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Using SQLite
 Using SQLite

Jay A. Kreibich

Beijing • Cambridge • Farnham • Köln • Sebastopol • Taipei • Tokyo

Using SQLite
by Jay A. Kreibich

Copyright © 2010 Jay A. Kreibich. All rights reserved.

Printed in the United States of America.

Published by O’Reilly Media, Inc., 1005 Gravenstein Highway North, Sebastopol, CA 95472.

O’Reilly books may be purchased for educational, business, or sales promotional use. Online editions
are also available for most titles (http://my.safaribooksonline.com). For more information, contact our
corporate/institutional sales department: (800) 998-9938 or [email protected].

Editor: Mike Loukides Indexer: Lucie Haskins

Production Editor: Kristen Borg Cover Designer: Karen Montgomery
Proofreader: Kiel Van Horn Interior Designer: David Futato
Illustrator: Robert Romano

Printing History:
August 2010: First Edition.

Nutshell Handbook, the Nutshell Handbook logo, and the O’Reilly logo are registered trademarks of
O’Reilly Media, Inc. Using SQLite, the image of a great white heron, and related trade dress are trade-
marks of O’Reilly Media, Inc.
Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as
trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book, and O’Reilly Media, Inc., was aware of a
trademark claim, the designations have been printed in caps or initial caps.

While every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this book, the publisher and author assume
no responsibility for errors or omissions, or for damages resulting from the use of the information con-
tained herein.

ISBN: 978-0-596-52118-9

[M]

1281104401
To my Great-Uncle Albert “Unken Al” Kreibich.
1918–1994

He took a young boy whose favorite question was

“why?” and taught him to ask the question “how?”
(Who also—much to the dismay of his parents and
the kitchen telephone—taught him the joy of
answering that question, especially if it involved
pliers or screwdrivers.)
—jk
 Table of Contents

Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xv

1. What Is SQLite? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Self-Contained, No Server Required 2
Single File Database 4
Zero Configuration 4
Embedded Device Support 5
Unique Features 5
Compatible License 6
Highly Reliable 6

2. Uses of SQLite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Database Junior 9
Application Files 10
Application Cache 11
Archives and Data Stores 11
Client/Server Stand-in 11
Teaching Tool 12
Generic SQL Engine 13
Not the Best Choice 13
Big Name Users 15

3. Building and Installing SQLite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

SQLite Products 17
Precompiled Distributions 18
Documentation Distribution 18
Source Distributions 19
The Amalgamation 19
Source Files 19
Source Downloads 20
Building 21

vii
 Configure 21
Manually 22
Build Customization 23
Build and Installation Options 23
An sqlite3 Primer 24
Summary 26

4. The SQL Language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Learning SQL 27
Brief Background 28
Declarative 28
Portability 29
General Syntax 30
Basic Syntax 30
Three-Valued Logic 31
Simple Operators 33
SQL Data Languages 34
Data Definition Language 34
Tables 35
Views 43
Indexes 44
Data Manipulation Language 45
Row Modification Commands 46
The Query Command 49
Transaction Control Language 51
ACID Transactions 51
SQL Transactions 53
Save-Points 55
System Catalogs 57
Wrap-up 58

5. The SELECT Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

SQL Tables 61
The SELECT Pipeline 62
FROM Clause 63
WHERE Clause 68
GROUP BY Clause 69
SELECT Header 70
HAVING Clause 73
DISTINCT Keyword 74
ORDER BY Clause 74
LIMIT and OFFSET Clauses 75
Advanced Techniques 76

viii | Table of Contents

 Subqueries 76
Compound SELECT Statements 77
Alternate JOIN Notation 78
SELECT Examples 79
Simple SELECTs 80
Simple JOINs 80
JOIN...ON 81
JOIN...USING, NATURAL JOIN 82
OUTER JOIN 82
Compound JOIN 82
Self JOIN 83
WHERE Examples 83
GROUP BY Examples 84
ORDER BY Examples 85
What’s Next 85

6. Database Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Tables and Keys 87
Keys Define the Table 87
Foreign Keys 89
Foreign Key Constraints 90
Generic ID Keys 91
Keep It Specific 92
Common Structures and Relationships 93
One-to-One Relationships 93
One-to-Many Relationships 95
Many-to-Many Relationships 97
Hierarchies and Trees 99
Normal Form 102
Normalization 103
Denormalization 103
The First Normal Form 104
The Second Normal Form 104
The Third Normal Form 105
Higher Normal Forms 106
Indexes 107
How They Work 107
Must Be Diverse 108
INTEGER PRIMARY KEYs 109
Order Matters 109
One at a Time 110
Index Summary 111
Transferring Design Experience 112

Table of Contents | ix
 Tables Are Types 112
Keys Are Backwards Pointers 113
Do One Thing 113
Closing 114

7. C Programming Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

API Overview 115
Structure 116
Strings and Unicode 117
Error Codes 118
Structures and Allocations 118
More Info 119
Library Initialization 119
Database Connections 120
Opening 120
Special Cases 121
Closing 122
Example 122
Prepared Statements 123
Statement Life Cycle 123
Prepare 124
Step 126
Result Columns 127
Reset and Finalize 130
Statement Transitions 131
Examples 132
Bound Parameters 133
Parameter Tokens 133
Binding Values 135
Security and Performance 138
Example 140
Potential Pitfalls 141
Convenience Functions 142
Result Codes and Error Codes 146
Standard Codes 146
Extended Codes 148
Error Functions 148
Prepare v2 149
Transactions and Errors 150
Database Locking 151
Utility Functions 156
Version Management 156
Memory Management 157

x | Table of Contents
 Summary 158

8. Additional Features and APIs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159

Date and Time Features 159
Application Requirements 160
Representations 160
Time and Date Functions 162
ICU Internationalization Extension 167
Full-Text Search Module 169
Creating and Populating FTS Tables 169
Searching FTS Tables 170
More Details 171
R*Trees and Spatial Indexing Module 171
Scripting Languages and Other Interfaces 172
Perl 172
PHP 173
Python 173
Java 174
Tcl 174
ODBC 175
.NET 175
C++ 175
Other Languages 176
Mobile and Embedded Development 176
Memory 176
Storage 177
Other Resources 178
iPhone Support 178
Other Environments 179
Additional Extensions 180

9. SQL Functions and Extensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181

Scalar Functions 182
Registering Functions 182
Extracting Parameters 184
Returning Results and Errors 186
Example 189
Aggregate Functions 194
Defining Aggregates 194
Aggregate Context 195
Example 197
Collation Functions 200
Registering a Collation 201

Table of Contents | xi
 Collation Example 202
SQLite Extensions 204
Extension Architecture 205
Extension Design 206
Example Extension: sql_trig 207
Building and Integrating Static Extensions 209
Using Loadable Extensions 211
Building Loadable Extensions 212
Loadable Extension Security 213
Loading Loadable Extensions 213
Multiple Entry Points 215
Chapter Summary 215

10. Virtual Tables and Modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217

Introduction to Modules 218
Internal Modules 218
External Modules 218
Example Modules 219
SQL for Anything 219
Module API 220
Simple Example: dblist Module 224
Create and Connect 224
Disconnect and Destroy 229
Query Optimization 230
Custom Functions 231
Table Rename 232
Opening and Closing Table Cursors 233
Filtering Rows 235
Extracting and Returning Data 237
Virtual Table Modifications 239
Cursor Sequence 240
Transaction Control 241
Register the Module 243
Example Usage 245
Advanced Example: weblog Module 246
Create and Connect 248
Disconnect and Destroy 249
Other Table Functions 250
Open and Close 250
Filter 252
Rows and Columns 254
Register the Module 259
Example Usage 259

xii | Table of Contents

 Best Index and Filter 262
Purpose and Need 262
xBestIndex() 263
xFilter() 266
Typical Usage 267
Wrap-Up 268

A. SQLite Build Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269

B. sqlite3 Command Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287

C. SQLite SQL Command Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299

D. SQLite SQL Expression Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 341

E. SQLite SQL Function Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361

F. SQLite SQL PRAGMA Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381

G. SQLite C API Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 409

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 491

Table of Contents | xiii

 Preface

This book provides an introduction to the SQLite database product. SQLite is a zero-
configuration, standalone, relational database engine that is designed to be embedded
directly into an application. Database instances are self-contained within a single file,
allowing easy transport and simple setup.
Using SQLite is primarily written for experienced software developers that have never
had a particular need to learn about relational databases. For one reason or another,
you now find yourself with a large data management task, and are hoping a product
like SQLite may provide the answer. To help you out, the various chapters cover the
SQL language, the SQLite C programming API, and the basics of relational database
design, giving you everything you need to successfully integrate SQLite into your ap-
plications and development work.
The book is divided into two major sections. The first part is a traditional set of chapters
that are primarily designed to be read in order. The first two chapters provide an in-
depth look at exactly what SQLite provides and how it can be used. The third chapter
covers downloading and building the library. Chapters Four and Five provide an in-
troduction to the SQL language, while Chapter Six covers database design concepts.
Chapter Seven covers the basics of the C API. Chapter Eight builds on that to cover
more advanced topics, such as storing times and dates, using SQLite from scripting
languages, and utilizing some of the more advanced extensions. Chapters Nine and
Ten cover writing your own custom SQL functions, extensions, and modules.
To complete the picture, the ten chapters are followed by several reference appendixes.
These references cover all of the SQL commands, expressions, and built-in functions
supported by SQLite, as well as documentation for the complete SQLite API.

