nutritious juices as may have been fecreted along with the bile. The veins of the internal furface of the gall-bladder reforb from the bile, during its ftay there, the thinner or watery parts of it.

Our Medical Readers will doubtless perceive, that many of thefe opinions are difputable; we pretend not to vindicate them all; yet, by the Author's reafoning and experiments, they are well fupported; and we recommend them to the peculiar attention of the phyfiologift. Secretion hath hitherto remained a mystery, nor has Dr. Walter thrown much light on the subject in general; his remarks, however, intitle him to the thanks of the anatomift, and we truft his promifed future labours will afford us the fame pleafure and information in their perufal, which we have experienced from the prefent.

With refpect to the difeafes which proceed from a vitiated or obftructed circulation through the liver, or from a morbid ftate of the parts themselves, we find several new hypotheses, which are certainly ingenious, and worthy the attention of the nofologift. Dr. Walter would perhaps have rendered a more material fervice to the healing art, had he defcribed the diagnostic symptoms of the diseases he mentions. For inftance, he does not inform us how to diftinguish between a jaundice produced by a deficiency of fecreted bile, and one produced by an obftruction in the biliary duct. This however is excufable: Dr. Walter did not intend to write a treatife on the diseases of the liver, &c. but only a defcription, with the natural hiftory, of that vifcus. He has happily fucceeded in his plan; and, perhaps, it might have been more prudent for him to have paffed over the nofological part entirely. If indeed his new opinions should excite a controverfy, in which the fubject may be freely and learnedly - difcuffed, many improvements might be expected. The fubject is an important one, and cannot be too minutely inveftigated.

We ought not to conclude this article without obferving, that the plates which accompany this work are elegantly executed.

ART. IX.

A Treatise on the Venom of the Viper; on the American Poifons; on the Cherry-Laurel; and fome other vegetable Poifons. To which are annexed, Obfervations on the primitive Structure of the Animal Body, &c. &c. With defcriptive Plates. Tranflated from the original French of FELIX FONTANA. By Jofeph Skinner, Navy Surgeon, &c. 8vo. 2 Vols. 14s. Boards. Murray. 1787.

S we noticed the French edition of this work in a former article, in which we lamented that our limits would not fuffer us to enter into a minute detail of the latter part of this * See Review, vol. lxx. p. 586.

excellent

excellent performance, we now refer the Reader to what has been already faid, and proceed to what was then omitted.

The fupplement contains a very valuable feries of experiments, by which our ingenious Author has difcovered an antidote against the poifon of the viper. From the experiments recorded in the firft volume, the boafted antidote, viz. the fluid volatile alkali, has been found to be, in all cafes, inefficacious, and that even when mixed with the poifon, no alteration in its noxious quality was produced. Our Author frequently employed himself in mixing the poifon of the viper with various fubftances, among which the lunar cauftic was obferved to be fingularly effectual in correcting its deadly quality. He made his experiments by mixing equal quantities of the lunar cauftic with the poifon collected from the ferpent. This mixture he formed into a pafte, by means of a fufficient quantity of water, and applied it immediately to the wounds which he made in a number of fmall birds, guinea-pigs, &c. all of which escaped unhurt. Animals that were wounded by the venomous teeth of vipers, and had the paste applied to the wounded part, all recovered. In other experiments, the pafte was washed off foon after its application, and the animals did not feem at all affected with the difeafe of the poifon, although the mufcles under the wounds were much hurt by the burning of the cauftic.

The fuccefs of thefe experiments induces the Author to flatter himself with having difcovered a certain remedy against the bite of the viper. From fubfequent trials, however, it appears, that this specific does not always fecure the animal bitten. The irregularity of the bite, the depth of the wound, and the different directions in which the teeth, by biting, may run under the fkin, are obftacles to the effectual application of the cauftic. Several animals that were bitten died after the cauftic was applied, as foon as they would have done if no remedy had been ufed; and though fcarifications were made on the bitten part to admit the cauftic into a more immediate contact with the poifon conveyed by the teeth, the application failed of fuccefs. This we can eafily admit, fince the fwelling or inflammation, which almoft inftantaneously fucceeds the bite, may augment the difficulty of bringing the cauftic into contact with the poifon.

From a general view of the experiments here recorded, we have not the leaft hefitation in pronouncing the lunar cauftic a true specific against the bite of a viper; but the difficulty of its application, and the time that may elapfe before it can be made, are circumftances which render this remedy liable to fail, for unless it be so applied as to penetrate to the bottom of the wound it cannot produce any good effect; moreover, if the application be delayed, even for a few minutes, the animal will

have received the poifon into its circulation, and will inevitably

die.

The fingular and unexpected effects of the lunar cauftic, which when mixed with the poifon of the viper renders it innocent, led the Abbé Fontana to fufpect, that if the cauftic were united with the ticunas (the fubftance by which the American arrows are rendered fo fatal) it would correct the deadly quality of that mcft virulent and speedy poifon. He was, however, miftaken; for animals, to the fresh wounds of which a compofition of equal parts of ticunas and lunar cauftic was applied, died in less than two minutes, as quickly as if they had been poisoned by the ticunas alone.

We come now to feveral experiments on the cherry-laurel, in which the deleterious qualities of its oil and fpirit, and the inefficacy of the cauftic in correcting them, are feparately fhewn.

But the most important part of this fupplement is what is faid on the effects of opium. The Abbé, perceiving little uniformity in the numerous authors who have written on the properties of this fubftance, was induced to undertake feveral experiments; the general refult of which fhews, that all animals with warm blood are killed by a folution of opium, either in fpirit or in water, applied in any manner to the body, in a fufficient quantity. Among the experiments on cold blooded animals, the following is fingular and remarkable:

I plunged half the body of a leech into spirit of wine, and found in a little time that this part had loft all motion, whilft the other half continued in action. The experiment fucceeded in the fame way, whether the part of the leech towards the head was plunged or that towards the tail. The fame confequences enfued on plunging a leech into the folution of opium in fpirit of wine, or into a folution of it in water.'

