Carlisle Spedding was principal colliery steward to the Lowther family from about 1730 until his death in 1755. He was responsible for their mining interests, centred on Whitehaven in West Cumberland. His work frequently took him underground, where he was exposed to the inflammable gases found in mines. Ventilation methods were still primitive, and as a result of his exposure Spedding was frequently ill. A case history of his indisposition in 1738 has survived. This was the work of the Leyden-trained chemist and physician, Dr. William Brownrigg, and it reveals some of the symptoms encountered and remedies proposed for one particularly severe bout of illness.