much, if not more, astonished the lady than he had her huse hand, to whom he took care she should have no opportunity to send a letter.

It is much more easy to conceive than to describe a meeting so sudden, unexpected, and extraordinary: it is sufficient to say that it afforded the duke the highest entertainment, who at length, with much difficulty, got his guests quietly seated at his table, and persuaded them to fall to, without thinking either of yesterday or to-morrow. It happened, that soon after dinner was over, word was brought to the duke, that his lawyer attended about some business by his grace's order. The duke, willing to have a short truce with the various inquiries of the captain about his family, ordered the lawyer to be introduced, who pulling out a deed that the duke was to sign, was directed to read it, with an apology to the company for the interruption. The lawyer accordingly began to read, when, to complete the adventure and the confusion and astonishment of the poor captain and his wife, the deed appeared to be a settlement which the duke had made upon them of a genteel sufficiency for life. Having gravely heard the instruments read, without appearing to take any notice of the emotion of his guests, he signed and sealed it, and delivered it into the captain's hand, desiring him to accept it without compliments, for, said he, I assure you it is the last thing I would have done, if I had thought I could have employed my money or my time more to my satisfaction any other

way. 1756, April

XX. Toads found in Stones.

a

MR. URBAN,

Ramsay, March 10. YOUR correspondent, in your Magazine for last February, relates a story, which he calls a strange one, and that he will not take upon him to determine how much of it is true, viz. that in sawing a block of marble, or, as he supposes, of free-stone, a living toad was found in the cavity.

However, to put the possibility of the fact beyond all doubt, I will relate a story of the same sort, which happened about the year 1743, when I lived at Wisbech, in the Isle of Ely, and which I saw with my own eyes. Mr. Charlton, a stone-cutter, who lived at the bottom of my yard next the river, came up to my house, and desired me

to walk down to his shop, and he would shew 'me a great curiosity. The marble was just sawn asunder as I gott ere, and a living toad of a more than ordinary size was lodged in the middle of the block. The cavity was pretty near in the shape of the toad, but something larger than the animal it self. The cavity, to the best of my remembrance, was of a dusky yellow colour, but the toad himself was surrounded, exclusive of the cavity, with several inches of clear, solid marble, on both sides. He seemed healthful and well, and not at all the worse for his long confinement. This is the naked fact, which I am fully satisfied of from my own knowledge, and I appeal to Mr. Charlton, now living at Wisbech, for the truth of it.

The fact itself is undeniable, though I am not able to say what satisfactory account a philosopher can give for so strange an appearance. I have myself often reflected upon it, and endeavoured to solve the question, but confess my inability. Sometimes I have imagined there might be dite fereni species of these animals, though this that I saw had all the appearance and complexion of a common toad." I presume, if a toad was put into an exhausted receiver, and the air drawn from him, he would die like other animals, though I never knew the experiment tried. I should be glad if any of your learned correspondents can solve this difficulty, viz. How it was possible for this toad to have lived, as he must have done for several years, to all appearance, without either food or air.

Yours, &c.

T. WHISTON.

Another Instance of the same Kind.

On the 14th day of June last, at Great Yarmouth, I took a live toad out of a solid free-stone that was brought from Rutlandshire, of these dimensions:-The stone was in length four feet, in breadth three feet six inches, and in thickness one foot six inches. When I had sawn this stone in the middle, upon dividing the two parts of the stone I observed a hole about six inches from the edge of the stone, in which lay this toad. I took the toad out of the hole with my.compass; I did not observe that 1 any ways hurt it in taking it out of the hole. When it was on the ground it hopped about, and died in less than one hour. There was a yellow list on the back which changed its colour soon

after the toad died. The hole was about three inches long, and almost as deep. I strictly viewed the stone, and could not perceive any Haw or crack in it; the inside of the hole was smooth, and looked as if it had been polished. Witness my hand this five and twentieth day of July, 1716.

JOHN MALPAS.

I was present, and saw the toad alive. Witness my hand, 1756, May.

PETER HURFORD, Mason.

XXI. The Effect of Musk in curing the Gout in the Stomach, by Mr. James Priugle, late Surgeon to the third

Regiment of Foot Guards.

