and domestic war, began already to feel the effects of a wife adminiftration; and to enter upon that period of its history, which, if we compare it with the times by which it was preceded, and thofe by which it was followed, may, perhaps, deferve with more juftice, than any other portion of its anuals, the epithet of the golden age." P. 182. With one more extract, containing an account of the cu rious circumstances that preceded the death of this amiabie prince, we thall conclude cur remarks on a work, which may be read with equal pleafure and advantage. "The French writers of that period, deeply impreffed themfelves at the atrocious nature, as well as at the lamentable effects of Henry's death, have defcribed him previous to it, as haunted by continual ap prehenfions of fome imminent and invisible danger. If we could credit their affertions, nature feemed to participate in the impending calamity; and even inanimate objects, trees, and rivers, foretold, in myftic language, his approaching fate. Mankind, in every age, has been prone to read the hiftory of the great, through the medium of fancy, terror, and fuperftition; nor is it difficult, with fach affiance, to transform the most common occurrences or accidents, into omens and prodigies. There is nevertheless a degree of fcepticifn, beyond that of reafon, in refufing altogether to believe, that Henry felt himfelf in a state of unufual agitation during feveral days preceding his affaffination. It would feem, that he even burft at times into querulous lamentations, or expreffed himfelf in doubtful language, relative to his departure on the expedition to Germany. But thefe marks of a diftempered, or uneafy mind, may be naturally explained, without having recourfe to fupernatural caufes. The enterprize which he was on the point of commencing, however admirably planned, and however fecure of apparent fuccefs, was yet fo vaft, fo complicated, and dependant on fo many fprings, that no human wifdom could af certain its refult. "Nor was he ignorant, that malevolence and bigotry had traduced his motive for taking up arms. In the interior of his family, the jealoufy of the queen, the infolence of Conchini, and the dangerous afcendancy which he and his wife Leonora had gained over Mary of Medicis, embittered his prefent happineís, and filled him with anxious apprchenfions for futurity. The first prince of the blood was in the hands of Fuentes, the mortal enemy of Henry; and the princefs, whofe attractions had been fo injurious to his repofe, was detained at Bruffels. Above all, he knew that the genius of the time was prone to acts of violence and ferocity: he had even received intimation of attempts against his perfon, from various quarters; and horofcopes, to which a confiderable degree of involuntary belief was then given by the most enlightened men, had fixed his death in the fifty-feventh year of his age. We must not imagine that Henry the Fourth was free from human infirmity, credulity, and weaknefs. Brave in the field, even to intrepidity, and accustomed to regard death, in the ranks of war, with perfect compofure; he was equally arceffible to fear, with other other men. Even Sully admits, that a prince fo dauntlefs in battle, was lefs than a woman when in a coach; that he cried out, whenever it appeared likely to overturn, and betrayed the utmost timidity. Henry himfelf avowed the fact, and accounted for it by informing his miniftry, that it had been predicted he fhould die in a coach. When we reflect on all thefe circumftances, it cannot excite our wonder, that he exhibited fymptoms of a mind oppreffed, irrefolute, and ftruggling with depreffion." - P. 278. In the compofition of this work, Mr. W. has difplayed great induftry, perfeverance, and labour; he appears to have confulted every document which could afford him information, and affift him in the completion of the great end of hiftory, the elucidation of truth. His flyle is not entitled to the fame degree of commendation. It is very unequal; in fome parts eafy and accurate; and, in others, turgid and incorrect; grammatical precifion is frequently violated, and expreffions not fanctioned by cuftom, nor warranted by authority, are too often employed. On the whole, however, we confider this work as a valuable acquifition to the literary world, and as containing a well-digefted and ufeful account of an interefting period of hiftory." ART. XX. Obfervations on the Seats and Caufes of Difeafes, illuftrated by the Diffections of the late Profeffor Morgan, of Padua. By James Hamilton, junior, M. D. Fellow of the Royal College of Phyficians, of Edinburgh. 