the preface, the author gives us to understand, that it was undertaken and executed from pure motives of humanity and compaffion towards the poor country people of Swifferland, who, when fick, are often loft for want of proper affiítance, as well as by the abfurd practices of ignorance and fuperftition. This book was so well received in Swifferland, that the author was complimented with a medal by the chamber of health of the republic of Berne: but it feems to have met with a reception equally favourable in other countries. It has been tranflated into High Dutch, Low Dutch, and Italian, and now it makes its appearance in an English garb, fashioned by the hands of Dr. Kirkpatrick. Our author confines himself chiefly to inflammatory diforders and accidents. His original purpose was to reform the mal practice used in treating acute diseases in country places, where there was neither time nor convenience to procure better advice; whereas chronical difcafes, proceeding more flowly, there is always room and opportunity for obtaining proper afliftance. Befides, the treatment of acute diftempers is fimple and uniform, whereas chronical maladies are more complex, and require the fedulous attention of experienced phyficians. Dr. Tiffor had likewife an eye to the price and brevity of his work, which must have been fwelled to a confiderable bulk, had it comprehended all the dif eases incident to human nature. With the fame view of retrenching fuperfluities, and affording the book at a reasonable price, he has numbered his paragraphs, as well as his table of medicines, to which numbers he occafionally refers, and these references are a little troublesome to the reader; but, however, we must allow his plan, even in this particular, is laudable.— He has wifely rejected a great farrago of ufelefs medicines; his prefcriptions are fimple; his remedies efficacious and easily procured; and this treatife is, in our opinion, infinitely preferable to Allen, Shaw, Brook, or any other synopfis we have feen on the fame fubject.

The introduction is fo fenfible, we wish we had room to infert it verbatim. Expatiating upon the different caufes of depopulation, he inveighs against that abfurd emigration to which the Swifs are addicted. But that abandoning their country, or expatriation, as it may be termed, the object of which is a change of the emigrants condition, is more to be confidered, being more numerous. It is attended with many and peculiar inconveniencies, and is unhappily become an epidemical evil, the ravages of which are ftill increafing; and that from one fimple ridiculous fource, which is this; that the fuccefs of one individual determines a hundred to run the fame rifque, ninety and nine of whom may probably be difappointed. They are

ftruck

ftruck with the apparent fuccefs of one, and are ignorant of the mifcarriage of others. Suppofe a hundred perfone might have fet out ten years ago, to feek their fortune, as the faying is, at the end of fix months they are are all forgotten, except by their relations: but if one should return the fame year, with more money than his own fortune, more than he fet out with; or if one of them has got a moderate place with little. work, the whole country rings with it, as a fubject of general entertainment. A crowd of young people are feduced by this, and fally forth, because not one reflects, that of the ninetynine, who fet out with the hundredth perfon, one half has perished, many are miferable, and the remainder come back, without having gained any thing, but an incapacity to employ themselves ufefully at home, and in their former occupations: and having deprived their country of a great many cultivators, who, from the produce of the lands, would have attracted confiderable fums of money, and many comfortable advantages to it. In short, the very fmall proportion who fucceed, are continually talked of; the crowd that fink are perpetually forgot. This is a very great and real evil, and how shall it be prevented? It would be fufficient perhaps to publish the extraordinary rifque, which may be eafily demonftrated: it would require nothing more than to keep an exact yearly register of all these adventurers, and, at the expiration of fix, eight, or ten years, to publish the lift, with the fate, of every emigrant. I am greatly deceived, or at the end of a certain number of years, we fhould not fee fuch multitudes forfake their native foil, in which they might live comfortably by working, to go in fearch of establishments in others; the uncertainty of which, fuch lifts would demonftrate to them; and also prove, how preferable their condition in their own country would have been, to that they have been reduced to. People would no longer fet out, but on almost certain advantages: fewer would undoubtedly emigrate, more of whom, from that very circumfrance must fucceed. Meeting with fewer of their countrymen abroad, thefe fortunate few would often return. By this means more inhabitants would remain in the country, more would return again, and bring with them more money to it. The state would be more populous, more rich and happy; as the happiness of a people, who live on a fruitful foil, depends effentially on a great number of inhabitants, with a moderate quantity of pecuniary riches.

But the population of the country is not only neceffarily Jeffened, in confequênce of the numbers that leave it; but even those who remain, increase less, than an equal number formerly did. Or, which amounts to the fame thing, among the

fame

fame number of perfons, there are fewer marriages than for merly; and the fame number of marriages produce fewer chriftenings. I do not enter upon a detail of the proofs, fince merely looking about us muft furnish a fufficient conviction of the truth of them. What then are the caufes of this? There are two capital ones, luxury and debauchery, which are enemies to population on many accounts.

in

Luxury compels the wealthy man, who would make a figure; and the man of a moderate income, but who is his equal every other refpect, and who will imitate him, to be afraid of a numerous family; the education of which must greatly contract that expence he had devoted to parade and oftentation; and befides, if he muft divide his eftate among a great many children, each of them would have but a little, and be unable to keep up the ftate and the train of the father's. Since merit is unjustly eftimated by exterior fhew and experience, one must of course endeavour to attain for himself, and to leave his children in a fituation capable of fupporting that expence. Hence the fewer marriages of people who are not opulent, and the fewer children among people who marry.

