with ſuch violence by Hyſterical and Hypocondrical Diſtempers, as both made her rave for ſome daies, and gave her, during that time, a Baſtard Palſey.
7 Being a while ſince in a Town, where the Plague had made great havock, and inquiring of an ingenious man, that was ſo bold, as without much ſcruple to viſit thoſe that were ſick of it, about the odd ſymptomes of a Diſeaſe that had ſwept away ſo many there; he told mee, among other things, that he was able to tell divers Patients, to whom he was called, before they took their beds, or had any evident ſymptomes of the Plague, that they were indeed infected upon peculiar obſervations, that being asked, they would tell him that the neighbouring objects, and particularly his cloths, appear'd to them beautifi'd with moſt glorious Colours, like thoſe of the Rainbow, oftentimes ſucceeding one another; and this he affirm'd to be one of the moſt uſual, as well as the moſt early ſymptomes, by which this odd Peſtilence diſclos'd it ſelf: And when I asked how long the Patients were wont to be thus affected, he anſwered, that it was moſt commonly for about a day; and when I further inquired whether or no Vomits, which in that Peſtilence were uſually given, did not remove this ſymptome
(For ſome uſed the taking of a Vomit, when they came aſhore, to cure themſelves of the obſtinate and troubleſome giddineſs caus'd by the motion of the ſhip) reply'd, that generally, upon the evacuation made by the Vomit, that ſtrange apparition of Colours ceaſed, though the other ſymptomes were not ſo ſoon abated, yet he added (to take notice of that upon the by, becauſe the obſervation may perchance do good) that an excellent Phyſician, in whoſe company he was wont to viſit the ſick, did give to almoſt all thoſe to whom he was called, in the beginning before Nature was much weakened, a pretty odd Vomit conſiſting of eight or ten dramms of Infuſion of Crocus Metallorum, and about half a dramm, or much more, of White Vitriol, with ſuch ſucceſs, that ſcarce one of ten to whom it was ſeaſonably adminiſtred, miſcarried.
8 But to return to the conſideration of Colours: As an apparition of them may be produced by motions from within, without the aſſiſtance of an outward object, ſo I have obſerved, that 'tis ſometimes poſſible that the Colour that would otherwiſe be produced by an outward object, may be chang'd by ſome motion, or new texture already produced in the Senſory, as long as that unuſual motion, or new diſpoſition
laſts; for I have divers times try'd, that after I have through a Teleſcope look'd upon the Sun, though thorow a thick, red, or blew glaſs, to make its ſplendor ſupportable to the eye, the impreſſion upon the Retina, would be not only ſo vivid, but ſo permanent, that if afterwards I turned my eye towards a flame, it would appear to mee of a Colour very differing from its uſual one. And if I did divers times ſucceſſively ſhut and open the ſame eye, I ſhould ſee the adventitious Colour, (if I may ſo call it) changed or impair'd by degrees, till at length (for this unuſual motion of the eye would not preſently ceaſe) the flame would appear to mee, of the ſame hew that it did to other beholders; a not unlike effect I found by looking upon the Moon, when ſhe was near full, thorow an excellent Teleſcope, without colour'd Glaſs to ſcreen my eye with; But that which I deſire may be taken notice of, becauſe we may elſewhere have occaſion to reflect upon it, and becauſe it ſeems not agreeable to what Anatomiſts and Optical Writers deliver, touching the relation of the two eyes to each other, is this circumſtance, that though my Right eye, with which I looked thorow the Teleſcope, were thus affected by the over-ſtrong impreſſion of the light, yet when the flame
of a Candle, or ſome other bright object appear'd to me of a very unuſual Colour, whilſt look'd upon with the Diſcompos'd Eye, or (though not ſo notably) with both eyes at once; yet if I ſhut that Eye, and looked upon the ſame object with the other, it would appear with no other than its uſual Colour, though if I again opened, and made uſe of the Dazled eye, the vivid adventitious Colour would again appear. And on this occaſion I muſt not pretermit an Obſervation which may perſwade us, that an over-vehement ſtroak upon the Senſory, eſpecially if it be naturally of a weak conſtitution, may make a more laſting impreſſion than one would imagine, which impreſſion may in ſome caſes, as it were, mingle with, and vitiate the action of vivid objects for a long time after.
For I know a Lady of unqueſtionable Veracity, who having lately, by a deſperate fall, receiv'd ſeveral hurts, and particularly a conſiderable one upon a part of her face near her Eye, had her ſight ſo troubl'd and diſorder'd, that, as ſhe hath more than once related to me, not only when the next morning one of her ſervants came to her bed ſide, to ask how ſhe did, his cloaths appear'd adorn'd with ſuch variety of dazling Colours, that ſhe was fain preſently to
command him to withdraw, but the Images in her Hangings, did, for many daies after, appear to her, if the Room were not extraordinarily darken'd, embelliſh'd with ſeveral offenſively vivid Colours, which no body elſe could ſee in them; And when I enquir'd whether or no White Objects did not appear to her adorn'd with more luminous Colours than others, and whether ſhe ſaw not ſome which ſhe could not now well deſcribe to any, whoſe eyes had never been diſtemper'd, ſhe anſwer'd mee, that ſometimes ſhe thought ſhe ſaw Colours ſo new and glorious, that they were of a peculiar kind, and ſuch as ſhe could not deſcribe by their likeneſs to any ſhe had beheld either before or ſince, and that White Objects did ſo much diſorder her ſight, that if ſeveral daies after her fall, ſhe look'd upon the inſide of a Book, ſhe fanci'd ſhe ſaw there Colours like thoſe of the Rain-bow, and even when ſhe thought her ſelf pretty well recover'd, and made bold to leave her Chamber, the coming into a place where the Walls and Ceeling were whited over, made thoſe Objects appear to her cloath'd with ſuch glorious and dazling Colours, as much offended her ſight, and made her repent her venturouſneſs, and ſhe added, that this Diſtemper of her Eyes laſted no leſs
than five or ſix weeks, though, ſince that, ſhe hath been able to read and write much without finding the leaſt Inconvenience in doing ſo. I would gladly have known, whether if ſhe had ſhut the Injur'd Eye, the Phænomena would have been the ſame, when ſhe employ'd only the other, but I heard not of this accident early enough to ſatisfie that Enquiry.
9 Wherefore, I ſhall now add, that ſome years before, a perſon exceedingly eminent for his profound Skil in almoſt all kinds of Philological Learning, coming to adviſe with mee about a Diſtemper in his Eyes, told me, among other Circumſtances of it, that, having upon a time looked too fixedly upon the Sun, thorow a Teleſcope, without any coloured Glaſs, to take off from the dazling ſplendour of the Object, the exceſs of Light did ſo ſtrongly affect his Eye, that ever ſince, when he turns it towards a Window, or any White Object, he fancies, he ſeeth a Globe of Light, of about the bigneſs the Sun then appeared of to him, to paſs before his Eyes: And having Inquir'd of him, how long he had been troubled with this Indiſpoſition, he reply'd, that it was already nine or ten years, ſince the Accident, that occaſioned it, firſt befel him.