This we look upon as an extraordinary circumftance, viz. that one half of the animal fhould become dead, and that the other half fhould not have undergone any change, nor fuffered any injury.

Then follow feveral experiments on turtles, frogs, &c. from which our Author concludes, that opium, fpirit of wine, and wine, do not act immediately on the nerves, but on the blood. Here he combats the notions of Dr. Robert Whytt; and is thoroughly confirmed in his opinion, that the blood alone is the medium through which opium produces its effects on the animal ceconomy. M. Fontana, who is perhaps too partial to experiments, may, we apprehend, have made his conclufions rather haftily. We he fitate in pronouncing that experiment convincing,

Into the fpirit of wine, we fuppofe.

in

in which our Author applied opium to the crural nerve of a frog; though a large branch of a nerve did not feem affected when the application was made, yet we cannot thence conclude, that the extremities of the nerves are infenfible to opium. It has ever been a received opinion (and we think a true one), that the nerves are clothed with their proper coat, viz. a prolongation of the meninges; and it does not appear that this coat was removed before the opium was applied, confequently the opium did not come into immediate contact with the medullary fubftance of the nerve, in which alone fenfation is feated; and on that account the conclufion feems to be unfatisfactory. Had the opium been applied immediately to the medullary fubftance of the nerve, it is poffible that a different effect would have been produced. We cannot, however, allow that the nervous system is infenfible to opium, because a nerve, to whose external coat it was applied, did not feem affected. We might as justly conclude the blood to be infenfible to the poifon of the viper, becaufe that poifon applied to the outfide of a blood-veffel produces no vifible effect, Befide, we ought to be extremely cautious in drawing conclufions from experiments made on living animals; for while the animal is in extreme torture, as muft have been the cafe in thefe experiments, the effects of any application can never be thoroughly or fatisfactorily obtained; nor can we with certainty affirm that the fame effects would have been produced on an animal in its perfect and healthy ftate.

6

It remains that we should take fome notice of the merit of the tranflation, which, on the whole, is well executed; fome peculiarities, as, authour,' errour,' len's' for ienfes, and others of a like kind, frequently occur; thefe however are not very material circumftances, while the fenfe of the Author, which in scientific works is the most important object, is neither mutilated nor mifreprefented.

ART. X.

Correspondence familiere et amicale de Frederic Second, Roi de Prufe, avec U. F. De Subm, &c. i. e. Familiar and friendly Correfpondence between FREDERICK II. King of Pruffia and U. F. DE SUнм, Privy Counsellor to the Elector of Saxony, and Envoy Extraordinary to the Courts of Berlin and Petersburg. 12mo. 2 Vols. Amfterdam. 1787.

HERE is no circumftance in which the partiality of friendship is more apt to be indifcreet than in the publication of pofthumous letters. On the decease of a perfon who has acted a diftinguished part in the drama of life, every one who has been honoured even with a note in his hand-writing, is eager to communicate it to the prefs. The leaft inconvenience that attends this imprudence is, that expectation is raised APP. Rev. Vol. LXXVI.

Rr

only

only to be disappointed, and a number of trifles are expofed to public view, which were intended only for the eye of a particular friend, and which, however important to the perfons to whom they were addreffed, are not very interefting to a reader who is not thus immediately concerned."

These reflections are, in fome degree, applicable to the letters before us, which were the effufions of private friendship, and certainly never defigned for the public infpection. The Editor's name does not appear; but there is a certificate figned by 7. A. Schluter, Counfellor of War, and Cenfor Royal at Berlin, attefting that he has compared the manufcript of this collection with the original letters, of which it is an exact copy.

This correfpondence commenced in March 1736, and continued till the death of M. Subm, in 1740, juft after the King's acceffion to the throne. Their friendship was formed during M. Subm's refidence at Berlin, from the year 1720 to 1730, as Envoy from the Court of Drefden.

It is well known, that the late King's father, Frederick William I. was an enemy to science, and particularly to philofophy; he could not therefore but be displeased to fee the Prince Royal cultivate an intimacy with perfons eminent for their wit, learning, and extenfive knowledge. Among these was M. Suhm, who, it is probable, was the more eafily rendered odious to the King, as he was a zealous partizan of Wolf, to whom the monarch had conceived a violent averfion. It is certain that the King took offence at the friendship between the Prince and M. Suhm ;-3 circumftance which occafioned their feparation, and gave rife to the correfpondence here publifhed.

The Prince's letters are written with eafe and elegance; they breathe a manly and affectionate friendship for his correfpondent, and contain fentiments which do honour to his heart as well as to his understanding. We were particularly pleafed with the following remark on a dedication to him of a French translation of Wolf's Logic, by M. Deschamps, with which M. Suhm, whom he files Diaphanes, bad been quite in raptures.

I own to you, my dear Diaphanes, that I think M. Defchamps' dedication exceedingly infipid; it is not fo much offering incenfe, as flinging the cenfer at one's head. Thus to praise a perfon, with whom he acknowledges he is not acquainted, is to write a panegyric on a hero of romance; on an imaginary being, that exists no where but in the writer's brain. Had this epiftle been prefixed to a tragedy or an epic poem, an apology might have been made for the author, by alleging, that, inflamed with the ardours of poetry, he had been hurried away by a heated imagination, without having time to liften to reason; but by prefixing fuch a dedication to a treatife on logic, the poor tranflator has fallen into an effential error, and fhewn that he does not understand the art of reafoning. When the tranflator fent it to me, I defired my thanks might be returned

for