Carrying heavy burdens is generally the effect of mere laziness, which prompts people to do at once what should be done at twice. Sometimes it proceeds from vanity or emulation. Hence it is, that the strongest men are most commonly hurt by heavy burdens, hard labour, or feats of activity. It is rare to find one who boasts of his strength without a rupture, a spitting of blood, or some other disease, which he reaps as the fruit of his folly. One would imagine, the daily instances we have, of the fatal effects of carrying great weights, running, wrestling, and the like, would be sufficient to prevent such practices. There are indeed some employments which necessarily require a great exertion of strength, as porters, blacksmiths, carpenters, &c. None ought to follow these but men of strong body; and they should never exert their strength to the utmost, nor work too long. When the muscles are violently strained, frequent rest is necessary, in order that they may recover their tone; without this, the strength and constitution will soon be worn out, and a premature old age be induced. The erysipelas, or St. Anthony’s fire, is a disease very incident to the laborious. It is occasioned by whatever gives a sudden check to the perspiration, as drinking cold water when the body is warm, wet feet, keeping on wet clothes, sitting or lying on the damp ground, &c. It is impossible for those who labour without doors always to guard against these inconveniences; but it is known from experience, that their ill consequences might often be prevented by proper care. The iliac passion, the cholic, and other complaints of the bowels, are often occasioned by the same causes as the erysipelas; but they may likewise proceed from flatulent and indigestible food. Labourers generally eat unfermented bread, made of peas, beans, rye, and other windy ingredients. They also devour great quantities of unripe fruits, baked, stewed, or raw, with various kinds of roots and herbs, upon which they often drink sour milk, stale small beer, or the like. Such a mixture cannot fail to fill the bowels with wind, and occasion diseases of those parts. Inflammations, whitloes, and other diseases of the extremities, are likewise common among those who labour without doors. These diseases are often attributed to venom, or some kind of poison; but they generally proceed either from sudden heat after cold, or the contrary. When labourers, milk-maids, &c. come from the field, cold or wet, they run to the fire, and often plunge their hands in warm water, by which means the blood and other humours in those parts are suddenly expanded, and, the vessels not yielding so quickly, a strangulation happens, and an inflammation or a mortification ensues.