[Page 1]

I received your very agreeable favour of the 26 July last
which I have most carefully perused - In a good measure
already it has been of much service to me, but I am daily gain¬
ing more & more as experience is every day confirming the
truths it inculcates - It remains for me to apply them as my
present & future situation may require - And now to give
you as Concise a detail as I can of what has occurred since
I last wrote & of my now situation.

I observe your observation that tho you had many
remarks to make on the treatment I had from your Fra¬
ternity here, yet as they woud not be of any service to me
you declined giving them - This was very Just delicate & prece¬
dent, nor did I expect any other Opinion from you except
what directly tended to my benefite - Never the less I can
now with the Assistance of your letter & my own ex¬
perience Confidently assert I have been most shockingly
treated - Chiefly by not having my habit properly attended
to which at the time of the 2d injection much from the
degree of Rheumetism Either had must have been greatly

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inflamatory - Therefore instead of these a---d Saline clysters
I was eternally ply'd with which tore my poor rectum
& at last brought on the blind piles internally which produced
the Suppression - Abscess &ca - I aught when I was found
not be wrought on with the plaguy Electuary - either
had Clysters ↑given me↑ of a more emollient nature, or ↑been↑ tryed with
such purgatives as you mention - the simplest of which
viz. the Sulphur, has a most happy influence on me
- Then when suppression came on - of which I gave suffici¬
ent notice - I was plyed one of the days I was under it
with nitre a good many dozes - & had 4 glasses of wine
given me -- -- Its unnecessary to go farther on this matter
& I dare say you'll think I might have spared you the
trouble of so much of it. But I hope you'll excuse
me when I say it gives me relief for you ↑to↑ know my
sentiments --

I come now to where I left off in my last letter to
you - as near as I can - I did not keep a copy of what I
wrote you but I think I must have mentioned that the Clap

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which had quite sunk away while in my low state & during
the suppression & Abscess - As soon as I got out of bed &
began to pick up a little flesh - it again revived with
the chordee - (Its of this I intend chiefly to write you -
Dr Hall on its appearance made light of it & ordered
me to injecting again - and for the remains of the Rheu¬
metism, & the remains of any Complaint about the Anus
derected me to go 200 miles to a sulphureous warm
spring we have here - "during my Stay at the Springs the"
"infection woud effectually cure the remaining - & poultices"
"applied at same time woud remove the Chordee" - This
turned out a most fatal advice - but you will recollect
his Thesis was of Baths -- To make as short of a long
disagreeable story as I can - I returned after 3 months ab¬
sence, relapsed in the Rheumatism, (the Climate there
being cold & wet, in which I was often caught, besides
the too great exposure of one in my then weak state
while at Bath - ) The Clap also & Chordee worse
than when I set off after using all the injection I

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carried with me - Well I must again resume the injection
& down with the system to get quit of the Chordee, tho
God knows I believe you woud have thought me suffic¬
ently low - your letter came to hand by this, & as it was
so delicately managed I found I coud show it with
propriety - It was read - it was returned to me again - &
no remark made - but with a sameness of pipe & tone
" 'tis well, very well - did you take a full purge today - aye do "
" take a full purge the chordee is a troublesome symptom
" I wish you a good afternoon Sir" Well, I went on in this
manner (but purged with manna) for 20 days - & I may
thank God you directed the manner of purge proper or
I suppose I might have had the same Gantlet tosses ¹ : over
again - You mentioned I possibly might have a Gleet &
Stricture remaining - & directed how to proceed in either
of these Cases. No notice was taken of this tho, and I
was treated in the same manner as if it had be ↑en↑ recent
& virulent - indeed from the colour seeming bad - my not
having been above half cured when it sunk away by my

