into divifions or things, fides, and mizmaze, &c.' The omiffion was owing to mere ignorance and ofcitancy on our parts; and not, as the Author feems to fufpect, to our joining in the general dread and alarm which, it seems, has feized our Gram, marians and Lexicographers,' our Bookfellers' and our Seminaries, left these his moft momentous difcoveries should overturn the prefent fyftems of things.'

ART. XIII. An Effay on the Nature and Circulation of the Blood, in Two Parts. I. On its Nature and Ufes. II On its Circulation,

By Marmaduke Berdoe, M. D. 8vo. 1 s. 6d. Robinson. 1772. ART, XIV. Theory of the Human Senfations. By Marmaduke Berdoe, M. D. 8vo. I S. Lowndes. 1773.

DR

R. Berdoe writes fo frequently, and on fo many fubjects, that he must excufe us for taking the liberty of lumping his two tracks together; especially as we actually find ourfelves unqualified to give any clear, diftinct, or confiftent account of their contents. We really can feldom discover what he would be at; and, though converfant in his writings, are still in a great measure ignorant of the language in which he wraps up his new and myfterious doctrines. We are utterly unacquainted, for inftance, with the animating etherial effence,' which, he tells us, the arteries convey in mucual ft:eams to the different organs; though we have read and ftudied his explanatory note on this paffage, in which he informs us that the atherial ef fence means the fixed air, or the air, or aerial particles contained in the blood, which is fuppofed to be the fame with what is called elementary fire.' This note, however, conveys to us no other information than what we were already poffeffed of; that the Doctor has an excellent knack at playing off a fet of newfangled phrafes, of dealing out his ather plentifully, and of jumbling the elements together by a dash or two of his pen.

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We have indeed, by this time, learnt that his exterior organ -a grand and active agent in the Doctor's phyfiology, is neither more nor less than what we and others fimply call the fkin; but as to his phrenic centers—his centers,' and his points, of appuy-which are continually occurring in the fecond of these tracts, and his difgregations in the organical forces'-together with many other choice and recondite terms and phrafes-they surpass our comprehenfion nearly as much as his brother Jones's quaternion of elements, or his burning bush in ftrait lines, expanding an infinite circle in a triad,' recorded in the preceding article. All these phrases, we doubt not, have ideas tacked to them, in the congenial heads of thefe two writers: but though Dr. Berdoe's exterior organ, mucual ftreams,' and difgregaions,' doubtlefs ferve many important purposes in his Theory of Human Senfations; an account of them, or of their mystic agency

·

and

and powers*, cannot be expected from our fober and unenlightened pens.

And yet thefe and the Author's former and future publications, it feems, contain a SYSTEM that will fpeedily aftonish the world, by its ftupendous magnitude and power. In the concluding paragraph of the first of thefe two tracts, the fond fa ther of it accufes us of having exerted our weak endeavours to ftife this young HERCULES in its cradle; and gives us fair warning to make quick dispatch, if we expect to fucceed in our defperate attempt to check the rapid growth of this ftrapping youngfter.-Hear what the Doctor himself fays on the fubject. Our reprefentation might, perhaps, be thought exaggerated:

• These opinions,' fays he,' will be confirmed by future publications, particularly by an Enquiry into the Nature of the Human Pulfe, and the Motion of the Arteries. But if the Reviewers are determined to deftroy OUR Syftem in the bud, they should not lofe the prefent opportunity, as by length of time it may grow into fo powerful a COLOSSUS, as to bid defiance at laft to all the artillery of their genius.'

We appeal, on this occafion, to the judgment of the impartial Public; not doubting but they will acquit us of the dark defign here imputed to us by this unaccountable mortal. We have indeed more than once diffented from the Doctor's opinions, when we have understood them; and in particular acknowledge that, in March 1773, juftly provoked to fee the rays of light violently twifted and joftled out of their natural and lawful courfe by this bold innovator, we ftoutly defended the good old laws of vifion, against the Doctor's New Syftem of feeing :—but from dates and other circumstances, it is evident that this cannot be the growing COLOSSUS above referred to +.

