preffions made on their body do not hinder them, and confequently, as often as they do not fleep as they fhould, they are afflicted with Watchings.

4

PROGNOSTICS. Watching is not only very troublesome, but alfo a dangerousdiforder in children; yet it is more or less fo, according to it's intensity, for uninterrupted obftinate Watching, is more intollerable, than an intermittent tranfitory one: an inveterate one threatens more than a recent one, for the latter is easily removed. The nature and intenfity of the caufes alfo produce fome variety; for flight fuperficial ones, as an excoriation, &c. of the body foon go off, whilft Watchings produced by a fever, cholicks, &c. are difficultly removed.

CURE. The first business of the physician fhould be to difcover the caufe, which produces or foments the evil, and which before the disorder is attacked, fhould be removed. In order to treat the disorder, the patient should have his body always kept soluble, for the principal fymptoms, as the fever, &c. are thereby checked. For this purpofe may be employed emollient clyfters of the decoctions of plants of that clafs, into

1

which fhould be put oil of sweet almonds. The glyfter pipes fhould be small, in proportion to the infant's age and bulk. If he be very young or fmall, inftead of the clyfters may be employed, a fuppofitory made of the bark with wax and oil. If the Watchings are not thus checked, let him be purged; the younger fort are purged with compound fyrup of fuccory, or fyrup of peaches. If they be older, tincture of rhubarb, or an infufion of fenna may be added. If worms produce the diforder, bolufes of mercurius dulcis fhould be exhibited. If the evil fprings from the stomach, or firft paffages through indigestions and their fubfequent crudities, whofe qualities you may difcover by the colour of the feces; which if green, the crudities are acid, and fo of the other colours: abforbents should be prescribed, as prepared red coral, crabs eyes, and diaphoretic antimony, of which you may form bolufes or electuaries, without the theriaca, or confection of hyacinth. If the patient has convulfions, let him take the tincture of rhubarb, oil of fweet almonds, the white lohock, and pow der of vipers. The nurfe's diet should be

flender

If

flender and cooling; she is to abstain from wine, and any other thing that may heat her too much, wherefore fhe is not to lye with the infant, left by his reftlefsnefs, fhe through compaffion, tenderness, &c. may be also obliged to watch, and have her health impaired; to avoid this inconvenience, there fhould be two nurses to act by turns. the evil be very obftinate, naricoticks should be prescribed, though fome dread them, alledging that they intoxicate and stupify these young patients; which I own is true, as well with regard to thefe, as to adults, if the narcoticks be continued too long, or given in too great a dose; but in moderate dofes, they are extremely useful in this cafe. The one principally calculated for this intent, is the theriaca, especially if it be recent: this contains one grain of opium in every dram; wherefore twenty grains of it may be exhibited without danger, to an infant of two years old, or seven grains only to one of two, or three months, and fo of the other ages. This remedy is not only useful as a narcotic, but also as a stomachic: if a fimple narotic is more convenient, fyrup of white poppies may be exhibited, from half a dram, to a

dram

dram and an half, or two drams in purflain water, to be taken at two different times. The powder against the epilepfy, or the anthelminthic powder, may be ordered at the fame time. If the child be a little more grown, he may take two, three, or nine drops of the anodyne tincture. Let the infant be treated thus, and if these measures do not entirely cure the disorder, they will at least enable the patient to sustain it the more eafily, till it is removed by time.

CHA P. XV.

Of the FRIGHTS of CHILDREN in their Sleep.

THIS diforder is called by Latin writers Pavor in fomno: fuch children as

are troubled with it, fuddenly raise themselves, or start in their beds whilst they fleep, fometimes with a loud cry; fometimes with fudden terror or fear, with it's confequences, as palenefs, trembling and cold fweats. Now let us endeavour to investigate the caufe of this diforder: if the children then fuddenly start in bed, without any fymp

toms

toms of fear; it may proceed from a fudden painful impreffion made on fome part of their body. If on the contrary, they fuddenly cry out, tremble, and are capable of reflection, we may attribute the cause of the evil to their imagination, which is struck with fome frightful dream. But infants who through their great youth are incapable of reflection, are rarely fubject to this kind of terror, which depends on the imagination. The causes of the former, or the painful impreffions are, fudden pain which springs from all the causes mentioned in the preceding chapter; indigestions, worms for want of nourishment, lice, crinones, thrushes, stone in the bladder, and an infinity of other fuch like caufes, which must act fuddenly to have this effect. But the moft common and real causes are convulfions and cramps, to which infants are very subject; though adults arė not exempted from them. The causes of the fecond clafs, or a ftartled imagination, are frightful tales, related to the infant by day, to check and correct him, as the good women do, by repeating frightful stories.

SYMPTOMS