feemingly infurmountable; but when we seriously confider the affiftance that may be derived from him who turns "the mourning of those that “trust in him into joy and gladness*,” the frowns of defpair will be converted into the fmiles of hope, and the idea of difficulty will vanish in proportion to our faith in the Almighty.

"For the Almighty Power above

"With ease can save each object of his love: "Wide as his will extends his bounteous grace, "Nor loft in time, nor circumscrib'd by place."

God hath "created medicines of the earth," and appointed phyficians, by their art and induftry, to prepare and apply these treasures to the use of man; and therefore, à Jove principium, before we begin with medicines we should use prayer,+ and continue, not one without the other, but both together; for otherwife, as the prophet Jeremiah denounced of the children of Egypt, "in vain we fhall ufe medicine or fue for health." The efficacy of prayer, indeed, in this complaint, is acknowledged not only by Hippocrates, Galen, and Hyperius, but by every other rational and good physician, many of whom, efpecially Mefful and Crito, concluded their confultations

* Ecclefiafticus.

+ "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and fupplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God." Phil. iv. 6.

fultations with a folemn addrefs to the Deity, imploring him to deliver their unhappy brother from the perils of his diftrefs.

Orandum est ut sit mens sana in corpore sano.

THE PHYSICIAN, who is manus Dei, and to. whom God hath given knowledge that he might be glorified in all his wondrous works, ought next to be fought; for "with fuch agents "God doth heal men and take away their pains." A wife and honest physician will not adminifter medicine except in cases of abfolute neceffity; but will try the effect of diet, and the vis medicatrix naturæ, before he proceeds to exhibit the potency of his art; and when this neceffity arifes, will address his prescriptions, not, Harpylike, to the draining of his patient's purse, but to the speedy expulfion of his disease; and not irritare filentem morbum, as Heurnius complains, ftir up, in hopes of pay, a filent disease, which, by good council, or the rectification of the nonnaturals, might be easily cured*. Above all, he will endeavour to obtain, by every means in his power, the good opinion and confidence of his patient; for Galen is of opinion, that the confidence

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* Quod fæpe evenit cum non fit neceffitas. Frufta fatigant rimediis ægros, qui victus ratione curari poffunt. Heurnius, lib.. 3, cap. 1.

dence of the patient fometimes contributes to the cure of melancholy, as much as the physician's phyfic; and Paracelfus informs us, that Hippocrates was as much indebted, for the surprising cures he performed, to the high conceit his patients entertained of his honour and ability, as to his knowledge of medicine. Melancholy is a diforder of the mind, to the cure or alleviation of which, nothing is more effential than the kind offices and converfation of a real friend.

THE PATIENT must also call forth, with refolution and fortitude, all the poffible powers of his mind in aid of his physician; for although it will be highly to his advantage to rely with implicit confidence upon the skill of those whom he may confult, he may do much for himself, and, like the waggoner in Efop, by fetting his fhoulder to the wheel, greatly relieve his distress. An unreferved disclosure of the most minute circumstances of his case, is an indispensable obligation; for by fuffering, like a cowardly citizen, who neglects to arm until the enemy is at its gates, his bafhfulness or indifference to conceal any its symptoms, he will not only protract his cure, but poffibly produce incalculable mifchief. It is, however, the common fault of all melancholy perfons rather to over-ftate their afflictions than to conceal them. Obedience alfo to the direc

of

tions of his phyfician, and a steady perfeverance in the course he fhall prescribe, is another neceffary duty on the part of the patient; and particularly to cherish a confidence in his ability, and not fly, upon every trifling diflike, from one physician to another, or to try too hastily a variety of remedies. But, above all, let him be careful to avoid experiments upon himself, by adopting unapproved remedies, recommended to him by unauthorised books, or ignorant friends; for that which in the very fame diforder may be highly beneficial to one patient, may be extremely detrimental and deftructive to another, as the following fable from Camerarius will illuftrate. An afs, laden with wool, and a mule, laden with falt, were travelling together through the ford of a river. The water wetting the package of the mule, and melting the falt, relieved the animal from the weight of its burden, which being obferved by the afs, he, at the next river they passed through, wetted his package, in hopes of finding the fame relief; but the water, instead of lighting his load, made the wool more heavy, and preffed him to death by its increafed weight. Medical works, fays Penottus, are filled with prescriptions which appear to the eye of an injudicious reader like excellent remedies, but when taken prove fatal poisons; and he inftances the case of John Baptista, a Neapolitan

politan nobleman, who accidentally reading a medical pamphlet in praise of hellebore, was induced, on his own judgment, to try its effects; but taking a dram instead of a scruple, was under the neceffity of sending for Valleriola, the phyfician, to fave his life.

THE REMEDIES by which the alleviation or cure of melancholy, even if it have paffed its meridian, can be most rationally expected, are the rectification of the fix non-naturals already mentioned; for as the neglect and abuse of them chiefly promote the disease, so a proper use of them is most likely to afford relief; but if these diateticks fail, recourse must then neceffarily be had to medicine.

DIET, Aixilntiun, victus, or living, properly fo called, confists, as we have before observed, in meat and drink. Those meats which are tender, moift, and easy of digeftion, are most falutary; as kids, rabbits, chickens, veal, mutton, partridge, pheasant, quail, and all mountain birds. The lean of fat meat is beft; and all broths, pottages, and other spoon meats, especially cock-broth, mixed with borage, lettuce, and fuch wholesome herbs, are excellently good. The Arabians recommend brains as a fine antidote to melancholy; but this opinion is opposed by Laurentius, and

many