The Wilmingtonian, and Delaware register., 1824-08-26
From the Saratoga Sentinel, Aug. 6.
INTERESrING Law CASE.


patent law /; high-prcssure practice Of
phv miraculous cure by the power OF
steam.
We arc indebted to gentleman, who was
present at the trial, for the following state
ment of case which was tried at the last
Ioga circuit.
The suit was brought against the defcn-
dants for malpractice. They were not re-
guarly licensed physicians, or as it was cx-
pressed BY their witness on the trial, " they
did not belong to the standing order, but
were practising under a license from the U
nitcd States.' The license from tho United
States, under which they claimed the right
to practice physc, was an assignment of a
patent granted to one Thompson, giving to
him and his assigns, the exclusive right of
making, using and vending certain medicines
or remedies, designated by numbers, and
particularly described in the specification.
One OF the defendants was a farmer, at the
time he purchased tic right, and commence
ed the practice of physic under the patent
and neither had ever made the science OF
medicine regular study.
a son Of the plaintiff, 10 or 90 years Of
age, was attacked with the lumbago, or an
acute pain across the loins, occasioned by
sudden exposure to rain, after lifting hard in
building log fence. The defendant COM
menced by bathing his loins with the patent
medicine, No. 6, sometimes called rheumatic
drops, and composed of spirits OF turpcntine,
puverized cayenne pepper, gum myrth,
gum camphor and spirits of wine. Their TO
meutatlon was also aided by the application
OF a red hot shovel to his back which occa-
sonally came i'll contact with, and burned
the skin. While this powerful embrocatiou
md
tient internally, some rcd drops, (probably
No. 4, pulvefzcd cayenne peppcr,) which
from the peculiar name gwen to them as
well as from their taste, we've admirably cal
culatcd to remind him the future turnents
oi the wicked in another world. They next
gave him five cupso Of hottca, No. $, d strong
dccoctlon OF ginseng root and bavberrv bark J
and raised the steam upon the patient BY
surrounding him with hot stones, and pour
ing water thereon. After steaming the pa
ticnt about an hour lie was put to bed. BY
this time he had entirely lost all sense Of
| feeling, i'll both legs, and a strangury had a.
SO been produced. In this situation the
young man was left by the defendants, and
they were rot again called thong one of
them afterwards declared, that it they had
been permitted to attend lin, they COLD
have restored the perfect use OF has limbs,
BY continued application oi the same RENE
dies. The day stter the defendants left him,
allccnsed phys!ciln,and soon afterwartsa Sc
cond were called TO ,ttcnd him. At the eX-
pirltion of three weeks the young man re-
covered the sense Of feeling in his limbs, and
the strangury was removed about the same
time it was six months before he was able
to walk and at the trial he aobbcd into the
court upon crutches. 1t appeared that No
\ f (tnt, rllfliiaHtiF nod hneu ,Iipi,,iy-
tered, by tho peraoh practising under the pa
tent, in cases Of rheumatism, typhus fever,
dropsy in the chest, palsy, convulsion fits,
and ter a common cough. The defend ints
had, i'll one case OF y phGs fever, administer
ed some OF the patent drol,s as 4 cathartlc !;
but whether it was the rheumatic drops, the
bayberry tea, or the pulverilcd cayenne pep
per, did not appear. In this last case OF ~
phus fever, the defendants had steamed the
| patient a. bow constantly for a week. Nillc
the steam was at its height ont OF the de-
icndants said he must now go to the full tx-
tent Of the patent, and immediately caused
him to be stripped naked and drenchcd with
cold water. The boys sister was in the act
OF coming to sec him and met one of the de-
PENDANTS near the door who had Just left him.
Ihc defendant informed the sister that her
brother was doing well and in fair way Of
recovery, Dut Dt1ofc she got INTO the house
| he was dead. Whether his death was occa-
stoned by the fault of the engineer in raising
the steam too high, or by condcnslng the
steam too suddenly, by the application OF the
cold water has never been asccrtainetl.
A witness in the part of the defendants
who called himself doctor, but said he did
not belong to the standing order, testified
that he was well acquainted with the rheu-
matte drops. (No 6.) He had made for sale
20 or so gallons of the same kind of modi-
cine and had frequently used it and always
with success. The practice of the defend
ants in the case of the plaintiffs son was per
tcctly proper; and he had no doubt if they
had been permitted to continue the use Of
No. 6, with the bayberry tea and the appli-
cation OF steam, the patient would have been
restored to health in a very short time. The
natural effect Of the medicine was, firstly to
destroy the use of his limbs, and then BY a
continuation OF the treatment to restore them
to Il healthy state.--This doctor then detail
Cd at length, to the court and jury, an instance
OF IL most remark able cure, which he had
effected by the same kind of practice.
The doctor was called to lady who had a
nervous fever, and found her, apparently, in
the last agonies. When he arrived she was
spccchlcss, and the blood had settled under
her nails. He Immediately forced her to
swallow little of No. 6, and then raised the
steam upon her and kept it up until she re-
rived. He then continued to steam her dav