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weakness, & the Chordee still continuing I readily enough gave
into the belief that I was not at all in the situation
you supposed I might be in, & so kept as Ive said purg¬
ing & injecting for 20 days more - during this time I used
to endeavour to extract from Hall his Opinion of mercury
in my case for as you may remember he had (along with
a certain Dr. Black here) just begun a course of pills
but a few days before the suppression came on last spring
his Opinion was never deciseve or satisfactory "indeed he"
"did not know - I have not much confidence in it, & it"
"wont do any harm, - you may try it - but I woud"
"rather defer it - its so dangerous as to catching cold"
"in your present situation" - However Black happening
to call on me as an acquaintance not having at this
time employed any more of them as I naturally imagined
Hall the most proper to finish the cure of the Clap
which he had begun" ↑&↑ As to Rheumatism I know more
of it than any of them - He (Black) happening to ex¬

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press himself positively that nothing but mercury woud
conquer it - it was very naturall for me to try it - es¬
pecially as I conceived my self to be in ↑a↑ different situation
from that you supposed, and as Hall would not be sa¬
tisfactory for or against it, & I found his purging & in¬
jecting & poulticing woud not do -- Accordingly I took
me some five or six twenty pills of a grain each, made up
with Opium & Camphor which were to do for the Chordee
this took up near a month, as I was obliged to disuse
them now & then - for before I had taken a dozen I was set a
spitting at the rate of a quart a day & even a good
deal in the night - this was kept up for 16 days -
While on the height of the spitting, the matter seemed
to look better, & be of a better consistence ↑& the Chordee nearly gone↑, but on
leaving off the mercury & my mouth getting restored
again, the running & Chordee return'd with the same
if not increased violence - Upon this I grew quite
melancholy, I neither coud ↑get↑ rid of the disorder nor

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at all satisfied that any of them understood it - for Hall
woud now & then see me even when I had put myself
under Blacks course, ↑&↑ did not seem to condemn it
He saw me after I had done with it, when surely my
system was sufficiently low & yet the chordee at¬
tended me - & therefore ↑he↑ could not again desire me to
resume the former method - It was at this time I
catch'd at the idea of going home to see you as
the last Twigg -- & had absolutely made some
preparation for it - & wrote Mr. Jameson of my
intention - However from the time I had resolved
on this I coud perceive the difficulty of making
water encrease so as prodigiously to alarm me
As I imputed this to the Mercury I had taken ↑inwardly↑ & had
even injected, mix'd with oil, I thought Black coud
not relieve me of it - Hall he called on me while
I was in the horrors expecting every other day to
have a totall suppression - he had not

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seen me for 10 days before, & on my representing my fears &
situation to him - (now my situation at this time was truly de¬
plorable - having come across Le Dran on surgery who paints
the consequences of a deseased bladder & difficulty of making
water in terrible colours - I was clear my complaints were
such & arose from such causes he there described in his Chapter
on Fistulæ in Perineæ) - Hall however rather aggravated my
fears - After I described what I felt & & what I thought - "I am"
"apprehensive Sir, there is a Caruncle - I think it would be"
"adviseable to send for Bougies - I wish ye a good after¬"
"noon Sir" After such treatment as I had had, & such a
cold undecisive manner in the situation I was now in I
did not think of resting there, but sent for Dr. Bland who
lives within some few miles - He was gone to [Worts?] ² - I
then sent to Dr. Currie A Young lad who lived with
Dr. Hardie in Glasgow - & who from his readiness & appli¬
cation has made a figure in his way here - He came
- He consulted with Dr. Hall - & to be sure they were
polite enough to agree cordially both as to what re¬
mained to be done & what had been done -

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Currie however condemned positively the use of the Mer¬
cury & imputed my present situation to what I had tak¬
en of it - He & Hall prescribed - a regimen - an injection
- fomenting with lead water - & if in a few days
no Appearance to the better - to use the Bougies
- As to the regimen it varyed from what I had been
strictly observing before, only in allowing some White
meats & for Drink Claret & Port wine diluted - the
injection I suppose might have been the same with
Halls only that ↑it↑ was differently made up having Oil
& yolk of Egg in the Composition - But Currie hurry'd
every thing down he proposed & Halls genius seemed
to shrink before him - However Dr. Bland re¬
turning home came & saw me the very day I was
beginning on their plan - He heard my Story ab
initio ³ (for he had never been called in before) - He saw
the prescriptions - He condemned the variation they
had recommended on my manner of living - chiefly
the Claret & port for drink - my System wanted mend¬

