Thomas Beddoes to William Withering, 9 March 1799
9 March
I beg an answer of but 3 lines as soon as is perfectly convenient
Dear Sir,
I have long felt an inclination to trouble you with a few lines. But I was afraid from what I heard of the state of your health to put you to the inconvenience of an answer. A couple of years ago I mentioned to you my design to arrange some papers respecting the causes & signs of consumption. The more I considered the subject, the more I felt disposed to defer the execution of my purpose. But two valuable communications on the treatment of this disease for the contributions to Medl & Physical science (a work which is to appear in a very few days) incline me to think this a favourable moment for exciting the attention of the public to the whole subject.
I found a good deal upon your observation respecting butchers. No doubt the observation was with you original. Have you since met with anything similar in books. I have not & the only thing approaching to it occurs in a thesis at Montpellier in 1788 of which I got knowledge by mere accident.
In a letter of yours you say you suspect snufftakers to be less liable to phthisis. If you chuse, I wd add this to the quotation from your printed letter, but by no means unless it was quite satisfactory to you. I have no interest in suggesting this to you. I only feel it a duty to notice a very authentic or probable fact, which I can fairly obtain.
May I ask if you intend soon to publish your Lisbon obsns. I have alluded in a single sentence to what I heard you say of the unfavourableness of the Portuguese climate. This is of importance to one part of my reasoning, & I hope you will not be offended at the liberty.
We open our pneumatic hospital on Wednesday next. A circular prospectus will be sent round next week requesting suggestions. I shall not say how highly I think of the young man who is to superintend it. His papers in the contributions will put every philosophl physician in a capacity to judge whether I overrate him.
Considering the times, we push on the diffusion of science pretty well here. We have had 2 anatomical courses for men & 2 select ones for women these 2 last winters. Linnaeus Smith comes in May to lecture us in botany.
I am entirely persuaded of the antisiphylitic virtue of nitrous acid & oxyg. muriate. But I dare not say a word of its power as compared with that of ☿.1 That remains to be settled.
I am Dear Sir
respectfully yours
Thomas Beddoes
Address: Dr. Withering / Physician / near Birmingham
Endorsement: Beddoes Doct 9th March - Answd 14th March 1799. / Still no consumptive
Butchers – believe the remark to be my own. / One Snufftaker died of a consumption caught of his Brother (Mr. Legge) / Stable Boys breathing warm air & Ɵ^2 I think exempt. / Propose to get returns of Cons: deaths from all the Hospitls Dispens. & even private pract: in England for 1 or 2 years, with the Habits & occupations of the patients. / Perhaps the climate of Portl is rather inefficacious than unfavourable in consumpt. cases. Rather wish he should elucidate his opinions by the climates of France or Italy. Hope to publish my Lisbon Obs: this year. / Wish the deep insp: of common Air fixed in sevl diseases, such as cold extremities, & Asthma attended with debility. Wish the Reports of Cases to be made by the Physn & not by the patient or the Apothecary. / Does a scorbutic diathesis enable the ⦶3 to cure siphyllis? We cannot cure by it alone. / Has he seen Bristol ⛛ 4 cure Diabetes? & if so to what can its efficacy be owing?
Postmark: Bristol Mar 9 99
MS: Typed transcription inserted in a copy of Stock, Osler Library of the History of Medicine, McGill University Library, B399zs 1811
NOTES
[1] Mercury
[2] Volatile alkali (ammonia)
[3] Nitre (saltpetre or potassium nitrate)
[4] Water