SQLite Versions
The first edition of this book coves SQLite version 3.6.23.1. As this goes to press, work
on SQLite version 3.7 is being finalized. SQLite 3.7 introduces a new transaction journal
mode known as Write Ahead Logging, or WAL. In some environments, WAL can pro-
vide better concurrent transaction performance than the current rollback journal. This

xv
performance comes at a cost, however. WAL has more restrictive operational require-
ments and requires more advanced support from the operating system.
Once WAL has been fully tested and released, look for an article on the O’Reilly website
that covers this new feature and how to get the most out of it.

Email Lists
The SQLite project maintains three mailing lists. If you’re trying to learn more about
SQLite, or have any questions that are not addressed in this book or in the project
documentation, these are often a good place to start.
[email protected]
This list is limited to announcements of new releases, critical bug alerts, and other
significant events in the SQLite community. Traffic is extremely low, and most
messages are posted by the SQLite development team.
[email protected]
This is the main support list for SQLite. It covers a broad range of topics, including
SQL questions, programming questions, and questions about how the library
works. This list is moderately busy.
[email protected]
This list is for people working on the internal code of the SQLite library itself. If
you have questions about how to use the published SQLite API, those questions
belong on the sqlite-users list. Traffic on this list is fairly low.
You can find instructions on how to join these mailing lists on the SQLite website. Visit
http://www.sqlite.org/support.html for more details.
The [email protected] email list can be quite helpful, but it is a moderately busy
list. If you’re only a casual user and don’t wish to receive that much email, you can also
access and search list messages through a web archive. Links to several different
archives are available on the SQLite support page.

Example Code Download

The code examples found in this book are available for download from the O’Reilly
website. You can find a link to the examples on the book’s catalog page at http://oreilly
.com/catalog/9780596521196/. The files include both the SQL examples and the C
examples found in later chapters.

xvi | Preface
How We Got Here
Taking a book from an idea to a finished product involves a great many people. Al-
though my name is on the cover, this could not have been possible without all of their
help.
First, I would like to acknowledge the friendship and support of my primary editor,
Mike Loukides. Thanks to some mutual friends, I first started doing technical reviews
for Mike over eight years ago. Through the years, Mike gently encouraged me to take
on my own project.
The first step on that path came nearly three years ago. I had downloaded a set of
database exports from the Wikipedia project and was trying to devise a minimal data-
base configuration that would (hopefully) cram nearly all the current data onto a small
flash storage card. The end goal was to provide a local copy of the Wikipedia articles
on an ebook reader I had. SQLite was a natural choice. At some point, frustrated with
trying to understand the correct call sequence, I threw my hands up and exclaimed,
“Someone should write a book about this!”—Ding!—The proverbial light bulb went
off, and many, many (many…) late nights later, here we are.
Behind Mike stands the whole staff of O’Reilly Media. Everyone I interacted with did
their best to help me out, calm me down, and fix my problems—sometimes all at once.
The production staff understands how to make life easy for the author, so that we can
focus on writing and leave the details to someone else.
I would like to thank D. Richard Hipp, the creator and lead maintainer of SQLite. In
addition to coordinating the continued development of SQLite and providing us all
with a high-quality software product, he was also gracious enough to answer numerous
questions, as well as review a final draft of the manuscript. Some tricky spots went
through several revisions, and he was always quick to review things and get back to me
with additional comments.
A technical review was also done by Jon W. Marks. Jon is an old personal and profes-
sional friend with enterprise-class database experience. He has had the opportunity to
mentor several experienced developers as they made their first journey into the rela-
tional database world. Jon provided very insightful feedback, and was able to pinpoint
areas that are often difficult for beginners to grasp.
My final two technical reviewers were Jordan Hawker and Erin Moy. Although they
are knowledgeable developers, they were relatively new to relational databases. As they
went through the learning process, they kept me honest when I started to make too
many assumptions, and kept me on track when I started to skip ahead too quickly.

Preface | xvii
I also owe a thank-you to Mike Kulas and all my coworkers at Volition, Inc. In addition
to helping me find the right balance between my professional work and the book work,
Mike helped me navigate our company’s intellectual property policies, making sure
everything was on the straight and narrow. Numerous coworkers also deserve a thank-
you for reviewing small sections, looking at code, asking lots of good questions, and
otherwise putting up with me venting about not having enough time in the day.
A tip of the hat goes out to the crew at the Aroma Café in downtown Champaign,
Illinois. They’re just a few blocks down from my workplace, and a significant portion
of this book was written at their coffee shop. Many thanks to Michael and his staff,
including Kim, Sara, Nichole, and Jerry, for always having a hot and creamy mocha
ready.
Finally, I owe a tremendous debt to my wife, Debbie Fligor, and our two sons. They
were always willing to make time for me to write and showed enormous amounts of
patience and understanding. They all gave more than I had any right to ask, and this
accomplishment is as much theirs as it is mine.

Conventions Used in This Book

The following typographical conventions are used in this book:
Italic
Indicates new terms, URLs, email addresses, filenames, and file extensions.
Constant width
Used for program listings, as well as within paragraphs to refer to program elements
such as variable or function names, databases, data types, environment variables,
statements, and keywords.
Constant width bold
Shows commands or other text that should be typed literally by the user.
Constant width italic
Shows text that should be replaced with user-supplied values or by values deter-
mined by context.

This icon signifies a tip, suggestion, or general note.

This icon indicates a warning or caution.

