even a reputed wife man go very great lengths in her caufe; and is is no fecret to the world, that many lives have been facrificed by dif. ferent medical Knights-errant, at the inftigation and in the support of their respective Dulcineas. We mean not to difcourage enquiries of the prefent kind, or to deny that advantages may be derived from the profecution of them; but only to infinuate the necefity of being circumfpect and reserved in drawing practical conclufions from them. There is a wide chafm, for inftance, even between the moft perfect knowledge of the chemical qualities of the bile, or any of the other fluids of the human body, and the applying that knowledge to practice, or to the cure of difeafes.-The conclufion is at fo very great a diflance from the premifes; and the flightest circumftance, unknown, overlooked, or mistaken, is capable of producing fo great a change in the deduction! B. t-17 A Treatise on the Difeafes of Infants, and Children. 12mo. 3 s. Johnfton. 1772. We fee nothing either deferving of praife or cenfure in this flight compendium, in which the Author has profeffedly availed himself of fuch affiftance from the works of preceding writers, as he found to be confirmed by his own experience. The Reader will not meet with much new information in this performance; nor indeed can a fuf. ficiently copious and fatisfactory account of the nature and cure of the various diforders to which infants and children are liable, be comprehended in the narrow bounds of a work of this fize. Art. 18. Serious Confiderations on fome remarkable Paffages in a Work lately published by Mr. B***, and presented to his Majefty. 8vo. I s. Hewitt. 177༣་ Art. 19. Notes on Mr. William Bromfield's Two Volumes of Chirurgical Obfervations, c. &c. By D. A. S. M. D. and Profeffor of Surgery. 8vo. Is. Longman. 1773. We shall not enter into any particular detail of the ftrictures of thefe two Spontaneous Reviewers of Mr. Bromfield's publication. We may perhaps be thought to have fufficiently criticised him already: but our cenfures will be confidered as tender mercies, when compared with the fportive cruelties of the Serious Confiderer, and the more fober but keen animadverfions of the Annotator. We fhall observe, with respect to the first, that his ftrictures are delivered in a continued. ftrain of waggery, and contemptuous irony, commencing with the first word of the title-page of his pamphlet, and carried on nearly to the end of it. We cannot however difmifs this waggish critic without expreffing our admiration, and indeed, as Reviewers, our envy, at his astonishing rapidity, confidering him in the three characters of a Reader, a Confiderer, and a Penman. In an advertisement prefixed, he befpeaks the candour of the Reader in excufe for ftyle, &c. on the plea that "the following Obfervations were wrote the fame evening the Author read Mr. B.'s book, and have not undergone any correction.'-In our prefent ftraits, into which the daily increafing multitude of medical publications, and other circumftances, have driven us, we heartily with this expeditious gentleman would lend us his machine for a month or two. We ufe that name, as we are convinced he must be be poffeffed of fome fingular mechanical contrivance, to enable him to expedite matters at this violent rate:-fuch a one belike as Dr. Burney mentions in his late German tour, that writes off voluntaries as fast as a man can conceive and play them. The criticisms of the Annotator are rather of a more serious and argumentative caft. The principal fubjects on which he attacks Mr. Bromfield are, the method proposed by him, above animadverted upon by us, of treating concuffions of the brain ;-his affuming, in 'more than one inftance, the difcoveries of others to himself: and the improprieties, fingularities, and negligences of his ftyle. After treating the Obferver with confiderable severity on these and a few other points, he acknowledges the utility of fome of the remarks contained in his performance; various parts of which, he confeffes, may be read not only with fafety but improvement. B. Art. 20. Medical and Chirurgical Obfervations, as an Appendix to a former Publication. By Benjamin Gooch, Surgeon. 8vo. 5 s. 6d. bound. Robinson. 1773. The Public are already well acquainted with the merit of the Author's two former publications, the first of which, intitled, Cafes and practical Remarks in Surgery,' was republished a second time in the year 1767, and accompanied with A practical Treatife on Wounds, and other Chirurgical Suljes. To these two volumes the present will be found a very useful fupplement. The extraordinary cafes, of other interefting obfervations, that have occurred to the Author in the courfe of a long and extenfive practice, are related with his ufual plainnefs and perfpicuity; and his reflections on them are evidently thofe of an attentive, fenfible, and well informed obferver; who feems greatly to have at heart the improvement of his profeffion, and has himself very largely contributed towards it. Art. 21. The Friendly Phyfician. A new Treatife, &c. &c. By F. Spilbury, Chymist. 