• Luxury is further prejudicial to the increafe of the people, in another refpect. The irregular manner of life which it introduces, depreffes health; it ruins the conftitutions, and thus fenfibly affects procreation. The preceding generation counted fome families with more than twenty children: the living one lefs than twenty coufins. Very unfortunately this way of thinking and acting, fo preventive of increafe, has extended itself even into villages: and they are no longer convinced there, that the number of children makes the riches of the countryman. Perhaps the next generation will fcarcely be acquainted with the relation of brotherhood.

"A third inconvenience of luxury is, that the rich retreat from the country to live in cities; and by multiplying their domeftics there, they drain the former. This augmented train is prejudicial to the country, by depriving it of cultiva ters, and by diminishing population. Thefe domeftics, being feldom fufficiently employed, contract the habit of lazinefs; and they prove incapable of returning to that country labour, for which nature intended them. Being deprived of this refource, they fcarcely ever marry, either from apprehending the charge of children, or from their becoming libertines; and fometimes, because many mafters will not employ married fervants. Or fhould any of them marry, it is often in the decline of life, whence the flate muft have the fewer citizens.

• Idleness of itself weakens them, and difpofes them to those debauches, which enfeeble them ftill more. They never have

more

more than a few children, and these fickly; fuch as have not ftrength to cultivate the ground; or who, being brought up in cities, have an averfion to the country.'

The fourth caufe of depopulation, is the ignorance of thofe who take upon them to adminifter remedies in the country; and in order to remedy this evil, the prefent performance is written; not with a view to inform regular bred phyficians, but for the inftruction and direction of thofe who have charity enough to employ their time and abilities for the relief of their fick neighbours. The first clafs he has in his eye, is the clergy; in the next place, gentlemen of wealth and condition, who are generally follicited for their advice and affistance by the poor when they are fick; thirdly, the ladies; fourthly, the fchoolmafters; and fifthly, furgeons, apothecaries, and midwives. The whole treatife confifts of thirty-four chapters, the contents of which we shall specify for the reader's information.

Introduction. The firft caufe of depopulation, emigrations; the fecond caufe, luxury; third caufe, decay of agriculture; fourth caufe, the pernicious treatment of difeafes. Means for rendering this treatife ufeful. Explanation of certain phyfical terms, and phrafes.

Chapter I. The most common causes of popular fickness.

Firft caufe, exceffive labour; fecond caufe, the effect of cold air, when a perfon is hot; third caufe, taking cold drink, when in a heat; fourth caufe, the inconftancy and fudden change of the weather; fifth caufe, the fituation of dunghills and marshes, near inhabited houfes, and the bad confined air in the hoofes; fixth caufe, drunkennefs; feventh caufe, the food of country people; eighth caufe, the fituation, or expofure of houfes; concerning the drink of country people. Chap. II. Of caufes which increase the difeafes of the people,

with general confiderations.

Firft caufe, the great care employed to force the fick to fweat, and the methods taken for that purpofe; the danger of hot chambers; the danger of hot drinks and heating medicines; fecond caufe, the quantity and quality of the food given fick perfons; third caufe, the giving vomits and purges at the beginning of the difeafe

Chap. III. Concerning what should be done in the beginning of difeafes, and the diet in acute difeafes.

Signs which indicate approaching difeafes; with means to prevent them. The common regimen, or regulations, for the fick. The benefits of ripe found fruit. Cautions and means to be used on recovery.

Chap.

Chap. IV. Of the inflammation of the breast.

The figns of this disease. The advantage of bleeding. Signs of recovery. Of crifes, and the fymptoms that precede them. The danger of vomits, of purges, and of anodynes. Of the fuppreffion of expectoration, and the means to reftore it. Of the formation of vomicas, or impofthumes in the lungs, and the treatment of them. Of the danger of remedies termed balfamics. The inefficacy of the antihectic of Poterius. Of an empyema. Of a gangrene of the lungs. Of a sciri hus of the lungs.

Chap. V. Of the pleurify.

The danger of heating remedies. Of frequent, or habitual pleurifies. Of goats blood; the foot of a ftale egg, and of the wormwood of the Alps, in pleurifies.

Chap. VI. Of difeafes of the threat.

Of their proper treatment. Of the formation of an ab. fcefs there. Of fwelled ears, from the obftruction of the parotid and maxillary glands. Of the epidemic and putrid difeafes of the throat, which prevailed in 1761 at Lausanne.

Chap. VII. Of colds.

Different prejudices concerning colds.

The danger of

drinking much hot water, and of ftrong fpirituous liquors, &c. Means for ftrengthening and curing perfons very subject to colds.

Chap. VIII. Of difeafes of the teeth.

Chap. IX. Of the apoplexy.

Of fanguine apoplexy. Of a ferous, or watery apoplexy. Means to prevent relapfing into them.

Chap. X. Of morbid ftrokes of the fun.

Chap. XI. Of the Rheumatism.

Of the

Of the acute rheumatism, attended with a fever. flow, or chronical, without a fever. The danger of fpiritu ous and greasy remedies.

Chap. XII. Of the bite of a mad dog.

Chap. XIII. Of the fmall pox.

Of the preceding symptoms of this difeafe. The danger of fweating medicines. The treatment of the benign diftinct fmall pocks. The ufe of bleeding. The fever of fuppuration. The neceflity of opening the ripe puftules. The danger of anodynes. Of the ftriking in of the eruptions. Preparations for receiving it favourably.

Chap.