And here I shall not insist upon the various Exercises of the Ancients, or all those in Use now in our Days, but shall make choice of but a few, that seem most Compatible with the Weakness and Infirmities of Sick People, and the particular Circumstances of those Distempers which I have already mention’d, and I shall begin with the chief of ’em, which is that of Riding.
OF THE
EXERCISE
OF
RIDING.
Upon several Accounts, this may be esteem’d the best and Noblest of all Exercises for a Sick Person; whether we consider it with Respect to the Body or the Mind; if we Enquire after what manner it affects the Body, we shall find that it is a kind of mixt Exercise, partly Active and partly Passive; the lower parts of the Body, being in some measure employ’d, while the upper parts are almost wholly Remiss or Relax’d; nay, where a Man is easie, is sure of his Horse, and rides loose, there is very little Action on his Part, but he may give himself to be as careless almost as if he were Seated on a Moving Chair; so that he may be said to be Exercis’d rather than to Exercise himself; which makes the Case widely different from almost all other sorts of Exercise, as Walking, Running, Stooping, or the like; all which require some Labour, and consequently more Strength for their Performance; in all which, the Muscular Parts must be put to some Stress, and some of the Secretory Vessels made to throw off too much, while others throw off too little; whereas in Riding, the Parts being incomparably more relax’d, there is a better Disposition towards an equal Secretion of the Morbisick Particles, and a less Expence of the Animal Spirits, the chief Agents in all regular Secretions; so that a Sick Person may by this means be greatly reliev’d and not tir’d, whereas by other more violent ones, it is possible he may be tir’d and not reliev’d.
As for the Parts which are more immediately acted upon by this Exercise; it is very plain they are the whole Contents of the Lower Belly, so that the Glands of the Mesentery and the Intestines, so frequently accus’d of Obstructions, may in a special manner be clear’d, and their Tone recovered by such repeated Agitation; which is a thing so manifest and allow’d, that it would be needless to multiply Words in the explaining of it. But there is another sort of Assistance communicated to the Intestines, which is not so much heeded, and that is the great Alteration, which is made by this Agitation, in some of the Morbifick Particles, as they come to be squeez’d out of their several Glands into the Intestines, which in the time of Riding is doubtless in a much greater quantity than at other times. These Particles must not be suppos’d to be barely carryed off as Excrementitious, but to undergo a Change in their Texture, to be several times in a manner Cohobated, from Acid and Acrimonious, to be Volatiliz’d, and in some measure render’d inflammable; that there is some such Alteration made in the more liquid part of the Contents of the Intestines, before they come to grow hard in a true State of Health is easie to prove, and I believe agreed on by most Enquirers into the Oeconomy of Nature, and that there is some Defect in these Operations of the Bowels, in some sick People, is evident from the Consistence, Smell, and other Qualities of these Contents, different from what they are found in a State of Health; and that this Defect may be remov’d by this Exercise, seems not improbable, if we consider how immediately Riding affects those parts, that it acts as a Topick, by those infinite Succussions coming close upon one another, which must needs cause a greater Heat than ordinarily, and a better Mixture of some of the Similar Particles, and a Rarefaction of others, which after they are thus differently Modefi’d and alter’d, are many of ’em as it were chaf’d in again by that continual Agitation, and the Steam of their inflammable Parts is of Use, to keep Nature even under the Exercise; that there is something like this to be observ’d in the actions of the Bowels might be confirm’d, by what Glysters are known to do. I would not willingly verge towards the Fraud of an Hypothesis; I may be allow’d to have had some more than Common Occasion, to put me upon making these Observations, having some time ago been so unhappy as to labour under as severe a Flux, as perhaps ever was known, which held me about a Year and a Half, attended with Vomitings, and most unsupportable Nervous Symptoms; during all which time nothing reliev’d me, in the greatest Paroxisms of it, like gentle Riding, in so much that at last I was forc’d to be in a manner always on Horseback, to have the Pressure on my Bowels rebated, and my Spirits a little refresh’d. The Comfort which I found by that means, I think must be attributed to some such Phænomena as I have above mention’d; for tho’ I will grant, that Riding was more beneficial to me under those Circumstances, than