8vo. 394 PP. 6s. Vol. I., P. Hill, Edinburgh; and G. G. and J. Robinfons, London: 1796... IN . Na fhort preface, the editor explains the object of his purfuit in this collection, which is to render the great body of diffections, recorded by Morgagni, more generally ufeful, or, as it should feem, to rescue them from oblivion; to which, according to the opinion of the editor, they are rapidly defcending. "So extenfively," he fays, (preface, p. x.) "has medical knowledge been diffufed fince the publication of Morgagni's writings, although no more than a period of about thirty years has elapfed, that they are now deemed chiefly valuable on account of the facts they contain. As, therefore, readers in general find they have to wade through a prodigious quantity of uninterefting matter before they can arrive at what they regard as ufeful; thefe writings are at prefent feldom looked into, being only occafionally confulted as a dictionary. The principles by which he refolved," the editor goes on to fay himself, to be directed 2 directed in the execution of his project, were these, to retain only the facts witneffed by Morgagni, or his preceptor Valfalva, or that feem established on unequivocal authority; to new arrange the whole, to prefix to each collection of cafes a view of the general fymptoms and feat of the difeafe, and to add obfervations on the caufes, and temarks on the hiftories detailed." This is certainly a great undertaking, but we hope the occafion for it is not fo urgent as the editor imagines; and that this fplendid monument of the genius, fagacity, and diligence of one of the brightest ornaments of phyfic, is in no danger of being loft to its profeffors; but yet will continue to be ftudied in its original ftate, accompanied by the numerous and valuable obfervations which entitle the author to the high rank he holds, among the improvers of anatomical and medical science. Such was the veneration of the celebrated Tilfot for this work, that when he was requested to add some. obfervations to a new edition of it, that was about to be pub lithed, and, at the fame time, informed that another phyfician had promifed fimilar affiftance; "*mentem bono viro," he fays, candidè aperui, refcripfique hæc effe egregii Profefforis Patavini opera, ut vel tangere alienæ manui facrum effe deberet, nec quidquam addi poffe præter pauciffimas notulas, quibus loci nonnulli, paululum forfan obfcuriores, ex aliis ejuídem authoris locis dilucidarentur." Without pretending to the enthufiafm Tiffor has fhown, we cannot help thinking that the mode here propofed of altering the arrangement of fo celebrated a work, and detaching the cafes and diffections from the observations, or, which is worse, of changing the obferva tions and deductions themselves, must tend to degrade the original in the minds of medical students. Young men will not be very forward to confult an original work, reprefented to them as "tuncouth in its language, and faulty in its arrangement," when a tranflation is offered, in which we are told, the meaning of the original is communicated in the most accurate ftyle of which language is fufceptible;" and a more perfpicuous arrangement adopted. Of the ftyle or language of the editor, we fhall fay little in this place; certainly he has not much reafon to boast of its purity. On the reafons he affigns for his undertaking, a few remarks may be neceffary. If it be true, as he afferts, "that medical science is so much more extenfively diffused, or, as the context seems to require, is fo much improved, within these last thirty years," he must surely ་་ * Morg, de fed. et caufis Morb. pref. + Pref. to this vol. p. 14. Ibid, p. 13. acknowledge, that, for much of this improvement, we are indebted to this work of Morgagni; and although we should agree with him, that the facts are the most valuable part of the work, they are only fo to the experienced physician. To the ftudent they would be nearly ufelefs, if deprived of the ingenious obfervations that accompany them. That fome obfervations, even in the opinion of the editor, are neceffary, is evident, as he has added," he says, "obfervations on the caufes, and remarks on the hiftories." That his obfervations and remarks are fuperior to thofe of Morgagni, we dare not fay. What he has faid" of the reader's being obliged to wade through a prodigious quantity of uninterefting matter, before they can arrive at what they regard as ufeful," is perfectly unintelligible, as the cafes and diffections in Morgagni always precede the remarks; the reader may therefore avail