Statistics of phrenology : being a sketch of the progress and present state of that science in the British Islands.

Hewett Watson

Date:: 1836

Credit: Statistics of phrenology : being a sketch of the progress and present state of that science in the British Islands. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library at Yale University, through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library at Yale University.

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$'>250 —Elements 4J0O—Outlines 5720—Lectures 1000 — Constitution SOOO in 12mo, 17,915 in Svo; making a total of 1-1,1-1.5. These are the certificates of the printers, and it Mould appear that about 35,000 copies have been circulated. Our estimate of 19,000 only must leave a large surplus towards compensating any possible over- estimate of other works. The value of Mr. Combe's printed works would seem to be between seven and eight thousand pounds. No trifling sum for works on moral science, where tlie author aims at utility and cheapness, not at private gain.* 4. PlIREXOLOGICAL AUTHORS AND ESSAYISTS. The authors of works on phrenology are twenty-four, besides those who have written anonymously. Adding the essayists mentioned in preceding pages, the writers on phrenology amount to seventy-five. Of the authors, fif- teen are medical men, one is a lawyer, one a minister, one a schoolmaster, and cue a tradesman. Sir George ]Mac- kenzie, and four others whose professions are unascer- tained (Church, Forster, Greig, Ehn), complete the twenty-four. Among the seventy-five writers, the pro- fessional designations of twenty-eight are unknown to us. Out of the remaining forty-seven, six are lawyers, two are divines, two are tradesmen, one a schoolmaster, three live on the labours of others (commonly called independence I), and the other thirty-three are medical men. It appears from these proportions, that more than tMO-thirds of the persons writing on phrenology are members of the medical • ThfTCortslilution of ^fcn has been translated and published in Frartce, GcrtTi:'ny> ^'i'^ S« t-den. The Sj^sCcm hns been translated info Gi.rnnan. Tlic £/fr?i£-'!.'j lia\e appeared in French. Copious portions of ibe different works have been republished in Denmark ; and scAeral reprints of IMr. Combc-'s «hoIt.' woiks have been published in. America, Tfie above sum refers to British editions only. l^jwwy.JHW^!l■^^l'yyJW^-|.^J^.'J.^V<^w.^.■■llk■^W.|?ll^■^JVl!l^^$