it would be to another, because of those Nervous Symptoms; yet how Particles so exquisitely Pungent and Acrimonious, should be retain’d and blunted and made useful, as appears from the Evil Consequences of too many Evacuations; how this should come about, but after such a manner as I have above hinted, I cannot understand; ’tis easie for those who think in hast and superficially, to be deceiv’d with the first appearance of things; but when once Men are calm enough, or under a Necessity to think closer, they are more likely to come to the Truth of such Phænomena as these; and to those who do allow themselves to deliberate before they are Positive, I doubt not but what I have asserted, will appear reasonable; and perhaps I should not be so much out of the way, if I should add, that some of the Stercoraceous parts of the Contents of the Intestines, are not in a strict Sence to be reckon’d Excrementitious or useless, since tho’ I don’t believe Digestion is perform’d by Putrefaction, yet I believe Putrefaction is a great Medium for the opening of Bodies, and the extracting inflammable Parts out of ’em; as we see a little Greenish Hay, when it comes to be Putrefi’d, shall become inflammable; and there being inflammable Particles in the Intestines, ’tis probable they may owe their Origine to some such Cause, and not to the first Chylification in the Ventricle. I would not be thought to bring these Reasons, as if I believ’d Riding would Cure a Flux, I don’t believe any such thing, unless upon some very singular Circumstances, and therefore I have not plac’d it among those Distempers, which appear to be Curable by Exercise; but I only draw this Consequence from the Palliative Relief, which Riding will afford in the time of a long Flux, that some pernicious and disagreeable Particles, may receive such an Alteration while in the Intestines, as to become fit to be re-absorb’d by the several Vessels of those parts, and convey’d with great Advantage into the Blood again, which is making things to go on in a Round towards a Cure; Nature her self doing the Work, without forcible Evacuations, which tho’ never so gentle in some fine Constitutions, can scarce be born, and without much Physick, the very Morbifick Matter being so alter’d and dispos’d in one part of the Body, as to be useful in another. I have insisted the longer on this Point, that I might make it as plain as possible, because I think it is of so great Moment in some Distempers and some Constitutions.
What relates to the Breast, I have had occasion to Explain before; and for the Head, tho’ I can’t say it is immediately affected by this Exercise as the Lower Belly is, yet there is one Benefit accrues to it from Riding, which by reason of the Disuse of Exercise in Cases of Sickness, is not taken Notice of, and it is this, the great inclination to Sleep, which a Sick Man finds if he lies down on his Bed as soon as he comes off his Horse; for as the Motion of a Coach does more or less dispose all People to Sleep, and the swifter it goes, the more we are inclin’d to Doze; So the Motion of a Horse being swifter, and the Posture relax’d as to the Head and upper Parts, tho’ a Man does not perceive any thing of such an inclination, while he is Riding and upon his Guard, without any thing to lean on, yet there is so much of the Impression of that Motion remains upon him, for sometime after he lights off his Horse, that if he throws himself presently upon his Bed, especially if he drinks some small Draught of wholsom Ale or Wine first, he will quickly be in a Sleep, which upon several Accounts must then be very Beneficial; this is a Truth so certain and so valuable to distressed, infirm People, whose Nights are often more troublesome than the Days, that it is a wonder what should keep Men from attending to Nature, and falling into such just Measures that Art it self cannot afford. What can be more applicable to all the Circumstances of Consumptive People, than after that by Moderate Riding, they have dispos’d the Humours for each Secretion, they should by such short and Refreshing Sleeps compleat those Secretions? When moreover by these Means, they may be enabled to deny themselves those latter or Morning Sleeps, in which they are so apt to run into Colliquations; I know some may please to be so witty as to call this Nursery, rather than a Management worthy of a Physician; but yet I will appeal to any that are Sober, Calm, and free from Prejudice, whether if they allow that this Exercise, does dispose to Sleep as I affirm, upon this Supposal, any thing can more exactly hit the miserable Circumstances of those Persons. To the Sick, these little things are of great Moment, and in such seemingly little things as these, the Accurate Management of the Ancients consisted, by which they were sometimes enabled to accomplish, that which we, for want of those Measures, do sometimes fall short of.
