This consists in the impact against the body of a column of water from a height. No greater height than ten feet, and a column not larger than four inches, will be proper or safe under any circumstances. A hose attached to a water-pipe, the supply being regulated by a stopcock, is a convenient mode of using the douche. In domestic practice a large pitcher or water-bucket, if provided with a suitable spout, may be utilized for this purpose. The douche may be either cold, tepid, or hot; it may have a direction descending, ascending, vertical, horizontal, or oblique; and the effect may be regulated by the height from which the water is projected, the size of the stream, and the force with which it is thrown against the part. As the effect of the douche is very great when the water is cold, when the volume of the stream is large, and when it is thrown with force, it is obvious that care must be used in directing it against the head, the chest, and the abdomen. As a rule, it is too violent a measure to be employed in weak and susceptible subjects about the trunk, but it may be used freely, of course, on the extremities.