8vo. 1 s. Wilkie. 1773. The friendly Physician,' who has here benevolently prefented us with a New Treatije,' has abfolutely been at the pains to fcrape together a tolerable large bundle of recipes from difpenfatories, and of choice receipts from private practice;' and-good creature that he is, has now and then thrown in a word or two into the bargain concerning the virtues of all the compounds, whether orthodox or heterodox, that he has recommended. All this he has done with the friendly view of inftructing those who may be difpofed to buy his medicine chefts- (for this Physician, after all, turns out to be a Chemist) to felect the medicines with which they would have the aforefaid receptacles furnished. Different schemes are likewise drawn, and prefented to their view, from a fix bottle cafe, at fixteen fillings price, up to a twenty bottle cafe, at two guineas. We entertain no doubt however but that, if they are difpofed to practice on a flill larger fcale, The friendly Phylician, and his Carpenter, will ftrain every nerve to accommodate them. B. See Monthly Review, vol. xviii. page 316, and vol, xxxix. page 158. Dd 2 Art. Art. 22. An Account of the late Dr. Goldsmith's Illness, fo far as relates to the Exhibition of Dr. James's Powders: Together with Remarks on the Use and Abuse of powerful Medicines in the Beginning of acute Difeafes. By William Hawes, Apothecary. 4to. 1 s. Brown. 1774 As many others befide our Medical Readers will find themselves deeply interested in the lofs of Dr. Goldfmith, we are willing to take the moft early notice of this publication. In the dedication of this pamphlet to Sir Joshua Reynolds and Mr. Burke, the Author, who attended the Doctor in his last and fatal illness, informs them that he has been induced to publish this account of the circumftances preceding that unhappy event, in confequence of the many private and public applications which have been made to him for that purpofe ;and the rather, as he has reason to believe some perfons have formed very unjust and uncandid notions refpecting his conduct in this affair. Our Readers must be content with the following fhort fummary, which however contains the material facts that have more particularly given occafion to the present publication. On Friday the 25th of March, at eleven o'clock at night, the Author was called to Dr. Goldsmith, who, as we learn elsewhere, had been taken ill that day, and who complained to him of a violent pain in his forehead, which had not been preceded by any cold shiverings. He had no pain in any other part, his tongue was moift, and his pulfe beat about 90 ftrokes in a minute. The Doctor had already -we fuppofe this fame day-taken a vomit of ipecacuanha wine, and declared to Mr. Hawes his intention of now taking Dr. James's Fever-powder. From this defign Mr. H. vehemently but ineffectually endeavoured to diffuade him. Soon after Mr. H.'s departure, Dr. Fordyce visited the patient, and prescribed for him; and early the next morning called upon the Author, and informed him that he had represented to Dr. G. the preceding night, the impropriety there would be in his taking Dr. James's Powders; but that inflead of paying any attention to his remonftrances on this fubject, he had unhappily perfifted in his own refolution, and taken two or three dofes of the Powder, though it had operated both as a purgative and an emetic.' On the Saturday morning, Mr. Hawes did not fee Dr. Goldsmith, as he was told that he was dozing. In the evening he found him very bad, with a quick and fmall pulfe, and fo far exhaufted, that he feemed to have neither ftrength nor fpirits to speak,' except te declare, with a deep figh, and in a very low voice, that he wifhed he had taken his friendly advice laft (Friday) night' By the Doctor's fervant Mr. H. was informed that his master had been vomiting all day, and purging frequently; but that nevertheless he would make him give him James's Fever-powders :' fo that, fays the Author he ftill continued the ufe of the medicine, and of confequence itncreased in its pernicious operation, by which means the evacuations were continued for at least eighteen hours.' On Sunday morning, as we are left to guefs, from the Author's indefinite mode of expreffing himself, he found the Doctor much worte, and that he had paffed a very bad night; having vomited feveral feveral times, and had many loofe ftools' and lying abfolutely funk with weaknefs' At the preffing folicitations of Mr. Hawes, exerted at the request of Dr. Fordyce, who thought it right to propofe calling in another phyfician, as the patient would not follow his advice,' and who hoped that by fo doing, he would be convinced of the danger of his fituation,'-Dr. Turton was immediately joined in confultation.