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The observation is familiar to the consumers of charcoal, that by age it acquires a property, which renders it essentially more valuable, affording a degree of heat more intense and durable.' p. 261.

22. Conference between Mr. Grenville and the colony agents, 1764,' &c. p. 268.

23. Mauduit's Miscellanies.' p. 272.

"If any man wish to know what a very honest enthusiast, from his own visionary ideas of the perfection of civil liberty, may fancy that the constitution of the colonies ought to be, let him read Dr. Price.

If he think it of more importance to know what the constitution of the colonies really is, this history will clearly prove to him, from the evidence of facts.

The constitution of the colonies did not wait for Dr. Price's fancies, but existed a hundred years before he was born; having been already formed by their charters; by the conditions upon which they made their settlements; under which they have been consider ed as parts of the British empire, and under which they have enjoyed the protection and the privileges of British subjects (to say nothing of the constant usage of the crown, and then of the parliament to tax them.)

The constitution of our government like that of the human body, is a system that is already formed; and not a new thing now to be fancied. And we may apply to it what Boerhaave used to say to us in confutation of fancied the ories, Corpus humanum fit, non fingitur? p. 272.

24. On small pox inoculation, by Dr. Mather.' p. 275.

When this was written, only one physician, two or three magistrates, and the clergy of Boston durst step forth in defence of Inoculation. The success established the reputation of those who favoured it.' p. 275.

The doctor's arguments, which are forcible and eloquent, are drawn from the success of inoculation in Smyrna, Constantinople, and elsewhere; 2d, that physicians have recommended, and the king ap

proved of the practice; 3d, that God has prospered it; and 4th, that some magistrates and ministers approve of it.

25. Extracts from a letter, by a London merchant, to his friend in Virginia, 1775, in favour of the colonies. p. 280.

ART. 2.

The Pharmacopeia of the Massachusetts Medical Society. Boston. E. & J. Larkin. Greenough & Stebbins, printers. 12mo. 1808. $1 25 boards.

THE principles of pharmacology have, till of late, been too much neglected. It is, perhaps, a singular fact in our medical history, that the United States any regular there has never been published in pharmacopeia, arranged on scientifick principles, and made to extend to those medicines of domestic origin, whose activity has been demonstrated by direct experiment, and whose virtues have been determined by established modes of practice. The Dispensatories of foreign countries, it is true, have in two instances, been adopted by the physicians of the south, and partially accommodated to their states of practice, but into one of these the publisher, with a degree of unauthorized liberty, by which a great proportion of American editors is characterised, has contrived to interweave a system of chemical principles, unsupported by the scientifick world at large, and disavowed by every chemist of talents and established reputation. The work before us, therefore, may be considered as the first of the kind ever produced in this country, and, with regard to the medical profession, the most important ever issued from our pres

ses.

The necessity of a scientifick pharmacopeia, which should fix the language and regulate the preparation and combination of the various articles of the materia medica, has long been experienced by the physicians, and acknowledged by the apothecaries of the New England states. From the want of such a standard, the former, in their prescriptions, have been governed by no determinate rules of pharmacy, and assisted by no certain principles of medicochemical nomenclature; and the latter, in their preparations, guided, perhaps, more by names than the laws of pharmaceutical combination, have afforded medicines of different ingredients, and of varied degrees of strength, from the synonimes of the medical colleges of London, Edinburgh, and Dublin. The result of this confusion in the terms, and this uncertainty in the composition of medicinal preparations is often mortifying to the physician, embarrassing to the apothecary, and even sometimes dangerous to the patient. The evils, therefore, necessarily resulting from this unsystematick,and unscientifick mode of practice called loudly for reform, but in what way or by whom was the innovation to be effected? It is obvious, that this important revolution depended not on the will of any persons, considered as simple individuals; for who among us would feel himself obliged, independent of a conviction of his immediate interest, to submit to the requisitions of an authority gratuitously assumed, and unsanctioned by prescriptive right? nor on the adoption in its fullest extent of any European pharmacopeia as the only standard, by which physicians were to be governed in the prescription, and apothecaries in the composition of

medicines; for with what propriety could be introduced any of those works, in most of which may be found combinations of no active virtues, and in all peculiar preparations, inapplicable to the established modes of practice in our own country? From the consideration of these difficulties, and the conviction of the necessity of a work of this nature, the Massachusetts Medical Society determined to assume the most correct of them as a basis, on which should be constructed a pharmacopaia, similar in form and arrangement of the articles, but differing in some degree, in the nature of the substances, the proportions of ingredients and the modes of combination.

