The febrile symptoms attending cow-pox are sometimes well marked ; more frequently they are slight, and some times scarcely discernible.
Two important questions are involved in this subject. First, is the cow-pox perfectly safe ? and, second, Does it afford full security against smallpox? Its safety might almost he presumed from its general mildness, w hen compared to the inoculated small-pox. The latter has much fever, and is acknowledged to be some times fatal. A slight fretfulness or uneasiness for 2• hours, or less, is all the fever that generally attends inoculated cow-pox ; culd of this none have died. Deaths may hap pen from other causes, while the cow-pox runs its course ; but even this is an infrequent occurrence ; and some have indulged fancy so much, as to think it probable that the cow-pox increased for that short period the average chance of human life. and thus was not only no disease, but an ad ditional contirtner of the constitution against every con tinsel cy.
But, though never fatal, the cow-pox may be supposed capable of generating other diseases, either immediately, or on some future occasion, or of making the system ob noxious to sonic diseases in a more severe and dangerous form than they would otherwise assume. Some intem perate enemies of cow-pox endeavoured to explode it, by describing it as capable of producing that loathsome cu taneous affection, the itch ; and, that they might the more fully substantiate their point, added, that this itch was cured by the same means as the common psora. This last observation evidently took away the whole force of their objection. Who would hesitate to employ the cow-pox, though succeeded by an itch which required a few rub bings with sulphur ointment for its removal, in order to avoid the small pox—a disease which combines so much greater loathsomeness with imminent danger of death, and of hideous permanent deformities ? Cases of this sort have certainly occur, ed. The practitioner has told the parents that the eruption had no connection with the cowpox, that the children had caught the itch, and ought to be treated for that complaint. The parents have taken offence at
such an imputation, and remained unshaken in their opinion that the eruption was generated by the cow-pox ; and un happily this contest has produced a remissness in the use of remedies, widen ended in a permanent liableness to cutaneous eruptions. \Ve apprehend that such incon veniences be avoided, if practitioners would admit the occasional existence of such a sequela ; and, witilout offending the delicacy of a parent, pre.cribe, upon this principle, the same remedies which are found effectual in the disorder now mentioned.
The cow-pox has been accused of giving origin to the symptoms of scrophula. This accusation we believe to be wholly unfounded. Some have even maintained that it powerfully corrects the scrophulous diathesis, and the one doctrine appeals at least fully as well supported as the other.
It has been remarked by some, that, of late years, the measles have been more dangerous and fatal than in former times ; and this circumstance has been supposed not an un likely consequence of the practice of the new inoculation. Till we sec further proof, we cannot acquiesce in this sus picion. Investigations of such laws of disease, however, are important. Accurate comparative observations should be made on the varieties of subjects seized with measles, before we admit any such conjecture to possess the least plausibility. The generally increased mortality of mea sles is in itself not well established. It often appeared in the form of a very fatal epidemic before vaccination was discovered; and it is well known that in this respect the epidemics of different years, and different series of years, differ materially from one another. We have no better reason for suspecting the cow-pox of exposing the system to any disadvantages in compensation of the protection which it affords, than for attaching such an imputation to any article of diet or of medicine which we are in the daily habit of employing.