Were I not an historicist who knows tone shold always be contextalized, my mid-morning coffee and this passage from F. Savary Pearce's "A Clinical Report on the se of Testiclar Flid Injections" (1896) wold've been the death of my keyboard:
B.S. injections* made him feel stronger and checked his rolling gait. At the end of twelve days, the marked beneficial action obtained. At this time a violent syphilitic explosion occurred and a roseolar rash appeared with absolutely complete alopecia.
* "B.S. injection" both totally does and most certainly does not mean what you think it does.
I'm guessing it stands for blueberry soda. Am I close?
Posted by: Mike S | Saturday, 23 September 2006 at 08:44 PM