xviii | Preface
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
the Particles of a Purgative, it will certainly bear a great quantity of
those which are Diuretick only. What Wonders has that Golden
Remedy of Pythagoras done, the Acetum Scylliticum, when given to
a proper quantity? And what may not be expected from the Sal
Succini, which may be given to a Dose large enough to irritate the
Fibres of the Stomach, and in some measure supply the place of a
gentle Purger; but when it is come into the Blood it may prove
Cordial as well as inciding? And now I am speaking of augmenting
the Quantity of our Diureticks, I can here affirm a very strange Effect
that follow’d upon an excessive Dose of Millepedes in an odd kind of
a Rheumatick Case, for the Cure of which, several things had been
try’d in Vain, by very good Advice; the Millepedes were given to a
quantity scarce credible, to several Ounces, and gave a Relief in a
little time that exceeded all expectation. This with other instances
something of the like nature, every where to be met with, may
convince, us that we ought to advance the quantity of these
Medicines, to which if we apply the Use of Exercise, the highest
Advantages may be expected: For to grant as much as the favourers
of the Purging Method can demand, that by reason of the
foremention’d Ropiness of the Serum, the Diureticks and
Chalybeates will but distend the parts, and make the Juices grow
Turgid. Is there no way to remove the Dam, but by shaking all
Nature at the same time? Must we blow up the House to get the
Enemy out? To what purpose do we talk so much of the Animal
Oeconomy, if we reduce its Rules to Practice no more than we do?
We are taught the Benefit arising from the Constriction of the
Muscles upon the Vessels; and can there be any Case which does
more apparently call for it than this? When it is hazardous to attempt
by inward Violence to dislodge the Viscous Concretions, certainly it is
high time to do it by Muscular Force. This Hippocrates seems to be
experimentally convinc’d of, by his frequent inculcating the Use of
Exercises in this Distemper, Δεῖ ταλαιπωρέειν you must labour, is his
constant Expression, whenever he speaks of the Dropsie; which,
whoever considers the Conciseness that is in all the Writings of that
Great Man, will be apt to imagine that it carries its Weight with it,
and implies the absolute necessity of acting upon the Lentor of the
Phlegm, by the playing of the Muscles. Besides Exercise will help to
restore the Tone of the Parts, which is sometimes spoil’d by too
great a Distension, even so much as to be in a manner benum’d,
which Helmont seems to lay much stress on, when he, according to
his odd fantastick way, calls it the Anger of the Archæus, that won’t
let the Waters pass; and if there is this kind of Spasmodick Affect in
the Parts leading to the Kidneys, then certainly there is as much
Reason for one in a Dropsie to get into a Coach upon his taking his
Medicines, that the frequent jolting may assist their Operation, as
there is for one in a Fit of the Gravel so to do. The Heat that is
acquir’d by the Motion of the Body, must needs comfort the Parts,
and rarifie a great deal of the Moisture, so that it may the more
easily pass the Membranes, as they are dilated by Exercise; and if
we can by squeezing, make Water pass through Leather, the whole
Skin dry’d and prepar’d, may it not much more easily pass the
Membranes of a living Animal, when work’d and stretch’d by Motion,
and assisted by the Warmth which that Motion produces? These may
be thought little things by some, but they will be found to be of
great Consequence; by such minute Measures, Nature can produce
great Effects; and by a Neglect of these things, many a great Life
has been lost, in Dependence upon something of a greater Name,
that has had no Relation to the Genuine proceedings of Nature.
These are some of the Reasons which have convinc’d me of the
Preference of the Diuretick Course, and which I think can’t be
overthrown, by all the Examples of the Success of Purgers, because
if we compute the Ill Effects of ’em likewise, and set ’em to balance
the good, the very Cures done by ’em, will seem but as so many
Splendida Peccata. We ought not hastily to quit safe Means for those
which are dangerous, only because they are a little more
expeditious; when a Case is within our Reach, we ought to Establish
our Prognosticks upon sure ground, tho’ they may not be so quick as
could be wish’d; we have other Dropsies that are dubious enough,
but in this Case we ought to study to bring things to a certainty as
much as possible; which how can we do unless our Methods are
Uniform? It behoves the Patrons of Purgatives to assign some
certain Rule, to render the Use of ’em alwayes safe, which seems
impossible to be done; and it behoves those who are for insisting on
Diureticks, to find out some such Measures, as may make these
milder Medicines always Efficacious; which is what I have been
attempting to do; and which, if I don’t flatter my self, I think I have
made to appear plain and obvious; for if we can’t arrive at some
comfortable certainty in this Case, I don’t know in what we can do
so; for we are so happy as to have those things as will certainly act
upon such a Crasis of the Blood, as will revive and enrich it, when
decay’d, tho’ not always in the like space of time; and when they act
too slowly, we can enforce their Virtue, by these ways I have been
speaking of.
These things are no Figment of mine, they have been the Practice
of Ancient Times, and are so natural a Result from a due
Consideration of the Animal Oeconomy, that I cannot enough
wonder that in so many Discourses upon those Fundamental Rules,
there has been so little Notice taken of the Effects of the Motion of
the whole individual, as superinduc’d to the internal Motions, that
make up the Oeconomy; for if this had been duly regarded, it could
not but have been reduc’d to Practice, and apply’d particularly to the
Cure of this Distemper.
Lastly, I know these are hard Sayings to some People, who send
for a Physician, as for one that deals in Charms, and can remove all
their Afflictions, while they are wholly Passive; and they would take
it very ill that they should be compell’d to a sort of Labour, while
they carry about ’em a Load in their Limbs; but yet for all this,
Nature will be Nature still; and if this be her Voice it must be obey’d.
He that is in a Dropsie ought to be Alarm’d, and look upon himself
as in something the like Case with those Criminals whom the Dutch,
upon their refusing to Work, confine to a Cellar, and let the Water in
upon ’em, that they may be in a Necessity either of Pumping or
Drowning. And I believe there are but few, but who, upon their
being convinc’d of the real and surprising Benefit of these Means,
would readily undergo the Fatigue of ’em; and things may be so
manag’d, that Exercise may not be so troublesome as the Sick
imagine; an easie Pad will quickly grow familiar; and where the Legs
happen to be so very much distended, that there may be some
danger, lest the Skin should be rub’d off, a Chaise may serve the
turn.
 OF THE
Hypochondriacal
DISTEMPER.
The third and last Case, which I shall expresly consider, is the
Hysterick or Hypochondriacal Case; in the Cure of which the several
Exercises, which I shall hereafter Recommend, may all be us’d. This
Distemper falls the most under a Gymnastick Method, because the
least proper to be treated with much Internal Physick; this is a
Distemper which will not drive, as we say, but if kindly treated will
lead, that is, will not be expell’d by Purging, Bleeding, Sweating or
the like, but must be treated by more gentle and leisurely Methods;
’tis a Distemper of the Spirits, and the Vessels which immediately
convey ’em; and therefore those means by which they are more
immediately affected, are the most likely to prove beneficial. Here it
is, if ever, strictly true, that a little Matter gives the turn, but then
that little matter must be equally apply’d; we must give an equal lift
to all the Parts of the Oeconomy at the same time, we must not
apply to the Fluids, and neglect the Solids. ’Tis the want of this
Distinction, which I take to be the Ground of all our mistakes in the
Cure of this Distemper; we cure but half the Man, When I meet with
a Languid Hysterick Pulse, I can easily raise it, and give a full Beat to
the Artery, by Anti-Hysterick Medicines; but then what becomes of
the Nerves, they are not much help’d by this, But sometimes
impair’d by it? but then let the same Person have Recourse to some
moderate Exercise, his Pulse shall rife as high as upon the use of
Internals, but with this Difference, that the Nerves as well as the
Blood partake of the Benefit. For we may distinguish between this
natural advance of the Bodily heat, which is procur’d by Exercises,
and that which is acquir’d by Medicines, just as we may between the
Effects of the Kindly Heat of the Sun, and those of an Artificial Fire:
Now in the matter of the Vegetation of Plants, and the Management
of some sorts of nicer Workmanship, tho’ the greatest Care and
Industry be us’d to raise a gentle heat, which to our Senses and
even to the Measure of the Thermometer, may seem equal to that of
the Sun, yet it shall never be able to produce the same exquisite
effects, as the heat of the Sun does. And so we see in this Case the
mildest and seemingly most agreeable Gumms prove Purgers to
some of these People, others again can’t bear Castor, without some
troublesome inconveniences; and how much soever some People
may be Rapt up with their Sal Volatile, and such like Preparations, I
can perhaps give an instance of more wonderful Relief given in this
Case, by a more Common Cordial, than ever those splendid
Medicines could produce; it may not be amiss to relate it in this
place, because it serves to illustrate my Design in shewing that
nothing that has the least seeming Violence in it, or rather that
nothing, which is not very mild and agreeable to Nature, can be of
very great moment in the Cure of this Distemper. The Instance then
I mean, was communicated to me by an Eminent Physician, and very
Learned Writer, and is this; He was call’d to see a Maid which had
been severely Tormented with Hysterick Fits for several days, and
