MEN                 ~~~~~(1531)                  MEN
farther atpart, and the loweil of them, as well as the lower in a fhort time)
anA confequently, that it mutt have been
aminenis of the Os Pubis farther outwards than in the  ready gather'd in
fomre Receptacle, where, while it was
latt er  Hence in Women, the Latitude or Expanfion a- lodg'd, its Aaion was
refirained. But he goes farther flill,
bout thefe Bones, and the Capacity of the Pelvs, is vaftly  and pret ends
to afcertain the Place, Lec. both of the one
great in proportion to thofe of Men ; and yet in a Woman  and the other,
making the Gall-Bladder to be the Re-
not pregnant, there is not much to fill this Expanife. ceptacle, and the
Bile the Ferment.  This Liquor he
Again, the fore-fide of the Thorax is fmroother in Women  thinks well adapted
to raife a Fermentation in the Blood,
than in Men, and the Blood-Veffels, Lymp~hatics, adipofe  when difcharged
into it in a Quantity : And as it is con-
-and anerv'ous Veffels, Membranes andF Fires, are much  tain'd in a Receptacle
that does not admit of a continual
laxer in Women than in Men: whence all their Cavities, Ifluie, may  be there
referved, till in a certain Period
Cells) Vefftls, Wc. are more eafily repleted, and the  of Time, the Bladder
becoming turgid and full through
Ilumours  aggregated in them;5 befides that,. they are the Compreflion of
the incumnbent T/ifcera, it emits the
found to perfpire lefs than Men, and to arrive much  Gall : which, by the
way of the La~leals, infinusting
fooner at their Maturity, or eltqinv of Increafe. To which  itfelf into the
Blood, may raife that Effervefcenice which
he adds the Confideration of the foft pulpous Texture of occafions the Aperture
of the Uterine Arteries.
the Uterus, and the vaft number of Vein s and Arteries it  To confirm this,
he alledges, that Perfonis of a bilious
is fill'd withall.                                  Conflitution, have the
Menfies either more plentifully, or
Hence, a healthy Maid, being arrived at her Growth, more frequently than
others; and that Diftemnpers mani-
begins to prepare more Nutriment than is required for the  feftly bilious,
are attended with Symptoms refembling
fupport of the Body;5 which, as there is not to be any  thofe of WVomen labouring
under difficult Menfiruation.
farther accretion, muff of neceflity fill the Ve11els, and  If it be objeaed,
that on this foot, Men Thouldbhave Menfes,
efpecallythofe of the Uteru, and Breafls, as being the  as well as Women;5
he anfwers, that Men don't abound in
lteailcomllnpreffed. Thefe 'Will be dilated more than the  Bile fo much as
Women ; the Pores of the former be-
others; whence the lateral Fafeules evacuating their flu- ing more open,
and carryng off more of the ferous part
mnour into the Cavity of the 'Uterus, it will be fill'd, and  of the Blood,
which is the Vehicle of all the other flu-
extended : Hence, a. Pain, Heat, Heavinefs, will be felt mours;5 and7 confequently,
a greater part of each is dif-
,about the Loins, Pubes, F-ec. the Veffels of the Uterus at chre  ho hmta
 nWmen;5 wherein the Super-
the fame time will be fo dilated, as to emit Blood intofut  ulete   otneto
  circulate with the Blood, or
the Cavity of the Uterus, its Mouth will be lubricated and  begtee  npoe
 eetacles, which is the Cafe in
loofened, and Blood iffue out. As the Qu~antityv of Blood  thbie  h  aeRao
     e gives why Menjtruation
is diminifhed, the Veffels will be l1efs prefs'd, and will lhould not be
in Brutes ; thePoe of thefe being mani-
contra& themfelves clofer, fo as again to retain the Blood, feftly more
open than thofe of Women, as appears from
and let pafs the grolfer part of the Serum 3 till at length, only the Cray
of Hair which they bear; for the Vegetation
the ufual Serum paiffs. Again, there are more Humours whereot, a large Cavity,
and a wider Aperture of the
,prepar'd, which are mote eafily lodged in Veffels once  Glands is neceffary,
than where no fuch thing is produced.
dilated ; hence the Menfes go, and return at various Pe- Yet there is famne
difference between the Males and Fe-
riods in various Perfons.                           rnales even among thefe,
the latter having their Aknfes,
This Hypothefis, however plaufible, is oppofed by  tho' not fo often, nor
in the fame Form and Quantity, as
Dr. Drake, who maintains that there is no fuch Repletion, Women.
or at leaft that it is not neceifary to Menjiruation. Ar;-  He adds, that
the feveral Phenomena of the Menfes,
guing, That if the Menfes were owing to a Plethora fo  whether in a natural,
a regular, or difeafed Cafe, flow
accumnulat~ed, the Symptoms would arife gradually, and  naturally and readily
from  this Hypothefis;5 and that
the Heavinefis, Stiffnefs, and Inaaivityi neceffary Symp- whatever may be
accounted for from a Plethora, or from
toms of a Plethora, would be felt long before the Period  any particular
Ferment, may, without any firaining, be
were compleated, and Women would begin to be heavy, apply'd to this.
