthropy; or else wholly abolish them, as in Folly, Stupi∣dity, Forgetfulness, the Catoche, Carus, and Lethargy, which is caus'd not onely by a Cold Aqueous Phlegm, where-with the Brain is soak'd, but also by such as is render'd viscous, thick, and tough, by the substance of the strange and some extraneous heat, which causeth the Putrefaction and Fever.