-After this period, nothing more is here related concerning this cafe than that the two phyficians regularly attended the patient twice a day till his death.' This happened, as we are obliged to calculate from the public papers, about eight days afterwards. On the whole, the Author, in very decifive terms, attributes the lofs which fociety has fuftained, by the death of fo ingenious and worthy a member of it, to the mifchievous effects of the FeverPowders, injudiciously administered.-Whether he is right or wrong in this conclufion, can scarce be collected by a reader of his concife,' but not clear,' circumftantial or fatisfactory account. The few however, who make use of their reafon in medical matters, will certainly join with him in condemning the prefent reigning propenfity to quackery,' and the hafty recourfe had to active and powerful remedies, through credulity, whim, or impatience, without any difcriminating knowledge of the various circumstances refpecting both the remedy and the difeafe, which may render the exhibition of them beneficial or noxious. We fhall only add that, fince the publication of this pamphlet, the proprietor of the Fever-powders has, in fupport of the credit of that medicine, inferted in the public papers various declarations of the nurfe and others who attended Dr. Goldfmith; importing, among other matters of lefs confequence, that the fever-powders which the Doctor took in the interval between the Friday and Saturday night, and to which Mr. Hawes principally afcribes the mischievous confequences that followed, were fent from the Author's own shop;-a circumftance concerning which Mr. H. is totally filent;-and that there is ftrong reafon to prefume that they were not the Genuine Pow ders. On the other hand, however, Mr. Hawes has, through the fame channel, in answer to this laft fuggeftion, prefented the Public with two other declarations, refpectively figned by his journeyman and maid-servant; the first of whom affirms that the powders which he carried to Dr. Goldfinith were the genuine fever powders, bought at the shop of Francis Newbery, junior; and the fecond declares that fhe held the candle, on the Friday night, while he broke the large broad feal off fomewhat wrapped up in marble paper, which, on her inquiring, he told her contained James's Powder -But it is perhaps rather extrajudicial in us to take notice of thefe declarations: the evidence is not properly before us. B-J. Art. 23 The Young Surgeon's Dictionary; or, Pupil's Inflructor, &c. 12mo. 2 s. 6d. fewed. Brown. No Date. We should guess this to be another production of the Friendly Phyfician, or at least of fome learned friend of his-or poffibly of his printer only; as the fame engraved view of the infide of a grand chemical laboratory is prefixed to this performance, that adorns Mr • Vid. Article 21. Dd 3 Spilf Several Spilfbury's publication. We can really find no other method of esti mating its worth than that of literally weighing it. The paper indeed on which this very fmall and coflly production is printed, though fuffi-, ciently coarfe and brown, might honeftly, between man and man, be worth about two-pence halfpenny, when it came out, pure and undefiled, from the hands of the manufacturer. But the compiler and printer have had the addrefs, on its paffing through their hands, to reduce it to wafte paper; in which ftate it will scarce fetch a farthing. It weighs, cover and all, under four ounces. We now find ourselves fairly arrived at the very bathos of medical authorship and reviewing; and fhall take our leave, for this month, of this new mode of criticism: not however through the want of proper fubjects for the fcales and weights. At this very inftant our helves groan under the increafing load... B-y. POETICA L. Art. 24. The Tears of Genius. Occafioned by the Death of Dr. 1774. Becket, In lamenting the death of Dr. Goldsmith, Mr. C. M. has been led to contemplate likewife the fate of others;' for, he adds, within a few years our literary loffes have been fatally multiplied, and many of the most valuable members have been fuddenly lopped off from science and fociety.' The Tears of Genius, therefore, are shed not for Dr. G. only, but And now, my lov'd SHENSTONE, for thee, Thoa fairest refemblance of me, Dear elegant Bard of the plain. For thee will I pour the fad lay, That shall echo the thickets among; And weep as I muse on the day, ་ That robb'd the poor fwains of thy fong, Full gentle, and fweet was the note And NATURE was polifh'd by ART. There are five more ftanzas facred to the memory of this pleafing writer; but the three we have given may fuffice for a fpecimen. The Author has precluded all criticifm by affuring his readers, that this mifcellaneous poem was begun and finifhed within a few hours after the news reached him that Dr. Goldfmith was dead.' This may ferve to excufe any little defects in the performance; but if it be thought that another apology might be wanted for fending the piece in fo much hurry to the prefs, the Poet replies, that it was done to prevent the occafion which produced the elegy from losing the firength of the imprefion by delay. For, alas, adds he, the traces of forrow, |