-and indifpofed fooin after Evacuation, and the Symptoms  The Root of black
H-ellebore and Steel, are the principal
increafe daily   Which is contrary to all Experience;5 Remedies for Obflruecions
of the Menfes ; the former, is
mnany Women, who have them regularly and eafily, ha- almoft infallible, and
in many Cafes where the latter is
vTing no warning, nor other Rule to prevent an indecent not only inefFedual,
but improper 5 as in Plethoric Habits,
Surprize, than the meafure of the Time ; in which, for with fuchi, Steel
will fomretimes raife Hyfteric Comnmo-
forne that have flip'd, have been put to Confufion and  tions, Convulfions,
and a kind of Uterine Furor ; whereas
Shifts, no ways coHfetwt .h     oieaPe1oi      oyfellebore thins the Blood,
and difpofes it for a Difcharge
would give . He adds, that even in thofe who are diffi- without making itmr
 iptous. So that tho' each
cultly purged this way, the Symptoms, tho' very vexati- provoke the Mn es
yethe   do it by different ways;
ous and tedious, do not makefuch regular Approaches, as Steel by increafIng
th Blood's Velocity, and giving~ it a
a gradual Accumulation neceffarily requires. If we con- greater Moment againiff
the Uterine Arteries;5 and Helle-
fider what violent Symptoms come on in an flour, we bore by dividing it,
and rendering it more fluid. See
flhall be extremely puzzled to find the mighty Acceffion  HELLEBORE and CH-ALYBE
AT.
of Matter which 1hould in an Hour or a Day's time make  MENSIS          
           MON TH.
fuch great Alterations. Accordin  to the Hlypothefis,  MENSIS CHYM    LC
  ~      e   ESRJM
the leall contributes no more than' te flrfl, and of Confe-  MENSTS VETITUS~
    (FENCE Month.
quence, the Alteration mhould not be greater in the one  MENSTRUAL, orMENSTRUOus,a
Term in Medicine,
than the other;5 fetting afide the bate Eruption.   applied to the Blood
which flows from WVomen in their
This is the fubilance of what is argued ag!ainft Dr. ordinary monthly Purgations.
SeeME-NsEs.
Friend's Theory;5 which, it mufl be own'd, notwithfiand-  The Menfirual Blood
is the excefs, or redundance of the
ing thefe Ohjacdions, is flill the moft rational and con-  Blood in the Body.
It may be defined an Excrement ferving
fiitent that has yet been advanced,                 for the Generation, as
well as Nutriture of the Flrtus in the
Thofe who oppofe it, give into the Do~lrine of Fermen- Womb, and which at
other times is evacuated Monthly.
taticoi, and maintain the Evacuation of Blood, on thofe  Of all  Animals,
there is none befides Women,
parts, to be the Effe~l of an Effervefcence, or EhullitioIn and perhaps Apes,
which have their Menftrual Purga-
of the Blood. This Opinion has been maintained by    tions. Hippocrates fays,
that the Menfirual Blood gnaws
many, particularly Dr. Charleton, Wae, De Grkiaf, and  and tears the Earth
like Vinegar. Plinly and LcolumeIla
Drake. The two firff of which f~p~fe a Ferment pecu- add, that it burns Herbs,
kills Plants, tarnilhes Looking-
liar to the W~omen which produc4s this Flux, and affeas Glaffes, and that
Dogs which tafle it, run mad. But this
that part only, or at leafl princi#1ly. Dr. Graaf; lefs par- is all fabulous;5
it being certain that this Blood is the fame
ticular in his Notion, only fup-pofes an Effervefcence of the  with that
in the Veins and Arteries. By the ~jew#~ Law,
Blood raifed by fomne fermnent, without afligning how it a Woman was unclean
while the Menfirual Blood flow'd:
ads, or what it is. The fudden Turgefcence of the Blood, and the Man who
touched her, or the Moveables Ihe had
occafion'd them all to think, that it arofe from fornething  touched, were
declared unclean. Levit. Chap. XV.
till then extraneous to the Blood, and led them to the  MENSTRUJUM, or DiSSOLVENT,
in Chymiftry, any
Parts principally affeted, to feek for an imaginary Fer- Liquor that will
diflfolve, i. e. feparate the Parts of hard
ment, which no Anatomicai Enq~uiry could ever mhew, or Bodies. See DiSSOLvENT
and DiSSOLUTION.
find any Receptacle for, nor any Reafoning neceffarily in-  Thus.Aqua Regalis
is a Meinflruum for Gold ;, Aqua Fortis,
fer. Again, that Heat which frequently accompanies this and Spirit of Nitre,
for mail other Metals;5 Common Wa-
Turgefcence, led them  to thirk the Cafe more than a  ter for Salts, &ec.
See GOLD, SILVER, SALT, EeC.
Plethora, and that there was forne extraordinary inteffine  In Pharmacy,
it is chiefly defined a Body that will ex-
Moti;n at that time.                                tra& the Virtues
of Ingredients by Infurion, Decuaiion
Dr. Drake improves on the Doarine of a Ferment; and  or the like. See INFusioN,
DEcocTioN, Fc,
contends not only that it is neceilfary there Thould be a  The Term Menflruum
takes its rife from this, that famne
Ferment, but a Receptacle ;alfo for this Ferment : Con- Chymifls pretend
the compleat Diftolution of a mix'd
cluding from the Suddennefs and Violence of the Symp- Body can't be effedted
in lefs than 40 Days, which Period
toms, that a great quantity mull be convey'd into the blood  they call a
Philofophical Month.
MWen -