This poison, the doctor observes, may convey itself into living bodies by more ways than one; for example, through the pores of the skin, along with the breath we draw, along with our food of any kind, &c. And to prove that dead bodies must lie a long time buried, in order to give time to the corrupted particles with which the surrounding earth is impregnated, to dissipate themselves, or to be entirely converted into the first elements of matter, he mentions, first, an interment of several bodies in a church-yard of Challons, in the year 1724, which, though they had been four years under ground, were nevertheless very far from being near consumed, and which still emitted such an infectious stench, that the people could hardly bear it, notwithstanding the great quantity of incense they kept burning. Secondly, he mentions the report of several grave-diggers, all of whom declared, from experience, that it was dangerous to open tombs in less than four years; and that, by moisture or rain, dead bodies were kept from being consumed. And, Thirdly, he mentions a fact, of which he himself was a witness. A grave-digger, in digging a grave, shewed him the skeletons of three bodies which had been buried one above another, every one of which had some of the hair and some of the entrails remaining, and something of a fleshy substance upon the bones, though the lowermost had been twenty, the second eleven, and the third eight years under ground. In the second part, the doctor proposes the methods he thinks most proper for guarding those who are exposed to the bad air of interments, from this almost inevitable contagion. He advises the putting them off as long as possible, as being the most certain: but when extreme necessity will admit of no delay, he proposes these precautions: The first, and most essential, consists in making a number of small trenches in the church-yard, then filling them with unslacked lime, and taking care to pour upon it a large quantity of water; for the water being impregnated with the ignious, and absorbing particles of the lime, penetrates the earth, and the remains of the interred bodies, and thereby destroys, in whole, or in part, the corrupting impurities. This operation he advises to renew, more or less, often, in proportion to the number and condition of the bodies buried in the ground. The second precaution is, to chuse for the removal the coldest time of the year, and when the north winds prevail most; and the third, is to make great fires round the church-yard, to fire cannon, or some other instrument charged with fulminating powder, at least three or four times a day. These last methods, says he, have the property of correcting, and effectually destroying the putrid exhalations with which the air may still remain impregnated, and of accelerating the currents of air, &c.