had taken plenty of the Remedies usual in that Case, without any
effect; upon which he was resolv’d to try, what a good large Dose of
a true generous Wine would do, considering she was a Servant, and
consequently could not be suppos’d to be accustom’d to that Liquor,
which would have render’d his attempt fruitless; he therefore
prescrib’d some Pouders of no Efficacy, to obviate the Phancy of the
By-standers, and order’d the Apothecary to ply her with some Wine
of his own procuring, that he could depend upon, till she had taken
a quantity, which to her might be reckon’d very large; this succeeded
like a Charm, after a good Sleep, she was freed of all her terrible
Symptoms the next Morning, tho’ before she could scarce stir her
head from the Pillow, but she fell into a Fit. And I have twice had the
Occasion, to see something of the like nature my self; the first was,
where a large Dose of Wine took off some very ill Symptoms,
occasion’d by strong Purgers, erroneously repeated in a certain
Nervous Case. But the Person had not been us’d to drink Wine,
otherwise it could not have produc’d such a happy effect. I instance
in these things only to shew, that the Remedies which are most
proper and adequate to this Case, must be such as have something
of an inimitable Mediocrity in ’em; and that Exercises do produce
Alterations in the Body, which resemble the effects of such a singular
and Noble Mean, is not improbable, in regard they act so equally (as
I observ’d before) both upon the Solids and Fluids. And one would
think the Ill Success of any thing, but like Violence, should lead us to
some such Measures as these. One would be apt to think that when
a Distemper, which carries as little, or may be, the least danger of
Life in it, of any whatsoever, tho’ so very troublesome, when this
nevertheless becomes one of the most difficult to be perfectly rooted
out, one would think, I say, that this odd Circumstance, so like to
Contradiction, should prompt us to look out for the real Reason of it.
Upon these Considerations I can’t but admire, that the same
Administrations, or with very little difference, (excepting the
Chalybeates which may be allow’d in both Cases) are thought proper
for Temperate Women, and Men of Intemperance, when they
happen to fall into the Hypochondriacal Affect, as is frequently
enough known; one would think that when the Disorder in these
latter is owing to the excess of a Liquor, both wholsom enough and
Cordial enough in it self, which by its too frequent use has relax’d
the Nerves, and consequently impair’d the Spirits, there should be
little likelyhood it should be remov’d, and taken off by hot Medicines
in a Solid form, which perhaps don’t differ so much as most People
imagine, in their real intrinsick Energy from that Noble Liquid, to
which these Gentlemen owe their Malady; I say, one would think
that some such surmises as these, should naturally lead us to an
immediate attempt, upon the parts affected, viz. the Nerves, which
must be done by means suitable to ’em, that is by Exercise.
Wherever there is a Dejection of the Mind, and a Propensity to
Phantastick and Imaginary Fears, there is reason to suspect the
Solids, that is, the Nerves are more in fault than we think for; we
may consider that when a Man is Drunk, he seldom loses his
intellectual Faculties to any great degree, till the Nerves are quite
stress’d with the Load of Wine, and his Feet go commonly before his
Reason; and if this were a proper place, perhaps, I could shew some
Reasons for us to suspect the same, in the Deliriums of People in a
Feaver, that the intense heat must first evidently impair the whole
body of the Nerves, before the Understanding will be quite lost. We
don’t know what a great deal of Rotation and irregular Agitation the
Spirits strictly taken will bear, without any Damage receiv’d; but
when the Nerves, the Container of those Spirits, are considerably
affected, the Spirits contain’d must partake of the Mischief. We know
but little of that inconceivable connexion of Soul and Body, but the
wonderful Bond of Union, seems to terminate very much in the
Fibre. For we may observe, that those Poisonous Vegetables which
intoxicate, and attack the Rational Faculty, do chiefly display their
Power on the Nerves, ’tis in their very Nature, and in the least
quantity to hurt the Nerves; and when Wine, tho’ in its Quality most
agreeable, is by the Quantity and Repetition of it, made to be
prejudicial to the Nervous System, I can’t imagine, how other Cordial
Medicines, which must still in some Measure keep up the Stress
upon the weakned Nerves can be the adequate Remedy of this
Disease, but that the Nerves, must be assisted after their own way,
after a manner suitable to their Nature, that is by Exercises; for it is,
and ever will be one of the Properties of a Fibre, to be the stronger
for Motion, the better for wearing; and it is but a Law of Nature,
arising from the Necessity of the Constitution, that while the Fluids
are continually wasting and running off the faster, for the Motion of
the whole Individual, the other part of the Constitution, the Solids,
the Fibres should by the same Means reap some Advantages proper,
and in some measure sufficient to Balance the Consequences of
such a Dispendium.
All this receives certain weight from the Argument which is so
Naturally suggested to us, by the familiar and daily Observations,
which every one cannot but make on the Health of the Poorer sort of
People, especially their immunity from this Distemper. That it is
matter of wonder that the Spasms, the Tremors, the Shiverings, the
Watchings, and all the very numerous Plagues of an Hysterick
Person, should not be able to rouze People into a Quest of Health,
upon Measures suitable to the Causes of things; that such Painful
experience should not animate ’em, into a Resolution to exchange
the Pains of a sedentary, for the Indolence at least, not to say, the
Pleasures of an Active Life. I am confident no one could forbear
making these Inferences, and reducing ’em to practice, who has
been any considerable time infested with this Distemper, were it not
for the present Comfort and false Hope, which are conceiv’d from
some Palliative Remedies, in too much use in this Case; I mean
Vinous Spirits, and Compositions Distill’d upon ’em, which because in
the beginning of this Distemper, they are found to be comfortable
and really useful, entice People to have recourse to the use of ’em,
oftner than they ought to do, and in time seduce ’em so much by
that Delusive flash of Ease, which they give in the first Moments of
their Drinking, that they cannot have a due Regard to the Evil
Consequences of such a Practice; these Liquors prove a meet
Charm, they creep into the Understanding, and teach People to
impose upon themselves, and fansie Excuses for the use of ’em, till
they come to be so blinded as to think that Health it self, is scarce
an equivalent for the Pleasures which must be deny’d, in the
Abstinence from ’em. They who have brought themselves to such a
Custom, are not unlike some of our Debtors, who after they have
been some time in a Prison, and learn’d the way, of living an Idle
Life upon other Folks Cost, tho’ under Confinement, they lose all
sense of Liberty, and never desire to subsist again, upon the severe
Conditions of Industry and Labour; and so those who have learn’d to
sip of this Spirituous Lethe, quite forget the value of Health and
Strength; they can drown their Vapours, blunt their Pains, and rub
on without great danger a good while, and therefore as for brisk
Exercise, the Cold Bath, and the like, they desire to be excus’d;
there’s too much Danger in the Practice, there’s a Lyon in the Way;
and thus a sickly complaining Life they lead, because they will not
take Courage, to use the Just endeavours after a real State of
Health. These I take to be some of the Reasons, why this Distemper
is so seldom totally extirpated, and is become the Opprobrium both
of the Patient and Physician; for else it would be impossible, that
People should generally resist the Consequence of that Observation
which I hinted before: For if the Labour of the Poor generally
secures ’em from this Distemper, and if this Distemper, whenever it
seizes, is of so nice and tender a Nature, that it will scarce allow of
any of the common Methods us’d in the Cure of other Distempers,
certainly it behoves the Persons so griev’d, to try whether those
Means which are Preservative to others, may not prove Curative to
them; which, by reason that the Subject of the Distemper, viz. the
Spirits and Nerves are primarily affected by Exercise, proves highly
probable. For why there should be such dependance on Internals
universally, and even in this Case, I can’t see; to me it seems almost
as Ridiculous, as if a Workman should use but one sort of Tool in
working on Wood, Stone, Brass, and all other Materials.
I need not here take Notice of any of the particular Symptoms of
this variable Disease, they all being liable to the same Regimen; I
have already in another place hinted what Relief may be procur’d by
this Method in the Hysterick Colick, and in the obstinate Watchings,
which will scarce submit to the use of Laudanum, or at least without
ill Consequences. Therefore I shall conclude they all fall under the
Power of a Resolute Course of Exercise.
The Exercises most proper here are Riding, and the use of the
Cold Bath; the first prepares for the second; which Rule if some
People, who are the most weakly, wou’d observe, they might secure
themselves, from some of those few Accidents that have befel the
too rash entrance into the Cold Bath. Instead of Riding on horse-
back, Women may take a Chaise, which will allow of swift Motion,
and comes little short of the Horse for Agitation of the Body; tho’ I
can’t see any breach of Decorum, if a Lady, attended with a Servant,
should ride on Horse-back daily for Health, if she like it best; as for
those, who upon the Account of their being very Fat, have some
Reason to be cautious, how they go into the Cold Bath, lest some
Apoplectick Symptoms should ensue, they may have recourse to
another of those Exercises, which I shall treat of, viz. the use of the
Brush, or Chafing, which if us’d in good earnest, will not prove so
trivial as perhaps some People imagine it to be.
 These are the Chief Exercises which I would recommend in this
