A plea for the botanic practice of medicine / by John Skelton.

  • Skelton, John, active 1852-1865.
Date:
MDCCCLIII [1853]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: A plea for the botanic practice of medicine / by John Skelton. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by King’s College London. The original may be consulted at King’s College London.

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    thing have there, unless for the purpose of stealing the dinner. Poor Friday, after listening with the greatest caution, is represented by our author as raising slowly but stealthily, the cover with one hand, and as readily pouncing the other into the pot for the purpose of catch- ing the thief; but, alas, the thief most certainly caught him. Poor mortal! and is it thus we have to suffer in order to become acquainted with causes and effects ? It is so ; and here we see a two-fold lesson well worthy the careful study of society. Crusoe was the superior or ad- vanced mind, schoolmaster and teacher, and there was an equal responsibility attached to him as well as to Friday, who, although a man in years, was but a child in experience. And this is the true position in which the whole of the human race stand to each other, therefore those the farthest in advance can neither by design or otherwise neglect the requirements of their less favoured brethren, without bringing down a retribution upon them- selves. It will be seen in this case that Crusoe lost the services of his Man-Friday for a time, and that Friday lost the use of his hand. Here we observe the simple way Defoe took to explain the principles of mental development and social ties. Now, nature never stops to ask in re- lation to physical violation, whether it results from igno- rance, accident, or design. Her laws are fixed and immutable, and are through their effects the source of both the pleasures and pains of life. But I am writing a plea for the botanic practice of medicine. Well, kind reader, I have introduced this simple story for the pur- pose of letting you see in what way it is connected with our best interests in life, and to vindicate God’s justice to the human race. I said, if you remember, that the fact of