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ing but it woud mend fast enough on milk & what
else I had been living on - but any stimulating food
or such drink was improper - directed me not to
meddle with the Bougies & substituted in room
of Curries Oil & Eggs &c (which even the oil woud
only serve to irritate) a dram of Sal Saturni
& 2 of Gum Arabic dissolved in water, which I was
to use two or three times a day - & now ↑&↑ then might
throw up milk & water -- Spoke positively &
satisfactorily on the symptom I had & their cause
as being chiefly owing to the tenderness of the whole
Urethra, owing to the [irration?] being kept up for
such a length of time, for want of proper manage¬
ment & attention to that object - that what supp¬
ng there was, was not virulent - but affect - not
withstanding the Appearances to the Country from the
colon being ↑of a↑ yellowish green sometimes - & the continue¬
ance of Chordee - apprehended no Stricture - nor

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that the bladder was any how Affected, except from
sympathy, notwithstanding the difficulty in making
urine, & of my Observing even at the last of making
water, small flakes or portions of whitish water
pass along with it - I also was ord (↑directed↑) for the pain
I felt at the root of perineo, (as well on making
water a burning heat - & stiffish pain or gripping
with the Anus at the last drops - As that it
remained even sore on being pressed with the
finger at all times -) For this I was to bath with
lead water & use a paultice made of same
for some few nights -- In short I got some
idea of my disorder & the cause of it, which
I never coud get before with my utmost pains
& I have the satisfaction even now after having
followed his derection & attended to the effects
to find it turn out right - The pain in perineo
& Ano are gone - the Chordee is less - My Apprehen¬

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sions & doubts & horrors of an approaching suppression
are removed which has had such a happy effect on
my body that tho I have eat nothing but bread &
milk, & Tea - Apples &ca I have within this last
40 days, almost got to my usual Strength & ap¬
pearance - The running still continues else but is
something diminished, is more glutinous - & not quite
so yellow - Lastly I make water much better - with
less difficultie - & with little or no heat - especially
if I take my usual quantity of Barley water with
the Gum Arabic - About a quart of this a day -
Currie had added to this Attending drink - magnesia
white vitriol &ca but Bland preferring the
more simple one of Gum Arabic alone, I have always
stuck to it - He prescribed ↑also↑ Flowers of sulphur
occasionally - which I had before chosen out of your
list - & found it have a very happy effect -

Dr. Bland saw me yesterday & from the whole
recommends a perseverance in the manner I am

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going on - that I need nothing more from him or any one
as a Physician - If this shoud be the case I must
think Dr Bland has much merit with me for his
Candour & Skill - it had been happy if I had ap¬
plied to him first - happy had I spoke to him be¬
fore I went to the Springs - & still much ↑so↑ if on my
return from them I had laid my case before him - I
am certain of this, because before he knew any¬
thing of your Opinion from what I had wrote you
His doctrine corresponded with yours to a
title -- But some Cursed fatality seems
to have attended me - For from what to other
people are very simple causes have to me
arisen the most vexatious painfull tedious
disorders, & it has always been my fate to
be improperly managed in them -- I remember
Bauldy Carcior from Hamilton a colleague & friend
of mine mention'd to me in Confidence about

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3 year ago that you had but a superficial Opinion
of Bland - perhaps when at home he may have been
but superficial - but it really seems to all who
know him now, that he is at least equall if not
Superior to any of his Profession in the Colony -
However the impression this had on me & prejudice
in favoure of any one Coming fresh from 4 years
Study under you determined me fatally to de¬
pend on Hall - Who on Account of his Genius &
Theoricall abilities is a melancholy proof to
me that experience is as much necessary as
study & reading -- I hope youll pardon me putting
you to the trouble of reading so much foreign
stuff -- but on Account of my situation & the occur¬
rencies that have happened to me, are so intertwined
in my mind with what else Ive wrote ↑{illeg}↑ I coud not
well seperate them -- Besides from the experience
I have had of Your Candour & humanity (all