Case, and which if us’d with Prudence and Application, I doubt not
are able to effect a compleat and Eradicative Cure of this Distemper,
as certainly as more violent internal Means are expected to succeed
in any other Case, the Spirits and Nerves being not so much more
untractable, than the Blood and Humours, if treated after a manner
suitable to their Nature.
What I have said of these three Cases, may serve to illustrate the
necessity of this Method in some few other Cases, which I need only
Name; as the Scorbutick Rheumatism, which being a Nervous Case,
will admit of the three Exercises I have mention’d, which if
strenuously put in Practice at proper Seasons, will do Wonders in the
removing of those Pains. The Nervous Atrophy is another Case,
which may be remov’d by a Gymnastick Method, when all the
Pompous Internal Medicines will not avail.
Lastly, there is one more Case, to which Riding seems to be in a
peculiar manner appropriated, and that is, that Decay of Nature
which is occasion’d by Passions of the Mind, which we commonly
call, Breaking the Heart; here the Spirits are broke, and ruined by
the stress of Thought, the Mind drinks up the Vital Fluids, and the
Ravage proceeds so fast, that nothing can avail, but what can in
some Measure interrupt the Eagerness of Thought, and repair in
Proportion to the wast of the Spirits, which Riding seems most likely
to do, because it gives an Alacrity beyond that of Wine; because the
Briskness of the Motion, must take a Man off from close thinking,
and such Exercise continued long, even to some Journeys, must by
Tiring incline to Rest, and break off those voluntary Wakings and
anxious Thoughts, which are so pernicious; and if some intervals of
Ease can be gain’d in this Case, there is hopes that Reason or
Religion may take place, and the Passions may be laid: For ’tis the
first Fury that is the most Dangerous and Violent; if that can be
manag’d, the Point is gain’d, and there is nothing like Hurrying the
Body, to divert the Hurry of the Mind.
 These are most of, if not all, the Cases which fall under the Power
of Exercise as Curative; as for the Benefit which may be obtain’d by
Exercise, in the Gravel, the Gout, and the like, it is purely Palliative,
and therefore out of the Scope of my intention in this Treatise: I
shall now proceed to consider briefly, those several Sorts of Exercise,
which seem proper to my Design.
And here I shall not insist upon the various Exercises of the
Ancients, or all those in Use now in our Days, but shall make choice
of but a few, that seem most Compatible with the Weakness and
Infirmities of Sick People, and the particular Circumstances of those
Distempers which I have already mention’d, and I shall begin with
the chief of ’em, which is that of Riding.
 OF THE
EXERCISE
OF
RIDING.
Upon several Accounts, this may be esteem’d the best and Noblest
of all Exercises for a Sick Person; whether we consider it with
Respect to the Body or the Mind; if we Enquire after what manner it
affects the Body, we shall find that it is a kind of mixt Exercise, partly
Active and partly Passive; the lower parts of the Body, being in some
measure employ’d, while the upper parts are almost wholly Remiss
or Relax’d; nay, where a Man is easie, is sure of his Horse, and rides
loose, there is very little Action on his Part, but he may give himself
to be as careless almost as if he were Seated on a Moving Chair; so
that he may be said to be Exercis’d rather than to Exercise himself;
which makes the Case widely different from almost all other sorts of
Exercise, as Walking, Running, Stooping, or the like; all which
require some Labour, and consequently more Strength for their
Performance; in all which, the Muscular Parts must be put to some
Stress, and some of the Secretory Vessels made to throw off too
much, while others throw off too little; whereas in Riding, the Parts
being incomparably more relax’d, there is a better Disposition
towards an equal Secretion of the Morbisick Particles, and a less
Expence of the Animal Spirits, the chief Agents in all regular
Secretions; so that a Sick Person may by this means be greatly
reliev’d and not tir’d, whereas by other more violent ones, it is
possible he may be tir’d and not reliev’d.
As for the Parts which are more immediately acted upon by this
Exercise; it is very plain they are the whole Contents of the Lower
Belly, so that the Glands of the Mesentery and the Intestines, so
frequently accus’d of Obstructions, may in a special manner be
clear’d, and their Tone recovered by such repeated Agitation; which
is a thing so manifest and allow’d, that it would be needless to
multiply Words in the explaining of it. But there is another sort of
Assistance communicated to the Intestines, which is not so much
heeded, and that is the great Alteration, which is made by this
Agitation, in some of the Morbifick Particles, as they come to be
squeez’d out of their several Glands into the Intestines, which in the
time of Riding is doubtless in a much greater quantity than at other
times. These Particles must not be suppos’d to be barely carryed off
as Excrementitious, but to undergo a Change in their Texture, to be
several times in a manner Cohobated, from Acid and Acrimonious, to
be Volatiliz’d, and in some measure render’d inflammable; that there
is some such Alteration made in the more liquid part of the Contents
of the Intestines, before they come to grow hard in a true State of
Health is easie to prove, and I believe agreed on by most Enquirers
into the Oeconomy of Nature, and that there is some Defect in these
Operations of the Bowels, in some sick People, is evident from the
Consistence, Smell, and other Qualities of these Contents, different
from what they are found in a State of Health; and that this Defect
may be remov’d by this Exercise, seems not improbable, if we
consider how immediately Riding affects those parts, that it acts as a
Topick, by those infinite Succussions coming close upon one another,
which must needs cause a greater Heat than ordinarily, and a better
Mixture of some of the Similar Particles, and a Rarefaction of others,
which after they are thus differently Modefi’d and alter’d, are many
of ’em as it were chaf’d in again by that continual Agitation, and the
Steam of their inflammable Parts is of Use, to keep Nature even
under the Exercise; that there is something like this to be observ’d in
the actions of the Bowels might be confirm’d, by what Glysters are
known to do. I would not willingly verge towards the Fraud of an
Hypothesis; I may be allow’d to have had some more than Common
Occasion, to put me upon making these Observations, having some
time ago been so unhappy as to labour under as severe a Flux, as
perhaps ever was known, which held me about a Year and a Half,
attended with Vomitings, and most unsupportable Nervous
Symptoms; during all which time nothing reliev’d me, in the greatest
Paroxisms of it, like gentle Riding, in so much that at last I was
forc’d to be in a manner always on Horseback, to have the Pressure
on my Bowels rebated, and my Spirits a little refresh’d. The Comfort
which I found by that means, I think must be attributed to some
such Phænomena as I have above mention’d; for tho’ I will grant,
that Riding was more beneficial to me under those Circumstances,
than it would be to another, because of those Nervous Symptoms;
yet how Particles so exquisitely Pungent and Acrimonious, should be
retain’d and blunted and made useful, as appears from the Evil
Consequences of too many Evacuations; how this should come
about, but after such a manner as I have above hinted, I cannot
understand; ’tis easie for those who think in hast and superficially, to
be deceiv’d with the first appearance of things; but when once Men
are calm enough, or under a Necessity to think closer, they are more
likely to come to the Truth of such Phænomena as these; and to
those who do allow themselves to deliberate before they are
Positive, I doubt not but what I have asserted, will appear
reasonable; and perhaps I should not be so much out of the way, if I
should add, that some of the Stercoraceous parts of the Contents of
the Intestines, are not in a strict Sence to be reckon’d
Excrementitious or useless, since tho’ I don’t believe Digestion is
perform’d by Putrefaction, yet I believe Putrefaction is a great
Medium for the opening of Bodies, and the extracting inflammable
Parts out of ’em; as we see a little Greenish Hay, when it comes to
be Putrefi’d, shall become inflammable; and there being inflammable
Particles in the Intestines, ’tis probable they may owe their Origine
to some such Cause, and not to the first Chylification in the
Ventricle. I would not be thought to bring these Reasons, as if I
believ’d Riding would Cure a Flux, I don’t believe any such thing,
unless upon some very singular Circumstances, and therefore I have
not plac’d it among those Distempers, which appear to be Curable
by Exercise; but I only draw this Consequence from the Palliative
Relief, which Riding will afford in the time of a long Flux, that some
pernicious and disagreeable Particles, may receive such an Alteration
while in the Intestines, as to become fit to be re-absorb’d by the
several Vessels of those parts, and convey’d with great Advantage
into the Blood again, which is making things to go on in a Round
towards a Cure; Nature her self doing the Work, without forcible
Evacuations, which tho’ never so gentle in some fine Constitutions,
can scarce be born, and without much Physick, the very Morbifick
Matter being so alter’d and dispos’d in one part of the Body, as to be
useful in another. I have insisted the longer on this Point, that I
might make it as plain as possible, because I think it is of so great
Moment in some Distempers and some Constitutions.
What relates to the Breast, I have had occasion to Explain before;
and for the Head, tho’ I can’t say it is immediately affected by this
Exercise as the Lower Belly is, yet there is one Benefit accrues to it
from Riding, which by reason of the Disuse of Exercise in Cases of
Sickness, is not taken Notice of, and it is this, the great inclination to
Sleep, which a Sick Man finds if he lies down on his Bed as soon as
he comes off his Horse; for as the Motion of a Coach does more or
