stracted from a letter of my friend Mr. Power, surgeon,
at Bosworth in Leicestershire, on examining the body of an elderly lady who
died of this disease, March 29, 1793. "On opening the abdomen I found a
large cyst attached to the left ovarium by an elastic neck as thick as the
little finger, and so callous as not to admit of being separated by
scissars without considerable difficulty. The substance of the cyst had an
appearance much resembling the gravid uterus near the full period of
gestation, and was as thick. It had no attachment to the peritonaeum, or
any of the viscera, except by the hard callous neck I have mentioned; so
that the blood must with difficulty have been circulated through it for
some time. Its texture was extremely tender, being easily perforated with
the finger, was of a livid red colour, and evidently in a sphacelated
state. It contained about two gallons of a fluid of the colour of port
wine, without any greater tenacity. It has fallen to my lot to have opened
two other patients, whose deaths were occasioned by incysted dropsy of the
ovarium. In one of these the ovarium was much enlarged with eight or ten
cysts on its surface, but there was no adhesion formed by any of the cysts
to any other part; nor had the ovarium formed any adhesion with the
peritonaeum, though in a very diseased state. In the other the disease was
more simple, being only one cyst, without any attachment but to the
ovarium.

"As the ovarium is a part not necessary to life, and dropsies of this
kind are so generally fatal in the end, I think I shall be induced,
notwithstanding the hazard attending wounds, which penetrate the cavity
of the abdomen, to propose the extirpation of the diseased part in the
first case, which occurs to me, in which I can with precision say, that
the ovarium is the seat of the disease, and the patient in other
respects tolerably healthy; as the cavity of the abdomen is often
opened in other cases without bad consequences."

An argument, which might further countenance the operation thus proposed by
Mr. Power, might be taken from the disease frequently affecting young
persons; from its being generally in these subjects local and primary; and
not like the ascites, produced or accompanied with other diseased viscera;
and lastly, as it is performed in adult quadrupeds, as old sows, with
safety, though by awkward operators.

16. _Anasarca pulmonum._ The dropsy of the cellul