FOOTNOTES

Quod curas abigat, quod cum spe divite manetIn venas, animumque meum, quod verba ministret.My wines of generous and of smoother kind,To drive away my cares, and to the soul,Through the full veins, with golden hopes to roll.With flowing language to inspire my tongue,And make the list’ning fair one think me young.Francis’sHor. lib. 1. ep. 15.

Quod curas abigat, quod cum spe divite manetIn venas, animumque meum, quod verba ministret.

Quod curas abigat, quod cum spe divite manet

In venas, animumque meum, quod verba ministret.

My wines of generous and of smoother kind,To drive away my cares, and to the soul,Through the full veins, with golden hopes to roll.With flowing language to inspire my tongue,And make the list’ning fair one think me young.

My wines of generous and of smoother kind,

To drive away my cares, and to the soul,

Through the full veins, with golden hopes to roll.

With flowing language to inspire my tongue,

And make the list’ning fair one think me young.

Francis’sHor. lib. 1. ep. 15.

But avoid those small wines which have less of the nature of wine than vinegar, and rather irritate than strengthen.Remember that wine is an antidote against the miseries of life and the tediousness of idleness; cares are banished by wine, whilst the reason is intoxicated: but does such a drink become the learned? And this puts me in mind of another sort of intoxication, I mean that caused by smoking tobacco, which abounds with an acrimonious salt and sulphur, together with a narcotic oil. I have elsewhere enlarged upon the folly of smoking; here I shall add more concisely, that the narcotic principle hurts the stomach, causes a stuffing up of the head, head-achs, vertigos, anxiety, lethargy, apoplexy, and finally all the effects of opium, as the great LordBaconhas observed.Tobacco, says he,the use of which herb has greatly prevailed in the present age, is a species of henbane; it isevident that it disturbs the head like opiates. Therefore, young men, avoid a dirty pleasure, equally injurious both to your health and your studies, and which should be left to those who have recourse to it for the killing of time. The muses fly those studies that smell like a stable, and delight in a purer air; for one of the chief sources of health or sickness is the air which environs us, in which we live, and by which not only our bodies are affected, but whose power our very minds experience. Thus the air of Bœotia, or Thrace, rendered dull those whom that of Athens revived:

Bœotum in crasso jurares ære natum[48].Take him to books and poetry, you’ll swearThis king was born in thick Bœotian air.Francis’sHor. lib. 2. ep. 1.

Bœotum in crasso jurares ære natum[48].

Take him to books and poetry, you’ll swearThis king was born in thick Bœotian air.

Take him to books and poetry, you’ll swear

This king was born in thick Bœotian air.

Francis’sHor. lib. 2. ep. 1.

Prudent men will chuse as pure, as warm, and as dry an air as they can; for such an one, by giving strength to the fibres, is salubrious to the lungs, and promotes the circulation. A frigid and dry air is supportable: a moist air is highly pernicious, as by it all the disorders of studious men are aggravated; for it increases laxity, stops perspiration, and occasions catarrhs, pains, and palsies. Every man of learninghas it not in his power to repair to Baya or Alexandria, nor does it suit them all to breathe the country air, which is the purest; for there are more that compile than think. The country is not a proper place to pursue such studies; but any man may chuse a healthy habitation in town, and live in a lightsome house, a high apartment, refreshed by a breeze in summer, and enlightened by the sun in winter. He should take particular care to have fresh air let into his chamber every day; without this precaution he lives upon the infected: it should be cooled in summer, and not kept too warm in winter; for the learned, like all weak men, as was the case ofAugustus, are ill able to bear excess of heat or cold: too great a heat relaxes the nerves, but intense cold causesconvulsions. In the dog-days we become unfit for labour, as also in the severe cold of winter; and the more tender the constitution, the less it is able to withstand the weather. Such was that ofMilton, whose nerves were relaxed to such a degree in the heat of summer, that he[49]was almost reduced to a state of imbecillity. But the air should be warmed in winter, a fire being kindled for the purpose; for this fresh air succeeds the corrupt air that goes off; nor do exhalations remain, nor does the head grow warm, nor do the feet become cold, which is of great consequence.Cold in the feet hurts the weak by causing pains in the head, the throat, and the breast; it disorders digestion, causes dreadful colicks, obstructs perspiration, and prevents sleep to a very great degree. I have often cured men of note, who had long been without sleep, though they had recourse to the most efficacious remedies, by advising them to warm the soles of their feet at a fire, every night before they went to bed, till the sense of heat became painful. Others have been greatly relieved by a gently stimulating plaster applied to the soles of their feet, and left on both night and day.