It was well judged in the Doctor to give the skin, that humble covering of the body, the high founding title above mentioned. The phrenic centers, and even the brain, it seems, yield in power to the "exterior organ.'

+ The Doctor breeds fo faft, and brings forth fo many new fyftems and theories, that we proteft we have overlooked a capital one indeed, promulgated in this very effay. Here, if we rightly comphed him, he demolishes the old Harveian circulation,-dethrones the heart-and portions out its hitherto undifputed, univerfal dominion over the circulating fluids, into numerous principalities, under the government of the Spongiform fubftance of the cellulary-membrane,' difperfed over the various parts of the body. These heptarchies, (though we know not their precife number) are the principal agents in the circulation,' and each part of the body has a circulation peculiar to itself. Where will this man ftop!-If he be fuffered to go on long at this violent rate, we muft e'en fhut our books, and all go to school again :-a mortifying ftep, to be obliged to take at our age!

It appears, however, that by our rough treatment of the new optical fyftem, we had nearly, though unwittingly, deprived the world of the prefent new Theory of the Human Senfations, We will recite the alarming tale in the Doctor's own words.

Every thing, it seems, was prepared for the promulgation of the new theory, when a friend brought him the Monthly Review for March 1773, to let him fee how feverely he had been criticised, by the learned body of the Monthly Reviewers.'

Tortured and vexed, I was going to throw all this theory into the fire, if it had not occurred to me, that two heads are oftentimes better than one.-Pleased with the thought, I called up my cookmaid, and bid her run her eye very carefully over the whole.'-[the very identical eye, we fufpect, in which the Doctor faw the erect image-See the aforefaid Review, page 238, where he flyly calls it the eye of a friend] She liked it, and approved of my publishing.'

Under the fanction then of her great authority I boldly venture once more to request your great decifion': I flatter myself I fhall please you, for though my cookmaid is not fo learned as a Reviewer, he is as excellent an old woman as the best—.'

What could induce this wench to relish the Doctor's theory, where he principally derives our pleasurable and other fenfations from the Midriff, is best known to herself. But are these, Dr. Berdoe, your clinical and practical obfervations, that you promited us when you commenced Author †? Viewing yourself in your cookmaid's pupil-and communing with her on the true feat of pleasurable fenfations ? Fie upon you!-By way of fcreen, you would pafs her off to us and the world for an old. woman, like ourselves.-But a fet of elderly matrons, as we are, are not to be fo taken in-She is a young wanton baggage, we'll warrant her, and no better than the fhould be.

+ See M. Review, vol. xlvi. April 1772, p. 443

Thefe, fays the Doctor, p. 35, are produced by all those causes that forcibly enchain us in the poffeffion of thofe objects which may be called the idols of human happiness.' Here we have the fair fex plainly defigned. She liked it," fays the Doctor. They are his very words. See above.

B

ART. XV. Chirurgical Obfervations and Cafes. By William Bromfield, Surgeon to her Majefty, and to St. George's Hofpital. Illuftrated with Copper-plates. 8vo. 2 Vols. 14 s. Cadell. 1773.

ΜΑ

ANY new, pertinent, and ufeful remarks are contained in this work, which is however unneceffarily enlarged by a confiderable number of trite and infignificant obfervations, that seem to answer no other purpose than that of fwelling the matter, which might with eafe have been contained in one vo

lume,

lume, into two. The Author feems to have entertained the fame apprehenfions with Martial, that his works would be in danger of being loft, were they not eked out, and expanded into a larger bulk, by the addition of supplementary materials,— no matter of what quality:

Edita ne brevibus pereat mihi charta libellis,

• Dicatur potius τον δ' απαμειβομενος.

De Libro Suo Lib. i. Epigr. 46. The difpofition of this matter likewife is frequently fuch as to incline the Reader to fuppofe that the Author had emptied his whole common-place book, and given its heterogeneous contents to the Public, just as the different articles ftood there; without felection, and with very little regard to form, language, or method. Of this inexcufable inattention to order we shall give the two following very ftriking instances.

