Life of Dr. Jenner. 147 



his mind. Eighteen years prior to that event, that is to 

 say, in the month of May, 1780, he had a glimpse of the 

 truth, and of the reputation that awaited him. He was 

 riding with his friend Gardner, on the road between 

 Gloucester and Bristol, when he briefly sketched out the 

 course which he hoped to pursue, and which he ultimately 

 lived to accomplished. At the meetings of the Alveston 

 club, formerly mentioned, he frequently brought forward 

 the subject of cow-pox, and earnestly recommended hig 

 friends to prosecute the inquiry ; but so little did they think 

 of it that they voted cow-pox a great bore, and threatened 

 to expel Jenner if he continued to harass them with so un- 

 profitable a subject, (p. 48.) To appreciate fully the merits 

 of Jenner, as the discoverer of vaccination, it should be 

 remembered, that he made no secret of his belief in its 

 virtues. In 1788, he took with him to London, a drawing 

 of the casual disease, as seen on the hands of the milkers, 

 and showed it to Sir Everard Home, and others. John 

 Hunter had often mentioned the fact in his lectures. Dr. 

 Adams heard of the cow-pox, both from Mr, Hunter and 

 Mr. Cline ; and in his treatise on the morbid poisons, pub- 

 lished in 1795, three years prior to the public announce- 

 ment of Jenner's views, mentions the principal facts then 

 known concerning it. Many other persons, too, (Dr. Hay- 

 garth for instance,) were acquainted generally with its 

 alleged powers ; yet no one had the boldness to stake his 

 fame and character upon this basis but Jenner. To what are 

 we to ascribe this? — not to the ambition of youth, for Jenner 

 was forty-seven, and had a comfortable independence when he 

 first published concerning cow-pox ; — not to mere vanity, for 

 Jenner was habitually of modest and retiring manners; but 

 it is to the confidence which science gave, that we are in- 

 debted for the introduction of vaccination. Jenner had 

 paid much attention to epizootic maladies, and the principles 

 which he had thence deduced emboldened him to perseveref 

 in an effort, in which he got no positive help and scarcely 

 any encouragement. He was thoroughly sensible, however, 

 of the heavy responsibility which he was incurring. His 

 feelings indeed, throughout his whole life, with reference 

 to this great event, do him the highest honour ; and we are 

 sure that our readers will be gratified by the picture which 

 he has himself left us of his own mind, soon after the suc- 

 cessful issue of his first and most important experiment. 



** While the vaccine discovery was progressive, the joy I felt at thq[ 

 prospect before me of being the instrument destined to take away front 



L2 



