MEMB. 2. SUBSECT. 1. Symptomes of Head-Melancholy.

IF no Symptomes appear about the stomack, nor the blood be misaffected, and fear and sorrow continue, it is to be thought the Brain it self is troubled, by reason of a melancholy juyce bred in it, or otherways conveyed into it; & that evill juyce is from the distemperature of the part, or left after some inflammation, Thus far Piso. But this is not always true, for blood and hypocondries both are often affected even in head-melancholy.

Hercules de Saxonia differs here from the common current of Writers, putting peculiar signs of head-melancholy, from the sole distemperature of spirits in the Brain, as they are hot, cold, dry, moist, all without matter, from the motion alone, and tenebrosity of spirits; of melancholy which proceeds from humors by adustion, he treats apart, with their several symptomes and cures.

The common signs, if it be by essence in the head, are ruddiness of face, high sanguine complexion, most part rubore saturato, one cals it a blewish, and sometimes full of pimples, with red eyes. Avicenna l. 3. Fen. 2. Tract. 4. c. 18. Duretus and others out of Galen. de affect. l. 3. c. 6. Hercules de Saxonia to this of redness of face, adds heaviness of the head, fixed and hollow eyes.

If it proceed from dryness of the brain, then their heads will be light, vertiginous, and they most apt to wake, & to continue whole moneths together without sleep. Few excrements in their eyes and nostrils, and often bald by reason of excess of drynes, Montaltus adds c. 17. If it proceed from moisture; dulness, drowziness, headache follows; and as Salust. Salvianus, c. 1. l. 2. out of his own experience found, Epileptical, with a multitude of humors in the head. They are very bashfull, ruddy, apt to blush, and to be red upon all occasions, præsertim si metus accesserit.

But the chiefest symptome to discern this species, as I have said, is this, that there be no notable signs in the stomack, Hypocondries, or elswhere, digna, as Montaltus terms them, or of greater note, because oftentimes the passions of the stomack concur with it. Wind is common to all three species, and is not excluded, only that of the Hypocondries is more windy then the rest, saith Hollerius. Ætius tetrab. l. 2. se. 2. c. 9. & 10. maintains the same, if there be more signs, and more evident in the head then elswhere, the Brain is primarily affected, & prescribes head-melancholy to be cured by meats amongst the rest, void of wind, & good juyce, not excluding wind, or corrupt blood, even in head-melancholy it self: but these species are often confounded, & so are their symptomes, as I have already proved.

The symptomes of the minde are superfluous and continuall cogitations; for when the head is heated, it scorcheth the blood, and from thence proceed melancholy fumes, which trouble the minde, Avicenna. They are very cholerick, and soon hot, solitary, sad, often silent, watchfull, discontent, Montaltus cap. 24. If any thing trouble them, they cannot sleep, but fret themselves still, till another object mitigate, or time wear it out.

They have grievous passions, and immoderate perturbations of the mind, fear, sorrow, &c. yet not so continuate, but that they are sometimes merry, apt to profuse laughter, which is more to be wondred at, and that by the authority of Galen himself, by a reason of mixture of blood, prærubri jocosis delectantur & irrisores plerumque sunt, if they be ruddy, they are delighted in jests, and oftentimes scoffers themselves, conceipted; and as Rhodericus à Vega comments on that place of Galen, merry, witty, of a pleasant disposition, and yet grievously melancholy anon after: omnia discunt sine doctore, saith Areteus, they learn without a teacher:

and as Laurentius supposeth, those ferall passions and Symptomes of such as think themselves glass, pitchers, feathers, &c. speak strange languages, proceed a calore cerebri (if it be in excess) from the brains distempered heat.