Pulmonary consumption, bronchitis, asthma, chronic cough, and various other diseases of the chest, successfully treated by medicated inhalations / by Alfred Beaumont Maddock.

Date:
1861
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Pulmonary consumption, bronchitis, asthma, chronic cough, and various other diseases of the chest, successfully treated by medicated inhalations / by Alfred Beaumont Maddock. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. The original may be consulted at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh.

    133/152 (page 117)
    satisfaction to my family, and also to soo if I could get somo relief, I went one morning with my wife, without saying a word to old Dulph, to consult the great Dr. Creruleus Mortisage, Physician to St. Lazarus’s. Infirmary for Diseases of tho Windpipe, Fellow of a dozen Societies, Professor of Mortal Pathology, or something of the sort, at the Collegiate School of Medicine, and altogether a medical gun of the greatest possible calibre. Well, sir, I was stripped, and weighed, and measured, and tapped, and rapped, till my ribs ached ; I was made to gasp, and breathe, and cough, and count; every inch of me was explored; but I could plainly see that the more I was explored, the worse was the Doctor’s opinion of my case. At last, when he had finished his investigation, we ashed him anxiously what he thought. And I scarcely can fancy a poor wretch at the Old Bailey looking more anxiously in the foreman’s face when he comes in to deliver the verdict of the jury, than I did at the face of Dr. Cseruleus Mortisage, in order to anti- cipate what Ms verdict would be. As for my poor wife, she trembled so, that I thought she would have dropped off her chair. “ However, after a short preamble, the opinion was delivered, calmly, and not unkindly; but it was very positive, and unfavoiir- able enough in all conscience. He told me a good deal which I could not understand, about congestion, or consolidation, or some- thing of that sort, but said it was his duty to tell me that he con- sidered my case a bad one; he believed I should not be able to go on with my usual pursuits, and hinted at the expediency of parting with my share in the business, and retiring to Bournemouth or Hastings. He spoke long and kindly, but all to the same pur- pose, and took no great pains to conceal the fact that he thought me a dead attorney. “ Just as we were going (for I had paid him his fee) it struck me that something was missing, I could scarcely recollect what, so stunned was I at the sentence that had been passed on me, till my wife said, ‘ Are yog not going to give us any prescription, Dr. Mortisage ? ’ “ The question seemed to strike him all of a heap, for he had evidently forgotten this part of his office; but he took up his pen and wrote something which he gave me, and we left. “ So soon as we got into our carriage, and I could collect my thoughts a little, my anger knew no bounds. Here is this rascal, I said, pronouncing sentcnco of death on me; and scarcely think- ing it worth his while to write a prescription; what good can