On the third of November, 1745, a gentlewoman, aged 43, was violently seized with the gout in the stomach, so that she could by no means lie down, but was forced to sit night and day in an easy chair in an erect posture. She did nothing all this while but keep herself warm, now and then drinking a little of some generous wine, (as she said, to keep it out of her stomach) and once or twice took a little of the Tinct. Sacra. On the 21st of November, about 9 o'clock at night, a lady of her acquaintance, who had seen her in this condition, desired me to visit her, though she doubted if I should find her alive. Accordingly I went, and as I had seen such extraordinary effects of the Tonquin medicine in the Singultus, and had heard from Mr. Reid of its efficacy in other nervous cases, I imagined it might be of some service here; and therefore I sent her the following bolus : Cinnab, nativ. Antimon. aa. gr. xv. Mosch. opt. gr. xvi. Syr.

buls. q. s. f. bolus.

But although this is Mr. Reid's common dose, yet as she was very weak I ordered her to take the one half of it immediately, drinking after it a cup of brandy, and the other half in six hours after. Next morning I found her much better, having from the first dose no more convulsions in her stomach. I then ventured to give her a bolus at nine o'clock in the morning, and repeated it every four hours till she should sleep or sweat. Notwithstanding the coldness of the weather, and her being obliged to sit in a chair, yet by the time she had taken four boluses, a plentiful sweat and sleep ensued, and then she was able to lie in a horizontal posture on her couch, without the return of her former symptoms. This sweat continued from the afternoon of the 22d, till the 24th at night, with very little intermission. I gave over the boluses and ordered her a julep, to 8 ounces of which I put 12 grains of musk, to be taken ad libitum. In this method she continued to the 27th, quite easy and free from all her former symptoms; but as on this day she fancied the gout in her stomach was returning, I gave her another bolus. She complained at this time of the intolerable heat of the brandy, which was the first thing she found warm in her stomach during this illness. On the 29th she was apprehensive of another attack, and took another bolus, after which she found herself very well, and walked about the room, the swelling of her feet being quite gone; and on the 4th of December went out in a chair to thank the lady who sent me to her, and continues to be well to this day.

1756, May.

XXII. Boerhaave's Recipe for the Gout.

MR. URBAN, IT has lately been asserted in some of the public papers, that Dr. Boerhaave, having in 1722, obtained some remission from the severity of the gout, with which he had been tormented without intermission for more than five months, determined to try whether the juices of fumitory, endive, and succory, taken thrice a day in large quantities, (namely, about half a pint each dose,) might not contribute to his relief; and " that by a perseverance in this method, he was wonderfully recovered.”

This is partly the truth, though not the whole truth; for ! conversed with him daily at that very time. He took indeed the juices above-mentioned for a fortnight, or thereabouts, as near as I can remember; yet - it wus not by the perseverance in this method alone he was so wonderfully recovered ;" for when he found that his stomach would bear the juices of these three herbs, and he seemed to receive some benefit from them, he told me he would add to them, and accordingly directed the juices of two more herbs, namely, water-cresses

and male speedwell ; and that he would likewise take every day balf an ounce of four gums, well beat up together in equal quantities, namely, gum sagapenum, gum opoponax, gum ammoniacum, and gum galbanum.- He swallowed a drachm of these made into 12 pills four times in a day, drinking after them half a pint of the expressed juices of the five above-mentioned herbs; and this he continued to do for three months or more, after which I never heard that he had any return of the gout, though he lived 16 years longer. The Doctor was a very large man, and his case peculiarly bad; therefore I suppose he judged it necessary to take these medicines in larger quantities, and to continue them longer than he would have directed to the generality of his patients.

Į thought it my duty to acquaint the public of this important fact, as I happened to have the copy of Boerhaave's original prescription by me; and the more so, as what I have here mentioned may probably be of use to some of iny fellow-creatures, after I am dead and gone, and when all other medicines have been found ineffectual.

I ain, Sir,

Yours, &c. 1758, Suppl.

SENEX.

XXIII. History of Frauds and Cheating, by Mr. Justice Fielding,

A PICK-POCKET, though a felon, seems to be in the lowest class of gamblers; but his success rather arises from the dexterity of his hands, than the contrivance of his head; and like rats and other such vermin, appears rather to take the advantage of your negligence and inattention, than to contend with your understanding. The first and lowest class of gamblers, then, who would cheat you with your eyes open, are those who invite you to prick in the belt or garter, for a wager; and the certainty of winning at this sort of diversion appears so clear to the novice, that he never fails to bite if he be a proper object. And here I must premise that these gamblers are such exquisite judges of their prey, that they seldom tail of success.

The next class are those who find a paper full of gold rings, which they take care to pick up in the sight of a proper object, whose opinion they ask. The gambler of this class appears very mean; which gives him an opportunity of