The principles and practice of medicine : founded on the most extensive experience in public hospitals and private practice; and developed in a course of lectures delivered at University College, London / by John Elliotson ... ; with notes and illustrations by Nathaniel Rogers.

  • John Elliotson
Date:
1839
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The principles and practice of medicine : founded on the most extensive experience in public hospitals and private practice; and developed in a course of lectures delivered at University College, London / by John Elliotson ... ; with notes and illustrations by Nathaniel Rogers. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    indebted for so great a mass of knowledge. It seems that nature has subjected all truths to persecution, in order to establish them the more firmly; for he who can snatch one from her, always presents a front of brass to the darts hurled against him, and has always force enough to defend and establish it. History shews us that all the efforts and sophisms which are directed against a truth once drawn from darkness, fall like dust blown by the winds against a rock ! The instances of Aristotle and Descartes should particularly be quoted, when we wish to display the influence of prejudice upon the good or bad fortune of new doctrines. The opponents of Aristotle burnt his books. Afterwards, however, the books of Ramus, who had written against Aristotle, were burnt; the opponents of the phi- losopher of Stagira were declared heretics; and it was even forbidden by law to dispute his doctrines, under pain of being sent to the galleys. There is now no longer any discussion about the philosophy of Aristotle. Descartes was persecuted because he taught the innateness of ideas; and the University of Paris burnt his books. He had written the most sublime thoughts upon the existence of God; but Noel, his enemy, accused him of atheism. Afterwards the same University declared itself in favour of innate ideas; and when Locke and Condillac attacked innate ideas, the cry of { mate- rialism ’ and 4 fatalism ’ resounded on all sides ! Thus, the same opinions have, at one time, been regarded as dangerous because they were new; and, at another, as useful because they were ancient. We must, therefore, pity mankind; and must conclude that the opinion of cotemporaries, as to the truth or error, and innocent or dangerous tendencies of a doctrine, are very suspicious ; and that the author of a discovery should be anxious only to ascertain whether he has really discovered a truth or not.” Gall might have added, in the words of Professor Playfair, that notwithstanding 44 the splendour of Newton’s discoveries; the beauty, simplicity, and gradeur of the system they unfolded! and the de- monstrative evidence by which that system was supported,—the Cartesian system of‘vortices’ kept its ground for more than thirty years after the publication of those discoveries;” and that actually 44 the Newtonian philosophy first entered the University of Cam- bridge under the protection of the Cartesian !” This was effected by Dr. Samuel Clarke; who quietly explained the views of Newton, —without any appearance of argument or controversy,—in the form of notes to a new translation which he published of the French Cartesian work, long established as a text-book by the tutors of the
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