The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1826-01-18 00:00:00

HYDROPHOBIA.

I From the Baltimore Federal Gazette.]

We hare been furnished with the following account of a pre of
this entailing malady. which terminated fatally in the neighbour,
hotel ot Baltitnore on Thursday last:—
Th. wind, a bay of about eleven weave of age, season the the
of ()ember last bitten by a dog supposed to be mad ; he toes with.
out loss of time placed under the care of a plyeldan, but the writer
of this statement has not been informed what particular mod, of
treatment was adopted.
The hoy teemed to enjoy good health and was regularly en.
ployeti in his usual svocatiens until Monday last, when he eon),
planted of great lassitude and a distressing sensation of chilltnees
which it seemed impossible to abate by any meant) that the taw
~
could enipley,'at the same time the exprtomion of his face beira,„.4
a sort of haggard dejection which was by ao moues natural to
him. as he had commonly a very open, cheerful count...we,.
There was not the least suspicion, however, of the nature of i. 14
indisposition, and he was in the evening put to bed, after
some warm drinks.
Ile stated the next morning (Tuesday) that he had slept writbut he still complained of a great chilliness' appeared very Fanged!
and refused any kind of food or drink. Ho fell inert a sluteetr
'shout the middle of the day, and continued to sleep for titter::
hours ; when he awoke neer night his mother, being anxioui for
him to take nourishment, provided some tea, and while pouritte It
out into a cup near where he lay she discovered that the lighter de
liquid threw him suddenly into a alight spasm, and that his man.
tenants betrayed considerable alarm. 11 now, for the first time,
occurred to her that he was most probably attacked with hydro.
' phobia., and she immediately sent for his father, who was absent
from the honse. On his 'terming at home they both endeavoured ro
prevail on the child to take some drink, but every effort was at.
tended with the same effiett, and soon left no doubt as to the
nature of the disease. hoot this time he never slept until hie
death.
A physician was called in, and on Wednesday some remedies
were employed, but without in the tenet abating his disorder, which
continued with symptoms of increasing lenience until the neit
afternoon (Thursday), when he died about five o'clock, after hay.
Ing laboured under the disorder from the tipse of the that amp-
toms of its approach, a little more than theft days, and from tha
time of the first opium about forty-eight hours, hie death having
occured Just forty-eight days after he was bitten.
The writer of these remarks not being a medkad tram, nem(
undertake to give a scientific description of the symptoms which,
in the present case, marked this truly terrific &tease ; he will,
however, venture to notice some of the more strikiag circumstances
which particularly attracted his attention..
The patient never throughout the whole time of his Wisp.
sition complained of pain; and, indeed, when asked, he always
stated that he was free from any pain whatever; he emstantly,,
however, discovered great reetlesaness, anxiety, and an unceasing
disposition to sigh most heavily. He appeared to peeress the en,
tire one of his senses—knew every one who visited hint with whom
lie had ever been acquainted—very repeatedly told the family that
he knew be was mad, and if they did nut take care he fear!
lie should bite some of them ; and lie ',e'enl times, alien le.
bouring under spasms, did endeavour to tue those near hug be
snapping at them with a kind of convulsive effort, so that it
became necessary to confine him.
The disease appeared, from the commencement of it until its
termination, to act principally if not entirely upon the nervous
system. There was, in its very first approaches, a great want of
nervous energy, which continued to increase as the disorder ad-
vanced, and it is most probable that the patient sustained but little
if any pain, except a hat wan occasioned by the mentel eufferire
which he ettdured, end which was of the most intense degree. fie
was timid in the extreme, being greatly terrified at every thing that
lie Few, or upon hearing any noise, and he anxiously endeavoured
to recede front every one that approached towards how, especially
if they advanced hastily--he wan also afield to shut his eyes even
for an instant. His countenance evinced the greatest dejection,
except when he was labouring order a paroxysm ; it was then
marked by an indescribable horror, and an expression of the utmost
terror. The sight of water; at any time daring the progress of the
disease, instantly threw hint into violets epees/Ise.