less dispose all People to Sleep, and the swifter it goes, the more we
are inclin’d to Doze; So the Motion of a Horse being swifter, and the
Posture relax’d as to the Head and upper Parts, tho’ a Man does not
perceive any thing of such an inclination, while he is Riding and
upon his Guard, without any thing to lean on, yet there is so much
of the Impression of that Motion remains upon him, for sometime
after he lights off his Horse, that if he throws himself presently upon
his Bed, especially if he drinks some small Draught of wholsom Ale
or Wine first, he will quickly be in a Sleep, which upon several
Accounts must then be very Beneficial; this is a Truth so certain and
so valuable to distressed, infirm People, whose Nights are often
more troublesome than the Days, that it is a wonder what should
keep Men from attending to Nature, and falling into such just
Measures that Art it self cannot afford. What can be more applicable
to all the Circumstances of Consumptive People, than after that by
Moderate Riding, they have dispos’d the Humours for each
Secretion, they should by such short and Refreshing Sleeps compleat
those Secretions? When moreover by these Means, they may be
enabled to deny themselves those latter or Morning Sleeps, in which
they are so apt to run into Colliquations; I know some may please to
be so witty as to call this Nursery, rather than a Management worthy
of a Physician; but yet I will appeal to any that are Sober, Calm, and
free from Prejudice, whether if they allow that this Exercise, does
dispose to Sleep as I affirm, upon this Supposal, any thing can more
exactly hit the miserable Circumstances of those Persons. To the
Sick, these little things are of great Moment, and in such seemingly
little things as these, the Accurate Management of the Ancients
consisted, by which they were sometimes enabled to accomplish,
that which we, for want of those Measures, do sometimes fall short
of.
As to the other Property of this Exercise, it may be convenient for
me to make some Apology, before I enter upon the Mention of it,
because it is such, as cannot be well understood, but by those who
are Conversant with Sanctorius, upon one of whose above-mention’d
Maxims it does depend, viz. Upon that which shews the great
Increase of the insensible Perspiration by Pandiculation and Gauping;
now I hope the taking Notice of this, will not be thought odd in an
Age, of which it is one of the Good Qualities, that Men will not take
up with the old superficial Way of accounting for things by Occult
Qualities, Putredo’s, and the like, but enquire into the Modus of the
more Abstruse Actions of Nature, and will be convinc’d, that
whatever are the legitimate Measures that she takes, they cannot be
thought little or uncouth, seeing ’tis by such Minima, that she comes
to be able to compleat her great Things. If therefore by Gauping,
this Perspiration is so very much promoted, as has been discovered,
and adjusted by the Experiments of that Admirable Author, we may
reflect upon how little things our Deliverance from Feavers, and
other Inconveniences, does depend; nothing being more common
upon taking Cold, Surfeits, or the like, than for People to Gaup often,
till the offensive Matter is let out, and consequently it is very
apparent, that whatsoever will promote the Pandiculation must be
beneficial, when the Perspiration is obstructed; and this, tho’ it
cannot be effected by any Internal, may be done by Riding, which
will dispose all People, the Healthy as well the Sick, more or less to
it. I know it may be alledg’d, that all People when they are tyr’d, are
more or less apt to Gaup and Retch, but yet it cannot be said, that
Thirty Miles Riding is a Tyring to a Healthy Man; and yet let any one
observe, if that or less will not dispose all People to this Affect,
unless they over-rule it by Drinking of great Quantities of good
Liquor, which I believe will not always suppress it neither; but for
those who are Sickly, the least Use of this Exercise disposes ’em to
this Method of Nature, which perhaps no other Exercise will do,
unless they are tyr’d by it; which shews how much Riding is
preferable to other Exercises for Sick People, because it does some
way or other act upon the Secret Springs of Nature, after a more
peculiar manner, and therefore more proper for the promoting that
easie and even Evacuation.
There is another Property of Riding, that it always gives a
Freshness to the Countenance of those who use it, which lasts for
some time, and will appear upon but once Riding, and the weakest
and most infirm Person shall discover something of this in his Cheeks
after this Exercise; now I would fain know, what Noble Cordial,
whether Solid or Liquid, can do thus? They may cause a Flushing,
but can produce nothing of this Natural Aspect; and what can more
plainly discover to us, that there is something inimitable which
results from the equal and gentle Pressures of the innumerable and
invisible Vascula of the whole Body together, and that that Action
which can produce such an Appearance upon but one single
Application to it, may be sufficient to display the greatest and most
wholsome effects when continued on gradually, as it ought to be;
and to object against the Certainty of these Measures, because they
must be slow, is just as Wise as it would be to assert, that the hand
of the Dial does not move, or the Budding Leaf encrease, because
we cannot discern the Motion of either of ’em. Nothing certainly
could keep us from Regarding these Tendencies of Nature, but the
excessive Variety of Medicines, with which we are so gloz’d, that we
over look Her gradual Progressions, either to Sickness or Health, and
think to force Her in all Cases by the Power of Art; whereas in a
great many Cases, she will baffle the boldest Administrators, when
by gentle and suitable means she may be reduc’d, to her true State.
The Famous Cornaro’s Case, and many others might be alledg’d to
shew how great Changes may be procur’d, by a strict attendance to
the demands of Nature, and that it is seldom too late to aid Her in a
Natural way, agreeable to her Weakness and without the Oppression
as I may call it at such a time, instead of the Assistance of much
Physick.
Add to all this the Vivacity, the Gayety which does alwayes more
or less result from brisk Motion, whether it is caus’d by the spirits
expanding themselves, or the Fibres dilating themselves to take in a
greater quantity of the Spirits, it is hard to determine, and perhaps
of no great consequence if we could; but that I may represent the
Sense we may conceive of this, I think I have no reason to be
asham’d to borrow for once more an Illustration from that Noble
Beast, to which this Exercise I am treating of is owing; It is a known
Case then, that if you take a Horse of the best Spirit, and of the best
Keeping, provided he is not Vicious, as they call it; if you mount this
Horse, and walk him or keep him to a pretty slow pace, you’ll find
him quiet enough, but if you once put him on to a larger Pace, he
can’t contain himself, but will grow troublesome, and press for a
swifter Career, than perhaps his Rider would desire; which plainly
shews, that there is something in the Animal Oeconomy, which
crescit eundo, which gathers by Motion, and which can’t perhaps be
made to display it self so well any other way; for this must not be
thought to be wholly owing to high Feeding, but to the degree of the
Motion; for the same Sprightliness or Courage will appear
proportionally in any sort of Motion: And but a slow Motion in some
Cases does not want its good Effects; those who are Judges of the
Art of War, tell us that it is not best for a Body of Men to stand still
and expect the Enemy, but to keep in Motion while they are drawing
to the Battle; and in the time of a Siege, they make it a Rule, to
remove their Men from one Post to another; that their Spirits may be
kept up by their being in a continual Diversion. We are as subject to
the Impressions of Motion, as to those of Sound and Harmony, and
both are able sometimes to inspire a Flash of Courage into the Mind,
that is not to be despis’d; and as one was of Use to drive away the
Evil Spirit of Old, so the other may be of Service, to dispel the
Hypochondriack Cloud, the desponding imaginations of Sick Persons;
a Man may be able by this means to rouze himself, and shake off
that Incubus of the Brain, that lies brooding of Causeless Fears and
Doubts, to the great hindrance of all his Endeavours after Health; it
is no small matter for a Person to hope and believe that he shall do
well, it is some Advance towards a Cure to have so much Courage,
Ἤν φόβος καὶ δυθυμὶη, &c. Si Metus & Tristitia multo tempopore
perseverent, Melancholicum hoc ipsum; As Hippocrates observes in
one of his Aphorisms of his fifth Section, Fear and Sadness are
sufficient to create a Distemper, and therefore may be very well
thought to obstruct greatly the Cure of one; those Passions cause
the Motion of the Heart, and the Beat of the Artery to be weaker and
consequently must proportionably lessen insensible Perspiration,
which depends so much upon the Vigour of that Motion: We see a
more than usual Application to Business and Intensness of Thought
for but a few Days, shall cause an Alteration in the Countenance of a
Healthful Man, and make him begin to look Pale and Wan; how
much more then must it prejudice a Sick Man, to be always musing
on his Distemper, which he can hardly well forbear neither, when he
knows there is real Danger in this Case? but all this Anxiety will be
very much prevented and interrupted by Riding, and a Man will
naturally come to take heart and think well of his Case, when he
finds he can procure such Temporary or Periodical Relief, if I may so
call it, such intervals of Ease, as in the time of Riding, he is sure
more or less to enjoy.
These things are so agreeable to Nature and Reason, that I am
confident they can’t but gain reception with those who are
acquainted with this Exercise; no Man can be an Enemy to Riding,
but he who is ignorant of it; and the generality of Men are by their
Employments and Affairs kept so much from the Practice of it, that
they for the most part judge of it by what they have experienc’d on
a Journey, where an indifferent Horse, bad Ways, and other
Inconveniencies, make Riding rather a Toil than a Pleasure: Whereas
