paying a compliment to our general conduct, complains of our have ing [M. REV. November laft, p. 363.] produced before our Readers, who are not all profeffed naturalifts, and are of various ages, and of both fexes, that deteftable subject,' as he calls it, of unnatural mixtures; the managers of which he treats as guilty of impiety, and us of indecency, in recording what fhould never have feen the light.' We thank our Correfpondent for his compliments, and refpect his good intentions; but we never yet heard the breeders of mules, com. monly fo called, treated as impious, or as violating the laws of nature, for endeavouring to produce a ufeful clafs of animals: and if nature likewife favours the eccentric amours of wolves and dogs, or of goldfinches and Canary birds, by the production of an offspring, we cannot perceive with what juftice their intermixture can be called unnatural. As to the fuppofed indecency, imputed to us by our too prudish Correfpondent, he fhould confider that, as our work is mifcellaneous, and as it comprehends every fcience and branch of knowledge, it is our duty to convey curious or useful information on every fubject; even on fuch as midwifery, the venereal difeafe, &c. It is true, that as our Readers are likewife mifcellaneous, there is a certain manner, a decorum, to be obferved in the conveying this information; but we are not confcious that we have violated fuch decorum in the prefent inftance. The pamphlet entitled "A Serious Anfwer, &c. printed in 1782 (but which never before came to our knowledge), was received by the Editor too late for a proper notice in this month's Review. ERRATA in the Review for laft Month. Page 314, 1. 11, from the bottom, as is omitted. 318, par. 1, 1.5, del. fill, as it first occurs in the line. 338, 1. 9, for Reformation,' r. Reftoration. 340, 1. 3, for their,' r. these. 341, about the middle, for Oxymyron,' r. Oxymoron. 355, Art. 18, 1. 7, r. conftantly, 368, par. 3, 1. 1, for which,' r. of. 372, 1. 4, from the bottom, for the example,' r, the rare example. -- 374, 1. 6, for are the fartheft,' r. were the fartheft, &c. Ibid. 1. 6, from the bottom, for 'and ought,' r. and swhich ought. 375, 1. ult. remove the comma from Christian, and put it after • divine.' - 376, Art, 66, in the title, for aneanli, r. aneauti. ART. I. An Hiftorical Sketch of Medicine and Surgery, from their Origin to the present Time; and of the principal Authors, Difcoveries, Improvements, Imperfections, and Errors. By W. Black, M. D. 8vo. 5s. Boards. Johnfon. 1782. THE HE difficulty of writing a history of Medicine cannot proceed from the want of materials, or of books treating of the art. Aftruc, as the Author obferves, writing at a time when the venereal disease had been known in Europe only about 256 years, was enabled to form a lift of above five hundred treatiles on that fingle diftemper. Nay, Baron Haller's catalogue of medical and chirurgical writers, notwithstanding numerous omiffions, amounts to more than thirty thousand names, or titles, of authors, or their works; much the greater part of which have been the produce of the laft 300 years. The two principal hiftories of this art, that have been compiled from this immense mass of materials, are thofe of M. le Clerc, and Dr. Friend. In the former, the medical hiftory, though occupying near 800 pages in 4to (exclusive of an Appendix, or an Effay towards a Continuation, annexed to it), is brought down no lower than the year 200 after Chrift, or the time of Galen. In Dr. Friend's work, which is a profeffed continuation of the former capital and well executed performance, the history is brought down to the beginning of the 16th century, and occupies two volumes in 8vo. The prefent delineation, which comprehends the whole hiftory of medicine and furgery, and of all their branches, as well as of thofe parts of natural and experimental philosophy that are connected with them, is very properly entitled by the Author a Sketch as a volume of little more than 300 pages cannot poffibly be fupposed to contain more than the mere outlines, or REV. June, 1783. skeleton, I i skeleton, of the hiftory of this art, from its origin to the prefent times. With respect to the diftribution of the matter-this historical compendium, brought down to near the middle of the 15th century, occupies nearly one half of this volume: fo that the remaining hiftorical narrative relating to the fubfequent and more interesting period of about 300 years, is crowded and compreffed into the comparatively few remaining pages of the work. We pay the Author no great compliment when we ob'ferve, that the execution of it is more to be commended than the plan; or the attempt to give a fatisfactory account of the numerous and important medical difcoveries and improvements of the laft three centuries, within the narrow bounds of about 170 pages; where, in his rapid courfe through this bufy period, he frequently, and indeed neceffarily, to ufe his own expreffion, ⚫ degenerates into a mere nomenclator,' and is obliged frequently to give us only a mere lift of the fubjects of his work, or of the titles of their performances. In other parts of this fuperficial compendium,' as the Author juftly calls it, not quite two pages are allotted to Sydenham, and a fingle page only to the great Harvey. The entire hiftory of chemistry and phyfics, from the beginning of the 16th century to the present time, is compreffed into 14 pages; and that of botany into fix. The Author however is fo good an economift of the little space which his plan admits for matters purely hiftorical, as to find room for various incidental reflections on the fubjects that pafs in review before him. We shall notice a few detached paffages as fpecimens of the work. He makes the following obfervations, when he speaks of the London College of Phyficians. Before the eftablifhment of this college, in the time of Henry VIII. the Bishop of London, and the Dean of St. Paul's, poffeffed the privilege of vending licences or diplomas to the laity, clergy, and empirics, to exercise the profeffions of phyfic and furgery within the city and fuburbs; and the Bishops of different diocefes over the kingdom poffeffed, or at least ufurped, a fimilar power. By fome monkifh abuse,' fays the Author