As to the other Property of this Exercise, it may be convenient for me to make some Apology, before I enter upon the Mention of it, because it is such, as cannot be well understood, but by those who are Conversant with Sanctorius, upon one of whose above-mention’d Maxims it does depend, viz. Upon that which shews the great Increase of the insensible Perspiration by Pandiculation and Gauping; now I hope the taking Notice of this, will not be thought odd in an Age, of which it is one of the Good Qualities, that Men will not take up with the old superficial Way of accounting for things by Occult Qualities, Putredo’s, and the like, but enquire into the Modus of the more Abstruse Actions of Nature, and will be convinc’d, that whatever are the legitimate Measures that she takes, they cannot be thought little or uncouth, seeing ’tis by such Minima, that she comes to be able to compleat her great Things. If therefore by Gauping, this Perspiration is so very much promoted, as has been discovered, and adjusted by the Experiments of that Admirable Author, we may reflect upon how little things our Deliverance from Feavers, and other Inconveniences, does depend; nothing being more common upon taking Cold, Surfeits, or the like, than for People to Gaup often, till the offensive Matter is let out, and consequently it is very apparent, that whatsoever will promote the Pandiculation must be beneficial, when the Perspiration is obstructed; and this, tho’ it cannot be effected by any Internal, may be done by Riding, which will dispose all People, the Healthy as well the Sick, more or less to it. I know it may be alledg’d, that all People when they are tyr’d, are more or less apt to Gaup and Retch, but yet it cannot be said, that Thirty Miles Riding is a Tyring to a Healthy Man; and yet let any one observe, if that or less will not dispose all People to this Affect, unless they over-rule it by Drinking of great Quantities of good Liquor, which I believe will not always suppress it neither; but for those who are Sickly, the least Use of this Exercise disposes ’em to this Method of Nature, which perhaps no other Exercise will do, unless they are tyr’d by it; which shews how much Riding is preferable to other Exercises for Sick People, because it does some way or other act upon the Secret Springs of Nature, after a more peculiar manner, and therefore more proper for the promoting that easie and even Evacuation.
There is another Property of Riding, that it always gives a Freshness to the Countenance of those who use it, which lasts for some time, and will appear upon but once Riding, and the weakest and most infirm Person shall discover something of this in his Cheeks after this Exercise; now I would fain know, what Noble Cordial, whether Solid or Liquid, can do thus? They may cause a Flushing, but can produce nothing of this Natural Aspect; and what can more plainly discover to us, that there is something inimitable which results from the equal and gentle Pressures of the innumerable and invisible Vascula of the whole Body together, and that that Action which can produce such an Appearance upon but one single Application to it, may be sufficient to display the greatest and most wholsome effects when continued on gradually, as it ought to be; and to object against the Certainty of these Measures, because they must be slow, is just as Wise as it would be to assert, that the hand of the Dial does not move, or the Budding Leaf encrease, because we cannot discern the Motion of either of ’em. Nothing certainly could keep us from Regarding these Tendencies of Nature, but the excessive Variety of Medicines, with which we are so gloz’d, that we over look Her gradual Progressions, either to Sickness or Health, and think to force Her in all Cases by the Power of Art; whereas in a great many Cases, she will baffle the boldest Administrators, when by gentle and suitable means she may be reduc’d, to her true State. The Famous Cornaro’s Case, and many others might be alledg’d to shew how great Changes may be procur’d, by a strict attendance to the demands of Nature, and that it is seldom too late to aid Her in a Natural way, agreeable to her Weakness and without the Oppression as I may call it at such a time, instead of the Assistance of much Physick.