Its execution, it seems, was referred to a committee,* who were empowered to collate the different works on pharmacy, published by the European colleges of physicians, to embody them in a scientifick manner, and to publish the result of their labours, sanctioned by the name of the corporation. The objects of the society are completed in the volume before us.

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introduced, they must have advanced with slow and cautious steps. Their ends were not accomplished without a long series of laborious investigation, unaided by the faculty at large, and unassisted by the members of that as sociation, whose interest and reputation were necessarily involved in the character of the work. The plan on which they proceeded in the execution is detailed in the preface, and is contained in the four following inquiries.

1. Respecting the virtues of each article in the list of the materia medica, in the Edinburgh Pharmacopeia.

2. Respecting articles admitted into other pharmacopeias, or employed in this country, which are not found in the Edinburgh Pharmacopeia.

3. Respecting the merit of the preparations and compositions in the Edinburgh Pharmacopæia, compared with those, which are similar in other pharmaceutical works.

4. Respecting the merit of such preparations and compounds as are not admitted into the Edinburgh Pharmacopeia, but are found either in similar works, or in common use in this country.

Proceeding, therefore, on these principles, their objects could not be attained without much time, much accurate experiment, cautious examination, and laborious and long continued research. consequence of this investigation, we observe, with much satisfaction, the omission of several combinations of doubtful efficacy, and the insertion of others of superiour activity and greater simplicity of composition.

One principal object undoubtedly in the promotion of this pharmacopeia was the consideration,

The

that it might be regarded as the repository of all the medicines of domestick origin, whose activity had been demonstrated by experiment, or whose virtues were too positive to be mistaken. But a long series of attentive observation and of patient investigation is requisite to fix the character and determine the powers of any article of the materia medica. medicines of our own country, unfortunately, have, in few instances, been submitted to a course of experiments, the results of which would place them beyond dispute in their appropriate station. Were all the medicines to be admitted, which are daily used by the physicians of this country, particularly of the interiour, whose materia medica is derived more from the objects of botany than of chemistry, the catalogue of simples' would be swelled to an almost immeasurable extent, and the work itself be degraded, from a regular pharmacopeia, to the character of a mere popular herbal. Hence the catalogue of American medicines is short, and this partial notice is founded on the correct principle, that the history of most of them is very imperfect, and that only such articles as have an established reputation are entitled to admission into a work of this sort."*

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The contents of the volume under review, are comprehended in the three following divisions. 1. Materia Medica. 2. Preparations. and compositions. 3. Tables, the first of which indicates the proportions of opium, antimony, and quicksilver, in some important combinations; the second, a posological and prosodial table, denotes the quantities to be exhib

* Preface.

ited of the various articles of the
materia medica, either in their
simple form, or in a state of com-
bination, and their established
modes of pronunciation; and the
two last are appropriated as gener-
al indices of ancient and syste-
matick names. These tables are
valuable additions to the work, and
are well calculated to facilitate the
acquisition of the principles of
the new medical nomenclature,
founded on the discoveries of mo-
dern chemistry, and happily ap-
plied to the elucidation of the
complex operations of pharmaceu-
tical combination. On opening
the leaves of this book, the first
circumstance, which would attract
the notice, and perhaps excite the
surprise of a foreign physician is
its English dress, which by the
pedantick correctness of European
colleges might be considered as
But it
heterodox in medicine.
must be remembered that the
modes of education in our coun-
try render this necessary. To be
useful it must of course be intelli-
gible, and this is to be effected on-
ly by writing in plain English, for
unfortunately for the mysticism
of the medical profession, the Latin
and Greek, to our apothecaries,
are truly dead languages.
directions, therefore, for the pre-
parations and compositions of the
various articles of the materia
medica are given in English, the
technical terms being super added
By this
with their translations.

The

mode all ambiguity is avoided, and
the compounder of medicine will
hereafter never have occasion to
screen his ignorance of his art un-
der the wilful misinterpretation of
a Latin direction.