of the above medical inftitution, the honours and privileges of the London college are monopolized by a very small club of phyficians, calling themfelves Fellows, whofe only merit, or pretenfions to fuperiority, confifts in having ftudied medicine at Oxford or Cambridge. I will not, with Dr. Mandeville, fay, that a man may as well learn to be a Turkey merchant, as to be a physician, at either of the English univerfities. I fee no reafon why, under new and proper regulations, medicine might not be as wel taught there as at Leyden or Edinburgh: but that has not hitherto been the cafe. On the other hand, I can fee no plaufible or public pretence for excluding those who have really tudied medicine as many years, at other univerfities, as any of the the Fellows of the college, from an equal participation, after the ufual examination, of all the privileges of the latter. Inftead of this, what is called a Licentiate of the London College of Physicians (and there are fome of that defcription now alive, who were, probably, born at the beginning of the prefent century), after examination and approbation by a few of the Fellows, pays down fifty pounds, in return for which, he receives a scrap of parchment, authorifing him to practife medicine in London and its fuburbs, but is admitted to no other privilege whatsoever of the college: nor can I discover, with what right or propriety, a mere Licentiate affumes to himself the empty title of Member of the College of Phyficians; within whofe walls, after examination, he is never allowed to enter. In fact, were the College to infift upon the right of examining every physician, who practifes in London, they muft either examine him as a Fellow, or be filent.' This particular abufe is here properly noticed; and the Author afterwards juftly, though not with fufficient minuteness criticises the general medical establishment in this country. We fhall only particularly notice, and add an obfervation or two of our own, on what he fays refpecting the manner in which phyficians and apothecaries are paid for their fervices. He juftly remarks, that, as medicine is now practifed in this ifland, fick perfons and apothecaries would both be benefited by the former paying a reasonable fum for the apothecaries vifits, instead of forcing him to lay all his expences upon the number and quantity of prefcriptions. After propofing what we judge to be an impracticable scheme, he obferves, that phyficians might render their skill of more general ufe, and oftener reforted to, by. diminishing, with unanimous confent, their ufual fees to a half, or even a fourth; and ftill more by preparing and compounding the medicines which they prefcribe, and for which they may find examples in the perfon of Hippocrates, and of the prefent phyficians of North America:' Nothing furely can equal in abfurdity our conduct in this particular. To the phyfician a large fee is given, which few can afford to pay, and ftill fewer to repeat, for his medical fkill, exerted perhaps for half an hour, in the confideration of the cafe of a patient, whom, particularly in the country, he never faw before, either fick or well, nor may ever fee again: while the apothecary is not paid for his skill, and neceffarily frequent attendance, but in a manner the moft debafing to him, and frequently injurious to the patient:-that is, by a profit on the fum total of drugs fwallowed by the patient, at his infligation:-this profit too, feemingly moft exorbitant, if the drugs be viewed in the light of articles of traffic; and which yet muft, in many cafes, be totally inadequate to his fervices, when he Ii 2 con confcientiously and intelligently dispenses no more than are ne› ceffary. On the other hand, the lefs confcientious practitioner, or the medical fhopkeeper, has it in his power, as Pitt, with feverity, but not without humour, long ago expreffed it, to break the patient's heart and fubftance with cordials, and by tricks of fubdividing into little parcels ;' and yet the most honest apothecary, according to the prefent abfurd fyftem, muft in many inftances, nay in all, except in works of charity, do this, or fomething like this,-or ftarve. But even in thofe cafes, where an abundance of remedies, or repeteturs, is really neceffary, how greatly muft the patient's faith in their efficacy, and confequently his willingness to perfift in the regimen, be diminished (unles He has indeed a very high opinion of the honefty of the dif penfer) by the doubts, which will naturally occur, for whose benefit he is thus inceffantly labouring-whether that of himself, or that of the medical tradefman conftantly at his elbow, and preffing him to take off his wares. The Author, we apprehend, is miftaken in saying that Dr. Nooth lately publifhed a new mode of preferving water on board fhips at fea, from being corrupted; which was by adding fome quicklime to each cafk, and afterwards by a particular apparatus to throw fome fixed air into the veffel, fo as to precipitate the lime previous to ufe.'-At leaft Mr. Henry published fuch a propofal; as may be seen in our Review for November 1781. Speaking of the imitation of mineral waters the Author briefly obferves, that Dr. Prieftley directs how to imitate the Pyrmont, and Bergman, of Sweden, the hot waters: and he adds, whether fuch artificial imitations poffefs the full medicinal powers of the natural fpring, is not fo well afcertained. When phyficians obferved that lemons and oranges cured the fcurvy, they concluded, from analogy, that the fame effect must be produced by other acids; but after trying vinegar, and the ftrongéft mineral acids diluted, they found them ineffectual, and that the natural fruit was endowed with fome latent virtue which they could not discover nor counterfeit. Medicated springs, in like manner, feem impregnated with a fubtile fpirit, which evades the chemical torture, in their refolution of the feparate ingredients.' Surely the Author cannot be ignorant that the fubtile fpirit," or rather fpirits, with which medicated fprings feem impreg nated,' have not totally evaded the chemical torture.' Two of the capital ones, at leaft, have certainly been detected. He cannot but know, that Dr. Brownrig firft expelled and caught • Treatife on the Frauds of Phyfic. олс |