The content of this book has been preserved in its original form as far
as possible. However, because some of the scanned text was indistinct
and difficult to interpret, the transcription is a ‘best guess’ in
some places. The text has many anomalies with regard to punctuation,
capitalisation and use of italics. The Middle English language has
archaic uses of ‘u’ ‘v’ ‘i’ and ‘j’ as well as the long ‘s’ (replaced
with a normal ‘s’ in this transcription). In keeping with the era, the
spelling is non-standard and uses space-saving contractions (equivalent
to present-day use of an apostrophe to indicate omitted letters).
Some of the marks denoting a contraction were indistinct, but in this
transcription all are represented by a tilde (~) above the word.
The text contains many sidenotes and footnotes, some of which were
impossible to differentiate with certainty. Three footnotes (19, 20,
52) lacked identifiable anchor markers within the text, so markers have
been inserted at ‘best guess’ locations and the respective footnotes
identified with two asterisks. In this plain text version, italic text
is denoted by _underscores_ and superscripted text is preceded by a
caret (^). Sidenotes precede the relevant paragraphs, and footnotes
follow the paragraphs. A short table of contents (that was not present
in the original) has been added to the transcription to assist readers.
A BRIEFE DISCOVRSE
OF A DISEASE
_CALLED THE_
Suffocation of the
_Mother_.
Written vppon occasion which
hath beene of late taken thereby, to suspect possession
of an euill spirit, or some such like
supernaturall power.
_Wherein is declared that diuers strange_
actions and passions of the body of man, which in
_the common opinion, are imputed to the Diuell,
haue their true naturall causes, and do
accompanie this disease_.
By EDVVARD IORDEN
_Doctor in Physicke_.
[Illustration]
LONDON.
Printed by _Iohn Windet_, dwelling at the Signe of
_the Crosse Keyes at Powles Wharfe_. 1603.
[Illustration:
MVSEVM
BRITAN
NICVM
]