A supplement to the first part of Medical commentaries / by Dr. Hunter.

  • William Hunter
Date:
1764
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: A supplement to the first part of Medical commentaries / by Dr. Hunter. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    (p. 145) he communicated his other new idea? If he had, they would not have forgotten fo curious an opinion; nor would they have refufed him the judice of giving their tedimony to truth. “ It had always been his “ opinion but, it feems, he never mentioned it to any mortal. Can we account for fuch cautious, apprehenfve refervednefs, to ufe his own words, in a gentleman, who is now fo very communicative; who writes a book every year for the indrudlion of the profefiion, and advertifes the contents of all his works, almod every day, in every public paper ? His having brought no teflimony mud then appear as a flrong pre- fumptive proof againfl him. Let us next fee, what degree of probability he has been able to draw from the circumdances of the cafe. Now let us remember the cafe ; it is allowed by hiinfelf to be thus : He pub- lifhed a curious dodlrine in forgery ; viz. that the defcent of the defies from the loins into the Scrotum is the mod common caufe of Hernice, as | his own, after B. Haller’s book, which contained that dodlrine, had I been even tranflated into Englifh ; yet he infills flill, that the dodlrine was his own ; that it had always been his opinion ; and that he had not feen or heard of the Baron’s book (which was frequently advertifed in i our news-papers) till about a year afterwards. That I may do all judice 1 to the arguments brought in proof of this extraordinary and improbable fadt, I fhall relate the whole in his own words, and interfperfe fome re¬ marks, that the reader may the better feel the force of thefe argu¬ ments. “ But, (p. 149) fetting afide whatever pretenfion I may have to be €t believed upon my bare aflertion, is it probable that if I had flolen ** my opinion from the Baron’s book, that I fhould have given fo fhort, “ fo imperfedl, and, indeed, fo erroneous an account of what he has “ fo fully explained, or, at lead, fo clearly pointed out?” Whoever will take the trouble of comparing the pafiages quoted from the Baron and from Mr. Pott will fee that, if Mr. P. did deal at all, he dole the whole fobdance; and that no man could venture upon a more lite¬ ral tranflation, with any chance of concealing the plagiarifm. The name, and other little circumdances, for good reafons, were left out; and B. Haller might perhaps fay. Hie quidem non imam aliquant aut al¬ teram a nobis, fed totam ad fe noftram de herniis congenitis obfervationem tranjlulit. Atque, ut reliqui fires, earum rerum> quas ceperunt> figna commutant: Jic ille, ut fententiis nofris pro fuis literetur, nomina, tanquam ■f Medical Commentaries, parti, p* 73 & 74»- rerum
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