Another collection of philosophical conferences of the French virtuosi, upon questions of all sorts; for the improving of natural knowledg. Made in the assembly of the beaux esprits at Paris, by the most ingenious persons of that nation. Render'd into English / by G. Havers, Gent. & J. Davies of Kidwelly, Gent. [from T. and E. Renaudot].

  • Théophraste Renaudot
Date:
1665
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Another collection of philosophical conferences of the French virtuosi, upon questions of all sorts; for the improving of natural knowledg. Made in the assembly of the beaux esprits at Paris, by the most ingenious persons of that nation. Render'd into English / by G. Havers, Gent. & J. Davies of Kidwelly, Gent. [from T. and E. Renaudot]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    conjectures arc made 5 fuch as are, for example, among others, the twinkling of the Eyes, fneezing, the meeting of fomething extraordinary, efpecially a Negro, an Eunuch, or fome other defective perfonymd the ftriking of ones feet againft the threfli- old of his own door, which prov’d fatal to C. Gracchus, who was murther’d the very day that fuch an accident had happened to him } as alfo to Crajjks, the day he was defeated by the Tarthiaus. In all which figns there is much lefs likelihood of declaring the accidents, which fome would attribute thereto, than may be imagin’d in the Tingling of the Ear, as being the feat of the Me¬ mory ,which the AncientsTor that reafon were wont to (Hr up,by plucking the tip of it i and if it be true what rlato faith, that all our Knowledge is but Reminifcence, and that we only remem¬ ber the Species of things, which had been before incur llnder- ftanding, it will be no hard matter to find out fome ground for this praefenfion. The Fourth faid, That there was no ether conjeCfure to be drawn from this Tingling of the Ear, than that the Perfon fub- jeCt thereto, hath a weak and ill-difpos’d Brain, which breeding abundance of ill humours, if they come to make any ftoppage in the paffages of the Ear, its aCtion is vitiated and obftru&ed by that Tingling, which is a fymptom of a deprav’d Hearing, and caufes the party to hear an importunate found or noife, though there be not any made without,2nd that there be not any application of the hollownefs of the hand to the Ear, in which cafe it hears fome fuch noife. *Twould therefore be ridiculous to look after any other caufes thereof than what may be in the difpofition of the Brain, and the excrements it produced], on the diverfity whereof as alfo on that of their Motion in the Ears, that Tingling depends 5 as do alio the Breathir>g,the Ringing, the Buzzing, and the Swimming of the Ear, which are Symptoms of a deprav’d Hearing 3 the breathing or blowing being done by a little blaft which gets out gentlyithe Tingling by the interruption of its motion^ the ringing proceeds from a more grofs vapour, and fuch as blows more ftrongly} as the refounding does from an impulfion yet more vehement} and laftly,the Swimming is caus’d by the agitation of thefeas well vaporous asfpirituous matters, which being different and differently moved , produce thofe different founds. And therefore it is abfurd , to derive any other marks of what (hould happen to us, then thofe laid down in Medicine, which teaches us, that they who are fubjedt to thefe frequent tinglings and ringings of the Ears are in their way to Deafnefs, by reafon of the danger there is, that thefe vaporous humours ihould make fo ftrong an obftrudticn in the organs of Hearing, that the auditory air cannot get into it, to make fenfation: and if this happen in a burning Feaver, together with dimnefs of the eyes,it is a certain prefage of the di¬ ffraction or madneff, which ordinarily follows that noife of the Ear.