In short, the character of the
pharmacopæia of the M. M. S.
may be delineated in a sentence.
It is encumbered by no superflu-
s compounds, and its utility is

diminished by no important omis-
sion; its size is sufficiently ex-
tended to present to the practition-
er a complete body of medicinal
agents, while it is sufficiently con-
tracted to exclude a long catalogue
of ineffective medicines, whose on-
ly office is to obstruct the physi-
cian in his practice, and embarrass
If then our
the apothecary in his pharmaceu-
tical compositions.
view of the merits of this work be
correct, we may be indulged in the
hope, that, in future, its nomencla-
ture will be adopted by the physi-
cians not only of the society, and
of the town, but by those of the
country, and its directions most
strictly followed by the apotheca-
ries.

We may be allowed to an-
ticipate the period, when the con-
fused and imperfect nomenclature,
which now disgraces the medical
profession, shall have given way
to the scientifick principles of
be adopted
regular pharmacopeias, and one u-
niform standard
We
throughout New England, and
perhaps the United States.
stop for a moment to award the
tribute of praise to its mechanical
execution. Its very correct typo-
graphy, and clean impression do
much credit to the printers, and
demonstrates, that with care and
assiduity that branch of the me-
chanick art will rapidly approach
the style of execution, by which the
objects of the typograpnick art in
the old world are characterised.

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tract on practical religion, will be disappointed. The subject is good, but it is treated with such diffuseness, that almost any other title would as well suit the book, as the one which it bears. The form of method, however, is given to the work, which is divided into nine chapters, of which the following are the contents :

Chap. 1. General observations on the importance of resignation. 2. Resignation considered as it regards the renunciation of objects. 3. Resignation considered, as it regards the exercises of the heart and mind in meeting the events of divine providence. 4. A serious question concerning resignation examined. 5. Counterfeit resignation exposed. 6. The influence of resignation upon the passions. 7. The influence of resignation on disposition and character. 8. The influence of resignation on devotion. 9. The influence of resignation on the sentiments of mortality.

These chapters contain indeed some excellent thoughts on piety and morals; but they are nearly lost in verbosity and metaphor. We have never seen a book of this devotional cast composed in so figurative a style. It tends to bewilder the serious christian, whilst it excites a smile in the literary lounger.

What particular system of the ology our author espouses, it is difficult,and perhaps not important to ascertain. His third chapter, which is the best, having something in it like reasoning, professes to refute a doctrine, which is said to be orthodox; whilst, in every part of his book, he uses Trinitarian and Calvinistick phrases with apparent complacency. Elsewhere he seems to be a disciple of Swedenborg; for he says, sexual attachments often originate in mystery,' and talks of persons • being visited by celestial spirits,' Vol. V. No. 1.

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and of communing with spirits. and angels with the greatest familiarity.' Enemies, however, as we are, to controversial divinity, we should not quarrel with Mr. Messinger, respecting his creed, provided he had written with discrimination and arrangement. We would have pardoned the peculiarity of his thoughts, or his attachment to a favourite reformer, if he had clothed the first with neatness, and vindicated the last with strength and clearness. But his repetitions weary, his obscurity perplexes, and his affectation disgusts us.

He borrows much of his eloquence from texts in the sacred writings, of all others the most difficult of interpretation; he sometimes attempts to bring into affinity the most heterogeneous objects, and he often composes the same sentence of both obsolete and new-fangled terms. When he speaks of the aged peasant,' vigils of philosophy,' slumberous nostrums of self-righteousness,' 'perspectives of the dying,'

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translucent tears,'' sullen morosity,' &c. &c., and when he uses such words as transiency,' 'prayerful,' and very often the Divinity' for God, we cannot but lament, that Mr. Messinger had not either been early made acquainted with Campbell and Blair, or confided his 'Sentiments' for correction to a judicious friend. Of the almost innumerable errours of the press we say nothing.

Yet it must be acknowledged, that Mr. Messinger has a claim to the benignity of the publick, which no living author, in this country, can present. Whilst we are just in the cause of letters, we bow to the dispensations of providence, and would cherish a sacred respect for inevitable sufferings. His preface, addressed to the patrons of

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