I may probably, respectable auditors, appear to descend too much to particulars, and to dwell too long upon trifles; but nothing is little or inconsiderablein physick: and it is a thing of so much importance to keep the blood from the heads of men of learning, that they should neglect nothing which may contribute to this end. They should therefore take care not to keep it warm with too much covering, or rather they should use themselves to go bare-headed from their childhood. Some men of learning have been so bold as to wrap their heads with a towel dipt in cold water, that they might be able to continue the longer at their studies: and what will not an inordinate desire of knowledge excite men to? Such rashness should be avoided; but it is of service to all, and especially to studious, sedentary men, to wash their ears, their faces, and their whole heads, hair and all, every morning in cold water. It isvery good for theliterati, when they feel the blood forced up into their heads, not to walk, or inquire sollicitously after medicines, but to sit upon their chair in total inaction, without ever uttering a word.

The same necessity of keeping the blood from the head should prevent the learned from indulging in sleep after dinner; or, if they should sometimes be forced to yield to sleep, let them imitate the illustrious personage, so often mentioned already,Augustus Cæsar,who with the cloaths and shoes he had on took a short nap, having covered his eyes with his hand[50]. Imust likewise add this caution, that they should never compose themselves to sleep, without first unbinding all their ligatures. To wash their feet in warm water is likewise of great service to them.

These are the chief helps by the assistance of which the learned will be enabled to prevent the ill effects of study; but when their application has produced real disorders, they will have occasion for other remedies. You will sometimes see them, when nature is quite exhausted by study, fall into a consumption: then the severity of the disorder requires some efficacious remedy; and the best is entirely to lay aside study, meditation, and books, tobid a long farewell to their musæums, and, giving themselves up to leisure, chearfulness, and country pleasures, to think of restoring their bodies alone, without troubling their heads about cultivating their minds; but let them become what men were designed for by nature, ploughmen or gardeners.

Difficile est longum subito deponere amorem,Difficile est: verum hoc, qua lubet, efficias.Una salus hæc est, hoc est tibi pervincendum.Catull.82.It is a difficult matter to divest one’s self suddenly of a passion of a long standing: but this you may effect, if you desire it. This is the only thing that can preserve you, this you must endeavour to bring about at any rate.

Difficile est longum subito deponere amorem,Difficile est: verum hoc, qua lubet, efficias.Una salus hæc est, hoc est tibi pervincendum.

Difficile est longum subito deponere amorem,

Difficile est: verum hoc, qua lubet, efficias.

Una salus hæc est, hoc est tibi pervincendum.

Catull.82.

It is a difficult matter to divest one’s self suddenly of a passion of a long standing: but this you may effect, if you desire it. This is the only thing that can preserve you, this you must endeavour to bring about at any rate.

How sure should we be of curing the disorders of men of learning, if it were possible to lull thought asleep. Here generous wines are of great service, provided the lungs are still unaffected, and a slow heat does not burn up the veins. Wholesome meats, and well boiled aliments, are of great service: milk is likewise of great service, provided the stomach is able to bear it. Riding is also useful. And it may be beneficial to purge away the peccant matter by some gentle, strengthening remedy.Baconrecommends rhubarb.Celsus, with more reason as I apprehend, recommended aloes, the use of which is of great service to the learned. Let them not, however, abuse an excellent remedy; for, though purges are sometimes necessary, they are dangerous when too frequently used: for the bodybegins to be disused to nourishment, and must of consequence grow weak. But beware, you sick men, of too violent purging remedies; because, as the intestines are often covered with mucus, this mucus is generally soft, and easily removed; when it is removed, a softer sort succeeds in its place; this badly defends the villous coat of the intestines; and, when it is left without defence, it either occasions incessant pains, or should be continually fomented by the tenderest sort of food.

The Peruvian bark or kinkina is here of the greatest efficacy imaginable; in this case there is not a better remedy; it restores digestion, strengthens the vessels, compresses the fluids, promotes secretions, and, above all, perspiration, repairs the strength of thenerves, and quells false motions. One of our most eminent geometricians soon repaired his wasted powers by a large draught of the decoction of kinkina, which he had constantly by his side.

