Galen has treated of this subject at great length in the Fifth Book of the ‘Meth. Med.’ When blood is discharged from a wounded artery, he directs us to apply a finger to the orifice of the vessel firmly, yet so as not to occasion pain, and thus a thrombus will be formed that will stop the flow of blood. When the vessel is deep-seated he advises us to examine accurately into its situation and size, and to ascertain whether it be an artery or vein; after which it is to be seized with a hook and twisted moderately. If the flow of blood is not stopped thereby, he recommends us, if the vessel is a vein, to endeavour to restrain it without a ligature by means of styptics, or things of an obstruent nature, such as roasted rosin, the fine down of wheaten flour, gypsum, and the like. But if the vessel is an artery, he says, one of two things must be done,—either a ligature must be applied to it, or it must be cut across. He adds, we are even obliged sometimes to apply a ligature to large veins and cut them across. From this extract of Galen’s practice, it will be readily perceived how much our author is indebted to him. He makes mention of the ligature in many other parts of his works. He also recommends the actual cautery. To stop bleeding, Oribasius directs, in the first place, cooling and astringent applications to be used, and if these do not succeed, caustics, such as misy, chalcitis, copperas, or the actual cautery. Upon the whole, his account of hemorrhage is nearly the same as our author’s, only he says nothing of the ligature. Aëtius treats of this subject in the same terms as Galen, recommending the ligature under the circumstances mentioned by him. Some of his styptics are powerful escharotics and astringents, such as copperas, chalcitis, alum, galls, quicklime, rosin, and frankincense. He informs us that Ammonius, the famous Alexandrian lithomist, used a composition of arsenic, sandarach, chalcitis, and quicklime. Actuarius recommends a composition containing burnt copper, chalcitis, galls, frankincense, &c. Palladius, in his Commentary on the ‘Epidemics’ of Hippocrates, treating of hemorrhage says, we often stop the bleeding by applying a ligature to the divided vessel. Albucasis mentions four methods of stopping the discharge of blood from an artery: 1, by the cautery; 2, by dividing the artery across; 3, by using the ligature; 4, by styptics applied upon a bolster or compress, and tightly bandaged. Averrhoes recommends to stop bleeding by styptics, the cautery, or the ligature. He says distinctly, that when the bleeding cannot be stopped, the artery or vein is to be secured with a thread.