In the 2d chapter of his firft volume, where the Author in the title of it profeffes to treat of Amputation, the Reader will, at the beginning of it, meet with an enumeration of some of the complaints that feem to indicate, or that require, the removal of a limb. From this fubject however he will foon find him fliding away to another, that bears indeed fome affinity to the operation;-the nature, caufes, and figns of a mortification. He now begins to lofe fight of the original object, for he muft next accompany the Author starting into the doctrine of inflammation; difcuffing the various theories that have been formed on that fubject, and finally propofing his own opinion. Having got over this litigated matter, the Author next treats of perspiration. He then proceeds to the sea and the land scurvy; and from thence to the pox, where he gives us his fentiments on the powers of corrofive fublimate in venereal complaints. From thence he leads the Reader to Harwich, and treats of feabathing, and the utility of warm fea-baths, first proposed by himself about fifteen years ago. Returning once more to inflammation he flicks to it pretty closely, to the end of the chapter;-like Montaigne and Triftram Shandy, leaving his companion at leisure to look about him, at the end of it, for the fubject he first fet off with. After a paufe, the reader proceeds to chap. 3, where he finds him treating of Tumours; in chap. 4, of the Erysipelas; in chap. 5, of the Anthrax or Carbuncle. Here, and under this unpromifing title, he at length unexpectedly meets with a large number of obfervations or remarks, fome of them new and important, on the fubject of amputation; particularly on that of the arm at the articulation of the fhoulder.

The next inftance of the neglect of order in this work, prefents us likewife with a fingular example of the want of a good understanding or correfpondence between its different parts. In chap. 4, of the 2d volume, On Fractures,' we were surprised

not

not to find our Author keeping pace at least with his cotempo. raries, in the fimple and efficacious improvements that have been lately introduced into that branch of practice. At page 59, indeed, we have one tranfient glimpfe afforded us, in about four words, of a part of the new treatment; where in the cafe of a confiderable tumefaction of the limb, preventing its reduction, we are told that while the furgeon is ufing means to bring down the' fwelling, as well as afterwards when he attempts the reduction of the broken bone, if the fracture is of the tibia or fibula, the knee fhould be bent.' But throughout the rest of this chapter, fcarce a veftige of the improved practice is to be traced: on the contrary, we find the Author till retaining the use of plaifters, the endless circumvolutions of a long fingle-headed roller, and the leg box ;-parts of the inconvenient and noxious trumpery of our forefathers.

Proceeding onwards however to chap. 7, we are again, equally, furprised to find our Author there not only warmly recommending the placing the fractured leg, for inftance, in a bent pofition, in order to relax the mufcles, both in the cafe of fimple and of compound fractures, and not only during but after reduction;-fuffering the patient to lie at his eafe, on his fide.or otherwife, with his leg unconfined, on a foft pillow ;—and ftrongly approving the ufe of the eighteen-tailed bandage, on account of its evident advantages above the circular-but we find him likewife putting in his claim to a confiderable share in the difcovery of these late improvements, and contending that it is now near 30 years fince he first recommended and inculcated them to his auditors, in his public lectures. This claim we thall not contravert; but it is fingular, and certainly favours our idea of the Author's having huddled together the materials of the prefent work from his old and new common place books; to find him obferving nearly a total filence with respect to certain modern improvements, in a part of his work where he is profeffedly treating of the fubject to which they immediately relate while in another part of it, he infifts on the great advantages derived from them, and contends for the honour of having long ago inculcated them.

Though the titles of the chapters into which this work is divided, do not, as the Reader already perceives, every where accurately fpecify their contents; we fhall enumerate them, in order to give the Reader fome information concerning the subjects that are treated of in these two volumes.

The first is divided into fix chapters. In the first, which has no title, the Author, on too flight grounds, in our opinion, re

We have formerly given a popular account of these improvements, and their rationale, in our 40th volume, June 1769, p. 465. commends

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