CHAP. 16.—REMEDIES DERIVED FROM THE SEXUAL CONGRESS.

Democritus spoke in condemnation of the sexual congress, as[1] being merely an act through which one human being springs from another; and really, by Hercules! the more rarely it is used the better. Still however, athletes, we find, when they become dull and heavy, are re-established by it: the voice, too, is restored by it, when from being perfectly clear, it has degenerated into hoarseness. The congress of the sexes is a cure also for pains in the loins, dimness of the eyesight,[2] alienation of the mental difficulties, and melancholy.

1. "Ut in quâ homo alius exsiliret ex homine." The true meaning of this it seems impossible, with certainty, to ascertain: though a more indelicate one than that given might be easily suggested.

2. On the contrary, some authorities say that it is apt to cause dimness of sight.