I continued the bark till 12 o’clock, and then left it off till 4, when I took another dose. The dreadful fever of the preceding days did not return on this, but I was still extremely ill, had very great difficulty in speaking and breathing; a swelling also in my throat, parched tongue, and unquenchable thirst. I had not the most distant hope of living. I tried to take some broth, but the swelling in my throat prevented my swallowing. I passed a very bad night, with startings, anxiety, and great pain over the kidnies; and what little sleep I got seemed to make me worse; I was fatigued with it, and under the constant dread of suffocation: towards morning my throat grew worse, and my thirst was excessive.
18th. Left off the bark, uncertain what I ought to do—no fever, but the same symptoms as the day before—drank a little chicken broth, which was the only sustenance I had taken for four days before—great oppression and heat in my stomach and bowels. Mr. Beaumont found out an Armenian who professed physic. This man gave me a clyster, which gave me great relief, and a water to drink, famous as a febrifuge among the Persians; I drank of it freely, and found much benefit from it. But the most extraordinary of all the symptoms I experienced was this, that, the third day after the first intermission of my fever, one of my teeth, and one of the nails of my hand, came out without the smallest pain, only a little swelling in the gum; and, on the nail falling off some matter flowed from the end of my finger. I never had the tooth-ach. At this time the boil on my eye suppurated.
From the 18th of June to the 5th of July, being seventeen days, my fever did not return. I recovered strength slowly, and could walk a little, supported by two men. My food was chiefly chicken and veal broth and about a glass and a half of Madeira wine a day. Yet I had many symptoms of disease hanging about me—restless, fatiguing nights—great thirst—bad taste in my mouth: every thing I took seemed bitter and salt—pains in my back, sides and loins and great difficulty in making water. In this time I passed much bile, naturally and by clyster; and I had a purgative from the Armenian, which weakened me greatly.
The springs lifted, as seamen term it, three days before the change. The opinion is universal in those countries, and also in India, particularly Bombay, where intermittents are prevalent, that the change and full of the moon has an effect upon all intermitting diseases, of which afterwards I had many proofs in my own case. To prevent a relapse, I took some decoction of bark, but in too small quantities to answer the purpose.
4th July. My water, from being thick and muddy, became quite clear.
The 5th of July, after dinner, I was taken with a slight hot fit, which continued about two hours, and then went off by copious perspiration; the remaining part of the evening I was entirely free from fever.
6th. I took decoction of bark—no fever.
7th. At 11 o’clock a regular cold and hot fit; the former continued three quarters of an hour, the latter two hours. Although much less severe than my former fever, yet I suffered a good deal from the hot fit. Left off the bark by the advice of the Armenian, who told me that it heated me and made me worse. Much weakened by this day’s illness; nor did the perspiration entirely free me from the fever.
8th. Had a clyster thrown up, and early in the morning took a draught from the Armenian, composed of fine vinegar, sugar, and a country seed infused over night in water.—A slight hot fit, but of short continuance.
9th. The draught of yesterday repeated—at 10 a regular cold and hot fit, rather less violent than the last.