If the constitution be not yet entirely broke, weakness oppresses the stomach and the nerves, the learned are troubled with hysteric symptoms, often attended with a vertigo, fainting fits, suffocation, and anxiety. They are to be cured like women who are troubled with hysterics, occasioned by mobility and want of tone in the fibres; they are to be cured, I say, by bitters, ferulacious gums, myrrh, steel, and the cold bath. The frequent use of the latter preserves a good state of health, and repairs a broken constitution;for it is efficacious above all other remedies, except there be already an extraordinary degree of weakness, in strengthening the stomach, the nerves, and the whole body; it restores sleep, produces a chearfulness and serenity of mind, and supplies new strength to pursue new studies. This made the ancients set so high a value upon it, that, even amidst the avocations of their necessary business, they never failed to bathe every day: and I most earnestly recommend to the literati the frequent use of bathing. I am not ignorant that the ancients often used the warm bath, but they used it as a remedy after exercise or fatigue; and it generally agrees very well with the robust and active; but they restored their strength with cold baths.Augustus, who received no benefit from thewarm bath, when affected with great weakness of body, was advised to have recourse to the cold bath byAntonius Musa. Cold baths are salutary to delicate constitutions, and the health of the learned is generally, though not always, as much hurt by bathing in warm water, as promoted by bathing in cold.

Friction in a great measure produces the same effects with bathing; for if the whole lower belly of a person, whilst he lies supine in bed in the morning, with bent knees and an empty stomach, be rubbed all over with a rough cloth, he will be greatly benefited by it: by this artifice the motion in the abdomen is increased, the stagnant juices are thrown out, the secretions are increased, the excrementsare prevented from staying too long in the body, and innumerable diseases are cured, which, as you have been frequently told, are caused by a slow circulation. If the skin is rubbed all over, either with a cloth or a flesh-brush, the cuticular secretion is greatly promoted, the circulation of the blood is so quickened, that a violent fever may be caused by rubbing alone, the motion is increased in the smallest vessels, the strength is repaired, and the ills caused by want of exercise are partly remedied. The ancients were therefore right in setting a great value upon friction: it was afterwards unhappily neglected; but the English physicians revived it with great success; and there is no class of men to whom it may be of greater service than to the studious. I would, however, recommendto them not to use this kind of exercise till they have read whatCelsusandGalenhave written concerning it.

There is another sort of remedy, which is often of the highest service to men of learning, I mean chalybeate waters; but they should not send for them, they should go where they are to be drunk at the fountain head. I do not indeed despise those that are sent for; nay, I have known men of learning who, by my advice, drank Seltzer waters at home during the whole year, by which, and remitting somewhat of their application, they recovered their health. But it is still better to drink them at their source, for they are there in greater perfection; and the journey is of service, because,whilst it lasts, the sick are exempt from all domestick cares, are amused with a variety of objects, enjoy agreeable company, relax their minds, and recreate their bodies: and the journey alone is of so much service, that hypochondriac persons are often cured by visiting remote libraries.

It would be as useless as it is impossible to enumerate all the waters that may be of service in repairing broken constitutions; for what nature intended as a most salutary remedy, it has liberally bestowed upon most regions. There are many in Switzerland; those of Aquia in Savoy, in my neighbourhood, deserve high praises; our waters of Rotula are still more to be recommended on account of the agreeableness of the place than theirsalubrious qualities; we must not forget those of Lausanne, the virtues of which have been demonstrated to me both by analysis and frequent observation; but the Seltzer waters surpass them all, at least in their reputation, if not in their qualities; those of Schwalbach and Spaw are still more powerful; and the Pyrmont waters are inferior to none.

These are not all, but the principal remedies by which those disorders may be cured which men of learning bring upon themselves by over great application: but their disorders are not occasioned by study alone: as men they are subject to all the disorders of men; and then they should be treated according to the rules laid down by experience for curing each disorder.Physicians, however, should never forget, that the patient, whom they have under their care, is a man of learning, and cannot, of consequence, have the same strength with which most other men are endued: as they have relaxed fibres and thin blood, they are not so capable of bearing phlebotomy: but the intestines are often filled with a collection of filth, which must be purged off; so that, as the illustriousRamazzinihas long since observed, it is better to have recourse to other evacuations with them than to bleeding.

Care should be always taken of the head of a learned patient, because it is easily disturbed, and grows delirious. This is of very bad consequence in disorders; for peevishness increases,which few learned patients are without; and, whilst the brain is agitated by a delirium, the necessary action of the nerves upon the body becomes slow, and so the powers of nature, which can alone effect a cure, are destroyed.

If the patient was afflicted before with nervous disorders, these soon cause sufferings of a peculiar sort: the learned, when they are ill, cannot bear too much light, nor noise, nor a crowd of spectators. I have often seen, upon the fever’s beginning to cease, new symptoms occur, which appear to be very bad, but are in fact only nervous.

Men of learning cannot well bear strong and powerful remedies.

