Electro-physiology and electro-therapeutics : showing the best methods for the medical uses of electricity / By Alfred C. Garratt.
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muscle, such as cut from the flank of another frog, placed in a watch-glass in such a manner as to have no sort of connection with the frog, and thus he produced marked contractions. He also publicly repeated, from year to year, another of Galvani's experiments, which was to place on an insulating plane, or two separate planes of glass or wax, two separate thighs of a frog, prepared with long, projecting ischiatic nerves, which he bent into a semicircle on the cut end of the thighs, and then brought them together so that only the tips of the two nerves came in contact, when at that instant the two legs contracted energeti- cally. But these results were doubtfully received by the learned world, notwithstanding the then young Baron von Humboldt ad- vocated Galvani's and Valli's side of the question. The most celebrated of the early treatises on medical galva- nism was by Professor Aldini, of Bologna.* He states that he applied a very powerful current from a voltaic pile of some hun- dreds of pairs through his own head just above his ears, which . so excited him that he continued sleepless for several days. He conceived that this treatment would be of service for that class of the insane who are melancholic, and relates the treat- ment of two cases that were actually cured by this means. He speaks of the great inconvenience of the voltaic pile, from its inconstant current, as well as expense and trouble. But before he published this work, he travelled over Europe, even through France and England, demonstrating and defending the theory of his illustrious uncle Galvani. It is evident that Professor Aldini's propositions and conclusions were of a high order and interest, since it is recorded of him, that when in London he appeared before the medical officers and pupils of Guy's Hospi- tal in 1803, and there supported and defended a series of prop- ositions so satisfactorily and conclusively, that he was presented by his auditors with a gold medal, commemorative of his labors. Besides, on leaving England, his propositions, together with the arguments in support of them, were prepared and published in a quarto volume, which, however, attracted so little attention, 81 Essai theroique et experimental sur la Galvanisme. Bologne, 1804. 7*