he who designs to make his Riding turn to account, must make it a
Pleasure; he must retire to some Place, where he can have the open
Field for his Range, he must find out a Horse that entirely suits his
Humour, and then it will not be easie for him not to delight in a
Creature which will perform all he expects from him, that takes
Pleasure in what he is put upon, and delights in his Rider; a
Creature, which (considering the many other Beasts that are
Serviceable for Draught or Burden) seems to be made almost only
for the Defence, the Pleasure and Health of his Master; and which
has so many excellent Qualities above all other Beasts, that there is
no Man upon Earth, whose Gravity or Dignity is so great, as not to
allow him with some Pleasure to take Notice of ’em, if the Exercise
alone will not satisfie; there is Variety of the Pleasures of the Field,
some of which any Man may make agreeable to his Humour; there is
variety of Chace, both Violent and Moderate, a variety so great, that
Providence seems to have appointed it to be subservient to this
Exercise, that Men may divert themselves with Pleasures, that will
keep up the Vigour of the Mind, instead of those soft Effeminate
ones, which generally take place more or less, where this is laid
aside; add to all this the pleasure a Man conceives when he finds his
Health returning, which will make him delight in the means of his
Recovery, and persue with Cheerfulness that which before perhaps
seem’d indifferent to him; so that an Active Life, when a Man has
laid aside his timorous Prejudices, and is let into the tast of it, will be
found not only to have its Advantages, but its Charms too; and he
who indulges himself long in it, will think it not a Paradox, that there
should be an Active Luxury, which may exceed all the Passive
Enjoyments of Sloth and Indolence. I have insisted the more on the
Pleasure as well as the Benefit of this Exercise, because there are
some Constitutions of so fine a Make, or else so impair’d by some
Hereditary Stain, that it must be slow and gentle means that can Act
upon ’em to any purpose, and the taking Pleasure in those Means
must greatly contribute to the Relief they are intended to give.
Tho’ what I have said, may I hope carry weight enough with if, to
convince any that will give themselves leave to enquire into the
Causes of things; yet because Examples have so great a sway with
some I shall add a few instances of the Effects of this Exercise, and I
shall first relate the History of the Cure of Dr. Seth Ward, then
Bishop of Salisbury, which I have Translated from Dr. Sydenham.
Nostrorum quidem in Sacris Antistes, Vir Prudentia, &c. “One of
our Prelates, a Man Eminent for Wisdom and Learning, after that he
had for a long time given himself intemperately to his Studies, and
with the whole Stress of his Mind, which in him is very great, apply’d
himself too much to close Thinking; he fell at length into the
Hypochondriacal Distemper, which continuing a good while, all the
Ferments of his Body were vitiated, and all the Digestions quite
subverted. He had more than once gone thro’ the Chalybeate
Course, He had try’d almost all the Mineral Waters, with Purgings
often repeated; as likewise Antiscorbuticks of all kinds, and
Testaceous Powders, in order to the Sweetning of his Blood. Thus
what with the Disease, and what with the Cure, continu’d for so
many Years together, being just not quite destroy’d, he was seiz’d
with the Colliquative Diarrhœa, which in the Consumption, and other
Chronical Distempers, when all the Digestions are quite spoil’d, is
wont to be the Forerunner of Death: When he at length consulted
me, I presently consider’d, that there was no more place left for
Medicines, since he had taken so many, and those so efficacious to
so little purpose; I advis’d him therefore for the Reasons above-
mention’d, to commit himself wholly to Riding for a Cure, beginning
first with small Stages, such as were most suitable with so weak a
Condition; in so much, that if he had not been of a piercing
Judgment, that could discern the Reason of things, he would not
have been induc’d, to try that sort of Exercise. I desir’d him to
persist daily in that Practice, till in his own Opinion he was well,
encreasing his Stages gradually every day, till he could come to Ride
as many Miles in a Day, as the more Prudent and Moderate
Travellers usually do in one day, when upon the account of their
Affairs, they set out on a long Journey; that he should not be
sollicitous as to what he Eat or Drank, or have any regard to the
Weather; but that he should like a Traveller, take up with whatsoever
he met with. To be short, he set upon this Course gradually,
Augmenting the Distance of his Ridings, till at length he came to ride
twenty, nay thirty Miles a Day and as soon as he perceiv’d himself
better after a few days tryal, he was Animated with the
wonderfulness of the Event, and persever’d in the same Course for
some Months; in which space of Time, he rode several Thousand
Miles, as he told me himself, until he was not only well, but had
acquired a strong and robust Habit of Body.”
And Dr. Sydenham, tells us in the same place, that he Cur’d some
of his Relations of Consumptions, by putting ’em upon Riding much,
of whom he says, that it was altogether out of the Power of
Medicine to help ’em. Cum certò sciam me, vel Medicamentis
quantivis pretii, aut aliâ Methodo, quæcunque demum ea fuerit, nihil
magis iisdem proficere potuisse, quam si multis verbis hortatus
fueram ut recte valerent.
A Clergyman, with whom I am acquainted, living in the Country,
happen’d some years ago, to fall into a lingring Diarrhœa, which
hung upon him some Years, and eluded the force of the best
Medicines of all sorts, and brought him so low, that he had no hopes
of Recovery left; when he was in this Condition, a Physician of the
City advis’d him to try what Riding would do, not a slight tryal or
two, but a close application to it; and his Physician told me himself,
that he charg’d him to keep to a brisk Motion, and gallop as much as
he could, enjoyning withal a very strict Diet, that if the Disease
should be check’d by the Exercise, it might not by any improper
Food, have occasion to break out again. He set upon this Course in
his own Grounds, which are very large and spatious, and by these
means was restor’d to perfect Health again. ’Tis manifest, this Case
was a Colliquative Diarrhœa, which at long run had sunk all the
Digestions and brought Nature into a kind of Universal Gleet, so that
it came to be properly and solely the Object of Exercise; whereas a
New Diarrhœa or Dysentery, when the Humours are Turgid and
Acrimonious, is solely the Object of Medicine, and so far from being
to be Cur’d this way, that nothing would be more absurd than to
attempt it; for ’tis the debilitated Fibres that Exercise restores, and
immediately affects; and whenever Exercise makes an Alteration in
the Fluids, it does so by the frequent Working and Constriction of
the Fibres, which in a fresh Diarrhœa, before the Genuine Acrimony
that occasions it is spent, would be to no purpose.
A Northamptonshire Gentleman, who about two Years and a half
ago, came up to Town, and liv’d in Hogsdon Square, was taken Ill
and sent for me; I found the chief thing he complain’d of was a
Colick, but he had other Symptoms, which made me suspect he was
beginning to be Cachectick. He was averse to much Physick, and
took nothing but the Elixir Salutis, which gave him Ease, but he
continued indispos’d; and seeing he was unwilling to take any more
things, I advis’d him to ride out a little, he having a good Pad of his
own breeding in the Town; he told me, if he rode at all, he would
ride Forty Mile; I reply’d, I thought a much less distance would
serve, and indeed as much as I was for that Exercise, I thought five
or six Miles would have tyr’d him; for he was much weakned, and his
Arms trembled exceedingly, when he lifted ’em up, which was caus’d
purely by the Distemper, for he was not given to drink. However,
after I had started that Advice, he persisted in his Design, and in
two or three days set out and rode I think to Bedford, or
thereabouts, Forty Mile in a Day, which, as he told me afterwards,
made him so stiff, that he was laid up for five or six days; but it
stav’d off all those Cachectick Symptoms that appear’d before, and
in about a Month he return’d well to Town, and with so Florid a
Countenance, that it could be owing to nothing but that Exercise;
and he continu’d so for near a Twelvemonth, when these Symptoms
of an ill Habit of Body, which I clearly discern’d was begun, broke
out again, and continue upon him still. This Example may suffice to
shew, that the Weakness which People commonly alledge for a
Reason against Riding, is no Reason at all; it being, in some Sense,
their Weakness which makes it requisite.
I will here likewise mention an Instance of the good Effects of
Walking, the most common and unpromising Exercise; which I had
from Dr. Baynard. About Twenty Years agoe a certain Gentleman
came from the West-Indies for the sake of our Hot Bath, for the
Cure of a Sort of Palsie, which was occasion’d by the Dry-Gripes of
that Countrey, kind of Colica Pictonum, which if not cur’d in time,
usually terminates in a Palsie; This Gentleman got a Calash to carry
him to the Bath; but it came into his Head, that he would by the way
try to walk as much as he could, and when he found himself tir’d
would get into his Calash; upon this Attempt he found his Limbs
come to him more and more every day; and before he quite reach’d
the Bath, he was perfectly well. And here it is remarkable, that
Bontius, as great an Admirer as he was of fragrant Exoticks, in his
Medicina Indorum, treating of a Sort of Palsie which some of the
Indians call Beriberii, not much unlike to, if not the same with that I
have lately mention’d, he makes it his first Rule in the Cure of that
Distemper, That the Sick shouldn’t give way to it, but set upon
vigorous Exercise, Sed hoc imprimis curandum est, ne (si ullo modo
fieri possit) te lecto affigas decumbendo; sed vel ambulando, vel
equitando, vel simili aliquo motu validiore omni conatu te exerceas.
Dr. Baynard has likewise given me, in the following Letter, an
Account of his Recovery from a Consumption, some Years agoe.