Their recovery is always tedious, and it requires extraordinary care: the strength returns slowly; the faculties of the mind, above all, are long in a wavering condition; and I have scarce ever known a man of learning recover out of a disorder, without complaining of his memory’s being impaired, and a sort of weakness of the head discoverable in the face itself. Those little consult their own interest, who immediately return to their studies, and that before their strength is renewed: they prepare to themselves a sore repentance: the ill consequences are felt by their heads, their eyes, and their stomachs, which must greatly suffer, if, whilst they stand in need of the assistance of the nerves, to digest the remedies they take, the mind should at so improper a time makeuse of them. I have often found, that the exercises of the mind so weaken the sensibility and motion of the stomach and intestines, that the power of purgatives is entirely counteracted by meditation and constant study.

Learned patients, when just out of a disorder, recover their sleep very slowly, and it often is not to be recovered without the assistance of wine, which is of wonderful efficacy in this case, by restoring a due tone to the stomach, debilitated by warm liquors; firmness to the nerves, strength to the whole body, and spirits to the dejected mind.

Thus have I laid open the causes of disorders, their symptoms, and the method of avoiding them: in fine,I have compleated my design to the best of my power; and you with joy perceive my discourse approaching to a conclusion, respectable auditors. I am aware, however, that you will not dismiss me, till I have atoned for a grievous omission; nor do I intend to disappoint your expectation: I shall therefore now discover the grand arcanum of the art of preserving health, which I have hitherto concealed: attend to my words. Chearfulness of temper is the source of health, and a virtuous life is the source of chearfulness: a good conscience, a mind pure and clear of all contagion, are the best preservatives of health; and if the learned were without them, it would be a shame: for of what use is learning without wisdom?

Quid musæ sine moribusVanæ proficiant?Of what service are the muses without the aid of virtue?

Quid musæ sine moribusVanæ proficiant?

Quid musæ sine moribus

Vanæ proficiant?

Of what service are the muses without the aid of virtue?

What else is knowledge but to be wise? Were not the learned in former ages wise? Knowledge alone is of no avail. I have no manner of esteem for those doctors, who inquire what is virtuous and becoming, entirely taken up with moral contemplations, and who, though they see good, follow evil courses. Woe be to them! they will suffer severely for their bad conduct. Consider the force of the passions: those which affect the mind agreeably, promote a good state of health; which those of a contrary nature destroy. But what affects themind more agreeably than the remembrance of a life well spent?

Omnem crede diem diluxisse supremum.Look upon every day that’s past as the last of your life.

Omnem crede diem diluxisse supremum.

Look upon every day that’s past as the last of your life.

Cruel remorse of conscience, on the other hand, destroys the powers both of mind and body; because the mind being a prey to grief, such is the will of the Author of nature, the fibres are relaxed, and both health and beauty vanish. I cannot without horror recollect the shocking inquietudes of some men, who, having abused the gifts of God, could not, without inexpressible terror, see death approach, which renders the Deity more awful. On the other hand, I cannot withoutjoy revolve in my memory the happy deaths of some good men, who, as they had passed their whole lives in the practice of virtue, returned with joy to the Fountain of all good, having laid aside their terrestrial covering, and crowned a happy life with a joyful death. How properly does the learned doctor, lately professor of divinity in this academy, occur to me in this place, who, after having suffered the cruel torments of a dreadful disease, during the course of a twelvemonth, with wonderful resolution and patience, after a few friendly and pious conversations with his wife and children, whilst he testified his gratitude to me for my care, and expressed his good wishes, expired with religious composure. And why should I forget you, learned, dear, and nowhappy uncle and Mentor, who, having lived your whole life, whilst in health, as we promise to live when we are ill, enjoying, to an advanced age, a conscience void of offence, a genius replete with vigour, and faculties acute and penetrating; not only taught us how to live virtuously, but likewise have instructed us how to die well.

But it is time for me to put an end to my wandering discourse; for I am ashamed to detain you any longer, respectable auditors.

Farewell, therefore, most illustrious president, whose extraordinary humanity, gentle manners, and uncorrupt integrity, all are unanimous in praising. How agreeable to me was it to be chosen upon this occasion by you,whose friendship, having so often experienced, I am so happy as to experience again. But how can I address you, without at the same time thinking of that prince whom you represent amongst us with so much applause; and this remembrance fills me with emotion. For he is the prince to whom I am indebted for so many favours. It is he who recalled me, out of love to my country, when I was on the point of quitting it at the invitation of a great monarch; recalled me, I say; and, remembering my attachment to physic, founded this professorship, and bestowed it upon me, not without the most honourable tokens of his benevolence; and, by enrolling me in your illustrious assembly, learned professors, he enabled me to address youby the dear appellation of colleagues. Vouchsafe, therefore, favourably to receive him whom he has given you as a companion of your labours, and receive me, most honoured colleagues, in the same disposition of mind with which I come towards you; and shew as much benevolence, facility, and readiness to assist me, as I am ready to shew you veneration, obsequiousness, and docility.

