CASE VIII.
W—— C——, a collier aged 58, was attacked in the spring of 1783 with a tertian ague, which he attributed to cold, by sleeping in a coal pit, and from which he recovered in a few days, except a swelling of the lower extremities, which had appeared about that time, and gradually increased for two or three months. The legs and thighs were greatly enlarged and œdematous. His belly was swelled, but no fluctuation perceptible. He made small quantities of high coloured water. The appetite bad, and pulse feeble. He had taken many medicines without relief, and was now so reduced in strength, as to sit up with difficulty. An infusion of the Digitalis was directed for him, in the proportion of one ounce of the fresh leaves to a pint of water, two ounces to be taken three times a day, until the stomach or bowels became affected. Upon the exhibition of the sixth dose, nausea supervened, and continued to oppress him at intervals for two or three days, during which he passed large quantities of pale urine. The swelling, assisted by moderate bandage rapidly diminished, and without any repetition of his medicine, at the expiration of sixteen days, he returned to his labour perfectly recovered.