Book III OF PESTILENT FEVERS 215

styptic as well, that is no matter, for these are most useful for
subduing the germs, and they preserve the patient's strength
from collapsing, as very often happens in these fevers.

If the remedies that work through the antipathies are bene—
ficial in any contagion, they are certainly most beneficial and
especially powerful in the sort of contagion that resembles cer—
tain poisons. 'Therefore you must employ above all and never
abandon these, for they help, not only by removing the germs,
but also by strengthening the patient. These are the methods
and efforts to be employed against the germs, and you will need
to extinguish and subdue that principle (primary agent) of the
contagion, whether the germs have arisen from the air or from
another source.

As for the substance that is imperilled, you must naturally
first try to find out whether evacuation of any kind is advisable,
and if so, of what sort. It is evident that it is advisable when
there is present an excessive amount of humor predisposed to
putrefaction. But when that is not the case, and the whole
corruption is due to contagion, (for it may easily happen that
a man in excellent health may contraect the contagion), then
you must not provoke the evacuation of the imperilled substance, :
especially not by phlebotomy or drugs. Indeed there is much
uncertainty and controversy among doctors as to whether
phlebotomy and drugs ought to be employed in dealing with the
substance that carries the plague, even when there is plethora&
(of the humor). Some doctors let blood in every case of plague,
and not once only, but even twice.  They justify this procedure
as follows: They say that this disease is serious, or rather the
most serious of all, because there is great ebullition in the blood;
because the peccant matter and the corruption is praetically
always in the blood itself; that by phlebotomy the body is well
ventilated and transpiration is caused; that in these fevers
nature is severely overtaxed, and unless she be aided she can—
not endure the disease, or expel it, or concoct it (digest its sub—
stance). Hence, they say, many cases have been observed in
which, after phlebotomy, an expulsion of lentil spots at once
appeared, though none had been seen before the phlebotomy.

On the other hand, other doctors are very much afraid to
employ phlebotomy, on the ground that it has been proved by
experience that the majority of patients from whom blood had
been taken either died, soon after, or took a turn for the worse,