Citizens and strangers, illustrious for your great virtues, your extraordinary intellectual endowments, and the high offices you fill, the friendship of many of whom I cultivate with pleasure, receive my thanks for the benevolence with which you have heard me. Finally, I address myself to you, you studious youth, hope ofyour country and of the church, and ornament of the academy; whatever learning or genius I am possessed of,

Et quicquid in arte mea possum promittere curæ,And whatever assistance I can promise by my art;

Et quicquid in arte mea possum promittere curæ,

And whatever assistance I can promise by my art;

which I am sensible is but small, and I am sorry for it; but, such as it is, I entirely dedicate and consecrate it to you. It will give me the highest satisfaction, if it can be of any service to you; but how would it grieve me, if, by misunderstanding my discourse, you should be hurt instead of being benefited by it. Take care therefore, virtuous youths; my design was to shew the dangers of an obstinate perseverance in study; but I was quitesilent with regard to the use of polite learning,which[51]nourishes youth, delights old age, adorns prosperity, affords consolation in adversity, delights at home, is no hindrance abroad, passes the night with us, travels with us, accompanies us into the country. I have proved by examples, how dangerous it is to fatigue the minds of children with too great labour; but it was not my intention to banish all labour and study. “Nam certe quamlibet parum sit, quod contulerit ætas prior, majora tamen aliqua discet puer eo ipso anno, quo minora didicisset. Hoc per singulos annos prorogatumin summam proficit: & quantum in infantia præsumptum est temporis, adolescentiæ acquiritur[52].” “For though what is contributed by the first age of life is but inconsiderable, a boy will certainly learn some things of consequence in the very year that he learns trifles. This, increasing every year, will at last improve him, and what is learned in infancy is an acquisition to youth.” It is dangerous to break upon the rocks of too great learning; it is shameful to be wrecked upon the opposite shore. What path then must you tread?Hac urget lupus, hac canis angit.On one side the wolf urges, on t’other the dog worries us.You will be safe in the middlepath, always remembering that sentence of your favouriteHorace:

Est modus in rebus sunt certi denique fines,Quos ultra citraque nequit consistere rectum.Some certain mean in all things may be found,To mark our virtue, and our vices bound.Francis’sHorace, lib.I.sat.I.

Est modus in rebus sunt certi denique fines,Quos ultra citraque nequit consistere rectum.

Est modus in rebus sunt certi denique fines,

Quos ultra citraque nequit consistere rectum.

Some certain mean in all things may be found,To mark our virtue, and our vices bound.

Some certain mean in all things may be found,

To mark our virtue, and our vices bound.

Francis’sHorace, lib.I.sat.I.

