Dr. Thomas Sydenham (1624-1689): his life and original writings / [edited by] Kenneth Dewhurst.

  • Thomas Sydenham
Date:
1966
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Licence: Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)

Credit: Dr. Thomas Sydenham (1624-1689): his life and original writings / [edited by] Kenneth Dewhurst. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    SMALLPOX, 1669 [Dedicated to the first Earl of Shaftesbury.] Epistle] 1 I know he takes but an ill way of gratitude and makes but ill use of the favour of a great man who ventures to prefix his name to a lie and desires the patronage of a noble person to gain credit to a falsehood and make it passe the more unquestionable in the world. This con sideration alone, had I noe regard to truth, conscience, and the lives of men, would make me very wary how, after the many favours I have received from your lordship and the trust you have reposed in me, I returnd you such an affront to your lordship and made you an ac complice in a cheat of no lesse a concernment than the lives of men, by publishing to the world under your protection the cure of a disease dangerous and fatali to those who shall by my professions be tempted to make use of it. The world knows you are too wise a man easily to be imposed upon and am sure you are too great a man safely to be provoked by such an imposture, and were I not by long and reitratd experience confirmd in the certainty of what I here publish, it would not become me to engage your lordships name in a controversy (for soe it is now become) which if I had beene as forward hot by noise and clamour to maintain, as others by reproaches, false reports, secret and open defamation have been hot to prosecute and decry, had by this time grown into a faction. It fares not always soe well with Truth and Right as not to need a patronage, new truths espetially such as stand in the way of receivd maxims and generali practice, and like trees sprouting up in the midst of the beaten road, which however usefull or pleasant if not fenced whilst they are young and defended till they are growne to [51V] sturdy for common injury, are sure to be tramped on in the bud and to be trod into dust and forgetfulnesse. The doctrine and method I here set forth is something of that nature. All that in their following this disease go the usuali road are apt to spurn it. It will need your lordships protection soe long till the world sees what fruit it bears and if upon triall they find it not safe and sallutary I shall willingly consent your lordship withdraw your protection from it and leave it and the author to that scorne and contempt which he shall deserve who trifles with the lives of men, or out of a perverse and disingenious obstinate persisting in adhesion to an old error or a new mistake, for 1 P.R.O., 30/24/47/2, ff. 50-2. IOI