This The King Delivers
Into The Doctor's Hand, Whilst Another Brings A Bowl Of Water,
And Sets It Down:
Then the Doctor begins, and utters some few Words
very softly; afterwards he smells of the Patient's Navel and
Belly,
and sometimes scarifies him a little with a Flint, or an Instrument
made of Rattle-Snakes Teeth for that purpose; then he sucks the Patient,
and gets out a Mouthful of Blood and Serum, but Serum chiefly;
which, perhaps, may be a better Method in many Cases, than to take away
great Quantities of Blood, as is commonly practis'd; which he spits
in the Bowl of Water. Then he begins to mutter, and talk apace,
and, at last, to cut Capers, and clap his Hands on his Breech and Sides,
till he gets into a Sweat, so that a Stranger would think he was running mad;
now and then sucking the Patient, and so, at times, keeps sucking,
till he has got a great Quantity of very ill-coloured Matter out of the Belly,
Arms, Breast, Forehead, Temples, Neck, and most Parts, still continuing
his Grimaces, and antick Postures, which are not to be match'd in Bedlam:
At last, you will see the Doctor all over of a dropping Sweat,
and scarce able to utter one Word, having quite spent himself;
then he will cease for a while, and so begin again, till he comes
in the same Pitch of Raving and seeming Madness, as before,
(all this time the sick Body never so much as moves, although, doubtless,
the Lancing and Sucking must be a great Punishment to them;
but they, certainly, are the patientest and most steady People
under any Burden, that I ever saw in my Life.) {Whether live or die.}
At last, the Conjurer makes an end, and tells the Patient's Friends,
whether the Person will live or die; {Bury the Serum.}
and then one that waits at this Ceremony, takes the Blood away,
(which remains in a Lump, in the middle of the Water) and buries it
in the Ground, in a Place unknown to any one, but he that inters it.
Now, I believe a great deal of Imposture in these Fellows;
yet I never knew their Judgment fail, though I have seen them
give their Opinion after this Manner, several times:
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