FOOTNOTES[1]Now let those come to themselves who with difficulty admit, that the aliments are capable of rendering some more temperate, others more dissolute, some incontinent, some frugal, confident, timorous, mild, modest, or quarrelsome; let them come to me and hear what it would be proper for them to eat, and what to drink. They will find from hence a great assistance in moral philosophy; they will likewise find from hence a great accession to their intellectual faculties; they will become more ingenious, have better memories, and be more studious and wise. For besides the proper sort of food and liquors, I will instruct them in the nature of air and climates, and point out to them what countries they should chuse to reside in, what they should avoid. The book which proves that manners are influenc’d by bodily constitutions, Cap. 9ᵒ. Charterius, t. 5. p. 457. Observations of the like nature are to be found inHippocrates,Aristotle, andPlato.[2]Plato’s works, p. 648.[3]’Tis an admirable observation ofMontesquieu: All things fatigue us at last, and above all great pleasures; the fibres, that were the organs of it, stand in need of rest: we must employ others better adapted to serve us, and thus, as it were, divide our labour.Essay upon taste.[4]Lorryupon melancholy and melancholy disorders. Tom. I.[5]Van Swieten’sComment. inBoerhaviiaphor.Tom. III. p. 413.[6]Traité du bon chyle, tom. II. p. 647.[7]Th.Bordeux,prix de l’academie de chir.tom. VI. p. 199.[8]Conf.FlemingNeuropathia, præf.[9]De morbis nervorum, p. 456.[10]Traité des vapeurs hysteriques, p. 248.[11]Epistol. lib. 2. ep. 9.[12]Epistol. adHippocratem.Hipp. Fæsii.tom. II. p. 1288.[13]De locis affectis, lib. 5. cap. 6. Charter.tom. VII. p. 492.[14]Medicin. ration. de epilepsia.§ 19.[15]Felic.Plateriobservat.p. 28.[16]Van Swieten, tom. IV. p. 305.[17]Gazette de France, Fevr. 25, 1763.[18]Epistol. L. 2, ep. 40.Neither write back to me in prose or in verse, lest you should bring your health, which is not yet confirm’d, into new danger; for the spirits will be easily warm’d by attention: hence blood, hence the habit of body.[19]De sedibus & causis morbonum. ep. 3.§ 13.[20]Prælect. ad instit.t. 7. p. 145.[21]De sedib. & caus. ep.3. §. 17.[22]HalleriElement. Physiologiæ, t. 4. p. 317.[23]De locis affectis, l. 3. c. 5.[24]Ad libellumHippocratisde humor. p. 211.[25]In studious men, who lead a sedentary life, whilst they grow pale with poring over books, an apoplexy often arises from such a cause; but it comes on slowly and gradually. For the first symptom is languor, and a love of indolence; then the understanding begins to grow dull, the memory to flag; they become sleepy, stupid, and often continue a long time in that state before their death. I have seen, and not without the greatest compassion, men of the most profound learning, and who had deserv’d highly of the republick of letters, who, as it were, surviv’d themselves above a twelvemonth in a state of total oblivion, and at last died of apoplexy.Van Swieten, tom. III. p. 263.[26]Adamvitæ medicorum, p. 372.[27]We meet in the medicinal diary with an account, very well worth reading, of a severe colick, attended with other bad symptoms, and occasion’d by intense study and nocturnal lucubrations. Tom. I. p. 352.[28]Van Swieten, tom. III. p. 87. exColumbo.[29]Experience shews us that men of learning, though naturally of a chearful disposition, become at last fix’d, silent, pale, emaciated, and strangely troubled with the hypochondriac disorder, which generally tyrannizes over sedentary people.Ant.Felicidissertazioni epistolari, p. 203.[30]Boerhaav.ad institut.§. 896, tom. VII. p. 275.[31]Lancisusde mortu subit.l. 1. c. 22.[32]MarkiiOratio funebris in obitumTriglandii. Leyden, 1705.[33]The famousRousseau; but he has since quitted the British asylum, and returned to France.[34]Joh. Alph. Rosset, theologiæ professor, & academiæ, hoc tempore, rector.[35]The disorders of orators and singers are the same; but the bodies of these being open’d, have often shewn inflammations, suppurations, ulcers in the lungs; nay, the illustriousMorgagnisaw a young man that had an excellent voice, whose wind-pipe and throat being affected, could swallow nothing, and, whilst he attempted to suck down the yolk of an egg, was suffocated and died.De sedib. & caus.tom. 1. p. 228.[36]It often proves hurtful to men of learning themselves, when in an advanc’d age they pursue a new study; for this gives rise to a new order of ideas, which receives no assistance from all the traces before left upon the brain: new fibres must receive new motions, a laborious work to the organ already debilitated, and which often throws men of first-rate capacities into lingering disorders.[37]Suetoniusin vitaOct. Aug.cap.82.[38]Valerius Maximus, lib. 3. c. 6. p. 140.[39]De education. pueror.cap. 12.[40]De motu opt. corpor. medicin.§ 9.[41]De methodo,No. 6: There is likewise a remarkable passage inMoses Maimonides, one of the most ancient of the Arabian physicians. As life and health, says he, contribute greatly to the worship and knowledge of God; but a man in an ill state of health is unable to contemplate the works of God as he should do; a man ought to take particular care to avoid whatever is hurtful to his body, and should endeavour to procure whatever contributes to keep the body in health and strengthen it.De sanit. tuend. init.[42]It must be acknowledged, that a man of learning, indefatigable in his studies, if he observes an exact regimen, innocent and moderate, will find the disadvantages attending his way of life more supportable than another.Felicidissertazioni, p. 203.[43]Prælect. in instit.§ 1036, tom. VII. p. 337.[44]Many plants fit for use, and perhaps most such, and many others, by means of an easy art, give out a great quantity of excellent sugar, not much inferior to that of sugar-canes. Eight ounces of the fresh juice of the skirret yield an ounce of the best sugar.MargraffMem. de l’Acad. de Berlin.[45]Many phænomena prove this plethora; and it is evinced by a simple observation, and one that occurs daily,viz.by those convulsions of the lower jaw-bone which cause a collision of the teeth in sleep, and that more strongly in boys when they have eat a hearty supper.[46]It was justly observed byTheophrastus, that to eat much, and to live upon flesh, deprives men of the use of their reason, blunts the faculties of their minds, and renders them dull and stupid.[47]Boerhaaveprælect.tom. VII. p. 340.[48]The goddess, saysPlato, chose a place which was to give birth to the wisest men.Init. Timæi.And do not forget this with regard to places, that they are of great consequence in giving birth to men of superior genius, or the reverse.De leg.lib. 5.[49]By the excessive heat, which is not so much as allayed by an Etesian gale, I have entirely lost the power of philosophising, and am deterred from writing.LancisiadCocchi, p. 47.[50]Qui ita ut vestitus calceatusque erat, retectis pedibus, paulisper conquiescebat opposita ad oculos manu.Suetoniusin vit. C. O. Aug.cap. 82. I enlarged upon the ill consequences of sleeping after dinner, in an epistle which I inscribed a few years ago to the illustriousHaller.[51]Adolescentiam alunt, senectutem oblectant, secundas res ornant, adversis solatium prebent, delectant domi, non impediunt foris, pernoctant nobiscum, peregrinantur, rusticantur.CiceroOratione pro Archiâ.[52]Quintilianusde Instit. Orator, lib. i. cap. i.

