[5.] And some again require a wound, &c.) Jamque alia rectam plagam desiderant, ut in carne: alia vero vehementer cutem extenuant, in quibus tota ea super pus excidenda est. There are several variations in the reading of the copies of this paragraph, but they do not remove the difficulty. Morgagni[ JO ] very ingeniously conjectures, that after Celsus had considered such as were quite mature, he next mentioned such as were not quite ripe; and did not talk here of cutting off the whole skin, because he afterwards says, Est etiam in rerum natura, ut cutis latius excidenda sit; and that what is here said of the skin being extenuated, was repeated from above by carelessness. All the old editions and MSS. have itemque for jamque; none of them ut; the MS. tuto for tota. Upon the whole, he seems inclined to read it thus: Itemque alia rectam plagam desiderant in carne; in quibus tuto ea super pus incidenda sit; i. e. ‘Others again require a wound in a straight direction in the flesh, in which it may be proper and safe to make an incision above the pus.’
[6.] Crude lint.) Fabricius ab Aquapendente and Rhodius take this crude lint to be such as has not been boiled in a lixivium.
[7.] Loosing this knot. Soluto nodo.) Morgagni[ JP ] here prefers the old reading, salvo nodo, without loosing the knot, for this reason, that our author immediately orders the knot to be loosed every third day, for changing the string. And thus also it is quoted by Aquapendente, De chirurg. operation. cap. 93.—Celsus has here followed Hippocrates, Lib. de fistul. where he orders the string to be drawn and twisted every day, as much as it is loosened by the putrefaction of the fistula; but he says nothing of untying the knot every day. The difference is not material; for if salvo nodo be the reading, the string must be made tighter in the manner Hippocrates directs. According to the reading of Linden, the method is plain, nor does it seem to be attended with any difficulty; for it is untied twice a day to move the ligature; and also untied every third day, for the sake of introducing a fresh ligature, because the old one must not be suffered to rot.
[8.] A very small habenula may be cut out.) Linden and Almeloveen read here, habenula tenuis admodum injiciatur, which I think has no proper connection either with what goes before or follows. It is true, Aquapendente has given two explications of this passage, according to the same reading, De chirurg. operat. cap. 93. Neither of which appears to me consistent with the reasons Celsus gives for this method: I have therefore chosen to follow Nicolaus, Pachel, Pinzi, Junta, Aldus, and others, who have ejiciatur for injiciatur, which seems to clear up the difficulties of this place.—Our author uses habena often for a strap; but by habenula here he must understand a small slip or stripe of flesh.
[9.] Gum in this place (pituita) must signify a purulent fluid.
[10.] Like a spatha.) A knife was said to resemble a spatha, when it ended in an acute point with sharp edges on both sides, which our author mentions chap. x. for the excision of a polypus in the nose.—The needle here described is thin and broad, so that it was more like this instrument than a common needle. Vid. Fabric. ab. Aquapend. de Oper. Chirurg. cap. 107.
[11.] Of the colour of wax.) I have here departed from the reading of all the copies, and instead of it admit the correction of Mercurialis cereus for cæruleus, which is approved by the best judges, and seems to be confirmed by its affinity to the gold colour immediately following. Vid. Mercurial. Var. Lect. lib. v. cap. 5. & Le Clerc. Hist. de la Medicine, p. 2. liv. 4. sect. 2. chap. 5.
[12.] The needle sharp pointed, but not too slender.) The reading in Almeloveen is Tum acus admovenda est, aut acuta, aut certe non nimium tenuis. As I could find no sense from this reading, or any other that is proposed, I have taken the liberty to read thus, Tum acus admovenda est acuta, at certe non nimium tenuis.
[13.] With timidity. Timide.) Though this reading may be defended, yet as what our author adds of the needle finding no resistance should make an operator more cautious, it is possible he wrote temere.
[14.] Below the bone.) I have here followed the old reading sub osse, and not as Almeloveen has it ab osse, which plainly appears to be erroneous by what our author says, when he mentions this species again, Manifestum sub osse descendere.