Lister's Antiseptic Principle of the Practice of Surgery Harvey's Motion of the Heart and Blood Auenbrugger's Percussion of the Chest Laennac's Auscultation and the Stethoscope Jenner's Inquiry into Smallpox Vaccine; Continuation of Observations Morton's Administering Sulphuric Ether; Physiology of Ether Simpson's A New Anaesthetic Agent Holmes's Contagiousness of Puerperal Fever CLASSICS OF MEDICINE AND SURGERY (formerly titled: Epoch-making Contributions to Medicine, Collected by C. N. B. CAMAC DOVER PUBLICATIONS, INC. HENRY SCHUMAN NEW YORK Copyright 1909, by W. B. Saunders Company This new Dover edition first published in 1959 Manufactured in the United States of America Dover Publications, Inc. 180 Varick Street New York 14, N. Y. UNDERGRAD R 133 C2 13 INTRODUCTION Masterpieces In the mass of scientific literature which appears year after Scientific year there occurs, very occasionally, an article which presents the buried results of experiment or investigation that prove epoch-making. These articles, though recording masterpieces of scientific research, are buried with valueless or ephemeral writings. this Volume Certain of my teachers, in presenting a subject at clinics and Growth of lectures, had, for the inspection of the students, the article which communicated such observations as first placed the subject upon a sound scientific basis. Subsequently, in my own teaching I followed this custom. There has thus resulted a collection, begun some twelve years ago, of epoch-making articles, a part of which is gathered into the present volume. original but of to-day Upon first thought one is disposed to conclude that to-day such Teaching of communications would be obsolete and of historic value only, observers but on reading the articles the fact becomes evident that the work not obsolete, and observations were so thoroughly and accurately done in the first instance that the teaching, practice, and terminology of to-day are either the same as when first communicated or based directly on these foundations. In many instances, subsequent writers have merely paraphrased the statements of the original observers, practical value Indeed, one may go further and say that some of the errors of today are the result of disregarding or misquoting the facts clearly Ignorance of set forth in these original treatises. As an example, Jenner's may lead to definite direction regarding the technique of vaccination, if ad-grave errors hered to, would prevent many of the infections and shocking ulcerations seen even in our own day. Again, in Laënnec's writings is to be found much that would clear the confusion regarding physical signs which teachers to-day discuss without even referring to the observations of this master-mind. In other branches of Other branches science, as physics and chemistry, in law and in art, the teachings of Learning of great authorities are familiarly quoted and used as guides. with originals these originals more familiar |