FOOTNOTES

[1]Now let those come to themselves who with difficulty admit, that the aliments are capable of rendering some more temperate, others more dissolute, some incontinent, some frugal, confident, timorous, mild, modest, or quarrelsome; let them come to me and hear what it would be proper for them to eat, and what to drink. They will find from hence a great assistance in moral philosophy; they will likewise find from hence a great accession to their intellectual faculties; they will become more ingenious, have better memories, and be more studious and wise. For besides the proper sort of food and liquors, I will instruct them in the nature of air and climates, and point out to them what countries they should chuse to reside in, what they should avoid. The book which proves that manners are influenc’d by bodily constitutions, Cap. 9ᵒ. Charterius, t. 5. p. 457. Observations of the like nature are to be found inHippocrates,Aristotle, andPlato.

[2]Plato’s works, p. 648.

[3]’Tis an admirable observation ofMontesquieu: All things fatigue us at last, and above all great pleasures; the fibres, that were the organs of it, stand in need of rest: we must employ others better adapted to serve us, and thus, as it were, divide our labour.Essay upon taste.

[4]Lorryupon melancholy and melancholy disorders. Tom. I.

[5]Van Swieten’sComment. inBoerhaviiaphor.Tom. III. p. 413.

[6]Traité du bon chyle, tom. II. p. 647.

[7]Th.Bordeux,prix de l’academie de chir.tom. VI. p. 199.

[8]Conf.FlemingNeuropathia, præf.

[9]De morbis nervorum, p. 456.

[10]Traité des vapeurs hysteriques, p. 248.

[11]Epistol. lib. 2. ep. 9.

[12]Epistol. adHippocratem.Hipp. Fæsii.tom. II. p. 1288.

[13]De locis affectis, lib. 5. cap. 6. Charter.tom. VII. p. 492.

[14]Medicin. ration. de epilepsia.§ 19.

[15]Felic.Plateriobservat.p. 28.

[16]Van Swieten, tom. IV. p. 305.

[17]Gazette de France, Fevr. 25, 1763.

[18]Epistol. L. 2, ep. 40.Neither write back to me in prose or in verse, lest you should bring your health, which is not yet confirm’d, into new danger; for the spirits will be easily warm’d by attention: hence blood, hence the habit of body.

[19]De sedibus & causis morbonum. ep. 3.§ 13.

[20]Prælect. ad instit.t. 7. p. 145.

[21]De sedib. & caus. ep.3. §. 17.

[22]HalleriElement. Physiologiæ, t. 4. p. 317.

[23]De locis affectis, l. 3. c. 5.

[24]Ad libellumHippocratisde humor. p. 211.

[25]In studious men, who lead a sedentary life, whilst they grow pale with poring over books, an apoplexy often arises from such a cause; but it comes on slowly and gradually. For the first symptom is languor, and a love of indolence; then the understanding begins to grow dull, the memory to flag; they become sleepy, stupid, and often continue a long time in that state before their death. I have seen, and not without the greatest compassion, men of the most profound learning, and who had deserv’d highly of the republick of letters, who, as it were, surviv’d themselves above a twelvemonth in a state of total oblivion, and at last died of apoplexy.Van Swieten, tom. III. p. 263.

