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An Extract of a Letter
Sir,
I Thank you for yours, which by reason of my absence came not to my hands till this day. Elizabeth Travers dyed on Thursday night, October 21. The next morning I sent for a Chirurgion, and some others to be present at the opening, and taking off of her Breasts; though we only took off one, viz. the biggest, which was the left, and having weighed it, we found it of Sixty four pounds weight. Upon the opening of it, (which we made in several places) we could find neither Water, nor Cancerous humors, nor any thing vitious, more than the prodigious bigness; and the Tubuli and Parenchymous flesh were purely white and solid, and no other than what we see in the soundest Breasts of Women, or the belt Udders of other Animals. She had lost her stomach and rest severall weeks before, and made great complaints of her Breasts from their great distention; and her whole Body was exceedingly emaciated. I have sent you inclosed one measure, which was the Breadth of her two Breasts (as she was layd out on a Table being dead;) I mean, from the further end of the one to the other; which you'l find three foot two Inches and an halfe; and another measure, shewing the Circumference of the Breasts long-wise, viz. four foot, and near four inches; and a third, giving the Circumference of the Breadth, viz. three foot four inches and an halfe.
The right Breast we took not off, but we guess, it weighed fourty pounds. I did some weeks since begin a Salivation with her, which lessen'd her Breasts in circumference some inches; but she proving not conformable, I durst not proceed to keep up the flux, but was forc'd to desist. But she was wonderfully revived afterwards for some time. She being weary of that course, I then caused a Caustic to be applyed; upon which the Eschar falling off, yet nothing issued out of the Breast.Then
