Page:Willich, A. F. M. - The Domestic Encyclopædia (Vol. 2, 1802).djvu/480

448&#93; 448] HE A first importance ; and we are fully pefsa ided, that most of the diseases, ■with whrch the lower classes of people are affected, especially in Crowded neighbourhoods, originate from the filthy state which is but too evident in many of their wretch- ed habitations. With respect to those persons who propose to reside in hot cli- mates, we shall state only a few simple rules, by an attention to which their health may be effectu- ally preserved; 1. Abstain from all excess in spirituous liquors. 2. Avoid with the utmost care the evening dews, or wetting of the feet on the approach of night ; as fatal sore throats notunfrequent- ly arise from this source. Should the feet, however, have been wet- ted by any accident, Jet the whole body be speedily immersed into cold water. 3. Bathe every morning in the sea, or, if possible, in sea-water; but, where that cannot be procur- ed, dissolve an ounce of salt in a bason of water, and wash the skin with the solution, alter which put on the clothes without drying the skin. This operation stn ngthens the muscular fibres, and covers the skin with a kind of saline crust, which, in the opinion of f)r. Balks, tttaily prevents all febrile in- 1 ttions. — With these precautions, he asserts, a person of a sound constitution may enjoy as good a of health in the hottest as in the most temperate climates. HEARING, is one of the ester- ases, and expresses the ad or faculty of perceiving sounds. Animals possess this sense in a more acute degree than man; the (j.v 1 and the hare enjoy the faculty HE A of hearing in a pre-eminent degree : by means of it, the former perceives the slightest soun Is, an 1 is thus enabled to seize her prey, while the timid hare is cautioned against approaching danger. This very delicate sense is liable to be im- paired by a variety of accidents ; hence arises, that unpleasant defect cal ed Di:,i n'kss, of the causes and cure of which we have already treale [. HEART, a hollow muscle of a conical form, situated at the bot- tom of the thorax or breast : its basis is turned towards the right, and its point towards the left side. The former, whence the great blood-vessels take their origin, is covered with fat, and has two hol- low appendages, called auricle^, from their resemblance to an ear. The whole consists of two cavities, which are separated from each other by a thick muscular septum : one ol these is called the right, and the other the left ventricle. The heart, which may be consi- dered as the most powerful muscle in the animal body, serves to faci- litate the motion or circulation of the blood, which is communicated to the different parts of the frame, by means of various arteries and veins. These, however, it is the province of anatomy to describe; and as that subject does not enter into our plan, we trust this brief explanation will suffice. HEART- BURN* or Car din Igia, an uneasy sensation of heat in the stomach, which is frequently at- tended with nausea and si< kness, The heart-burn generally arises from a prevailing acidity, indiges- tion, the eating of tough fat meat, and untermented mealy substances. Those persons who are subject 10 this