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the world Confess your Abilities) I find my self relieved
in writing you all I know & think without cere¬
mony or reserve -- And now there seems to remain
that I lay before you briefly, the situation I am
in at present - which my freind Mr. Spence who
will deliver you this can supply where any
doubt about me may remain with you - And
begg you'll be kind enough to give me your
Opinion of my disorder if you think it can be done
from what Ive wrote - & the advice how I shall manage
myself futurely in any thing in this respect other
than what I have already had of you should occur
I have at present a prospect of doing conquering
all my Complaints - & a freedom from pain
seems now to be ↑my↑ utmost or greatest wish -

My Rheumetism is now entirely conquered - owing
I believe to the care in avoiding cold - Flannell Shirt
- Milk regimen - which ↑with↑ the Sulphur I take occasionally

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now agrees with me if possible better than when under that re¬
gimen at home - & possibly the Mercury I took which hurt
me so much otherways, helped to discuss it - or put it
in a disposition for the better - A little heat As I've
said yet remains in making water, when not diluted
a little running & a little Chordee - but both
these seem in a progress to the better - the Colour
of running Mr Spence if necessary will describe
- it seems now & then yet of a yellow hue - but
is less in quantity & more glutinous -- I yet pass always
with my urine these ↑small↑ Flakes of white glutinous
matter, & I see them go along plainly towards the
last of making it -- In about 7 or 8 days after
disusing every thing by Blands direction -- except ↑injecting the lead water now & then & milk & water occasionally↑
- fomenting with lead water the perineum and ap¬
plying a poultice or two, - the pains there & other
symp gave way & I made water for two or three
days as well & in as large a Stream as I almost

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ever did - but from that again the difficulty again gr[a]¬
dually returned - & again grew better - but not quite
so well as before - By attending narrowly and Anxi¬
ously to these Changes - I found first that I had no
reason to apprehend a Caruncle in the urethra
as the Stream had now flowed as large as usual
in health - in the next place I imputed the cause
of the return of the difficulty & smallness of
Stream - to the very extreme tenderness & irri¬
tability of the whole parts - as this had suc¬
ceeded twice, to some business I had been
doing in my Sleep which seemed to exert the
parts as much as If ↑I↑ had had reall inter¬
course - & still farther satisfied me as to
Blands Opinion - All now that remains of
my fears is on this Account I do not make water yet
to my mind - & I observe I seldom can retain it

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{illeg} two hours even tho these be but little to make
& The Chordee yet attends me -- In every other respect
I am well my body cool & free from feverishness
& I find no difficultie in my milk regimen &
drinking occasionally the barley water & Gum Ar¬
abic -- I woud fain hope that by the Spring
I may be releived of all by going on with this
& now & then using the injection - At all events
I may hope not ↑to↑ be any worse by observing
these, till I can hear from you - I have just
one Observation more to mention - that when
free from any urinary Complaint the water seems
to be one large Stream - at other times its apt
to get into two small ones issuing from each
end of the mouth of ↑the↑ urethra, & when the difficulty
is great, only one of these Streams issue, & some
times it has come drop by drop, this it did the

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very morning of that Even day on the Evening
of which the difficultie first gave way to a
most pleasing change, which for the first time
set me at rest & satisfied me there coud not
be ↑a↑ Caruncle where the Stream flowed So
well -- Ive now done Sir & begg
your pardon for so tedious a detail ↑to↑ you
whose time I know well to be of much
importance every hour of it --

Mr Spence will likeways accompany
this with a small acknowledgement & if I can
be of any use to you here in any manner of
way it woud give me great pleasure to
have your Commands -- and I always am
with much esteem & respect

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[Page 21]

Doctor Cullen
Physician
Edinburg

✍

Mr. Lochead