ut either pain, or
inflammation, or any hazard of losing the eye.

As the inflammation of the iris is probably owing to forcing the
crystalline through the aperture of it in the operation of extracting it,
could it not be done more safely by making the opening behind the iris and
ciliary process into the vitreous humour? but the operation would still be
more painful, more dangerous, and not more useful than that by depressing
it.

14. _Innutritio ossium._ Innutrition of the bones. Not only the blood
effused in vibices and petechiae, or from bruises, as well as the blood and
new vessels in inflamed parts, are reabsorbed by the increased action of
the lymphatics; but the harder materials, which constitute the fangs of the
first set of teeth, and the ends of exfoliating bones, and sometimes the
matter of chalk-stones in the gout, the coagulable lymph, which is
deposited on the lungs, or on the muscles after inflammation of those
parts, and which frequently produces difficulty of breathing, and the pains
of chronic rheumatism, and lastly the earthy part of the living bones are
dissolved and absorbed by the increased actions of this system of vessels.
See Sect. XXXIII. 3. 1.

The earthy part of bones in this disease of the innutrition of them seems
to suffer a solution, and reabsorption; while the secerning vessels do not
supply a sufficient quantity of calcareous earth and phosphoric acid, which
constitute the substance of bones. As calcareous earth abounds every where,
is the want of phosphoric acid the remote cause? One cause of this malady
is given in the Philosophic Transactions, where the patient had been
accustomed to drink large quantities of vinegar. Two cases are described by
Mr. Gouch. In one case, which I saw, a considerable quantity of calcareous
earth, and afterwards of bone-ashes, and of decoction of madder, and also
of sublimate of mercury, were given without effect. All the bones became
soft, many of them broke, and the patient seemed to die from the want of
being able to distend her chest owing to the softness of the ribs.

M. M. Salt of urine, called sal microcosmicum, phosphorated soda. Calcined
hartshorn. Bone-ashes. Hard or petrifying water, as that of Matlock, or
such as is found in all limestone or marly countries. The calcareous earth
in these waters might possibly be carried to the bones, as madder is known
to colour them. Warm bath. Volatile or fixed alcali as a lotion on the
spine, or essential