DEP/DUA/1/33/07 (Normalised version)

Daniel Frazer

1783

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N4^th October 30^th 1783.

Daniel Frazer. at 25 a sailor between twelve & one o’Clock every third day he is attacked with coldness & shivering which continues for about an hour & is then succeeded by heat & soon after by a profuse sweating which continues till past eight o’Clock when he returns to his usual health.

He complains also of a constant diarrhoea. He has about twelve stools in 24 hours. They are sometimes mixed with blood & at other times very slimy. He has considerable tenesmus & also much pain in passing his stools.

Pulse 104 but regular & rather weak. Tongue white, is rather thirsty. Appetite good sleeps very ill & complains much of general weakness. He has in some degree lost the power of moving his right hand His thumb & forefinger are much benumbed. But there is a preternatural heat in his whole hand & he retains the feeling pretty well excepting in his thumb & forefinger. The intermittent & looseness commenced seven months ago when he was at Kingston in Jamaica. It at first observed the quotidian period & continued in the same way till he arrived at Plymouth in England between two & three months ago, when he had a perfect intermission from the fit for about ten days. It then again recurred & has observed the tertian period. In this way it continued to recur till a fortnight afterwards, during which time he had left Plymouth & had sailed for Ireland. When he arrived in Ireland he had as above a perfect intermission for about 8 days. It recurred however a second time & assumed the quartan type, since which it has continued regularly to attack him & has observed the same type. But he thinks the fits are more severe since his arrival in Scotland which is about 12 days ago.

The Diarrhoea has been constant since its commencement & he observes that it has been much diminished when he is under the fit, & that it has been uniformly more severe during the time of the intermission of the ague.

Previous to the attack of the ague in Jamaica the temperature of the weather was very changeable. There were constant vicissitudes from heat to cold attended with very heavy rains.

A great number of sailors in the same ship were also affected with ague & looseness. The Crews of the other ships in the same fleet were similarly affected. He has used no medicines.

Cap. Pulv. Ipecac Ji pro. Emet. nec non habeat Pulv. Cort. Peruv. [B]. ℥ i. Cap. ℥I om. h. S. Pil. Theb. gr om. m