A man of mercenary principles would, no doubt, keep it a secret; but a liberal mind is above such interested procedures. To promote the good of society is the duty of all its members; besides, what an exquisite pleasure it is for a benevolent heart to lessen, as much as possible, the number of those unfortunate victims, who, without hope of relief, labour under the many evils to which human nature is subject. Thus, not satisfied with relieving the patients who apply to me, I wish I could relieve many more by your hands. Happy, if in this respect, the fruit of my labour is not lost! GENTLEMEN, Your most obedient humble Servant, J. P. MARAT. _Church Street, Soho. Nov. 21. 1775._ AN ESSAY ON GLEETS, &c. I enter in the subject without any preamble. A gleet, by the want of skill in those who undertake to cure venereal diseases, is but too often the sad consequence[8] of a virulent gonorrhœa. The running is ever more or less coloured, often of a green tint, more often of a pale yellow, and sometimes of a dark brown, a little blood being mixed with it. The matter discharged comes from the ulcerated glands of the internal tunic of the urethra: but when the running suddenly increases, it always proceeds, or from an inflammation of the muscular tunic, as happens after too freely enjoying the bottle and the company of women, or from a rarefaction of the fluids[9], caused by the expansion of the internal air; as happens in spring and autumn, two seasons where the atmosphere, being less elastic, does not oppose so great a resistance to the action of the internal air. Formerly the running was attributed to a relaxation of the affected parts, an opinion still in credit among the ignorant; but by introducing a probe in the urethra, every one may be convinced that it is wholly caused by ulcers. _Daran_, who first made this discovery, attempted to cure gleets by suppurative bougies. His method was soon adopted as the most rational, and ever since followed by the best practitioners. Undoubtedly it proved successful in many cases; but in many others proved abortive, even in the hands of _Daran_ himself. Long I had not seen bougies employed for curing gleets, without finding them often ineffectual: however, as it was not my province to treat venereal diseases, this method had not engaged my attention. Mere chance afterwards obliged me to turn my thoughts to the subject, as I shall now relate with the reader’s permission.