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DISEASES OF THE GENERATIVE SYSTEM. 413
tion. Thus, if a man have commerce with a woman
who has a bad leucorrhoea, or in some cases, during
the menstrual period, the result will be a poisoning and
inflammation of the urethra, followed by first a mucous
and then a purulent discharge. If the patient is very
healthy, he may not take the infection, or may quickly
throw it off. But, if his#system is full of bad matter, it
will be drawn to the diseased surface,' keep up, and in
crease the discharge. There even may arise indolent
buboes, from the poisoning of the inguinal glands by the
matter coming to the part affected, or which is passing
off into the system. If any of this matter comes in
contact with the inside of the eyelids, it may produce a
gonorrhoeal ophthalmia.
The color of the matter
which comes from the urethra is greenish, and this is
considered diagnostic of the genuine disease.
In women, this affection exists both in the urethra
and the vagina.
It is a disease, filthy and troublesome, and even dan
gerous in some of its results. When long kept up it
causes thickening of the membrane in the male ure
thra, and consequent stricture, or stoppage of the
urine. It is therefore advisable that we adopt at once
the means of cure : and especially that we do not tam
per with the remedies so much in vogue; for in this,
as in many cases, the disease often has the credit of
consequences that belong to the treatment.
A strict diet, bathing the whole body, drinking plen
tifully of soft water, eating watery fruits, melons, etc.,
and bathing the parts in tepid water, taking tepid sitz-
baths, and wrapping them in wet cloths, will cure. I
say tepid water, because the action of cold would