SIR,

I
n Answer to your Request, concerning my Illness, as
near as I can remember, I here give you in short the
Matter of Fact. In the Month of October, Anno 1694, I
was sent for to my old Friend and Acquaintance,
Colonel Warwick Bamfield, at Hardington in
Somersetshire; I being then in London, and had been
very ill all the Summer at Bath; my Case was, as I and
other Physicians thought, a true and confirm’d
Phthisis; for I had an habitual Heat and continual
Cough, Night and Day, a very quick and frequent
Pulse; I spit Blood, and exputed a viscous tough
Matter, sometimes Green, Yellow, Ash-colour’d, and
that in great Quantity. It would sink in Water, and
smell ill and fœtid when cast upon live Coals. My Flesh
 went off, my Stomach decay’d, and I had that Livor
Genarum, as tabid People usually have, Night-Sweats,
&c. so that every Body gave me over as lost and gone;
but through a constant and cool Regimen in Dyet,
chiefly Milk and Apples, sometimes with Honey and
Sugar of Roses, and a distill’d Milk, with the temperate
and cool Pectorals, together with constant Riding Night
and Morning in the Air, and that on the highest Hills
and Places I could find. I thank God, in two Months
time my Hectic abated, Cough ceas’d, Flesh came on,
and my Stomach return’d; and by continuing Riding,
and other Field-Exercises, I recovered to a Miracle:
And this present Year 1705, falling into the same
Distemper, I was cured by the same Means, but chiefly
Riding. This is very well known, and observed by all
that knew me at the Bath; And I wish others, in my
Case and Circumstances, may find the like happy
Success. I am,
Dear Sir,
Your humble Servant,
Edw. Baynard.

I shall here insert a Relation of a very strange Cure by Riding,

which was communicated to me by Dr. Sydenham, the Son of the
Eminent Writer of that Name; who was likewise pleas’d to acquaint
me, That he himself took a Journey into Scotland, that he might get
rid of a Cough, which seem’d to threaten a Consumption, and that
his Journey took it off. But the Cure I am going to mention, was of a
Gentleman who is related to the Dr. and now living in Dorsetshire,
who was brought so low by a Consumption, that there seem’d to be
no Possibility of a Recovery, either by Medicine or Exercise; but it
being too late for the first to do any good, all that was to be done,
was to be expected from the latter, tho’ the Dr. did not think that
Riding would then do. However the poor Gentleman, seeing there
were no other Hopes left, was resolv’d to attempt to ride into the
Country; but was so extremely far gone, that at his setting out of
Town, he was forc’d to be held up upon his Horse by two Porters;
and when he got to Branford or Hounslow, the People of the Inn,
into which he put, were unwilling to receive him, as thinking he
would die there, and they should have the Trouble of a Funeral; but
notwithstanding, he persisted in his Riding by small Journeys to
Exeter, and got so much Strength by the way, that tho’ one Day his
Horse as he was drinking, lay down with him in the Water, and he
was forc’d to ride part of the Day in that wet Condition, yet he got
no Harm by it, but came to the abovemention’d place considerably
recovered; where thinking he had then gain’d his Point, he neglected
to ride any more for some time; but finding himself relapsing, he
remember’d the Caution which Dr. Sydenham had given him at his
setting out, That if he should be so happy as to begin to recover, he
should not leave off Riding too soon, for he would infallibly relapse
and die, if he did not carry on those Measures long enough; so he
betook himself to his Horse again, and rode till he obtain’d a perfect
Recovery.
And I have lately met with a Gentleman of this City, who upon the
Advice of the same Physician, set upon a Course of Riding, and
recovered of a Consumption, in which he was very far advanc’d; and
had try’d a Milk-Diet, and other proper means to no purpose, and all
along spit Blood very much. This Gentleman set out on a Journey to
York, and by Riding close Day after Day for about Ten Weeks; in
which space of time, he rode by Computation a Thousand Mile, he
return’d healthy and well to Town.
It is to be consider’d from these two last Cases, that the Riding
through Variety of Airs in a long journey, is of great Consequence to
Consumptive People, and is much better than riding constantly in
one Air; besides the new Scenes that appear every Day in a long
Journey, create some sort of Amusement in the Minds of Sick
Persons, that is not to be thought altogether contemptible.
 But I have been the more willing to insert these two last Cases,
because they do manifestly justifie that well-grounded Distinction, or
as I think, I may rather call it, Discovery of that Excellent Physician,
whom I have so often cited, viz. That it may be too late to force any
one Secretion to good purpose; and yet it may not be too late to
move all the Secretions of the Body at once, equally and gently by
moderate Riding; which I doubt not will be found, by all who shall
try it, to be a real Truth, and of the greatest Importance, tho’ it
happens to be so difficult of Access to the Understandings of some
People, and so cross to the Expectations of this Age, that there are
Thousands of Naaman’s Opinion to be found, who will choose to
suffer any thing, rather than be convinc’d, that there can be so much
Healing in the Waters of Jordan.
I could give several more Instances of this Nature; I could bring
the Example of a Young Lady, the Heiress of a very Eminent Family,
who ow’d what ease she had under a certain Distemper, chiefly to
frequent Riding on Horseback, and to whom the being put out of
that Method prov’d Fatal, when Her ordinary Physician being out of
the way, another, who mistook her Case, took wrong Measures. But I
only mention this, to shew that it may not be so incongruous a
thing, and altogether without Precedent, to recommend these
Measures in some pressing Circumstances, even to that tender Sex;
who if they knew the surprising Advantages, that may sometimes be
obtain’d by this Exercise, would I doubt not break through the Mode
to come at ’em: No Woman living would bear some of the severer
Hysterick Symptoms, if she knew any way to get rid of ’em; and I
am widely mistaken if some of those Symptoms, do not as it were
point out to us the clearest Indications for these Measures; as in
those Women who have been long distress’d and broke with this
Distemper, we may observe sometimes, that their Spirits are so
scatter’d, or the Nerves so impair’d, that they can’t well bear any
thing that pleases, or displeases very much, without some disorder;
if they happen to desire a Thing very earnestly, they can’t wait a
little while for it, without some visible uneasiness; and tho’ they are
sensible of this, and their Reason is as strong as ever, yet they can’t
command themselves, because the Animal Spirits, the Medium by
which the Rational Soul exerts it self, are so broke and confounded.
The same is likewise indicated by those intense Hysterick Shiverings,
which sometimes tho’ more rarely are to be met with. Now if
Women, who happen to be thus Tormented, believ’d that a Recourse
to this Exercise would relieve ’em, I leave it to any one to judge,
whether they would dispute the putting it in Practice.
What I have said concerning Exercise, I hope may suffice to
convince any Man, that the Power of Healing is not confin’d to the
Drug only, but that this course may come in for a share also, and be
esteem’d upon a Level in due place with common Physick. And if I
should venture to say something greater of it, I should not speak my
own Fondness or Phancy, but the Opinion of one who is known to
have been a very Ample Judge of the Demands of Nature, I mean
Dr. Sydenham, with whose Encomium on this very Exercise, as he
has given it us in his Dissertatio Epistolaris, and his Treatise of the
Gout, I shall conclude. In the first of those abovecited Places he has
these Words. At verò nihil ex omnibus quæ mihi hactenus innotuere,
adeo impensè sanguinem spiritusque fovet firmatque, ac diu
multumque singulis fere diebus Equo Vehi. Cum enim in hac
Gymnasticæ specie impetus fermè omnis in Ventrem inferiorem fiat,
in quo Vasa Excretoria (quotquot fœculentiis, in sanguinis massa
stabulantibus, educendis à naturâ instituuntur) sita sint, quæ tanta
functionum perversio, aliáve Organorum Naturalis impotentia vel
fingi potest, cui tot succussionum millia eodem die ingeminata,
idque, sub dio, opem non attulerint? Cujus Calidum innatum usq;
adeò deferbuerit, ut hoc motu non excitetur & denuo effervescat?
Quæ verò sive præternaturalis substantia, sive succus depravatus in
aliquo harum partium sinu recondi potest, qui non hoc Corporis
Exercitio, vel in statum naturæ consentaneum perducatur, vel
quaquaversùm dissipetur elimineturque? Quid quod sanguis
perpetuo hoc motu indefinenter agitatus ac permistus quasi
renovatur ac vigescit. And in his Treatise of the Gout, he thus
expresses himself with some Exultation. Sanè diu multumq; mecum
reputavi, quod si cui innotesceret Medicamentum, quòd & celare
vellet, æquè efficax in hoc Morbo (scilicet Podagrâ) ut & in Chronicis
plerisque, ac est Equitatio constans & assidua, opes ille exinde
amplissimas facilè accumulare posset.