On the absolute necessity of encouraging instead of preventing or embarrassing the study of anatomy : with a plan to prevent violating the dormitories of the defunct. Addressed to the legislature of Great Britain / By William Rowley, M.D.

  • Rowley, William, 1742-1806.
Date:
[1795]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: On the absolute necessity of encouraging instead of preventing or embarrassing the study of anatomy : with a plan to prevent violating the dormitories of the defunct. Addressed to the legislature of Great Britain / By William Rowley, M.D. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    6/24 (page 4)
    The leglflature of Great Britain^ and the public in general, therefore, diould be informed of the neceffity of encouraging, inflead of impeding ana¬ tomical iludies.* * It may be folemnly afferted, that anatomical fcrutiny is car- i-ied on, in general, with^the greateft decorum and circumfpec- tiort; the fcrutinifed parts of the defnndl are generally buried, tinlefs preferved for tkeletons or other demonftrative purpofes. What furgeon would be Ikilfully able to reduce fradtures or dido- cations without an accurate knowledge of the bones, joints, mufcles, ligaments, &c. ? How could fra6tures of the Ikull be treated without a knowledge of the bones of the head, their fu¬ tures, ^c. ? How could the wounded foldier or failor have balls, or extraneous bodies extraded, or the lacerated wounds of the latter be treated judicioudy, if furgeons did not previoudy know and reded on the courfe of the large vedels, nerves, mufcles, tendons, &c. in the necedary dilatations of gun-diot wounds, and all operations ? Is the brave foldier or failor, after the well- fought battle, to be left a facrifice to the ignorance of uninformed furgeons, or rather pretenders to furgery ? There have lately been poured forth lamentable complaints on this fubjed; and to what can this be attributed, but the true caufe, the want of due encouragement and opportunities of becoming expert anatomids and pradical furgeons, before young artifts are fent into the fer- vice ? One of the greated: objedions to the ntedkal education'at Edinburgh, where are many ingenious profedbrs, is, the want of fubjeds for anatomical didedion, without which, no perfon, however ingenious and learned in other refpeds, can be a fkilful pradical furgeon or phyfician. Indeed, to fpeak truth, uniyerd- ties are not the bed places for acquiring medical knowledge; but large cities, where the obfervations of numbers of praditioners concentrate, and, as it were, form one ufeful whole, that adds to our daily dock of knowledge. For anatomy clears up doubts, purges the mind from all vidonary or fanciful prejudices, pe¬ netrates and difeovers the fallacy of various hypothefes and injuri- ous fydems. With that knowledge the art of phyfic-is a blef- ing, without it a ped or curfe to mankind, - 4' 0«