Drowning

VITA bumana certis finibus continetur. Quae primum venientibus annis paulatim augetur, fequentibus paulatim imminuitur, et tandem omnino extinguitur. Cumque adpetitus noftri voluptati, quam pariunt haec, viribus refpondeant; inde fit, ut, procedente senectute, vita minus fit optabilis, raroque mors matura fortunam defiderandam tollat. Quae res longe aliter in iis fefe babet, quos funera immatura abftulerunt. Iis finis tam invitus eft, quam aliis lugendus; foletque genus humanum eorum obitum deplorare, qui fuperftites, de fuis, de patria, et toto noftro genere, bene merere potuiffent. Quod, fi rite reputetur, quantae curae, fubi- taneam a qualibet caufa mortem probibere, debeat effe, oftendit. Nihilominus de hac re, quod mirum videri poteft, vix quidquam, apud antiquos memoria dignum, five ad contemplationem, five ad ufum fpectans, reperitur. Ejus indagationis laus ad recentiores refervata eft, apud quos, qui fummis rebus praeerant, humanitatem languentem ad rem aggrediendam praemiis excitarunt. Nil ad mortem repentinam ex fubmerfione et caufis caeteris prohibendam, ante millefimum feptingentefimum fexagefimum feptimum Chrifti annum factum eft; quo tempore Batavi focietatem ad fubmerfos aqua fervandos primi inftituerunt. Quorum deinde exemplum plaeraeque praecipuarum Europae civitatum fecutae funt. Ex harum focietatum monumentis, plurimisque, quae inftituta funt, experimentis, multae res verae, multae obfervationes, his paucis annis provenerunt. Quin et tantus eorum, qui hanc rem tractavere numerus eft, tam magna nomina, ut facile quifquam, prima facie, eam prorfus abfolutam perfectamque judicaret. Quod tamen longe aliter effe, ii ipfi, qui in hoc ftudio maxime verfati funt, ante omnes perfuafum habent. Cum argumentum cum tot tamque pulchris corporis animati contemplationibus permifceatur, fieri non poteft, quin indagatio ejus novas in animo notiones fufcitet, jucunditatiſque et admirationis fons perennis evadat. Quo clariora et illuftria magis fint, quae de hac re differenda putavimus, finximus quendam pauca temporis minuta aqua demerfum, fublatas inde pro tempore actiones, adductumque morbum propofuimus; cujus fymptomata ita defcripfimus, ut, de iis ratiocinando, principiis quibufdam, quae pro curationis infervirent fundamento, uteremur. Per totum hoc opufculum, ubique res verae cum ratiocinatione intermifcentur. Quarum fi illae folidae certaeque compertae funt, inde tractae opiniones non temerariae, non a philofophia alienae, ut Spero, judicabuntur. Catenam quafi rationis operis cum quam maxime naturali partium ferie ita connectere fum conatus, ut, quaecumque in alio capite traduntur, in alio traditis robur vimque addant. Legentes igitur deprecor, ut ne de parte quavis, priufquam totum opufculum percurrerint, judicium interponant. # ## ### #### ### ## # Human life is confined within definite limits. What at first increases with the advancing years, is gradually reduced as they go on, and at last is entirely extinguished. And since our appetites respond to the strength of the pleasures which produce them, it follows that, as old age advances, life becomes less desirable, and only rarely does untimely death remove a fortune that ought to be bewailed. This is entirely different in those whom premature death has taken away. To them the end is as unwilling as it is mournful to others; and mankind is apt to lament the passing of those who, if spared, might have deserved well of their families, of their country, and of our whole race. If this is properly considered, it shows how great a concern there should be to prevent sudden death from any cause. Nevertheless, concerning this subject — which may seem surprising — almost nothing worthy of record, either for study or for practical use, is found among the ancients. The praise of investigating it was reserved for later times, among whom those in charge of the highest affairs roused languishing humanity to address the matter by offering rewards. Nothing specifically intended to prevent sudden death from drowning and its other causes was done before the year 1677 of Christ; it was then that the Batavians first established a society for rescuing those immersed in water. Their example was subsequently followed by most of the principal cities of Europe. From the records of these societies, and from the numerous experiments that have been instituted, many true matters and many observations have arisen within these few years. Indeed, so great is the number of those who have treated this subject, and so eminent their names, that at first glance one might easily judge it to be wholly complete and perfected. Yet those very men who have been chiefly engaged in this study are the first to be persuaded otherwise. When an inquiry is mixed with so many and so fine contemplations of the living body, it cannot but awaken new notions in the mind, and be a source of pleasure and admiration. To make clearer and more striking the points we judged should be distinguished about this matter, we invented a case: a few minutes of immersion in water, followed for the time being by a suspension of activity, and we proposed a resulting disease; the symptoms of which we described so that, in reasoning about them, we might use certain principles that would serve as the foundation for its treatment. Throughout this little work, true facts everywhere are interwoven with reasoning. Where those facts have been firmly and reliably established, I hope the opinions drawn from them will be judged not rash and not alien to philosophy. I have tried to link the chain of the argument of the work as naturally as possible to the parts, so that whatever is presented in one chapter may add strength and force to what is offered in another. Therefore I beg my readers not to judge any single part before they have gone through the whole little work.