Observations of what did Praeternaturally Occur in the Opening of the Body of Mr. Smith of Highgate, July 8th. 1687. Communicated by That Learned Physitian Dr. Edward Tyson Reg. Soc. Soc.

Observations of what did praeternaturally occur in the opening of the Body of Mr. Smith of Highgate, July 8th. 1687. Communicated by that learned Physician Dr. Edward Tyson Reg. Soc. Soc. In the first place dividing the Abdomen, immediately upon Incision made into the Peritoneum, we discovered the Bladder very Schirrous and thick, viz. 4 of an Inch; of a Praeternatural Figure, and distended to the bigness of a Child's Head: And at the entrance of the Ureters on each side were two Protuberancies, of the bigness of a Hen's Egg each; the Ureters were of the largeness of the small Gutts in Children, so that they could easily admit two fingers into their Cavity. They were both replete with Urine or a serous matter; which upon pressure did easily regurgitate into the Kidneys, but would not pass at all into the Bladder. The Kidneys were of their Natural bigness and Figure, but so emaciated that they were rather large Bags than of a fleshy Substance; the Cavity of the Pelvis being so large as to contain above 3 ounces of Water: But to return to the Bladder; therein upon Apertion we discovered a very strange sort of Cyftes or Bags, of the exact Figure of Eggs of several dimensions, some larger than Goose Eggs, others as big as Hen Eggs to the number of twelve in all; and about eight of them whole and replete with a Limpid Serum: The Coats of these Bladders were some of them considerably thick, others very thin and tender; all of them loose and free without the least adhesion, either to one another or to the Coat of the Bladder. There was little or no Urine in the Bladder but what what was contained in these Bags. Nor could we Imagine that this miserable Patient could possibly make any Water, but what happened upon the breach of some of these Watery Tumours, when the Bladder was crowded beyond its dimensions: for that the passage by the Ureters into the Bladder was impervious: And though the Ureters were full of Serum, yet could none be forced into the Cavity of the Bladder. This Liquor contained in these Bags, we did conjecture to be of the Nutritious juice of the Body; and upon tryal of boiling a small quantity of it, we found it thicken and come to the consistence of a stiff and glutinous Gelly. These Vesiculae were undoubtedly formed from the tenacity of the matter between the Membranes of the Bladder, in its oblique passage through them; for that being so glutinous, it was here detained till its Superficies were condensed into a firm Coat, and so by the coming of more matter was forced into the Cavity of the Bladder. This I suppose from our finding two of these Ova in a distinct Sinus from the rest, between the Coats of the Bladder, at the entrance of each Ureter. The Liver we found very large and hard, of the Colour and Substance of a boiled one. It adhered to the Peritoneum on the external part, and by its vast bigness had so straitned the Thorax, that there was very little room for the Lungs. The Lungs we found of a livid Colour, adhering close to the Pleura on the right side; upon Incision we found them wholly replete with a Purulent matter, and a Stone of the bigness of a Cherry-Stone in one Lobe. Dividing the Pericardium we found a Fungous Substance covering the heart all over; and Fibres from it that ran to the Pericardium in a great number; so that they were by these Fibres every where united. The Heart was very large, the right Auricle and Ventri-cle were one large undivided Cavity, and therein a large Po-lypus; lypus; which run up the descending Branch of the Vena Cava to the very Jugular, another part was distributed to the Pulmonary Artery. In the left Ventricle was another Polypus not so large as the former: It had two Branches, one in the Pulmonary Vein, another in the Arteria Magna, or Aorta. One of the Vesiculae being opened had a large cluster of small Ova as big as Grapes, all replete with Liquor: All the rest contained nothing but Serum. A Relation of an extraordinary effect of the power of Imagination: Communicated by Mr. Edward Smith, Secretary to the Philosophical Society at Dublin, as it was brought before that Company, by Mr. St. George Ash. R. Soc. S. who had seen the thing. ONE Elizabeth Dooly of the County of Kilkenny was aged 13 Years in January last: Her Mother being with Child of her was frighted by a Cow as she milked it, thrown down and hit on her Temple, within an eighth of an Inch of her Eye, by the Cow's Teat. This Child has exactly in that place, a piece of Flesh resembling a Cow's Teat, about 3 Inches and half in length: 'Tis very red, has a Bone in the midst about half the length of it; 'tis perforated and she Weeps through it; when she Laughs it wrinckles up and contracts to two thirds of its length, and it grows in proportion to the rest of her Body. She is as sensible there as in any other part. This is lookt upon to be as strange an instance of the strength of Imagination as can be produced. De