himfelf of the former, without being obliged to wade through, or even without looking at the latter, although we fhould be very far from advifing him to follow this method. Although the arrangement propofed by the editor, of claffing the cafes according to the difeafes of which the patients died, instead of the parts or organs that appeared to be most materially injured, may feem, on the firit view, the moft judicious and proper, it will be found, on a nearer infpection, to be abfolutely impracticable. For the cafes are by no means always fo diftinctly narrated by Morgagni, as to enable the most fagacious commentator to determine with precifion, what the disease was of which the patient died. In many instances, little was known of the history of the cafe. The patients were fent from fome obfcure place, perhaps were found lying in the street, and taken to the hospital, a day or two, or a few hours only, before their death; and the appearances on diffection, were often found to be very different from what the symptoms feemed to indicate. Befides, fuch an arrangement as is propofed, fuppofes both a greater fimplicity in difcafes, and more regularity in the effects of them upon the body, than is found ordinarily to take place. "If the different fpecies of fever, for inftance, invariably impreffed certain marks on the body, or fome of its organs, or if the body was capable of en tertaining, or being affected by only one difeafe at a time, the caufe of death would be always found on diffection. But this is fo far from being the fact, that, except in eruptive fevers, and perhaps in the more malignant and peftilential kinds, there are no diftinct and difcriminative marks, by which the most acute and experienced anatomifts could be enabled to distinguifh what the kind of fever was of which the patient died. And Y BRIT, CRIT. VOL. VIII. SEPT. 1796, And it is fo far from being true that the human body is capable of being affected with one disease only at a time, that it frequently happens that, in one and the fame perfon, the brain, the heart, the lungs, and various other parts, are all found to be materially injured, of which the diffections of Morgagni afford numerous examples. Having examined fo much at length the general design of the undertaking, it remains that we give an analyfis, and fome fhort abftracts, from the part of the work that is before the public, that our readers may fee how far it lays open to the objections we have offered. Difeafes are divided into univerfal, local, fexual, and infantine. The prefent volume contains a part only of the diseases ranged under the firft divifion, viz. of univerfal difeafes. The first chapter treats of fevers, the fecond of inflammations. Fevers are divided into continued, intermittent, and hectic. The continued fevers are, continued inflammatory fever, and continued nervous fever or typhus. The latter is fub-divided into the flow nervous fever, the malignant putrid fever, and the yellow fever. The hectic, into pthifis pulmonalis and tabes mefenterica. Inflammations are divided into phrenitis, pneumonia, hepatitis, &c. according to the part affected. To each of the claffes a definition and hiftory of the disease is given; and a differtation on the nature and caufes producing them. We fhall confine our examination to the first fection which treats of continued inflammatory fever. The definition is taken from Cullen. Heat much increased; pulse frequent, full, and hard; urine red; the functions of the brain but little deranged; no primary local difeafe." Under this fection the editor has given ten cafes, felected from different parts of Morgagni; we fuppofe, from fome refemblance, which he thought he obferved, between the fymptoms and the definition of the disease. We fhall give the first in his own words. "A young man, aged twenty-five years," "ætate unius et viginti annorum, Morgagni fays, "by trade a wool-comber, affected with continued fever, became fo delirious that it was necessary to bind him. The delirium having remitted, he was brought into the hofpital at Padua. Immediately, on his admiffion, convulfive motions of his fuperior extremities, and fubfultus tendinum at the wrifts were ob ferved. Venefection having been ordered, the blood exhibited no inflammatory cruft; but its fubftance was denfe and compact. He became comatofe, and having spoken none for the last three days, died. Appearances on diffection. Thorax. Nothing remarkable was ob ferved in this cavity, except that one of the lobes of the lungs was hard, prædurum. In feparating the fifth dorfal vertebra from the |