[26]Adamvitæ medicorum, p. 372.

[27]We meet in the medicinal diary with an account, very well worth reading, of a severe colick, attended with other bad symptoms, and occasion’d by intense study and nocturnal lucubrations. Tom. I. p. 352.

[28]Van Swieten, tom. III. p. 87. exColumbo.

[29]Experience shews us that men of learning, though naturally of a chearful disposition, become at last fix’d, silent, pale, emaciated, and strangely troubled with the hypochondriac disorder, which generally tyrannizes over sedentary people.Ant.Felicidissertazioni epistolari, p. 203.

[30]Boerhaav.ad institut.§. 896, tom. VII. p. 275.

[31]Lancisusde mortu subit.l. 1. c. 22.

[32]MarkiiOratio funebris in obitumTriglandii. Leyden, 1705.

[33]The famousRousseau; but he has since quitted the British asylum, and returned to France.

[34]Joh. Alph. Rosset, theologiæ professor, & academiæ, hoc tempore, rector.

[35]The disorders of orators and singers are the same; but the bodies of these being open’d, have often shewn inflammations, suppurations, ulcers in the lungs; nay, the illustriousMorgagnisaw a young man that had an excellent voice, whose wind-pipe and throat being affected, could swallow nothing, and, whilst he attempted to suck down the yolk of an egg, was suffocated and died.De sedib. & caus.tom. 1. p. 228.

[36]It often proves hurtful to men of learning themselves, when in an advanc’d age they pursue a new study; for this gives rise to a new order of ideas, which receives no assistance from all the traces before left upon the brain: new fibres must receive new motions, a laborious work to the organ already debilitated, and which often throws men of first-rate capacities into lingering disorders.

[37]Suetoniusin vitaOct. Aug.cap.82.

[38]Valerius Maximus, lib. 3. c. 6. p. 140.

[39]De education. pueror.cap. 12.

[40]De motu opt. corpor. medicin.§ 9.

[41]De methodo,No. 6: There is likewise a remarkable passage inMoses Maimonides, one of the most ancient of the Arabian physicians. As life and health, says he, contribute greatly to the worship and knowledge of God; but a man in an ill state of health is unable to contemplate the works of God as he should do; a man ought to take particular care to avoid whatever is hurtful to his body, and should endeavour to procure whatever contributes to keep the body in health and strengthen it.De sanit. tuend. init.

[42]It must be acknowledged, that a man of learning, indefatigable in his studies, if he observes an exact regimen, innocent and moderate, will find the disadvantages attending his way of life more supportable than another.Felicidissertazioni, p. 203.

[43]Prælect. in instit.§ 1036, tom. VII. p. 337.

[44]Many plants fit for use, and perhaps most such, and many others, by means of an easy art, give out a great quantity of excellent sugar, not much inferior to that of sugar-canes. Eight ounces of the fresh juice of the skirret yield an ounce of the best sugar.MargraffMem. de l’Acad. de Berlin.

[45]Many phænomena prove this plethora; and it is evinced by a simple observation, and one that occurs daily,viz.by those convulsions of the lower jaw-bone which cause a collision of the teeth in sleep, and that more strongly in boys when they have eat a hearty supper.

[46]It was justly observed byTheophrastus, that to eat much, and to live upon flesh, deprives men of the use of their reason, blunts the faculties of their minds, and renders them dull and stupid.

[47]Boerhaaveprælect.tom. VII. p. 340.

[48]The goddess, saysPlato, chose a place which was to give birth to the wisest men.Init. Timæi.And do not forget this with regard to places, that they are of great consequence in giving birth to men of superior genius, or the reverse.De leg.lib. 5.

[49]By the excessive heat, which is not so much as allayed by an Etesian gale, I have entirely lost the power of philosophising, and am deterred from writing.LancisiadCocchi, p. 47.

[50]Qui ita ut vestitus calceatusque erat, retectis pedibus, paulisper conquiescebat opposita ad oculos manu.Suetoniusin vit. C. O. Aug.cap. 82. I enlarged upon the ill consequences of sleeping after dinner, in an epistle which I inscribed a few years ago to the illustriousHaller.

[51]Adolescentiam alunt, senectutem oblectant, secundas res ornant, adversis solatium prebent, delectant domi, non impediunt foris, pernoctant nobiscum, peregrinantur, rusticantur.CiceroOratione pro Archiâ.

[52]Quintilianusde Instit. Orator, lib. i. cap. i.

FINIS.

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